usatvline Chapter 296 Green Willow Stands Out
Chapter 296 Green Willow Stands Out
Chapter 296 Green Willow Emerges
During the palace tour ceremony, red beans, glutinous rice, and other items were to be scattered along the way. If Hua Yan had not been cautious and prepared in advance, it would not have been impossible for her to have casually scattered some "poisonous substances" in Shujing Hall during the palace tour ceremony, causing Consort Shen to miscarry.
Consort Mei and the Empress were not benevolent people. The former had unsolved mysteries surrounding her, while the latter had lived in the southwest for many years. Both had a history of poisoning people.
Although Consort Shen was the Empress's person, in Hua Yan's eyes, she was nothing more than a pawn of the Empress.
"Shen Jieyu should pray that she will give birth to a princess."
While sharing a room with Consort Chun, Hua Yan suddenly blurted out a sentence.
Consort Chun looked puzzled upon hearing this. Hua Yan explained, "If Consort Shen were to give birth to a prince, given his temperament, it wouldn't be surprising if he were to abandon the mother and keep the child."
Consort Chun looked shocked: "How could this be? Not to mention that the Shen family has been dependent on the Jiang family for many years, even when Consort Shen was still a young girl, she was on good terms with the Empress."
"What if the Empress knew she was infertile?"
Consort Chun frowned, and finally had to agree with Hua Yan's analysis.
However, Consort Chun didn't care much about Consort Shen, as long as she didn't involve them. Thinking of this, Consort Chun couldn't help but think to herself, "The power to assist in managing the six palaces is good, but it's also very easy to get involved in trouble. We'll need to be more flexible in the future."
If Consort Rong were to have an accident at the previous banquet at Linde Palace, Consort Chun would also be implicated. She had no intention of harming anyone, but she could not always be in a passive position.
Since Consort Chun stopped indulging in love and became much more casual in front of the Emperor, the Emperor found it refreshing. After the Dragon Boat Festival, the Emperor would visit Huining Palace every few days.
They might play chess, play the zither, or sometimes do nothing at all but savor the delicious dishes made from winter melon.
But in the harem, Hua Yan was ultimately the most favored.
After lunch in the Imperial Garden, except for the Dragon Boat Festival, the Emperor summoned Hua Yan to his bedchamber for three consecutive days.
The newly appointed concubines, except for Consort Rong, didn't even have the opportunity to see the Emperor. Gradually, even the Empress Dowager began to have complaints. When the Emperor went to Cining Palace to pay his respects, Empress Dowager Jiang offered some words of advice.
"The gardeners in the Imperial Garden all know to take turns watering, so why does the Emperor insist on being the sun that shines on only one plant?"
"Consort Meng has been favored for half a year but her belly is still not showing. Does Your Majesty intend to follow the example of Emperor Cheng of Han and 'bury the empire in the arms of a beautiful woman'?"
Empress Dowager Jiang was not well-versed in poetry and literature, and her words were not very elegant, but the emperor knew best the principle that "uneven favors will cause changes in the palace, and changes in the palace will cause turmoil in the court."
Therefore, after a few days of uncontrollable passion, everything returned to normal.
Hua Yan breathed a real sigh of relief. Taking the palanquin to Funing Palace every night was an even more tiring task than organizing three flower-viewing banquets at Yunyi Courtyard.
June arrived in the blink of an eye, and Qu Baolin was finally released from confinement.
(Oh no~ There are two Qu Baolins, one big and one small. To avoid confusion, my cousin will refer to her by her name, Qu Qingge, from now on.)
Lead Pavilion.
Consort Shen used to live here, but after she became pregnant and moved to Shujing Palace, the place became increasingly deserted. Now that Consort Qu has been released from confinement, she must go to Renming Palace to pay her respects and express her gratitude.
Qu Qingge also came to see her at this time. The two met at the palace gate. Qu Baolin looked at her cousin with a cold eye and felt quite resentful.
"My cousin doesn't need to avoid suspicion today."
Qu Qingge knew her temperament best and stepped forward to comfort her, saying, "My uncle instructed me before I entered the palace that I should not be visited during my confinement period. How could I, as a younger sister, dare to disobey my uncle? Please forgive me, cousin."
Seeing that his cousin had brought up their father, Qu Baolin didn't say anything more, but coldly asked, "My cousin has been in the palace for a month now, has she served the emperor yet?"
A hint of embarrassment and annoyance flashed across Qu Qingge's face.
Although there were no outsiders here, her cousin's unrestrained remarks made her very embarrassed. The Emperor had only summoned Consort Xie and Consort Rong these days. She had only seen the Emperor once, on the day of the first banquet. How could she have been invited to serve him in bed?
"Ha... I thought my cousin was being shrewd and had gained the Emperor's favor through this." Qu Baolin sneered. "I still need to pay my respects to the Empress. Please go back, sister."
After Qu Baolin walked away, Qu Qingge's maid Ruixue said quietly, "...They are cousins after all. How could Baolin talk about her mistress like that? I've heard the palace servants talking about her these days. She's been in the palace for over a year, and she hasn't even served the emperor yet."
Qu Qingge stared thoughtfully at Qu Baolin's figure, sighing inwardly: Her cousin had been confined for half a year, yet she hadn't made any progress. From now on, she would only need to maintain a semblance of civility.
June is a rainy month. In the past, whenever it rained, Consort Chun would sit and play chess with Hua Yan. Occasionally, when the rain subsided, they would go together under an umbrella to admire the lotus flowers by Taiye Pond.
