Chapter 22: Draw a Circle and Wish You a Peaceful Sleep
Xuan Yi looked thoughtful as he carefully examined the shadow lines that outlined the eyes of the person in the painting.
He showed this portrait to two people, one was his Taifu, and the other was Shangshu Ling Hong Ge Lao.
The two men were well-read and knowledgeable, but they were shocked when they saw the portrait. They said they had never seen such a realistic portrait. Upon closer inspection, they found that the paintbrush was actually very ordinary charcoal, and kept asking which great master painted it.
He didn't say it, but he was really curious, so he asked Su Yan specifically, and the answer he got was that Su Ci was indeed good at calligraphy and painting.
But Su Ci's painting was too amazing, and her handwriting was too scary.
Why is this...
"Your Majesty, this servant is coming in."
Xuan Yi put the picture frame into the secret compartment, turned around and glanced at the wooden box in Qin Zheng's hand, and raised his eyebrows slightly.
Qin Zheng presented the wooden box with a smile.
"This was sent by Su Zhaorong."
“…Well, go down.”
Xuan Yi lowered his eyes and looked at the wooden box. He could smell a hint of floral fragrance mixed with the scent of grass. A hint of anticipation flashed in his black eyes, and he walked to the desk and sat down.
When the wooden box was opened, the fragrance of flowers filled the air.
I saw a roll of rice paper still tied with a red string, with a dozen or so scattered dark red and light red petals scattered around it.
“…”
Xuan Yi raised his eyebrows slightly, reached out to pick up the scroll and untied the red rope, and his pupils dilated again as he unfolded it.
This time she painted herself.
The same painting technique, but with the addition of colors, makes it more vivid and realistic.
The person in the half-body painting has thick black hair, a slightly light green jade hairpin in her hair, a fair face, pink cheeks and corners of her eyes, her sparkling autumn eyes filled with aggrieved light, her small nose slightly wrinkled, her rosy lips slightly pouting, the light green necklace around her neck, and the slightly open and intricate collar, all of which are delicate and realistic.
There was still a line of crooked small characters below.
Tears in my eyes, I asked the flowers, but they remained silent. The scattered petals flew over the swing.
There is still a small round face at the back, but the three lines are pointing downwards.
“…”
Xuan Yi stroked the corners of his tightly pursed lips with his fingertips, his dark eyes narrowed as he stared at the aggrieved figure in the painting.
Are you crying because you were bullied?
Or were you scolded and cried by his comments?
…Didn’t he give a gift as compensation?
…
Yufu Palace.
After dinner, Su Ci leisurely took Yanyu Guyu for a stroll in the garden to help digest the food, while recalling what she had seen today.
In addition to the Queen Mother, she met seven concubines today and noticed that they all had something on them.
Red coral jewelry.
Everyone had necklaces, bracelets, hairpins, earrings, and rings, and they clearly said that they were given by the queen, who said that the queen loved this red coral and liked to use it to reward concubines or palace maids.
In the original novel, not long after Su Yin was sentenced to death, a low-ranking concubine named Ji Yun publicly complained that the Queen's reward was not red coral at all, but cinnabar beads mixed with a large amount of musk. The Queen Mother was furious, and the Queen was immediately deposed and sent to the cold palace.
But this was exactly what Su Ci wanted.
Exposing the Queen is certain, but not now.
With such a good bargaining chip in hand, he would at least wait until she was favored and pregnant before taking action.
Yanyu glanced at Fulu and the others following in the distance and lowered her voice, "Master, I just saw a little eunuch peeking out from the door of the side hall. It must be Wei Zhaorong looking for trouble."
"That's normal."
Su Ci's expression was calm: "The queen behind her came here to find something to hold against me, but we don't have anything to hold against us, so why should we be afraid?"
In the palace, only the Empress and two concubines were old members of the imperial court. Most of the others were selected by His Majesty to enter the palace after he ascended the throne in order to win over court officials, and only a few were selected during the selection.
