Xuanyuan Ye saw a beautiful face that was both elegant and charming.
Her delicate, petite face, with eyebrows like distant mountains and lips like cherry blossoms, and clear, clean eyes, suddenly filled with terror the moment she saw him.
Jiang Tian immediately knelt down, her voice soft and melodious, with an excellent tone: "Greetings, Your Majesty. This servant is Princess Jiang Tian of the Southern Kingdom."
Having no official rank, they could only refer to themselves as slaves.
It was her.
Xuanyuan Ye stared at her intently, his gaze carrying a sense of oppression.
He had naturally seen Jiang Tian when the Southern Kingdom's envoys paid their respects last time, but she was wearing a veil and standing at the back, so he hadn't paid any attention to her.
Now it seems that things are not quite as he expected...
He didn't let Jiang Tian get up, and strolled over to the zither: "Where did this zither come from?"
Jiang Tian answered cautiously, "It was a broken zither in the storeroom, which I repaired."
Xuanyuan Ye looked at it and indeed saw signs of repair.
As the night deepened, Xuanyuan Ye surveyed the palace by the light of the lamps and the moon.
He often came to pay respects to that deceased friend, and always passed by this place, so he had some impression of it.
The once overgrown weeds have disappeared, and although the yard is still empty, at least it is clean and tidy.
She even cleared out a piece of land...
Xuanyuan Ye left without saying anything.
Jiang Tian is a disgrace to the Zhao Kingdom. His entry was already an accident. The right thing to do is to have no interaction with this woman whatsoever.
It was long after he left that Jiang Tian dared to stand up.
Jiang Tian didn't tell anyone about what happened that night, and neither did Xuan Yuan Ye.
Both of them knew how to make themselves more at peace.
Xuanyuan Ye intended to let Jiang Tian fend for herself, but things didn't go as planned, and not long after, he saw Jiang Tian again.
That night, a strong wind blew, and the palace was dilapidated. Fearing that the memorial tablets of his deceased relatives would be blown over and destroyed by the wind, Xuanyuan Ye went there alone.
On the way back, the wind was stronger and thunder was booming.
Apart from his confidants, very few people knew he was coming here.
If you get soaked by the rain and someone with ulterior motives sees it, who knows what kind of rumors they'll spread.
After a moment's thought, Xuan Yuan Ye changed course, intending to go and avoid Jiang Tian for a while.
The entire palace belongs to him; he doubts she would dare refuse.
Xuanyuan Ye seemed to subconsciously overlook the fact that he could have simply taken refuge in the palace of an old friend, without bothering another unrelated person.
He went up and knocked on the door twice.
Not long after, a woman's voice, tinged with wariness, rang out from inside the door: "Who is it?"
"It is I, open the door."
The door opened shortly after the sound faded.
Jiang Tian looked at him with trepidation, as if she didn't quite understand why he was here.
"The sky is overcast, it looks like it's going to rain soon, so I'll stay here for a while."
Xuanyuan Ye offered an explanation.
Jiang Tian said softly, "Yes."
Xuanyuan Ye subconsciously looked Jiang Tian up and down, only to find that she was wearing only a thin shirt and her hair was all loose.
Her clothes were very thin, and through the shadows, one could glimpse her slender and graceful figure and her delicate, snow-white skin.
Xuanyuan Ye looked away, but his gaze was drawn to her feet.
Her small feet were snow-white, with a perfect shape and slender ankles.
Xuanyuan Ye's expression shifted.
But he still didn't say anything.
Since he didn't speak, Jiang Tian naturally didn't dare to speak either.
She stood there, head slightly bowed, her posture exuding gentleness.
Xuanyuan Ye was naturally aware of her background, but there were countless pitiful people in this world, and he couldn't possibly care for them all.
Since she was brought in as a humiliating gift, Xuanyuan Ye cannot bestow any favors upon her.
Although the room was old, it had a faint fragrance, and Xuan Yuan Ye could tell that she did not want to die.
After all, people cannot bear to be humiliated; a three-foot-long white silk ribbon is enough to settle the matter.
She even weeded the yard.
He gave her a deep look. If she behaved herself and wanted to live, Xuan Yuan Ye would naturally not stop her.
The two remained silent for a long while, and then the dark clouds slowly dispersed, but the rain did not fall.
Xuanyuan Ye got up, looked at the night sky, and left without saying a word to Jiang Tian.
Back in the imperial study, Xuanyuan Ye pondered for a moment and asked Eunuch Chen beside him, "When will those young ladies enter the palace?"
Eunuch Chen replied respectfully, "After three months, those young ladies will come to the palace to stay for a period of time. If the Emperor is satisfied, he can assign them palaces."
Xuanyuan Ye pondered for a moment and nodded.
At this moment, Eunuch Chen cautiously hinted, "Your Majesty, wouldn't it be best to quietly deal with that one in the Cold Palace?"
In a practical sense, Jiang Tian was Xuan Yuan Ye's first woman.
Xuanyuan Ye ascended the throne very early, but in the past few years he was busy dealing with the remnants of the princes' faction and consolidating his imperial power. However, when he wanted to select a concubine, the Southern Kingdom sent Jiang Tian to him.
Eunuch Chen's thinking was quite thorough. Since Jiang Tian's existence was a disgrace, why should she occupy the position of the Emperor's first woman?
They could simply get rid of her quietly. As long as the Southern Kingdom wanted to attack, they would have countless reasons. Having one more or one less Jiang Tian wouldn't make much difference in practical terms.
Eunuch Chen made this suggestion because he was afraid that this woman would cause trouble for the concubines who would later enter the palace.
Moreover, the young lady who was most likely to become empress had even made a special effort to find connections and give him instructions.
Jiang Tian was just a minor character, but people always have a possessive streak, so Eunuch Chen, wanting to do a good deed, boldly offered his opinion.
"Chen Shu, do you think everyone else is a fool?"
Xuanyuan Ye didn't respond to him, but instead asked another question.
Chen Gonggong was startled, his knees buckled, and he immediately knelt down.
"If you stretch your arm out too far, watch out for your head."
Eunuch Chen broke out in a cold sweat.
"Go out and receive twenty strokes of the cane."
Xuanyuan Ye didn't even raise his head.
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
After Eunuch Chen left, he couldn't catch his breath for a long time.
He'd been flattered too much these past few days and almost fell into a trap.
Xuan Yuan Ye naturally understood what those people were thinking.
For him, the way to govern people is to have a balance between tension and relaxation, and between restraint and leniency.
However, Jiang Tian... Xuan Yuan Ye paused in his writing, remembering that night. Since she wanted to live, he would not take her life out of thin air.
That's what he thought, but some people, eager to curry favor with the future empress, started taking action early on.
Jiang Tian realized that her body was not feeling well three days later.
She planted the seeds, but it will take some time before she can harvest them.
Her food still comes from the imperial kitchen.
Xiao Fuzi was just a gofer; even if she could get some extra meals from time to time, she had to tighten her belt.
Most of her meals were prepared by the imperial kitchen staff.
No one came to the cold palace, yet she contracted an illness out of nowhere.
There is no other reason than that someone deliberately poisoned him to commit murder.
She felt her body growing weaker day by day, and her symptoms worsened with each passing day. She was still clinging to life for many days, which indicated that the other party was using a slow-acting medication.
If she were to suddenly die, it might arouse suspicion; but if she were to be bedridden and suffer from a prolonged, untreated illness, it would be much more normal.
When Jiang Tian shared her guess with Xiao Fuzi, he was immediately shocked.
"Who wants to harm you?"
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