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"He had used such clear words, he shouldn’t overthink it, should he?"

Based on his understanding of her, she seldom thought in roundabout ways. She had always been straightforward, needing only to be told things clearly. There was no need to beat around the bush, as that might actually lead her to misunderstand."

But what if, just in case, the young lady became jealous? That, too, could be unpredictable and unreasonable to argue with, making it hard for him to gauge when Little Concubine might feel jealous.

And if she really did get jealous, well...

It might not necessarily be a bad thing after all. He didn’t favor Xu Rongying getting too close to his Little Concubine. If the Little Concubine became jealous because of Xu Rongying and distanced herself from her, he would actually be quite pleased.

Thinking of this possibility, the Emperor suddenly felt refreshed, as both scenarios were acceptable to him, so there was no need for undue worry.

He even began to look forward to seeing her jealous. Jealousy would be good, for it meant something—it showed that his Little Concubine cared about him, and that Xu Rongying was not as significant in her heart, maybe even unimportant.

When the time came, he would comfort his Little Concubine, taking the chance to suggest she interact less with Xu Rongying in the future to avoid picking up bad habits. Wouldn’t that be splendid?

Just thinking about how, from now on, his Little Concubine would no longer care to deal with Xu Rongying made the Emperor’s mood lift considerably, and he couldn’t help but slightly smile.

Ming Jing, who had been waiting outside to receive His Majesty, saw the Emperor approaching with a majestic stride and was slightly startled, thinking why His Majesty seemed so jovial and gentle?

She rarely saw His Majesty like this, especially when coming to meet the master. Over the years, he had always been all business with a stern face, never showing such tenderness or even a smile.

This soft, smiling expression seemed to appear only during the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet when His Majesty looked at Master Lian.

She wondered to herself—could His Majesty have learned something?

She couldn’t believe this was about Consort De.

His Majesty’s interactions with the master were nothing like those between an Emperor and his concubines; they had always been succinct, discussing only necessary matters and parting when done, just as before the Mid-Autumn Festival when he needed to discuss matters with the master.

Before she could ponder any further, His Majesty had already approached. A eunuch began to proclaim, "His Majesty has arrived, come greet His Majesty."

Ming Jing, along with the staff of Huaying Hall, bowed, "Greetings to His Majesty, may His Majesty enjoy peace and prosperity. Consort De is currently unable to leave her duties and has specifically sent this servant to greet your esteemed arrival; please forgive us."

Ming Jing felt somewhat helpless; her master, though she had been promoted to a Consort, still acted on her own whims and even began playing along.

The Emperor, in a very good mood, waved his hand generously: "No matter, rise."

Xu Rongying’s disrespect was not a new issue, it was no surprise, and not troubling enough to be considered over minor ceremonial lapses, even potentially beneficial to the overall situation.

Consort Xu De had only sent a palace maid to receive him, yet he took no offense. To those observant, wouldn’t it further confirm his high regard for Consort Xu De, as if advocating on her behalf?

Ming Jing stood up: "Thank you, Your Majesty. Lunch has been prepared; please follow this servant inside," she said, leading the way.

Upon entering the hall, the Emperor saw the feast that had been laid out—a full table, every dish carefully prepared and quite lavish.

It seemed Xu Rongying took this lunch very seriously.

As the Emperor approached the table, Consort Xu De finally entered from the back, arriving fashionably late, her voice preceding her, "This servant has arrived late; I hope His Majesty will forgive me."

She wore a wide cloak, her face alight with a bright smile, hands placed over her chest, walking straight toward him, apologizing with her mouth, yet omitting the formal bow.

"Hmm," the Emperor looked at her strangely. Her attire was casual, yet she wore a cloak over it, not seemingly for an outing.

Yet, Xu Rongying was always an exception in the palace, what she wore usually didn’t matter in his eyes; she still had the heart of a man in a woman’s body.

The Emperor no longer regarded her, taking the principal seat first. After sitting down, he said, "Sit."

With Xu Rongying, he always got straight to the point. After instructing her to sit, he was ready to dive into the main topic, wanting to bring up the matter from this morning’s court session.

This matter required Xu Rongying’s cooperation. He needed to hint to her to stay calm and prevent her from overthinking.

Just as he was about to speak, the Emperor suddenly felt something was off. He had asked Xu Rongying to sit, but her face bore a thick smile, and she was still properly standing. She was not usually this polite or mindful of rules, which was quite odd.

The Emperor frowned secretly. Had Xu Rongying gone mad, smiling so inexplicably?

But he couldn’t be bothered to ponder further. As long as it didn’t hinder him, why should he care? He intended to discuss official matters, have lunch, and then leave; no need to bother with these trivial details.

Although the meal here was sumptuous, it could never compare to what the Little Concubine prepared. He would just have a quick meal and eat more of what the Little Concubine cooked for dinner to make up for it.

He ignored the bizarre smile on her face and spoke directly, "In today’s morning court, I had Shen Ming’s matter brought up again, but this issue is not simple and needs to be addressed slowly..."

"Brother Ming..." Consort Xu De exclaimed in shock upon hearing the name "Shen Ming." Her pupils dilated, the smile vanished from her face in an instant, and she became visibly agitated.

She could no longer hold back, stepping forward, suppressing yet ultimately unable to contain her urgency. Her hands propped on the table, her eyes reddened as she stared intently at the Emperor, her gaze filled with eagerness.

The Emperor had anticipated her strong reaction; whenever Shen Ming was mentioned, Xu Rongying would lose her composure. However, he hadn’t expected to see a familiar piece of clothing peeking out from behind Xu Rongying.

He stopped talking abruptly, watching as Xu Rongying moved aside, and his eyes fell upon the revealed piece of clothing.

Then, as Xu Rongying hurriedly moved several steps away, more and more of a dress appeared until an exquisite figure was fully in his view.

He was somewhat stunned and stared fixedly at the delicate figure: Why was his Little Concubine here?

Lian Hua, who was originally hiding behind Consort Xu De with her head down, was caught off guard. She too looked up dazedly, her mouth slightly open, and met the Emperor’s gaze, both gazing at each other in bewilderment.

She thought bewilderedly: The emperor has found out!

Both were stunned, staring at each other, lost in thought, their faces inadvertently showing surprise and being caught off guard.

Why Lian Hua was in Huaying Hall had to be traced back to a phrase the Emperor had left before the morning court.

After waking up, Lian Hua, happy to hear that His Majesty had left a message for her, was excited and, without even washing up, hastened Xiao Qing to fetch Xiao Linzi, who carried the message.

In the inner chamber, as she styled her hair, she let Xiao Linzi relay the message outside the small hall. Hearing His Majesty’s message, "No need to send lunch, I am visiting Huaying Hall as a guest," she involuntarily stopped styling her hair.

His Majesty and Sister Consort De?

What! What! What!...

It was peculiar. His Majesty was actually going to Sister’s place as a guest and even specifically told her not to send meals.