"Look at what you're saying, little sister. I'm just trying to show my appreciation." Guo Fei covered her mouth with her handkerchief and giggled, but in her heart she was secretly mocking my lack of appreciation!
Seeing her flirtatious glances, I said, "I'm not an emperor, don't try to charm me! I prefer men!"
I looked to Xiaowu for help, and when she nodded, I said, "Then thank you for such a generous gift, Consort Guo. I will accept it." Since Xiaowu had agreed, I couldn't very well refuse. Why not take it? If I didn't accept it, she would think I looked down on her. In this palace, it's best to avoid making enemies.
After she left, I breathed a sigh of relief. My back and waist ached terribly; I really admired how those concubines could sit for so long without getting tired. Just as I was about to go and rest, I heard outside, "Consort Xue has arrived!"
First came Consort Guo, then Consort Xue. Who is this Consort Xue? I asked Xiao Wu and found out she's another one of the Imperial Consorts. Why does it always have to be such a high-ranking person? I've been laughing so hard my face is cramping since this morning, and I have to put on a smile again. How can I stand this? This is really not a good place to stay.
"Sister, are you alright?" Consort Xue smiled seductively at me. She was indeed a beauty, unlike Consort Guo's dignified demeanor. If Consort Guo was the composed type, then Consort Xue was the alluring type. But why were they all calling me "sister"? I protested! I am Lady Jue, not the Emperor's concubine!
"Hmm, thank you for your concern, I'm fine now." I forced a stiff smile and took a sip of tea. It was so dry!
"Ah, who sent this?" Yu Guang glanced at the gift in Xiao Wu's hand and pretended to be surprised, saying that she hadn't had time to put it away.
Everyone already knew what was going on, but I didn't intend to hide it and told her directly, "It was a gift from Consort Guo."
"What should I do? My gift is not as good as Sister Guo's!" Xuefei pretended to be very distressed, as if her gift was really not presentable. Look at the barb in her words.
I mentally scorned her. If you don't want to send it, then don't. You're just wasting my time, my energy, my smile. Get lost if you have nothing better to do! And you even share the same character as me, "Xue" (雪). I'm ashamed to share this character with you. Why can't you live up to it?! Xiao Wu, can I beat her up?
I maintained my smile. "It's not easy being a person, and it's even harder being a person of high status," I said. "You jest, Xuefei."
Xuefei got up and squeezed next to me. The pungent smell of rouge hit my nose. Ugh, I can't stand it! You have so much money to burn, why are you putting so much powder on your face?
"Since my sister has said so, Xiao Luo..."
"The servant is..."
"Present the gift to Madam Jue."
"yes"
Chapter Thirty-Two
The maid opened it and a flash of light shone into my eyes. After the flash, I saw a pure white, lustrous jade bead.
"Sister, this is a luminous pearl from the South China Sea. It's just a small gift, nothing special." Wow, she really knows how to talk. Such a priceless pearl is described as nothing special. If it were something special, what would it be like?
"Thank you," I told Xiaowu to accept it. Since Xiaowu had already said it was fine, and I already had quite a few gifts from these concubines, one more or one less wouldn't make a difference. I didn't know what to do with them anyway; I could exchange them for money when I left. At that time, I didn't realize how ridiculous my thinking was. Those things were actually bought from Jue.
I woke up about five days ago, and those five days were absolutely agonizing for me. I was already bored, wandering around the palace, touching everything, even the corners of the walls. I thought the concubines would add some fun to my boring life, but I got tired of it after a while. The concubines started bothering me all the time, and I couldn't even have my own space.
Finally, the pardon was revoked, and I, this lady, am finally returning to nature.
I took a deep breath of fresh air, feeling its cleansing flow through my body, and truly felt a sense of freedom. Maybe it's because I've been locked up for too long!
As I walked, I came to the Hundred Flowers Garden again. The Hundred Flowers Garden had a different charm in the morning. The morning dew still clung to the petals, unwilling to leave. Some palace maids were busily collecting the dew. I stopped one of the busy maids with great interest. I still remember the panic she showed when she saw me, as if she had seen a ghost. After asking, I learned that the dew was for the nobles of the palace to make morning tea. Under the sunlight, the dewdrops sparkled, adding a few more dazzling colors to the flowers. I walked to the lake that I hadn't been able to appreciate properly the night before. I walked in the pavilion by the lake, enjoying the cool breeze blowing from the lake. In the vast lake, many fish chased each other. Every now and then, a fish would leap, quietly breaking the silence, and then return to stillness. The golden sun shone on the clear waves, the ripples flowing, and the water was crystal clear. In that clear and deep water, the fish lived leisurely.
