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

Chapter 71 Running Away with the Ball...

That night, Lou Suyi went to bed early as usual.

She tossed and turned, unable to sleep, feeling that this trip to Yi Garden was a good opportunity to escape, but she didn't know how heavily guarded Yi Garden was.

There must be quite a few guards on the imperial procession heading to the imperial garden, right?

Because she had something on her mind, she didn't sleep well as usual and got up before dawn the next day.

She didn't need to dress up or apply makeup; she quickly ate breakfast after washing up.

She deliberately left behind the more composed Jinshu and only had Yan Hui accompany her before heading to Shou'an Palace.

Empress Dowager Chen had just finished her breakfast when she saw Lou Suyi arrive. She warmly took Lou Suyi's hand and chatted with her.

Lou Suyi responded respectfully and behaved properly. Empress Dowager Chen found her gentle appearance increasingly pleasing to the eye.

"I've heard about the Emperor's anger last time. That's just his unpleasant temperament, so don't take it to heart. He's probably calmed down by now. You'll be with me later. If the Emperor says anything unpleasant, I'll protect you, so don't worry," Empress Dowager Chen reassured Lou Suying.

Lou Suyi replied respectfully, "Yes, Your Majesty the Empress Dowager."

Afterwards, Empress Dowager Chen appeared at the palace gate with Lou Suyi. This time, she was accompanied by two concubines from the harem, namely Consort Ning and Consort De.

There is another special case: Consort Liang. Although she has not yet entered Murong's harem, she already considers herself Murong's woman and naturally stands shoulder to shoulder with him.

Lou Suyi saw Murong and Consort Liang standing side by side from afar. She didn't know what Consort Liang said, but Murong's lips curled up slightly.

She had to admit that the two were indeed a handsome couple, a perfect match. If Consort Liang hadn't been the late emperor's woman, they would have been even more well-matched.

Consort De also noticed the subtle change in Murong's expression. She recalled that when she had asked Murong to let Lou Suyi leave the palace last time, Murong had also smiled slightly.

At the time, she was utterly astonished, because Murong was a man who rarely smiled; he had what was often described as an ascetic face. So when he smiled, it seemed all the more unusual.

She didn't know what Murong was laughing about, but Murong never gave her a definite answer.

Now that Murong was smiling at Consort Liang again, it made her feel uneasy.

As soon as Empress Dowager Chen appeared, everyone bowed to her. When they saw Lou Suying beside Empress Dowager Chen, they were not surprised.

Consort Ning and Consort De were somewhat envious of Lou Suyi. Despite being a nun, she was favored by Empress Dowager Chen, who even took her with her on important occasions like watching the dragon boat race at Yi Garden.

When Lou Suyi first appeared, Consort Liang and Consort De subconsciously stared at Murong, simply wanting to know how Murong would react.

Seeing that Murong didn't even glance at Lou Suying, they all breathed a sigh of relief. This meant that in Murong's eyes, Lou Suying wasn't anything special. If Empress Dowager Chen hadn't placed her beside him, he probably wouldn't have given her a second look.

So what if Lou Suyi is beautiful? Murong has never been the kind of man who would be lustful at first sight.

Lou Suyi herself was also relieved.

Murong's coldness indicates that he is still angry, which means that his attention is not on me.

She thought that if she had the chance to leave Empress Dowager Chen's side during this trip to Yi Garden, she would have a chance to run away.

Her nun attire was so eye-catching that it was no easy task to conceal her identity.

On the way to Yi Garden, Lou Suying was restless, frequently lifting the carriage curtain to peek at the scenery outside. Empress Dowager Chen assumed she was simply curious and chuckled, "The scenery at Yi Garden is even more beautiful; you can see it all then. But we've agreed that you should be more proactive when facing the Emperor later..."

Lou Suyi absentmindedly replied, troubled about how to shake off Yan Hui.

And wouldn't the guards at Yi Garden be very strict? Even if she managed to shake off the imperial procession, how would she get out if there were guards at Yi Garden?
She really hoped she could successfully dribble the ball away.

The imperial procession traveled for about an hour before arriving at Yi Garden.

Lou Suying stayed by Empress Dowager Chen's side, but she didn't hear a single word that Empress Dowager Chen said.

Empress Dowager Chen stopped and looked at her with a smile, saying, "Then you should hurry up and serve the Emperor."

Lou Suyi was taken aback, and only then did she realize that she had just agreed, but had not heard what Empress Dowager Chen said at all.

"Should I keep the Empress Dowager company for now?" she said hastily.

Empress Dowager Chen led her to Murong and said with a smile, "Suyi said she has been reflecting on things for a long time these days. She hopes that Your Majesty will be magnanimous and not hold it against her."

Murong glanced at Lou Suyi but remained silent.

Seeing this, Empress Dowager Chen tried to smooth things over again: "The Emperor cares about the country and wouldn't hold a grudge against a mere young woman. Considering Su Yi's filial piety towards the Emperor, why don't you keep her by your side and give her a good talking-to? What does the Emperor think?"

Murong stopped looking at Lou Suyi and walked straight ahead.

Empress Dowager Chen quickly gave Lou Suyi a meaningful look, and Lou Suyi refused to go with her.

Empress Dowager Chen, of course, noticed Lou Suying's resistance, and simply put on her imperial demeanor: "Suying, it is my decree that you accompany me. What, do you want to disobey me?"

Lou Suyi quickly shook her head: "This humble nun dares not."

"Then go ahead." Empress Dowager Chen gestured for Lou Suying to follow.

Lou Suyi really didn't understand why Empress Dowager Chen insisted that she follow the imperial procession. Murong was accompanied by several beauties, what would it look like for a nun to join them?

She knew that it was Empress Dowager Chen who insisted that she go with her, but to outsiders, it seemed that this nun was restless and wanted to climb up to the emperor.

"Yes, Your Majesty the Empress Dowager," she replied, and followed behind the imperial procession.

She glanced at Empress Dowager Chen out of the corner of her eye and found that Empress Dowager Chen was staring at her. She was very annoyed. How could she run away like this?
As soon as Murong took his seat, two people immediately rushed to sit down next to him: Consort Liang and Consort De. Consort Ning, on the other hand, stood awkwardly in place and had no choice but to settle for another seat next to Consort Liang.

Lou Suyi wanted to slip into a crowded place to avoid Empress Dowager Chen's eyes and ears before choosing an opportunity to leave the crowd.

Before she could react, Ji Qing suddenly appeared in front of her and led her to the lookout pavilion where Murong was. He whispered to her, "Say a few good words to His Majesty later, and he will forgive you."

Lou Suyi complained bitterly as Ji Qing led her to stand behind Murong.

That wasn't the worst of it. Ji Qing whispered to Murong, "Your Majesty, Master Kongchen said that he failed in his mission last time and angered Your Majesty. Please forgive him."

As he spoke, he pulled Lou Suyi along.

Lou Suyi thought to herself, it wasn't her fault, she didn't want to come at all, okay?
At this moment, Jiqing kicked her again, and she had no choice but to say insincerely, "This humble nun knows her mistake, please forgive me, Your Majesty."

(End of this chapter)