Bai Fuxue leaped down from the pomelo tree, and Xiao Shizhi opened her arms to catch her little beauty.
The two embraced each other fully.
Xiao Shizhi’s heart swayed with emotion as she tightly wrapped her arms around Bai Fuxue’s slender waist.
Consort Rong stood awkwardly nearby, her expression barely holding together!
She had thought Bai Fuxue was secretly meeting someone in the imperial garden, only to find her picking pomelos from a tree?
Was she insane?
Consort Rong was so furious her mind buzzed, and her gaze toward Bai Fuxue grew somewhat dazed.
Xiao Shizhi glanced at Consort Rong standing stiffly to the side and understood everything.
“Since all is well now, Consort Rong may return.”
Consort Rong had no choice but to leave gracefully, still unable to believe until the very end that Bai Fuxue must have gotten wind of the news and climbed the tree.
Picking pomelos in the dead of night, what kind of madness drove someone to do such a thing?
Feeling guilty, Bai Fuxue handed the pomelo in her arms to Xiao Shizhi. Just then, the moon emerged from behind the clouds, illuminating her lovely face.
Bai Fuxue: “Your Majesty, are you not angry?”
Xiao Shizhi: “Since you did it for me, how could I be angry?”
Xiao Shizhi nuzzled her cheek against Bai Fuxue’s, and her hand holding Bai Fuxue’s grew restless, lightly scratching her palm with a fingernail.
What an adorable little thing.
Never able to leave her side for a moment.
Holding the plump, round pomelo in her arms, Xiao Shizhi felt a wish fulfilled.
Before entering the palace hall, Xiao Shizhi turned to Li Dequan and gave an order.
“Regarding today’s matter, I do not wish to hear any gossip.”
Li Dequan bowed and acknowledged, cautiously reminding, “The fruits in the imperial garden are not to be picked. This matter could be taken lightly or seriously. What does Your Majesty think?”
Xiao Shizhi hesitated for a moment. “Actually, I’d like to pick some too.”
She just hadn’t had the time.
Too damn busy.
Holding the pomelo, Xiao Shizhi entered her little beauty’s palace hall with a look of utter resignation.
Li Dequan: ?
Your Majesty, what are you saying?
On the bed, Xiao Shizhi slowly and gently peeled off Bai Fuxue’s outermost layer of thin gauze, revealing her beautiful shoulders and equally exquisite collarbones.
Under the candlelight, they appeared flawless.
A warm, intoxicating fragrance emanated from her, making Xiao Shizhi unable to resist pulling her into an embrace.
As they whispered intimately, Xiao Shizhi’s shoulder was bitten, leaving a row of teeth marks.
Similarly, the inside of Bai Fuxue’s wrist was gently nibbled.
Throughout the night, Bai Fuxue lost count of how many times she cried, until her voice grew hoarse and her eyes swollen.
Even the sky outside began to lighten with the first hints of dawn.
Xiao Shizhi held her close and fell into a deep sleep. Today was a day of rest, so there was no need to attend the morning court.
It wasn’t until noon that Bai Fuxue slowly opened her eyes.
A red cord was still tied around her ankle, its other end fastened to the bedpost.
Bai Fuxue: “…”
You beast.
You really know how to play.
Xiao Shizhi instinctively tightened her embrace. “Xuexue, don’t go.”
Bai Fuxue saw the dark circles under her eyes and ink stains on her knuckles, the toll of overwork evident on her exhausted face.
Bai Fuxue: “Your Majesty, you must take care of your health. Even while reviewing memorials, you need proper rest.”
Xiao Shizhi opened her eyes numbly, not particularly eager to face the daylight.
Bai Fuxue frowned. “Did you hear me?”
Xiao Shizhi: My consort speaks wisely.”
Bai Fuxue’s words were like telling a corporate slave working 24/7, “Sweetie, remember to balance work and rest~ Make sure to get a full eight hours of sleep~”
It’s easy to talk big without lifting a finger.
Xiao Shizhi rose from the bed with a complicated expression, “I must attend to state affairs now, my beloved consort. Please rest well.”
She didn’t even have time for breakfast. Meeting Bai Fuxue’s concerned gaze, she said,
“Xuexue, you’ll never understand how busy I truly am.”
