Chapter 303: Going wild
Even after gaining favor, Wang Yanzhi's personality remained unchanged; he continued to act as if he didn't care about anything.
Aside from staying at Qiushui Residence to read and play the flute every day, he had nowhere else to go, and he rarely even set foot in the Imperial Garden.
Seeing that he had gained the emperor's favor, the women in the harem all wanted to curry favor with him.
Visitors came with exquisite pastries, gifts of new tea, and even Huang Mian specially organized an autumn poetry gathering and sent someone to invite him to attend, but he declined them all.
In his world, it seems that only Li Yuanzhao is worth his time and effort.
Aside from that, he seemed to ignore the infighting in the harem and the envy and attempts by others to win him over, paying no attention to them whatsoever.
This seemingly aloof yet almost obsessive focus, in the eyes of others, appears as arrogance and a lack of empathy.
In Li Yuanzhao's eyes, however, it became a unique sense of novelty.
After that night, it became clear to everyone that the Emperor had taken a liking to Wang Shiqing.
Even though the war was raging and military affairs were busy, she stayed at Qiushui Residence for half a month straight.
Such favor has been bestowed upon Consort Chen and Consort Huang, and now it is his turn.
Such is the way of imperial favor: when it is intense, it is like fire, which can instantly elevate a person to the heavens; when it is lukewarm, it is like ice, which can be discarded like worn-out shoes in an instant.
Everyone understands the principle, but when you're actually in the situation, how many people can truly see through it and accept it calmly?
Jue La Yun Dan was the one who could not accept it the most.
He considered himself to be of Tibetan royal lineage and superior in appearance, yet he had lost the emperor's favor to a woman who had fallen out of favor two years prior, and the flames of jealousy in his heart were already burning fiercely.
Especially after hearing that His Majesty had stayed at Qiushui Residence for half a month in a row, the panic and resentment of being completely replaced and forgotten gnawed at him day and night.
One afternoon, perhaps instigated by someone around him, he actually grabbed a riding whip and barged straight into the courtyard of Qiushui Residence.
Without saying a word, he raised his hand and lashed Wang Yanzhi several times!
While jealousy and rivalry among concubines are common, it is extremely rare for someone to openly break in with weapons and physically injure a higher-ranking concubine. This is blatant disregard for palace rules and a complete lack of respect for hierarchy.
Even the usually lenient Empress was genuinely enraged and ordered that Jue La Yundan be taken back to his residence, placed under strict guard, and confined to his quarters for two months as a warning to others.
However, what was even more surprising was Wang Yanzhi's attitude.
Instead of taking advantage of the situation, he pleaded for Jue La Yun Dan before the Empress.
He further strictly ordered Qiu Shui and his entourage not to reveal this matter to His Majesty.
Even when Li Yuanzhao was being intimate with him at night, he inadvertently saw the scars on his back and asked him what happened.
He simply brushed it off, saying that he had been careless and tripped and fell on the railing under the eaves.
After saying that, he took the initiative to kiss her lips, gently changing the subject so as not to let her worry about these trivial matters of the harem.
If he didn't speak, Li Yuanzhao didn't ask.
To her, the jealousy and infighting among the men in the harem were like the several expensive cats she kept, occasionally brandishing their claws and hissing and fighting each other to win her affection and attention.
Although there was some noise, it was not a serious matter.
I even found the process of scrambling for it to be quite interesting.
The tenderness that night was even greater than usual.
Li Yuanzhao seemed to transform his pity for his "injury" and his satisfaction with his "sensibility" into double the "affection" in bed.
Wang Yanzhi, even though the scars on his back caused him sharp pain during his movements.
But the pain intertwined with the pleasure of the moment, creating a strange sense of satisfaction that made his soul tremble, making him feel that dying at this moment would be worthwhile.
The news of Jue La Yun Dan storming into Qiu Shui Ju with a whip quickly spread throughout the palace.
