"Empress Zhao, the emperor asked me to bring you something." Gao Dezhong bowed to Zhuang Yuyan. Seeing that Zhuang Yuyan was sitting at the top and looked a little lazy, he smiled and said, "I will pay my respects to you first."

"Eunuch Gao, there is no need to be so polite." Zhuang Luyan asked Tingzhu to bring an embroidered cushion to Gao Dezhong. Seeing that Gao Dezhong refused to sit on it, she did not insist and just said, "I wonder what the emperor gave me as a gift?"

"Your Highness, the Emperor knows that you like to eat crabs. It just so happens that the palace has just received a batch of top-quality crabs, so he asked me to send some to your palace. There are also some newly-made pearl and agate eyebrow pencils. If you like any of them, please keep them. If not, I will send them back to the palace."

Zhuang Yuyan glanced at the palace maids and eunuchs holding things behind Gao Dezhong and couldn't help laughing, "There are so many things, is the emperor trying to dazzle me?"

"Your Majesty, the big crab has been delivered to the palace kitchen," Tingzhu said, "and some other ingredients have also been put away."

Zhuang Yuyan nodded and looked at Gao Dezhong again, "Did the emperor say anything else?"

"The emperor also said that if the queen is interested, she can go to Qianzheng Palace to enjoy the newly compiled songs and dances with the emperor," Gao Dezhong hesitated for a moment. "The emperor said that he knows the queen doesn't like drama, but you should like this song and dance."

Seeing Gao Dezhong's natural expression, she knew that he was embarrassed to directly talk about his vulgar hobby, so she smiled and said, "Thank you, Eunuch Gao. I have understood it. I will go over after I have sorted it out."

Gao Dezhong said he didn't dare, but he didn't leave. He just stood in a corner and watched Zhuang Yuyan go into the inner room.

The furnishings of Xihe Palace were not luxurious, and almost nothing inside was out of order, but the overall layout was very cozy. Gao Dezhong, who had seen the private schemes of the concubines in the harem, was even more cautious about Concubine Zhao. Most concubines would only be careful about their own words and deeds, and would not be so careful as to pay attention to a small decoration in the room. Such a woman would not be as simple as she seemed. The more thoughtful a woman was, the more complicated her mind would be. What's more, this woman occupied a significant position in the emperor's heart.

Even if he couldn't figure out the emperor's personality, he knew a little bit. He always pampered women but didn't love them, let alone have any extra thoughts about them. But the emperor had really given up on Concubine Zhao recently. Even when the Empress Dowager was dissatisfied with Concubine Zhao's promotion, the emperor didn't change his expression at all.

However, the Emperor ignored the Empress Dowager's opinion yesterday, and now he is giving so many favors to Xihe Palace. I wonder if the Empress Dowager can accept it.

"Your Majesty, this apricot-colored one looks good," Yun Xi picked out an apricot-colored wide-sleeved skirt.

Zhuang Yuyan took a look and said, "Did the Empress send this over two days ago?"

This apricot-colored long skirt with wide sleeves is indeed gorgeous. One can't help but put it on at first sight. It also shows how much thought the queen put into the things she gave to Zhuang Yuyan.

"No need, choose the purple dark pattern waist skirt," Zhuang Yuyan yawned and stopped looking at the skirt given by the Queen. After Yunxi helped her dress, she asked, "What did He Yu say when he gave me this dress?"

Yun Xi thought for a moment and said, "I didn't say anything, except that you, Madam, must be the one who suits this dress the best."

Zhuang Yuyan's eyebrows twitched when she heard this, and she took off a jade hairpin from her hair, "This hairpin doesn't match the purple robe well, this will do."

"Yes." Tingzhu and Yunxi exchanged glances and followed Zhuang Yuyan out.

Qianzheng Palace was the bedroom of the Emperor of Jiuzhou Dynasty. Feng Jin sat in a side hall, watching the dancer in an apricot flowered skirt and with fairy-like hair spinning on the red carpet. He squinted his eyes slightly and clapped his hands to the rhythm.

"Empress Zhao has arrived," the eunuch called out. Feng Jin opened his eyes and turned to look at the woman who walked in. The lavender corset skirt perfectly outlined the woman's slender waist, making people want to hug her.

"I have seen the emperor before," Zhuang Yuyan walked forward with a smile, looking at the dancer dancing on the red carpet with a curled mouth, her eyes slightly narrowed, "What a beautiful beauty, no wonder the emperor specially asked me to come and watch her."

"I didn't ask you to come here to see a beauty. I think the dancer's Autumn Rain Flying is quite interesting, so I asked Gao Dezhong to ask you to come and see it." Feng Jin pulled her into his arms and kissed her on the top of her head, "Don't misunderstand my thoughts."

Zhuang Luoyan blushed slightly and turned away, saying, "I saw the dancer was wearing gorgeous clothes and had long black hair, so I praised her a few times. What was the emperor thinking of?"

Feng Jian did not expose her shyness, and stroked her hair and said, "I specifically asked about it. The clothes on the dancer are specially worn to fit the dance. If you don't like it, I will ask her to change it."

"Your Majesty, are you deliberately making fun of me?" Zhuang Yuyan pushed Feng Jin and snorted, "Didn't you say that you wanted me to watch the dance? Why don't you start?"