After His Majesty ascended the throne, he was busy with government affairs and seldom set foot in the harem. Now, the only women who have slept in the palace were daughters of high-ranking officials, such as Yan Zhaoyi, Song Zhaoyi, Wei Zhaorong and Liu Xiurong, but he has never favored any of them exclusively.
Without exclusive favoritism, there is no comparison, and without comparison, there are fewer disputes. In addition, there are not many people, so there are naturally fewer fights. Therefore, except for the queen, Su Ci feels that the other concubines are quite simple and have not yet mastered the art of palace fighting. At most, they will argue, get jealous, and fight a little, and everything is revealed on the surface.
For her, a green tea drama expert who has deeply analyzed countless palace fighting dramas, this is undoubtedly a great thing...
"Master, Nanny Qin is here."
Su Ci looked up in surprise.
The reply came.
But seeing that Nanny Qin was having a hard time moving the things, Su Ci quickly asked Yanyu Guyu to take over and led Qin Zheng into the hall.
"What is this? It looks very heavy."
Qin Zheng still smiled: "His Majesty asked me to deliver it, and also asked you to write back and let me take it back."
"oh…"
Su Ci blinked curiously and reached out to open the wooden box, which almost blinded her wide-open eyes.
There were two rows of gold ingots neatly stacked in the box, as well as a folded piece of letter paper.
Who doesn’t love gold!
Su Ci calmed down after being excited, picked up the letter and unfolded it, and the corners of her mouth that were raised suddenly retracted.
If you have gold in your house, you can do whatever you want.
“…”
He was such a naive person. He thought she was crying poor after all this time.
A straight man who doesn't understand romance!
"cough…"
Qin Zheng was almost amused by the girl's strange and complicated expression. She covered her mouth and coughed softly, "Zhao Rong, you've been tired all day. Why don't you go to bed early after replying to the letter?"
Su Ci bit her lip sadly, turned around and walked to the desk, picked up the pen and wrote a few words, folded it and put it in the wooden box, not forgetting to take out the gold ingots one by one.
"Thank you, Madam."
Qin Zheng suppressed her laughter and picked up the wooden box: "Rest in peace, Zhaorong."
[Thank you, Your Majesty, for your reward. I draw a circle on the ground and wish you a peaceful sleep.]
Xuan Yi looked at the sloppy and crooked handwriting with a hint of disdain, but a flicker of satisfaction crossed his black eyes.
Well, it turns out that all women in the world love gold.
…
Mao time (5:00 to 7:00)
Su Ci was awakened by Guyu. With lifeless eyes, she washed herself and let herself be tidied up. Then she floated out of the door and went to Zhaohua Palace to pay her respects.
The queen wore a bright yellow robe and sat in the main seat, accepting greetings from the concubines.
Su Ci was so sleepy that her eyes were almost rolling back. She lowered her head and sipped her tea to refresh herself. She didn't notice the mocking and pitying looks from the Queen and others at all.
When she gains power, she will definitely ask the emperor to exempt her from the custom of greeting him good morning.
I have nothing to do all day, but I get up so early to catch bugs to eat...
"Perhaps it was her first night in the palace, Su Zhaorong didn't seem to sleep well?"
Su Ci raised her eyes softly: "Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. I am indeed a little uncomfortable with this."
The Queen smiled and nodded. "I heard that His Majesty rewarded Su Zhaorong yesterday. As the Queen Mother, I naturally cannot be left out. Liuli, please bring up my set of red coral jewelry."
Here it comes.
Su Ci finally perked up and looked at the whole set of red jewelry with joy.
“So beautiful!”
Give one piece to others, give a whole set to her.
They planned to make her a walking abortion machine.
"Thank you, Your Majesty, for the reward!"
The queen looked at the girl's joyful and excited expression, and the corners of her mouth slowly curled up.
"From now on, we are all sisters. Remember, the harem must be peaceful and harmonious, to relieve His Majesty's worries and to ensure the continuation of the royal family's lineage."
Su Ci stood up along with the other concubines and knelt down.
"I will follow the Queen's instructions."
…
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