“I won’t be going in. Noble Consort Xian merely asked me to deliver them, so I will trouble Grand Chief Eunuch Li to hand them to the Emperor on my behalf.”
Normally, Li Yu should have been pleased by Yanwan’s refusal; it proved this girl didn’t harbor ulterior motives and was clearly not a schemer.
Yet, he felt an awkward prickle in his chest. Looking at her up and down, no matter how he evaluated her, he felt this girl didn’t seem like the type to dutifully serve others.
After all, she had managed to drag an “elder cousin” into the mix just to enter Noble Consort Xian’s palace. He truly couldn’t fathom what was going on in her head.
Watching Li Yu carry the porcelain plate into the Hall of Mental Cultivation, Jinzhong tidied the food box, set it to the side, and hurriedly pulled Yanwan to a quiet spot to talk.
“How have you been in the Palace of Earthly Honor lately? How is Noble Consort Xian treating you? Have you been wronged at all?”
Hearing Jinzhong’s concern, Yanwan’s little mouth instantly pouted as she began pouring out her grievances to him.
“Who says I haven’t been wronged? That Noble Lady Hai just can’t stand the sight of me! She told Noble Consort Xian that I’m too pretty to be kept around, as if she wants to get rid of me entirely!”
Though she had initially put on an act to make Jinzhong vent her anger for her, she grew increasingly furious as she spoke, directly reciting the words Hailan had used in the original plot.
At that moment, a gust of cold wind blew past. Yanwan blinked uncomfortably against the itch in her eyes and rubbed them with her hand.
Unwittingly, this led Jinzhong to mistake her action for holding back tears. Glancing left and right to ensure no one was around, he raised his hand to gently pat Yanwan’s back, coaxing her:
“Rest assured, I’m here for you. Since this Noble Lady Hai doesn’t know what’s good for her, she won’t have any good days ahead!”
Yanwan swept her beautiful eyes toward him, leaning close to his ear to say pitifully, “For some reason, Noble Lady Hai is fiercely protective of Noble Consort Xian. Do you remember when Noble Lady Hai was poisoned earlier? A few days ago, when she came to the Palace of Earthly Honor to talk with Noble Consort Xian, I overheard her privately saying that she poisoned herself just to rescue Noble Consort Xian.”
Jinzhong’s brows knitted tightly. He hadn’t expected Noble Lady Hai to possess such audacity. Was she not afraid of harming the imperial prince in her womb?
Seeing this delicate, flower-like girl with reddened eyes—her luminous, watery gaze overflowing with grievance—Jinzhong felt both heartbroken and incensed.
He felt heartbroken that Yanwan was wronged so innocently, and infuriated that a mere Noble Lady had the nerve to bully his Yanwan.
It wasn’t that he looked down on Noble Lady Hai, but even though she was currently pregnant, she did not hold the Emperor’s favor.
In this palace, even if such a woman were to suddenly drop dead, no one would bother investigating how she died!
Thinking of this, Jinzhong’s brows furrowed, and a flash of murderous intent glinted fleetingly in his eyes.
Yanwan had merely been acting at first, but the more he comforted her, the more miserable she genuinely felt. Remembering how she had left her home behind to travel from modern times to this place just to play palace intrigue games, she couldn’t help but shed two tears of bitterness.
Her pitiful, tearful expression made Jinzhong’s heart almost melt. He leaned down close to her ear and comforted her in a low whisper.
“Don’t be sad anymore. Earlier, you asked me to keep an eye on Concubine Jia’s movements. I estimate that when Noble Lady Hai gives birth, Concubine Jia will make her move. Whether Noble Lady Hai survives that day is still up in the air. I’ll mull it over and see if we can tamper with things amidst the chaos on her delivery day.”
Listening to Jinzhong’s plan, Yanwan felt thoroughly delighted at the thought of both women falling into misfortune together.
Raising her hand to hug Jinzhong’s arm, her red lips curved upward, her voice crisp yet laced with a subtle hint of malice.
“It’s not bad to let those two tear each other apart like dog-eat-dog, but Concubine Jia is truly ruthless to have engineered that cinnabar scheme. Jinzhong, if Concubine Jia harms Noble Lady Hai, why don’t we expose her amidst the chaos? It’ll save us the trouble of Concubine Jia treating everyone like fools and scheming up more traps in the future.”
