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"She was moved to the Hetai Temple, how could this be?" The woman’s eyebrows slightly furrowed, a sharp light flashed in her phoenix eyes. Having been removed from the harem, it was tantamount to slipping from her control, how could she be at ease?

"It was His Majesty’s command at noon. Last night, Talented Lady Sun from the Side Hall of Fangfei Hall suffered an acute illness, her personal Palace Maid came seeking this servant to call for the imperial physician, and on the way, it was said that she saw someone from Star Palace heading towards the Cold Palace.

It seems that the Deposed Consort and the people from Star Palace had an exchange last night, thus the unexpected occurrence," said the person speaking, none other than Nanny Chen.

"Could it be... " The woman was startled, her heart somewhat flustered, who knows what sort of absurd things a mad person might say.

"It should not be, today our people reported back, saying that the Deposed Consort, having been moved to the Cold Palace, refused to eat or drink, her wounds festered and she is currently running a high fever, her mind already muddled, unlikely to say anything coherent.

Consort can be at ease," Nanny Chen reassured her about the movements at the Cold Palace, as the Consort had earlier instructed her, making sure everything was thoroughly investigated.

The woman calmed down but couldn’t fully relax, muttering to herself, "Without rhyme or reason, just the day after being sent to the Cold Palace, she was granted permission to move to the Hetai Temple, this does not seem like His style..."

Nanny Chen leaned closer to the woman, "Consort, perhaps His Majesty dislikes anyone staying in the Cold Palace.

You see, all the childless consorts left by the Late Emperor, regardless of rank, have been relocated to the Hetai Temple.

Even those who were cast into the Cold Palace, His Majesty also granted permission to move them there; the Cold Palace has long become nothing more than a name.

Perhaps it is so, His Majesty reflected and changed his mind. "

"Hmm, makes sense. His Majesty cannot tolerate faults, he finds even the presence of those who have erred in the Cold Palace displeasing. It’s still uncertain," she said as she stroked her long hair, feeling something was still amiss.

Suddenly remembering, it seemed there was a low-ranking consort living near the Cold Palace, she asked, "That low-ranking Daying, is she not residing in the nearby Canglan Court?"

Nanny Chen knew the Consort was referring to that willful fool from before who had dared to defy His Majesty, later even punished to kneel by Beauty Li—Daying Lian, she replied, "Yes, speaking of this Daying Lian, born a Palace Maid, truly unsuitable for public appearances. Where has she experienced any turbulence? Yesterday, when the Deposed Consort was moved to the Cold Palace, she happened to see it all, and was said to be so frightened she didn’t dare move; even her attendants directly hid behind their mistress. "

Having said this, she covered her mouth and tittered. Those two, master and servant, were nothing but a joke.

"What, you say the Deposed Consort was seen being moved to the Cold Palace?" Why hadn’t someone informed her of this?

Nanny Chen dared not laugh any longer and promptly responded, "Such trivial matters, this servant didn’t dare to alarm Consort, hence did not dare to report."

Not everything was worth bringing to the Consort’s attention; as a trusted confidante, her first duty was to filter through the news several times, only reporting what was relevant to the Consort.

The woman fell silent, indeed it was not a big matter.

She had met that low-ranking consort a couple of times: the first time was when she defied His Majesty, nearly dragging her down with it; the second when the consort was being punished by kneeling, fortunate to rise only by her grace, and at the banquet, she behaved like a starving ghost incarnate, focused solely on eating, truly a person unaccustomed to public life.

Yes, this woman was Noble Consort Xue, currently the most powerful person in the harem, the ruler of the six palaces.

However, considering that recently, Beauty Li was punished to relearn the rules and now the Deposed Consort had been relocated from the Cold Palace, it seemed that this low-ranking consort was somehow involved, minimally. One coincidence might pass, but two were inexplicable.

Instinctively, she did not believe this low-ranking consort could stir up any turmoil, but her ascension to her current high position was built on prudence and caution.

