Chapter 187

Chapter 187

The maid attempted to help her up, but her own strength was limited, and the young noble lady had little strength herself. For a moment, they struggled to lift her, and she fell back down after being partially raised.

The young noble lady weakly said, "I... I’m fine. It’s my fault for being improper. Please, Your Majesty... Your Majesty..." Her voice quivered, making her words sound feeble.

The pair looked pitiful and delicate.

Liang Jiugong noticed this and was about to gesture to the maids to step forward and help lift her.

After all, it was unseemly for a noble lady to lie motionless on the ground.

Just then, a man’s voice finally emerged from the sedan chair, which had been silent for a while.

It was calm, betraying no emotion.

"I seem to remember when Consort Xian was still a noble lady, she once fainted here due to sentimental reasons. I happened to pass by and had her sent back."

Kangxi’s sudden mention of Consort Xian seemed somewhat abrupt, but a subtle smile flickered in Liang Jiugong’s eyes, quickly hidden as he bowed his head respectfully, showing no unusual expression.

The young noble lady, pale and seemingly about to faint, grew even paler at this.

"Today, you’ve also sprained your foot and nearly fainted from the pain. Liang Jiugong, send her back to the Palace of Earthly Tranquility."

The word 'also' was used quite subtly.

As Kangxi’s words fell, those who hadn’t grasped it now understood.

This young noble lady was from Consort Xian’s palace.

Whether her sprained foot was real or staged, whether it was her own idea or Consort Xian’s instruction, she would face trouble upon her return.

When Consort Xian was still a noble lady, she had once been favored for a period. She was blessed to conceive, but tragically, her children died one after another, and she fell out of favor. After all, there were many concubines, and she was no longer the only one.

However, the young noble lady had attempted to leverage her grief over losing her children to regain favor, but what succeeded once didn’t always succeed.

When Consort Xian was still the minor noble lady, she had also 'happened' to encounter the Emperor in this way. Even the deposed Imperial Noble Consort had dared to intercept him.

Though it was called an "accidental encounter," there were no real coincidences—it was all calculated.

This young noble lady also resided in the Palace of Earthly Tranquility.

Tsk tsk.

It was difficult to believe this was unrelated to Consort Xian. If Consort Xian was no longer favored, it wasn’t out of the question for her to send a young and fresh noble lady from her palace.

For a moment, the maids had mixed thoughts but stayed silent, not daring to exchange glances.

Liang Jiugong, on the other hand, immediately directed two people to help lift her, giving a few routine instructions before returning to the sedan chair to accompany it.

He seemed completely indifferent to gossip.

This time, the young noble lady was successfully lifted, almost "carried" up.

"Thank you, Your Majesty... Your Majesty... Ouch!" Even the slightest movement caused pain in her ankle.

The maids supporting her on either side held her "steadily," preventing her from moving too much.

As if thoughtfully reminding her, "Be careful, my lady." Then they helped her away, getting farther and farther from the imperial carriage.

She barely had the strength to resist.

Her maids trailed nervously behind, unable to help.

To make it convincing, she feared the imperial physician might discover she hadn't actually sprained her ankle but had lied about it—which would be a crime of deceiving the emperor. She had to grit her teeth and truly sprain her ankle.

Her ankle swelled immediately, and even a few steps left her sweating. The earlier bowing worsened her injury, intensifying the pain.

The pain was excruciating, and her pallor was genuine. She had sacrificed much, hoping to earn the emperor's pity.

If this suffering left an impression on the emperor, it would be worth it.

Such opportunities were rare, as were chances to see the emperor. If she didn't use some tactics, how could she seize the opportunity?

When Rong Noble Consort first entered the palace, she was a delicate beauty, prone to illness. After recuperating in the palace, she shed her fragile image.

Her frailty won the emperor's pity, securing her place in the harem and his favor.

This hinted at the emperor's preference for delicate beauties.

Now that Rong Noble Consort's health had improved significantly, her earlier sickly demeanor was gone.

Her delicate appearance was carefully crafted. She subtly borrowed elements of Rong Noble Consort's style, adding touches that highlighted her own beauty. It was similar but not so much that it felt like a direct copy, just something of the same style.

