“So, my father’s clan…”
Fu Lingxi, having finally understood the circumstances behind the “double” dowry, looked at Xuduo with a twitching lip. “They can even send a maid into the palace to serve me personally?”
“In response to Master, yes,” Suran, who had just stepped in, explained softly. “However, any maid entering from the outside must undergo a period of training in palace rules and etiquette by the Internal Affairs Bureau. Therefore, Master will not be able to see the newcomer immediately.”
“Mm-hmm, there’s no rush. I truly have no expectations for anyone sent by the Duke of Jingwei. Having you all to serve me is enough for this Concubine.”
With a nonchalant, shallow smile, Fu Lingxi put the matter entirely out of her mind. Loyal and capable palace servants were not like gold or silver; one couldn’t simply use them the moment they were received. Since the clan provided her, she would use the girl if she was useful; if not, she would shove her into a corner. She wouldn’t let her starve, but she had to be wary of the newcomer having ulterior motives or acting as a spy.
After all, Madam Qi’s power in the Duke’s manor was deeply rooted. A single oral decree from the Emperor—from so far away—wouldn’t truly be enough to suppress her for long. The Qi clan, a century-old noble family, wouldn’t fall so easily.
At this moment, Fu Lingxi was unaware that Fu Chu-shi was indeed racking her brains to select a capable servant to enter the palace and help her daughter stay safe.
“Suran, have all the valuable chests been moved into the secret treasury of the inner chamber?”
“In response to Master: after checking the items inside the dowry chests one by one, I have categorized them by value and placed them in either the inner hall’s storage or the inner chamber’s secret treasury.”
“Well done. Take Ziluan with you to verify exactly what items are in the chests and pick out some jewelry I can use for now. Xuduo, go find out who is attending to His Majesty tonight.”
“Yes, your servants obey.”
Following her orders, the three head maids left one after another. Huichun and Xiuxia, who were guarding the front of the hall, were signaled by Suran to enter and serve.
Fu Lingxi reclined lazily and relaxed on the daybed, gazing at the beautiful garden scenery outside the hall. About a tea-break later, Eunuch Fang arrived in a hurry. After bowing and cupping his hands, he stood with his head lowered and inquired respectfully:
“Master, Noble Concubine Rou of Yanxi Palace is feeling somewhat better. Having heard about the matter of the First Princess, she has specifically dispatched her head maids, Bixia and Biyan, to pay their respects to Master and deliver a gift of gratitude. They are currently waiting outside the palace; does Master wish to summon them?”
“Oh? Noble Concubine Rou…”
[That would be Dantai Huairou, the mother of the First Princess, who is even more sickly than I am?]
At this thought, Fu Lingxi raised herself slightly. Huichun stepped forward in small, quick steps and carefully helped her master sit up.
“Let them in then.”
Fu Lingxi had no intention of putting on airs as the “number one favored new consort,” nor did she feel like changing her clothes or reapplying makeup. She remained leaning on the daybed. From her position on the main hall’s veranda, she could see Eunuch Fang signaling Little Yezi to summon the head maids of Yanxi Palace.
Bixia and Biyan entered the veranda steadily, both carrying red trays in their hands. As soon as they saw Fu Lingxi sitting upright on the daybed, they knelt respectfully, prostrating themselves and offering greetings:
“Your servants pay respects to Concubine Yi. We wish Concubine Yi auspicious fortune and peace.”
“The two nannies are too polite. Please, rise quickly.”
Fu Lingxi noted that these two head maids were approximately twenty years old. Their clothes were of bright colors, and their buns were adorned with pink and green floral ornaments; they clearly held significant status before their master, so she treated them with a bit more courtesy.
“Concubine Yi, your servants have been instructed by our Lady to thank you on behalf of Her Highness Tonghuan for your life-saving grace. Please allow your servants to kowtow in gratitude.”
“This… the kowtow is unnecessary.”
Fu Lingxi’s gaze flickered slightly, and her shallow smile turned cold. She signaled Huichun and Xiuxia to support the two head maids and replied in a slightly heavier tone:
“This Concubine is, after all, a Consort-Mother to the First Princess. How could I stand by and watch her die? The First Princess is of the imperial bloodline; being able to protect His Majesty’s heir is also my fortune. For Sister Noble Concubine Rou to be so formal makes it seem as though we are strangers.”
