Chapter 387

Chapter 387 Xie Run said slowly, "I know my limits." Concubine Shen sighed. "Everyone in the palace is saying that Sister Xie seems out of sorts because of the newly arrived palace women, but I know you best of all—I absolutely refuse to believe you're the type to be jealous." Xie Run: "...Weren't we talking about Consort Hua punishing the newcomers?" Reminded, Concubine Shen quickly nodded. "Right, right, right!" "This batch of newcomers is truly something else!" "That new Lady Ming is arrogant and domineering, with quite the flair of Beauty Duan from back in the day. She actually went to Fanghua Palace to pick a fight with Talented Lady Sun." "Noble Lady Bai, being kind-hearted, stepped forward to protect Talented Lady Sun, but Lady Ming was so overbearing that she ended up striking both of them." "Those three made such a racket that they enraged Consort Hua. And Consort Hua has quite the temper—she punished all three of them, thirty slaps each." Hearing this gossip, Xie Run's earlier melancholy was cast to the winds. She asked offhandedly, "How do you know all this so well?" Concubine Shen said with some embarrassment, "I've been frequenting Fanghua Palace a lot lately. When Lady Ming came looking for trouble, I happened to be right there in Fanghua Palace." "I figured that since the Emperor has been staying at Sister Xie's palace for several nights in a row, Consort Hua must be holding in a lot of anger." "She wouldn't dare do anything to you, but seeing me, she'd probably take out her frustrations. So I made a quick escape." Concubine Shen laughed. "Sister Xie has no idea how furious Consort Hua was—she nearly charged out herself to grab me." Xie Run was dumbfounded. "You ran right in front of her?" After a pause, she added, "Consort Hua doesn't seem to have finished her confinement month yet." When Xie Run had given birth to Taotao, she'd done a double confinement month because she'd wanted to, and it also helped her get her figure back. Consort Hua was doing a double confinement month because she'd injured herself during childbirth. To fully recover, even two months might not be enough—there was no way she could be up and about causing trouble right now. Concubine Shen nodded. "Consort Hua was probably sunning herself by the window... Actually, I think she deliberately had people carry her to sit by the bedside to watch the newcomers be punished, to vent her anger." Xie Run: "...You really are bold." This whole thing sounded absurd. They were all in the same palace. Consort Hua sat at the window ordering punishments, and Concubine Shen, hearing the commotion and sensing trouble, fled without looking back, taking her people with her. It didn't sound like the imperial palace—more like village women quarreling in the streets. Sure enough, no matter how serious the matter, it always took on a different flavor when it passed through Concubine Shen. Actually, there was something Concubine Shen hadn't mentioned. When Consort Hua had ordered the newcomers punished, Concubine Shen had tried to put in a good word for them to curry favor. But the moment Consort Hua heard Concubine Shen's voice, her face changed instantly. Before the scolding even landed, Concubine Shen sensed trouble and turned to run. Consort Hua was stunned at the time, cursing Concubine Shen for her audacity and trying to have Fanghua Palace's people stop her. But Concubine Shen was quick on her feet—she shoved past those blocking her and vanished in the blink of an eye. This incident had Consort Hua absolutely livid. Xie Run said, "Consort Hua's temper is getting worse and worse." "Back when she punished Noble Lady Xue, one could still say she was disciplining a newcomer who didn't follow the rules. But punishing three people at once today—that's going too far." With Noble Lady Xue's matter, everyone else in the palace could pretend nothing had happened. This time, it was impossible to ignore. Concerned, Concubine Shen asked, "Sister Xie, Consort Hua won't come after me, will she?" Xie Run said, "She probably won't have time for you." Seeing there was no danger, Concubine Shen brought up another matter. "Originally, it was said that Consort Jingshu's cousin from her maternal family was going to enter the palace, but then there was no news of it." "Today I got word and found out that Consort Jingshu's cousin suddenly came down with a facial condition, which is why she failed the final round of the selection." Otherwise, under normal circumstances, someone from a family like that who made it to the final round would have already greased all the right palms—it would just be a formality. Xie Run smiled faintly. "She'll come in eventually." Concubine Shen had originally wanted to share gossip with Xie Run, but hearing this, her eyes lit up. "Has Sister Xie gotten some news?" Xie Run said, "The Empress Dowager is deeply fixated on this. The young lady hidden in Cining Palace hasn't shown herself yet, so there's no way she'll stop now." "As for Consort Jingshu's sister... with a family like the Duke's Mansion, if they want to send a girl in, they don't necessarily have to go through the beauty selection." Concubine Shen shook her head. "What's so great about this palace? Everyone's fighting tooth and nail to get in." In Concubine Shen's opinion, life in the palace wasn't nearly as comfortable as the back courtyard of a prince's residence. Back in the prince's mansion, she'd dared to visit people all over the place. Now in the palace, she only dared to associate with that honest soul, Lady of Handsome Fairness Fang. Concubine Shen brought up the people of Fanghua Palace again. "Lady Ming is a brainless firecracker, charging around the palace recklessly. Even if she hadn't fallen into Consort Hua's hands today, she'd have gotten a lesson sooner or later." "That Talented Lady Sun is truly beautiful, but too wooden—even more wooden than Lady of Handsome Fairness Fang. You can't get a single word out of her no matter how hard you try." "Noble Lady Bai has a gentle disposition, soft and warm, but I don't enjoy being around her." Xie Run listened lazily, but at this, she couldn't help asking, "Why is that?" Concubine Shen thought for a long moment, then squeezed out one word: "Instinct." "I don't know why, but I just feel I can't get close to her." Xie Run looked at her with considerable curiosity. Consort Shen's intuition was truly remarkable. Back in the prince's estate, there were plenty of people who wore a mask of kindness while being ruthless and scheming behind the scenes. She hadn't gotten close to any of them, yet she got along well with the quiet Lady Fang. As it turned out, her judgment was quite good—Lady Fang was indeed an honest person. Xie Run asked, "With this matter today, did Baolin Xue and Lady-in-waiting Miao not come forward?" Consort Shen said, "Baolin Xue is a shrewd one. She looks charming and lively, but she keeps a clear account of everything in her heart. Lady-in-waiting Miao is from a fallen family—she only knows how to scheme but lacks the courage." "Both of those involved are hiding behind the door, not daring to show their faces." Xie Run lowered her eyes. "I wonder who will step in to handle this matter?" Consort Shen said, "Consort Hua has been wronged for so long—she's probably been holding it in too much. Unless Her Majesty the Empress personally intervenes, I'm afraid she won't be satisfied." Xie Run said, "We'll know soon enough." The two finished speaking, and Taotao, who had changed into a fresh set of clothes, came running out. "Mother, I want to water the plants!" Xie Run glanced at him. "Go play with something else. You just changed your clothes—if you get them dirty, you're not allowed outside for the rest of the day." Rejected, Taotao wanted to argue a little. But when he heard Xie Run say he wouldn't be allowed out to play, he immediately dared not speak. As Taotao grew older, he had learned to think before acting, no longer as reckless as before. He cast a glance at Consort Shen. "Then I want Consort Shen to play with me!" Consort Shen was pleasantly surprised and looked at Xie Run. Xie Run smiled helplessly. "Fine, as long as you don't dirty your clothes." With that, she kept Consort Shen for a meal at Zhaohua Palace. After lunch, news arrived. Consort Wen had gone to handle the matter, but was rebuffed by Hua Yu, suffering a bout of grievance for nothing. PS: Regular updates have resumed during this period—two chapters of four thousand characters per day, with no supplementary content.