Her fall was staged to appear graceful and pitiful.

She had spent untold time preparing for this encounter. Even though she knew the emperor was heading to Yonghe Palace, and even if he reconciled with Rong Noble Consort, it would be a wasted trip. But she took the chance, hoping they wouldn't reconcile immediately.

Rong Noble Consort had long enjoyed the emperor's favor. She might overplay her hand, pushing the emperor away.

Hearing the emperor had left Yonghe Palace, she seized the opportunity.

She gritted her teeth and sprained her ankle, ensuring the eunuch would report it. Then she limped over to bow before the emperor.

With the emperor and Rong Noble Consort at odds, she saw her chance. Rong Noble Consort's spoiled antics were unwise.

Though the emperor might suspect her motives, her injury was genuine. She didn't faint at once but collapsed after a struggle.

Earning the emperor's pity was naturally the best outcome.

Even if the emperor sent her back, at least she had made an appearance before him, leaving some impression.

Later, when the news spread through the palace, who knows, it might just become reality.

But now, the minor noble lady thought to herself that things had gone wrong. She had genuinely injured herself, yet not only had she failed to win the emperor's pity, she had also dragged Consort Xian into it. She feared she wouldn't have an easy time when she returned, and her anxiety grew.

She wanted to say something more, but her foot hurt so much that she couldn't even speak loudly, let alone break free from the two maids. She could only be helped farther and farther away from the emperor's carriage.

The minor noble lady probably didn't realize that even after going to such lengths to injure herself, she hadn't gained the emperor's pity. Instead, she would have to face Consort Xian's questioning when she returned.

Liang Jiugong, for his part, smiled without a word.

The emperor was busy with countless affairs of state. How could he possibly remember all the concubines in the palace, let alone which palace they resided in?

But earlier, when Liang Jiugong reminded the emperor of the minor noble lady's presence, he had added, "Should we have the maids escort the minor noble lady back to Zhongcui Palace?"

This seems perfectly fine, after all, if not sending the maids, could it be that His Majesty would personally see her off?

Sending someone to escort her back is already a favor.

However.

Timing is everything for 'chance encounters,' and now is not a good time.

At this moment, His Majesty is in a foul mood, and running into a noble lady halfway would be disastrous.

If this actually worked, it’d be pure luck.

Otherwise, running into her like this would be disastrous.

News travels fast in the palace, and this minor noble lady with a sprained ankle might not even have returned to Zhongcui Palace before the news spreads everywhere.

Ever since Consort Xian got her new title, she’s kept a low profile, avoiding any showiness.

Although she is not the most prominent after being promoted to consort, she’s finally risen to become one of the three consorts, solidifying her place in the palace.

Her previous title change is all but forgotten, and no one dares to bring up that Consort Xian might’ve been Consort Rong.

Now, thanks to this minor noble lady’s stunt, Consort Xian’s old history is about to become palace gossip again.

As Liang Jiugong returned to the sedan chair, he could feel His Majesty’s gaze on him, bringing an oppressive weight, leaving Liang Jiugong anxious and on edge, fearing His Majesty’s words.

Luckily, His Majesty soon looked away without a word.

Liang Jiugong didn’t even dare wipe the sweat from his brow.

He let the wind dry it as they went.

Kangxi was well aware of Liang Jiugong’s thoughts but did not point them out. He was thoroughly fed up with these 'chance encounters.'

These 'chance encounters' also reminded him that, as the Consort thought, he still had many choices.

The Consort didn’t need to bother with him.

Kangxi’s eyes darkened, his expression somewhat gloomy, his hand clenched into a fist at his side, the veins on the back of his hand prominent, trembling slightly from the force.

Yonghe Palace

After the Emperor left, Qinxin immediately went in to see her lady.

She thought that even if the lady would not cry in sadness, at least she should have some expression of hurt or melancholy.

But she saw the lady sitting down gently, ready to pick up the storybook beside her to continue reading. Hearing Qinxin come in, she said without looking up, "The tea is cold, change it for a new pot. Also, the cat has gained some weight, tell the maids not to feed it dried fish for a few days, take it out for more walks, lest it gets too fat and unhealthy."