If everything went smoothly and both Noble Lady Hai and Concubine Jia were ousted together, it would save her a lot of effort.
Once the Emperor realized he had wronged Ruyi, he would likely remain on good terms with her for a while, giving Yanwan her own opportunity to draw close to him.
She had thought it through well, but unexpectedly, Jinzhong shook his head. Turning his head to glance at the entrance of the Hall of Mental Cultivation, he whispered into Yanwan’s ear only after confirming no one was near:
“I recently learned some news from my master, Li Yu. It seems the Emperor knows exactly who the mastermind behind the cinnabar case is. Not only that, but other matters might not escape his notice either. You must be extra careful. You don’t need to worry about these affairs—I’ll handle Noble Lady Hai.”
Yanwan was dumbfounded. How could the Emperor know?
The Emperor in the original story was clearly so easy to fool; why had the difficulty level upgraded now that she was here?
When Li Yu emerged from the Hall of Mental Cultivation, only Jinzhong remained at the door; Yanwan was nowhere to be seen.
*She had time to chat with Ling Yunche, yet she ran off quite fast this time,* Li Yu thought with a light hmph, walking over to Jinzhong’s side with feigned coldness.
He saw Jinzhong standing with his hands behind his back, his brow tightly furrowed in a deeply preoccupied manner. This was strange—given Jinzhong’s passionate devotion to Yanwan, he shouldn’t be wearing such an expression!
Could it be related to that girl again?
Li Yu pondered silently, his eyes darting as he asked Jinzhong in a soft, gentle tone, “What’s wrong? Is it so hard to part with her now that she’s gone?”
Snapping back to reality, a forced smile broke across Jinzhong’s handsome face. He raised his hand to adjust his belt and casually glossed over it:
“It is indeed hard to part with her. There’s too much trouble in this palace. Yanwan has only been at the Palace of Earthly Honor for a few days, yet she’s already run into troublesome matters. Sigh, these masters really don’t treat us servants as human beings!”
His voice was deep, reflecting his poor mood. Li Yu’s heart sank as well, and he hurriedly asked, “What happened? Could it be that Noble Consort Xian is treating her poorly? Do you need my help?”
Wasn’t Noble Consort Xian always known to be easygoing? Even when bumped into or provoked by other consorts in the palace, she never threw a tantrum—this made no sense!
“It’s not Noble Consort Xian, but Noble Lady Hai. This Noble Lady Hai can’t stand that she’s pretty and wants to transfer Yanwan out of the Palace of Earthly Honor.”
Jinzhong didn’t hide it, nor was there any need to—why save face for those women anyway!
If Noble Lady Hai truly disliked Yanwan, she would make another move sooner or later. If push came to shove, Jinzhong would have to find a way to transfer Yanwan to the Imperial Presence, which would naturally require dealing with Li Yu.
Li Yu fell silent. He hadn’t expected this to be the reason. When he delivered Yanwan to the Palace of Earthly Honor, he had anticipated this exact trouble, and sure enough, it had come to pass.
Unaware of how the two were worrying over her, Yanwan returned to the Palace of Earthly Honor to report. She deliberately made it clear that she had simply handed the items to Li Yu and returned immediately.
This straightforward, direct manner actually pleased Ruyi greatly.
After the incident with A’ruo, although Ruyi didn’t say it out loud, she secretly worried that another A’ruo would emerge from among her personal attendants.
It never even crossed her mind that since items were being sent, Yanwan should have at least shown her face before the Emperor to say a few good words on her behalf.
Sending them over so mindlessly meant it was uncertain whether the Emperor would even eat them—let alone whether he would visit her!
Sure enough, Ruyi did not get to see the Emperor that day.
Fortunately, the Beginning of Winter arrived soon after. The palace held a family banquet for the occasion, allowing the consorts to celebrate the festival with the Emperor.
Yanwan accompanied the procession today, deliberately dressing in a low-key manner. Clad in a standard green palace maid uniform, she walked behind Ruyi with her head bowed, so no one paid any attention to her.
