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Nanny Sun had never expected that the Noble Consort, always seemingly kind and skilled in her actions, would resort to violence after a mere two sentences since she entered.

Yet, she did not dare to argue, merely saying, "This servant acknowledges her faults, this servant acknowledges her faults, please calm your anger, Consort." She was hastily dragged away by two eunuchs, casting a worried glance at Beauty Li before leaving.

Beauty Li knelt on the ground, her face ashen with fear. She knew the Noble Consort had many schemes up her sleeve. Witnessing someone being dragged away left her too frightened to speak.

The Noble Consort lifted her eyelids slightly and smiled gently, "It is indeed my fault for not teaching my sister well. What do you think should be done now?"

Beauty Li’s heart pounded rapidly, and she quickly kowtowed, "Please calm your anger, Consort. It is all my fault; I am too straightforward and inept in speech, having offended Daying Lian twice in a row. Please calm your anger, Your Grace; I will not dare to do so again, never again."

Until then, she still thought that the Noble Consort was greatly upset because of Lian Hua.

Hearing the words "Daying Lian," the Noble Consort narrowed her eyes. What nonsense was this fool talking about? She was confused.

Could it be that this fool thought that the little Daying was her own person?

Feeling somewhat impatient, she asked, "What do you mean by this? What does she have to do with you?"

By then, Beauty Li was terrified out of her wits, repeatedly kowtowing, her words frantic, "Consort, it was not intentional, but that Daying Lian is truly hateful—no no, not hateful. It was the first time she and I wore the same outfit. I was just upset, I..."

Beauty Li spoke incoherently, mixing her apologies for Lian Hua with her grievances.

The Noble Consort pondered thoughtfully. It seemed that Beauty Li had a talent for attracting trouble; hardly anyone in the palace liked her. According to her, she held deep resentment towards that little Daying, which wasn’t bad at all.

"Enough." The Noble Consort placed her teacup on the table with a thud, startling Beauty Li into silence.

"After hearing so much, I have understood. I haven’t seen Daying Lian more than a few times myself. Since you are a ’Beauty,’ it is natural for you to teach a little Daying manners. However, you made a mistake in one thing. Everyone in this palace belongs to His Majesty, not to me, understand?"

This fool’s rambling made hardly any sense, but thankfully, everyone present was loyal to her. It was fortunate that no outsiders were there to hear and accuse her of forming factions in the Harem, which would tarnish her reputation as the Noble Consort.

"Yes, yes, I misspoke; I will remember," Beauty Li quickly agreed.

"Since you have remorse, I am relieved. However, you must still be punished. You are to copy the palace regulations fifty times and be given the ’Golden Meal’ for three days to understand the hardships of the common people. You may leave now."

The ’Golden Meal’ was what the poorest of the poor ate in the past, a rough concoction of bran and coarse brown rice, gritty and uncomfortable in the throat, its golden color a poor imitation of gold, the worst batches even containing grit, making it extremely unpalatable.

A poet from the former court had once eaten it and jokingly named it the ’Golden Meal,’ a name that had persisted thereafter.

The Noble Consort’s decision was not too harsh, letting Beauty Li eat coarse food for a few days seemed fitting.

The commotion of today would inevitably reach His Majesty’s ears, serving as an explanation to His Majesty.

This punishment was already light. If His Majesty were to take matters into his own hands, it would certainly not be this lenient.

Upon hearing the words "you may leave," Beauty Li felt as if she had received a grand pardon. She respectfully obeyed the decree and left without the pride she had upon arrival.

After leaving the main hall, Beauty Li took away Nanny Sun whose cheeks were swollen. On the way back, she recounted everything that had happened in the hall to Nanny Sun.

With difficulty, Nanny Sun analyzed the Noble Consort’s words with Beauty Li, who at the time had not thought through the situation carefully. Only now did she realize that Daying Lian had nothing to do with the Noble Consort, which ignited a raging fury within her.

In the following days, Beauty Li copied the palace regulations and ate the unpalatable Golden Meal, her resentment towards Lian Hua growing ever stronger.

For now, she had to keep a low profile; otherwise, she would have gone to Canglan Court to confront Lian Hua long ago, but that is a story for another time.

After Beauty Li and her servant left, Cai Xia softly asked at her side, "Consort, are we just letting them go like this?"

Noble Consort rubbed her forehead, "Now that we have explained ourselves to His Majesty, why bother arguing with a fool? Besides, this fool is still of use."

Cai Xia appeared thoughtful. It seemed that the Consort’s attitude changed when she heard the name Daying Lian; there seemed to be a deeper meaning.

Seeing the Consort rub her forehead, she didn’t think much further, quickly went behind Noble Consort, and began to massage her.

...

You Hour, as the Emperor emerged from the Administration Palace, he was in high spirits. The disaster management in Jiangnan and Northwest had been going smoothly, and the famine was gradually subsiding. Now, all that was needed was a slow recovery.

Zhang Qing bowed as he came up to the Emperor and asked, "Your Majesty, shall we head to Canglan Court now?"

The Emperor grunted affirmatively without stopping his stride, continuing his walk toward Canglan Court.

With a troubled expression, Zhang Qing followed and continued, "Today, I did not receive your decree and have not passed on the message. I am concerned that Young Master Lian might not have prepared your dinner. Should we ask the Imperial Kitchen to prepare something..."

The Emperor paused, recalling how he had been too busy discussing state affairs with his ministers all day, and no one dared bother him with such trivialities. Now heading to Canglan Court had become a routine, so he hadn’t even thought to send a decree.

After pondering for a moment, he really didn’t want to eat the meals from the Imperial Kitchen, as they were too greasy. He decided instead to let Little Concubine make him a bowl of noodles. He then said, "It’s alright, something simple will do."

Having spoken, he continued his walk to Canglan Court.

"Yes," Zhang Qing sighed inwardly. The Imperial Kitchen had become just a decoration; His Majesty was increasingly reluctant to eat from there. The Imperial chefs, with furrowed brows, tried various dishes to no avail in restoring His Majesty’s appetite.

The Emperor had a litter available, which offered shade in summer and protection from wind in winter. However, except in inclement weather, he almost never used it, as walking around after a day of meetings was good for loosening his muscles.

The Emperor reached the gate of Canglan Court as usual; by this time, the sun was westwardly inclined, immersing the entire Canglan Court in a golden sea.

Familiar with the path, he passed through the gate and entered the court, hearing from afar a burst of silvery laughter: "Xiao Qing, push higher, even higher!"

It was the voice of Little Concubine. The Emperor suppressed the impulse to call the eunuch to announce him, curious about what Little Concubine was up to at this time.

Walking through an area planted with fruits, what caught his eye was a graceful figure seated on a swing, her maid pushing her back and forth.

The graceful figure’s pale yellow long dress interacted with the sunset’s afterglow, creating a breathtaking scene.

A surge of indescribable feelings welled up in the Emperor’s heart, at this moment his eyes captured only the charming Little Concubine on the swing.

He slowly walked in front of the swing, approaching the person on it.

Upon seeing the newcomer, Xiao Qing, who was pushing the swing, quickly knelt on the spot: "Greetings, Your Majesty."

Lian Hua glanced down and was startled to see someone on the ground ahead of her, exclaiming, "Your Majesty?"

In a reflex, she let go of the swing, and with a cry of "Ah!"

she flew forward like a parabola.