Chapter 656 Let's Play in the Water as Mandarin Ducks
Back at Kunning Palace, Jiang Fenghua had water prepared for a bath. She also had people inquire that Xie Shang hadn't rested since returning to the palace and had been busy with state affairs.
It wasn't until her body was submerged in the hot water that she felt completely relaxed.
Hongxiu and Lianye quietly slipped in. "Your Highness, let us serve you your bath! You left the palace without taking us with you. We miss you so much."
Lianye said, "This servant will rub Your Highness's back."
Hongxiu said, "This servant has prepared some new essential oil for Your Highness. Please try it after you have finished washing."
Jiang Fenghua smiled and said, "I don't feel comfortable leaving the child in the care of others, so I'm afraid you two will have to make do!"
Hongxiu also said, "Your Majesty, please rest assured, the princes and princesses are all well. It's just that the Third Princess cried a lot at night. We asked the imperial physician to examine her, and he said there was nothing wrong. He told us to take good care of her and she would be fine when she grew up."
Lianye sighed, "I've heard that mothers and children have a telepathic connection. The Third Princess was born without a mother's love. Although her wet nurse took good care of her, she was not her biological mother. I've heard that children can fall asleep peacefully when they smell their mother's scent. The Third Princess is truly pitiful."
Jiang Fenghua fell into deep thought, "Bring the Third Princess to my room later!"
"What should we do about the Fourth Prince?" Lianye asked.
Jiang Fenghua was stunned. "Bring it over here too!"
"How can Your Majesty take care of two children by yourself? Besides, His Majesty will be coming over tonight."
Jiang Fenghua was furious at the mere mention of Xie Shang. "I'm going to sleep with the children tonight. If he wants to come, he can sleep here!"
Both of them were taken aback by these words. Why was the Empress suddenly angry? Had the Emperor angered her again?
This morning, when Jiang Fenghua returned to the city, she asked Gao Qingtong and Song Tong to take the other concubines back to the palace first, while she went to Jishantang. She didn't know anything about medicine, so she couldn't help if she stayed. And with Bai Yuhan's matter, her mood was even worse.
Xie Shang, having to attend the morning court session, returned early and didn't emerge from the imperial study until the afternoon.
He asked Wuxin, "Has the Empress returned to the palace?"
Wu Xin asked, "Having just returned, is Your Majesty going to Kunning Palace?"
“Of course we’ll go to Kunning Palace. From now on, the Imperial Household Department won’t need to send any more name tags,” he said.
"Yes." Wuxin said loudly again, "His Majesty has prepared his carriage for Kunning Palace."
He was also thinking to himself: Does the fact that the emperor doesn't need to choose a concubine mean that he will spend the night in Kunning Palace from now on?
Xie Shang bumped into Granny Wang as he arrived at the gate of Kunning Palace. "Is the Empress in her bedchamber or in a side hall?"
"Your Majesty, the Empress is taking a bath! Your Majesty, why don't you go to the side hall and see the princes and princesses first?" Granny Wang looked at the Emperor with some pity. She didn't say anything. On the way back to the palace, the Empress didn't ask her a single question. She was probably disappointed in her too, just because everyone was keeping the matter of Consort Han a secret.
Upon hearing that Jiang Fenghua was taking a bath, Xie Shang said, "I'll go find her. Granny Wang, you can continue with your work!"
Granny Wang replied, "Yes."
She then looked in the direction of the Emperor, only to see that he went directly to the Empress's bedchamber. Granny Wang was also helpless; there was no way to stop him. It was just a matter of how to appease the Empress's anger.
Xie Shang pushed open the door and entered, arriving at a side room where two maids were attending to the Empress's bath. Upon seeing the Emperor's sudden arrival, they quickly rose and bowed, saying, "This servant greets Your Majesty."
"You may all step back!" Xie Shang said.
The two maids exchanged a glance. "Yes."
Jiang Fenghua was still soaking in the bathtub with her eyes closed, resting. They had just washed her hair, and some kind of fragrance had been added to the tub, making it smell of flowers. Her fatigue seemed to disappear instantly.