The lady gave her instructions as usual, if it weren’t for the Emperor’s genuine anger when he left, one might really think that the lady had no conflict with the Emperor at all.

Although she didn't understand what had happened to cause such a falling out, it was not something Qinxin could ask about, otherwise she wouldn't have been told to change the tea. "Yes, I will go and do it now." She went forward to take away the cold tea.

Actually, it wasn’t that she couldn’t ask, but Su Yi was too lazy to say.

Moreover, every time this happened, in the eyes of Qinxin and the others, it was always a time of anxiety, worrying a lot about it.

But she, would not.

As if sensing something, Su Yi snapped her fingers, creating a barrier that maintained the illusion of her still reading the storybook, like an illusion that seemed real as long as one didn’t get too close.

The sky rumbled, and rain began to fall, accompanied by flashes of lightning.

Su Yi put down the storybook, her smile tinged with amusement. "This place is almost like a sieve, with one after another coming through. Is it by accident or on purpose?"

She paused, her voice softening further. "Are you really that keen on someone digging up my past?"

"...No," the Heavenly Dao felt completely innocent. It wasn’t its doing. Why were all these people popping in and out of its world? Fortunately, they were just ordinary people, so it wasn’t as panicked when discovered.

"I thought we had an understanding during the Lantern Festival," Su Yi said with a smile, though her eyes were cold.

Even though the world’s barrier was breached, it could quickly close and seal itself.

But other unpredictable things still slipped through the brief gap.

"Since we’re all outsiders, don’t single me out," Su Yi said in a playful, almost coquettish tone. "What if I decide to flip on you?"

Having my past exposed would be a pain, after all.

Everyone has a past they’d rather not bring up.

Bringing it up could be deadly.

As the saying goes, strike first and win; hesitate and lose.

The rain outside seemed to grow louder.

"I promise it won’t get out," the Heavenly Dao felt it had to give this assurance before she disappeared.

She was as dangerous as the demonic dragon. When she first arrived, she was extremely weak, yet she quickly found a way to recover.

If they weren’t enemies, they might’ve teamed up to destroy this world.

Even though this place was full of holes, those who came were ordinary people, but these two?!

"Oh—" Su Yi dragged out the word, her smile deepening as if she were pondering something. The silver flame mark on her forehead flashed briefly before vanishing.

Seemingly convinced, she said, "Alright then."

At the Hesheli residence, Xiao Hesheli had slipped and fallen into the water and was rescued after much effort. She was out of danger.

As soon as she fell, her maid panicked and immediately called for help.

But oddly, Xiao Hesheli sank almost immediately, and the surface became still.

Servants who were good swimmers went in to search, but the water was murky with silt, and as night deepened, it became impossible to see where Xiao Hesheli had sunk.

To make matters worse, it started to rain.

Xiao Hesheli had been restless these past few days, often insisting on going out for a walk, even though she was supposed to be preparing for the palace selection. She simply couldn’t calm down.

She had also spoken to her father about something, and he had allowed her to relax a bit before entering the palace.

But today, not long after she went out, perhaps having been cooped up for too long, Xiao Hesheli became unusually active, didn’t watch her step, and accidentally fell into the water, sinking immediately.

Xiao Hesheli couldn’t swim, and her maids were frantic when she fell in.

After Xiao Hesheli sank, the water surface remained eerily calm. Even the skilled servants couldn’t locate her right away. Just as everyone present was losing hope, ripples appeared on the water, and they faintly saw flailing fingers.

She had resurfaced, and they quickly swam to save her.

By the time they pulled her out, Xiao Hesheli had already fainted. They checked her breath and found she was still alive. At worst, they’d face punishment, but her life was spared.

When the maids changed her wet clothes, they noticed marks on her calf, as if something had tightly wrapped around it. They guessed she might have been tangled in water grass when she fell in, which would explain why she sank so quickly and silently.

Luckily, during her struggle, she must have broken free from the water grass and floated back to the surface.

She coughed! After coughing up water, Xiao Hesheli screamed in terror.

