Palace maid Shuoning

(Up)

Yihua Palace.

The evening breeze wafted through the corridor, the eaves bells tinkled softly, and the lanterns under the corridor glowed, casting a warm light across the ground.

Consort Rong reclined on a rocking chair, her orange dress fluttering softly in the evening breeze.

This made her features appear less sharp than usual, revealing a rare gentleness and weariness.

She lightly placed one hand on her lower abdomen and handed over the booklet with the other, her tone languid, as if asking casually.

"Why have you added the names of princes and princesses to the register again?"

Jiang Shuoning stood beside her, took the booklet with both hands, and pursed his lips:

"Your Majesty, if the princes and princesses all come, it will be both lively and dignified. When people in the inner palace mention Yihua Palace, they will only say that Your Majesty is generous and considerate."

Consort Rong gave a soft "hmm," tapped her fingertips lightly twice on the armrest, and smiled slightly.

"You've really hit the nail on the head."

Jiang Shuoning glanced at Consort Rong, hesitated for a moment, and then lowered his voice:

"Your Majesty, His Majesty is concerned about your pregnancy and has instructed me to visit the Hall of Mental Cultivation every morning, noon, and evening to report on your well-being starting tomorrow."

She paused for a moment, then tightened her grip on the booklet in her hand:

"But I also have to manage the palace banquet, and I'm afraid I won't be able to take care of both, which will delay the important matters."

Upon hearing this, Consort Rong slowly opened her eyes, her gaze falling on Consort Rong's lowered eyebrows and then lingering for a moment on the corners of her slightly downturned lips.

"Shuoning, don't you want to go to the Emperor's place?"

Jiang Shuoning immediately knelt down, shaking his head repeatedly:

"Your Majesty, please understand. This servant is foolish and fears that I will be impolite before Your Majesty and disgrace you. I beg Your Majesty to think of a way for me."

Consort Rong looked at her prostrate back on the ground, her face revealing neither joy nor anger, and said in a calm voice:

"Get up. Just bear with it for now. I will bring it up with the Emperor after the banquet. Give Fengchun a bigger share of the banquet preparations so you can have some peace of mind."

Jiang Shuoning's heart sank, but he didn't show it on his face. He simply thanked her and slowly got up and stepped aside.

"Has Xia He been found?" Consort Rong suddenly asked.

Jiang Shuoning replied, "Your Majesty, this servant is still searching."

Consort Rong tapped her fingertips twice on the armrest, her voice as indifferent as if she were giving an extremely ordinary instruction:

"If found, execute him on the spot; there's no need to bring him back to Yihua Palace. If not found, just pretend he died somewhere."

Jiang Shuoning lowered his eyes and replied with a "Yes," without saying anything more.

The lanterns under the eaves swayed, casting flickering light on her lowered profile, obscuring her emotions.

There are still ten days until the Dragon Boat Festival.

Jiang Shuo Ning started getting up earlier than anyone else. Before dawn, he woke Feng Chun up as well, and gave her detailed instructions on the palace arrangements, the order of the program, and the day's meals.

After giving his instructions, he rushed off to the Hall of Mental Cultivation.

Sometimes, she would stand eagerly at the palace gate before the emperor had finished his court session; other times, the emperor would be held up in the imperial study by his ministers after the court session, and she would wait from morning until noon, and from noon until evening, often spending the entire day there.

The promise of three trips a day—morning, noon, and night—ultimately amounted to the same thing as spending the whole day there.

Every day he would return home as dusk fell, and upon returning, he would listen to Fengchun's report on the day's progress.

After a long day, I felt completely exhausted and collapsed onto the couch to sleep, not even having time to dream.

Seeing that she was too busy with both things, Bao Zhong went to Yihua Palace even more frequently.

Consort Rong lay on the rocking chair under the eaves every day, watching him walk back and forth in the courtyard.

He was calm and composed when directing the small kitchen and palace servants, handling everything perfectly.

The wind swept through the courtyard, occasionally blowing petals onto his shoulder. He gently brushed them away, then looked down at the sheet in his hand, his expression carrying a calm that gave people a sense of inexplicable peace.

Fengchun, who was serving her, gradually noticed something unusual.

Consort Rong's complexion has improved day by day these past few days, her voice has become softer, and even the curve of her lips seems to have been frozen in time, never falling back down.

Jiang Shuoning had also bumped into him a few times.

Consort Rong spoke to Bao Zhong with a smile in her eyes, and then grabbed a handful of golden melon seeds to reward him, her admiration and affection almost overflowing.

Sometimes, even after Baozhong had walked a distance, she would still gaze at his retreating figure and sigh softly:

"It's a pity that someone so handsome and capable is a eunuch."

Jiang Shuoning stood behind the pillar, and upon hearing the sigh of regret, his heart skipped a beat. He quietly took two steps back, turned around, and left.

(under)

That evening, Jiang Shuoning carried a food box and a bundle into the backyard of the library.

See Fudai and Fudou, with their clothes billowing out, standing under an apricot tree, catching apricots thrown down from the tree, one on each side.

The apricot tree is not tall, and its branches are laden with ripe, golden-yellow fruits. When the wind blows, they sway gently as if they are about to fall at any moment.

Zhou Zhengyin was perched on a tree branch, holding onto the trunk with one hand and picking a fruit with the other, shouting down, "Catch it!"

Fu Dou tilted his head back and opened his arms, and an apricot fell right into his lap. He scooped it up, took a bite, and mumbled, "Sweet! Sweet!"