Perhaps he was amused by Zhuang Yuyan's behavior, Feng Jin showed no sign of being angry. Instead, he was in a good mood and gestured to the dancer to continue dancing.

The dancer had a great figure, and every move she made was beautiful, as if she were a fairy who was about to fly away in the autumn rain. Zhuang Yuyan leaned in Feng Jin's arms, smiling at the dancer, but there was no smile in her eyes.

"Is this dance specially choreographed?" Zhuang Yuyan said after watching the dancer finish her dance. "It's really beautiful."

"I specially asked the Music Bureau to arrange this for you to see. Do you like it, my beloved concubine?" Feng Jin held Zhuang Yuyan with no intention of letting go, so Zhuang Yuyan found a more comfortable position.

"The dance is good, but I don't think the color of the skirt is very good," Zhuang Yuyan tilted her head and thought for a while, "I always feel like something is wrong."

"Oh," Feng Jin looked down at Zhuang Yuyan in his arms, "What's wrong?"

Zhuang Yuyan looked at the dancer and thought for a long time. Knowing that the dancer's eyes were getting more and more fearful, she said, "This beauty has a charming figure. I think light colors are more suitable for her. Apricot yellow is too solemn. For example, what about the one I am wearing?"

"Just wear this color, don't think about others," Feng Jian said indifferently, "You look good in it, is it possible that others can be as pretty as you?"

"Your Majesty, you can't think that I'm good in every way," Zhuang Yuyan said anxiously, "In the entire palace, my appearance is really not outstanding."

"My beloved, haven't you heard that beauty is in the eyes of the beholder?" The emperor's smile became more obvious. "I think you are dressed the best. Who can say anything more?"

"Then in the eyes of others, I am just relying on the emperor. What's more, the apricot yellow color is a bit offensive to you, isn't it inappropriate?" Zhuang Yuyan hesitated for a moment before expressing her concerns.

"It's just a dancer's dress on the stage. I don't think the Queen will mind too much. You don't have to think too much. I see that your brain is not very good to begin with. If you think too much, I'm afraid your brain will become even more useless." Feng Jin waved his hand to let the dancer leave, and began to play with Zhuang Yuyan's fingers with a smile.

The curve of Zhuang Yuyan's mouth became bigger and bigger. She lowered her head, grabbed the emperor's finger with her backhand, and bit it. When she heard the emperor's inhalation, she looked up at the emperor and said, "Your Majesty, I have a good brain. If you keep talking nonsense, what will I do if I really become stupid?"

Feng Jin laughed when he heard this, and rubbed Zhuang Yuyan's lips with his bitten finger for a while before speaking softly and slowly: "Even if you are a little more stupid, I will not abandon you."

Zhuang Yuyan's smile dimmed a little, then she smiled widely again, "There are so many sisters in the harem, and I am getting dumber and dumber. I don't know how to deal with them in front of the emperor."

The emperor paused for a moment, then removed his hand and held her in his arms.

Zhuang Yuyan was in the emperor's arms, but no one could see clearly who was who.

It was getting dark, and the palace lanterns had been lit in the empress's Jingyang Palace. The empress was flipping through the harem's internal affairs booklet, looking sideways at He Yu standing beside her, and suddenly asked, "Today, the emperor summoned Concubine Zhao to the Qianzheng Palace to sing and dance."

He Yu lowered his head and said, "Yes."

After flipping through a page of the account book, the Queen asked calmly, "What did Concubine Zhao wear?"

"It's a corseted skirt with flowers and embroidered with Sichuan embroidery silk given by the emperor." He Yu hesitated for a moment and said, "After Concubine Zhao went in, she never came out. I heard that the emperor asked her to stay overnight and serve him."

The Queen paused for a moment, then said calmly, "Oh, she has just been promoted, so it is normal for the Emperor to favor her more. I just don't know if Concubine Zhao likes that song and dance."

He lowered his head lower and lower and whispered everything he had heard.

The Queen's hand holding the account book tightened, and after a long while she spoke calmly: "Of course I don't mind what a dancer wears. Your Majesty and I have been here together many times, so you really know me well." She said this, but a page on the account book was cracked.

Jingyang Palace became dead silent.

In the middle of the night, it began to rain. Zhuang Yuyan woke up from her dream and found that the emperor was gently holding her waist. She frowned and used the night pearls inlaid on the wall to barely see the situation on the bed. After a night of fierce fighting, the bed was a little messy. She gently moved the emperor's hand away, sat up, pressed the quilt for the emperor, and then lay down again.

"Why are you awake?" Feng Jin held the person in his arms again.

"Did I wake you up?" Zhuang Yuyan snuggled into the emperor's arms and whispered, "I heard it was raining and the autumn nights were cool, so I thought of covering you with the quilt. I didn't mean to wake you up."

The light from the night pearl was not bright, so Zhuang Yuyan could not see Feng Jin's expression clearly, but she felt that the hands holding her had added some strength. She curled the corners of her lips and leaned into the emperor's arms.

The emperor patted Zhuang Weiyan's back gently for a long time, until the person in his arms gradually fell asleep. He stopped what he was doing and listened to the sound of rain outside. He thought he was no longer sleepy, but he fell asleep quickly.