Chapter 18

Chapter Eighteen

A group of consorts remained silent, quietly listening to Noble Consort Zhou being reprimanded. Even Consort Yu, usually so radiant, faded into the background at this moment.

The atmosphere was oppressive. Chu Qingwan sat quietly and obediently, not even touching her cup, afraid of drawing any attention.

This oppressive silence only ended with the arrival of Emperor Xu Yanheng.

The hall fell quiet, and Noble Consort Zhou finally caught her breath. She didn’t even glance at the Empress Dowager and promptly stood to bow and pay respects. “Your Majesty.”

A faint trace of sorrow flickered across her face as she forced a smile toward Xu Yanheng.

Noble Consort Zhou said nothing, but everyone could see the grievance she carried.

Xu Yanheng ignored everyone else, including Consort Yu, who was overlooked to the side. He took Noble Consort Zhou’s hand as if nothing had happened, raising an eyebrow and asking, “What’s the matter here?”

He sat down, with Noble Consort Zhou beside him. His gaze shifted to the Empress Dowager. “Where did Noble Consort offend you, Mother? She has to care for the princess and manage palace affairs daily; occasional lapses are inevitable. If there was any impropriety, Mother could simply instruct her. There’s no need for such harshness.”

He didn’t even inquire about the details but attributed everything to the Empress Dowager’s severity toward Noble Consort Zhou.

Consort Yu couldn’t help but clutch her handkerchief tightly.

At times like this, Consort Yu could never understand the emperor. Though she was clearly the most favored, the emperor’s partiality toward Noble Consort Zhou was always exceptional.

The Empress Dowager’s expression darkened with disappointment at her son.

Seeing Xu Yanheng’s overt favoritism toward Noble Consort Zhou was like a sharp sting to her eyes.

She had once considered sowing discord—first to divide the power held by Noble Consort Zhou, then gradually drawing it into her own hands. She even suggested that Consort Yu take over some palace authority, but Xu Yanheng quietly rejected it all.

If it were Haoran sitting here, would he have ever denied her wishes because of someone else?

Zhou Nanny brought tea, the soft sound bringing the Empress Dowager back to reason. She took a deep breath and said coldly, “It’s precisely because you always favor her that she feels emboldened and now even dares to disregard me!”

Xu Yanheng remained unfazed. He glanced at the tea but did not touch it. “Noble Consort has always shown respect to Mother. Perhaps there’s been some misunderstanding. Mother need not quarrel with her so severely over a junior.”

The Empress Dowager was stifled with anger.

Witnessing the dispute between the emperor and his mother, Chu Qingwan dared not even breathe loudly. But at that moment, she understood clearly that she must never entangle herself with the Empress Dowager.

Though the palace seemed filled with high-ranking figures, the emperor held the true power; thus, there was only one true master within the palace walls.

She recalled her father mentioning that before the current emperor ascended the throne, the Empress Dowager was merely a palace attendant, barely in charge of a single wing. There had not been an empress to this day, partly because the emperor was not highly regarded before his ascension.

Before Xu Yanheng’s coronation, he was already twenty-two, well past the usual age for marriage. The other princes favored by the late emperor had been betrothed by sixteen or seventeen, but Xu Yanheng had only two concubines before ascending, and Consort Yu had only joined the prince’s residence in the last year.

When Xu Yanheng ascended, the Empress Dowager had proposed a marriage with a daughter of the Zhou family as empress, but the emperor had flatly refused.

Since then, their already distant mother-son relationship had frozen completely.

Although both the Empress Dowager and Noble Consort Zhou shared the surname Zhou, they were not related and not from any prestigious clans. Even Chu Qingwan’s own family background was considered superior.

The families behind Noble Consort Zhou and Consort Yu only rose to prominence after Xu Yanheng’s ascension, and have grown steadily since.

In other words, before his coronation, none of the women in Xu Yanheng’s harem could truly support him.

Thus, the noble families eyed the empress’s position jealously.

Chu Qingwan had a subtle thought: the position of empress might be merely a lure used by Xu Yanheng to entice the noble families into exerting effort on his behalf.

When Xu Yanheng first ascended the throne, he was indecisive about whom to make empress, giving outsiders hope.

The noble families, seeing no candidates among their own daughters at the time, did not press the issue, even tacitly setting it aside.

Now, as the consorts’ families gain power and influence, when the noble families attempt to raise the empress’s issue again, they realize that Xu Yanheng already wields supreme authority—like a fierce beast resting on their heads, suffocating them, leaving no room to be manipulated by outsiders.

Chu Qingwan gathered her thoughts and looked up to see Noble Consort Zhou sitting straighter, a smile blossoming on her face, no trace of her earlier gloom.

She couldn’t help but glance toward Xu Yanheng, suddenly meeting his dark eyes. Startled, she nearly knocked over her cup.

She quickly withdrew her gaze, not daring to look again.

After the formal greetings ended, Chu Qingwan and the others slowly exited Cining Palace. The imperial carriage remained outside, not yet departing.

Everyone slowed their pace, wishing they could stop before the carriage, but no one dared. Even Noble Consort Zhou understood the emperor was not waiting for her.

If he were, he would have left Cining Palace with her.

Noble Consort Zhou mounted the escort, her expression finally subdued. The good mood from Xu Yanheng’s earlier defense vanished in an instant.

Mei Ying, puzzled, asked, “Your Highness, what is wrong?”

