Chapter 23: Three Weasels

ept here by this flute.The Phoenix Kingdom is very prosperous; it's almost like paradise on earth. Qing Lin understands this well; she even thinks life in the 21st century can't match half of what it’...Chapter 23 Three Weasels

This time, Qi Lin took ten days to recover from her injuries. Since Bai Qianye made her recuperate in the medicine pool every day, even the unaware imperial physicians praised her recovery speed. During this period, Feng Changqing also sent over many nutritional supplements and delicacies.

Today was sunny with a pleasant temperature. Feng Changqing even had people send numerous beautiful flowers. It’s said that good weather brings good mood.

Qi Lin woke up very early, ready to bathe and swim in the Qianli Pool after.

"What!" Qi Lin nearly popped her eyes out, touched the scar on her chest; although it was covered with Cinnamon Cream, a faint knife wound could still be seen. But this piece of news is too shocking. Calming herself down, she said, "You're saying that the Emperor guarded my boudoir for three days and didn't attend the morning court He even punished all the imperial physicians"

Lv Zhu nodded firmly, took Qi Lin's clothes to dress her up. She had received twenty canings as punishment, but did not tell this to Qi Lin.

She never expected Feng Changqing to do it to such an extent; however, she felt a bit guilty about it.

"Oh right, Lv Zhu, how is the task I asked you to take care of progressing" After dressing up, Qi Lin combed her long hair and found that it had grown so much. Walking towards the dressing table, she continued, "Have there been any news"

"Sigh, strange indeed, following Your Ladyship's instructions, I didn't discover anything unusual or find any Mandrake." Lv Zhu helped Qi Lin to arrange her hair and tried on a jade hairpin before deciding it was not suitable. She then put on another white jade hairpin and nodded in satisfaction before continuing, "The Emperor also sent people to look for them and tidied up the Qinquan軒 (Xuan), but found nothing suspicious."

They were punished too, including Lv Zhu.

"Continue," Qi Lin didn't like this way of speaking that teased one's appetite for more information.

No reply.

"The Western Palace Empress Dowager, Virtuous Consort Xiao, and Consort Xiao have arrived!"

Qi Lin was taken aback. What could they possibly want at this hour She exchanged a glance with Lv Zhu before getting up to greet them.

"This concubine Hongxue pays respects to the Western Palace Empress Dowager, Virtuous Consort, and Consort Xiao." This time Qi Lin made sure her greetings were complete. Surely no one would nitpick on etiquette anymore.

Thinking of their identities: Xi Palace's Xiao Ran who she had already encountered before; although it was said that she was confined to the Western Palace by Feng Changqing, she must have done something to be released from confinement. Consort Xiao Durehuo wasn't someone Qi Lin had much interaction with, but as a daughter of the Minister of Rites, she should come from an erudite family; yet coming together with Xiao Ran, their intentions couldn’t be good. As for that Virtuous Consort, Jingyu told her before that the Virtuous Consort used to be Lady Lan, but now things are different.

"What is Little Sister Hongxue doing The Emperor is currently very fond of you," said Xiao Ran as she didn't let Qi Lin stand up and instead sat in the main hall.

"This concubine appreciates His Majesty's favor but also knows not to neglect etiquette. We all serve His Majesty and nobody has any special status; Hongxue is just fulfilling her duties, Empress Dowager." Faced with insincere dialogue, Qi Lin didn’t invest any emotion in it either. Last time she nearly died mysteriously at Xiao Ran's hand, so this time she couldn't be careless.

However, being the daughter of a chancellor and the principal wife of Lord Xi Zhen, she should not be a jealous person. Moreover, Feng Changqing never showed her any special favor before; unless...

Sure enough, someone had incited her. People often say that ancient women have simple minds and are easily influenced. I didn't think it was true until now.

But who could it be What did they say to make her hate me so much

Even now, Xiao Ran's eyes still held a murderous intent, which did not match the faint smile on her face at all.