With this thought in mind, she said, "Go investigate the background of this Daying Lian." Better to be overly cautious than to leave it unchecked; she could not rest easy without knowing.

Nanny Chen felt that the Noble Consort was overthinking, but dared not disobey the Consort’s order, and respectfully answered, "Yes, this servant will have someone look into it right away."

With that said, Nanny Chen had reported all that needed to be reported, and asked to be excused.

Noble Consort Xue’s eyes reflected a trace of worry, His Majesty had not visited the harem for a long time.

She knew the realm was recently not at peace, with His Majesty preoccupied with state affairs, therefore she dared not disturb him.

However, she heard from her father that the situation seemed to be easing recently, perhaps the opportunity would soon present itself.

Autumn had arrived, and it was time to hold a flower banquet.

...

Just after the third watch of the night, Lian Hua, struggling with soreness, gently climbed out of bed, for the two of them had been too passionate that night, having made love several times, and she was almost unable to rise.

Now had come the most critical step in making Dew Tea. If she missed this opportunity, this batch of tea would be ruined.

One of the core elements of making Dew Tea was that it had to be moistened with dew collected after the third watch, which allowed the dried buds to ferment.

The dew after the third watch was the purest of dews.

Any earlier wouldn’t do. Once wet, the tea needed to be collected before sunrise, covered with a black cloth to ferment for five days, and then dried.

Only then could it rid itself of bitterness, allowing the bitterness to turn sweet and become Dew Tea.

She gently wriggled out of His Majesty’s embrace, gently crawled from the bed’s end and out, preparing to move her tea leaves out under the moonlight to bathe in dew.

Halfway through, the Emperor sensed Lian Hua’s movements and woke up, thinking she was having another nightmare; he sat up, his voice somewhat husky, and asked, "What’s wrong?"

"Your Majesty, why have you awakened?" Lian Hua stopped her motions, feeling somewhat annoyed. Despite being as quiet as she could with her hands and feet, she had still disturbed him.

Hearing her lucid voice, the Emperor was relieved; as long as she wasn’t having a nightmare, all was well.

In the dim light, the Emperor reached under Lian Hua’s arms, kissed her forehead, lifted her up to lie back down, embracing her and pressing her against his chest, closing his eyes again and asked drowsily, "Where are you going?"

Lian Hua struggled to get up, saying, "Your Majesty, please let me go, I need to tend to the Dew Tea."

Dew Tea? The Emperor thought groggily; yes, there was such a matter, and he asked, "At this hour?"

"Yes, now is a critical time. The moonlight tonight is wonderful, and the dew is heavy after the third watch, the best time for moistening the leaves for fermentation. In a few days, it will be ready," Lian Hua replied.

"Sleep, just order the servants to do it," the Emperor held her without letting go, and as he said this, he began to call out for someone.

Lian Hua stopped him and shook her head in his embrace, saying, "Only people from the Lian Family may know the secret recipe for Dew Tea, it cannot be taught to others, and I must do it myself."

The Emperor was now fully awake, recalling that during Noble Consort’s birthday feast, she had said the same thing. He had thought it was just an excuse then, but it turned out to be true.

"Without revealing the secret recipe to the servants, let them do what you instruct, the tasks within their power, how about that?" the Emperor proposed.

Lian Hua continued to shake her head: "No."

Even allowing others to lend a hand was not acceptable – her stubbornness was indeed formidable. The Emperor silently sighed; he knew she was stubborn, stubborn enough to talk back even to the emperor, and she was just as stubborn now, alas.

But it appeared that making this Dew Tea was indeed very laborious and difficult. The teas she’d made in the past were also crafted by her own hands, meticulously and without cutting corners, requiring focus and effort, and completely unadulterated.

Considering this, the Emperor felt a pang of distress: "Don’t do it anymore, I won’t drink it, let’s sleep," he said.