Chapter 13 – Finally Found

No one knew how long they had been standing there when the Imperial Noble Consort finally arrived. Yuying, Consort Yin, and Concubine Miao all followed behind Consort An to pay their respects.

Oh, Consort Yin and Concubine Miao had arrived quite early—it made sense since they all lived in the same palace.

But it was obvious the two of them had deliberately dressed up. Their intentions were so transparent it made Yuying roll her eyes inwardly. With brains like theirs, they wouldn’t survive even a single episode of a palace intrigue drama.

“All right, everyone rise,” the Imperial Noble Consort actually remembered to bid them stand today.

This was Yuying’s second time seeing this consort. The first time had left only an impression of arrogance. Today, although that arrogance was hidden, there was still an oppressive grandeur about her that contrasted starkly with the dusty drabness of the Changchun Palace.

Lady Tongjia glanced at Consort An with disdain and looked away. Her gaze then fell on the two lower-ranked concubines who had dressed up to look fresh and demure—her brows furrowed. But when her eyes finally landed on Yuying, standing at the back with no makeup, her hair a mess, her expression became even more displeased.

After a moment of silence, Lady Tongjia finally spoke:

“Consort An, tell me, how long has this Lady Zhang been inside?”

Consort An stepped forward with a slight curtsey.

“Reporting to Your Highness, it’s been about an hour.”

“Oh, has it?” she said languidly. “Childbirth is not something that can be rushed. Looks like there’s still quite a wait ahead.” If she hadn’t wanted to show off her magnanimity, she would never have come so early for the childbirth of a mere concubine. And who knew when her cousin would arrive.

Consort An discreetly glanced at the Imperial Noble Consort’s face, sensing some impatience. She lowered her head and whispered a few words to the maid by her side.

The maid withdrew quietly.

After a moment, eunuchs arrived carrying chairs and serving tea.

“Your Highness is so virtuous—please have a seat and rest your feet, have some tea.” Consort An spoke up.

Yuying stood nearby wearing a look of what a valuable lesson on her face.

“Consort An, you are considerate indeed. In this entire palace, only you truly suit my taste,” the Imperial Noble Consort said. After all, she was the only one the Emperor openly despised.

Lady Tongjia sat down gracefully while Consort An and the rest of the Changchun Palace attendants stood off to the side.

Inside the birthing room, Concubine Zhang still showed no sign of progress, though now and then the midwife’s voice could be heard.

Time passed, and more people trickled in.

By this point, Yuying was numb. Like a puppet, she just followed Consort An, kneeling and rising whenever required.

Those who arrived included Consort Rong, Consort De, and Concubine Xi, and even the Niohuru Noble Consort came.

To be honest, Yuying was quite curious about Consort De, the future Empress Dowager, but this was hardly the time to observe her. She’d been standing so long and kneeling so many times that her legs were about to lock up—she hardly had the energy to pay attention to anything else.

Lady Tongjia watched as this grand procession packed into the narrow space, her frown deepening. It wasn’t long before the place was so crowded you couldn’t even squeeze through.

She was just about to scold them when suddenly a shrill cry came from the birthing room:

“Aaaah—!”

That must mean labor had begun.

All the concubines who’d been scattered about were immediately drawn back to focus by that scream.

Lady Tongjia hurriedly rose from her chair, supporting herself on her maid’s arm to peer anxiously toward the birthing room. No matter who came, everyone had to admit this looked like the picture of benevolent concern.

Yuying’s face went pale listening to the increasingly harrowing cries. Her entire body recoiled as she staggered back a few steps. Thankfully, Qingtiao reacted quickly to steady her; otherwise, she would surely have collapsed to the floor in front of everyone—an unforgivable breach of decorum.

Kangxi arrived at that moment and took in the entire scene.

Every concubine in the palace was displaying her charms. Inside the birthing room, his child was about to be born. But his gaze was involuntarily drawn to a little trembling kitten cowering in a corner.

She looked utterly pitiful, shrinking into herself as though she wanted to disappear. Yet because so many people were watching, she forced herself to straighten her back and not lose face.

An inexplicable flicker of irritation rose in Kangxi’s heart. It’s just a concubine giving birth—no one even knows if it’s a boy or a girl. Why are there so many people here gawking and making things worse?

He shifted his eyes, scanning over the gathered concubines. Each and every one of them—he knew exactly what they were scheming.

With that thought, he stopped lingering at the doorway. He flicked his robe and stepped inside.

Liang Jiugong followed behind, announcing:

“His Majesty the Emperor—”

At the sound of his arrival, all the concubines hurried to turn and greet him, some kneeling, some curtseying.

“Your concubines pay respects to Your Majesty.”

In an instant, all those who had been standing scattered around were gone, leaving only Kangxi standing.

He walked forward, glancing unobtrusively at Yuying kneeling on the ground.

Yes—he finally remembered who she was. He also recalled he’d once promised to go look for her again. He’d completely forgotten. Fine. I’ll just have to make it up to her later.

Kangxi approached Lady Tongjia, hands clasped behind his back.

“Rise.”

One by one, they stood up and edged closer to him.

Yuying followed behind Consort An, standing at the very back of the group. She finally allowed herself to look away from the birthing room and turned her attention to Consort Yin and Concubine Miao beside her.

The two looked eager to edge forward.

Yuying quickly took a step back to make room for them. If you want to throw yourselves at him, leave me out of it. I have absolutely no designs on this Kangxi lord.

Her gaze wandered and eventually couldn’t help drifting toward Kangxi himself.

From her angle, she could only see his sharply defined profile. The last time she’d seen him had been the night she served him in bed—a memory so faded she only recalled a vague silhouette.

Now, relying on the fact that so many people were present and no one would notice her, she boldly studied him.

He wore a bright yellow everyday robe. His posture was tall and upright. Even with the Qing Dynasty’s infamous half-shaved hairstyle, he didn’t look the least bit ugly.

A rare winter sunlight happened to fall across him, highlighting the cold sharpness of his brows and the tall bridge of his nose. Even though he said nothing, there was an unshakable authority about him.

They say men with high nose bridges are…well, rather strong in other areas, too.

Thinking of how history recorded that Kangxi had sired such an endless string of children, Yuying felt this claim had a certain credibility.

Pah, pah, pah—get your mind out of the gutter. The most important thing right now is Concubine Zhang in the birthing room.

Yuying shook the thought away and forced herself to focus on the situation at hand.

Meanwhile, Kangxi sensed a strong, unrestrained gaze locked on him. He shifted his eyes sideways and immediately saw the little kitten watching him so openly.

Usually, if a low-ranked concubine dared to stare directly at the Emperor, he’d have ordered her dragged off to the Office of Severe Discipline without hesitation. But when he felt her gaze, he stiffened ever so slightly. Straightening his spine, he reflexively adjusted his posture to look his best.

He sneaked another glance, hoping to catch her enraptured expression—only to find she’d already looked away.

The breath he’d been holding in collapsed into nothing. He felt absurdly irritated.

Lady Tongjia seemed to sense something was amiss and asked, “Cousin, is something the matter?”

Realizing what he’d just done, Kangxi’s expression shifted, betraying even more of his mood. Not only Lady Tongjia, but even the other concubines farther away sensed something odd and turned puzzled eyes toward him.

“Hmph.” Kangxi gave a cold snort and started walking in Yuying’s direction.

All the concubines silently watched his every move.

His long strides carried him quickly to where Yuying stood, and he was just about to call her out from behind Consort An—

[…]

Holy crap, I looked away for one second—how did the Big Boss end up right here?!