Lan Xing Ge Ge

  Since the troops were dispatched to Xinjiang, Longyitian has not visited any of his concubines in the harem, nor has he stayed overnight. Every day, he either stays in the imperial study until very late or discusses affairs with ministers at the military council.

  It's true that the war and government affairs are complicated, but Long Hiding Heaven has other plans under the guise of this war, so he would make himself so busy in a helpless situation.

  After a long time without visiting the harem, the many concubines in the harem naturally couldn't sit still. Not only did they think of ways to entice the emperor every three days or so, but they also went to the Cining Palace to pay their respects to the empress dowager more and more frequently. The purpose, of course, was self-evident.

  It was the empress who seemed extremely quiet during this period, doing what she should do every day, completely with a demeanor of being detached from worldly affairs. Except for the daily necessary courtesy visits, she basically stayed inside Kunning Palace and never went out. Even when other consorts came to visit her, she would politely decline as much as possible.

  The empress's low-key behavior made the concubines inevitably speculate, and the most credible statement was that the empress had fallen out of favor. The empress, disheartened and disillusioned, didn't bother to compete anymore, and instead chose to be a steady and stable principal palace empress.

  The queen was low-key, but the open and secret struggles among those concubines became more intense. After all, the Spring Festival is approaching, and according to convention, the ranks of these palace concubines should also be adjusted. Especially Yu Pin, Yu Pin, Rong Pin, and Ling Pin, they naturally all vied for the few vacant pin positions.

  He put down the memorial he had just approved, and Long Yitian looked up to see a small eunuch standing in front of his desk, holding a wooden tray with two rows of green wooden plaques bearing the names of various concubines, neatly arranged on it. Without needing anyone else to say anything, this was again the time for drawing lots.

  The dragon hid the sky and swept a glance at the neatly stacked wooden plaques, raised his hand to dismiss the small eunuch, but he was about to continue revising the memorial, but stopped his movements after hearing Gao Wuyong's words.

  "Your Majesty, today is already the 15th."

  As usual, on the first and fifteenth of every month, Long Huan Tian should go to the Empress's place, but recently due to busy national affairs, he doesn't want to be distracted by harem matters either. So, it has been more than three months since he last went to the harem, and naturally, he hasn't set foot in Kun Ning Palace at all.

  After a moment's consideration, Long Yitian finally put down the folding fan in his hand and ordered: "Prepare the carriage to go to Kun Ning Palace."

  Inside the Kunning Palace, the Empress was leaning sideways on a soft couch, half-closing her eyes to gaze at this collection of poems in her hand. As for whether she had actually read it or not, and what exactly was going through her mind, probably only she herself knew.

  The palace maid standing beside her served the empress tea and pastries with great discretion, not saying a word from start to finish, only occasionally raising her eyes to observe the empress's expression.

  By the window, under the service of palace maidens, a small figure was bent over the desk, meticulously copying the characters on the model calligraphy in front of her. Although the handwriting was not quite satisfactory, judging from the thick stack of papers that had been written on, this child still showed considerable perseverance and patience.

  The scene looks so peaceful and harmonious, but before long, a hastily entering figure broke the serene atmosphere in the house.

  "Ah, Your Majesty the Queen, you'd better hurry up, the Emperor is already on his way to Kunning Palace."

  It was none other than Rong Mama, who had been following the Empress for many years, walking quickly while shouting loudly. In the Kunning Palace, apart from her, it would be hard to find another servant who dared to speak so loudly in front of the Empress.

  "Your Majesty?" The empress, upon hearing these words, immediately sat up straight from the soft couch, and the lazy feeling she had just now was instantly swept away. Her eyes shone with dense doubt and delight, "Why did Your Majesty suddenly think of me here? Could it be... that something has happened in the palace again?"

  "Lian Jing, quickly go and tidy up the kitchen, prepare more vegetarian dishes and pastries that the Emperor loves to eat. Chen Xiang, hurry up and help the Empress with her hair and makeup." Yonger's instructions were swift as she helped the Empress sit in front of the mirror, a thick smile on her face: "Your Majesty, today is the 15th, the Emperor was supposed to come to Kun Ning Palace anyway. Don't think too much about it for now, serving the Emperor well is what's important."

  "This...", the queen obviously hadn't digested it yet, and was at a loss for what to do. After finally having peace for over a month, the emperor suddenly did this, and she really couldn't digest it.

  It was Chen Xiang, standing behind her, who smiled and said while skillfully combing her hair: "What Concubine Rong said makes sense. Your Majesty, for now, you should focus on serving the Emperor first. Whatever it is, let us servants discuss it with you tomorrow, what do you say?"

  Chen Xiang and Lian Jing were the new palace maids who came to serve the Empress after she was punished last time. They had actually been in the palace for over a year, one of them was responsible for flowers and plants in the Nurturing Heart Palace, and the other did odd jobs in the Imperial Kitchen. It's easy to imagine that they were both minor characters who didn't stand out. This time, they were transferred to the Kun Ning Palace, which was equivalent to a promotion.

