Li Huairou’s days in the palace were very comfortable, and her treatment in Qingning Palace was the best in the palace, second only to the empress dowager’s. Consort Dowager Hui was not a person with unreasonable demand. Every day, Li Huairou only needed to accompany Consort Dowager Hui to eat, drink, and chat.
In order to pass the time, Li Huairou began messing around with her cooking skills. Of course, she wouldn’t do it herself—she simply told the chefs what to do—but her mind was full of weird thoughts, and the messing around made Qingning Palace’s chefs miserable. However, there were a few times when they really made something that Li Huairou asked for. After eating those dishes, Consort Dowager Hui became very happy and rewarded many things to them. With these rewards, the chefs stopped complaining and started wanting Li Huairou to fuss with the cooking a few more times.
If one ate well and exercised less, one would inevitably gain weight.
Consort Dowager Hui had always paid attention to this, and after discovering that her waist had grown a few inches thicker, she stopped Li Huairou from using the kitchen.
Food was important, but maintaining her figure and beauty was more important.
“There is a saying that a girl will doll herself up for a man who loves her. But I don’t think so—my beauty only blossoms for myself!” Consort Dowager Hui stood in front of the mirror, pitying herself.
“Well, you could choose to exercise,” Li Huairou suggested.
“No, I don’t like sweating, and I hate being sticky from the sweat,” Consort Dowager Hui seriously replied.
The corners of Li Huairou’s mouth twitched a little. You speak so well, but in fact, you’re lazy! Yes, after transmigrating and being here for so many days, she had long discovered Consort Dowager Hui’s laziness. If the woman could lie down, she wouldn’t choose to sit; if she could sit down, she wouldn’t choose to stand.
Under such circumstances, in order to maintain her figure, she could only do it through other methods, such as eating less, using drugs, acupuncture, and others.
Li Huairou didn’t quite understand, but she respected such thoughts.
If she couldn’t mess around in the kitchen, how should she pass the long day?
Li Huairou thought of the storybook, which was also known as a novel in present times. She pestered Fang-momo to make people go outside the palace to buy the most fashionable storybook. She had to say that although the current storybooks had old-fashioned storylines, the artistic vocabulary was very beautiful, and they were worth reading.
Under the guidance of her grandfather, Consort Dowager Hui had read poems and books since she was a child, and she was also able to write poems. She was very disdainful of Li Huairou’s love for these slightly vulgar words.
Li Huairou was stimulated by her disdain and decided to let Consort Dowager Hui appreciate the charms of the novel. After thinking about it, she chose Dream of the Red Chamber, one of the four masterpieces, in order to cater to a young woman versed in literature and art.
Li Huairou ordered a pot of tea to be prepared, and on one lazy afternoon, she began to tell Consort Dowager Hui the story of the Dream of the Red Chamber. She bluntly explained that when she was a child, she’d heard it from a lame Taoist in a village. After a long time, some plots were not clear. She told the consort dowager not to mind..
At first, Consort Dowager Hui was disdainful, closing her eyes as if she was not listening.
When Li Huairou talked about Lin Daiyu’s entry into the Jia mansion, Consort Dowager Hui had already involuntarily opened her eyes.
Li Huairou grew a little thirsty. When she stopped to take a drink, she saw Consort Dowager Hui sitting upright and staring at her with scorching eyes. “Quickly drink and continue the story! What happened later? Did Madam Wang have a problem, did she dislike Daiyu?”
“How did you know that?” Li Huairou couldn’t help asking.
“I guessed it. How could she say these things to a niece whom she met for the first time! And what’s the matter with Jia She and Jia Zheng? Their niece arrives and one says that he isn’t well, and the other is fasting. How could you be that kind of uncle? Are Jia Min and the others all brothers and sisters? Are they on bad terms?” Consort Dowager Hui excitedly asked.
Li Huairou’s eyes widened
This was different from what she’d expected! Shouldn’t literary and artistic young women like Consort Dowager Hui be attracted to the love between Bao and Dai? How come it felt as though she’d deviated from the normal track!