It was her first time seeing all of the Emperor’s consorts—a hall full of delicate beauties, none of whom were simple or easy to deal with.
Especially Concubine Jia.
This woman from the Yu clan was charming and seductive in appearance, but the overt calculation glinting in her eyes ruined her beautiful face.
Noble Lady Shu possessed a cool, refined beauty that matched Concubine Jia’s looks.
Empress Fucha looked dignified and proper, though perhaps the pressure of being Empress took its toll, as she looked utterly exhausted in her thirties. Maintaining her posture as the primary wife, she appeared impartial toward the consorts on the surface, yet one could tell she still protected her own inner circle.
Ever since Ruyi took her seat, Noble Consort Gao and Concubine Jia directed subtle jabs at her through their words. Yanwan finally witnessed Ruyi’s magnanimity and her aloof indifference firsthand.
Even though she held the rank of Noble Consort—putting Noble Consort Gao aside—a lower-ranking consort like Concubine Jia was so disrespectful to her, yet this “magnanimous” Noble Consort Xian didn’t even know how to talk back.
Seeing Yanwan’s face filled with astonishment, Suoxin curled her lips into a smile and whispered a gentle warning, “You’ll get used to it gradually. When the masters are speaking, it’s best for us not to interrupt.”
Seeing that Yanwan understood, Suoxin said no more. She stood calmly behind Ruyi, simply doing what she was supposed to do.
Yanwan hadn’t expected Suoxin to warn her against standing up for Ruyi. Looking at Suoxin’s calm face, which matched Ruyi’s expression entirely, realization dawned in her mind.
Even Noble Consort Xian herself didn’t care about those words, so why should they, as servants, get worked up?
Yanwan turned her head to quietly observe Noble Lady Shen, A’ruo. She saw her dressed up flamboyantly; despite wearing formal ceremonial attire, her ornaments rivaled those of Ruyi.
Her looks were striking and bright, appearing prettier than Ruyi. It was said that before A’ruo betrayed Ruyi, she had frequently stood up for her mistress.
While she was sizing up the consorts, the Emperor arrived late, accompanied by Li Yu, Jinzhong, and others.
“Alright, everyone may rise from ceremonial greetings. Today’s Beginning of Winter Banquet is a family gathering, so please make yourselves at home.”
After everyone paid their respects, the Emperor offered a few polite remarks. With the soft, flattering words of the consorts, the banquet quickly grew lively.
While watching the commotion, Yanwan noticed Jinzhong gazing at her from a distance. She raised a smile and nodded toward him.
Soon, the main event of the family banquet arrived. The Empress had previously notified every palace to prepare a dish of dumplings for the Emperor to taste, with the best-tasting ones bringing good fortune.
Every consort presented a plate of dumplings to the Emperor, except for Ruyi, who presented a bottle of rose aromatic vinegar!
Not only did this display her cleverness, but it also left a unique impression on the Emperor.
The Emperor’s continuous praise caused the Empress’s face to darken, while the other consorts shot sharp glances like daggers toward Ruyi.
Looking at Ruyi’s back, a flash of marvel glinted in Yanwan’s watery eyes. This Ruyi truly was… a woman of character!
She kept rules on her lips daily, yet look at the things she did—every single one served to highlight her uniqueness.
Playing one way to someone’s face and another behind their back was something Ruyi had long outgrown.
She simply disdained using such methods; what did it matter if the Empress sent people to deliver edicts to every palace!
Ruyi had now evolved to turning a deaf ear to anything disadvantageous to her, her eyes focused solely on what she wanted to see.
With this self-deceptive maneuver, Ruyi was truly an unbeatable boss-level figure in this palace!
No matter how those consorts targeted her, she could remain immersed in her own world. Didn’t she see that the Empress sitting at the top had already turned pale with anger?
Yet Ruyi acted as though she hadn’t noticed the Empress’s displeasure, chatting and laughing with the Emperor without changing her composure.
Empress Fucha took a deep breath, looking deeply at Ruyi, the resentment in her heart almost impossible to suppress any longer.
Yanwan noted that the look the Empress gave Ruyi was filled with sharpness, which was hardly surprising.
Ruyi wasn’t even considered heavily favored yet; merely being childhood sweethearts with the Emperor had already left the Empress helpless, showing just how crucial imperial favor was.
