Yuwen Lan did not know what "walking kidney" meant.
But regardless, her unusual behavior must be suspicious.
He became even more determined to see it, so he reached out to take it again.
Unexpectedly, she panicked and hastily stuffed the manuscript into her nightgown.
Yuwen Lan: "???"
Was she really so resistant to him?
He thought for a moment, then asked, "You truly won't let me see it?"
Yanshu nodded vigorously, "Yes, I beg Your Majesty to spare me..."
Before she could finish speaking, he suddenly pulled her into his arms.
Taking advantage of her being caught off guard, Yuwen Lan reached into her bosom with one hand and successfully retrieved the manuscript.
Hmm, his fingers brushed against softness like clouds, causing his heart to flutter.
Yanshu, slow to react, exclaimed "Your Majesty!"
But he whispered in her ear, "Why are you acting like this? Are you deliberately trying to seduce me?"
Yanshu's face turned red, "I wouldn't dare!"
He reached into her chest again, chuckling softly, "Too bad, I have to go to the Palace of Benevolent Peace tonight to look after the Empress Dowager."
Yanshu: "!!!"
What a scoundrel!
However, he began reading the manuscript with great interest.
Yanshu couldn't snatch it back, feeling both embarrassed and annoyed. She wanted nothing more than to run to the bed and wrap herself up in the quilt.
But as he read, he started reciting aloud:
"The moonlight was beautiful. Her smooth shoulders were half-exposed, and she cast a coquettish glance at the man before her. 'General, don't bother with me. Just let those people capture me and abandon me in the wilderness to feed the dogs...'"
"The general could no longer restrain himself. He embraced her, feeling her soft, warm body like jade in his arms, unable to let go..."
...
Yuwen Lan couldn't bring himself to read the next lines out loud.
Yanshu snatched the manuscript back, her face as red as blood. "I told Your Majesty it wasn't for you to read."
Yuwen Lan looked at her with an unreadable expression.
Yanshu suddenly felt guilty and hurriedly said, "I was just writing for fun..."
Damn, had she actually aroused him?
Was he going to kill her now?
Yuwen Lan: "..."
After staring at her for a while, he finally frowned and said, "How could a girl from a scholarly family write such..."
Lewd and obscene words.
Tsk, even he couldn't bring himself to say it.
Yanshu stubbornly defended herself, "...As they say, food and sex are human nature. Besides, if I didn't write it this way, people wouldn't want to read it."
What?
People wouldn't like it if it wasn't written this way?
Yuwen Lan frowned, "How do you know that?"
Yanshu sighed inwardly, [I like reading this kind of thing, how could I not know?]
Yuwen Lan: "???"
What was wrong with this girl?
He heard her stammer out a lie, "I'm just guessing. After all, when emotions are heightened, isn't it unsatisfying if nothing happens..."
What nonsense!
Yuwen Lan was so angry he didn't know what to do. He reached out again and pulled her close, staring into her eyes. "What kind of woman are you really?"
His expression was unreadable, and his tone was a bit fierce. Yanshu felt scared and said, "Your Majesty..."
Her damp hair still clung to her cheeks, and her almond eyes looked frightened and innocent. Even her voice had suddenly softened to the core.
Yuwen Lan still showed no emotion, his dark eyes reflecting her fear.
Time seemed to stand still.
But in an instant, he suddenly lowered his head and captured her lips.
Entangling, intertwining, savoring at will.
He left Yanshu dizzy and weak, her body tingling as if she had lost her soul.
After who knows how long, a woman's voice suddenly came from far outside the hall, "The air is dry, be careful with fire..."
Yanshu came back to her senses from her daze, suddenly remembering... Wasn't that Consort Wang who had been punished?
Tsk, she was still making her rounds outside.
Yuwen Lan also regained his composure, finally releasing her and resting his forehead against hers to catch his breath.
After a moment, he said, "I must go to the Palace of Benevolent Peace."