Li Huairou didn’t have time to think; she was urged by Consort Dowager Hui to continue speaking. She kept talking about Bao and Dai’s first meeting. Fang-momo couldn’t stand it anymore, coming in and asking Consort Dowager Hui what clothes and jewelry to set out for the visit to the empress dowager in Ningsheng Palace tomorrow, saving Li Huairou.
Li Huairou ran out of Qingning Palace in a flash, arrived at a rockery in the imperial garden, and sat down. She’d talked for a long time, and her mouth was dry. Just now, when she’d run out, she hadn’t drunk any water, and she felt even more uncomfortable.
“It’s you again. Why are you in a difficult position every time I meet you?”
Hearing this voice, Li Huairou’s scalp grew numb. Why did she meet him again?! At the present, Prince Qi was no longer young, so how was he able to enter the palace and run around so often! And how did he remember her so well? It’d been a while since their last meeting, right? It was difficult for her to remember!
“This servant greets His Royal Highness Prince Qi. No need to worry, your highness.” Li Huairou hurriedly bowed down.
“Rise. Quickly, get up! To see you like this, have you been punished?” Prince Qi smiled softly.
“Forgive me, your highness. This servant has something to do and will take leave first.” Li Huairou bent her knees and ran away without waiting for Prince Qi to answer.
Prince Qi looked at Li Huairou’s back and was a little surprised. He didn’t know if he was being overly suspicious but unlike other court ladies, this court lady had a rather different attitude toward him. Could it be some new method of rejection to welcome? But she was a little court lady; there were many court ladies in the palace, and they were not worthy of his consideration.
As soon as Li Huairou ran out of the imperial garden, she ran into someone head-on.
“Ouch.”
“My lady, are you alright? Which palace maid dares to run into Concubine Ling?! Do you not want to live? Come, drag her to the Department of Justice and give her twenty strokes!”
Oh god, why did she have to be so unlucky? She dared to escape from the hero and met the heroine again. But this palace maid was very arrogant—Concubine Ling hadn’t spoken, and she was being arrogant here!
Li Huairou knelt on the side of the path and said, “This servant is Huairou, palace maid of Qingning Palace. She accidentally collided with Concubine Ling—please forgive me, my lady.” Fortunately, she was prepared to kneel. Otherwise, her knees would have been long gone. This was a gravel path!
Upon hearing that the other party was from Qingning Palace, the maid’s arrogance immediately diminished.
She looked at Su Wan’er.
Su Wan’er gave a look, and the maid immediately stood behind her. The other court lady stepped forward to help Huairou up. “So you’re the person beside Consort Dowager Hui. Quickly, get up. It was unintentional, and did not hit this concubine. Xinyue was only making a momentary rude remark. Please forgive her.”
“Concubine Ling is being polite; it is this servant who is reckless. If she didn’t bump into my lady, then it’s fine.” Li Huairou quietly raised her head and glanced up. Well, Consort Dowager Hui still looked more beautiful!
Su Wan’er didn’t care about this little court lady’s small movements—she looked so small, was she around ten years old? She’d heard that there was a pampered little court lady beside Consort Dowager Hui who was like a treasure, was this the one?
“This servant won’t waste my lady’s time. My lady, please go ahead.” Li Huairou didn’t want to have too much contact with the heroine, so she stepped back a few steps and made way.
Su Wan’er had just come back from the empress dowager’s palace after copying scriptures for the whole afternoon. She was a little tired and was about to go back to her palace to rest. When she heard the words, she nodded and led her people away.
Seeing her leaving, Li Huairou sighed in relief and hurried back to Qingning Palace.
Compared to Consort Dowager Hui, who didn’t take the normal path, the heroine was still more dangerous.
In Qingning Palace, Consort Dowager Hui still wanted to talk with Li Huairou that night, but she was rejected by Fang-momo, who racked her brains for an excuse. What would happen if she stayed up late? It would make her skin bad, and she would develop acne. It was said that the noble consort had recently given the empress dowager a new cream. The empress dowager liked it very much after using it, saying that it made her look younger.
