Since the Empress herself had said "please," how could Xu Yuehuai refuse?
“Of course I’m willing, Your Majesty,” Xu Yuehuai readily agreed.
They simply stayed in the palace.
The Duchess of Zhenguo's expression stiffened, but she smiled and nodded: "It's nothing more than lending your daughter to Your Highness for a few days, letting her be an empty nester for a few days. However, A-Yue is now in charge of the Crown Prince's food, clothing, and lodging, I'm afraid..."
"Don't worry, Duchess. Once I'm better, I'll find a way to relieve A-Yue of this task," the Empress said, knowing their concerns.
The Duchess of Zhenguo's face immediately lit up with a smile: "Then thank you very much, Your Highness."
Later, the Empress and the Lady of Zhenguo exchanged a few more words and jokes.
"It's getting late, Princess Heyue, it's time to escort your mother back to her residence," the Empress said.
She didn't intend to make things difficult for them; on the contrary, she wanted to give the mother and daughter some time alone.
Xu Yuehuai and the Duchess of Zhenguo rose to express their gratitude and then turned to leave.
After leaving the Empress's courtyard, the Duchess of Zhenguo took Xu Yuehuai's hand and slowly headed towards the palace gate.
It wouldn't be unreasonable to have one's own daughter serve the Empress.
However, the people in the palace are all cunning, and she was afraid that Xu Yuehuai might misjudge people and suffer losses. Being outside is naturally not as comfortable as being at home.
"My daughter, I'll ask you one more time: are you truly willing to take care of the Empress? It's not too late to back out now." By this time, they had arrived at the palace gate, and the Duchess of Zhenguo was already anxious.
But Xu Yuehuai was puzzled: "Mother, Her Majesty the Empress is such a good person, you don't want me to..."
“My daughter, let me tell you, you can know a person’s face but not their heart.” The Duchess of Zhenguo quietly leaned close to Xu Yuehuai’s shoulder and said, “This lady is being far too attentive to you; I’m afraid she has ulterior motives.”
Xu Yuehuai had already noticed this, but upon closer reflection, perhaps the other party was really giving him too much credit.
"You must be extremely careful and vigilant when working in the palace from now on. Test for poison before eating, and avoid standing out if possible. Do you understand? Your mother will come to take you back to the manor in a few days," said the Duchess of Zhenguo with a concerned expression.
Seeing her mother's anxious expression, Xu Yuehuai quickly nodded, "I understand, Mother. I will keep it in mind."
Seeing that Xu Yuehuai was so obedient, the Duchess of Zhenguo reluctantly got into the carriage.
Xu Yuehuai watched the Duchess of Zhenguo leave, and as soon as she turned around, she saw Amber, the Empress's personal maid, waiting for her.
As soon as they returned to Fengyi Palace, the Empress pulled Xu Yuehuai aside to exchange pleasantries. Now that it was just the two of them, it was much easier for them to talk.
The Empress instructed Xu Yuehuai on the dishes to be prepared tomorrow.
The personal maid put down the porridge and let Xu Yuehuai serve the Empress.
Suddenly, cries and screams came from outside.
"Your Majesty, I have come to beg for forgiveness."
"Your Highness, please rise."
Without even hearing it, one can tell that only Consort Min could be so audacious.
Amber came in and asked the Empress how to deal with Consort Min.
The Empress raised her hand in displeasure: "Send them away, don't disturb my peace." After saying that, she closed her eyes to rest.
All she feels right now is a headache.
Even without Consort Min, her status would not have been affected.
Seeing this scene, Xu Yuehuai knew that the relationship between the Empress and Consort Min was definitely not as simple as it seemed. If the Empress drove her away today, it would only make Consort Min even more smug.
She pondered for a moment before speaking, "Your Majesty, why not invite the Imperial Concubine in and treat her with courtesy?"
"You?" The Empress was puzzled, and her eyes were even filled with a hint of doubt.
She continued, "The Imperial Concubine's apology has likely been heard by many, and His Majesty will naturally know as well. If Your Highness were to send the person away, it would be that the Imperial Concubine is magnanimous, but Your Highness lacks compassion."
After listening to Xu Yuehuai's words, the Empress thought about them carefully and nodded.
"I'll listen to her." The Empress was even more convinced that she hadn't misjudged the person this time.
Amber did as instructed and went straight out.
After a while, the crying and screaming stopped.
"Your Highness, please rise. Her Majesty the Empress invites you in to speak," Amber said, bowing to Consort Min, who was kneeling on the ground with disheveled hair.
Consort Min was somewhat surprised, even incredulous, when she heard this.
She opened her eyes wide and saw that Amber didn't seem to be lying to her, so she had a maid help her up and slowly walked towards the Empress.
When Consort Min entered the room, she originally wanted to kneel down and admit her mistakes again, which caused quite a bit of trouble.
But who would have thought that the Empress would smile and say to Consort Min as soon as she saw her, "Sister, come to me."
This attitude caught Consort Min off guard. Her attempt to cause trouble failed, and she went straight to the Empress with a blank expression.
By the time she came to her senses, Consort Min had already taken her seat.
Consort Min then remembered that she had come to distance herself from that useless Zhao Min.
He immediately knelt down and said, "I am sorry, Your Majesty. I have failed in my duty to educate you, and you have produced such a rebellious son as Zhao Min, who dared to plot against Your Majesty."
After she finished speaking, she covered her face with her sleeve and started crying.
Xu Yuehuai's eyelids twitched immediately. Sure enough, they had arrived. So she looked at the Empress.
The Empress nodded and quickly went to pull Consort Min up, saying, "What are you doing? You and I are both serving the Emperor in the harem. How can you possibly concern yourself with Zhao Min?"
"Little sister, this is not your fault, get up first."
Consort Min had just been speaking in the palace outside, and her knees were already giving way. As soon as the Empress pulled her up, she stood up and sat back down.
"Does Your Majesty truly not blame that foolish girl Zhao Min?" Consort Min was skeptical; she didn't believe the Empress could be so kind.
The Empress nodded and said, "I am the mother of the nation, how could I lie? I really don't blame her. The child is young and it's normal that she doesn't know the rules. There's plenty of time, we can teach her slowly and she'll learn eventually. Don't be impatient."
The Empress comforted Consort Min, but only the Empress herself knew whether she truly felt the same way.
After hearing the Empress's words, Consort Min's doubts vanished instantly. She felt that the Empress had no reason to lie to her, and besides, how could that sickly Empress be so clever?
Thinking of this, Consort Min smiled: "Your Majesty the Empress is truly magnanimous. I will thank Your Majesty on behalf of Zhao Min. If there is an opportunity, I will definitely have Zhao Min personally thank Your Majesty."
"No need. She'll understand when she grows up. These are trivial matters." The Empress was very polite.
At this moment, Consort Min became a little too smug and smiled even more brightly, only then noticing Xu Yuehuai beside her: "Princess Heyue is here too!"
Xu Yuehuai bowed to the Imperial Concubine and said, "Greetings, Imperial Concubine."
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