Chapter 16 – Spending the Night

Kangxi rarely had such a satisfying meal—he was even a little stuffed.

Especially that last piece of lamb. Right in front of the drooling Wan Changzai, he snatched it up with lightning speed and popped it into his mouth. The delicious taste lingered in his memory for a long time. He gave Wan Changzai a smug smile.
“You still want to compete with me in speed?”

Wan Anran: … Tch!

Her face maintained a perfectly polite smile as she clapped her hands exaggeratedly and praised,
“Your Majesty, your speed is too fast. This concubine truly cannot compare.”

It was clearly a compliment.

Yet somehow, whenever Wan Changzai opened her mouth, there was always a hint of sarcasm?
Kangxi was puzzled, but since he was in a good mood after the meal, he couldn’t be bothered to argue with her. He leaned back comfortably on the soft couch.

Wan Anran: …………

Is Lord Kang not planning to leave yet? She blinked with slight confusion. But then again, Kangxi was the emperor—not to mention this small side chamber—even the entire Forbidden City belonged to him. He could rest wherever he pleased, and he certainly didn’t need her permission.

Feeling frustrated, Wan Anran also turned her gaze outside and dazed off.

The emperor wasn’t in a hurry, but the eunuchs were. The concubine wasn’t anxious, but the palace maids were. Liang Jiugong shook his head quietly as he stared at this utterly hopeless lump of mud—Wan Changzai—left speechless. Meanwhile, Haitao, Zisu, and Jubai were all so anxious that their hearts and lungs were itching. They could hardly resist pushing their mistress forward.

At the very least, say a few more words to His Majesty!

Kangxi truly had no intention of leaving. He had overindulged and was a bit too full. Besides, if he ate at Wan Changzai’s place and left immediately, wouldn’t that be disrespectful?
So he lazily leaned back on the soft couch and leisurely examined the entire eastern chamber.

The furnishings inside were simple and elegant.

No! They couldn’t even be called elegant—more like bare. There were too few decorative items, so the room looked clean and straightforward, unable to show off any sense of luxury or grandeur… Wait?

Kangxi raised his brows as he noticed the items on a display shelf.

His curiosity piqued, and he stood up to stroll over, staring intently at the objects on the shelf.

Liang Jiugong, equally curious, craned his neck to see.

When the items on the display shelf came into view, Liang Jiugong’s eyes widened, and he froze on the spot.

Kangxi said, “Wan Changzai, what is this?”

Wan Anran glanced over and replied,
“Replying to Your Majesty, those are accessories.” He doesn’t even recognize accessories? How silly this emperor is.

Don’t think I didn’t see that look in your eyes.
Kangxi’s face darkened as he shot her a glare—especially at her casually tied-up hair bun.
When he entered earlier, he had already noticed her casual appearance. But since his visit was unplanned, he had chosen to turn a blind eye and pretend not to see it.

Now, however, his irritation turned to amusement.

This was the first time Kangxi had encountered a palace concubine like Wan Changzai—not only was her hair tied casually without a single hairpin, but her face was also completely bare of makeup.

More importantly, she was using fine accessories as decorative items on a display shelf!
Kangxi’s mouth twitched twice before he finally couldn’t hold it in:
“Of course I know those are accessories. But why aren’t they stored properly in a dressing box? What are they doing on a curio shelf?”

Wan Anran replied,
“These accessories are very pretty.”

She excitedly pointed to them and said,
“These two sets were gifted to me by the Empress. Look—this set has a golden inlaid butterfly design. Especially this butterfly hairpin: the head is set with a ruby, and the wings are adorned with gold filigree and kingfisher feathers. It also has rubies and pink tourmalines. The design is vivid and gorgeous, like a butterfly dancing through the air…”

Wan Anran’s words were full of lively animation.

The Niohuru Empress had exquisite taste. And besides, wouldn’t these accessories be displayed in a museum in future generations? Normally, Wan Anran couldn’t bear to use them.
Since the curio shelf didn’t have much on it anyway, she decided to display them as decorations.
Finally, she added a little boastfully,
“Don’t they look nice like this?”

Not exactly ugly, but not exactly pretty either.

Kangxi rubbed his forehead with a sigh, silently cursing that Wan Changzai was truly a block of rotting wood!
No, wait—maybe she was just ignorant?
He thought about it and suddenly looked at her with some pity. He decided he’d find her some more decorative items and accessories later—at least to save her from appearing so unsophisticated.

Wan Anran looked utterly puzzled.

Kangxi chose to change the subject:
“Speaking of which, how is the calligraphy I asked you to practice?”

Wan Anran jolted.

She snapped back to attention and ordered Haitao to fetch it.
“This concubine has practiced diligently and has not slacked off in the past few days.”

Kangxi raised his eyebrows.

He didn’t reply but stood where he was, flipping through Wan Changzai’s practice sheets.
After only two glances, a trace of disdain appeared in his eyes:
“With writing like this, you’re far from the Crown Prince’s level!”

Wouldn’t it be a bigger problem if the Crown Prince’s handwriting were as bad as mine? Wan Anran silently muttered.
Of course, on the surface, she obediently accepted the criticism and replied modestly,
“This concubine certainly cannot compare to the Crown Prince.”

Then she changed the tone.

“But this concubine thinks I could compete with the Ninth Prince.”

Kangxi opened his mouth to speak, then stopped, then tried again, and stopped.

After a pause, he couldn’t help but say,
“How can you shamelessly compare yourself to a three-year-old child?”

