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She had no family wealth, and she was in great need of money. Even though His Majesty’s private funds supplied the ingredients, there were still many expenses and two people to support, so she was extremely short of money.

It was so difficult to save some silver. The beaded hairpin was inedible and yet had to be kept, which was somewhat troublesome.

"This, I do not know." There was no such precedent, Xiao Jizi had never heard of such a situation.

No one had ever dared to ask the Emperor such a question in the past. To dare to sell something bestowed by the Emperor and even inquire about it to the Emperor himself—was this naive foolishness or a desire for death?

The master’s thoughts were truly different from ordinary people...

Xiao Qing felt the beaded hairpin was very exquisite. She had never seen such a valuable hairpin from so close before; thanks to Young Master’s blessing, it was an eye-opening experience for her. Hearing that it could neither be sold nor damaged, she carefully moved back a bit, afraid to touch it.

Lian Hua regretfully set down the Gold-threaded Eight-treasure Hairpin, picked up the adjacent Lantian Jade Safety Buckle, and caressed it a bit—it was warm and smooth, feeling very comfortable.

The more Lian Hua looked at it, the more she liked it. While caressing it, she said, "This is something His Majesty wore close to his person, Xiao Qing, do you know how to braid?"

She had seen this safety buckle many times when helping His Majesty change clothes, and now it was hers, giving her an indescribable feeling, as if she were much closer to His Majesty, a bit joyful and also somewhat other feelings. Overall, she wanted to wear it on her body.

Xiao Qing shook her head; she had done more farm work since she was young and did not know how to do such delicate work.

Lian Hua then looked inquiringly towards Xiao Jizi.

Xiao Jizi also shook his head. It was something girls did; how could he, an eunuch, know how to do it?

Disappointed, Lian Hua said, "I don’t know how to braid either; I guess I’ll just find a rope to hang it around my neck."

"Does Young Master want to wear it on her person?" Xiao Jizi asked, somewhat surprised.

"Yes, is that not allowed?" She should be able to wear the safety buckle without violating any rules, Lian Hua wondered as she looked at Xiao Jizi, who was better versed in the regulations and often had to remind her about many things.

Xiao Jizi shook his head and said with a happy smile, "No, no, it would be very good for Young Master to wear it."

As long as she wasn’t thinking of selling it, he could not wish for more than for Young Master to wear it on her person. His Majesty would certainly be pleased to see it. Young Master had finally realized it, Xiao Jizi could not help but smile very happily, his grin stretching to his ears.

Lian Hua looked at him, puzzled by what was going on, why he suddenly seemed so happy: "Xiao Jizi, what is the matter?"

Xiao Qing also looked at him curiously.

"It’s nothing, nothing. I am just happy for the Master on gaining such a treasure," Xiao Jizi found an excuse and said with a smile.

Lian Hua did not suspect him, and hearing him say so, she also got excited again.

These two were indeed treasures; one was an item His Majesty wore close to his person, and the other a solid gold hairpin. Canglan Court was so poor it echoed with emptiness—having these two treasures was like having a treasure to stabilize the place, a cause for celebration.

"Xiao Jizi, bring it to me; I have to find a rope to wear His Majesty’s safety buckle," Lian Hua burst into the inner chamber excitedly, followed by Xiao Qing and Xiao Jizi.

Once inside the inner chamber, Lian Hua immediately started sifting through a sewing basket and soon found a thick red rope.

She sat down on the dressing stool, reached out, and said to Xiao Jizi, "Xiao Jizi, hand me the safety buckle."

"Right away." Xiao Jizi passed the safety buckle, and he and Xiao Qing stood watching as Lian Hua began to work on the rope.

She threaded the rope through the safety buckle, then her fingers flew up and down on both sides, quickly braiding something. Soon, she had made a hanging cord, with the safety buckle dangling in the middle and knots on both ends to tie directly around the neck.

She couldn’t make a net, but she could still braid a hanging cord.

Lian Hua held the cord, looked around, and felt very satisfied and somewhat proudly asked Xiao Qing and Xiao Jizi, "How does it look, does it look good?"

Both nodded their heads in agreement that it looked good, praising the Young Master for her strong initiative, her capability in everything, her efficiency, and most importantly, the beautiful outcome of her work.

Lian Hua smiled, her eyes narrowing with delight; their words truly resonated with her, she was indeed very capable.

She happily wore the safety buckle around her neck against her skin, touched it through her clothes, and felt a full heart.

Seeing the Young Master wear it made Xiao Jizi even happier. The person who would be most pleased by the Young Master’s enlightenment was him. How could he mind his current low status when he might rise high in the future?

Previously, the Young Master was not very willing to receive His Majesty, and his heart was very cold, questioning life every day.

Having been in the palace for many years, he had never seen a palace concubine disfavored by the Emperor.

Could they have a future? He was very doubtful and had already prepared to stay in Canglan Court for a lifetime.

Now, he could finally feel a bit more at ease.

Seeing that the Young Master had finished and stood up, she walked while asking Xiao Qing what there was to eat. Xiao Jizi came to his senses and hurriedly reminded, "Young Master, where should I put this Gold-threaded Eight-treasure Hairpin?"

"Oh, I almost forgot, give it to me." After receiving it, Lian Hua returned to the vanity table, opened the jewelry box’s bottom layer, where she kept her most valuable pieces: a silver hairpin and two pairs of earrings.

Shaking the Gold-threaded Eight-treasure Hairpin, Lian Hua was still somewhat hopeful, thinking that she definitely needed to ask His Majesty if it could be exchanged for silver.

After putting it away, Lian Hua went with the two to have a meal.

...

In front of Huaqing Palace.

Beauty Li, accompanied by Nanny Sun, waited nervously outside the palace.

The golden characters "Huaqing Palace" gleamed brightly in the sunlight, and the palace itself was very imposing and majestic.

Beauty Li, with eyes full of admiration, thought, His Majesty really treats the Noble Consort well.

Nowadays, Huaqing Palace is indeed the finest palace in the harem.

Only those of concubine rank or higher could reside in palaces prefixed with ’Hua’, of course, Xu Zhaoyi being an exception, and Huaqing Palace was the foremost among them.

It was said that the Late Empress’s residence in Yihe Hall was splendid and magnificent, even more grandiose than Huaqing Palace.

But since the Late Empress’s death, Yihe Hall had been closed for many years.

Nowadays, who still remembers the Late Empress, who still remembers Yihe Hall?

Hence, it could be said that Huaqing Palace was now the best palace in the entire harem.

Beauty Li had received a summon from the Noble Consort an hour ago and, with Nanny Sun, nervously arrived at Huaqing Palace. But the servants under the Consort stopped them at the door, advising that the Consort was still busy and asked them to wait outside. This wait lasted for nearly an hour.

The Noble Consort must be summoning her for yesterday’s incident; stopping them from entering was clearly to intimidate them.

Both became certain that Little Daying was the Consort’s man, their hearts filled with dread, uncertain of what awaited them.

After standing until their legs were numb, a palace maid finally came out and let them enter.

They recognized this maid, Cai Xia, one of the Noble Consort’s senior palace maids and a trusted confidante of the Consort.

They followed her into Huaqing Palace.

Beauty Li, treading carefully, frequently glanced around.

The hall was adorned with carved paintings, scented clay walls, silk curtains, and beaded drapes, with the Consort’s throne at the head, radiating an imposing grandeur.

No matter how many times she saw it, she thought Huaqing Palace was splendid.

She thought she had been discreet, but Cai Xia, always at the Consort’s side, sharp and insightful, had seen her surreptitious looks all along.