Sòng Zhī noticed Huá Fēi’s mood had soured, so she quickly tried to comfort her:

“Yes, yes, yes, anyone who dares to compete for favor with the Empress deserves to die!”

“Even if she gets favored again, she’s still just a noble lady. How can she compare to the Empress?”

“The Emperor probably just finds her new right now, but the Empress has been by your side since the days at Qián Chí. When it comes to favor, no one can compare to you.”

Sòng Zhī had been serving Huá Fēi since she was little and understood her mistress’s temperament very well.

When Huá Fēi was angry, no one could stop her, but her anger would come and go quickly.

Sure enough, as soon as she heard Sòng Zhī say the Emperor favored her the most, Huá Fēi immediately broke into a smile:

“Of course.”

“But I can’t let that Jie Niáng get away with it!”

As soon as Zhēn Huàn’s name was mentioned, Huá Fēi’s tone immediately became sharper. She looked at Sòng Zhī and said:

“Sòng Zhī, go find Zhōu Níng Hǎi. Tell him I have something for him to do.”

“Yes, Your Majesty, I’ll go right now.”

A short while later, Sòng Zhī returned, leading Zhōu Níng Hǎi.

“Your Majesty…” Zhōu Níng Hǎi bowed respectfully to Huá Fēi.

Huá Fēi leaned back in her chair and said:

“I heard that yesterday, the Emperor accompanied Zhēn Huàn to Yǐ Méi Yuán. Go and find out who was on duty there yesterday, and bring that person to me. Remember, don’t make a scene.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

After Zhōu Níng Hǎi cupped his hands and stepped back, he limped out of the room.

Once Zhōu Níng Hǎi had left, Sòng Zhī hurried over to massage Huá Fēi’s shoulders:

“Your Majesty, I ordered the little kitchen to prepare your favorite crab roe pastries this morning. Would you like some now?”

Huá Fēi felt very comfortable under the shoulder massage and her mood improved significantly.

She closed her eyes in pleasure, giving a contented hum in response to Sòng Zhī.

Seeing that Huá Fēi was no longer upset, Sòng Zhī cheerfully said, “I’ll go bring them to you right away.”

After Huá Fēi finished her breakfast, Zhōu Níng Hǎi returned, bringing with him the person Huá Fēi had requested.

“Your Majesty, I’ve brought the person to you.”

“The servant Yú Yīng’er greets Your Majesty. Long live the Empress.”

Yú Yīng’er, who had suddenly been called by Huá Fēi, felt extremely nervous. She was wondering if she had done something wrong or unintentionally offended Huá Fēi.

Huá Fēi didn’t even raise her head. She fiddled with the armor on her hand and asked:

“Was it you on duty at Yǐ Méi Yuán that night, on New Year’s Eve?”

Huá Fēi remembered how, because she was upset about being assigned to trim the flowers at Yǐ Méi Yuán on New Year’s Eve, she had lost her temper and thrown the plum blossoms to the ground.

Could Huá Fēi have come to question me because of that?

Thinking this, Yú Yīng’er immediately bowed to the floor, stammering:

“It… it was… it was me.”

Seeing how Yú Yīng’er was trembling with fear just from answering, Sòng Zhī became even angrier.

She walked in front of Yú Yīng’er and snapped:

“Your Majesty is asking you something, why are you hesitating? Answer properly!”

Yú Yīng’er was even more frightened and repeatedly knocked her head against the floor, pleading, “Please spare me, Your Majesty, please spare me…”

“Sòng Zhī…” Huá Fēi saw that Yú Yīng’er had been frightened enough and called Sòng Zhī back, so she no longer needed to worry about her answers being untruthful.

Sòng Zhī obediently returned to Huá Fēi’s side.

“I called you here today because I have something to ask you. If you answer well, I will reward you greatly. If you answer poorly…”

Huá Fēi paused and gave a wicked smile, which made Yú Yīng’er shiver in fear.

“Yes, yes, yes, Your Majesty, I will answer truthfully, leaving nothing unsaid.”

Although Yú Yīng’er didn’t have much education, she could still manage a few idioms without much trouble.

“I want to ask you, on New Year’s Eve at Yǐ Méi Yuán, did you see anyone?”

Yú Yīng’er felt much more at ease when she realized Huá Fēi wasn’t blaming her for damaging the plum tree. She eagerly nodded:

“I saw the Emperor, Guǎn Guìrén, and another man… The Emperor seemed to call him the Seventeenth Brother.”

“You mean Guó Jùn Wáng?”

Yú Yīng’er nodded.

“What did they say?”

“When I saw someone coming, I didn’t dare get too close. I was too far away, so I didn’t hear everything clearly.”

Huá Fēi’s eyes immediately grew cold when she heard that Yú Yīng’er hadn’t heard clearly.

Yú Yīng’er, frightened, tried to recall what she had heard yesterday:

“I think I heard something about ‘Xiǎo Xiàng’, ‘Xiǎo Xiàng’…”

“What’s this about Xiǎo Xiàng?” Huá Fēi suddenly sat up straight, as if she had found something precious.

“It should have been Guǎn Guìrén’s Xiǎo Xiàng. The Emperor even helped her hang it on a tree…”

When Yú Yīng’er said this, Sòng Zhī noticed that Huá Fēi’s expression immediately darkened.

But Yú Yīng’er didn’t notice and continued speaking:

“I also heard Guó Jùn Wáng say that the Emperor had a beauty by his side…”

Seeing how angry Huá Fēi was, nearly stabbing herself with the armor, Sòng Zhī sharply scolded:

“Say only what’s useful! Don’t you see how upset Her Majesty is?”

Yú Yīng’er, now trembling in fear, had no choice but to continue:

“Guó Jùn Wáng also said that Guǎn Guìrén’s position was too low, and it was unfair to her…”

“Did Guó Jùn Wáng say that?”

Yú Yīng’er nodded.

“Is there anything else?”

“That’s all I heard. After that, the Emperor left with Guǎn Guìrén. I don’t know what happened next.”

Huá Fēi gave Sòng Zhī a meaningful glance, and Sòng Zhī understood immediately. She took a large bag of silver from her sleeve and handed it to Yú Yīng’er.

Yú Yīng’er had never seen so much silver before. She quickly pushed away her fear and happily bowed repeatedly:

“Thank you, Your Majesty. Thank you, Your Majesty…”

“If Your Majesty ever needs anything from me in the future, I will serve you with my life.”

“Yú Yīng’er, remember what you said today!”

“I will remember it well.”

“Enough talking, I’m tired now. Zhōu Níng Hǎi, take her away to rest.”

After Zhōu Níng Hǎi received the order, he escorted Yú Yīng’er out.

Once they left, Huá Fēi instructed Sòng Zhī to bring Húang Guī Quán from the Imperial Household Department to her.

“Your servant greets the Empress. I’m not sure why the Empress has summoned me.”

Huá Fēi glanced at Húang Guī Quán before speaking confidently:

“The Emperor has recently promoted a new noble lady. The entire Imperial Household Department must be busy now.”

Húang Guī Quán, eager to please, flattered her:

“Thank you, Your Majesty, for your consideration. It’s not too busy. Even if it’s busy, it’s just a matter of dealing with a noble lady, nothing too difficult.”

Huá Fēi gave him a side glance and continued:

“That Guǎn Guìrén has always been low-key. She must have endured a lot of grievances in your department, right?”

“Now that she’s favored, you all should do your part. If the Emperor listens to her pillow talk, I won’t be able to help you.”

Huá Fēi used Zhēn Huàn’s case to deliver a harsh warning to Húang Guī Quán.