Palace maid Shuoning

(Up)

News of Consort Liu's suicide quickly spread throughout the palace. The concubines outwardly remained calm, but privately they were in an uproar.

Some say she was delirious from illness and took her own life; others lament that she was favored just a few days ago, and now she's gone.

Even more gossipy ones whispered that something had happened at Changchun Palace before, and that Consort Liu probably couldn't keep it under control.

The rumors grew increasingly exaggerated, and everywhere in the palace, eunuchs and maids gathered in twos and threes, whispering amongst themselves. When they saw their master approaching from afar, they hurriedly dispersed.

No one dared to speak loudly, but everyone knew that Consort Liu's life had not been cleanly ended. No one dared to say it aloud.

In the evening, a eunuch from the Imperial Household Department came to Yihua Palace to announce the imperial decree: the Emperor has ordered that the confinement be extended for another month.

Upon hearing this, the palace eunuchs and maids all looked terrified.

Feng Chun and the others were all worried for Consort Rong, fearing that if this delay continued, the Emperor's favor would be completely lost.

Consort Rong appeared calm, leaning back on the couch with her phoenix eyes slightly closed, and said indifferently, "It's only one more month, I can wait that long."

Feng Chun immediately knelt down and echoed, "Your Majesty is right."

After he finished speaking, he glanced at Jiang Shuoning discreetly.

Jiang Shuoning remained calm, gently draping the blanket over Consort Rong and slightly bending his knees.

"Your Majesty, I'll leave a lamp lit for you. Please rest. If you need anything, Fengchun and I will wait outside your bedchamber."

Consort Rong gave a soft "hmm" without opening her eyes.

Jiang Shuoning turned around and blew out three lamps, leaving one on. She gave Fengchun a look, and the two bowed and left the bedchamber.

Standing in the corridor, Fengchun stopped and whispered, "Sister Shuoning, our Empress's demeanor is truly unmatched by ordinary people."

He sighed, "If it were any other concubine, they would have cried and wailed long ago if the Emperor had confined them. Now that it's been extended by another month, they would surely..."

Jiang Shuoning gave him a cold look. Feng Chun swallowed back the words that were on the tip of her tongue.

"Fengchun, you're one of the old servants of the Empress, yet you still talk too much. You'll be on duty all night tonight."

After saying that, Jiang Shuoning turned and walked towards the backyard, his back straight and his steps neither hurried nor slow.

Fengchun watched her retreating figure, and only after she had walked far away did he mutter a curse under his breath:

"What a piece of trash! Now that he's in charge, he's putting on airs. Humph."

As soon as Jiang Shuoning entered the backyard, he saw three palace maids huddled together in a corner of the woodshed, their heads close together, whispering something in unison.

She frowned and walked over, scolding, "What are you doing? Have nothing better to do?"

The three palace maids were startled and quickly curtsied, saying, "Sister Shuoning."

"Have you finished your work?" Jiang Shuoning asked.

The three of them lowered their eyes and remained silent.

One of the palace maids, Xia He, glanced at Jiang Shuoning and timidly took a half-step closer: "Sister, could you please change our room?"

Jiang Shuoning frowned: "Why?"

Xia He lowered her voice:

"Sister, our Yihua Palace is always gloomy... Suihe and Qing'er both died here."

Just now, the three of us had reached the backyard when we saw a figure flash by... We were really scared.

The two palace maids nodded repeatedly.

Jiang Shuoning listened with a cold face, his gaze sweeping over the three faces one by one:

"Afraid? When Qing'er was alive, you all thought she was bad luck and avoided sleeping with her. Now that she's dead, you're all pretending to be cowards. If you have nothing to hide, what are you afraid of?"

She didn't say anything more, turned around and said sternly:

"Go back to your rooms and do what you're supposed to do. Stop talking nonsense and go tell the Empress yourselves."

The three palace maids were speechless after hearing her last words. They looked at each other, lowered their heads, and dispersed.

Seeing that the three had dispersed, Jiang Shuoning headed towards his room.

She knew that two people had left Yihua Palace, and neither of them felt at ease. But she wouldn't let them move to another room. If they did, the next thing to spread would be that "Yihua Palace is haunted."

She had just stepped into the room and closed the door behind her. In the instant she turned around, she saw a dark figure standing beside the bed.

