Chapter 40 Sparring with Words 17K Original Release
p"Miss Peony, you flatter me," Qi Lin不敢再多言，生怕說了什麼誤會了去。撓撓頭，卻看見牡丹淚眼汪汪，又於心不忍“其實牡丹小姐不用特意去引人注意的，隻需要做好自己的分內之事就可以了。”" she thought to herself and scratched her head. Seeing Miss Peony's teary eyes, however, s...Chapter 40 Sparring with Words, Exclusive on 17K
When they left the palace this time, it was in civilian attire. Qilin and Feng Changqing returned to the palace in grand style, much like their first entry into the palace. However, this time, she sat in the same carriage as Feng Changqing, with an imposing and luxurious presence that would have been delightful for her to admire if she hadn’t understood so much already.
The entire journey was spent listening to Feng Changqing talk. He mentioned providing a residence and land to Qi Yuan to start his sugar-coated hawthorn business, as well as accommodating homeless beggars in newly purchased mansions, ensuring their livelihoods.
Qilin only smiled professionally, occasionally offering suggestions but not much else. Regarding the matter of the Ghost Shadow, Qilin thought Feng Changqing wouldn’t bring it up, so she was surprised when he mentioned that all had been clarified and they would immediately address this upon returning to the palace. Despite her surprise, she didn't show too much reaction.
Upon returning to the palace, she accepted the homage of civil and military officials, moved into Wanyue Palace, received visits from concubines in the harem, offered incense at ancestral worship, and even received special permission from Empress Dowager to kneel and pay respects in Changle Palace. Suddenly, a Jade Precious Consort appeared in the palace, causing everyone in court to show favor to Qilin. However, she only politely exchanged words with them, often breaking the deadlock by yawning, at which point those concubines would automatically retreat.
On the other hand, Xiao Ran remained unpredictable and never visited her Wanyue Palace; similarly, she had no contact with him either. She usually encountered him once or twice when accompanying Feng Changqing for a stroll. The courteous dialogue was memorized long ago and felt repetitive to say again. Occasionally, Qilin pretended to be weak to give others space.
The Thousand Carp Pond was the only place she could feel at ease. Under the pretense of checking on construction progress, she could spend half a day there; however, it was inconvenient with her entourage always within ten meters of her.
"Oh, I serve Your Royal Highness the Consort," Xiao Ningzi smiled and walked forward to greet Qilin: "This morning when I woke up, magpies were singing happily. I never thought it would be for your arrival here today; what an honor."
Qilin politely smiled and looked at the closed door, saying, "Eunuch Ning, that's a good omen, but don’t flatter me too much. Has His Majesty not come out yet"
The reason for her visit was to hear Feng Changqing had been in the Imperial Study for three days without coming out, supposedly planning how to publicly address the Ghost Shadow issue. She decided to see what he was up to but realized it would be challenging to gain access.
"Indeed," Xiao Ningzi frowned and said: "But if Your Royal Highness intercedes, His Majesty will surely listen and rest for a while. I implore you to consider the Emperor's health."
"Then please have him inform me when he’s ready." Qilin didn’t expect Xiao Ningzi to proactively invite her in or that her status would act as a pass. Since returning to court, Feng Changqing had been rewarding her with gifts and visiting her chambers daily; though nothing happened between them, she deliberately kept their relationship distant. Had she shown herself too clearly
Outside the Imperial Study’s main door, she dismissed Xiao Ningzi, took over the ginseng tea from Green Bamboo, and asked everyone to wait outside before entering alone—a privilege given by Feng Changqing.
The main hall of the study was empty; piles of memorials were neatly arranged on the desk. The floor showed signs of being scrubbed clean, hinting at Feng Changqing’s frequent outbursts. Qilin went to the inner chamber and raised her hand to knock.
