That Imperial Concubine is both wicked and cunning! Your Majesty, wake up!

The ghostly footsteps faded away, and Consort Qing thought she could finally breathe a sigh of relief. However, she began to have nightmares every night, the images of which were so vivid that they seemed to be right before her eyes.

She might dream of ghostly figures wandering around her Jingren Palace, or of Consort Song in a blood-stained palace dress, closing in on her from behind, crying out in anguish:

"I died so unjustly."

"I don't want to die."

……

Over the course of several days, Consort Qing's spirits deteriorated further. She looked haggard, like a wilted eggplant, with sunken eyes and a sallow complexion.

Its former glory is long gone.

Consort Qing asked the imperial physician to prescribe a calming tonic for her, but even after drinking the tonic, she would still wake up from nightmares the next day.

Consort Qing finally experienced what it was like to be worse than dead. Back in Yun Shuo Kingdom, when she had nightmares, her father and mother would ask a Taoist priest to exorcise the demons.

But now, she can't be so willful.

Xiao Yan went to Consort Qing's Jingren Palace.

In the past, Consort Qing would have personally waited for the emperor in the palace, her skirts swaying and her face beaming with smiles.

But tonight, she felt ice-cold all over, even her fingertips were trembling.

She was afraid that in the dead of night, those nightmares would devour her, causing her to utter shocking words and disturb the Emperor.

Xiao Yan keenly noticed the panic in her eyes. He frowned slightly, his gaze falling on her forced composure, as if he were weighing something.

"What, you're not welcoming me?"

Consort Qing's heart tightened, and she quickly curtsied, forcing a smile that was more like a grimace, her voice hoarse: "How could that be? Your Majesty... Your Majesty would naturally welcome you."

Xiao Yan didn't ask any more questions. He simply instructed the palace servants to turn off the lights, then undressed and lay down fully clothed.

The palace was plunged into a deathly silence and darkness, but Consort Qing's tense nerves could not relax until dawn, when she finally fell into a deep sleep in extreme exhaustion.

As soon as Consort Qing fell asleep, nightmares began to haunt her.

She dreamt that Song Meiren was covered in blood, with crimson blood still dripping from her fingertips.

Song Meiren floated silently to her side, her voice sounding as if it came from the deepest hell, mournful and hollow: "Why won't you save me? Why won't you save me?"

Consort Qing struggled in terror, babbling incoherently, "It's not my fault...it really isn't my fault...you killed yourself..."

Song Meiren's figure suddenly closed in, her sharp claws almost digging into her neck, her voice suddenly turning shrill and venomous: "You wanted to kill me from the beginning, didn't you? Wasn't it you?!"

A piercing scream shattered the silence, and Consort Qing was jolted awake from her dream. Cold sweat had soaked through her undergarments, which clung to her icy skin.

She was still catching her breath and instinctively reached out to touch her side, only to find an empty, cold surface.

The Emperor... the Emperor is gone?

She breathed a slight sigh of relief.

Then she noticed the dim candlelight outside the curtains. Her fingertips were icy cold, and she trembled as she reached out and carefully lifted the bed curtains.

The dim candlelight flickered, illuminating the Emperor sitting upright in a sandalwood chair not far away, holding a cup of hot tea in his hands, his gaze fixed on her with a hint of inquiry and scrutiny.

"What nightmare did you have? I heard you calling for Consort Song." The Emperor's voice rang out in the darkness, carrying a hint of coldness.

Consort Qing trembled nervously and repeatedly denied it.

"Consort Qing, you are a princess, and out of consideration for the Yun Shuo Kingdom, I have always treated you well. Yet you..." He paused, not finishing his sentence, but gave her a meaningful look.

"emperor…"

"You'd better watch yourself."

Consort Qing trembled, as if plunged into an ice cave. She bit her lip tightly, and a terrible thought began to grow wildly:

Your Majesty... knows everything.

Even the Emperor's decision to stay overnight at Jingren Palace was a silent warning, a direct way of telling her there would be no next time.

The following day, Consort Qing summoned the imperial physician again.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Yaohua Palace.

Song Shuangning sat by the window, intently arranging the flowers and plants on the table.

She felt that flower arranging was a profound art that could calm the mind and allow people to experience many things that are often overlooked in daily life.

The sound of rain interrupted her thoughts. "Your Majesty, the imperial physician has been summoned to Jingren Palace again."

Song Shuangning put down the flower branch in her hand and responded faintly.

Torture is far more pleasurable than murder; torment her mind and soul, making her wish she were dead.

She said to Tingyu, "For the last few days, we don't need to add any more datura pollen, lest it be discovered if it's left for too long."

"yes,"

Datura flowers are a commonly used medicinal material in the Imperial Medical Academy, and Physician Zhang was certainly familiar with them. So, she found an excuse to ask Physician Zhang for some datura pollen.

Then sprinkle datura pollen into the heart of the peony flower, which was Consort Qing's favorite.

The pollen is extremely fine, colorless and odorless, blending seamlessly with the rich fragrance of the peony, making it difficult even for the most experienced imperial physicians to detect.

Besides flower arranging, Song Shuangning has developed a new hobby—reading medical books.

Having learned from the previous blunder, she realized she could no longer rely on contraceptive pills and had to find other solutions.

At that moment, she was engrossed in reading a medical book. The hall was quiet except for the rustling sound of her turning the pages.

Her gaze fell on the entry for "contraception after intercourse".

Your fingers unconsciously bend, and you gently press your fingertips on the center of your lower abdomen, about three finger widths below your navel. That is the Shimen acupoint, as described in medical books.

She watched as she gently massaged the area.

They didn't even realize when Xiao Yan arrived.

"What is Ningning looking at?"

Hearing the sound, her fingers flew across the page, quick and steady, instantly turning it to the page she had marked earlier.

Xiao Yan's sudden appearance seemed to be within her expectations. Xiao Yan liked surprise attacks.

She calmly closed the medical book, then looked up at him with feigned surprise, "Your Majesty?"

"Reading a storybook?" Xiao Yan asked.

Song Shuangning presented the book cover of the medical book to him, saying, "I had nothing to do, so I found a few medical books to pass the time."

Xiao Yan joked, "When did you start liking to read medical books?"

Then he turned to the page that Song Shuangning had just been looking at, glanced at it briefly, and said calmly, "These methods aren't entirely useful either. I know a way that will definitely work."

Upon hearing Xiao Yan's words, Song Shuangning covered her mouth and chuckled, giving him a look that said, "I'll just quietly watch you pretend."

"Isn't Ningning curious?"

"What method?"

Xiao Yan closed the medical book and said seriously, "Do more."

Song Shuangning: "..." Speechless.

She silently rolled her eyes, then got up, intending to stay away from this hypocritical beast who might unleash his beastly nature at any moment.

She had barely stood up when the beast in human clothing grabbed her wrist and pulled her into his arms.

"Why are you shy, Ningning? Intimate matters are a natural human instinct, there's nothing to be ashamed of."

Song Shuangning bristled, "Of course I can't be as shameless as Your Majesty..."

She swallowed the words "shameless" that were on the tip of her tongue.

Xiao Yan leaned down and touched the tip of her nose, his voice low and husky, with a hint of tenderness.

"I am very pleased that Ningning is willing to take the initiative to learn about these things."