After the palace maid finished speaking, she covered her face with her hands and yawned wildly.
Ning Yin naturally gave a casual reply. She had been in Chu for a few days and had already roughly figured out the situation in the palace.
King Chu favored the Crown Prince and the Empress, driving Chu Mo and the Prince of Nan to the brink of rebellion. King Chu thought he could rest easy as long as he used Consort Min to threaten the siblings, but little did he know that even a rabbit will bite when cornered.
Pushing someone to this point is tantamount to digging their own grave.
Yesterday's fire destroyed the entire Cold Palace, killing several palace maids along with it. The scapegoat arranged by the Prince of Nan, dressed in Consort Min's palace attire, was pulled out of the palace and was unrecognizable, except for the birthmark on his body, which was still clearly visible.
The King of Chu had no suspicion of the mastermind behind the incident. After the thief was caught, he bit his tongue and committed suicide. Later, after investigation, it was found that the thief had a grudge against Consort Min, which is why he set fire to the Cold Palace.
The plan was perfect. The Prince of Nan successfully led Consort Min out of the palace and sent her to his fiefdom overnight.
Seeing that the palace maid was still talking incessantly, Ningyin got up and picked out a pair of pearl earrings and a jade headdress from the wooden box.
"Wen Xin, thank you for taking such good care of me these past few days. Please accept these gifts."
Wen Xin looked down at the expensive jewelry Ning Yin was stuffing into her hand, her face lit up with joy, but she still pretended to refuse.
"Your Majesty, you are too kind. It is my duty to take care of you. Once General Shen conquers the Great Qi, His Majesty will bestow upon you the title of First-Rank Imperial Lady. Your wealth and honor will last a long time. It is my blessing to serve you."
Wen Xin was considered a veteran in the palace, and after Ning Yin's repeated persuasion, she naturally put the jewelry into her sleeve.
Her words were as sweet as honey, constantly praising Ning Yin for being beautiful and kind-hearted. Most importantly, she had served many masters, and Ning Yin was the only one who was so generous and tactless.
Add to that Shen Yun's current power in the State of Chu, and the glory that will come after Shen Yun conquers the State of Qi in the future.
Wen Xin felt that serving Ning Yin well and treating her as her true master would also be beneficial to her.
Thinking it over, Wen Xin went over some of the difficult concubines in the palace to Ning Yin again, telling her to be careful.
Although she was not the emperor's concubine, there was no guarantee that some malicious person wouldn't be jealous of the King of Chu's favor towards her and her husband.
But, as if on cue, a little eunuch outside the door called out in a high-pitched voice, "The Empress has arrived!"
The Empress was the Crown Prince's mother, the most honored woman in the State of Chu, and the King of Chu's favorite.
I recently heard that a stunningly beautiful woman has come to the palace, and the emperor has specially arranged for her to stay there permanently.
The Empress knew that apart from the Emperor's concubines, no woman was allowed to reside permanently in the palace.
Although on the surface Ningyin is Shen Yun's wife, the Empress is worried that the Emperor might be infatuated with someone else.
She came to investigate, intending to nip any potential trouble in the bud if she found anything amiss.
"Your Majesty, the Empress is extremely jealous. Please be careful in dealing with her later."
After Wen Xin finished speaking, she led Ning Yin to the door to respectfully welcome the Empress.
"Greetings, Your Majesty the Empress!"
The two knelt and bowed. When the Empress entered, she did not look down at them, but walked directly to the head of the table.
"Rise..."
She lifted her robe and sat in the main seat, said something indifferently, and then her sharp eyes swept over the person from head to toe, her gaze filled with disdain.
"You are Madam Shen?"
"Your Majesty, this humble woman is indeed..."
Seeing Ningyin's timid and submissive demeanor, coupled with her plain and simple attire and lack of makeup, the Empress slightly toned down her imposing manner.
"I have heard that Lady Shen is like a celestial being reincarnated, and I was curious. Seeing her today, I can confirm that her reputation is well-deserved."
Ning Yin lowered her eyes slightly, not daring to meet the Empress's gaze, but praised the Empress from beginning to end.
Hearing Ningyin praise her like this, the Empress felt inexplicably pleased and then said...
"Now that we've entered the State of Chu, we're one of our own. Guards, bring us a reward."
The Empress was concerned with appearances and felt that as the mother of the Chu Kingdom, she had to maintain appearances for the visiting woman. Therefore, she bestowed a pair of purple-gold hairpins that she had just acquired upon Ningyin.
As long as Ning Yin behaves herself and her husband works for the Chu Kingdom, she won't be stingy with such a small thing.
Ning Yin respectfully accepted the gift and thanked the Empress profusely. The two chatted casually about some pleasantries, and the Empress, feeling that this person was not a threat at all, left early.
After the Empress walked away, Wen Xin stared in astonishment. It was the first time she had ever seen the Empress tolerate other women who were more beautiful than her.
For example, the fact that Consort Min was sent to the Cold Palace was actually orchestrated by the Empress.
Consort Min was beautiful and had a graceful figure. She also bore King Chu a son and a daughter. King Chu had no reason to treat Consort Min that way.
But later, Minfei's skin inexplicably became rough and aged, and even her figure gradually changed.
The emperor wasn't initially that angry, but Consort Min, lacking common sense, actually said that her out-of-shape figure was due to childbirth.
Upon hearing this, the emperor felt that Consort Min's words had a hidden meaning, and he was immediately furious, believing that Consort Min was resentful of him and felt wronged for bearing his child.
In a fit of rage, the King of Chu banished the man to the cold palace and never looked at him again.
The emperor's harem was never short of women, and before long, Consort Min completely faded from the Chu King's sight.
Wen Xin sighed as she spoke, seemingly quite sympathetic to Consort Min.
"My lord, however, General Shen is different from His Majesty. General Shen is a Grand General of the Cavalry, unlike His Majesty who has so many concubines. This servant noticed the way General Shen looks at you..."
Before Wen Xin could finish speaking, the eunuch outside announced that Her Highness the Princess had arrived.
Your Highness, Ning Yin quickly thought of Chu Mo.
As expected, Chu Mo was dressed in a red outfit, with his hair tied up with a golden hair crown.
Ning Yin and Wen Xin knelt down again to pay their respects to Chu Mo, but Chu Mo's expression remained unchanged, as if he didn't recognize Ning Yin at all.
Previously in Daqi, Qing'er told her that her illness was stabilized by the Crown Princess. Now Qing'er's health is getting better and better, and she is just one step away from expelling the last bit of Gu worms from her body.
Once Qing'er is fully recovered, she will leave the East Palace with her people, find a place where no one knows her, and live in anonymity, detached from worldly affairs.
As for what happens to Chu, she doesn't care at all.
Her brother wanted to rebel, and she agreed with him; all she wanted was for the King of Chu to die.
Her heartless father treated her like a commodity, giving her away to one person after another, and the last bit of fatherly affection between them had long since vanished.
Now all she has to do is help Xiao Xuan rescue Ning Yin and bring down the King of Chu.
Thinking it over, Chu Mo told someone to stand up and deliberately said, "I heard that Madam Shen is here, so I came to see her. General Shen is brave and skilled in battle, and this lady is indeed a stunning beauty."
This was the first time Chu Mo had seen Ning Yin in person, and she was truly breathtakingly beautiful. If he hadn't already fallen for someone else, he wasn't sure if he would have fallen for her too.
Wen Xin secretly glanced at Chu Mo and saw that she was smiling and her eyes were shining. She suddenly felt worried for Ning Yin.
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