His voice had softened considerably compared to before.
Yanshu carefully acknowledged.
Then, she saw him abruptly let go of her and stride out of the hall.
Yanshu frowned as she watched his retreating figure, unsure of what had come over him.
Was he pleased or angry?
It was like a fog, impossible to see through.
Yuwen Lan didn't take his palanquin, walking alone in the night.
His steps were so quick that Fu Hai could barely keep up.
Fu Hai chased after him while pondering to himself - why did the emperor seem angry?
Had he quarreled with Consort Li?
In fact, even Yuwen Lan didn't know what had come over him.
In that moment earlier, his mind had lost control, yet his body still didn't fully cooperate.
An inexplicable irritation built up in his heart. He just wanted to walk quickly, hoping the cold wind would help clear his head.
That night, Yanshu slept uneasily.
In her dreams, there was a big tiger that alternated between acting cute and trying to bite her, truly terrifying.
Early the next morning, she emerged from behind the curtains with dark circles under her eyes, startling Rendong. "What happened to you, my lady? Did you not sleep well last night?"
Yanshu sighed, "I spent the whole night running for my life in my dreams. It was exhausting."
After washing her face, she felt a bit more awake. Rendong brought over the makeup box and started applying powder to her face while nagging, "You're going with His Majesty to watch the ice show at Jinbo Garden today. You must dress up nicely."
Ah yes, the ice show at Jinbo Garden. Yanshu finally remembered.
Oh, she could leave the palace!
She suddenly felt happy. Even though she would have to return, it was nice to get some fresh air!
Since staying low-key was useless now anyway, she let Rendong and Lianxin work their magic. When her makeup was done, she looked in the mirror to see bright eyes, white teeth, and an ethereal beauty.
The palace maids all praised her, "My lady has such a good foundation, you should dress up like this every day!"
Yanshu didn't think much of it, only instructing, "Bring me a thick cloak."
She estimated it would be cold there and didn't want to freeze.
"Oh, and," she added, "I need to eat more at breakfast later. It's easy to get hungry in cold weather."
Rendong: "..."
Other ladies would be too focused on dressing up to eat, but her mistress never forgot about food.
After finishing a basket of crab roe soup dumplings, a bowl of shrimp noodle soup, a beef pastry, and two small side dishes, Yanshu was finally satisfied and boarded the carriage to leave the palace.
Jinbo Garden was located within the capital city, only about half an hour's journey by carriage.
Due to the emperor and consorts' outing, the roads were heavily guarded. Yanshu was disappointed she couldn't see the bustling streets.
However, when they arrived and she got out of the carriage, she saw the beautiful scenery of Jinbo Garden.
It had snowed just days ago, and white snow still clung to the golden roof tiles and flower bushes, creating a striking contrast with the vermilion walls.
Of course, the most attractive feature of the garden was Jinbo Lake.
Legend had it that in summer, when gentle breezes rippled across the lake's surface, the sparkling waves under the setting sun resembled thousands of golden ripples, hence the name.
Of course, now in the depths of winter, the lake surface had long since frozen into thick ice. Though there were no golden waves, it was as smooth as a mirror, perfect for ice performances.
However, the weather was extremely cold, with the wind feeling like knife cuts on one's face, making it impossible to enjoy the scenery. So after getting out of the carriages, everyone went directly to the lakeside viewing pavilion.
The viewing pavilion had three floors, with the highest offering the best view. To show his approachability, the emperor specially allowed several important court officials and royal clan members to watch together.
Yanshu followed the other consorts into the hall and took her seat.
Consort Ning and Consort Li exchanged a complicated look.
-- This bitch actually hadn't fallen for their trap. Her face was still smooth.
But it didn't matter. There was still a big scene waiting for her later. This time they would surely finish her off completely!
At the same time, the system chimed in Yanshu's mind, [There will be a big scene today.]