"Haha His Majesty hates it~"
Qi Lin frowned slightly; the delicate and girlish voice made her feel like biting her tongue. She had momentarily forgotten that Feng Changqing was the emperor, with countless beauties in his harem. The woman's shameless sighs coming from inside made her stomach churn. From the unfamiliar female voice, it seemed to be a new favorite of Feng Changqing’s.
Oddly enough, recently, Feng Changqing's new favorites were almost changing daily, causing the palace ladies’ incessant complaints that even Qi Lin had grown tired of hearing.
"Emperor, this move is truly brilliant. Not only did it effortlessly sever Anbang King’s right and left hands but also cut off his retreat path; a two-for-one gain."
Huzan!!
Qi Lin stared at the door in surprise, covering her mouth to hold her breath. Could Huzan really be under Feng Changqing's command
Had Feng Changqing already known about Bai Qianye’s existence A wave of unease washed over her as she recalled Feng Changqing’s unusual gentleness and the sealing of a new concubine title... Qi Lin suddenly thought of Xiao Ran. He had also won over many court ministers outside the palace in his time, earning him the title of Empress of West Palace; but now, was Feng Changqing throwing bait her way
"Humph! A mere barbarian tribe could trouble my border Dream on!" said Feng Changqing disdainfully. "Only those old fuddy-duddies in court value Zi Yin's prowess. Isn't it true that he never loses a battle Let’s see how he wins this time."
"Emperor predicted long ago that Anbang King would petition for an expedition, and to be safe, secret letters were sent out simultaneously but none of them were real. While all attention was on those fake documents, the genuine letter was actually with your humble servant here to deliver it to the border officer. Meanwhile, Emperor also had someone investigate the rumors about the ghostly specter to make others believe that Emperor’s peace has been disturbed by it. But in reality, Emperor had dispatched a team of elite assassins, and who could fathom such reasoning"
Elite Assassins Qi Lin thought of those black-clad barbarians and Huzan's words. It seemed she was starting to grasp the full extent of this conspiracy. Who would have thought that no matter where or in what position she stood, she’d be manipulated.
The one who had made it clear from the start that he only intended to use her for his own ends versus another who used tenderness to make her feel guilty and then exploited her...
She thought she had seen through people's manipulations after years of navigating the cutthroat business world; yet, apparently, she was still too naive.
"Ah Empress, you're here too"
As Qi Lin pondered this, Long Ye’s skeptical voice came from behind her. Before she could react, the ginseng tea in her hand nearly slipped away.
"Little Ningzi said you were coming to see if His Majesty has eaten properly, right Empress is truly considerate." With a radiant smile, Long Ye approached and bowed. "Why haven't you gone inside"
Uh Qi Lin didn’t know how to respond for a moment and awkwardly pulled at the corner of her mouth.
"Since you're here, come in quickly."
The cheerful voice of Feng Changqing came from inside. Long Ye gestured for her to enter and Qi Lin walked in.
As soon as she entered the door, she saw a woman lying in Feng Changqing's arms with her shoulders half exposed; truly a beautiful lady. But Qi Lin only paid attention to Fubang sitting beside them, still wearing an ugly expression that begged for a beating.
"This concubine heard Your Majesty talking to this..." Qi Lin deliberately stretched out the sound and looked at Fubang with puzzlement while smiling inquiringly.
“I assume this is the Jade Concubine Your Majesty mentioned. I am Fubang, here to pay my respects to the Empress Consort.”
If he was paying his respects why didn't he kneel Qi Lin disdainfully glanced at Fubang and turned to Feng Changqing saying, "This concubine feared that she would disturb Your Majesty’s conversation, so I hesitated to enter. Please forgive me."
“Auntie Qilin, tea should be drunk while it's hot; the Emperor will not blame you. Everyone knows that the Emperor loves none other than you.” Long Ye joked with Qi Lin and looked at the woman in Feng Changqing’s arms, teasingly asking "Does this mean I need to congratulate Your Majesty for getting another beauty"
Feng Changqing moved his hand, and the lady in his arms got up understandingly and stepped aside but did not pay respects to Qi Lin.