The white lotus on the lake is like a pure and ethereal fairy in white, gentle and tender, fresh and elegant, charming yet not vulgar. The white lotus, a spirit that dedicates its entire life to the wind, the rain, the mortal world, and all things. Some say that mud is your past life, water is your present life, thus you are destined to wander in mud and water from birth. Others say that before the autumn rain falls, the youthful season has already departed from you, and you have witnessed too much helplessness and unfulfilled love. How many devoted lovers, in the wind and rain, in the melodies flowing from delicate fingers, in the boundless sorrow of unrequited love, linger in your romantic tales, trying to peek into your heart, to decipher the uncertainties of love, the ambiguity of being neither here nor there, of life and death. But it is always too early, or too late. No matter how time changes, you always manage to traverse mountains and rivers, penetrate the hustle and bustle of the city, and by the small pond, in the Grand View Garden, tell people of your gentlemanly tranquility. Elegant? Pure? Transcendent? But poor souls, how many can truly understand the life vows you've kept hidden for centuries?
This is for a peaceful and warm morning.
Looking at the water surface
With a 'thud,' a stone flew past me and hit the water's surface, creating ripples. I was startled by this unexpected event.
"Bold!" Xiao Wu shouted at the people behind her.
"Who?" I turned around and saw a woman dressed in a light pink gown, with a white gauze overlay, revealing her graceful neck and clearly visible collarbones. The folds of her skirt flowed like moonlight and snow, cascading lightly to the ground, trailing more than three feet, making her gait even more elegant and graceful. Her long black hair was tied up with a ribbon and adorned with a butterfly hairpin, with a strand of hair hanging down in front of her chest. She wore light makeup, which only enhanced her color, and the faint blush on her cheeks created a delicate and lovely look, like pure skin as delicate as flower petals. She was like a butterfly fluttering in the wind, or like clear and pure ice and snow.
What a beautiful woman! She must be one of the Emperor's concubines! I looked up and gazed into her eyes without thinking. They were bright and clear. Ah, I remembered. I had seen a pair of clear eyes by chance in the Empress Dowager's palace.
The girl seemed startled by Xiao Wu, staring blankly at her. Her petite body trembled slightly, her face showing a pitiful expression. She cleared her throat and said in a soft, melodious voice, "I'm sorry."
It seemed that the maidservant immediately stepped in front of her mistress, acting as if she were saving her master. "How dare you, a mere maidservant, be so disrespectful to the Lady!"
Seeing this scene, I couldn't help but laugh. This palace maid was clearly terrified of Xiao Wu, yet she still adopted such a tough attitude. What an adorable girl.
Seeing that Xiao Wu was about to scold them again, I quickly said, "Okay, Xiao Wu, you've scared them."
Seeing that Xiao Wu was being suppressed by me, the maid hurriedly asked me, "Who are you? Why are you so rude?"
Very good, very good. This girl is too naive and doesn't know how to read people's expressions. Doesn't she know that Xiao Wu will scold her for saying that?
Sure enough, "You audacious servant, how dare Madam Jue question you like this!" With a 'slap', she slapped the palace maid.
"Xiao Wu, you're being too impulsive," I said, frowning at Xiao Wu. This was way too much! All she did was ask who I was! Why did she hit me? Besides, I'm only wearing plain clothes today; people might mistake me for someone without status!
"Miss," Xiao Wu turned around and complained to me before gracefully returning to my back.
"This servant deserves to die, this servant deserves to die! I didn't know you were Lady Jue! This servant deserves to die!" The palace maid knelt down in fear, frantically banging her forehead against the ground. The woman behind her also hurriedly knelt down to pay her respects, her head bowed so I couldn't see her expression. "Lady Jue, please forgive me."
"Alright, get up. Ignorance is no excuse." I quickly stopped her from doing something that resembled suicide. I could tell her master was terrified too!
When I saw the palace maid look up, her forehead was swollen, so I quickly said to Xiao Wu, "Xiao Wu, go get some medicine to apply to her forehead."
"No, this servant dares not!" Before Xiao Wu could take a step, the palace maid had already hurriedly retreated outside the pavilion.
I didn't know what to say, so I looked at the pretty woman and asked, "Are you Lady Jie?"
"Yes," the woman answered, head bowed, avoiding my gaze. Am I that scary?
"Come on, sit down. Standing is tiring," I said, reaching out to pull her to sit down on the chair next to me.
"Yes," she answered cautiously.
"Don't be so reserved, haha, I'm not a monster," I teased her, hoping she wouldn't be so afraid of me.
She glanced up at me, and seeing my smiling face, she giggled too. "Sister, you scared me."
"Am I that scary?" I touched my face.
"No, it's because my sister is Lady Jue, so I thought..." She trailed off, hesitant to continue, only looking at me timidly.