“A snake! There’s a snake!! It wrapped around my foot!!” Her legs thrashed wildly, even striking a nearby maid.

The maid, enduring the pain, assured her there was no snake, just water grass, and tried her best to calm her down.

But Xiao Hesheli stayed frantic, “No, there really was a snake! Something in the water!”

Something in the water had pulled her under!

She knew how to swim; this body didn’t, but she did!

She had learned swimming and knew that even if she couldn’t swim after falling in, she could try to float on her back and wait for rescue. So, despite her initial panic, she quickly adjusted her posture to float, not wanting to reveal that this body couldn’t swim.

But then something wrapped around her calf and pulled her down.

“Miss, you were just frightened, confusing water grass for a water snake,” the maid patiently explained and comforted.

Underwater, vision is blurry, and water grass can resemble a snake. Drowning people who get tangled often mistake it for a snake.

“No! There really was a snake!!” Xiao Hesheli insisted, pulling up her pant leg and pointing to the purple bruises from the wrapping, as if presenting evidence to prove her point.

“Miss, there really was no snake. We only keep a few koi fish. The doctor has already checked; these marks are from being entangled by water grass. You’ve been shocked by the fall and need to rest and recover.”

The maid gently comforted her while helping her lie down, and the other maids echoed the same explanation.

If a snake had truly wrapped around her calf, she might have been bitten during her struggle. But aside from the wrapping marks, there were no bite marks on her leg.

Moreover, none of the servants who rescued her mentioned seeing a snake.

She must have confused water grass for a snake.

Hearing the maids insist it was water grass, Xiao Hesheli began to doubt whether she had really seen a snake.

It had truly scared her!

But could water grass really look so much like a snake?

She struggled desperately to kick off whatever was wrapping around her calf, only to feel it tighten even more. Her struggles in the water seemed futile.

In the water, she couldn’t even call for help; as soon as she opened her mouth, water rushed in.

Just when she thought she would die, the thing wrapped around her calf suddenly released her.

Seizing this chance, she mustered her last strength to swim to the surface, where she was finally seen and rescued!

Life in ancient times was really perilous; falling into water could almost kill you. No wonder folks back then didn’t live long.

She nearly died—again!

It almost ended before it even began!

Talk about bad luck.

Luckily, fate was still on her side.

After the shock, Xiao Hesheli was all over the place emotionally. After a calming soup, she was too drained to think and quickly fell asleep.

——

Then there was the minor noble lady from Consort Xian’s palace, who sprained her foot and got sent back by the emperor.

Consort Xian, always on the ball, knew she was sent back—and dragged along too!

When the minor noble lady returned, her shifty, guilty look made Consort Xian want to strangle her.

She knew the other concubines would dig up old dirt to mock her once they heard.

She’d hoped to coach the minor noble lady on some tricks, but it backfired, and the emperor brought up old issues.

If it had been her idea, she’d have just sucked it up.

The problem? Consort Xian never told her to stage an encounter!

Just because she was under her roof!

Now everyone thinks she’s a failure, and her protégé too, using such obvious tricks the emperor saw right through.

This was a major blow to Consort Xian’s pride as a consort.

If she weren’t worried about looking cruel, Consort Xian wished the minor noble lady had just broken her leg—it would’ve been more useful!

The other concubines, thinking of staging their own encounters, felt a pang of sympathy.

Getting hurt in front of the emperor was a risky move—mess it up, and the main consort would hold a grudge.

Sure enough, Consort Yi brought it up later, and Consort Xian’s forced smile showed she was pretending not to get it.

Consort Hui stayed quiet but thought Consort Xian was an idiot for thinking time would erase her past offense against Liang Jiugong.

Suddenly, there was a chance to trip Consort Xian up.

Liang Jiugong, the emperor’s right-hand man, had to remind him which palace the minor noble lady was from.

——

"Smash!" Kangxi, his face icy and brows furrowed, slammed the storybook onto the table.

Several books were already on the table, pages crumpled from his reading.

Seeing the emperor throw the book, Liang Jiugong quietly stepped back.