Bai Fuxue leisurely sipped her fish congee, “.”
How laughable, Xiao Shizhi still found time for romantic encounters amidst her work.
Back when Bai Fuxue was working around the clock, she’d slept at the company for a full month.
During her busiest periods, she’d made two hundred business trips in a single year.
Watching Xiao Shizhi’s slightly weary retreating figure, Bai Fuxue felt profound sympathy.
The crisp autumn air signaled the annual imperial selection season.
Considering the new emperor’s recent ascension and the nation’s ongoing recovery with depleted treasury reserves, the selection was postponed until next year.
The Vice Minister of Rites reported cautiously, “Your Majesty, Consort Rong’s younger sister and Her Majesty the Empress’s sister are both at marriageable age. The Left Chancellor’s household has long wished to send their daughter to accompany the senior consorts.”
He carefully observed the Empress’s expression,
“Shall we accept both young ladies into the rear palace, or only one?”
“Your Majesty should soon produce heirs. Perhaps bestow fertility elixirs upon the consorts.”
Xiao Shizhi’s fingers tapped rhythmically on the table.
In the original novel, she had chosen Consort Rong’s sister.
The Empress shared blood ties with the Imperial Uncle bringing her sister in would be inviting trouble.
Though Consort Rong was somewhat foolish, her simplicity made her predictable, content with palace intrigues rather than political ambitions.
Keeping her comfortably maintained would prevent major disturbances.
Yet refusing both candidates would breach protocol and anger the Left Chancellor (a crucial ally),
whose support would prove vital during the upcoming Yangtze River floods.
Xiao Shizhi made the same choice as in the original storyline.
The Vice Minister of Rites withdrew with the decree, exhaling in relief as cold sweat drenched his official robes.
The Vice Minister whispered to Chief Eunuch Li, “His Excellency, did Her Majesty dislike both candidates?”
The portraits of those radiant beauties had failed to spark any interest.
Li Dequan replied, “Her Majesty’s heart belongs to that certain consort. Any new lady would need remarkable skills to catch her attention.”
Xiao Shizhi slumped like salted fish in her soft chair, muttering wearily, “Autumn carps grow plump. It’s fish-eating season.”
Gazing through the small window, she felt no different from a prisoner.
Is this any way for a person to live?
Working even on rest days.
Death to all who endorse overtime.
Oh, right Xiao Shizhi was already the emperor.
By the time she completed her current tasks, sunset painted the sky not signaling rest, but impending all-night work.
With unsteady steps and dark circles under her eyes, Xiao Shizhi staggered to the imperial garden for a walk.
No different from a prisoner’s yard time.
In the distance, she spotted Bai Fuxue holding a fishing rod atop the artificial rocks by Taiye Pond.
Wearing a bamboo hat, the consort sat before a ceramic bowl filled with earthworms.
Soon, a massive grass carp took the bait.
Songluo excitedly netted it, then carefully removed the hook with both hands.
“Her Highness was right, autumn fish are truly the plumpest!”
Bai Fuxue smiled as she cast her fishing line into the water. “Let’s have sliced fish hot pot tonight. Have the Imperial Kitchen send over some pickled cabbage.”
Songluo replied cheerfully, “Right away!”
Li Dequan fawned obsequiously, “Your Majesty, see how you and Her Highness share such a deep connection of hearts.”
Xiao Shizhi felt a pang of bitterness in his heart. “Once Consort Rong’s younger sister enters the palace, I fear there will be no peace.”
Bai Fuxue’s ears perked up, sensing someone behind her. She immediately handed the fishing rod to Songluo and asked in a hushed, probing tone, “Is Your Majesty taking a new consort?”
Xiao Shizhi replied apologetically, “Yes.”
A flicker of pain crossed Bai Fuxue’s eyes. “If Your Majesty grows fond of other sisters, will you still tolerate this humble consort climbing pomelo trees, fishing in the Taiye Pond, and refusing to kneel in greeting, all acts that violate palace decorum and hierarchy?”
Her delicate voice, though coquettish, trembled slightly.
“When thunderstorm rages through the night, will Your Majesty go to another sister’s palace instead of holding this consort as we sleep?”
“By then, will there still be room in Your Majesty’s heart for me?”