A soft, frail voice interjected, startling Liu Yingwu greatly—how was there still someone here?
Hadn’t everyone been driven away in advance!
“Who is it? Get out here!”
Liu Yingwu gripped her long whip tightly, a murderous intent stirring in her heart. She wanted to silence them all!
Seeing that her expression was wrong, Ming Yueni immediately shouted anxiously, “Don’t come out! Hurry and inform His Majesty!”
However, it was already too late.
From behind the thick tree trunk emerged a pretty face with willow-leaf eyebrows and almond eyes.
Her hair was styled in a simple bun, adorned only with a single jade step-shake hairpin.
Stepping out from behind the tree, she wore a water-green palace dress, fresh and elegant yet not lacking in luxury.
“You! Who are you?”
Upon realizing she was not a maid, Liu Yingwu’s heart sank, and she questioned exasperatedly, “How dare you peep on this Crown Princess!”
Shen Rou timidly took a step back, pursed her lips, and said, “This Consort is Consort Rou.”
“Her Ladyship, Consort Rou!”
Liu Yingwu’s expression turned even uglier.
Consort Rou was one of the Four Consorts, not someone she could afford to offend.
But she had heard that Consort Rou was as timid as a mouse and had the least presence! Liu Yingwu’s eyes darted around as she probed, “Her Ladyship Consort Rou, this maid has committed a crime and deserves a thousand deaths!”
“Can Your Ladyship pretend to have seen nothing?”
“Liu Yingwu will be extremely grateful to Your Ladyship!”
Ming Yueni’s face paled. She bit her lip hard and looked at Shen Rou. Which side would she take?
“Maids of the Chen Palace can only be disciplined by His Majesty.”
Shen Rou spoke very slowly, her voice soft and delicate, “Even the Crown Prince cannot overstep. And you… are not yet the Crown Princess.”
Ming Yueni immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
Conversely, Liu Yingwu was infuriated and completely unwilling to let it go. “Is Her Ladyship Consort Rou trying to make an enemy out of me?”
Shen Rou blinked and said sluggishly, “If you kill me, the Great General’s Mansion will suffer the disaster of imprisonment.”
Liu Yingwu choked!
She was just making a threat; when did she ever say she was going to kill her!
Shen Rou added, “My people will be here momentarily.”
Liu Yingwu understood clearly now; she wouldn’t be able to kill Ming Yueni today!
Liu Yingwu glared fiercely at Ming Yueni’s face and viciously threatened her, “Ming Yueni, consider yourself lucky!”
“If you dare to tattle, I will absolutely not let you or your family off! If you know what’s good for you, pretend nothing happened! Keep your mouth shut!”
After speaking, Liu Yingwu hurriedly fled with her people, afraid that others would see her whereabouts.
It was over!
Ming Yueni slumped onto the ground, her face swollen and painful, her eyes rippling with a cold light.
“Are you alright?”
Shen Rou hadn’t left. She ran over to untie Ming Yueni’s ropes, panting softly and rejoicing, “I was lying to her. I came out for some fresh air by myself and didn’t bring any palace servants.”
After regaining her freedom, Ming Yueni first thanked her, “Thank you, Her Ladyship Consort Rou.”
Shen Rou’s eyes curved into a smile.
She suddenly reached out and carefully touched Ming Yueni’s severely swollen and red cheek. “It hurts a lot, doesn’t it? How about going to my place to apply some medicine and reduce the swelling?”
Ming Yueni looked at Shen Rou with a strange expression.
Shen Rou’s kindness came inexplicably, making her hesitant to trust it easily, but Shen Rou had indeed saved her.
Why not test the waters?
Ming Yueni nodded. “Sorry to trouble Your Ladyship Consort Rou.”
“Come with me.”
Shen Rou affectionately took Ming Yueni’s hand. When they encountered people on the way, she would even raise her sleeve to help hide Ming Yueni’s disheveled appearance.
They smoothly arrived at Furou Palace.
Ming Yueni quietly observed her surroundings. For a consort’s palace, this place was too deserted. The serving maids and eunuchs could be counted on one hand.
“Xiao Que, go fetch the medicine!”
Upon returning to her own palace, Shen Rou’s voice became much louder, revealing a hint of briskness.
Very soon!
The medicine was brought over. Shen Rou pulled Ming Yueni down to sit and personally applied the medicine for her.
