Chapter 53 Chapter 53 Poor acting.
Lin Zhen was awakened by a strange noise.
"Shh-"
She opened her eyes hazily. A girl with twin buns squatted beside the couch and winked at her. Then there was a knock on the door, and someone asked, "Miss, do you have any instructions?"
The girl looked at her pleadingly and waved her hands repeatedly.
Lin Zhen didn't understand what was going on and replied hesitantly, "No."
The girl heaved a sigh of relief and slumped down on the ground. After a short rest, she dusted off her clothes and stood up. Seeing Lin Zhen staring at her strangely, she smiled wryly and said, "I'm a palace maid who ran away from Qionghua Palace. They abused me, and I couldn't bear the humiliation, so I ran away."
Lin Zhen still looked at her with a frown.
She continued, "What about you? Why haven't I seen you before? Are you the new queen?"
She had explored this palace beforehand and found that no one lived there. She had hidden here the day before yesterday and hadn't seen anyone for two days. This was the only explanation.
Palace maid? Empress?
"Where is this place?" Lin Zhen asked.
The young girl opened her eyes wide, leaned over to her, and as she examined him, she murmured, "Such a beautiful person, yet he's actually a fool. No wonder he was sent to the palace."
In the palace...the imperial palace?
She suddenly sat up and strode out. The moment she opened the door, the nine-story palace with carved railings and painted buildings came into view.
Lin Zhen couldn't believe that she was actually in the palace.
But... who brought her into the palace? She only vaguely remembered being knocked unconscious.
Glancing at the maid bowing her head outside the door, Lin Zhen asked, "Do you know who arranged for me to be here?"
"Miss, it's Eunuch Wang," the maid replied.
Lin Zhen suddenly realized that she didn't know anyone in the palace, and there was no point in asking.
She didn't know what the other party's intentions were, but at the moment, it seemed that he had no intention of hurting her, so she didn't ask any further questions.
A low rumbling sound came from his stomach at an inopportune time, and Lin Zhen awkwardly raised his sleeves to cover his abdomen.
The well-trained palace maid remained calm, simply bowed and said, "Please wait a moment, young lady. I will serve the meal."
She had been in a coma for a day and a night, and her stomach was rumbling with hunger, but when the delicious food was placed in front of her, she had no appetite at all.
I wonder if Ji Rui will think that she deliberately escaped again and take his anger out on his sister and others.
"Sister...how about you eat something too?" The girl's cheeks were stuffed, and her red lips were moist and shiny with oil. After two days of hunger, her stomach finally filled up, and she remembered that this meal belonged to the woman in front of her.
Lin Zhen pushed a plate of roasted duck meat closer to the girl and said, "Eat it."
"By the way, do you recognize Eunuch Wang?"
The girl frowned slightly, quickly swallowed the food in her mouth, and replied thoughtfully, "I only know a eunuch named Wang, the chief eunuch of the Imperial Household and the Purple Palace, Wang Teng. He is a favorite of His Majesty, so you must not offend him."
She decided to give Lin Zhen some advice.
Is this your Majesty's will?
Lin Zhen wasn't sure.
If it is your majesty's will, why not summon him explicitly?
Lin Zhen had no idea and could only wait.
Unexpectedly, there was no movement for a few days. Apart from the maid who stood guard at the door and served her food and daily life, no one else came.
The maid did not restrict Lin Zhen's freedom. She could move around freely. In addition to what she got from the girl, after a few days, she had roughly known the locations of the palaces where the emperor handled daily government affairs and met with ministers. However, she did not dare to ask for a meeting rashly.
On this day, Lin Zhen was strolling by the lake behind the palace as usual. There was already someone in the pavilion where she usually sat by the lake. It was an old man with gray hair.
Lin Zhen originally planned to return to the bedroom, but he saw the old man suddenly stand up, his face purple and swollen, and his behavior strange.
