Five years after her death, she awoke on the dragon bed.

Chapter 16 Tonight You Will Serve Me

Lou Suyi was dumbfounded and blurted out, "Why?"

Murong remained indifferent, not glancing at her again, and ordered her to leave the Dharma Hall so as not to interfere with his sacrificial ceremony.

She wanted to ask more, but Jiqing quickly led her out of the Dharma Hall and whispered, "His Majesty is now the monarch, and his words are imperial edicts. There is no reason for him to take them back. Since His Majesty wants Fourth Miss to stay at the Lotus Nunnery, you should stay there with peace of mind."

Lou Suyi had her doubts, but she had no choice but to accept her fate.

There's nothing wrong with Lotus Nunnery. She spends her days eating and sleeping, and doesn't have to work hard for a living. He's the emperor; he issued an imperial edict, so she should just stay there.

After returning to her room, she fell asleep immediately and only went to the dining hall to find food when she was hungry.

Unexpectedly, the dining hall was overcrowded, with many nuns waiting outside, including Xie Zhijie and Qi Yan.

Of course, Ji Qing was also there.

As soon as Lou Suyi appeared, Jiqing saw her. Seeing her arrive, he waved to her, signaling her to leave quickly.

Lou Suyi didn't think much of it and was about to leave when she saw two elegant and beautiful women coming towards the dining hall.

She glanced at them curiously a few more times, guessing that these two were Murong's concubines. They were truly beautiful; His Majesty the Emperor was very fortunate to have such a beautiful harem.

To avoid getting into trouble, she didn't linger and returned to her quarters despite her hunger.

Before long, Jiqing suddenly arrived, bringing vegetarian food with him.

"His Majesty is having a meal with the Empress Dowager in the dining hall, and Consort Ning and Consort Li are also accompanying him. I was worried that Fourth Miss might be hungry, so I brought some food over first." Ji Qing smiled kindly at Lou Suyi.

Lou Suyi felt a chill run down her spine when she saw Ji Qing looking at her as if she were a gold nugget.

She replied politely, "Thank you for making this special trip."

"Eat your fill. I might come to see you again tonight. I'll take my leave now." Ji Qing gave another enigmatic smile before walking away.

Lou Suyi found Ji Qing's smile particularly strange. What did he mean by "maybe he will come looking for her"?

Isn't he a favorite of the emperor? He's always serving Murong, so why is he coming to see her?
After thinking about it for a while and still not figuring it out, she decided to focus on eating.

After the vegetarian meal, she copied the scriptures and quickly calmed down, completely unaware of the passage of time.

On the other side, Xie Zhijie and Qi Yan were serving in front of the emperor, and they were actually observing whether the new emperor had any intention of issuing an edict to Lou Suyi.

They were relieved to see that the new emperor was focused on the sacrificial ceremony from morning to afternoon.

By the time the sacrificial ceremony was completed, it was already evening.

Xie Zhijie hesitated for a long time, but finally decided to give it a try. He stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, I humbly request your grace."

Murong looked at Xie Zhijie: "What is it?"

"Your Majesty, I have taken a liking to a woman who is currently practicing meditation at the Lotus Nunnery. Your Majesty..."

"As a high-ranking official of the court, how can you seek a woman on a day like this, a day of sacrifice?" Murong's expression was calm, yet his presence exuded authority.

Xie Zhijie felt a chill run down his spine, realizing something was wrong.

"Judging from what you're saying, my dear minister, the other party is unwilling to follow you. Are you trying to use your power to intimidate them?" Murong's gaze was fixed on Xie Zhijie's face.

Xie Zhijie hurriedly replied, "Your humble servant dares not!"

Murong said nothing more and went to the meditation room prepared by the abbot.

The environment of Lianhua Nunnery is not as good as that of Huangjue Temple, and the meditation rooms are naturally not as spacious.