Yanshu: [I'll just wait and see how it unfolds.]
Not long after, Yuwen Lan arrived as well.
Everyone hurriedly stood up and bowed, calling out in unison, "We welcome Your Majesty."
Yanshu followed along perfunctorily, sneaking a glance at him. She saw that he was wearing an ink-blue dragon robe with a black crane-patterned cloak over it. His dark hair was tied up high with a purple-gold crown, making him look even more handsome and dignified.
It was supposed to be a solemn occasion, but for some reason, Yanshu suddenly recalled the scene of him kissing her last night, and her face grew hot.
She had to admit, his kissing skills were... quite impressive, ahem.
Today, only the higher-ranking consorts above Talented Lady had come from the harem. There weren't many to begin with, and Yuwen Lan easily distinguished her thoughts among the fangirling inner voices of the others.
He almost lost control of his expression for a moment.
What?
His kissing skills were quite good?
This woman!
However, at the same time, he couldn't help but recall last night's events, as well as that book "The Hot-Blooded General and the Flirtatious Widow"...
Fu Hai suddenly noticed that the tips of the emperor's ears had quietly turned red.
What's going on? Could it be that the hall is too cold, and His Majesty has frozen up?
Yuwen Lan: "..."
He had no choice but to endure, barely maintaining his dignified expression as he took his seat.
Next, the imperial clan, royal relatives, and court nobles filed into the hall to pay their respects.
According to rank and closeness, the first to appear were Princess Yuwen Yan and her consort Zhao Chengwen.
Everyone knew that the late emperor had few descendants, with only the current emperor and the princess as his children. Thus, the princess's status was evident.
Yanshu rarely attended such grand occasions. She observed that the princess appeared to be three or four years older than the emperor, dressed in extremely rich and elegant attire.
She recalled how Consort Ning's jeweled hairpin had dazzled everyone at the New Year's Eve banquet, but the princess's outfit today was even more extravagant - a gold and jade step-shake ornament, an eight-treasure pearl-wrapped gold hairpin, a gold-embroidered long jacket, and a bright red fox fur cape with gold plum blossom patterns.
Her aura was even more powerful than Noble Consort Zhou's.
However, her consort Zhao Chengwen maintained a meek and submissive demeanor.
Tsk, it seems that being the consort of a princess isn't an easy job either.
Yuwen Lan: "???"
What kind of talk is this? What does she mean by "easy job"?
Unable to be distracted at this moment, he first addressed the princess, "Royal Sister, please don't stand on ceremony. Have a seat."
Yuwen Yan complied and sat down with her consort in a nearby position.
Not far away, Consort Ning's back straightened a bit.
After all, these were her paternal uncle and aunt. Among all the people present today, who could outrank this couple?
Noble Consort Zhou was naturally displeased, especially since the Empress Dowager was resting in the palace today and hadn't attended.
However, her parents were about to make their entrance as well.
Duke Cheng'en and his Madame came forward to pay their respects, "We pay our respects to Your Majesty."
Yanshu and Rendong exchanged glances, thinking to themselves, [This is that old lecher. Look at those dark circles under his eyes, it's obvious he's suffering from kidney deficiency!]
[And yet he still keeps concubines numbered five, six, seven, eight... He's not afraid of dying from overexertion one day, expiring in some concubine's bed...]
Yuwen Lan: "???"
Dying from overexertion???
This girl is really...!
However, he had to admit that Duke Cheng'en did indeed have some dark circles under his eyes. He thought for a moment and asked, "Uncle, how has your health been lately?"
Duke Cheng'en paused, then quickly smiled and said, "Thank you for Your Majesty's concern. I am quite well."
His Madame, however, gave him a side glance and inwardly spat, [Bah! Shameless scoundrel! Even His Majesty can see it. You deserve to be embarrassed! You've disgraced all the ancestors of your Zhou family!]
Yuwen Lan: "..."
It seems it's actually true.