Consort Dowager Hui had to give up on this idea. “Well, you shall follow me tomorrow and don’t run around, or I will deduct your monthly allowance and not let you eat!”
Li Huairou’s mouth twitched. “I understand.”
Coming out of the bedchamber, Li Huairou expressed her heartfelt gratitude to Fang-momo. “Momo, thank you!” If it weren’t for you, I might have had to stay up late tonight.
“Quickly, go back and rest. Don’t read storybooks anymore, be careful of not being able to grow any taller!” Fang-momo compared the height difference between them with a little disapproval on her face.
Li Huairou’s eyes widened. “Momo, I’m still young, and I can grow taller!” Yes, she was only 1.5 meters tall, which is indeed too short. But she believed that she would grow taller.
Fang-momo chuckled. Huailan is only half a head taller than you. Your father was said to be not tall, and the whole family is like this. How could you possibly?
The next day, Li Huairou yawned and followed Consort Dowager Hui to Ningsheng Palace.
When Consort Dowager Hui arrived, the empress, noble consorts, and other concubines had already arrived. After giving the greeting, Consort Dowager Hui sat down. Li Huairou stood behind her, bowed her head, and yawned again.
Consort Dowager Hui was a little speechless—was she that sleepy? In fact, Consort Dowager Hui was also quite sleepy. The empress dowager was getting old and slept less, so she made these people rise early to greet her.
Fortunately, as a Consort Dowager, she only needed to come to Ningsheng Palace once a month. She pitied these consorts and concubines; they had to come every day.
The palace maids served tea.
“I don’t drink tea. Exchange a cup of rose milk for this consort,” Consort Dowager Hui said softly.
“Yes, consort dowager.”
After a while, the rose milk came. Consort Dowager Hui pretended to take a sip, then she turned around and whispered, “This consort has had enough. Huairou, you drink it.”
“Yes.” Li Huairou immediately took the milk tea, and under the cover of Fang-momo, she drank it. After the warm milk tea went down, her body warmed up, and she was more awake.
The empress was sitting right across from Consort Dowager Hui, and she happened to look upon this scene with a little contempt in her eyes. They all said that there was a little court lady in Qingning Palace. The emperor had once suggested that Consort Dowager Hui adopt the third princess from Noble Lady Qing, but Consort Dowager Hui refused. She really didn’t understand Consort Dowager Hui’s thinking; was a dignified princess comparable to a court lady?
The noble consort sitting next to the empress glanced at her with some contempt and disgust in her eyes. Such an idiot could even be in the center of the palace? How unfair the gods were!
The other consorts and concubines also had different thoughts. Only Su Wan’er glanced at Li Huairou, who was yawning while hidden behind Consort Dowager Hui. The girl was really too small and seemed quite cute.
“Aijia is late, I’ve kept you waiting,” the empress dowager said with a smile.
[The way that the empress dowager refers to herself, similar to the royal “we”]
Consort Dowager Hui rolled her eyes in her heart, stood up, and saluted the empress dowager.
“Rise; sit down. Meimei, how are you these few days?” the empress dowager said after they finished the greeting, sitting down.
Consort Dowager Hui got up and took a seat. “It’s still the same. But jiejie looks much younger.”
[Meimei means younger sister. Jiejie means elder sister. The concubines refer to each other with this, but the order is based on rank, not age]
The empress dowager smiled and touched her face. “It’s because of the noble consort. A new prescription has been added to my moisturizing cream. Aijia feels rather good after using it. I had a few more boxes made, and along with the recipe, meimei should take it back to try.”
“Thank you, jiejie.” Consort Dowager Hui also accepted without hesitation.
The two exchanged small talk.
Coming out of Ningsheng Palace, Consort Dowager Hui got onto the sedan chair and rolled her eyes unceremoniously. It was all this nonsense every time, meaningless. “Huairou, come up. Let’s go.”
Li Huairou had gotten up early in the morning; she was now lazy and didn’t want to move. Unceremoniously, she got into the sedan chair after hearing this.
The empress and the others behind saw it, and their expressions were quite different.