"It's your foul mouth." He then reached out to Qi Lin, gesturing for her to sit by him. Lifting the bowl of ginseng tea in one go, he said gently, "My beloved妃子should come in whenever she wishes; don't tire yourself."
Next, they talked about some trivial matters regarding the birthday celebration. Ten days had passed since then; the water windmill was now complete. To highlight Qi Lin's contribution, the banquet venue was specially moved to the Thousand Carp Pond. However, Qi Lin kept observing Fubang, who did not reveal his intentions but watched with a mocking smile. She felt nervous.
After sitting for some time, Qi Lin made an excuse that she had work to attend to at the Thousand Carp Pond and left.
Exiting the Imperial Study, she arrived at the Thousand Carp Pond where several flower slaves were still arranging newly delivered flowers. Nearby was a familiar figure waiting for her.
"Green Bamboo, wait here for this Queen." After saying that, Qi Lin walked straight to him.
"Empress Consort, I pay my respects," Bu Yao politely bowed but kept smiling at Qi Lin and asked, "What do you think about your promotion"
Qi Lin scoffed; she thought all the expressions in front of Bu Yao were superfluous. She replied, "I thank Heaven and Earth, thank the People's Republic of China, thank great leaders, thank CCTV, Letv, LV, want to hear more
Bu Yao blushed and blinked her eyes, wiping the cold sweat off her forehead. She raised an eyebrow and said, "Hmph, you're still as annoying as ever."
"You’re still as headstrong."
"You—!" Bu Yao was frustrated and glared at Qi Lin, then continued, "Hmph, let’s get to the point. I’m sure you know what trap the emperor has laid for you this time; your situation is dire. He sent people to investigate your background long ago and already suspects that it involves the榆木公子 (Yumu Prince). You should be aware that you are surrounded by enemies."
"Mm-hmm, I just found out." Qi Lin looked at Bu Yao without arrogance or submissiveness, flexed her limbs slightly, then said, "What do you want to say Do you want me to stand with you and support you Don’t joke around."
"Stand with you—don’t joke! Hmph, how long will I be nauseous just by being with you." Bu Yao glared at Qi Lin disdainfully and said, "I don’t care if your face is thick-skinned, but make sure not to drag me into it when the time comes."
"Tsk tsk tsk—don't you know In these treacherous times, one has no choice but to use a thick skin as a shield. Fortunately, it’s somewhat effective." Qi Lin gave her an insolent smile.
Bu Yao was furious and wanted to strangle Qi Lin, but since she had such a different status, she couldn’t do anything about it and said, "Hmph, don’t think that your current position intimidates me. In my eyes, you’re nothing."
"Mutual respect," Qi Lin said indifferently as she asked, "What business have you with me"
"You are quite shrewd." Bu Yao regained her composure and said, "I want you to let me enter Feng Changqiang’s quarters tonight."
"" Qi Lin looked at Bu Yao expressionlessly for ten seconds before saying, "So, what are your terms for me putting you in his bed"
"Don’t act like I’m as despicable as you. It’s not difficult for someone like me, Bu Yao, to get who I want." The phrase coming out of Qi Lin's mouth tasted bitter to Bu Yao who retorted, "If it weren't for the tight security in this cursed palace, I would have—"
However, after a long speech, Qi Lin still hadn’t answered her. Bu Yao looked at Qi Lin with confusion and asked, "What are you doing"
"Are you accusing me of being despicable" Qi Lin looked at Bu Yao innocently and said, "When did I offend you"
"When haven’t you offended me!" Bu Yao’s eyes were red with anger. She suddenly realized her words were a bit off and added, "You bastard! How dare you call me despicable!"
Qi Lin and Bu Yao continued their verbal sparring for the next twenty minutes. [Details omitted.]t, then turned to look at Qi Lin; he opened his mouth but no words came out. He quickly put the precious item back into the pouch, ignoring the eunuch's support as he got up and walked toward Qi Lin w...