Chapter 08 [8]
【8】
Hall of Mental Cultivation, East Study.
Xiao Jingting raised his eyebrows and looked at Aunt Qiu Rong below him with a strange expression: "She asked you to tell her that half a day without seeing her feels like three years?"
"yes."
"Looking forward to seeing you again to comfort my longing?"
Aunt Qiu Rong nodded sullenly: "...Yes."
Before he finished speaking, a sneer suddenly came from behind the imperial desk, and then the sneer seemed to be uncontrollable and turned into unbridled laughter.
Aunt Qiu Rong: “……?”
Your Majesty, is this too happy, or what?
She looked at Yu Mingjiang beside her in confusion. Yu Mingjiang was holding a whisk, smiling as kindly as the big-bellied Maitreya Buddha in the Buddhist temple. In a voice only the two of them could hear, he sighed, "It's been many years since I've seen Your Majesty smile so happily."
Aunt Qiu Rong: “…” What’s so funny about that?
Xiao Jingting leaned against the dragon chair and laughed for a long time. He seemed a little tired of laughing, so he turned his head and said to Yu Mingjiang, "My dear friend, this is the first time I have seen such a shameless woman in my life. She is so shameless that she can say such words."
Yu Mingjiang smiled softly and said, "Your Majesty, perhaps Concubine Lu is truly enamored with you, unable to suppress her deep affection, and every word she says comes from the heart."
Upon hearing this, Xiao Jingting's smile gradually faded, and he looked at Yu Mingjiang strangely: "You believe this too?"
Yu Mingjiang bowed and said gently, "Your Majesty is a child of destiny, a rare talent. Not to mention Concubine Lu, I'm afraid all the young ladies in the world would want to be favored by your Majesty."
Xiao Jingting's expression became even weirder now. His smile disappeared completely, and his dark eyes turned into a calm and indifferent expression: "My dear friend, are you still treating me like a child?"
Yu Mingjiang's eyelids twitched slightly, and he looked up, only to see the young emperor's expressionless face: "They don't admire me at all, they clearly admire the emperor's status."
Because he was the emperor, no matter what he did, people would flatter and praise him.
If he had not sat on the throne, he might have become a freak in the eyes of the world.
The unpleasant memories of the past flooded into his mind, and the man's deep and narrow eyes seemed to be covered with a layer of shadow, and his aura became sharp.
Yu Mingjiang had watched the emperor grow up. Seeing his sudden silence, he feared he was reminiscing about the past, so he quickly changed the subject, saying with a smile, "The weather has been lovely lately, and Your Majesty hasn't been to Jinli Garden for some time. Yesterday, Chen Jinxi sent a letter saying that Xiao Caiyun's belly is getting big, and she might be giving birth in the next two days. Your Majesty, would you like to go and see her?"
Upon hearing this, the emperor, who had previously maintained a cold and aloof demeanor, softened his hard features like a spring breeze thawing the frozen snow. "It's been a while since I've seen them... Little Caiyun is having her first childbirth, and she's so small, I'm afraid she'll have to endure some hardship."
After a moment's silence, he opened his eyes and told Yu Mingjiang, "Go down and make arrangements. Tomorrow, after court is dismissed, I will go to Jinli Garden to take a look."
Yu Mingjiang observed the emperor's expression and, seeing that he had returned to normal, he breathed a sigh of relief and nodded in agreement, "Yes, I will make the arrangements."
Thinking of going to Jinli Garden tomorrow, Xiao Jingting felt a little happy. He caught a glimpse of Aunt Qiu Rong standing below him with a respectful look on her face, and waved her hand casually: "You can leave as well."
Aunt Qiu Rong, who was finally remembered, bowed quickly and said, "I'll take my leave."
Just after taking two steps back, a voice suddenly came from above: "Wait."
Aunt Qiu Rong was slightly surprised and paused, looking at the emperor in his black robe and jade crown behind the imperial table: "I wonder if Your Majesty has any other instructions?"
"Since Mrs. Lu said she misses me, I'll ask her to accompany me to Jinli Garden tomorrow."
His long, bony fingers tapped the table. Xiao Jingting narrowed his eyes slightly and said something politely, "Just tell her that I'm taking her out of the palace tomorrow. As for where we're going, don't mention it to her. This way, I can give her a surprise."
***
"He's going to take me out of the palace tomorrow?"
Inside Liuxiaxuan, Lu Zhiwan, who was sitting on the couch soaking her feet in flower petals, opened her eyes wide in surprise: "Is this true?!"
Aunt Qiu Rong folded her hands in front of her, her calm face devoid of any joking. "Your Majesty's words are as good as gold. Chief Steward Yu should send someone to fetch Concubine Yu at 9:00 PM tomorrow. Concubine Yu should rest early tonight and recuperate so she can better accompany the Emperor tomorrow."
It’s actually true…
"Aunt, do you know where I will go tomorrow when I leave the palace?"
"I don't know about that." Aunt Qiu Rong lowered her head: "When the time comes, the Concubine will just have to follow His Majesty closely."
"...Okay." Lu Zhiwan nodded in a daze, and signaled Aunt Qiu Rong to go down and rest.
