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Lian Hua looked into the Emperor’s affectionate eyes, which sparkled like stars, "Mmm!"

She nodded solemnly and then again, the thought of growing old slowly with His Majesty was so beautiful...

The Emperor couldn’t help but cup her face and placed a deep kiss on her forehead.

"Ahem... ahem..."

Nanny Qi came out supporting Pang Ya, coughing twice before coming out as a reminder.

Lian Hua snapped back to reality and hastily pushed the Emperor away, her face starting to burn red, and... and she forgot herself again.

The Emperor chuckled lightly, wondering how his Little Concubine could still be so shy and not used to this?

It seems he needed to be more affectionate with her in public to give her more practice.

Nanny Qi gave a bow to the Emperor and said, "This old servant is feeling a bit unwell, so I will take my leave first."

Upon hearing this, the Emperor couldn’t help but express his concern, "Nanny Qi, where do you feel unwell? Should I summon the Imperial Physician?"

Lian Hua was startled, she had been with Nanny Qi all day and hadn’t heard her mention feeling unwell?

She quickly walked over to support Nanny Qi’s other arm, turning to her anxiously, "Nanny, where do you feel uncomfortable? Let me have a look for you."

Nanny Qi waved her hand, "It’s nothing serious, just that the tea I drank earlier was too sweet and made my throat uncomfortable. Let’s go, Pang Ya, off we go."

Saying so, she started walking away, not willing to stay a moment longer.

The Emperor and the little girl were becoming increasingly clingy. Normally, they would only be affectionate in private or play little games during meals, at least they would be considerate and bearable.

Now, in front of the Side Hall door, while she was still inside, they started their sticky affections, followed by reciting love poems, declaring love through poetry, and after finishing, they began expressing their admiration for each other.

Oh dear, the little girl was out for only a short while, and they were still caught up in their clinginess.

This old woman was getting old, her face blushing and heart thumping just listening to them; she could not bear it, it was just too cheesy.

Off she went, letting the two of them be alone and clingy. She wouldn’t be in the way.

Lian Hua looked blankly at Nanny Qi growing farther and farther away. The tea was sweet? That couldn’t be right...

Watching her leave, and realizing it was mealtime, she called out, "Nanny, let’s eat together, we have some unsweetened dishes for dinner!"

Nanny Qi didn’t turn back, only waving her hand, "Dinner is even more intolerable, you two go ahead, this old servant will have her meal back home."

The Emperor chuckled to himself, after spending so much time with his Little Concubine, even Nanny Qi seemed adorable now, able to joke around.

Lian Hua tugged at the Emperor’s sleeve, puzzled, "Your Majesty, what’s wrong with Nanny? Eh, why are you laughing?"

The Emperor smiled and pinched her cheek without explaining, leading her, "Let’s go inside."

This left Lian Hua even more confused.

After walking in, she picked up Nanny Qi’s tea, wanting to taste it to see if it was indeed sweet, but the Emperor quickly snatched it from her, holding her as he laughed heartily. How sincere and lovely his Little Concubine was.

Lian Hua: "..."

From that day on, a strange sight could be seen sporadically in Canglan Court:

Whenever the Emperor arrived, the Book of Poetry would be recited so loudly it echoed through the courtyard, giving him a bit of a headache yet also making him feel amused, relaxing his tense body throughout the day.

This was the style of Little Concubine, and he was never surprised by whatever she might do.

Other times:

"Xiao Linzi, page seven, recite."

"Page sixty-six!"

Lian Hua would often whimsically pick a page for Xiao Linzi to recite poetry from, feeling very pleased. She seemed to have absorbed the aura of books, which had influenced the reading atmosphere of Canglan Court.

With Xiao Linzi, this walking library by her side, Lian Hua was no longer afraid. She felt confident enough to even handle a few sentences with Concubine Fang Pin.

Nanny Qi was somewhat speechless. The talent of never forgetting what one saw was rare throughout history.

If the Emperor put it to use elsewhere, it could be of great use, like having Xiao Linzi memorize the backgrounds of all the officials so the Emperor could summon the information at any time without even checking the records.

To think of all the good uses, it was now being exploited for the whims of a young girl, and such exploitation! Oh well, as long as the young girl was happy. And the Young Eunuch was happy too. According to the young girl, both of them were well-matched like Bole and his horse...

Inside Huafu Hall.

"Cough cough, cough cough cough cough..." Consort Liu covered her mouth with the handkerchief, coughing violently, her frail body trembling with each cough.

The Palace Maid by her side continuously helped her catch her breath, but as Consort Liu’s coughing grew more severe, the maid had to take the medicine at hand and bring it to Consort Liu’s lips, "Your Highness, please suck on the lozenge prescribed by the Imperial Physician."

Consort Liu, holding back her coughs, took the lozenge from the Palace Maid’s hand into her mouth, feeling an itch in her throat that almost made her cough it back up.

She desperately suppressed the itching sensation, and following a period of heavy breathing, either the suppression took effect, or the lozenge started to work. The itch subsided.

She felt a bit more comfortable, the lozenge in her mouth gave a cooling sensation that swept from her throat to her chest, the burning feeling calmed down, and at last, she stopped coughing.

The Palace Maid by her side sighed with relief.

Over the years, Consort Liu had been dragging along her shattered body, living precariously. She always coughed when exposed to a breeze, especially dreading the autumn and winter seasons.

She had grown fearful of the cough. The medicines prescribed by the Imperial Physician were stronger with each prescription, the dosage in the lozenge was more than ten times that of a normal person.

The Imperial Physician had said it should only be used when the coughing was severe; taking a few sucks would stop the cough. At other times, do not use it if it can be avoided, as the dosage was so large it was actually harmful to the body.

Once sure that she was no longer coughing, Consort Liu spat the lozenge out into the Palace Maid’s hand, leaned against the side of the bed, devoid of any interest in life, feeling that the world was dim and that there was no light in her path ahead.

The Palace Maid threw away the lozenge and twisted the handkerchief to wipe Consort Liu’s face.

"Qing Ya, do you think I will live longer than that wretched woman?" Consort Liu stared into the void, as if seeing darkness in front of her, unable to feel any hope.

After wiping Consort Liu’s face, Qing Ya began to wipe her hands. She felt a tightness in her chest, struggling with the discomfort and barely managing a smile, "What silly thing is Your Highness saying? If you take your medicine and eat well, you will live longer than anyone."

Consort Liu’s face was pale and drawn, she said weakly, "Is that so? Why do I feel like I’m about to die at any moment? I just cannot bear it, I cannot bear to die like this..."

"Your Highness!" Qing Ya, heartbroken, interrupted Consort Liu.

On Mid-Autumn night, her mistress had insisted on attending the Mid-Autumn Feast. Qing Ya could not dissuade her.

The mistress had said that there was no joy left in living today, she just wanted to go and see a joke; if even this small pleasure was denied her, what was the point of living?

Qing Ya had to prepare for her mistress with tears.

After the mistress returned at night, her spirits were high and her face was full of joy, the most cheerful she had been since falling ill.

But the good times did not last; because she had been out in the breeze, she developed a fever in the second half of the night, and her illness worsened, only recently improving somewhat.

She gripped Consort Liu’s cold hand tightly, hoping to warm her a little with her own body heat.