Chapter 43

Chapter 43: An Lingrong’s Offer of Loyalty An Lingrong glanced at Songzhi, knowing she was the Consort’s trusted confidante and that there was no need to avoid her, then kowtowed. “This concubine’s father was once a merchant of incense, and our family possesses some ancestral fragrant medicine secret formulas.” This was no secret. Nian Shilan looked at her, waiting for what would come next. An Lingrong’s heart pounded like a drum. “This concubine has some modest understanding of fragrant medicine. In Your Highness’s palace… there is She Xiang.” [What am I thinking?] [She has just entered the palace; she is not yet the Consort Li who has already been granted the title.] Nian Shilan pursed her lips in disappointment: [I thought there would be some earth-shattering secret, but it’s just this?] An Lingrong: “…” After tossing and turning for several sleepless nights, she had finally made this decision. After all this fuss, Consort Hua already knew? An Lingrong did not understand. “Although She Xiang is precious and rare, prolonged use is harmful to a woman’s body. Could it be that Your Highness is using She Xiang… to prevent pregnancy?” Nian Shilan shot her a disdainful glance; there was no need to respond to such foolish words. [Was An Lingrong this foolish when she first entered the palace?] An Lingrong felt wronged: Knowing there was She Xiang and continuing to use it—wasn’t that precisely to prevent pregnancy? She lowered her head, her face alternating between pale and flushed, not daring to say more. In her previous life, Nian Shilan would likely have flown into a rage, but now she didn’t even feel the urge to blame her. [Your family background is too low; he looks down on you. My family background is too high; he fears it.] Though it wasn’t explicitly stated, An Lingrong understood—it was the Emperor! The source of the She Xiang in Consort Hua’s palace was the Emperor! An Lingrong turned the words over in her mind several times before finally speaking them aloud. “Prolonged use of She Xiang is not beneficial to a woman’s body. Although this concubine does not understand how to regulate the body, I have a way to remove the She Xiang without anyone noticing.” (Note: The original setting treats She Xiang as not a beneficial gynecological medicine; this is retained here and is unrelated to real medical practice.) “Remove it?” Nian Shilan acknowledged An Lingrong’s skill in incense-making and felt somewhat tempted. “It cannot be said to be completely removed, but this concubine has a method to neutralize the effects of She Xiang.” An Lingrong tremblingly retrieved a small oil-paper packet from her sleeve. “This concubine comes from a humble background and brought little incense into the palace. Over the past few days, I have managed to experiment a bit, and it should be usable.” Nian Shilan did not speak, so Songzhi also remained still. “If Your Highness does not trust this concubine, you may have the imperial physicians and the Fragrant Medicine Bureau investigate. After all, this is what this concubine offers to Your Highness. The raw materials are still in Yanxi Palace.” An Lingrong held the oil-paper packet with both hands, raising it above her head. “If there is any problem, Your Highness need only hold this concubine accountable.” Nian Shilan glanced at Songzhi. Songzhi took the incense packet and went to fetch the incense burner. Given An Lingrong’s current capabilities, she posed no threat to her, but Nian Shilan still felt the need to warn her with a few words: “Do you know what the consequences would be if others were to learn of this?” [If this matter spreads, even without my intervention, the Emperor will demand the lives of you and your entire family!] An Lingrong kowtowed again. “Your Highness, rest assured. Heaven knows, earth knows, you know, and I know. If Your Highness does not speak of it, this matter will rot in this concubine’s belly.” [You may not have the courage to let others know, but those around you might not be so discreet.] Those around her? An Lingrong’s breathing quickened again: Was there a spy by her side? She forced herself to remain calm, pretending to know nothing. “Your Highness, rest assured. When this concubine prepares incense, I do not allow anyone to attend to me.” Loyalty must be declared, but the spy must also be tested. Though An Lingrong was ambitious at heart, she was still a sixteen-year-old girl fresh to the palace, the daughter of a county magistrate who had never seen much of the world. Under the imposing presence of Consort Hua, she couldn't help but feel somewhat nervous. She replied anxiously, "Moreover, when this concubine entered the palace, she did not bring any maidservants with her. The maidservants attending me now were all arranged by the Imperial Household Department. Your Highness can rest assured." [If you had brought them in yourself, it would have been better. But precisely because they were arranged by the palace, it makes one uneasy.] Arranged by the palace? An Lingrong's mind raced: Baojuan? Baoque? [That Baoque is too young to do much. Baojuan—her background is unclear. If she wasn't planted by the Empress, then she's a complete fool who's good at dragging her master down. With her around, I absolutely cannot trust...] "Your Highness—" Before Nian Shilan's inner thoughts could finish, An Lingrong urgently kowtowed and said, "If Your Highness does not find this concubine unworthy, please grant me a maidservant." Since they were all someone else's people, why not use one directly from Consort Hua? At least, whatever Consort Hua's maidservant reported to her, she would have some way of finding out. Looking at it this way, it would become the most loyal option. [Hah, she is clever indeed. No wonder she could follow the Empress so far in her previous life.] "Didn't Zhen Huan give you her Ju Qing?" Nian Shilan asked. "Ju Qing?" An Lingrong replied in confusion. "Why does Your Highness say that?" In the first few days after entering the palace, she, Shen Meizhuang, and Sun Miaoqing went to Suiyu Pavilion to visit Zhen Huan. Zhen Huan did mention giving Ju Qing to An Lingrong, but her own palace was short on staff at the time and couldn't spare anyone. Sun Miaoqing said she had brought two maidservants into the palace, and the Imperial Household Department had assigned two more, all quite capable. She volunteered to give Han Ying to An Lingrong. But the Empress reprimanded her, saying that palace regulations had their own rules and couldn't be changed arbitrarily by just anyone. So, she couldn't give the maidservant to her either. Now it seemed that everyone was trying to plant spies around her. An Lingrong answered honestly, "Attendant Zhen never gave Ju Qing to this concubine. It was Changzai Gong who intended to give me a maidservant, but the Empress did not agree. So, this concubine only has Baojuan and Baoque by her side." [Sun Miaoqing really wants to steal the female lead's spotlight in every way. How tasteless!] Nian Shilan now looked upon An Lingrong with a bit more favor. [Actually, Little Bird wasn't corrupted from the start. When she first entered the palace, she was sincere and even dared to kill for Zhen Huan. It's just a pity that, in her previous life, those two knew she was sensitive and insecure yet still chose to maliciously speculate about her behind her back.] [But it's strange—why is she willing to give this sincerity to me in this lifetime?] [She is the most cunning and ruthless. Could she be hiding some malicious intent, wanting to harm me?] What malicious intent? She was truly sincere. But how could she explain this sincerity? She couldn't possibly say she could hear Her Highness's inner thoughts, could she? If Consort Hua knew that she was completely exposed in front of her, would she still tolerate her? An Lingrong's back was drenched in sweat. "Your Highness..." [Could it be that Sun Miaoqing changed everything?] "Yes!" An Lingrong answered without hesitation. Nian Shilan found her somewhat baffling. "What are you saying yes to?" An Lingrong's lips trembled: "..." She had answered too eagerly in her excitement. Oh no, oh no, what should she do? Would Consort Hua become suspicious?