Chapter 115 Exquisite Favor
Since Shuixian was diagnosed with another pregnancy, Emperor Zhaoheng practically treated Yongle Palace as a second Qianqing Palace.
Besides reviewing memorials, he spent most of his time here accompanying her.
A constant stream of gifts poured into Yongle Palace every few days, as if to make up for all the grievances she had suffered in the Cold Palace.
Such favoritism and affection drew the attention of the entire harem.
This was lunchtime.
The rosewood table was laden with exquisite dishes, all carefully prepared to suit Shui Xian's current taste.
Emperor Zhaoheng stayed by her side, personally watching her eat each dish to make sure she didn't have any nausea before he felt relieved and began to eat himself.
As Narcissus ate her meal, she looked at the mountain of gifts piled up in the hall and said softly and coquettishly:
"Your Majesty, the recent rewards are too generous. Your concubine... is truly unworthy of them."
Emperor Zhaoheng also saw the rewards piled up in the palace, which had not yet been sorted and sent to the storeroom.
Without waiting for a reply, he asked, "What are you saying, Xian'er?"
"You conceived my child alone in the cold palace and suffered immense injustice. What are these inanimate objects compared to that? Even if all the rarest treasures in the world were piled in front of you, you could endure it!"
Mentioning the Cold Palace, Shui Xian's eyes flickered slightly. There was something she had been planning for a long time, and taking advantage of Emperor Zhaoheng's mention of it, she said:
"Speaking of the Cold Palace... When I was there, I was fortunate to be taken care of by a concubine, so it was not too difficult."
"Now that I have come out, I see that her residence is very dilapidated and cold, and I feel really sorry for her. May I ask Your Majesty to grant some money and materials to renovate the residence of that Consort Dowager, so that I can repay your kindness."
Upon hearing this, Emperor Zhaoheng couldn't help but furrow his brow.
In his mind, the Cold Palace was always a place of bad luck and misfortune, and he did not want Narcissus to have any further connection with it.
But seeing her earnest and gentle expression, and thinking that she was now bearing his child, Emperor Zhaoheng naturally found it difficult to refuse her request.
He finally nodded, his tone indulgent: "Very well, it's good that Xian'er is kind-hearted and still cherishes old feelings. I grant your permission."
"Just tell the Imperial Household Department what you need."
He put down his silver chopsticks, reached out and gently stroked her still-flat stomach, and chuckled softly:
"As long as Xian'er takes good care of her health and gives birth to my son safely, I will do everything I can to pluck the stars from the sky for her, let alone the money to repair the house."
With the emperor's permission, Shui Xian chose a day and, under the full protection of Xiao Lizi, returned to the cold palace where she had been imprisoned for months.
The Imperial Household Department had already received the news and were on guard in advance, especially surrounding the dilapidated palace where Ruan Huan lived, fearing that the madwoman would suddenly attack again and harm Consort Jin and the imperial fetus.
When Narcissus entered the courtyard of the Cold Palace, she saw the dilapidated hall guarded by the guards.
Her eyes flickered slightly, and instead of visiting Ruan Huan first, she went straight to the small courtyard where Consort Liu lived.
The courtyard remained quiet, even tidier than when Narcissus left.
Narcissus brought more than ten thick winter coats, one hundred catties of high-quality silver charcoal, and three hundred taels of silver.
"I hope you are well, Madam."
Since the Dowager Consort had previously mentioned that she no longer needed to be addressed as Dowager Consort, Narcissus adopted a different way of addressing her elders, a way of addressing them as juniors.
Narcissus explained her purpose: "I have come today specifically to express my gratitude to Your Majesty for your past kindness."
"This is just a small gift, nothing more. I hope Your Majesty will accept it so that you may have a peaceful winter."
Consort Liu was tending to a hardy green plant indoors. Upon hearing this, she didn't even look up, her tone indifferent and aloof.
"You flatter me, Consort Jin."
"I am confined to this cold palace, barely able to take care of myself. How could I have ever looked after you? I don't know what makes you say such a thing, Your Highness."
The narcissus's mind is as clear as a mirror.
After Bao Xiaohuai died, no one in the Cold Palace came to cause trouble again.
The Cold Palace was implicitly headed by Consort Liu. If Consort Liu hadn't given her instructions, her days in the Cold Palace might not have been so peaceful.
She smiled slightly, not revealing her true intentions, but instead tentatively said, "A refined person like you cannot remain confined in this place for long."
"If Madam is willing, I may implore His Majesty to bring you out of the Cold Palace and move you to Shou'an Palace to live out your remaining years. Wouldn't that be better than the hardship you endure here?"
Shou'an Palace is located near Cining Palace. It was the residence of the late imperial concubine and was often referred to as "the residence of the imperial concubine" in the inner palace.
There are maids and eunuchs serving me there, and everything I eat, wear, and use is in accordance with the regulations for the Empress Dowager. Isn't that better than this cold palace?
Empress Dowager Liu then slowly straightened up, looked at Narcissus, and slowly shook her head.
A faint, worldly smile played on her lips: "Shou'an Palace? Ha, has the Imperial Concubine ever been to that so-called 'Imperial Concubine's Residence'?"
Narcissus shook her head: "Your Majesty, I have not."
"Sometimes, what people perceive as a cage may not actually be a prison. And what seems like a place of freedom may not truly be a place to live out one's old age in peace."
