Chapter 8 – Missed Us?

In the following few days, aside from visiting Consort Yu’s Zhongyu Palace, Xuanyuan Ling didn’t go anywhere else. After all, out of respect for the children, if not the woman, Consort Yu had two of them.

At present, there were only three children in the entire palace—two with Consort Yu and one with Consort Shun. The First Prince born of Consort Shun had always kept a low profile, so the ones drawing the most attention were naturally the Second Prince and the Third Princess. It was no surprise the Emperor doted on them, and Consort Yu acted with such arrogance—understandably so.

Shen Qing listened to Chunhua delivering the news while cracking sunflower seeds, thinking to herself: That Consort Yu sure has stamina. Impressive. Even with the Emperor’s monstrous energy, she managed to give birth to two children and still keep up—must be true love.

But regardless of how favored she was, no one in the harem could be allowed to dominate completely.

After the Emperor had visited her for several days in a row, if not the Empress, then the Empress Dowager had to make a move. Using the excuse of praying for the health and safety of the two children, the Empress Dowager sent Consort Yu off to transcribe scriptures.

Of course, officially, it was all “for the sake of her grandchildren’s wellbeing.”

Soon, Shen Qing had her second round of collective greetings.

The palace had a fixed schedule for these twice-a-month greetings, unlike the usual spontaneous visits—this one was mandatory. It symbolized respect for the Empress. Unless you were bedridden, everyone had to show up according to the rules.

As before, Shen Qing was the first to arrive.

After her, the other concubines trickled in one by one. As a new addition to the palace, Shen Qing wasn’t familiar with anyone and didn’t have close ties with any of them. After the usual polite greetings, everyone fell silent. Shen Qing had dressed plainly, with a simple and elegant look, aiming for mediocrity. Unfortunately, the moment Consort Yu arrived, her gaze swept straight toward her.

Shen Qing felt truly cursed. That Consort Yu really is like a fighting rooster—why’s she always staring at me?

She wanted to grab Consort Yu by the shoulders and tell her: Smart women win over men; only foolish women keep targeting other women.

After paying respects to the Empress, Shen Qing had just stepped out when Consort Yu’s voice floated from behind, soft yet pointed:

“Lady Shen, I hear you have quite the talent for beauty and skincare?”

“I do.”

“Mhm. Come to my Zhongyu Palace and let me see your skills.”

A blatant attempt at humiliation.

Shen Qing gave a respectful bow and replied, “Yes, Your Highness.”

She followed Consort Yu. Many saw this and understood Consort Yu wasn’t trying to take her life—just didn’t like her and wanted to give her a hard time. Shen Qing was mentally prepared.

Once they arrived at Zhongyu Palace, Shen Qing took the initiative: “Your Highness, I’ll need to write down the formulas first and have the maids gather the ingredients. Please, take a brief rest.”

Her attitude couldn’t be more respectful.

Consort Yu glanced at her, then turned to Wenqiu at her side.

Wenqiu immediately ordered someone to bring writing materials for Shen Qing.

Shen Qing didn’t mind. It was all about pretending to be humble. If they wanted an excuse, so be it. As long as she acted unaware of their true intentions and remained obedient, she wouldn’t be treated too harshly.

So she diligently wrote down a skincare mask recipe, along with various beauty and self-care tips. When the materials arrived, she earnestly stepped forward and said:

“Your Highness is far too precious. Perhaps I should demonstrate the technique on someone else for you to see. That way, the ladies serving in your palace can learn as well. If it proves effective, Your Highness could then use it regularly for maintenance.”

Consort Yu looked at Shen Qing’s respectful demeanor. “Fine, let’s see it.”

So Shen Qing gave a proper skincare demonstration on someone else.

Consort Yu watched lazily. “I can’t see clearly with you standing. Kneel.”

“Yes.” Shen Qing obeyed without a hint of complaint, face full of humble fear.

Consort Yu snorted, amused by her attitude. But watching her seriously carry out the treatment—and seeing it genuinely work—she found herself impressed. What was meant as an intimidation tactic turned dull in the face of Shen Qing’s total deference. Since the technique seemed to yield results, she even had her maids try it on her own face.

In the end, she didn’t make things difficult and let Shen Qing go.

Shen Qing left Zhongyu Palace with an expressionless face.

Back at Zhaohua Palace, Chunhua appeared anxious.

Shen Qing simply said, “Her Highness Consort Yu asked me to stay.”

Chunhua immediately understood the situation and looked worried.

Shen Qing said no more.

Consort Yu’s status—children in the harem, family support in the court—meant even the Empress turned a blind eye to her behavior. The Emperor also favored her. Only the Empress Dowager had enough standing to rein her in. At the moment, Shen Qing truly had no way to deal with her.

But someone of Consort Yu’s level naturally had others watching her. Shen Qing had no need to act.

Besides, she knew Consort Yu would eventually be defeated by the female lead. So for now, all her flaunting was just the last hurrah of a soon-to-be-dead woman. Shen Qing could console herself by not bothering with the walking dead.

Although she had just played the humble servant, Shen Qing was still fairly calm.

Xuanyuan Ling spent several days at Consort Yu’s place. With only three children in the palace, it made sense to visit them. But after the Empress Dowager sent someone to instruct her to copy Buddhist scriptures, the message was clear.

She did not want him getting too close to Consort Yu.

As for who he should be getting close to—Xuanyuan Ling understood perfectly.

He had favored Consort Yu once, but now her temper was known throughout the palace. It made him lose the desire to pamper her intentionally.

So he didn’t visit the harem at all for a few days.

The front court was busy, and he’d been occupied with matters of state. The Office of Affairs hadn’t seen him draw a single night card for days, and they were getting nervous.

Glancing at the roster, Xuanyuan Ling suddenly thought of Shen Qing.

Shen Qing had just finished dinner and, with no other entertainment, was practicing yoga on her bed.

Xuanyuan Ling entered just in time to see her in a strange pose—and paused.

Her yoga clothes were light and form-fitting. Shen Qing’s curves were already well-defined, and now they were clearly accentuated.

Her face was slightly flushed from exercise, her breathing even, a neat braid falling down her back. She looked plain but full of vitality.

Different again from how she had looked before.

Xuanyuan Ling had come because he thought of her. Seeing Chunhua’s flustered expression upon his arrival, he guessed something was going on, but once he looked inside—he still had no idea.

“What are you doing?”

Startled by his voice, Shen Qing quickly lowered her raised leg and sat up. “Your Majesty—why are you here?”

Hearing the surprise and panic in her tone, Xuanyuan Ling wasn’t angry. The first time he’d seen her was an accident. The second time as well. The third time, she had knelt in silence for a whole tea’s time. Clearly very timid—not bold enough to seduce him. But with such a lovely face, she suited his taste in bed.

Xuanyuan Ling said mildly, “Why shouldn’t I come?”

Everyone else was waiting outside—only the two of them were inside now.

Shen Qing immediately got down from the bed, as if afraid to disturb his mood, yet also a little pleased. She reached out—not to take his hand, just to tug at his sleeve.

Xuanyuan Ling, watching her, was reminded of the cat in the Empress Dowager’s palace—when it wanted to please someone, it would paw at their sleeve and sway a little.

His lips suddenly curved into a smile.

“I asked you a question,” he said coolly.

“Of course Your Majesty can come,” Shen Qing said. “This concubine was simply too happy and got flustered. I didn’t know what to say.”

The women of the harem were all eager to please him. But flustered from happiness?

Was she really that happy?

He found himself remembering her charming demeanor in bed.

Xuanyuan Ling’s gaze deepened, his tone changing slightly: “Were you thinking of Us?”