Fu, standing anxiously to the side, stamped his foot: "Brother Yin, it's my turn!"

Zhou Zhengyin chuckled and picked another one, tossing it towards Fu Dai.

The three of them were making a ruckus, shaking the apricot tree leaves so loudly that they scattered fragments of shadows on the ground.

Jiang Shuoning stood under the moon gate, slowly raising his eyes to look at Zhou Zhengyin in the tree.

His eyebrows were curved, and two strands of hair at his temples were lifted and fell by the evening breeze. The light in his eyes was as bright as scattered stars, and the corners of his mouth were curved into a smile that was not quite a smile, with the unruliness and arrogance unique to young people.

After looking at them for a moment, he asked in a deep voice, "Are the apricots sweet?"

The moment the words were spoken, the laughter and banter of the three people came to an abrupt halt.

Zhou Zhengyin, perched on a tree branch, looked down and saw her. His smile froze for a moment, his hand still clutching an apricot he hadn't had time to throw away.

Fu Dai and Fu Dou quickly straightened their clothes and stood up straight, not daring to move.

Zhou Zhengyin lowered his head and slowly climbed down from the tree.

Fu Dai and Fu Dou hunched over to Jiang Shuoning, looking her up and down. They noticed that she was pretty and had a composed demeanor.

The two men quickly realized that she was a concubine from some palace, and immediately bowed and said in unison, "This servant greets Your Highness."

"I am the head maidservant of Consort Rong."

Jiang Shuoning remained indifferent and walked straight past the two people.

Fu Dou and Fu Dai stood there, stunned, as if struck by lightning.

Fu Dai lowered his voice and said, "If palace maids all look like this... then what must Consort Rong look like? Like a fairy, right?"

Fu Dou swallowed hard, still lost in her reverie about the "fairy," and added:

"Not only does Brother Yin know Eunuch Baozhong, but he also knows the head maidservant of the favored concubine. What kind of connections does he have?"

Immediately, the two of them started talking back and forth, and the more they talked, the more they felt that Ah Yin was unfathomable.

Jiang Shuoning had her back to them, but out of the corner of her eye, she saw Zhou Zhengyin walking towards her with his head down, still holding the apricot he hadn't had time to throw away. She called out softly, "Auntie..."

"Come inside." Jiang Shuoning didn't look at him, carrying the food box and bundle, and walked into the house, her skirt lifting in a gust of wind.

Zhou Zhengyin squeezed the apricot in his hand and obediently followed behind her.

Fu Dai and Fu Dou stared wide-eyed in shock, muttering in unison, "Auntie?"

Fu Dai took a bite of the apricot in his hand: "Brother, wasn't she the head palace maid? How did she become an aunt?"

Fu Dou scratched his head: "Perhaps it's a rule in the palace... seniority and duties are determined separately."

Fu Dai swallowed the apricot: "But she looks about the same age as Brother Yin, doesn't she?"

Fu Dou thought for a moment and said, "When it comes to seniority, it's not about age, it's about fate. From now on, when we see her, we'll both call her 'Auntie'."

Fu Dai hesitated for a moment: "What if she ignores us?"

Fu Dou said matter-of-factly, "It's her business if she ignores us. It's our fault for not calling out. Maybe she'll be happy and reward us with some money."

Fu Dai immediately agreed, finding it very reasonable.

Inside the room, as soon as Jiang Shuoning entered, he saw the table piled high with books, and several were even spread out on the bed.

She glanced around without saying a word, then walked to the table, placed the food box on the corner, and used her free hand to move a few books that were blocking her way to the side.

"I brought food and two new outfits. Come and eat first."

Zhou Zhengyin had expected to be scolded, but to his surprise, his aunt didn't get angry. He felt relieved and immediately responded.

He walked over to her and wiped the already clean stool with his sleeve.

"Auntie, please sit down. Let me pour you a bowl of water."

After saying that, he immediately picked up the teapot, poured a bowl of water, and placed it in front of her.

Jiang Shuoning sat down, placed the bundle on the stool to his left, and opened the food box.

Braised pork ribs, pea flour cake, stir-fried shrimp and greens, and a bowl of white rice, all laid out steaming hot.

Zhou Zhengyin swallowed hard: "Auntie, this is too lavish."

Jiang Shuoning handed him the chopsticks: "Stop talking nonsense, eat."

Zhou Zhengyin took the chopsticks, but first picked up a piece of pea flour cake and held it to her lips: "Auntie, eat first."

Jiang Shuoning shook his head: "I've already eaten."

Zhou Zhengyin refused to give up, stubbornly holding up the piece of pea flour cake and waiting.

Jiang Shuoning glanced at him, then reluctantly took the food and took a bite: "Alright, eat it."

Zhou Zhengyin then grinned and took a big bite of rice.

Jiang Shuoning got up and walked to the table to tidy up the scattered pages. He glanced at the half-open copy of "The Art of War" and raised an eyebrow slightly: "You can recognize all the characters?"

With food in his mouth, Zhou Zhengyin mumbled, "Fudou and Fudai went to school, and they taught me the words I didn't know."

Jiang Shuoning's finger paused on the page for a moment.

Baozhong was so thoughtful; he even thought of this and specially selected a literate eunuch to take care of him.

Zhou Zhengyin took a couple of bites of rice, then, as if remembering something, looked up at her:

"By the way, Auntie, I've already distributed that poem, did you hear me?"