Palace maid Shuoning

(Up)

Qingming Festival.

The Emperor granted Consort Rong permission to go to the Imperial Ancestral Temple to pay respects to her ancestors. Before her departure, Consort Rong stood before Jiang Shuoning's bedside, gazing at her sickly appearance, her tone unusually gentle:

"You should focus on recovering. Let Fengchun and Xiahe accompany me."

Jiang Shuoning tried to sit up, supporting himself on the bed with both hands, but Consort Rong raised her hand to press him down: "No need for formalities."

After saying that, Consort Rong turned and stepped out of the room.

Jiang Shuoning watched her figure disappear through the doorway before lying back down.

That night, she knelt for an unknown amount of time before losing consciousness. When she woke up, she was already lying in her room.

According to Xia He, Bao Zhong secretly sent someone to deliver a message to Consort Rong, who then wrote a letter and entrusted it to the guards at the gate to deliver to the Emperor.

After the Emperor saw this, he finally relented and allowed her to return.

She lay in bed for four days, and only remembered one sentence that Consort Rong said to her:

"Shuoning, do you know that Baozhong came to see me that night for your sake, saying he was willing to do things for me?"

Jiang Shuoning closed his eyes, his heart filled with indescribable emotions.

Before dawn, the ceremonial procession stretched from the Meridian Gate all the way to the Imperial Ancestral Temple. Banners blotted out the sun, golden armor gleamed, and the nine-curved canopy carried by thirty-two men moved slowly, like a golden cloud pressing down on the palace road.

All the civil and military officials of the third rank and above in the court were dressed in court robes and stood in rows according to their rank. The crowd filled the entire place, and their robes fluttered in the wind, creating a scene of utter silence.

The air was thick with the scent of sandalwood and the stench of animal blood, mingling with the morning mist and weighing heavily on everyone's shoulders.

Incense smoke filled the air inside the Imperial Ancestral Temple, and ritual music lingered softly.

Consort Rong, dressed in the court robes of a consort, stood quietly in the line of concubines, her eyes lowered.

Bao Zhong carried the incense table past her without stopping, his lips barely moving as he passed her: "Your Majesty, the Emperor just glanced in your direction."

He finished speaking and walked away.

Consort Rong's eyelashes twitched slightly, but she did not turn her head.

A moment later it was her turn to offer incense. She took the incense from the servant, held it to her forehead with both hands, and slowly knelt down.

Amidst the music, she bowed and kowtowed, her forehead pressed against the cold blue bricks, pausing a few more moments than before.

The Emperor stood to the left of the main entrance, his gaze originally fixed on the offering table, but his peripheral vision inadvertently swept in her direction.

I saw that she knelt for longer than others, and I saw the almost imperceptible sway when she stood up.

He didn't speak, but simply turned his gaze back to the memorial tablet in front of him. But that one glance was long enough.

Outside the arena, civil and military officials stood solemnly like a forest, not a single one uttering a sound.

A gust of wind blew in through the open gates of the Imperial Ancestral Temple, causing the candlelight to flicker briefly before settling back down. A bit of incense ash fell silently.

However, on Qingming Festival, the palaces received their rewards one after another. Green rice dumplings, steamed buns, and jujube cakes were placed in food boxes lined with red paper and delivered by eunuchs one by one.

Even the lowest-ranking palace servants received some silver and cloth, which was considered a favor from the emperor.

The high-ranking concubines were also given one or two extra pieces of jewelry, which was both a sign of consideration and a way to save face.

The Changmen Palace was unusually lively today. Several palace maids and eunuchs carried small stools and sat in the courtyard, eating glutinous rice balls one bite at a time, while chatting about old stories of how the palace used to celebrate Qingming Festival.

Old Man Qiao, with his protruding belly, stood in the courtyard and sighed in a high-pitched voice:

Time flies, it's Qingming Festival again.

He looked down at the green rice dumpling in his hand and added, "This thing... we can only look forward to eating it during Qingming Festival."

Zhou Zhengyin sat in the room, gazing at the plate of emerald green dumplings on the table.

The osmanthus sugar had melted slightly, clinging moistly to the green rice dumplings, exuding a bittersweet fragrance.

His Adam's apple bobbed, but he didn't move. He simply wrapped each green rice dumpling in oiled paper and stuffed them into his pocket.

He touched the small amount of reward money in his pocket again, put it away, and stood up.

As he stepped out of the house, he saw Eunuch Xin squatting in the yard eating steamed buns. Upon seeing him, Eunuch Xin seemed to be burned and immediately got up and walked quickly and hurriedly to the front yard.

After that night, Eunuch Xin kept avoiding him. He went to see him, knelt down, and waited at his door for most of the night, but the man never spoke, remaining silent behind the door.

Zhou Zhengyin knew he couldn't get him to talk, not even by kneeling. He lowered his head and walked towards the front yard.

Seeing this, Eunuch Qiao frowned and called out, "Where are you going again?"

Zhou Zhengyin did not answer, but walked past him with his head down.