Lin Zhen quickly stepped forward and glanced at the plate of lychees next to the chessboard on the table. He acted decisively, pressed the old man against the edge of the table, and used his elbow to force out the kernel stuck in his throat.
The old man gasped for breath. Lin Zhen helped him sit down. Before she could breathe a sigh of relief, someone in the distance shouted, "How dare you! Let go of His Majesty! Protect the emperor!"
When she came to her senses, she was forced to kneel down by the imperial guards who had rushed over after hearing the noise.
Wang Teng came running over with the imperial physician, panting. "Quick, quick, check His Majesty's pulse," he said, panting.
After confirming that the emperor was safe and sound, he finally felt relieved. After his breathing calmed down, he immediately gave the order: "Capture this assassin!"
The emperor smiled and waved his hands, "She saved me. Get up."
Lin Zhen was stunned for a long moment, his voice trembling slightly as he bowed his head and pleaded guilty: "I, the daughter of a guilty minister, Lin Zhen, pay my respects to Your Majesty."
The emperor paused, his gaze fixed on her kneeling back, but it seemed as if his eyes were looking through her to somewhere else. He slowly picked up the tea and took a sip. "So it's you, sit down."
The emperor looked at her and smiled gently, "Lin Yunfeng's daughter should be able to play chess."
Lin Zhen sat across from the emperor, still in shock. Finally, after Wang Teng's cough, she came to her senses and said, "I know a thing or two."
The emperor said nothing, just smiled and placed a black chess piece on the chessboard, looking at Lin Zhen.
All this happened too suddenly, and Lin Zhen was full of doubts. She had never expected that this old man with white hair would be the current emperor. She vaguely remembered that the emperor was only in his early forties.
However, His Majesty's reaction did not seem to be surprised by her appearance in the palace. It seemed that this was indeed his instruction.
But why would Your Majesty do this?
When she woke up, she had been dressed from head to toe, and her letter and underwear were gone.
Where is her letter? Has Your Majesty seen it?
Although my father's letter was given to the Marquis of Yong'an for safekeeping, it was written to Your Majesty. It was more of a memorial than a letter.
From the moment she walked out of Ning Mansion with the letter, she had already been thinking about how to meet His Majesty and present the letter to him in person.
But now that His Majesty was sitting just a few feet away from her, she didn't know how to start.
His Majesty was dressed in a plain grey Hangzhou silk uniform, his hair loosely tied up with only a black jade hairpin. He was gentle and approachable. Thinking of how kind His Majesty had been in handling the Third Prince's rebellion, she should have relaxed, but she always felt an inexplicable pressure.
Lin Zhen drove away all distracting thoughts in his mind, focused his mind on the chessboard, and slowly put the white chess piece down.
Once she focused, she was like a fish in water. Her moves seemed gentle, but in fact she was cautious and forcing the emperor into a desperate situation without leaving any room for maneuver.
"Your Majesty, are you thirsty?" Wang Teng served the emperor a cup of tea at the right time.
Lin Zhen's eyelashes trembled slightly. He raised the chess piece that was about to fall and thought for a long time before putting it down.
A quarter of an hour later, the game was decided. Wang Teng smiled and complimented, "Your Majesty is a master of strategy and moves with flying moves. You are quite like a national master!"
The emperor smiled and glared at Wang Teng, then turned to Lin Zhen and said, "Don't be influenced by this fool. Just play chess according to your own ideas. This is an imperial decree."
Lin Zhen's earlobes turned slightly red and he responded in a low voice.
As the sun set in the west, the emperor had lost five games in a row.
He sat up straight and stretched his arms, his face slightly displeased as he asked, "What time is it?"
Wang Teng replied, "Your Majesty, it is three quarters past midnight. The Changsheng Palace has prepared dinner and is waiting for Your Majesty to return to the palace."
The emperor stood up, a smile on his face again, and said to Lin Zhen, "Have dinner with me."