"Hmph. You are the first person to cause His Majesty to miss three consecutive court sessions," Liu Xiaoxiang looked down upon Qi Lin with disdain and continued, "Recently, our emperor has been busy handling national affairs. Many ministers have been waiting for him to make decisions. Yet you treat it as if he's there to serve you."

"Sister, please calm down." Du Ruhan smiled slightly from the side and said to Qi Lin, "It wouldn't be worthwhile to ruin your health over such a person."

Qi Lin listened quietly to their exchanges, secretly marveling at how frightening it was when women were jealous.

Therefore, one should never offend a woman under any circumstances.

"If His Majesty shows favor upon me, then I am indeed fortunate. But if I knew that His Majesty would go to such lengths for my sake, I would have never allowed it," she had just learned of Feng Changqing's actions but hadn't expected someone to come looking so soon; moving her sore legs and feet, she continued, "Going forward, I will be more cautious and ensure not to cause His Majesty any worry."

"Alright. Serving the emperor is what we as concubines are meant to do. However, what you did this time was indeed inappropriate," Xiao Ran wiped away her sweat and said, "As Empress of the West Palace, overseeing the harem's affairs, it would be unbecoming for me not to act."

"Please punish me as the娘娘sees fit." Qi Lin bowed appropriately without raising her head. As long as she was still in favor now, no one would dare offend her; today’s visit was likely only meant to serve as a warning. After all, Feng Changqing had been staying with her for nearly half a month.

After the last lesson, Xiao Ran wouldn't do anything excessive this time, and Du Ruhan seemed content just watching from the sidelines and offering some words of advice. As for that Liu Xiaoxiang, she was full of rage and menace.

But it shouldn’t be too extreme, right

"Since your health is not fully recovered, I originally didn't want to punish you, but all the sisters in the harem are watching me. It's quite difficult for me," Xiao Ran feigned hesitation and shook her head.

From the side, Liu Xiaoxiang was quick-witted; she turned her eyes and said, "Your bedroom is full of reborn flowers everywhere, very beautiful indeed. However, newly blooming flowers are also very fragile, so they need to be taken care of well. Perhaps..."

As she spoke, she stood up and walked in front of Xiao Ran, bowed slightly, and continued, "I believe that your sister should water these lovely flowers. It's said that tending to flowers can refine one’s character. As you were born at the Drunken Flowers Building, it is a perfect opportunity for you to cultivate your temperament. What do you think, Empress"

Xiao Ran nodded in satisfaction and said, "That sounds good then. What does Red Snow think about this"

"I accept the order." Bowing slightly, but not relaxing her guard, she knew that watering flowers was far from a simple task.

However, when Qi Lin had almost finished watering all the flowers in her quarters and those three concubines still hadn’t said anything, she felt puzzled. Could it really just be about having her water the plants

Half an hour later, after finishing watering all the flowers, apart from a slight ache in her waist, there were no other issues. She rubbed her sore eyes and handed the water pot to one of the palace maids.

"Your Excellency, I have finished watering my flowers," Qi Lin knelt down again and carefully observed Xiao Ran. A palace maid whispered something into Xiao Ran’s ear before leaving; Qi Lin thought she looked familiar but couldn’t remember when or where she had seen her.

After the palace maid left, Xiao Ran actually smiled at her and walked over to her. But this smile and gesture made Qi Lin feel a chill down her spine.

"My sister is really amazing," bending down to help Qi Lin up, Xiao Ran pulled Qi Lin’s hand towards a cluster of flowers and took the water pot from a palace maid, saying, "My sister doesn’t know that these flowers are gifts from Agate Kingdom recently. They’re an aromatic tea flower variety which can refresh one's spirit just by its scent. And I've heard that my sister is very skilled at brewing tea. Perhaps you could teach me on another day"

Qi Lin tugged at the corner of her mouth; what was this all about But she still nodded in agreement.

"Your two consorts are truly elegant."

Turning back in surprise, Qi Lin saw Feng Changqing dressed in a purple robe. She then noticed that Xiao Ran and the other two concubines were also exquisitely dressed and wore bright warm colors today as they walked up to greet Feng Changqing with smiles.

