Xue Dongyu casually clicked on another avatar of Zhao Zhen to check today’s favorability value. As expected, her luck wasn’t that good—the screen displayed an unfamiliar name.
Li Yonghe, favorability 65.
The little light sphere asked curiously, “Host, do you know this person? A favorability above fifty is already quite good—basically, someone worth tens of millions who could lend you hundreds of thousands without expecting repayment.”
Xue Dongyu didn’t know either. She was a history dunce, a homebody obsessed with binge-watching dramas, novels, and comics.
But with the surname Li and such high favorability, could this Li be the same Li as in Consort Li? Speaking of which, Xue Dongyu was still very curious. Empress Dowager Liu had passed away nearly a year ago, yet no one in the palace seemed to know that Guanjia was actually Consort Li’s child.
Could it be that she had transmigrated into an alternate history? The thought crossed Xue Dongyu’s mind. No, no, she still had to be careful. What if the family reunion simply happened much later? With this doubt in mind, Xue Dongyu tucked the matter away for later consideration.
After brainstorming for a while, Bai Xing came forward to announce that Zhang Maoze had arrived to deliver rewards from Guanjia.
There were so many items, packed tightly together. The entire front hall was crowded with eunuchs carrying things and palace staff watching the spectacle, filled with incessant noise and exclamations.
Xue Dongyu straightened up and walked into the courtyard with a smile. Sure enough, she saw Zhang Maoze standing there, holding several carved boxes in his hands. Beside him, two young eunuchs carried large gold-inlaid boxes studded with jewels. A few steps behind them, rows of rosewood baskets were covered with silk cloth, making their contents unclear.
“Greetings to Lady Xue. Zhang Maoze pays his respects.” Seeing Xue Dongyu approach, Zhang Maoze’s waist seemed to bend lower of its own accord, his face blooming into a smile as he remembered to offer his greetings.
This made Xue Dongyu find it odd. This senior eunuch’s smiles were rare—why was he so ingratiating today?
Xue Dongyu told him to rise and asked curiously, “What has Guanjia rewarded?” Jewelry was certainly included—that much was clear from these exquisite boxes. But as for the rest of the many items, she had no idea.
Upon hearing this, Zhang Maoze said nothing but gleefully opened the boxes. Pieces of gemstones were casually piled inside like candy. “Guanjia cherishes Lady Xue and specifically ordered me to open the treasury to find fine gemstones for you, to be made into jewelry according to your preferences.”
Then he shifted his tone. “However, he also said that crafting the jewelry would take some time, so he sent some ready-made pieces from the treasury as well. I hope Lady Xue will not find them unworthy.”
The young eunuchs beside him lined up in a row and lifted the lids of the boxes. Exquisite, dazzling hairpins, tassels, and swaying ornaments, along with large floral crowns, gleamed brilliantly under the sunlight.
The scene was resplendent with gold and jade, filled with the dazzling brilliance of gold, silver, gemstones, and jade—utterly intoxicating. At least, Xue Dongyu was intoxicated at that moment, as exclamations of awe echoed around her.
“So many, such beautiful jewelry! It must be worth at least several hundred taels,” exclaimed a young palace maid who had just begun wearing her hair up.
An older maid beside her rolled her eyes. “How ignorant! The largest pearl on that pearl crown alone is worth a hundred taels, not to mention that set of pigeon’s blood ruby jewelry. The gemstones on just one hairpin are as big as a finger. How enviable.”
“Really? Guanjia truly dotes on Lady Xue,” the young palace maid replied dismissively, her eyes glued to the jewelry, unwilling to look away.
Clearly, their focus was entirely on the jewelry. Someone glanced sideways and thought, “How ignorant. Actually, the most valuable items are those boxes of gemstones.”
Xue Dongyu snapped back to attention and managed to respond to Zhang Maoze, "Zhang Zhongguan, you've worked hard. What's in those baskets?" She gestured for Bai Xing and Bai Liu, who were also stunned, to take the jewel box, while Liu Tong and Guo Bao had already eagerly taken the jewelry case.
Zhang Maoze personally lifted the silk cloth and said, "These are fresh fruits sent as tribute from Fujian—the finest of the season. Guanjia ordered them for you to taste something new."
Xue Dongyu looked at the contents of the baskets: clusters of lychees and longans with leaves still attached, mangoes as large as palms, pomelos, papayas, green coconuts, and even unripe bananas.
Taking a sniff, she was enveloped in the fragrance of tropical fruits. Xue Dongyu grew even happier. Even in modern times, one couldn’t enjoy such high-quality fruits without spending a fortune, let alone in the Song Dynasty, where transportation was underdeveloped and fruit cultivation was not advanced.