*
She was still in a daze until Wang Teng sent Lin Zhen back to the bedroom.
A sudden, crisp voice finally brought her back to reality. "You came back so late, and it was Eunuch Wang who brought you back. Did you see the Emperor... His Majesty?"
The girl looked up at Lin Zhen casually and asked, "Have you heard anything new in the palace?"
Lin Zhen placed the lunch box on the table. She immediately stopped asking questions and said happily, "You're so nice! To be honest, I've been hungry for a long time. I thought you would sleep with me tonight and wouldn't be back!"
Lin Zhen frowned and ignored her. When he saw that she had almost finished eating, he said, "You leave here tomorrow. I won't tell anyone that I've seen you."
The girl's speech and behavior were not like those of an ordinary palace maid, but all this had nothing to do with Lin Zhen. She just wanted her to leave as soon as possible. Now that she had seen the emperor with her own eyes, this was her best chance, and she didn't want to cause any trouble because of anything.
The girl knelt in front of the table, her hands holding the bowl of rice slightly tightened.
This evening she was not as noisy as usual. She finished her meal quietly and curled up in the corner.
Lin Zhen kept his back to her the whole night and didn't say anything.
*
The next day, Lin Zhen went to the lake again, but did not see the emperor again.
She paced back and forth on the bluestone path. As the sun rose higher, she finally made up her mind - the morning court had just ended, and His Majesty should be reviewing memorials in the Changsheng Palace.
When passing through the red walls, he happened to run into Wang Teng coming towards him, "What a coincidence, we are just going to look for Miss Lin!"
Lin Zhen hurriedly straightened her clothes and followed closely behind Wang Teng. She had been thinking about the plan all the way, but when she looked up, she realized that she was not in the Changsheng Palace, but had come to an empty horse farm.
The emperor sat alone under the awning, his whip across his knees, his eyes staring blankly into the distance.
After catching a glimpse of Lin Zhen, a smile appeared on his face and he waved at her.
After Lin Zhen finished his greetings, he asked, "Your Majesty, are you here to ride a horse?"
His Majesty smiled and picked up the whip on his knees. He looked at it lovingly and sighed, "I am old, but you should be able to ride a horse. Although Lin Yunfeng is a civil servant, he is very fond of riding and shooting. You are his daughter, so you must be no less capable."
Seeing that Lin Zhen didn't refuse immediately, he threw his whip to her and said, "Go and try."
Looking at Lin Zhen's heroic figure on the horse field, the emperor fell into distant memories again. After a long while, he slowly said, "Do you think he looks like him?"
Wang Teng did not answer, but asked: "I am stupid, Your Majesty is talking about..."
The emperor glared at him coldly, and Wang Teng quickly said, "She is a sin... Lord Lin's daughter, so naturally she looks like him."
The emperor continued, "As good as he is, he is also as stupid as he is."
I work just as seriously, but too seriously.
He knows how to cover up, but his acting is poor.
He kept suppressing him during the game, but after being reminded by Wang Teng, he was eager to give in.
The emperor smiled and shook his head, then took a sip of the tea beside him and sighed, "This tea seems to be particularly refreshing today."
Wang Teng smiled and replied, "It's not just tea that's refreshing."
The emperor said, "Do you still remember the small horse farm when I was in the palace? Lin Yunfeng always came to me to run a few laps under the pretext of discussing government affairs. And Ji Yuanxun, he is even more restless. It is hard to say whether he came to see me at all, but to see my sister! And Qi Huan..."
As soon as the name of the Rebellious Prince Qi Huan came out, the conversation stopped abruptly. The emperor changed the subject and said, "Why are you suddenly talking about these old things? I am really getting old."
"Your Majesty is the supreme ruler, and you are still far from old age." Wang Teng took the teacup with a smile.
The emperor looked up at the sky and said, "The sun is getting higher and the heat is rising. Let her rest."
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