Another advantage of rainy days is that there is no need to go to the Renming Hall to pay respects.
After having breakfast, Consort Chun couldn't wait to have Mengzhu call Huayan over to play chess together.
Hua Yan was a bit lazy on rainy days. After dawdling for a while, she took Lv Liu to Consort Chun's place. Yun Yao was sitting in the flower hall talking to Consort Chun.
"Yun Baolin has been coming almost every day this month, and Donggua is getting annoyed to death," Green Willow whispered in Huayan's ear.
Hua Yan understood that Consort Chun's cousin had initially been quite considerate, only visiting every few days, but this month she had started coming more frequently. The key issue was that every time she came, she would find an excuse to ask Du Juan to borrow the kitchen. After several such instances, Dong Gua was starting to get a little irritated.
Donggua was wealthy, and Dujuan not only subtly inquired about him, but also occasionally swindled things from him.
At first, Donggua could tolerate it because of the relationship between Yun Baolin and Consort Chun. But after a few times, he angrily complained to Aunt Mei with a spoon in hand.
After Consort Chun learned of the matter, she didn't dare to mention it to Yun Yao. After all, it was just a matter between maids, and if it were brought into the open, it might be difficult to resolve.
Hua Yan's rank was higher than Yun Yao's. When Yun Yao saw Hua Yan enter the hall, she quickly stood up and bowed.
"Why aren't any of Yun Baolin's maids serving her?" Hua Yan asked Yun Yao with a smile after bowing to Consort Chun.
Yun Yao blushed and replied, "The Empress Dowager liked the snowflake cakes that I sent to Cining Palace the last few times. Since I had some free time on a rainy day, I thought I'd have Du Juan make more and send them over."
"Yun Baolin's filial piety is commendable. Green Willow, you should also go and help in the kitchen." Hua Yan smiled and instructed Green Willow.
Green Willow understood immediately, responded, and bowed before leaving the flower hall.
Ruizhu was a bully at home in Huining Palace, but she was not only tongue-tied in front of outsiders, but also timid and hesitant. Seeing that Lvliu might be about to show her power, she pursed her lips and secretly slipped out.
Green Willow was preparing her expression when she heard a noise behind her. She turned around unexpectedly, startling Ruizhu.
"How can you change your expression like that? You looked so fierce just now." Ruizhu patted her chest and asked with wide eyes.
Green Willow had a blank face, her eyes drooping: "Oh, I was just recalling how Granny Zhou sold people."
Ruizhu: "......" I knew this fun wasn't for nothing.
......
Inside the kitchen, wisps of white steam rose as Donggua intently adorned the osmanthus cake with red plum blossoms.
Du Juan asked sweetly, "Sister Donggua, I heard that His Majesty had a meal at Huining Palace yesterday. Did His Majesty taste the candy I made last time?"
Seeing that Donggua did not respond, Dujuan slightly pursed her lips, affectionately picked up Donggua's sleeve, but her eyes were fixed on the glass bead flower in Donggua's hair.
"Sister Donggua, your sleeves with the intertwined branches pattern are so unique! Is this beaded flower a new style from the Shanggong Bureau? No wonder people in the palace say that the palace servants of Huining Palace are dressed more elegantly than ordinary masters."
Donggua turned around awkwardly, but Dujuan's fingertips hooked onto the beaded tassel, while her other hand was still holding Donggua's arm.
"Good sister, please lend it to me for two days. Consort Rong's attendant, Lianqiao, is dressed so elegantly. I can't let Consort Bao lose face, can I? If Consort Bao loses face, Consort Chun, as Consort Bao's cousin, will surely also lose face."
Du Juan's eyes were full of calculation; she had just taken a pair of earrings from Dong Gua earlier.
Green Willow stood at the entrance of the kitchen for a moment, then lifted the curtain and sneered, "The glass beaded flower that Winter Melon wears is a gift from the Empress Dowager. How dare you covet it?"
Du Juan quickly withdrew her hand, gritting her teeth, "You... Sister Donggua didn't say anything, why are you being so aggressive!"
Donggua said angrily, "You asked me for a pair of earrings last time, and now you want a pearl hairpin. Were you a beggar before you entered the palace?"
Green Willow chuckled, stepped forward and pulled Azalea aside, then snatched off the earrings with a swift motion. "I knew these earrings looked familiar; they belong to Winter Melon."
Du Juan was completely unprepared for this scene. She covered her aching earlobe, feeling extremely embarrassed.
Ruizhu opened her mouth but dared not utter a sound, when she heard Lvliu rebuke her angrily again:
“The kitchen is a sacred place. It’s fine for Consort Yun to use it because of her relationship with the Empress, but you not only stole the imperial gifts, but also took the opportunity to spy on the Emperor’s dietary preferences, violating two palace rules. I must inform Consort Yun about this. Ruizhu, take her away!”
Dujuan trembled at these words, her hand holding the handkerchief shaking slightly, and her eyes instantly reddened. Green Willow, however, smiled sinisterly like a matchmaker, snatched the handkerchief away, and examined the silk handkerchief closely with her fingertips.
"Sister, the embroidery on this handkerchief is quite exquisite, but it's a pity the material is too thin; it can't contain your greed."
After saying that, she casually tossed the handkerchief into the charcoal brazier, and the flames suddenly leaped up, reflecting a cold light in her eyes.