That night,
when Song Zhao finished washing up and was about to rest, Xiao Fuzi came over to speak with her,
"Your Ladyship, everything has been arranged properly. Zhi Hua is clever and knows what to do. In the future, she will pay close attention to every move Consort Hui makes and report back to Your Ladyship in full detail."
Song Zhao nodded lightly and took a sip of orchid jade liquid from the jade pot.
Xiao Fuzi handed her a handkerchief and whispered,
"His Majesty insisted on sending Consort Hui to our Changle Palace. On the surface he said it was for her to accompany you, but I suspect it is because Consort Hui cried and made a fuss to His Majesty, afraid of living alone, so he sent her here to live with you. This way, he indulges Consort Hui and makes you feel he is being considerate of you."
Xiao Fuzi's eyes have always been sharp and penetrative.
Song Zhao listened but did not take it to heart. She just smiled coolly and said, "His Majesty is accustomed to being tactful. This is nothing new to you."
Seeing Song Zhao was not bothered, Xiao Fuzi said,
"It is good Consort Hui lives here after all. At least there will be someone to chat with you and keep you company. Also, you entered the palace last year through the draft selection. The mourning period for His Majesty will be over this July, and that will be when the formal selection takes place. Who knows how many new girls will flood in then. With two main consort titles occupied here, those new girls won't be assigned to share your palace, which spares you the nuisance."
Song Zhao gently caressed her smooth nails. Her eyes darkened,
"Yes, the draft selection is in July. By now the roster of all the families' maidens should have been submitted. It seems this palace will really become lively after this."
*
By early June, the weather in the capital had become exceptionally hot,
with the air saturated with humidity that made it hard to breathe.
Fortunately, the Empress and Consort Xiao were nearing childbirth, so greetings to the six palaces were suspended. With sufficient ice delivered to Changle Palace, Song Zhao's discomfort during pregnancy was alleviated.
Counting the days, Consort Hui had moved to Changle Palace for over ten days now.
Song Zhao had guessed that the reason Consort Hui moved in to live with her was perhaps so she could take advantage and gain more favor?
After all, Xiao Jingheng visited Song Zhao frequently. With her pregnancy, she could not serve him in bed. Wouldn't it be perfect for Consort Hui to take advantage of this opportunity?
But the reality was completely different from what Song Zhao had imagined.
Whenever Xiao Jingheng came to see Song Zhao, not only did Consort Hui not eagerly throw herself at him, she always politely greeted him then withdrew to her own quarters, seemingly intentionally avoiding Xiao Jingheng.
Sometimes when Xiao Jingheng stayed late with Song Zhao, or if it was raining and inconvenient for him to leave, Song Zhao would persuade him,
"Your Majesty, why not just spend the night at Changle Palace? It would save the trouble."
But Xiao Jingheng always declined with a wave of his hand,
"You are pregnant. I came to see you. For me to stay the night at another's place would only upset you."
Outwardly, Song Zhao snuggled against Xiao Jingheng looking very moved.
But deep down, she really could not agree with his words.
Even if Xiao Jingheng did not stay with Consort Hui, he could always summon someone else to Zhaoyang Palace. The one to feel hurt would still feel hurt.
So his repeated rejections of Consort Hui, without glancing her way even once, could only mean one thing:
Xiao Jingheng did not seem that pleased with Consort Hui either.
Today at noon, Song Zhao and Consort Hui were having lunch together.
Many of the dishes on the table today were famous ones from Jiangsu and Zhejiang, Consort Hui's hometown fare.
As a result, her appetite grew sharply. She had already helped herself to a second bowl of rice.
Song Zhao laughed and urged her, "Sister, eat a little less. That Dongpo pork is quite greasy. Looks like you're going to finish the whole plate. Aren't you afraid you'll get a stomachache?"
Consort Hui's mouth was full of rice. She laughed foolishly and mumbled,
"I won't get a stomachache! The food in the palace tastes so much better than what I had at home before!"
"Even if it tastes good, you can eat it every day. No need to gorge in one meal." Song Zhao placed a cup of milk beside Consort Hui and casually teased, "You used to never miss a meal. Yet yesterday when His Majesty came for dinner, you just greeted him and didn't even eat before withdrawing. It was like you deliberately avoided him."
At these words, the smile on Consort Hui's face immediately froze.
She put down her chopsticks, swallowed the food in her mouth with difficulty, took a sip of milk to push it down, then awkwardly explained,
"No...no. I was playing sandball with Rui Er and the others that afternoon. I happened to be tired so I went back to rest, that's all. Besides, His Majesty came to see Sister Song. I shouldn't have..."
"Ow..."
Consort Hui was speaking when she suddenly saw Song Zhao frown and utter a low moan, one hand on her belly.
She hurried over to Song Zhao's side and asked anxiously,
"What's wrong, Sister Song?"
Song Zhao gently massaged her belly in circles and smiled,
"It's nothing. The baby just kicked me."
Consort Hui also breathed a sigh of relief, then giggled, "Hehe, so Sister Song's baby is being naughty! Sister Song, may I feel him?"
As Consort Hui reached to touch her, Xiao Fuzi immediately stepped forward to stop her.
But Song Zhao grabbed Consort Hui's wrist and brought her hand to rest lightly on her belly, still smiling as she let her gently caress it.
As soon as Consort Hui's hand made contact, perhaps the baby kicked again, and she quickly recoiled in fright,
"Oh! He kicked me!"
Song Zhao laughed. "I can see you really like children too. I remember, before your birthday, I saw you flying kites in the imperial garden. You said your greatest wish was to be reunited with your family soon. You also said once there was an imperial heir, your family could enter the palace, so you hoped for that eagerly. But you're always avoiding His Majesty instead of spending the nights with him. So where will that imperial heir come from?"
"I don't want it..." Originally all smiles, Consort Hui pouted sadly at these words and said aggrievedly,
"Serving is painful, and there will be blood... I'm most afraid of pain! The other day, Consort Chen also told me, giving birth is even more painful. So I'm more afraid now..."
Song Zhao couldn't help widening her eyes, quite astonished. "You don't even know there are pain relief measures for childbirth?"
Consort Hui shook her head blankly. "At home, I asked Mother and she said giving birth to me was like laying an egg, very easy and painless. So I figured, laying an egg is a quick and effortless thing. How could it hurt?"
"Hahahaha!"
Both Song Zhao and Xiao Fuzi were amused by her words.
At that moment, as Song Zhao laughed at the utterly confused Consort Hui, she actually felt she could not see through her at all.
Later, when Consort Hui returned to rest in the afternoon, Zhi Hua came to report.
She said aside from a fondness for snacks, Consort Hui just liked getting the palace maids to play games with her, nothing else inappropriate.
So Xiao Fuzi said, "Keep a close eye on her for another ten days and see if you discover anything."
But Song Zhao rested her chin in her hand and stared out the window towards Consort Hui's quarters, slightly puzzled as she said,
"If this is all an act from her, I really can't figure out what she's after."
【I'm feeling crazy today, so here's a fourth update.】