This matter has caused a huge uproar and is simply outrageous!
Under the octagonal pavilion in the Imperial Garden, several attendants were drinking tea around a stone table, and the conversation naturally turned to this matter.
Consort Xue spoke first, her tone tinged with indignation: "If you ask me, the Empress is too lenient. Such blatant disregard for palace rules and insubordination only resulted in a two-month confinement? If it were anyone else, they would have been stripped of their title and banished to the Cold Palace long ago!"
He Cairen, standing beside him, shook her head and retorted in a low voice, "You make it sound so easy. Don't forget, what time is it now? His Majesty's army is still locked in a stalemate with Yangjin within Tibetan territory! What is Consort Chen's status? He is a prince of Tibet. I've heard that it's precisely because of his connection, coupled with the great rewards promised by His Majesty, that several powerful noble families within Tibet have secretly sided with the Great Qi and turned against Yangjin. So I think, no matter how outrageous his actions are, His Majesty won't really do anything to him."
After these words were spoken, everyone fell silent for a moment.
The affairs of the harem have always been intertwined with the affairs of the court. The value of Consort Chen is far more than just the title of "favored concubine".
After a moment, someone sighed and changed the subject: "That Minister Wang is really patient. Even when someone is riding on his head, he still speaks well of him."
"Do you think that's why the Emperor likes him so much?" Consort Xue chimed in, pressing for more information. "After all, in our harem, someone like him who can still consider the bigger picture even after being wronged is truly... unique. If he's not the Emperor, then..."
He paused, not saying "deeply scheming" aloud, but the meaning was clear.
"Perhaps." Huang Mian stroked the rim of the teacup, his tone tinged with ambiguity. "But in my opinion, there's probably more to it than that."
These words immediately piqued everyone's interest, and they all crowded forward to ask, "Oh? Is there anything else to it?"
Huang Mian looked around to make sure no one was watching before lowering his voice and speaking mysteriously, "I have a lowly guard in my palace whose brother from my hometown works at Qiushui Residence. I've heard that this Minister Wang has a lot of tricks up his sleeve in bed, and he's really got His Majesty wanting more, and he's gotten addicted to the pleasures of the place..."
"Style? What style?"
"How would I know the specifics?" Huang Mian waved his hand, but his smile became even more ambiguous. "However, I heard that Qiu Shui Ju calls for water several times every night. Sometimes, even when standing outside the courtyard wall in the middle of the night, you can still vaguely hear some... indescribable sounds coming from inside the hall."
Upon hearing this, He Cairen's eyes widened suddenly. "Really? He... he looks even weaker than me, yet he has such... stamina?"
“Yes,” the person next to him also disagreed, “He doesn’t seem…like that…”
"You can know a person's face but not their heart!" Consort Xue retorted immediately, her tone tinged with bitterness. "Do you think he's still the arrogant young master of the Wang family he was two years ago? After two years of being tormented in the palace, and then suddenly gaining favor, what wouldn't he do to secure that favor? Perhaps, in private, he's... indulging in debauchery! Otherwise, what kind of beauties hasn't His Majesty seen? How many talented and handsome young men have been sent to the palace over the years, how come he's so fond of him... lingering there for half a month without getting tired of him?"
"Shh! Watch your words!" Huang Mian's expression changed, and he promptly interrupted his increasingly explicit remarks. "These things are fine for us brothers to discuss in private. But if even a single word gets out, and people start making wild accusations and exaggerating them to the emperor... neither of us will escape unscathed!"
The crowd fell silent, but their eyes darted around, revealing that their thoughts were far from over.
It is said that when she returned home that night, Consort Xue secretly ordered her trusted palace servants to find some less-than-proper "picture books" circulating in the streets, determined to "know herself and her enemy" and even "surpass them".
He Cairen would practice his martial arts in the courtyard before dawn every day, making his muscles stronger and more powerful.
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