Chapter 15 – Clash of Dragon and Tiger

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Xianfu Palace.

The news that the Emperor paused outside the door but then turned and walked toward Yikun Palace was delivered immediately to the main hall.

Tana couldn’t hide the disappointment in her eyes.

Consort Xuan glanced at her. “Even if he came, it wouldn’t have been for me. Why are you so expectant?”

Tana pressed her lips together. “This servant just feels wronged for My Lady. You’re clearly far better than… the others, yet why can’t His Majesty see your genuine feelings?”

Genuine feelings? What genuine feelings?

Consort Xuan let out a soundless laugh and took a sip of hot tea, using the rising steam to mask the coldness in her eyes.

Ever since the news from the Grand Empress Dowager reached the residence, she was no longer the child nestled at her parents’ knees. One might say she held some hope when she first entered the palace, but from the first moment she sensed the Emperor’s coldness and the stiffness in his body when they interacted, those vague emotions in her heart vanished like fireworks. Her heart had since been tightly locked away with iron chains.

Jealousy and resentment were absolutely not to be shown.

Consort Xuan would only occasionally show a hint of sorrow, occasionally force a smile. All of it was to make the Emperor feel a little more guilty when he saw her. That guilt, perhaps, could at a critical moment bring some small advantage to the Borjigit clan. That was the true purpose of a palace consort.

Her eyes grew darker.

She cut off Tana’s words. “Enough of that. Speaking of which, are the utensils and items for the New Year all prepared—”

Before she could finish, the sound of a whip striking the ground came from outside. Consort Xuan raised her eyes toward the door, her composed expression tinged with surprise. “The Emperor… has come?”

Kangxi was a man of immense pride.

In his early twenties, he was like a sharpened blade, bold and confident. But he never expected that in a harem he thought harmonious, the usually gentle and considerate Consort Yi was, in private, so full of malice toward Xianfu Palace. Without saying a word, he had flung his sleeve and left Yikun Palace.

And that wasn’t all—he then turned straight toward Xianfu Palace, determined to make Consort Yi lose face. Whether Consort Yi understood or not, Consort Xuan was genuinely stunned to see Kangxi walk in. Of course, with her exceptional self-control, she immediately concealed her expression, stepped forward, and curtsied low. “Your Majesty, this concubine greets you.”

Kangxi gave a faint nod and told her to rise.

Once inside Xianfu Palace, as his overheated mind cooled, a sense of awkwardness crept in.

Kangxi had never been fond of coming to Xianfu Palace.

He, who loved to keep all power in his grasp, remained outwardly respectful to the Grand Empress Dowager and the Empress Dowager. Yet in his heart, he was extremely wary of the Mongolian consort’s influence. He did not wish to end up like the late Emperor, who was madly obsessed with love, nor did he want that Mongolian consort to continue controlling his harem. That’s why even though the Ninth Prince, Wan Fu, was her son, Kangxi remained distant.

Now, with the Fifth and Tenth Princes being raised outside the palace, the only child left besides the Crown Prince was the Ninth Prince. Yet even so, Kangxi barely knew anything about Wan Fu’s health or academic progress. Still, since he was here, Kangxi casually asked, “Where is the Ninth Prince?”

By bringing up Wan Fu, he could use it as a reason to go find Noble Lady Nara… Kangxi’s calculations were ticking away.

But things didn’t go as planned.

Consort Xuan replied respectfully, “Replying to Your Majesty, the Ninth Prince played in the snow for a while. Noble Lady Nara feared he’d catch cold and brought him back inside to drink ginger soup.”

Kangxi nodded. “As expected.”

A flicker of confusion passed through Consort Xuan’s eyes. Tilting her head, she looked at Kangxi curiously.

Kangxi laughed heartily. “Those little snow sculptures—ugly and oddly shaped—just from one glance, I could tell they were made by Wan Fu.”

Consort Xuan: ………

Her expression was strange enough that Kangxi raised his eyebrows, a rare look of confusion on his face. “Did I say something wrong?”

Consort Xuan replied, “Actually…”

The more Kangxi heard, the wider his eyes grew, and the corners of his mouth twitched uncontrollably. He even asked in disbelief, “They were really made by Changzai Wan?”

Consort Xuan nodded.

Kangxi hesitated to speak—Wan Changzai couldn’t even write properly, and now even her hands were this clumsy? He sighed and rubbed his forehead, though curiosity had already begun to rise. He gave Consort Xuan a light nod. “I’ll go take a look.”

