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Lian Hua, still with redness in her almond eyes, raised her head blankly to the newcomer, her tear stains already dry.

It turned out to be Xu Zhaoyi.

All she did was smile at the lifting gaze of Lian Hua, her valiant face softening a bit as she helped the bewildered Lian Hua up with one hand.

Xiao Qing, standing nearby, thought Lian Hua might be harmed and hurriedly tried to protect her young master.

Xiao Qing was distressed, she had watched the banquet unfold by her young master’s side, watched her young master being ridiculed, watched her kneel and cry, unable to do anything but forcefully hold back her tears and follow in kneeling and bowing, unable to offer any help.

With everyone else already dispersed, she did not know what this consort intended to do with her young master and impulsively tried to intervene.

Xu Zhaoyi noticed Xiao Qing’s movement and spoke, "You needn’t worry, I won’t harm your mistress."

What was she going to do then? Both servant and master became even more bewildered.

Xu Zhaoyi looked at Lian Hua and asked, "Your name is Lian Hua?"

"Yes..." Lian Hua was somewhat flustered, as she had never been so close to Consort Zhaoyi before.

"Those people’s words should be taken as nonsense, you shouldn’t mind them," Xu Zhaoyi said as she released her, staring at her.

"Ah?" Lian Hua blinked, Consort Zhaoyi was not like what she had imagined.

Xu Zhaoyi smiled again, saying, "I’ll remember you, feel free to visit Huaying Hall whenever you have time."

This Little Daying was quite adorable, clearly unspoiled by the harem’s influences, still quite innocent. She hadn’t tried to flatter her opportunistically, which pleased Xu Zhaoyi, who noticed how obediently she had performed the courtesies at the end, and couldn’t resist coming over to chat.

Having finished speaking, Xu Zhaoyi turned and walked away, decisively without any hesitation, unconcerned with Lian Hua’s response, slowly departing from Jinwu Garden.

On the way back to Canglan Court, Lian Hua felt dizzy, wondering if Consort Zhaoyi had just consoled her?

Had Consort Zhaoyi, whom she initially wanted to ingratiate herself with, actually stayed behind to console her?

It seemed quite effective, as the gloom that had been pressing on her chest dissipated all at once.

Consort Zhaoyi had said to regard those people’s words as nonsense. Well, then she would listen to Consort Zhaoyi, since she hadn’t really cared much about what they said to begin with.

Thinking about it, Lian Hua unconsciously exclaimed, "Consort Zhaoyi really has a commanding presence, Xiao Qing, I think I’m starting to admire her."

Xiao Qing nodded, "Yes, young master, Consort Zhaoyi is very impressive. This servant thinks she seems quite different from the other consorts in the palace."

Lian Hua propped her chin and pondered, "I think so too, she possesses an ironlike aura. Apart from His Majesty, I haven’t noticed anyone else in the palace who has that kind of aura, not even Noble Consort."

Thinking of His Majesty gave Lian Hua a pang in her heart.

He had gone to dine with the Noble Consort, was he doing well?

He must be doing very well. How expensive is deer antler, and she hadn’t even tasted it before. She imagined it must be delicious, far from being on par with simple soups like radish and green vegetable soup.

Speaking of the Emperor, he had accepted Noble Consort’s invitation to dine at Huaqing Palace for lunch. Upon arrival, his expression had already returned to its usual state, his countenance calm, betraying none of his inner thoughts.

While dining, the Emperor was somewhat anxious about Lian Hua, not knowing how she was faring. He had frightened her earlier, and if it weren’t for the improper setting, he would have wanted to hold her close and comfort her.

He had intended to go straight back to Canglan Court after the flower viewing banquet, but following the invite from the Noble Consort, he had pondered it over and felt compelled to come.

His Majesty had already struck Noble Consort once today; although there were reasons, it would not be good to humiliate her a second time, lest it lead to baseless speculation in the harem.

Despite having no particular achievements in managing the harem, Noble Consort had endured hardships.

After the Late Empress passed away, the entirety of the harem was entrusted to her, and over the years, no mistakes had been made; moreover, she was not to blame for this incident, and it wouldn’t be fair to dismiss her entirely because of it.

Speaking of the Late Empress, it’s necessary to mention a segment of the Emperor’s past.

When the Emperor had been Crown Prince, one of the Late Emperor’s favored concubines, in order to curb the Crown Prince, had influenced the Late Emperor to choose a frail and physically weak girl from a minor official’s family and had her married off to the Crown Prince.

The Late Emperor was adamant about the marriage and even the Great Empress Dowager couldn’t prevent it; after the Emperor ascended to the throne, this fragile girl naturally became the Empress.

The Late Empress, being inattentive, was frequently exploited by the Late Emperor’s favored concubine during her time as Crown Princess Consort, causing numerous troubles.

Being weak and constantly infirm, frequently falling ill, she eventually passed away in the second year of the Emperor’s reign.

The Emperor felt no affection for her; instead, he was rather indifferent towards her.

After becoming the Empress, due to her physical frailties and inability to manage her own affairs, she still stubbornly held sway over the governance of the court, initially causing much disorder in the early days of the Emperor’s reign.

Once the Emperor managed to take control, he drastically reorganized the harem from top to bottom, and only then did the Late Empress finally cease causing trouble, which allowed the harem to stabilize.

Two years after the Late Empress’s death, the Emperor promoted Noble Consort Xue, who was then Consort Xue, to manage the harem, a position she held for over eight years.

This was also why, after experiencing the chaos of the harem, the Emperor rarely broke protocols and avoided causing waves in the harem, and he greatly recognized the hardships endured by the Noble Consort.

Noble Consort cautiously attended to His Majesty during his meal.

Normally, His Majesty was not difficult to serve, never too critical.

But after His Majesty’s anger earlier today, she was no longer sure, fearing saying or doing something wrong and further provoking His Majesty, adding insult to injury, so she was very careful in her service.

The lunch passed relatively peacefully.

After seeing off the Emperor, Noble Consort sighed with relief and felt immensely exhausted.

Entering the inner chamber of Huaqing Palace, Noble Consort’s smile disappeared, and her expression cooled as she said to the person beside her, "Please ask Nanny Chen to come."

She wanted to inquire about the progress of a certain matter.

Nanny Chen soon arrived in the inner chamber of Huaqing Palace, feeling somewhat uneasy; she had heard about the morning’s flower-viewing feast and didn’t know why the Consort was summoning her.

Uneasily prostrating herself, she bowed to the Noble Consort, "This servant sees the Consort; may the Consort live forever."

Sitting upright, Noble Consort coldly glanced at her freshly coated crimson nails, her head unlifted as she coldly addressed the kneeling Nanny Chen, "Last time, I had you look into the background of Little Daying from Canglan Court. Have you found out anything?"

Something was off about the flower-viewing feast. Although His Majesty was angered because Beauty Li and others mocked the simplicity of the grain, she had a sneaking suspicion it was not just that; it seemed His Majesty was a little different toward Little Daying.

Throughout the banquet, she repeatedly felt His Majesty’s distraction, which was different from his usual self at such gatherings.

His Majesty glanced at the concubines below far more often than usual, which was inconsistent with his usually reserved demeanor.

Moreover, at this banquet, His Majesty’s smile held much more than its usual coolness, as if something had changed.

All of these heightened the Noble Consort’s sense of impending crisis.