"What do you think?"
"Um, I already told you, don't be angry, sister." She suddenly grabbed my hand, as if she was about to say something that made me very angry.
"What?" I looked at her, amused.
"I heard someone say that my sister is not to be trifled with, otherwise they would make a beheading gesture at her neck."
Seeing that I didn't say anything, she thought I was angry and quickly knelt down, pleading, "Sister, please spare me!"
I said, I didn't say anything, why are you making such a fuss?
"What kind of play is this?" A clear, elegant voice came from outside the pavilion.
Chapter 33
We all looked towards the source of the voice and saw a man in a dragon robe, with deep black eyes and an exceptionally handsome face. Every gesture he made exuded a natural imperial aura, a wild charm that was irresistible. Behind him followed a group of palace maids and eunuchs, all neatly arranged. What a domineering man.
I rested my chin on my hand and looked at him sideways. I was interested in him, but it was just admiration, not love; after all, my heart had already given itself to him.
I rose and curtsied slightly, then sat back down before he could offer me a seat. Xiao Wu and the palace maid immediately knelt and bowed, while the young lady, who had been kneeling since, simply turned and greeted him with "Greetings, Your Majesty."
"Rise!" He waved his hand, his every move exuding the domineering aura of an emperor.
He sat down opposite me, a glint of shrewdness in his eyes. "Did I miss something good?"
"No, Zixue was just joking with Jie'er," I said, tucking a strand of hair from my chest into my hand.
"Jie'er?" The Emperor looked at the woman behind him with a question in his eyes.
"You don't mind if I call you Jie'er, do you?" I looked at the woman behind him, ignoring his question.
"You're too kind, Madam. It's an honor for me to be addressed like that," she replied without looking up at me, her voice as clear and melodious as a magpie's.
"Oh...it seems I made a mistake." He looked at me with an amused expression.
"Is Madam Jue alright?" she asked me gently, her tone as soothing as a spring breeze in March.
Isn't that obvious? Of course I'm fine, otherwise why would I be chatting with him here? I'm not going to waste my life.
"Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. Zixue is unharmed." I admit that I was momentarily attracted by his smile, but I was not naive enough to think that he was so harmless. After all, he was the ruler of a country, and he couldn't be that simple.
"Madam, there's no need for such formality. Just call me Xingyi," he said, his smile widening as he looked at me intently.
But when he finished speaking, Jie'er looked up in surprise, especially after hearing what was said behind her. She was even more surprised, though I had only seen Jie'er's expression for the first time, which seemed to be both astonished and complicated.
He looked past the Emperor and saw me watching her, then quickly lowered his head, as if afraid I would know something. I looked at him curiously.
I ignored it and looked at the Emperor again. For some reason, his smile seemed irritating to me.
"That won't do. Your Majesty, you are the ruler of the country. How can Zixue address you by your name?" Don't get close to me. I have never had any good feelings towards people in the palace, let alone you, who is the master of this palace. You should not get close to me.
"Madam, you are looking down on me." His deep black eyes were as dark as the night, and the cold light within them was even more chilling. Although a seemingly warm smile appeared on the corner of his mouth, there was no warmth in his eyes at all.
My God, look at that! So powerful and threatening! At first, it looked like a docile little lamb, but it turned out to be a treacherous smiling tiger.
"Since Your Majesty has said so, then Zixue will respectfully comply. Your Majesty need not call me Madam, just call me Zixue." This girl is really not easy to deal with; she's clearly not someone to be trifled with.
"Hahaha, Zixue is so generous!" He suddenly burst into laughter, his eyes slightly upturned, as if I had said something very funny.
"I don't know where you're going to start with that," I said, putting down my hand that was fiddling with my hair, placing it on top of my other hand, and smiling faintly.
“Zi Xue doesn’t know how one can tell from a person’s behavior.” His dark eyes were sharp as swords, as if he could see right through me.
Looking into his eyes, I felt uncomfortable, as if all my secrets had been exposed to him.
I avoided his unsettling gaze and counted on my fingers, "Is it really so rude of Xingyi to look at people like that?"
"Oh, it was my oversight." A fan appeared out of nowhere and began to fan itself.
"No, people's memory inevitably declines as they get older," I glanced at him and said what was on my mind.
Xingyi paused in her fanning, a look of bewilderment appearing on her face.
Seeing his discomfitured face, I felt a sense of triumphant revenge. Haha, serves you right for bullying me.
"May I ask you a question, Zixue?" He closed his fan, his deep eyes suddenly veiled with a layer of mist, making them seem even more distant and boundless.
"Xingyi, please ask." I was quite afraid of his gaze, because his gaze wasn't as cold as Jue's, but it had a kind of terror that made people fall into hell and struggle bitterly.