Chapter 8: Serving the Emperor 2

Although he didn’t think Ning Wanyin had the ability to serve him, a chess piece in his palm wasn’t useless.

Moreover, men always have some pity for women who do everything to please them.

She had worked hard to learn painting and chess for him, although her talent wasn’t great, her sincerity and enthusiasm were genuine.

Who would kill someone who was wholeheartedly devoted to them for no reason?

For both benefit and sentiment, he could keep her for now.

“Get up.” Helian Qi extended his hand towards Ning Wanyin.

Ning Wanyin carefully placed her delicate hand in the emperor’s palm. At this moment, she knew that her life was temporarily saved.

But that didn’t mean the emperor would always protect her.

This was their first meeting, and the emperor had a good impression of her, and she happened to be useful.

But if she made one wrong step, she might lose his favor.

“Your Majesty, would you like to play a game of chess?” Ning Wanyin asked with a faint smile.

Helian Qi had already seen her mediocre painting, and he didn’t have high expectations for her chess skills, but he was in a bad mood today and didn’t feel like making love.

It would be better to play a game of chess first to relieve his boredom.

“Hmm.”

Wang Degui hurriedly asked the palace maids to add a few more palace lamps and led all the palace servants to retreat.

The bedroom was quiet.

Only the crisp sound of the exquisite chess pieces falling on the board could be heard.

They moved back and forth.

Gradually, Helian Qi’s lazy expression became more serious.

The chess game was actually evenly matched.

He couldn’t help but look at the woman opposite him.

The palace lamp illuminated the beauty’s delicate face, like a lotus covered in dew, delicate and charming, beautiful and dazzling, so beautiful that it was blinding.

“Your Majesty, it’s your turn.” The beauty’s slender hand placed a chess piece, and she looked at him with a charming smile.

Helian Qi came back to his senses and rarely praised her, “Your chess skills are good.”

“Thank you for your praise, Your Majesty.”

…

They were evenly matched, and they lost track of time.

Wang Degui’s reminder came from outside, “Your Majesty, it’s time to go to court.”

Only then did Helian Qi realize that he had actually played chess with this woman all night.

Three draws, they were evenly matched.

If he had only wanted to use this chess piece before, and didn’t want her to be easily defeated.

Now, he had met a rare opponent, and he was excited.

Helian Qi got up and looked at Ning Wanyin with a little more warmth than before, “I’ll go to court first, and I’ll play chess with you again later.”

“Yes.” Ning Wanyin bowed.

Helian Qi was about to leave, but he remembered something and said, “You’ve played chess with me all night, you’ve worked hard. Rest, you don’t have to go to greet the Empress Dowager today——”

He actually didn’t have any hope.

Noble Consort Ning looked like a gentle and well-behaved woman, she must have memorized the rules and etiquette.

She couldn’t be his chess piece, but it was good to have her play chess with him to relieve his boredom.

Ning Wanyin was stunned, not go to greet the Empress Dowager?

Concubines greeting the Empress Dowager was a filial duty. If she didn’t go, it would be disrespectful, and the Empress Dowager could send her to the cold palace with good reason.

But every word the emperor said needed to be carefully considered.

Since he said this, he must have his reasons, it was definitely not a casual remark.

“Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty, this concubine is indeed feeling unwell, if I go to greet the Empress Dowager with this illness, I’m afraid I will be disrespectful in front of her, so this concubine will not go.” Ning Wanyin looked at Helian Qi tentatively.

She spoke this sentence very carefully, cautiously observing the emperor’s expression.

But if the emperor didn’t mean that, she would immediately change her mind and go to greet the Empress Dowager!

Helian Qi stopped in his tracks, surprised to look at the little woman in front of him.

Whether she was being arrogant because of the emperor’s favor, or she understood his implication, her actions were very much to his liking.

Helian Qi’s bad mood all day finally dissipated.

He bent down and personally helped Ning Wanyin up from her bow, and rarely smiled faintly, “Rest well.”

Ning Wanyin felt a little relieved, knowing that she had gambled correctly, her mind raced, and she decided to push her luck.

She raised her eyes to look at Helian Qi, hesitant to speak, “Your Majesty…”

“Hmm?”

“This concubine couldn’t serve you last night…” Ning Wanyin’s face turned a little red with shyness, and she mumbled softly, “Can Your Majesty come tonight?”

Helian Qi was once again shocked by Ning Wanyin. Daring to serve him two nights in a row…

This was really…

Audacious, and very much to his liking.