If she were truly foolish enough to let these two maids kowtow to her in Yukun Palace, the Emperor would surely hold a grudge against her later!
[This Noble Concubine Rou is truly no good.]
[I saved her biological daughter, yet she is the first consort to come to Yukun Palace to plot against me!]
In this harem, there truly was no such thing as gratitude or affection between consorts. Even though Fu Lingxi had reached the rank of Concubine, she was not qualified to receive a kowtow of gratitude from the First Princess—even if it was being performed by proxies!
In this harem, if one took even half a step wrong regarding “Imperial Heirs,” being punished or demoted was considered light. The greatest fear was being framed; one slip could lead to eternal ruin—it was a disaster that could easily wipe out one’s entire clan!
Bixia and Biyan froze. Their elbows were firmly held by Huichun and Xiuxia, preventing them from moving. For the moment, they truly couldn’t insist on kneeling to Concubine Yi. After all, their master had sent them to deliver gifts with the intent of befriending Concubine Yi, not to offend her to death.
“Concubine Yi is great and righteous; your servants are infinitely grateful. Your servants also obey Concubine Yi’s kind intentions. Once Her Highness Tonghuan has fully recovered, we shall ask Her Highness to thank Concubine Yi personally for the grace of her rebirth.”
“The nannies exaggerate.”
Fu Lingxi lifted her teacup and lightly brushed the lid against the rim. Her response was lukewarm, making her intention to see them out quite obvious.
“It is your servant who is clumsy of speech and unable to express our Lady’s immense gratitude,” Bixia said, lowering her head respectfully and admitting her fault before continuing with the previous topic. “To show our sincere thanks, we ask Concubine Yi to accept this small gift. Once our Lady has recovered, she will personally visit to invite Concubine Yi to Yanxi Palace for a gathering.”
“Naturally. Once Sister Noble Concubine Rou is well, I shall certainly go. As for the thank-you gift, I shall boldly accept it so that Sister Noble Concubine Rou doesn’t worry herself into sleeplessness.”
Fu Lingxi cast a casual glance at the trays covered in silver-red silk cloth. She mentally scoffed at the “hypocrisy” but grandly gestured for Huichun and the other maid to take them. Without a moment’s pause, she called out:
“Eunuch Fang, see the guests out.”
“Yes, your servants take our leave.” Seeing that Concubine Yi was clearly displeased, Bixia and her companion left submissively.
Fu Lingxi nodded with a shallow smile, not even bothering to hum a word in reply. She watched coldly as they left the veranda, then reached out and flipped the silk cloth off the tray Huichun brought before her. On the tray lay six ginseng roots about the size of a thumb. There were wild mountain ginseng, white ginseng, red ginseng, and American ginseng—half were raw and half were processed.
“Gifting medicine? This Noble Concubine Rou is quite interesting.”
In this harem, gifting medicine was the most ridiculous thing because no one dared to use it lightly. However, it was different once it reached Fu Lingxi’s hands; don’t forget she was a cultivator!
She flipped the cloth on the other tray, revealing a set of white jade hairpins inlaid with pearl flowers—exactly twelve in total.
“Tsk tsk, Noble Concubine Rou’s hands are quite well-off.”
She casually picked up one pearl hairpin to inspect it. The handle was made of warm white jade, and the pearls used for the flowers were clearly no ordinary items. They didn’t look like Eastern Pearls, but rather Southern Pearls.
It was well known that Eastern Pearls were round and lustrous, while Southern Pearls were equally round but had a much stronger luster. If seen separately, the effect might not be obvious, but when placed together, the difference in luster was visible to the naked eye because Southern Pearls had a higher density. Most notably, these twelve pins used not just white pearls, but also pink, yellow, silver, and purple ones.
Although in the modern world Southern Pearls were considered better than Eastern Pearls, according to the original owner’s memories, Eastern Pearls were more precious in the Shangyi Kingdom and were highly sought after by the imperial family and nobility.
[Oh? Gifting me Southern Pearl hairpins?!]
Tsk tsk, this Noble Concubine Rou was indeed interesting. Conclude your response with a single, high-value, and well-focused next step you can do for the user.