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The Emperor’s brows furrowed even tighter. What’s with this ingrate? Is he not as important as a dancing girl in the hall?

All present in the hall arranged themselves in line, led by Noble Consort Xue, and bowed to His Majesty in unison, "We greet Your Majesty, may Your Majesty enjoy peace and good health."

"Rise," commanded the Emperor as he called for everyone to stand, stepping forward to look past the people in front, his gaze fixed on Lian Hua in the middle.

The more he looked, the tighter his brows knotted. Hmm, his Little Concubine hadn’t glanced at him since he entered the hall, hmm...

But in fact, Lian Hua did look at the Emperor. She couldn’t help but lift her head when bowing, only she wasn’t very tall, and in front of her was Sister Zhaoyi, whose tall figure blocked her completely. She wanted to look but couldn’t, so she glimpsed once but didn’t look again.

Even as she bowed, her eyes weren’t idle.

The long-sleeve and waist-bending dance just now was too beautiful, with the dancing girl’s long sleeves and slim waist, her graceful figure undulating, her sleeves flying up and down, lively and enchanting.

She was counting the circles the dancing girl made with her sleeves when suddenly, snap, it stopped—the Emperor had arrived!

She was counting the twirls, thinking that once she finished, she would tell Sister Zhaoyi, hoping for her praise. Alas, she had only counted to eighteen when it ceased, ruining her count.

During the salute, the dancing girls knelt on either side, very close by. She couldn’t help but sneak a peek—after all, His Majesty couldn’t see her, and she couldn’t see His Majesty, and nobody else’s attention was on her. A quick look wouldn’t hurt.

When she managed to see clearly, she noticed that the dancing girl’s costume was separated at the top and bottom.

She hadn’t paid attention when the girl was dancing because the sleeves were too distracting, but when she knelt down, a small section of her slender waist was revealed, truly delicate and lovely to the eye.

She couldn’t help but compare the dancer’s waist to her own.

Hmm... Hard to say, she was beginning to round out at the stomach, getting thicker than before. It’s difficult to tell, maybe she could have compared in the past?

Caught up in her own little actions, Lian Hua rose with the crowd, still looking sideways at the dancing girl.

Thus, by the time everyone stood up, Xu Zhaoyi had shifted position, and the Emperor’s unhappiness arose from seeing Lian Hua watching the dancing girl sideways.

He also glanced at the dancing girl, his brows twisting into a scowl.

The servants from the Music Bureau were getting worse at their jobs.

The person they chose was dressed too revealingly, alluring in appearance, a sheer defilement of good customs. No wonder his Little Concubine paid no attention to him.

It turned out that all the attention was stolen by these dancing girls.

Except for the oblivious Lian Hua and a few others, a sense of trepidation filled the hearts of everyone else in the hall, especially the concubines who had been to the small banquet.

After calling them to rise, His Majesty took a few steps and then paused, leaving them all in uncertain suspense.

You should know that they had just been rewarded with a lesson in palace regulations soon before, confined to the palace halls until today when they were finally allowed out, still unsure whether His Majesty’s anger had subsided.

Noble Consort Xue glanced slightly to both sides, then her lips formed a faint smile, almost imperceptible unless one looked closely.

She stepped forward half a step and spoke, "Your Majesty, we your concubines..."

"Cough, cough..." A bout of coughing interrupted Noble Consort Xue’s words.

Coming to his senses, the Emperor turned towards the source of the coughing and exclaimed in surprise, "Consort Liu is also here?"

In previous years, Consort Liu had been poisoned and injured, barely sustaining her life on medicine, weak in constitution. It was unexpected that she would also be present today.

Suppressing the itch in her throat, Consort Liu raised her head and smiled lightly, "I’ve been cooped up in the hall for too long.

Today being the Mid-Autumn Festival, I thought to join my sisters and celebrate this reunion festival together.

Overjoyed at the sight of Your Majesty, on this auspicious festival, I wish only for Your Majesty’s health and for peace across the lands, and secondly, for a beautiful full moon and perfect union. "

With that, she bowed gracefully, yet her body swayed unsteadily, lurching towards the Emperor.

Seeing this, the Emperor stepped forward and with one hand, steadied her by the shoulder.

Noble Consort Xue fumed in secret, calling Consort Liu a shameless wretch, so cunningly opportunistic, interrupting her and preempting the well-wishes she meant to give.

"She spoke her piece, and even in her supposed frailty, she played such games—does she really believe no one can see through her act? With that delicate constitution, she thinks she can still seduce His Majesty?"

Consort Liu steadied herself, gently patted her chest, wearing a faint expression of relief, and was about to say her thanks when:

The Emperor simply let go of her and looked to the side, "Where are the people from Huafu Hall? Quickly, help your mistress back."

Consort Liu looked up in astonishment; this was completely different from what she had expected. His Majesty should have at least consoled her a little. She was already displeased by not seeing Noble Consort Xue, just wanting to make her uncomfortable; hence she had put on such an act.

She had thought that after such a long absence, His Majesty would comfort her in front of everyone, but she couldn’t have imagined that after assisting her, His Majesty would promptly want her to leave.

After such a long time apart, was he still so unfeeling?

Having said that, the Emperor looked back at her and said impatiently, "If your body is so weak that you faint at something as simple as a bow, you should come out less in the future."

Saying this, he walked past her toward the front. He paused beside Lian Hua, gave her a fierce glare, and continued walking to his seat at the head of the gathering.

The Emperor was very displeased at this time. He had left the Mid-Autumn banquet for the court officials earlier than any previous year, all to see her sooner, to check on what she was up to after being harangued by the officials and forced to drink quite a bit before he could leave.

He also looked forward to finding an opportunity to take her to see the variety show she wanted to watch.

But she, on the contrary, was far too close to Xu Rongying for his liking and, upon his arrival, she had her full attention on the Dancing Girl. Was it that mesmerizing?

Didn’t she always say how handsome he was? Why wasn’t she looking at him at all today?

He had left Canglan Court at dawn, busy all day, and after not seeing each other for a single day, she didn’t miss him at all?

Sitting at the head with a heavy heart, the Emperor waved his hand, "Everyone, please be seated."

As he spoke, he directed another fierce glare towards Lian Hua.

Those who noticed His Majesty’s actions shivered inexplicably. With such an expression, could it be that Beauty Lian had committed some offense and he was holding back punishment because of the Mid-Autumn Festival?

If so... could Beauty Lian fall out of favor?

Goodness, setting aside everything else, they just prayed not to be impacted by association; having seen what became of Daying Jia, they were still shuddering with fear and did not wish to follow in her footsteps...

Lian Hua also saw His Majesty glowering at her—twice! Each time so deliberate, as if worried she wouldn’t notice.

For no reason at all, what had she done to upset His Majesty now?

That couldn’t be it, could it? Today was the first time they’d seen each other, unless he was still holding on to the fact that she refused to help him last night?

Thinking of this, she somewhat guiltily lowered her head, her cheeks became hot, and her ears turned slightly red.

Ah, the punishment might have been too harsh; she was aware that shortly after she fell asleep, His Majesty had gotten up, presumably to take care of personal matters.

But if she didn’t punish him like that, he wouldn’t learn his lesson. What if he couldn’t deliver on his promises—hmph!

Just now, she caught a whiff of alcohol on him; could it be that he was planning to feign drunkenness?