Qingying thought she would feel uncomfortable in the new bed, but when she woke up, the sun was already high in the sky.
"Yu Yue, what time is it now?"
"Your Majesty, it is already past 9 AM."
She sat up abruptly. "Oh no! I didn't go to pay my respects to Liu Shushu. She'll probably use this as an excuse to make trouble for me!"
The concubines in the harem were required to pay their respects to the Empress every day, especially since she was a newcomer to the palace and should have gone to serve tea to her first thing in the morning.
Tongxia smiled and said, "Your Majesty, don't worry. His Majesty said that since it's just you and the Empress in the palace, there's no need for you to pay your respects to the Empress every morning and evening."
"So, I won't have to face Liu Shushu's hypocritical face every day anymore?"
“Yes,” Yu Yue said, “His Majesty is spoiling you.”
Qingying's happy expression immediately vanished. She glanced at her and said, "You've only been in the palace for one day, and you're already siding with him. Who is your master, anyway?"
Yu Yue knelt down with a thud, bowed her head and said, "Your Majesty is my only mistress."
Qingying's gaze fell directly on the top of her head, as if she were deep in thought.
Seeing this, Tongxia also knelt down and explained, "Sister Yuyue is wholeheartedly devoted to Your Majesty, which is why she hopes Your Majesty can be happy. She inadvertently said too much, and I hope Your Majesty will not blame her."
Qingying pursed her lips, raised her hand slightly and said, "Why are you kneeling? I was just asking casually. Get up, I need to change my clothes."
"Yes." The two quickly got up and came over to help her.
Qingying is going to personally select a group of palace servants today. Wei Huaixu had previously promised her that she could choose the people who would serve her.
She needs to put in some effort to prevent someone from taking advantage of her and planting spies in her presence.
Upon learning of this, Wei Huaixu immediately sent Yu Ze to assist her.
Yu Ze, as expected of a veteran in the palace, arranged everything in an orderly manner. He first had the Shanggong Bureau organize the palace servants' registers, and then handed the organized registers to Qingying. The whole process took no more than two hours.
The booklet clearly records the names, hometowns, life stories, ranks, and other details of the palace women.
"Your Highness, I have brought all these people with me. They are waiting outside Bao Yi Palace. Would you like me to bring them over for you to see?"
Qingying couldn't help but praise, "Eunuch Yu is so meticulous in his work, no wonder His Majesty values you so much."
"Your Majesty flatters me. This is all I should do. As long as Your Majesty is happy, His Majesty will be happy, and I will be happy as well."
Yu entered the palace at a young age and served three emperors. He should be over forty years old now. His skin is fair and clean, and there is not a single wrinkle on his face when he is not smiling. If it weren't for the fact that his black hair has turned gray, people would probably believe that he is only in his early twenties.
She's good-looking, speaks sweetly, and is meticulous in her work. No wonder she can thrive in the ruthless imperial palace.
Qingying held him in some respect.
After leaving the main hall, Qingying ordered someone to invite all the palace servants outside in.
There were a full 120 palace servants standing in six rows. She ordered everyone to raise their heads and looked at them one by one, eliminating some of them based on their appearance.
They called out their names one by one, and Yu Yue crossed them out in the register.
In the first round, twenty-one people were eliminated.
Next, Qingying asked them to come forward and introduce themselves one by one, matching them against the list, and crossing out those who did not meet the requirements.
In the second round, thirty-six people were eliminated.
After two rounds, it was getting late, and she felt tired, so she dismissed the people temporarily and scheduled the next assessment for the next day.
"Your Majesty, His Majesty says he wants to come and have dinner with you."
Qingying waved her hand dismissively, "It's fine as long as you make the arrangements, I have no objections."
"Alright, this servant will make all the arrangements for you." Yu Ze respectfully withdrew.
...
Liu Shushu was in an unusually gloomy mood that day.
I heard early this morning that His Majesty had canceled the morning and evening greetings. For Liu Qingying's sake, he was willing to disregard her feelings at all.
"What an ungrateful and heartless person." She gently stroked the jade pendant in her hand, a flash of resentment in her eyes.
"Did they consummate their marriage last night?" she asked the palace maid beside her.
"The people we sent could only linger outside Baoyi Palace. They saw that the lights inside were already out before midnight, and they had no idea what was going on inside," the palace maid replied truthfully.
"What about the handkerchief?"
The palace maid shook her head. "I didn't see it."
Liu Shushu's eyes darted around, and she suddenly laughed out loud, "It seems they didn't consummate their marriage. Given Liu Qingying's personality, she probably hasn't forgiven him yet."
Her mood improved a little.
Suddenly, she remembered that day...
She planned to consummate her marriage with the Emperor before Liu Qingying entered the palace, because she knew that the Emperor had no romantic feelings for her, so she wanted to use this to solidify her position first.
Unfortunately, a plan is just a plan.
She invited Wei Huaixu to have dinner with her in her palace, and added a medicinal herb to the incense burner beforehand.
Wei Huaixu ate absentmindedly, gradually feeling increasingly thirsty. He drank a lot of water, but it did not relieve his thirst at all; instead, it intensified his restlessness.
Later, he became somewhat disoriented, unsure of where he was or who was in front of him. He squinted at the woman sitting opposite him, whose delicate face grew increasingly blurry before slowly transforming into another face.
"Jiaojiao..." he murmured softly, reaching out his hand and slowly approaching.
The cup slipped from Liu Shushu's hand, and the warm tea soaked her dress.
She was lifted up by Wei Huaixu and carried towards the bed in the inner hall.
"Ah Xu..." she called softly, shyly reaching out to wrap her arms around the man's neck.
Her back touched the bed, and her clothes were roughly torn off. Because it was almost summer, she was dressed lightly, and her fair skin was instantly exposed to the air.
Wei Huaixu pressed down on her, casually removing his clothes to reveal his muscular upper body, which was covered with countless crisscrossing scars of varying depths and ages, a shocking sight.
Even though Liu Shushu had seen many injured people, she couldn't help but be slightly surprised.
"Were you injured during your last exoneration?"
"Hmm," Wei Huaixu responded softly, his voice already hoarse.
He buried his face in Liu Shushu's neck, his large hands slowly tracing her graceful figure, slipping under her dress...
Liu Shushu's expression gradually became dazed, her lower lip trembled slightly as she bit it, and a blush crept onto her cheeks.
Just as she was lost in passion, a sudden sharp pain caused her face to turn pale instantly. She stared wide-eyed in disbelief at the man above her, whose expression had somehow returned to normal.
"You plotted against me, huh?"
She tried to resist, but was utterly helpless, bound by restraint. She opened her mouth, but couldn't utter a word; she could only gasp for breath in terror.
Wei Huaixu pressed his blood-stained fingers against the scar on her shoulder, wiped it, and scoffed, "So dirty."
The pain subsided, but the humiliation that followed was overwhelming.
"From now on, do not use such despicable methods against me again," he said coldly.
He then got up, put on his clothes, and left.
Liu Shushu remained curled up in bed, writhing in pain.
Every time she recalled that day, she felt incredibly humiliated.
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