So this is what’s going on.

"This servant greets Your Majesty."

"Your consorts have just recovered, there's no need for such formalities anymore," walking over and supporting Qi Lin as he wrapped his arm around her waist, Feng Changqing then gestured to the others, saying, "You ladies may rise. There’s nobody else here so you don’t need to拘泥於禮數." (Note: This phrase is kept in Chinese as it doesn't have a direct translation and its meaning might vary based on context)

"Thank Your Majesty," the three women awkwardly tugged at their mouths before slowly getting up.

Feng Changqing led Qi Lin to the main hall, where he frowned upon seeing the damp floor. "What’s going on here Where is the head palace maid"

Qi Lin was puzzled by what had caused Feng Changqing's displeasure when she saw Lüzhu come over and kneel down.

"Did you not know that your mistress has just recovered from an illness and should be more careful If the lady were to slip on these wet floors, what then How could you have been so careless in serving her"

Qi Lin quietly glanced at the floor; she hadn’t noticed this earlier and was surprised Feng Changqing would get upset over this.

Lüzhu also found herself awkwardly looking at Qi Lin, unsure whether to tell the truth. Seeing Xiao Ran and the others tense up as they stared nervously at her, Lüzhu hesitated even more.

"Your Majesty," Qi Lin walked over to where the potted plants were then turned around to kneel down, saying "Your Majesty, it was this servant’s fault for making such a mess. Please punish me."

Feng Changqian was taken aback and felt somewhat embarrassed. He raised his hand and said, "I just said no kneeling is allowed. Why are you still on the ground Get up quickly."

Zi Lin placed her hand in Feng Changqian's large palm and sat down beside him.

"Your Majesty, I was about to ask Hongxue younger sister for advice on brewing tea when Your Majesty arrived," Xiao Ran also chuckled as she walked over to the side of Feng Changqian. "Are you here because you're hungry for a cup of tea from your sister It seems we are blessed. May I ask if it is my honor to drink a cup brewed by her hands"

"That's right, that's right," Liu Xiaoxiang hurriedly said as she stepped forward. "We were hoping to learn how to brew tea and let Your Majesty taste it."

Feng Changqian didn't turn his head but looked at Zi Lin without paying attention to the speaker.

Zi Lin felt a bit embarrassed and could only find a topic, saying, "I'm afraid I'll disappoint Your Majesty and all the sisters. I haven't prepared high-quality tea leaves or collected morning dew, so I can't brew good tea."

"No problem, since they want to learn, why don’t you let them collect morning dew and be their teacher, teaching them how to brew tea How about it"

Uh A bead of sweat rolled down Zi Lin's forehead. She awkwardly pulled at the corner of her mouth without responding.

She was already very tired today, and every time she saw them, she felt extremely uncomfortable.

If they came every day, wouldn't she be exhausted to death

"Your Majesty is joking." Finally, she forced out a sentence, giddily looking at Feng Changqian.

Strange, did he do too much and feel dizzy now

"This concubine will definitely work hard to learn the art of tea brewing for Your Majesty's sake," Xiao Ran and others knelt down and said.

Feng Changqian gave a cold snort in response, looked at the time, and saw that Zi Yin should be arriving. He stood up and said, "I still have some state affairs to handle, so I'll head back now. My beloved concubine, rest well. I will come see you again tomorrow."

"This concubine恭送Your Majesty," Zi Lin was delighted inwardly, glad that he was leaving.

With Feng Changqian's departure, Xiao Ran and others naturally didn't linger but followed him away as well.

Once they were all gone, the people of Qinquan軒finally breathed a sigh of relief. The palace servants of Qinquan軒were secretly delighted; their mistress was making waves with her actions, signaling an opportunity for them to rise in status.

However, Zi Lin was even more worried. Feng Changqian's favor towards her could be likened to a double-edged sword; it protected her while also putting her in danger. She feared that she would not have peace from now on. support Baqianye. She efficiently helped him take off his wet undergarment and only then did she see the dark red palm印on his chest. She had seen this on TV before—it was a sign of someone who had a...