Yesterday she was so weak that she didn't even have the strength to speak or cry. Now that she had finally recovered a little, she rushed into Meng Wan's arms and burst into tears.
"Wan'er, Wan'er---"
It seemed as if she was using all her strength to cry, her hoarse and desperate appearance was heartbreaking. Meng Wan saw this and also shed tears, holding her shoulders tightly with both hands and crying with her.
She understood the pain of losing her child, and knew she couldn't say anything at that moment. She just let her cry until she had cried and grieved enough.
Consort Xin burst into tears, crying uncontrollably in Meng Wan's arms. Her cries were so loud that even the Emperor, who had come to visit, was startled. Standing outside the door, he watched her weeping uncontrollably, his hawk-like eyes fixed on her.
She's so heartbroken that seeing him would only make her cry even harder. So it's best to avoid seeing him for now, to prevent both of them from getting hurt.
Thinking of this, he turned around, gave an order to Eunuch Li, and the imperial carriage then turned back and returned to Zhengyang Palace.
Meanwhile, inside Chonghua Palace, the Empress's people informed her of this scene. A smile finally appeared on the Empress's lips as she turned to Yueji beside her and said, "Go and make arrangements for that person to prepare. She will be allowed to enter the palace soon."
--
In the following days, Meng Wan often went to the palace to keep Consort Shu company, because she was really worried that Consort Shu would overthink things if she was alone. However, she knew in her heart that the pain of losing a child was something that no one else could understand, and only she could recover slowly on her own.
In this way, a month passed in the blink of an eye. When Consort Shu's health improved, Meng Wan accompanied her on a walk to relax.
It was already late autumn, with strong winds and a chilly sky. The sky, which had been covered with frost for many days, was a clear, bright blue. The sun shone brightly, dispelling the paleness of the sky and revealing a soft, melting light that spread across the horizon and fell evenly in all directions.
The pale gold color warms the withered wood, but it cannot warm the cool breeze.
Meng Wan helped Consort Shu walk slowly, her eyes filled with desolate scenery, and her mood was not very cheerful. Just then, a melodious zither sound suddenly came to her ears.
Music is usually forbidden in the palace during festivals, but now someone is brazenly playing music in the palace. Meng Wan and Consort Shu were both stunned and called out to Chun Tao, who was leading the way: "Go and see who is playing music? Are they out of their minds?"
Chun Tao did as she was told and quickly stepped forward, but her expression changed drastically after she saw the figure on the other side. She hurriedly turned back and, ignoring Consort Shu's astonished expression, pushed her back.
V75 I Only Want You (Part 1)
Chun Tao did as she was told and quickly stepped forward, but her expression changed drastically after she saw the figure on the other side. She hurriedly turned back and, ignoring Consort Shu's astonished expression, pushed her back.
This very strange behavior made Consort Shu frown. "What's wrong?"
"No...it's nothing. Master, it's chilly outside, why don't we go back inside?"
The more this happened, the more suspicious Consort Shu became. She turned to look at Chun Tao, then suddenly stopped in her tracks: "Something's not right, Chun Tao, what are you panicking about?"
Chun Tao was clearly taken aback, but managed to maintain her composure, saying, "No, I'm not flustered at all. I was just afraid that Master would be blown away by the wind..."
"You're lying!"
Consort Shu was not so easily fooled. She glared at Chun Tao, then ignored her and headed towards the direction of Qin Yin.
At this moment, Chun Tao panicked. It was too late to stop him, so she grabbed Meng Wan's hand and said urgently, "Your Highness, please stop my master, or something terrible will happen!"
As if the sky were about to fall, Meng Wan frowned upon seeing this: "What exactly happened? How did things turn out so badly?"
Chun Tao's face crumpled as she looked at Meng Wan, almost bursting into tears: "Over there, over there is the newly arrived Consort Rong..."
Upon hearing this, Meng Wan was taken aback.
Consort Rong? Why does that name sound so familiar?
After pondering for a while, he suddenly slapped his forehead.
How could she forget that not long after Consort Shu's miscarriage, a Noble Lady Rong entered the palace? It was said that she looked very much like Consort Huangfu Mi's mother, so the Emperor took a liking to her at first sight and promoted her to Noble Lady, skipping three ranks. Because she liked playing the zither, the Emperor cleared out Yulinzhai for her so that she could play every day.
Meng Wan didn't know whether it resembled her mother, Consort Rong or not. After all, she had only seen portraits of her mother. As for Consort Rong, she had only been concerned about Consort Shu's health and hadn't thought much about her or even met her. It was only when Chun Tao mentioned it that she felt something was wrong.
Regardless of who the woman resembles, the fact that she 'seduced' the Emperor while Consort Shu was ill was enough to enrage the proud and intolerant Consort Shu. No wonder Chun Tao was so anxious.
She hurriedly lifted her skirt and quickly chased after him.
Consort Shu had already entered Yulinzhai, which was originally an empty courtyard. Because it was next to the plum garden where Consort Wen had lived, no one was allowed to live there for many years. But now someone dared to be inside, playing music. They were really quite bold.
Consort Shu was already feeling depressed, and now she wanted to vent her anger on someone, so she stormed in.
Yulinzhai was pretty much as I had imagined. It had three rooms and a small garden of about 15 square meters. The main room was separated by a screen. The outer half of the room was a small hall for entertaining guests and dining, while the inner half was the bedroom.
On the east half of the bedroom wall, various ancient zithers were hung. These zithers were only used as decorations, nailed to the wall, and the strings were just for show, unable to produce any sound.
Below the zither wall stood two bookshelves, each filled with books. Unlike the zithers, these books were not decorations, but genuine books, thick and stacked, packed tightly together.
Because the courtyard was filled with books and music, it made the whole place look even more unique.
However, Consort Shu had no time to appreciate the uniqueness of the courtyard; she was looking for the person who played the zither to deal with. She saw a woman in red sitting in the inner room. Because her back was turned, her face could not be seen, but her figure was graceful and charming.
Consort Shu was petty, or perhaps all the women in the palace were like that; they couldn't stand women who were younger and more beautiful than themselves. So when she saw a young woman playing the zither, she immediately scolded, "Which reckless woman dares to play such decadent music in the palace? Are you tired of living?"
The music stopped abruptly, and the woman turned around. Consort Shu looked down at her, initially arrogant, but she was stunned when she saw the woman's face.
Everyone said she resembled Consort Wen by a third, and she knew that the Emperor's favor towards her over the years was mostly due to this. However, the woman in front of her had beautiful eyebrows and eyes, slightly upturned lips, and every gesture was exactly like Consort Wen's.
Consort Shu was stunned. She just stared at her, completely forgetting the purpose of her trip.
The woman, however, remained unfazed under such scrutiny. She slowly stood up and walked to Consort Shu, saying, "Your Majesty, I pay my respects. May Your Majesty enjoy boundless blessings and peace!"
Consort Shu was surprised to find that the man recognized her. Realizing her rudeness, she coughed lightly to cover her emotions. Once she had calmed down a bit, she asked, "Who are you?"
The woman lowered her head even further: "Your Majesty, I am Rong Jinxiu, a newly arrived Noble Lady. I have never met you before, Consort Shu."
Upon hearing this, Consort Shu frowned.
A newcomer to the palace? A noble lady? Only now did I realize why Chun Tao had been so obstructive; she was afraid that Chun Tao would know that the Emperor had favored other women while she was ill!