Wan Anran replied confidently,
“This concubine is a beginner, and so is the Ninth Prince. Beginners should be compared with other beginners. If I were to compare myself to Sister Nara, Mistress Xuan, Mistress Tong, or even the Empress, wouldn’t that be unrealistic?”

“Does that even make a lick of sense?”

“Nonsense!”
Kangxi’s face darkened, his beard puffed out in anger as he glared. “How can you be so lacking in ambition? If you ask me—”

Once Kangxi started talking, he just wouldn’t stop. He rattled on and on, picking apart Wan Anran from head to toe. He called her greedy, lazy, unmotivated—every flaw imaginable was piled onto her head.

Wan Anran: …………

But the point was, despite all this supposed disdain, it didn’t stop Kangxi from once again choosing to spend the night in Wan Anran’s quarters.

Wan Anran had long expected this day to come, so she didn’t resist. After some half-hearted reluctance, her impression was that Kangxi actually had quite a good figure—broad chest muscles, a full set of eight-pack abs, and… some remarkable skills. No wonder he was called the most capable “gigolo” of the imperial harem.

As for the rest… she couldn’t really remember.

By the time Wan Anran woke up, Kangxi had already risen. Surrounded by a few young eunuchs, he was being dressed and washed. Glancing over at Wan Anran, who still looked exhausted and was yawning, he let out a chuckle. “Didn’t I say you’re too lazy?”

Other concubines would jump up the moment they heard any movement, eager to attend to His Majesty for fear of missing the chance. But this Wan Changzai? Sleeping like a little pig! If her maid hadn’t nudged her a few times in secret, she probably wouldn’t have woken even after the Emperor left!

Then again, he thought, perhaps this was a testament to his own prowess.

The corners of Kangxi’s lips curled into a faint smile. Opening his arms toward the dazed Wan Anran, he said, “Aren’t you coming over to help?”

Presenting him with his belt counted as “attending to His Majesty’s dressing.”

Wan Anran’s clumsy, fumbling manner made Kangxi shake his head in exasperation. As he was leaving, he gave her a sidelong glance and said, “If you want to send something to me, just do it. No need to be all secretive.”

Wan Anran blinked in confusion.

What’s that supposed to mean again? She gave a vague response, and once she saw Kangxi off, she quickly dove back into bed, pulling the covers over her head. “Just five more minutes… Zzz…”

By the time she woke again, it was already the usual time for her to rise.

Haitao and Zisu helped her wash and dress, both brimming with joy. Wan Anran, on the other hand, could only sigh inwardly—
Being the Emperor really didn’t seem like an easy job.

Wasn’t it supposed to be a New Year holiday? And yet he still had to get up at the crack of dawn? She clicked her tongue and dismissed any further thoughts of Kangxi. “Haitao, what’s for breakfast today?”

Haitao placed the food box on the table.

Barely able to contain her glee, she cheerfully replied, “My Lady, this morning’s meal includes red date and black rice porridge, pork and bamboo shoot shumai, steamed egg with shrimp, and a six-flavor dessert box!”

Aside from the first breakfast they’d received from Consort Xuan, this was the most elaborate one yet. No wonder Haitao was all smiles—after all, favor was everything in the palace. With not much affection floating around Xianfu Palace, this sudden attention had surely stirred up more than a few palace minds.

Wan Anran remained calm and collected.

Seeing her so composed, Haitao couldn’t help but ask, “My Lady? Why aren’t you happy? With how things are going, you’re sure to win the Emperor’s favor!”

Wan Anran waved her hand. “This lady thinks the Emperor might’ve just stopped by on the way. Who knows when he’ll come again? Best we carry on as usual.”

Haitao mumbled, “My Lady should have a bit more confidence.”

Luckily, Zisu stood on Wan Changzai’s side. “My Lady’s right. It’s better to keep a low profile.”

Wan Anran nodded.

Her gaze turned to the breakfast: the red date and black rice porridge was sweet and fragrant, the pork and bamboo shoot shumai juicy and chewy, the steamed egg with shrimp tender and savory, and the colorful six-flavor desserts—if you asked Wan Anran to rate them, she’d definitely give a perfect score!

As she was still savoring her meal, a eunuch arrived with imperial gifts.

Even Consort Xuan was quite surprised.

The number of gifts exceeded what Noble Lady Nara had received on prior occasions. Even stranger was the type of gifts: while most concubines received fabrics and jewelry after serving the Emperor, this time the offerings were quite different—decorative items like a double-holed jade vase, a celadon “Ten Thousand Pines” landscape sculpture, a cloisonné rectangular basin with pomegranate bonsai, and other curios. There were even scholar’s desk items like a duan inkstone engraved with a cat-and-butterfly motif.

Consort Xuan clicked her tongue in amazement.

Fortunately, there were at least three sets of jewelry sent as well. Otherwise, she might’ve thought the Emperor was displeased with Wan Changzai… Wait.
She looked at the decorations, then the scholarly items again. Her expression turned a little odd.

Maybe… he really was a bit displeased.

She rubbed her forehead and waved to Nanny Xia. “Quick, summon Wan Changzai to receive the gifts.”

Wan Anran received the gifts and was about to head back.

But the eunuch who read the decree stepped forward. “Please wait, Lady Wan. His Majesty has one more message for you.”

Wan Anran straightened up, suddenly alert.

The next second, the eunuch smiled and said, “His Majesty asks that Lady Wan kindly return the jewelry from the display shelf back into your dressing box.”

Wan Anran: …………uh, what?