Xue Dongyu smiled and said, "Thank you, Zhang Zhongguan. Please convey to Guanjia that I appreciate the gifts and won’t delay your duties any longer." Bai Liu, quick-witted, handed Zhang Maoze a large pouch as soon as her mistress finished speaking.
Zhang Maoze discreetly accepted it and gave it a practiced squeeze. It felt round and full—likely pearls. Pearls were valuable, small, and inconspicuous, so his smile widened even more.
Of course, the Chief Eunuch of the Imperial Presence wasn’t pleased merely by the reward. What delighted him was Lady Xue’s regard for him, unlike some who, once favored, became arrogant and looked down on those beneath them.
Little did they know that while these servants couldn’t touch them in their moment of glory, they would taste bitterness when they fell from grace.
After seeing Zhang Maoze off, Bai Xing planted her hands on her hips and sharply dismissed the onlookers, then ordered the baskets carried inside.
A few close palace attendants gathered around Xue Dongyu to examine the jewelry and gems in detail. First were the gems—a jumble of various types, red and green, dazzlingly bright. Since no one in the room was knowledgeable about gems, they feared misclassifying them and simply recorded the quantities, keeping them as they were.
Then came the jewelry. Not only were the designs and styles novel and exquisite, but the materials used were also of the highest quality. According to Bai Xing, in all her years in the palace, she had only seen such pieces worn by a few high-ranking consorts and favored consorts.
Especially the crown: the pearls were round, large, and lustrous, in shades of pink and white, avoiding the awkwardness of an all-white piece—truly rare.
After admiring the jewelry, Xue Dongyu finally calmed her mind to ponder: Why was Guanjia so fond of her? It was utterly baffling. Although she loved the gifts and had decided to act like a haughty favored consort, the key was still to understand Zhao Zhen’s intentions.
The little light sphere, hearing its Host’s thoughts, said cheekily, "Why worry so much, Host? You’re the one benefiting anyway. Look, your Fate Points just increased by seventeen. If you show off a bit more, you’ll earn even more."
Xue Dongyu stopped overthinking—it was giving her a headache. She would deal with things as they came. At the very least, she still had a "get-out-of-jail-free card" in her belly.
A moment later, Bai Xing came in and told Xue Dongyu about what had happened at court: Guanjia’s outburst, dismissals, and the removal of the chancellor—all major events. Although she was an inner palace woman, she couldn’t remain completely ignorant of court affairs, as the front court and the rear palace were interconnected.
Xue Dongyu found it even stranger. She had never heard of Emperor Renzong of Song acting so domineeringly. The title "Renzong" itself spoke of his benevolence toward his ministers, and throughout his reign, he had never mistreated his officials.
After dismissing Bai Xing and the attendants in the room, Xue Dongyu eagerly summoned the little light sphere. "Tell me, with such a huge change, have I ended up in some parallel world, or was this world just not right from the start?"
Whenever something seemed off, she would always turn to the System. Xue Dongyu eyed this unreliable system suspiciously, her hands itching to act.
The little light sphere was also anxious, its blue light flickering back and forth. "I don’t know either. When This System was searching for a Host, it was in too much of a hurry and didn’t get a good look. Let me check first."
After a series of operations, the little light sphere came to a stop, its guilty tone impossible to hide. "Host, this is indeed the historical world of the Song Dynasty. However, when I exchanged the two of you, I accidentally brought along Emperor Renzong of Song from another timeline who had been dead for centuries."
Xue Dongyu narrowed her eyes dangerously. "So I’ve been exposed all along? Even a ghost would know something’s wrong with me suddenly appearing out of nowhere. No wonder this Zhao Zhen ignored me at first but then suddenly promoted and rewarded me. You useless system, always causing trouble instead of helping!"
The little light sphere eagerly explained, "Host, there’s no need to fear. I discovered that this Zhao Zhen needs Achievement Points to stabilize his soul. So we can just lay our cards on the table. With his life in our hands, it’ll be even easier for you to stir things up and earn Achievement Points!"
After saying this, the little light sphere let out a triumphant laugh.
Xue Dongyu thought for a moment and suddenly asked, "So, earlier, some of my Achievement Points were absorbed by him?"
"Yeah, two points. I thought I was leaking energy or something." As soon as the words left its mouth, the little light sphere realized it had made a grave mistake.
Xue Dongyu grabbed the light sphere, tossing it around like a bowling ball one moment and a basketball the next, venting her frustration fiercely.
When she finally ran out of energy and stopped, Xue Dongyu straightened her clothes and spoke. "Your suggestion isn’t bad. Let’s do it that way."
The human and the light sphere began scheming in secret, discussing how to gain the upper hand in their negotiations with Zhao Zhen.