The maid tidied up the bathroom before leaving.
Xie Shang approached, intending to put his arm around Jiang Fenghua's shoulder, but Jiang Fenghua suddenly shrank back and submerged her entire head in the water.
Xie Shang smiled slightly, thinking that Jiang Fenghua was playing with him. He couldn't wait to take off his clothes, and his voice became ambiguous and warm, "Ruan Ruan".
Jiang Fenghua submerged her head underwater. The moment she heard Xie Shang's voice, the anger in her chest rose again, so she had to go into the water to calm down for a while, because she was afraid she would turn around and punch Xie Shang.
Jiang Fenghua held her breath underwater until she was on her last breath before emerging. She seemed to be radiating light. Her skin was smooth and delicate, with a rosy glow. She was breathing heavily through her mouth and nose, and her full breasts were rising and falling inside her bodice, like ripe peaches.
Xie Shang had taken off half of his clothes when he saw her face, as beautiful as a lotus emerging from water, and her graceful figure. Every drop of water falling from her cheeks was like a crystal-clear pearl, and each one fell on his heart.
His throat bobbed involuntarily. Thinking back to the night of their investiture ceremony, he suddenly felt his blood boil, his heart race, and his face flush. Looking at the stunningly beautiful Jiang Fenghua, he was momentarily mesmerized.
No matter how many years have passed, Jiang Fenghua is still beautiful, no, she is getting more and more beautiful.
She suddenly spoke up, "Has Your Majesty seen enough? If so, please bring me a bathrobe. I'm ready to get up after washing."
Xie Shang then came to his senses and smiled, "Ruan Ruan, don't rush to get up. Let's bathe together and enjoy the water like mandarin ducks."
Jiang Fenghua sneered, "The Emperor seems to know quite a lot."
"Isn't this all for Ruan Ruan!"
Just as Xie Shang took off his clothes, leaving only his underwear, and was about to enter the water, Jiang Fenghua also stood up from the water. She had a curvaceous figure, a slender waist, and long, fair legs that stepped out of the water.
Xie Shang pulled her into his arms and was about to kiss her when she smiled and stopped him, saying, "Your Majesty, please wash yourself first. I find you dirty!"
She pushed him away, turned around, grabbed a bathrobe, wrapped it around herself, and walked behind the screen: "Your Majesty, you are not allowed to come in until you are clean. Remember to make sure you are clean."
Xie Shang was blinded by lust and jumped into the water without thinking twice. Jiang Fenghua was inviting him to go to Wushan together!
Jiang Fenghua quickly changed out of her wet undergarment, dried herself off, and put on clean clothes. Xie Shang was truly a lecher; she wanted him to only be able to see and feast his eyes on him, but ultimately not have him.
She emerged from behind the screen, dressed neatly, only to find Xie Shang had already dived into the water.
He said, "Ruan Ruan, you wait for me."
"Your Majesty, please take your time washing!" she said again. "Your Majesty's clothes are dirty, so throw them in the water and wash them clean!" She remembered that there were no clothes for the Emperor in Kunning Palace.
Xie Shang thought she was deliberately seducing him, and his mood became even more cheerful.
When Hongxiu and Lianye saw her come out, they quickly said, "It's so cold, why is Your Highness out alone? Where is the Emperor?"
Jiang Fenghua leaned close to their ears: "In a little while..."
After saying that, she went straight to the children's room.
Upon hearing this, the two were so shocked they nearly popped their eyes out. What happened to the Emperor and Empress? Had they quarreled?
Sure enough, Xie Shang quickly came out of the bathtub and went straight to the bed, only to find it empty, without even a trace of being disturbed. He called out, "Ruan Ruan, I'm done bathing. Where did you hide?"
But no one paid any attention to him. He was only wrapped in a bath towel and wasn't even wearing underwear: "Ruan Ruan."
Still, no one paid any attention to him.
Xie Shang sensed something was wrong and searched everywhere, but Jiang Fenghua wasn't hiding anywhere! Where had she gone instead of waiting for him in bed?
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