Noble Consort Zhou’s gaze withdrew from the carriage. “Nothing.”

She was only thinking whether before or after ascending the throne, Xu Yanheng had ever deliberately stopped to wait for her.

Had he not? Or had she simply forgotten?

She closed her eyes.

Consort Yu had already seen the carriage. Unlike the others, she had been favored enough by Xu Yanheng to approach calmly. Others could only watch enviously as Consort Yu advanced unhurriedly.

Sure enough, the embroidered curtain was lifted. Though the crowd could not hear Xu Yanheng and Consort Yu’s exchange, they saw Consort Yu purse her lips and leave resignedly.

Before departing, Consort Yu cast a sidelong glance among the crowd, as if searching for someone.

Chu Qingwan was a little stunned. Even Consort Yu failed—then who was Xu Yanheng waiting for?

As if sensing her doubt, Wei Ziming approached with a smile and said, “Lady Chu, the emperor said he would accompany you back to Yuqiong Garden since it is on the way.”

Hearing this, the crowd immediately turned to look at Chu Qingwan, their faces filled with astonishment, puzzled as to why she was favored by the emperor. But when their gaze swept over her face, their shock and confusion vanished.

Chu Qingwan was momentarily taken aback but soon her delicate brows lifted with joy, a sudden flush of springtime radiance that outshone even the golden osmanthus behind her.

“Did the eunuch speak truly?” she asked.

Wei Ziming clicked his tongue. “Your servant would never dare deceive my lady.”

Chu Qingwan knew he wouldn’t lie about the emperor’s words, but that didn’t stop her from feigning surprise. She lifted her skirts and hurried toward the imperial carriage, her eagerness evident to all.

Inside the carriage, someone was resting with eyes closed.

When he heard the sound of movement, he opened his eyes, slightly impatient. “Why so slow?”

Chu Qingwan reached out her hand, letting Xu Yanheng take it. He did not hesitate, pulling her up into the carriage. She seemed unsteady, falling directly into his lap.

She was dazzling today.

Her plum-colored dress made her look like a plum blossom in the snow, the waistband cinching her slender waist just so. Now sitting on his lap, he had no choice but to support her waist.

As expected, she was so slender it seemed she could break with a single touch. The posture was somewhat improper, with her skirt gathered on his legs, revealing a flash of pale calf, so white it almost dazzled.

Xu Yanheng’s eyes darkened slightly. His hand, resting on her waist, slid almost imperceptibly.

Was she seducing him?

This question found its answer the moment their eyes met.

She was utterly blatant about it.

So Xu Yanheng firmly held her waist, pressing a little more, adjusting his own posture as she fully settled into his embrace.

No one else noticed the unexpected scene, nor found anything improper about it.

The woman wrinkled her nose and finally answered his question:

“Even Consort Yu returned disappointed; how dare I foolishly think the emperor was waiting for me?”

Knowing the truth, yet still calling it foolishness added an unspeakable nuance between them.

Xu Yanheng chuckled shortly, eyes smiling. “Do you still think you’re imagining things?”

Chu Qingwan buried her face in his neck, her warm breath brushing his skin. Xu Yanheng narrowed his eyes, seeing her ears flushed with a delicate pink. He heard her soft voice, stirring his heart:

“No, Your Majesty, I’m very happy.”

Xu Yanheng paused. He didn’t ask why she was happy; after all, the reasons were few. Instead, he remembered why he had stopped:

“You dare to look around so freely even in Cining Palace. You’re quite bold.”

Chu Qingwan blushed and defended herself: “I… was looking at Your Majesty. How can that be called looking around carelessly?”

Xu Yanheng raised an eyebrow leisurely.

“Oh?”

Chu Qingwan straightened her waist, resting her knees against his legs. Xu Yanheng didn’t bother to adjust his own position. He looked at her lazily, and her red face was all the proof needed.

She let the blush creep into her collar and hinted meaningfully:

“Today is the Mid-Autumn Festival. Every year I celebrate with my family. This year, suddenly away from home, I wonder if spending Mid-Autumn alone will feel lonely.”

There was no empress in the palace, so naturally no rule that the imperial consorts must rest in the central chamber on the first and fifteenth days.

As soon as she finished, Xu Yanheng’s mood turned cold. “If you get used to it, you won’t feel lonely anymore.”

Chu Qingwan was stunned, her heart tightening sharply.

She dared not let the atmosphere grow so cold. Grabbing Xu Yanheng’s sleeve, she protested softly:

“I don’t want to get used to it.”

Xu Yanheng lifted his eyes, looking at her calmly.

Only the truly favored dared to make such a bold demand.

He took her chin between his fingers, pressing lightly, leaving a slight indentation on her cheek. His tone was casual:

“All the consorts in the palace are like this. If I had to accompany each one, how could I possibly keep up?”

Chu Qingwan took advantage of the moment to lift her face, their eyes locking perfectly.

“But I’m the first to ask the emperor this year.”

“First come, first served; the emperor should accompany me, too!”

Xu Yanheng smiled. He was the emperor—there was no such thing as “should.” And if it were truly by order, how could it be her turn?

But her persistent teasing swept away the chill that had just settled.

Xu Yanheng hummed lazily. “You’re the most troublesome.”

He didn’t answer directly, but his words were as good as consent.

Chu Qingwan finally relaxed, nestling in his arms. No one knew that cold sweat was already breaking out on her back.