She patted her chest and guaranteed, “This is a holy medicine rewarded by His Majesty. Applying it will stop the pain, and the swelling will go down in two hours.”
She wasn’t lying.
After applying the medicine, Ming Yueni’s face felt cool and refreshing; it didn’t hurt at all anymore.
Ming Yueni thanked her again: “Thank you, Her Ladyship Consort Rou.”
“I have never met Your Ladyship Consort Rou before. Why did Your Ladyship save me?”
Shen Rou wiped the ointment off her hands. Her almond eyes stared at her face as she said slowly, “Liu Yingwu harmed you because she is jealous of your beauty.”
“This Consort saved you also because of your beauty. I couldn’t bear to see such a beautiful woman perish; it would be too much of a pity.”
Hearing this, Ming Yueni frowned in silence.
She didn’t believe it!
Shen Rou immediately asked her, “This Consort heard everything, little beauty. You don’t really want to marry the Crown Prince, do you?”
Ming Yueni wore an expression as if she wanted to vomit.
She shook her head immediately: “Absolutely impossible! This servant would rather die than marry the Crown Prince!”
“That’s great!” Shen Rou breathed a sigh of relief and muttered quietly, “The little beauty’s brain isn’t broken.”
Ming Yueni tilted her head.
She could hear her!
“Her Ladyship Consort Rou, this servant has a name—it’s Ming Yueni.”
“Sister Ni’er!” Shen Rou changed her tune so quickly it caught people off guard, and her topics jumped just as fast!
Her very next sentence was actually to ask Ming Yueni directly, “Sister Ni’er, do you want to be His Majesty’s consort?”
Ming Yueni’s eyes flashed, and she pressed her lips tightly together: “Your Ladyship Consort Rou, what did you say?”
“The Emperor has arrived—”
Beichen Yuan was here!
Shen Rou immediately took the lead in curtsying: “Respectfully welcoming His Majesty, wishing you peace and health!”
Beichen Yuan strode into the hall, ignoring the others, and went straight to Ming Yueni, bending over to lift her face.
Seeing the horrific, red and swollen handprint on Ming Yueni’s face, the Emperor was furious, his whole body exuding a terrifying and soul-shaking aura!
“Who hit you?”
“It was…” Ming Yueni hesitated over how to say it to achieve the best effect.
Seeing her hesitation, Beichen Yuan’s cold and sharp gaze swept directly toward Shen Rou.
Shen Rou trembled in fright and hurriedly explained, “Your Majesty, it was the future Crown Princess who hit her! She even wanted to kill Sister Ni’er!”
“If this concubine hadn’t happened upon them in time, Sister Ni’er would have already been drowned in the lake by now!”
Beichen Yuan’s brows furrowed tightly. “Ming Yueni, is what Consort Rou says true?”
“Mm.”
Ming Yueni nodded aggrievedly.
With Consort Rou speaking up, she was saved the trouble; she only needed to cry!
The tears came immediately. Her curved eyelashes trembled, and teardrops rustled down onto the back of Beichen Yuan’s hand.
Ming Yueni cried in such an aggrieved and pitiful manner that it broke people’s hearts and made them ache for her.
“Your Majesty, this servant has been so wronged!”
“Sob… Miss Liu kept insisting that this servant wants to marry the Crown Prince as a Secondary Consort, and wanted to kill this servant… sob…”
Tears fell like rain, her delicate body trembling weakly.
Ming Yueni wept with every breath: “This servant would rather die than marry the Crown Prince!”
“In this servant’s heart, there is only Your Majesty!”
Beichen Yuan’s heart ached and softened. He couldn’t help but cradle Ming Yueni’s face, wiping her tears tenderly and coaxing her, “Alright, I know your feelings, and I believe you.”
“Don’t cry anymore. I will avenge you.”
Shen Rou suddenly interjected, “Your Majesty, rather than you avenging Sister Ni’er, why not let Sister Ni’er do it herself!”
Beichen Yuan and Ming Yueni both looked at her simultaneously.
Shen Rou timidly shrank her neck, speaking softly and slowly, “Sister Ni’er likes Your Majesty. It would be better to take her into the imperial harem. From then on, with a clear distinction in status, the future Crown Princess will never dare to bully Sister Ni’er again.”
“Once granted a title, Sister Ni’er can take her own revenge!”
The corners of Beichen Yuan’s mouth curled into a subtle smile.
But when he lowered his head to look at Ming Yueni, he discovered…