The room was dark, with only a sliver of moonlight filtering in through the window, barely outlining the figure.

Jiang Shuoning tensed up, instinctively holding his breath and focusing his gaze on the dark figure. He asked sharply, "Who goes there?"

(under)

The dark figure moved and slowly walked towards her. Jiang Shuoning immediately reached out and touched a broom. She gripped it tightly and held her breath.

Just as the dark figure walked up to her, a very soft "Shuoning" came from behind.

Jiang Shuoning was startled; the voice was all too familiar. Then, a halo of light shone between the two of them.

Zhou Zhengyin held up a tinderbox, the candlelight reflecting on his eyebrows and eyes.

He stood there, tall and slender, his dark round-necked robe making him appear even thinner. He wore a flat cap, and the candlelight outlined his silhouette in a soft and serene way.

He wasn't particularly striking in appearance, but there was an indescribable gentle and composed quality in his eyes. He didn't compete or fight for anything, yet he always made people unable to look away.

The candlelight flickered in his eyes, a slight smile playing on his lips, his voice soft: "Did I scare you?"

A thin layer of anger appeared on Jiang Shuoning's face, and he raised his hand to hit him.

Upon seeing this, Zhou Zhengyin's smile froze, and he hurriedly knelt down, explaining in a low voice:

"I...I heard about what happened at Changchun Palace. I'm worried and want to see you."

"You don't trust me?"

Jiang Shuoning slowly loosened his grip on the broom and closed his eyes.

The image of Consort Liu's deadly eyes staring at her flashed through her mind again.

He kept his eyes open until he died.

She frowned, her lips twitched, and she slowly suppressed all the emotions surging within her.

When he opened his eyes again, he already had a calm and composed demeanor.

"You should take care of yourself. I'm perfectly fine."

Zhou Zhengyin gripped the tinder tightly, slowly tilting his head back to look at her, his eyes gradually reddening, his gaze filled with heartache. His Adam's apple bobbed, and his voice choked with emotion:

"But I couldn't help it, I just wanted to come find you."

Jiang Shuoning's heart skipped a beat. She lowered her gaze to meet his eyes, which were filled with tenderness, like a deep pool that seemed to drown her. She paused for a moment, then quickly looked away.

"Get up. This is Yihua Palace, not Changmen Palace. If we are discovered, we will both die. Leave at midnight. If you want to say anything, write a note and place it in the backyard of Yihua Palace every five days in the hole you threw open back then, and tuck it under the bricks. I will check on it."

Zhou Zhengyin slowly stood up, head bowed, and said frankly, "But I can't write."

Jiang Shuoning was taken aback by what he heard. Before he could speak, he suddenly heard footsteps approaching from outside.

Her expression changed, and she quickly stepped forward to blow out the tinder in his hand, pulled him to the corner, made a shushing gesture to him, and then listened intently to the sounds outside.

My heart was pounding, and a thin layer of sweat appeared on my forehead.

Zhou Zhengyin looked down at her hand, which was tightly gripping his wrist, her knuckles turning white from the force. A wisp of Du Ruoxiang wafted from her body, slowly enveloping him.

He slightly raised the corners of his mouth, his gaze slowly moving upwards until it landed on her fair neck.

The scar was still red, like a crescent moon that had just scabbed over.

His Adam's apple bobbed, and he couldn't help but raise his hand to touch it, his fingertips hovering in mid-air before slowly withdrawing them.

The footsteps faded into the distance, disappearing at the end of the corridor.

Jiang Shuoning finally breathed a sigh of relief, released his wrist, turned to the side, and looked up at him with surprise:

"You can't write?"

Zhou Zhengyin lowered his eyes and nodded slightly:

"I was raised by Granny Yu from a young age and lived in the imperial mausoleum for sixteen and a half years. I didn't know how to climb trees and pick fruit. Granny Yu said that it was good that I was illiterate, so that others would not be wary of me."

Jiang Shuoning looked at him, unsure of what to say.

A man who lived in the imperial tomb for sixteen years was timid, cowardly, illiterate, and even clumsy at holding a tinderbox, yet he dared to climb over the palace wall in the dead of night just to tell her, "I'm worried."

Her heart suddenly softened, as if something had gently collapsed. But she quickly pressed that corner back down.

She remained silent for a long time, and finally whispered, "...I'll teach you."