To live well in this palace, one ultimately had to look at the Emperor’s attitude!
Just as her mind was wandering, she raised her eyes only to collide with a pair of sharp, deep eyes. She instinctively showed a smile and gave a slight nod.
Such a natural nodding gesture left the Emperor momentarily stunned, unsure of how to react.
He had noticed her little movements long ago. While the hall was buzzing with activity, this girl had seemed to stand dutifully behind Ruyi, yet her beautiful eyes were curiously observing her surroundings, even sizing him up several times.
Perhaps out of a man’s tolerance for a beautiful woman, he didn’t feel offended; as the ruler of a nation, there was no need to fuss over a young girl.
Yet he hadn’t expected that upon their accidental eye contact, this girl would maintain such a natural composure, nodding to greet him as though they were old acquaintances!
While the Emperor was momentarily dazed, Yanwan finally realized what she had done. She hurriedly shifted her gaze away, lowering her eyes, not daring to look again.
Snapping back to reality, the Emperor was just about to return a smile when he saw that the girl had already turned her eyes away—had he just ended up putting on a solo act?
Seeing the Emperor looking in her direction, Ruyi assumed he hadn’t forgotten her even at the family banquet. She looked at the Emperor with a gentle smile, and even though he quickly withdrew his gaze, the smile on her face did not fade.
Not only did it not fade, but Ruyi also swept her gaze around, nodding slightly to the Empress with a subtle hint of pride in her posture.
*What a piece of work, Ruyi!* The anger in the Empress’s heart flared up abruptly. She had naturally noticed the Emperor’s momentary distraction, but she had never expected Ruyi to dare provoke her after receiving a brief moment of his attention!
Perhaps the Emperor’s favor gave Ruyi a boost of confidence, for when Concubine Jia mentioned that Noble Lady Shen was Noble Consort Xian’s former servant, Ruyi lost her initial mild temperament and displayed a sharp edge.
Noble Lady Shen, A’ruo, had already felt anxious after betraying Noble Consort Xian. Prompted by the crowd to toast Ruyi, she was deeply reluctant, only for the Emperor to step in as well.
“A’ruo, you were originally Ruyi’s former servant… Ah, I feel the wine getting to my head. Li Yu, go pour me a cup of tea.”
Ruyi looked at the Emperor with a steady gaze, knowing full well he would protect her. Suppressing her inner joy, she quietly waited for the Emperor’s next words.
Yet the Emperor stopped halfway through his sentence, turning around to instruct Li Yu to pour tea instead.
Even A’ruo had been waiting apprehensively for the Emperor’s cold verdict, only to find that he didn’t bring up the matter at all.
A’ruo breathed a sigh of relief, leaning her body back against her chair, concealing the confusion in her eyes. The Emperor had clearly intended to vent anger for Noble Consort Xian just now by making her toast—why had he stopped?
Ruyi was equally puzzled, a trace of hurt flashing in her eyes as her sharp edge completely vanished.
*Hongli clearly knows my grievance, yet he still can’t bear to speak harsh words to A’ruo. Has he truly fallen for A’ruo?*
Sitting above, the Emperor took the teacup handed over by Li Yu, pretending to take two sips while covertly casting his gaze toward Yanwan behind Ruyi.
He had been about to say some harsh words just now, but seeing this girl watching him curiously with an interested expression, he found it awkward to continue speaking.
After all, this young girl was also a palace maid beside Ruyi. If he scolded A’ruo, wouldn’t he be scolding everyone around Ruyi as well?
As the ruler of a nation, he really shouldn’t vent his anger on unrelated people.
And so, the Beginning of Winter Banquet came to a hasty conclusion.
Not only did Ruyi speculate about A’ruo’s standing in the Emperor’s heart, but even Noble Consort Gao and the others were thoroughly confused by this.
If the Emperor truly cared about A’ruo, why didn’t he speak up on her behalf? If he didn’t care, why refuse to even let her toast a cup of wine to Noble Consort Xian?
Despite their confusion, even Concubine Jia, who usually presented herself as straightforward, didn’t dare trouble Noble Lady Shen any further, lest she displease the Emperor.