King Zhao mumbled the warm liquid and drank it all in one gulp. Then, he stretched out his long arm, muttered something, pulled Shi Lan into his arms, rolled onto the bed, and began snoring loudly.
Shi Lan tilted her head to the side, looked at Yuan Yun who was standing frozen in place, and sneered inwardly.
Previously, out of consideration for the life-saving grace, she had no choice but to endure it even though she knew Yuan Yun had ulterior motives.
It seems to be working well. After two months of procrastination, Yuan Yun's patience ran out, and she finally couldn't resist taking action.
After New Year's Day, it's time for the new year.
The Zhao state now has a strong army and ample supplies, which should be a good opportunity to expand its territory. However, the five states are currently at peace, and King Zhao is eager to fight, but there is no suitable pretext to send troops.
Within the palace, Duan Yang fell from power, and palace affairs were initially handled by Yi, a eunuch deeply favored by King Zhao, before being transferred to Shi Lan.
Shi Lan had no interest in these tedious matters, so she left all the trivialities to Rong to handle.
Shi Lan was very dissatisfied with Yuan Yun's actions the night before.
After King Zhao left his bed for court in the early morning, Rong came to the curtain and whispered the whole story of how Yuan Yun refused to accept money and asked to stay and serve Shi Lan.
Shi Lan lowered her eyes, seemingly fast asleep.
Rong listened intently for a while, and seeing no movement, his expression changed.
The status, dignity, and glory that power brings are addictive once tasted. Rong never wanted to have her power taken away, so her fear when Shi Lan remained silent was understandable.
At this moment, she was filled with endless regret. She regretted that she should have softened her heart when she saw Yuan Yun's pitiful appearance, and that she should have treated Yuan Yun differently because of her life-saving grace to Shi Lan. She regretted even more that she should have suppressed Yuan Yun when she knew that Yuan Yun was unwilling to be a slave, and let her run wild.
A thousand regrets swirled in her heart, making Rong's heart feel like it was being scorched by fire and torn apart by knives.
A quarter of an hour later, Shi Lan's long, curled eyelashes trembled slightly. After a moment, she opened her eyes, raised her hand and stretched her white, snow-white hand out from behind the curtain, and said gently and quietly, "Help me up."
Shi Lan's words were soft and gentle, like a spring flowing slowly through Rong's ears, extinguishing the fire within her, leaving only a tiny spark of relief flickering.
"Did Your Excellency sleep well?"
Shi Lan nodded and slowly sat down next to the dressing mirror.
Rong Xiaoxin tied up Shi Lan's long hair and helped her wash her face. When the other palace maids had retreated to the palace gate and were about to serve the meal, she asked in a low voice, "What does the Noble Lady want to do with Yuan Yun?"
Shi Lan raised her hand to smooth a stray hair from her temple and said nonchalantly, "Send two people to keep a close eye on her. As for what she does, just report back promptly."
Rong heard that Shi Lan's tone was not resentful or angry, and felt a little relieved. The anxiety that had been weighing on her mind since last night finally subsided.
In the days that followed, scenes of young girls seducing older men frequently unfolded in the palace. Shi Lan simply ordered people to keep an eye on Yuan Yun, and she remained gentle and quiet towards Prince Zhao every day. Even if she occasionally noticed anything unusual about Prince Zhao, she would only tease him playfully. The Prince Zhao's fear of killing a concubine out of jealousy never came to pass.
Half a month passed in the blink of an eye. As the weather gradually warmed up, Shi Lan changed her habit of staying in Linquan Palace and spent most of her time in the garden every day. When she occasionally met beauties and maidens from other palaces, Shi Lan would warmly invite them to enjoy the flowers and tea together.
One day, Shi Lan was enjoying tea and chatting with a group of beauties in the pavilion in the garden, as usual.
From afar, a palace maid hurried over from outside, whispered a few words in her ear, and Shi Lan immediately stood up and left without saying a word.
Everyone looked at each other, completely bewildered. They all saw the palace maid whisper a few words in Shi Lan's ear, and then Shi Lan's already fair face turned completely bloodless.
In the harem, the most idle people are the concubines. Although they all have a good impression of Shi Lan, who treats the concubines well, it does not affect their burning passion for gossip.
After exchanging glances, one of them said, "Your Excellency looks so unwell, I am truly worried. Let's take the female physician over to see her."
Another said, "What Lady Liu says is absolutely right. I was just as worried. Why don't we go together?"
Several people nearby chimed in, "Let's go, let's go! We're sisters with Consort Shi, if we don't go and see her, we'll be restless at night."
With everyone talking amongst themselves, they all got up and headed towards Linquan Palace.
Shi Lan, who had returned to Linquan Palace earlier, was holding her forehead, her face pale and on the verge of fainting.
King Zhao looked at Shi Lan who had burst into the hall, awkwardly pushed away Yuan Yun, who was trembling and clinging to him, smoothed his disheveled clothes, and stood up, saying sheepishly, "My beloved consort..."
Shi Lan's eyes were filled with tears, and her pale lips trembled like fallen leaves in the wind. "Is Your Majesty enjoying yourself with palace maids here because you are dissatisfied with me?"
"My beloved concubine," King Zhao reached out to embrace Shi Lan, but Shi Lan turned away and dodged him.
"Your Majesty, I am physically weak and unable to manage the affairs of the harem. I humbly request that Your Majesty choose another wise and virtuous woman. I will go to the Cold Palace to copy scriptures and pray for the late Queen."
Today, Shi Lan is wearing a moon-white long dress. Her graceful bow is like a pure white orchid blooming. Combined with her cool and indifferent demeanor, and her proud head held high with tears in her eyes, she has the beauty of a snow-capped flower standing proudly on the mountaintop.
King Zhao frowned and hurriedly bent down to help Shi Lan up, but Yuan Yun rushed off the couch and threw herself into his arms, crying, "Uncle..."
King Zhao paused, then quickly embraced Yuan Yun. He was worried that Yuan Yun's rough actions would hurt Shi Lan, who was already weak, causing her not only emotional distress but also physical harm.
Shi Lan stared blankly at King Zhao's actions, her eyes flashing with sadness, disappointment, and self-mockery.
When King Zhao saw Shi Lan's changing expression, he suddenly felt a pang of panic, as if something had vanished in an instant, and a nameless fear gripped his heart.
Shi Lan slowly stood up from the ground, reached out and gently pulled out the jade hairpin that King Zhao had once personally pinned in her hair. Her long, black hair slid down her waist in an arc like splashed ink, and the crystal-clear jade hairpin slipped out with it.
With a soft "snap," the sound was so faint that one might think it was just an illusion, yet it was also so loud that it made King Zhao's arm tremble, almost causing him to miss Yuan Yun's outstretched hand.
“My beloved concubine…” Zhao Wang’s eyes reddened slightly. He couldn’t help but want to get up and pull Shi Lan away, but he forgot that his arm was being tightly held by the shy and timid Yuan Yun.
Shi Lan turned to look at him, a slight smile suddenly appearing on her lips. "Your Majesty, I've been feeling lately that my days are numbered. I used to worry about you whenever I thought of you. But it's alright now. When I'm gone, someone will take my place and stay with you."
Shi Lan spoke in a relaxed and pleasant tone, as if she were saying that the weather was nice today.
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