Consort Liu's gaze swept over her simple yet perfectly at home courtyard, her tone detached, "Here I am, though I am trapped in the cold palace, my heart has found true peace and freedom."
She paused, her gaze returning to Shui Xian, as if she had seen through her true purpose for coming: "I'm afraid Consort Jin's visit today is not just to see this old woman, is it?"
Seeing how insightful she was, Narcissus stopped beating around the bush and nodded frankly.
"If you don't cut the weeds at the root, they will grow back in the spring breeze... When eliminating evil, you must do it completely."
Upon hearing this, Consort Liu remained unmoved, simply waving her hand dismissively: "In that case, I won't delay Consort Jin from carrying out her business. Please proceed."
Shui Xian showed goodwill to Consort Liu not only because of Consort Liu's secret favor, but also because she intuitively felt that this person was someone she could befriend.
Seeing that Consort Liu had no intention of continuing the conversation, she left Consort Liu's place and went to the dilapidated side hall where she had once lived and where Ruan Huan was now imprisoned.
The guards at the gate were extremely nervous and tried to dissuade her: "Your Highness, that criminal woman inside is insane and unruly; she might disturb your imperial presence. Perhaps..."
"It's alright, I know what I'm doing."
With Riko by her side at all times, she felt no fear.
Seeing that Narcissus insisted, the guards had no choice but to open the gate and let her pass.
The hall was dimly lit and filled with a dusty smell.
Ruan Huan sat back on the cold wooden bed, wrapped in a thin quilt, like an empty shell without a soul, her eyes staring blankly at the moldy wall.
Hearing footsteps, her eyes moved extremely slowly. When she saw it was Narcissus, a faint ripple seemed to flicker in her empty eyes, but it quickly vanished, leaving only a numb, lifeless silence.
She turned her gaze back to the wall, her voice hoarse and weak, tinged with a resigned mockery:
"What? Is the high and mighty Consort Jin here to laugh at me?"
"Aren't you very proud of yourself for looking at me now, neither human nor ghost?"
Narcissus did not answer immediately; her gaze slowly swept across the room.
The familiar dilapidation, the familiar coldness—this was where she once lived.
Seeing that she remained silent, Ruan Huan assumed that she had guessed correctly, and sneered, her voice as sharp as a broken gong:
"Heh, can't say anything now?"
She seemed to know what Narcissus wanted to say, and said coldly, "Are you trying to tell me that the Emperor has never loved me? Are you trying to say that the Emperor has only ever valued the Ruan family behind me? Are you trying to say that I deserve what I have done?"
She spat self-deprecatingly, her breath weak yet filled with hatred, "If that's all, save it! I know everything without you having to tell me!"
However, to her surprise, Narcissus slowly shook her head.
“No,” Narcissus’s calm voice was particularly clear in the cold palace, “I didn’t come here to say these things.”
Ruan Huan froze, then finally turned her head again, a hint of doubt showing in her cloudy eyes.
Looking at the weak woman from a few steps away, Shui Xian said calmly, "Your Majesty, of course he loved you."
Ruan Huan's pupils suddenly contracted.
"If I didn't love you, why would I have tolerated you time and time again after you plotted poisonous schemes, even implicating the imperial heirs, only demoting you and still allowing you to remain in the palace to preserve your dignity?"
Narcissus spoke slowly, as if stating a fact.
“He gave you many chances, Ruan Huan. It was you who…never cherished them, gradually exhausting his tolerance and old feelings.”
"Shut up! What do you know?!"
Ruan Huan seemed to have her deepest wounds exposed, and she suddenly became agitated, her voice becoming harsh, yet she was too weak to breathe.
"You think you've won now? You think the Emperor loves you now?!"
"Ha...you're dreaming! He only loves your belly! He loves you so you can have his child! You're nothing but a tool for him to produce offspring!"
She cursed viciously, trying to see collapse on Narcissus's face.
However, Narcissus's expression remained unchanged, chillingly calm.
Did the Emperor see her as a tool? And didn't she also see the Emperor as a tool to reach the pinnacle of power and achieve revenge?
She even nodded slightly, agreeing with Ruan Huan, her tone indifferent: "Yes, you're right. The Emperor loves you, but he doesn't love me."
Ruan Huan was taken aback by her unusual reaction.
Shuixian took two steps forward, and under Ruan Huan's gaze, suddenly turned her eyes to the bed beneath Ruan Huan, a slight smirk playing on her lips, and said sarcastically:
"Do you know that even when I was trapped in the cold palace, the emperor would often come quietly at midnight to pity me, cherish me, and comfort me tenderly."
She paused slightly, looking at Ruan Huan's suddenly wide, incredulous eyes, and said sarcastically, word by word:
"Perhaps, the Emperor loved you too much and cared about you too much, fearing that seeing you in such a miserable and suffering state would break his heart... That's why he never came to this cold palace to take a look at you."
After he finished speaking, the hall fell into a deathly silence.
Ruan Huan's bloodshot eyes widened, and the last glimmer of light in the depths of her pupils shattered completely.
Narcissus, who witnessed all of this, felt only coldness in her heart.
like?
In this deep palace, love is truly the most useless yet most useful thing.
It can give someone hope, and it can also give her despair.
Why bother?
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