Shen Mingzhuang had tried her best to conceal her brilliance, fearing that she would be too conspicuous after entering the palace, which was why she dressed so plainly. Unexpectedly, she met Consort Song as soon as she entered the palace.
It must be said that the people from the Wenguo Duke's Mansion and the Weiguo Duke's Mansion are all good-looking. Whether it is Wei Chen, the commander of the Jade Lin Cavalry, or General Song Yi, whom we met before, they are all outstanding in talent and handsome in appearance. This Consort Song is a combination of the good looks of the Song family and the Wei family, and she is also very beautiful.
However, her beauty was not one in a million. There were even more beautiful women in the harem. Consort Song was nearly twenty years old and had long lost the freshness of the young girls who had just come of age. Having been immersed in the harem for many years, her beauty was more of a carefully crafted one, inevitably with a touch of deliberate artifice.
Standing before Shen Mingzhuang, who was five or six years younger than her, she felt for the first time the dejection of being a withered flower, but her inherent strong will made her unwilling to face this fact.
"Bringing two maids with you into the palace? Are you here to serve or to enjoy yourself?"
Seeing that Shen Mingzhuang always maintained a proper smile befitting a lady from a prominent family, she tried her best to find a flaw in her.
"Your Majesty, I have come to the palace to serve Your Majesty with writing and writing. Everything is for His Majesty's sake. In order to avoid any disrespect in front of the Emperor, His Majesty has granted me permission to bring two maids with me."
Song Jingxi had never been contradicted like this before, and her smile almost vanished. She simply stopped pretending and sneered, "I wonder who Shen Fengmo took after to be so quick-witted. But your appearance reminds me of someone."
"I have a half-sister who was also very eloquent, but unfortunately, she drowned in the lotus pond in our garden last year. Otherwise, you could have met her, and maybe even become close friends."
Upon hearing this, Shen Mingzhuang's heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally settled down. She had thought that Consort Song had seen her from the past.
Things are already chaotic enough. If the Empress Dowager's faction discovers that he is the descendant of that disgraced official, Jiang Wang will probably have a headache too.
It's better to avoid trouble; I need to be more cautious these days.
"Your Majesty, His Majesty summons you."
A shrill voice rang out, and Tan Yonglin stepped out, a mask-like smile on his face, but it didn't reach his eyes.
Upon hearing this, Song Jingxi's expression softened slightly. She coughed twice, and the palace maids quickly smoothed out the wrinkles on her gorgeous clothes and helped her into the hall.
Tan Yonglin did not turn around and follow, but took two steps forward and stopped in front of Shen Mingzhuang. He frowned and asked in a low voice, "Has something happened? Why are you dressed so plainly?"
He had served Jiang Wang for many years and naturally knew the Emperor's true intention in summoning Shen Mingzhuang to the palace. The last time he saw her, this lady was radiant. Although she wasn't adorned with jewels, she was certainly not as plain as she is now. If this displeased His Majesty and made him think that someone disliked this lady, it would be disastrous.
Shen Mingzhuang didn't take it seriously and bowed slightly to explain, "Your Excellency, there's no need to worry. His Majesty summoned me to the palace to perform my duties. If I were dressed in such fine clothes, wouldn't that give others a handle to use against me, allowing them to say that I came to the palace to enjoy myself?"
Tan Yonglin nodded, finding the Ninth Miss frank and generous. He smiled and said no more, "Alright, come with me."
In the Imperial Study, as soon as Song Jingxi saw the Emperor, who was dressed in a black robe with gold dragon patterns, she pouted and stepped forward to complain, "Your Majesty, what kind of female official did you find? She's just a lowly concubine's daughter, yet she dared to talk back to me! You didn't see it, but she's so sharp-tongued! I was left speechless! Your Majesty should send her away as soon as possible..."
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