With no outsiders in the room, Xia He stepped forward with unconcealed joy, "Congratulations, Master! His Majesty must have understood your feelings and was deeply moved, so he took you out of the palace for a tour. This is a great favor, unique to the harem!"
"Is that so?" Lu Zhiwan pulled up the corners of his mouth to force a smile, but he couldn't help but wonder in his heart.
Accompanying the emperor on tours was indeed the treatment of a favored concubine, but she had only met the dog emperor twice at most. It was very sudden that she was suddenly summoned to sleep with him last night, and now she was asked to leave the palace with him - this "favor" was really too abrupt, so abrupt that it made her a little panicked.
Could it be that the Dog Emperor really has a crush on her? Although her appearance does have the capital to make men infatuated and unforgettable, based on their contact last night, the Dog Emperor does not seem like the kind of tyrant who covets beauty.
Could it be that he was attracted by her charisma? But she was very reserved last night and didn't exude much charm...
It was not until the foot washing water in the wooden basin had turned cold that Lu Zhiwan shook his head and pulled himself back to his senses.
If she couldn't figure it out, she wouldn't think about it anymore. She didn't bother thinking about it. After all, the emperor was willing to be close to her, which was a good thing that outweighed the disadvantages. As for whether his feelings were genuine or not, she didn't care. Only when he got the benefits was it real. At most, they could just play along.
As soon as the thought came to mind, Lu Zhiwan wiped his two snow-white feet and climbed onto the bed with ease.
She was really tired from all the greetings during the day, so she slept particularly soundly that night.
Early the next morning, Lu Zhiwan was woken up from bed by Xia He and helped to wash in front of the diamond-shaped mirror.
"Didn't Aunt Qiu Rong say we'd set off at 9:00 PM? It's still too early now, even before daybreak..." Looking at the sleepy face of the beautiful woman in the bronze mirror, Lu Zhiwan yawned and stood up. "I'll go back and sleep for another half an hour."
"Master, this is your first time accompanying the Emperor on an outing. You must dress up nicely. Don't be careless!" Xia He pressed her shoulders, her eyes sparkling, excited as if she were the one leaving the palace. "Don't worry, I learned several new hairstyles last night. I'll make sure you look beautiful and charming today."
Lu Zhiwan glanced at the two big dark circles under Xia He's eyes and said, "..."
Wow, it turns out this little girl is her career fan.
The subordinates were all full of energy and motivation. Lu Zhiwan, the boss, felt embarrassed to continue to play badly. She made a cup of strong tea and drank it. She sat in front of the dressing mirror and said, "Come on!"
Let her be as beautiful as a ray of light, blinding the dog emperor's eyes!
An hour later, Lu Zhiwan wasn't sure whether the flash had blinded the dog emperor, but she was 80% certain that there was probably something wrong with the emperor's aesthetic taste.
She was clearly so beautiful in her hibiscus-colored, wide-sleeved, fairy-like dress that she looked like a fairy from heaven. She had attracted countless astonished glances from the palace maids and eunuchs along the way from Liuxiaxuan to Yangxin Palace. However, the first time the emperor saw her, he frowned: "Why are you dressed like this?"
Lu Zhiwan was stunned by his question. She thought to herself, "It's so beautiful, why are you looking at me with such disdain?" But she forced a smile and asked softly, "Doesn't it look good on me in this way?"
Xiao Jingting really looked her up and down, his thin lips moved slightly, hesitant to speak, and finally seemed to remember something, and curled his lips: "Not bad."
Lu Zhiwan: “…”
What does that smile mean? I have a strange feeling of foreboding.
Before she could think about it, Yu Mingjiang came in from outside the palace: "Your Majesty, the carriage has been arranged and you can set off."
Xiao Jingting nodded lightly, lowered his black eyes, and looked at Lu Zhiwan who was standing beside him with his eyebrows lowered obediently.
Feeling the man's gaze, Lu Zhiwan subconsciously looked up and happened to meet the man's ambiguous dark eyes.
Their eyes met, and she smiled dryly: "Your Majesty?"
"You seem to be in a daze."
"ah?"
"Nothing." Xiao Jingting shook his head and calmly stretched out his hand in front of her.
Lu Zhiwan: “……?”
Before the man's brows completely furrowed, she realized what he meant and quickly grabbed the slender hand.
Sure enough, after holding hands, the man's frown slowly relaxed, just like a cat having its fur stroked.
That was a close call. Lu Zhiwan sweated at her slow reaction. When her eyes swept over the big hand she was holding, she couldn't help but complain inwardly, what's wrong with this bastard? One moment he was cold and disdainful of her dress, and the next moment he wanted to hold her hand? He must be crazy.
In full view of the crowd, the two of them walked out of the Yangxin Palace hand in hand, and then got into the same carriage hand in hand.
As the carriage with its red wheels and canopy rumbled away, the palace servants in the Yangxin Palace couldn't help but sigh, "I never thought His Majesty would favor Concubine Lu so much!"
"She has truly become a phoenix overnight!"
"If this continues, maybe I'll get promoted again in a while."
The palace maids were whispering to each other. Behind the tall, red-painted dragon pillar, a blue-gray figure quietly disappeared while no one was paying attention.
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