Grandpa Qiao stared speechlessly at his retreating figure, and couldn't help but mutter to himself:

"It's really different now that he has a powerful backer. This mute doesn't even respect our family anymore."

After he finished speaking, he took another bite of the qingtuan, chewed it a couple of times, and suddenly felt that the qingtuan didn't smell as good as before.

(under)

Jiang Shuoning lay in bed, listening to the laughter and chatter of palace maids and eunuchs in the courtyard.

Today, the Emperor and all the concubines have left the palace to pay homage to their ancestors, so Yihua Palace is unusually quiet.

She slowly sat up, dragging her weak body, rubbing her knees, coughing softly a few times, her thoughts drifting back to that night.

She remained anxious as she watched Zhou Zhengyin rush into the rain.

At this moment, a palace maid pushed open the door and entered carrying medicine, saying softly, "Sister Shuoning, the medicine is ready." She placed the medicine on the table and, seeing that Jiang Shuoning had already sat up, hurriedly went forward to help her, "Sister, why did you get up? Lie down quickly."

Jiang Shuoning raised her hand and waved, her voice hoarse: "Don't worry about me, go ahead and do your work." The palace maid glanced at her worriedly, then turned and walked out.

Jiang Shuoning got up, walked to the table, sat down, picked up the medicine bowl, blew on it, and heard the Imperial Household Department send over some snacks. The palace maids and eunuchs rushed over, happily receiving their reward.

Just as she was about to drink her medicine, a figure suddenly darted in, closed the door, and pressed their back against the door panel. Jiang Shuoning paused, holding the medicine bowl, and frowned as she turned to look.

Zhou Zhengyin pushed his hat brim up and looked at her, panting.

Jiang Shuoning's face suddenly turned cold, and he slammed the medicine bowl down on the table, the liquid inside swaying slightly.

"You're treating Yihua Palace like your own backyard now? You even dare to come here during the day."

Zhou Zhengyin lowered his head, walked over and knelt at her feet, carefully placing the oil paper package and a few pieces of silver from his arms on the table:

"My aunt was ill, so I waited four days before daring to come. But please rest assured, no one saw me. I sneaked in from the backyard by climbing over the wall while they were all at the palace gate getting their snacks."

He spoke quickly and urgently, as if afraid she would send him away before he could finish.

Jiang Shuoning looked at the green rice dumplings and reward money he had placed on the table, and her heart stirred slightly. She opened the oil paper package, and there were four bright green green rice dumplings, still slightly warm.

She picked one up and took a bite. The soft, chewy outer layer melted between her lips and teeth, and the bitter taste of mugwort welled up, but was slowly suppressed by the sweetness of osmanthus sugar, which also dissolved some of the bitterness in her mouth.

Zhou Zhengyin slightly raised his eyes to look at her.

She was wearing a white nightgown, her face was pale, her collarbones were slightly protruding, and the scar on her neck had not completely faded. But even in this sickly appearance, she was still so beautiful in his eyes.

His Adam's apple bobbed, and the corners of his mouth subtly curved into a smile.

His aunt didn't scold him; instead, she ate the green rice dumplings he brought.

"Get up. Sit down," Jiang Shuoning said.

Zhou Zhengyin was stunned for a moment, then immediately stood up and carefully sat down next to her.

Jiang Shuoning pushed the green rice dumpling in front of him: "Eat it." He then pushed the reward money over as well, "Keep it for yourself. You need money to smooth things over in the palace, so don't give it to me."

Zhou Zhengyin nodded slightly, put the silver back in his pocket, picked up a piece of green rice dumpling and took a bite. The soft, sweet rice dumpling melted in his mouth, and he couldn't help but smile.

He glanced at the bowl of medicine beside her; it was untouched and still steaming. He put down the green rice dumpling, picked up the bowl, gently blew on it, took a sip himself to test the temperature, and then handed it to her: "Auntie, it's not hot anymore."

Jiang Shuoning stared blankly at his series of actions just now—blowing, sipping, testing, and handing over—all done in one smooth motion, as if he had done it a hundred times.

A warm feeling welled up inside her, but she looked away and whispered, "You drink it for me."

Zhou Zhengyin panicked, thinking that his behavior just now had made her disgusted.

He immediately picked up the bowl of medicine and gulped it down in one go, the bitterness making his whole face scrunch up.

Jiang Shuoning turned her head and looked at his bitter face, then saw him pick up the empty bowl and show it to her: "Auntie, you've finished drinking."

Jiang Shuoning was stunned for a moment, then couldn't help but laugh out loud. The heavy, bitter feeling he had been feeling since his illness was gently broken open by this silly action.

Zhou Zhengyin was dazzled by her laughter, staring at the corner of her mouth, his voice soft and sincere:

"Auntie has a really beautiful smile."

Jiang Shuoning's smile froze slightly, her ears burned a little, she turned her face away, and her voice returned to its previous coldness: "Go back."

Zhou Zhengyin's smile froze instantly, then he suppressed it, slowly rose, and knelt at her feet again, his voice filled with helplessness: "Auntie, please help me."