Seeing the new emperor's cold expression, Ji Qing knew that it was Lord Xie who had spoiled His Majesty's mood. He had originally considered whether to send Lou Suying to serve the emperor, but given the current situation, he decided it was best not to interfere.

Just then, Consort Ning gracefully approached, carrying a plate of fruit: "This was sent by the Empress Dowager. Your Majesty, please enjoy." When she met Murong Qingjun's handsome face, she felt both joy and heartache.

She had been a concubine of the new emperor since the time he was still a prince, but Consort De had entered the palace even earlier. That night, she was unable to serve the emperor and was heartbroken all night.

Later she learned that even though Consort De was more favored than her, she was unable to serve the emperor because of her weak health, which made her feel much better.

The two women were old servants of the Prince's residence, yet they were living like widows.

They thought that after the new emperor ascended the throne, he would have the opportunity to serve them in bed, but the result was still the same, which made them suspect that the new emperor might have some hidden illness.

Consort Ning wondered if she could stay in the new emperor's meditation room tonight and have a chance to serve him in bed.

Just as she was making her own plans, the new emperor suddenly ordered her to leave: "My beloved concubine, you may leave."

Consort Ning felt extremely nauseous, but she could not disobey the imperial decree, so she could only retreat in a huff.

Ji Qing, who was standing to the side, was not surprised by this scene. If His Majesty had kept Consort Ning, that would have been a real tragedy.

It seems we still have to send Lou Suying to His Majesty's room; at least His Majesty won't be so resistant to the Fourth Miss.

If Lou Suyi had even a little ambition, she would have had the chance to climb into the emperor's bed.

He felt that tonight was the right time, so he seized an opportunity to leave the meditation room and then went to find Lou Suyi.

Lou Suyi had just finished her vegetarian meal, so she wasn't surprised to see Jiqing arrive.

But then Jiqing brought her a bowl of soup, which she assumed was a gift from Murong, and she was about to drink it.

Seeing this, Ji Qing stopped her impatiently: "This is a tonic soup for His Majesty. Please, Fourth Miss, go and deliver the soup to His Majesty."

Lou Suying couldn't help but glance at the fragrant soup a couple more times, puzzled, and asked, "Why don't you deliver it yourself?"

Ji Qing could tell from Lou Suyi's bewildered look that she was clueless, and he really didn't know if she could succeed.

"I have other things to take care of, so I'll trouble Fourth Miss to make this trip," Ji Qing said, spouting nonsense with a straight face.

Lou Suyi still felt that something was wrong, but since Ji Qing had already spoken up, she couldn't very well suggest that she drink it instead.

Afterwards, Ji Qing specifically pointed out the way to Lou Suyi. Lou Suyi looked at the meditation room not far ahead and thought to herself, "Ji Qing has already come all this way, why did I have to go through the trouble of running over to deliver the soup?"

The practice of delivering soup to the emperor feels somewhat familiar.

While pondering, she went to the front of the meditation room, only to find that there were no guards around, making the defenses unreliable.

Without thinking much, she carried the soup inside.

Murong, who was reading scriptures, looked up when she heard footsteps. The moment she saw Lou Suyi, she raised her eyebrows: "What, it's you?"

"Ji Qing sent a woman to deliver the soup..."

Lou Suyi stopped speaking. She finally remembered why the scene of delivering soup seemed so familiar; Aunt Ke used to do this when she was vying for favor.

Damn it, Jiqing sent her to deliver soup, surely not to make her compete for his favor?
Thinking of this possibility, she couldn't keep her composure and felt guilty, avoiding Murong's gaze.

"Well, I've smelled it, and the soup smells quite good. Your Majesty, please enjoy your meal. I'll take my leave now!"

Lou Suying put down the soup and was about to leave when Murong, watching her hurried back, pondered for a moment and called out to her, "Since you're here, you'll serve me tonight."

Lou Suying was almost speechless with shock. She turned back to Murong in disbelief: "What did Your Majesty just say?!"

-

Haha, this is called home delivery.
(End of this chapter)