“Okay.” Helian Qi agreed.

Ning Wanyin bowed happily, “Thank you, Your Majesty!”

…

Helian Qi walked out of the Lingxue Pavilion with a smile on his face.

He saw the eight black water jars at the entrance…

“Noble Consort Ning likes lotus flowers, dig a pond in the courtyard of the Lingxue Pavilion to raise lotus flowers.” Helian Qi instructed.

Wang Degui was stunned and quickly agreed, “Yes.”

The emperor was actually renovating the palace for a small Noble Consort, this was really…

Noble Consort Ning is skilled!

Helian Qi recalled Noble Consort Ning’s appearance in his mind, she seemed to be a woman who liked to dress up, she was so delicate and precious, she was indeed suitable for luxurious and precious things.

Helian Qi instructed again, “Choose some precious jewelry and silk from my treasury and give them to her.”

Because he was too rich, the emperor couldn’t remember how many treasures he had.

But Wang Degui, as the emperor’s chief steward, knew the treasury inventory by heart, and when he heard the emperor specifically mention the word “precious”, he dared not mention ordinary things, and respectfully asked, “Last month, there was a batch of soft jade silk from the South China Sea, and there was also a set of red gold filigree inlaid with a hundred pearl butterfly head ornaments, adorned with jade, beryl, and pearls, a total of twenty-eight pieces. What does Your Majesty think?”

Helian Qi nodded in satisfaction, “Hmm, do it.”

“Yes!” Wang Degui replied, secretly shocked, the emperor really favored this Noble Consort Ning.

Just as he was secretly sighing, the emperor, who was in a good mood, said again, “The Imperial Bedchamber doesn’t need to submit the register, I’ll come to the Lingxue Pavilion tonight.”

Wang Degui stumbled, what? Favoring her two nights in a row?

Noble Consort Ning is really… amazing!

…

After the emperor left.

Lianrui and Danli went in to serve, “Master, it’s time to go to greet the Empress Dowager!”

“I’m not going today.” Ning Wanyin sat leisurely on the soft couch, “Lianrui, prepare the bath, I want to sleep.”

“Yes.” Lianrui immediately went to make arrangements. She had served her mistress since childhood, and she knew very well that her mistress had a reason for everything she did, there was no need to ask.

But Danli had never seen a concubine who dared not go to greet the Empress Dowager, and she was shocked and reminded her, “Noble Consort! You are not going to greet the Empress Dowager, this is a great disrespect! You will be punished by the Empress Dowager!”

Ning Wanyin said calmly, “The emperor told me not to go.”

“This… this… His Majesty just said it casually, how can you… how can you really…”

Danli was incredulous. “Not go…?”

Ning Wanyin wouldn’t explain the power play to others, she said, “Go away, I need to rest.”

Danli had no choice but to leave the bedroom.

“Why are you out here? Don’t you hurry up and serve the master to greet the Empress Dowager!” Xiaogui asked in surprise when he saw her.

Danli was bewildered, and she lowered her voice, “The master is being arrogant because of the emperor’s favor, she’s not going to greet the Empress Dowager…”

“What?” Xiaogui was shocked, “This Noble Consort is lucky, but she’s not very smart, she offended the Empress Dowager, will she have a way to survive in the palace? I think we should find a new place to work!”

While the palace servants were each thinking their own thoughts, Ning Wanyin had already finished bathing and was lying on the couch.

Since she had already sought the emperor’s favor, wouldn’t it be a natural thing for a chess piece to offend the Empress Dowager?

A favored concubine should act like a favored concubine.

Offending the Empress Dowager, offending the Xue and Cen families, making enemies of the entire palace, these were all things she should do.

She would let the emperor know that she was his most useful chess piece.

Since entering the palace, Ning Wanyin had never thought of using love as a reliance. Even if the emperor really fell for her, placing her life on the emperor’s whim would be too frivolous, wouldn’t it?

An emperor wouldn’t be someone who is bound by love.

She didn’t believe that the emperor would lose his head for a woman. If it were her, she wouldn’t either.

Everything Ning Wanyin had been working hard for was to be needed by the emperor.

The emperor’s love might fade, but he would at least keep someone who was useful to him.

She had deliberately put in a lot of effort to learn chess, in order to play chess with him.

She hadn’t stopped practicing chess for three years.

As for painting…

She just learned it casually.

Playing chess is more fun when the skills are evenly matched, but if she was also good at painting, how could she show the emperor’s prowess?

One skilled, one clumsy, it was all a strategy.