Consort Xuan rose and curtsied again. “This concubine respectfully sees Your Majesty off.”

Once Kangxi’s figure had disappeared, she sat back down and resumed the conversation she was having with her attendants.

From afar, Kangxi could see the courtyard filled with snow sculptures.

Small animals in various poses were placed all around, along with wooden fences and snow houses. The clever and creative arrangement made Kangxi’s eyes light up. He examined each one with great interest.

Haotao, who had sharp eyes, covered her mouth.

She looked out the window in shock and uncertainty. After a moment, she murmured, “M-My Lady… I-Is that the Emperor?”

Wan Anran: “Mmmph?”

She didn’t even bother looking up, her full attention immersed in the feast before her. The tender, delicate lamb shank only needed three seconds in the copper hotpot to be fully cooked. Chewy and rich in flavor, especially when paired with sesame sauce, it was absolutely divine. Of course, dipping it in the spicy broth added a whole other level of satisfaction, making it impossible for Wan Anran to stop.

The Emperor?

Please!

Nothing was more important than hotpot! Long live hotpot!

Haotao and Zisu grew anxious.

One on each side, they began shaking Changzai Wan. “My Lady! My Lady! It really is—it’s really His Majesty!”

“The Emperor can go mind his—huh?” Wan Anran suddenly snapped back to her senses. She glanced toward the window and, sure enough, saw Kangxi in his apricot-yellow dragon robe in the courtyard, looking left and right with great interest.

Wan Anran: ……

She immediately bowed her head and focused on the pot again. “Calm, calm. I say, the Emperor surely didn’t come to our room. Look! Xu Changzai has already gone out to greet him.”

Sure enough, the doors to the western wing opened.

Xu Changzai, unable to hide her delight, hurried out.

Could this be a pie falling from the heavens?

Hai Tao and Zi Su fell into silence. Then, they both lowered their heads and chose to continue serving their mistress.

From the window, one could see into the backyard. Naturally, from the backyard, the wide-open window and the faint movements of Wan Anran and the others were also visible. For a moment, Kangxi didn’t know whether to think that Second Class Attendant Wan was foolish or just honest. At a time like this, wouldn’t most palace concubines come out to greet him? Like the one right in front of him now… What was her name again?

Or perhaps…

Second Class Attendant Wan didn’t take the Emperor seriously at all? A trace of displeasure flickered across Kangxi’s heart. Liang Jiugong, who followed behind him, also shook his head silently: that so-called hopeless case—clearly referring to Second Class Attendant Wan!

Just then, Kangxi’s voice reached Liang Jiugong’s ear. “Oh?”

Kangxi’s gaze had landed on the snowmen.

A male and a female snowman stood together, looking especially harmonious and cute. Liang Jiugong didn’t notice anything odd, but Kangxi couldn’t help smiling. “So she is a timid one. Clearly she has feelings for Us but dares not speak of them.”

Liang Jiugong: …???

He was completely baffled, while Kangxi bypassed First Class Attendant Xu and made his way toward the east wing.

“Little mistress! His Majesty is here!”

“Wuwuwu…” Trying to trick me again? Wan Anran lifted her head and froze as soon as she saw Kangxi pushing the door open and walking in.

What could she do now?

She could only tough it out! Calmly, she put down her chopsticks, stood up, and gave a curtsey. “This concubine greets Your Majesty. May Your Majesty be blessed with good fortune and peace.”

Kangxi said, “Rise.”

His gaze shifted to the window. The two pots on the small table were still steaming, and the air was filled with a faint spicy aroma. A lavish meal had already been half-eaten; the scene was rather messy. Hai Tao, Zi Su, and Ju Bai had beads of sweat forming on their noses, and as soon as they stood up, they instinctively wanted to clear the table.

Wan Anran looked on with reluctance.

The tender lamb slices had barely been touched, the lamb leg wasn’t finished, and that rare beef roll hadn’t even been touched… And now they were going to take everything away? Wan Anran thickened her skin and asked, “Your Majesty, have you eaten yet?”

Kangxi: …………

Thanks to his rotten idea, he hadn’t had a meal at the Palace of Earthly Tranquility, and then he was angered by Consort Yi and stormed out of Yikun Palace. Now, the tantalizing aroma before him was truly tempting… Was he actually considering staying to eat? He stared at the spicy broth for a moment, then coughed lightly. “Is this the red broth Her Majesty mentioned?”