The next moment,

"Liang Jiugong!" Kangxi forcefully pointed at the storybooks on the table. "What kind of nonsense is this? All jumbled up! Does the noble consort usually read these?!"

As he spoke, Kangxi's tone and volume grew heavier, his expression indescribable.

His knuckles rapped against the table with such force that it seemed he wanted to knock a hole through the book.

"Your Majesty, this is only a small part of it," Liang Jiugong replied cautiously.

That day, when Kangxi returned, his expression was dark as a storm cloud. Liang Jiugong didn't know how to console him, especially since he had no idea why Kangxi and the daying had fallen out again.

At such a time, saying too much could backfire, and misplaced words might only make things worse.

But after a while, Kangxi suddenly ordered him to fetch the storybook that the daying usually read.

The request seemed random, but it wasn't difficult to fulfill, so he brought some over.

As Kangxi read, his anger boiled over.

To be honest, this was indeed just a small portion of what the daying usually read.

"The endings here are downright awful. The men in these stories are either lustful or fickle, always chasing after new women. How is this acceptable?!"

Kangxi grew angrier with each page. He usually avoided such trivial books, so he started expressionless.

At first, it seemed dull, and he could predict the ending. But as he read on, the men’s words struck a chord.

Kangxi read a few more books and finally realized why it felt familiar.

Wasn't this the same tone as the nonsense the daying had been spouting?!

No wonder it felt familiar, though he couldn’t place it at first.

After reading a few more books, Kangxi’s frown deepened, and his eyes turned to slits.

The tone of these heartless men matched the books perfectly!

Kangxi felt he had found the source of the daying's transformation—she must have learned from these books.

He wondered where she’d learned such behavior. Who in the palace had corrupted her? How dare they!

No one else would dare have such thoughts; surely the daying couldn't have come up with this on her own.

If those around her had influenced her, he’d have known.

Kangxi had thought he was gradually getting used to the daying's antics and wouldn't be as "surprised" as he had been at the beginning, his tolerance having increased.

Honestly, Kangxi hadn’t felt this white-hot rage in ages.

But this time, the daying's nonsense truly shocked and enraged him, striking right at his heart!

He hadn’t lost his temper on the spot, fearing that the daying might have some unknown "surprise" waiting for him.

When the daying acted unpredictably, there was no warning, always catching Kangxi off guard.

It was downright terrifying.

Liang Jiugong had never read these storybooks before and didn't know their content. But after skimming them earlier, he echoed Kangxi’s words with emotion: "It’s utterly unacceptable—the writing is terrible."

This response should do the trick—just go along with him!

But Kangxi was not truly troubled by these storybooks.

"Burn them all! I don't want to see these again," Kangxi said coldly, pinching the bridge of his nose, his frustration evident.

"Yes, Your Majesty, this servant will have the maids burn them immediately," Liang Jiugong dared not delay, quickly taking away the items that displeased the Emperor to have the maids burn them, lest the Emperor grow even angrier.

Truly, no one knew what was going on. After another disagreement with the Imperial Noble Consort, the Emperor suddenly started reading the storybooks, specifically those the Imperial Noble Consort usually read, and he didn't want her to know about it.

After they were delivered, the Emperor's anger not only didn't subside but seemed to grow even fiercer.

He also seemed quite displeased.

This really baffled Liang Jiugong, and he could only serve with even greater caution.

When Liang Jiugong returned, he found that the Emperor was no longer in his original spot. Looking around and not seeing anyone, he was just about to call out when the Emperor's voice suddenly came from behind him, "Liang Jiugong."

This startled Liang Jiugong so much that he nearly cried out. How did the Emperor appear behind him? It was pretty scary.

"Your Majesty, you, you..." Liang Jiugong straightened his crooked hat and said, "Do you have any more orders for this servant?" Please don't suddenly appear behind him and startle him again; he doesn't handle scares well.

Kangxi's expression was serious and thoughtful, as if he was about to discuss something important. As Liang Jiugong stood ready for orders, Kangxi pondered for a moment and then said, "How do I look?"

"Ah?" Liang Jiugong, usually quick to respond, was momentarily caught off guard by the Emperor's question. How does he look? What's that supposed to mean?