  Moreover, both of them are clever and resourceful, having gained the trust of the Empress within half a year. Recently, they have been helping the Empress make decisions on many matters, with satisfactory results. As a result, even the usually proud and arrogant Rong Momo has begun to gradually trust these two girls who are not yet eighteen years old.

  The queen saw that everyone around her was saying this, so she naturally didn't insist anymore. She sighed and said: "Alright, I'll listen to you."

  At this time, the small figure who was originally at the edge of the table also came to the empress's side, asking slightly nervously: "Empress Dowager, is the Emperor coming?"

  The queen heard this and gently stroked the little one's head with her hand, while slightly seriously saying: "Lan Xiang, you are my adopted daughter, so naturally you are also the emperor's daughter. So remember to call him 'Huang Ama', understand?"

  Lan Xing nodded obediently and firmly remembered the queen's words in her heart.

  After all, she had just entered the palace and was still unfamiliar with it. Her only reliance was the empress, especially since she would be meeting the emperor for the first time. It was inevitable that she would feel nervous and anxious, so a small mistake could be forgiven.

  "Gege, change your clothes and tidy up a bit too. Later on, it'll be good to leave a good impression on the Emperor." After saying that, Chen Xiang gave a hint to Lian Jing who had just returned.

  Lotus Quiet immediately understood, and hurriedly pulled up Orchid Fragrance's small hand. On one side, she gently spoke with Orchid Fragrance to distract her attention, while on the other side, she quickly led her to a side hall to change clothes.

  After a flurry of nervous activity, the eunuch responsible for reporting outside the palace finally uttered the words that made the Empress secretly overjoyed: "The Emperor has arrived."

  He stepped into the Kun Ning Palace, looking at the crowd of people kneeling on the ground. Long Yintian's eyebrows furrowed slightly, and then he ordered everyone to get up, while he himself sat directly in the main seat.

  Chen Xiang knew that the emperor did not like crowded places, so as soon as he stood up, she immediately ordered others to go down first, and after serving tea, she retreated to the door to wait.

  He glanced sideways at the delicate little figure standing beside the queen and asked casually, "Is this the princess from the Qi Wang Fu?"

  "It's exactly." The empress, seeing the emperor mention Lan Xiang, immediately pushed Lan Xiang in front of the emperor while responding, "Don't look at Lan Xiang's young age, but she is very obedient and sensible. I am more and more fond of this child."

  Lan Xiang looked at the emperor with some nervousness and said in a soft, childish voice: "Imperial Father."

  "Hmm, not bad, indeed a likable child." Long Yitian could see that Lan Xiang was only nervous but not afraid of him, and his good impression of her suddenly increased. A faint smile gradually appeared on his face.

  After all, King Naji died for the country, and it is only right to take good care of his children; moreover, the fact that the empress has not had a son or daughter under her knees for a long time is not a good thing, so when the empress asked him to recognize Lan Xing as her goddaughter, he agreed without hesitation.

  Lan Xiang knew that this was her first meeting with Huang Ama, and the impression was very important. So she secretly took a deep breath, slightly turned her eyes and smiled: "Huang Ama's praise is really undeserved for me. In fact, I have not been in the palace for many days, and there are many things that I don't understand. It's all thanks to Huang E Mama's patient teaching that I can be like this today, so Huang Ama's praise should go to Huang E Mama instead."

  Lan Xiang's words were extremely well-spoken, showing her humility while also pleasing the empress and bringing up the empress's good qualities in front of the emperor, a true case of killing three birds with one stone.

  Since ancient times, it has been said that children's words are innocent. Lan Xiang believed that the emperor must have believed a part of her words, which was enough.

  Long Hanyi immediately understood Lan Xiang's meaning, and his appreciation for Lan Xiang naturally increased a bit. He half-jokingly pinched Lan Xiang's small face and said: "At such a young age, you've already learned to protect your own mother, you're really a little adult."

  The queen also saw that the emperor had a good impression of Lan Xiang, and her worries in her heart were completely put down. At the same time, she also made her fondness for Lan Xiang increase a lot, and the smile on her face became more gentle: "Your Majesty, don't just talk, it's time to have dinner, or you'll starve your body, which is not good."

  "I'm indeed hungry too. Come on, let's go have a meal." As he spoke, Long Yintian stood up and pulled Lan Xing's small hand towards the inner room.

  Lan Xing, through her brief interaction with Long Yitian, also saw that her Emperor Father was not as stern as he seemed, but rather similar to her deceased mother. The tension in her heart slowly dissipated, and facing a table of exquisite dishes, her childlike nature gradually emerged.

  The author has something to say: We're finally back, it wasn't easy...

  But for now it's still in the card stage, painfully speaking...

  Insert Bookmark