Wan Anran nodded in confirmation.

Next, she saw Master Kang grandly sit down. “The Empress spoke highly of it. I shall try it for myself.”

Since His Majesty had expressed a desire to dine, naturally they couldn’t serve what was already on the table. Hai Tao, Zi Su, and Ju Bai cheerfully began clearing the dishes, while Liang Jiugong immediately sent someone to fetch fresh ingredients.

The hotpot ingredients had originally come from Chef Zhao in the imperial kitchen.

When he heard that His Majesty was going to dine at Second Class Attendant Wan’s quarters, Chef Zhao was so delighted he nearly burst out laughing. Having just been praised by the Empress and now getting a chance to impress the Emperor too…? Of course, Chef Zhao quickly composed himself. This was not the time for sloppiness—any carelessness now would ruin everything.

There was fierce competition even among the imperial chefs.

Now that Chef Zhao had gained the upper hand, he certainly wasn’t going to let this golden opportunity slip away. He shooed away his apprentice who tried to help with slicing meat and meticulously prepared the ingredients himself, determined to show off his skills before the Emperor.

While waiting for the meal, Kangxi casually asked about the snow sculptures.

He still had some doubts—if those hideous snow sculptures were made by Second Class Attendant Wan, then who had crafted those intricate, skillfully-carved ones?

Wan Anran replied, “Those were not made by me.”

She called over Ju Bai. “These were all done by this girl, Ju Bai! And not just these—Ju Bai can even make large snow sculptures. It’s just that we’ve almost used up all the snow in Xianfu Palace, so she didn’t get a chance to show off her talent.”

Wan Anran looked genuinely regretful.

Ju Bai was at a loss, her eyes fixed firmly on her toes, not daring to look up at the Emperor.

Kangxi remembered that the first time he saw Second Class Attendant Wan, she had also only shown him the back of her head. He chuckled silently. As for a little maidservant, he didn’t pay her much mind and casually nodded. “There’s still plenty of snow piled up in the Imperial Garden. If you want her to sculpt, let her do it there.”

Wan Anran’s face lit up with joy.

She happily agreed and became even more enthusiastic toward Kangxi. Just then, the new ingredients arrived, and Wan Anran immediately decided to give Kangxi a proper feast.

The new ingredients were much more luxurious than what Wan Anran had just eaten. First came the “Four Blessings Platter”—Fu (chicken), Lu (venison), Shou (lamb), and Kao (fish). Then came a different soup base: compared to the clear broth Wan Anran had used, Kangxi preferred the sour soup.

And sour soup paired perfectly with spicy flavors.

Wan Anran personally mixed a spicy dipping sauce, picked up a piece of paper-thin fatty lamb with her chopsticks, dipped it in the sauce, and presented it to Kangxi. “Your Majesty, please enjoy.”

The sauce was a brilliant red.

Had the Empress not mentioned her fondness for red oil dumplings earlier, Kangxi would never have agreed to try this.

He picked up the dipping dish, placed the meat into his mouth—

The sour soup and spice blended in perfect harmony, seamlessly fusing together. Kangxi’s appetite flared, and he didn’t forget about Wan Anran, who had only eaten half her meal. “Sit and join Us.”

Wan Anran had been waiting for those words.

Without the slightest hesitation, she agreed and picked up her chopsticks, immediately diving into the meat. Compared to Kangxi’s composed, leisurely movements, Wan Anran was much quicker. For instance, when it came to dipping meat slices, she liked to do three at once, thoroughly soak them in sauce, and stuff them into her mouth in one go. That, to her, was the definition of satisfaction.

But such enthusiasm came with consequences.

Every dish had a fixed portion of meat and vegetables, and thanks to Wan Anran’s speedy technique, the food on the table began to visibly vanish.

Kangxi: ……

Other concubines usually ate a bite and glanced at him a bit, each one nibbling like a little bird. This was the first time he’d seen one not only neglect to serve him but even fight for the food.

Kangxi stopped Liang Jiugong, who was nearly about to leap up.

A mere Second Class Attendant wants to compete with Us in speed? He raised an eyebrow and suddenly quickened his pace.

Liang Jiugong: …………

Watching His Majesty and Second Class Attendant Wan bury their heads and eat in complete silence, Liang Jiugong could almost see roaring dragons and tigers behind them.

Was this dining?

This was clearly a clash of titans!