OBS Chapter 113: Waiting for an Opportunity to Come to the Fore
Chapter 113: Waiting for an Opportunity to Come to the Fore
After a play in Changyin Pavilion ended, Tong Jia Wanru became the second most popular person in Chuxiu Palace after Shi Rongyue.
She had been popular before. After all, anyone with a discerning eye could see that she was bound to enter the palace and her position would not be low.
But entering the palace does not mean that she will be favored, and she is not as young and fresh as other concubines. She is already 24 years old this year and has long passed her jade-like years. It can be said that she was just a decoration when she entered the palace. But now it is different.
The other ladies who went to Changyin Pavilion to listen to the opera that day saw with their own eyes that the other party followed the emperor back with a blushing face. They knew something must have happened.
Not all the beauties who entered the palace were after the younger princes. A large number of them actually had their sights on the emperor's harem. Seeing this, not only did they feel jealous, but they couldn't hide the envy and bitterness in their hearts.
Once the news of Tong Jia Wanru returning with the emperor was exaggerated, it spread immediately. Some people privately complained and said sour things, calling her shameless.
But there were also people who took the initiative to flatter and praise. As soon as the news spread, the Ministry of Internal Affairs diligently sent people to deliver the newly stored tribute peaches "Chunxue".
This was the first gift in the eyes of other people in Chuxiu Palace. Of course, the Ministry of Internal Affairs also gave it to Princess Shi Da, and even to her second sister, Princess Shi Er, who fell into the water and was bedridden.
But no matter how noble the prince was, he was not as noble as the emperor, so for a while Tong Jia Wanru became more and more popular, even surpassing Shi Rongyue who was the most popular before.
As a result, even the most patient concubines began to get anxious, especially those who had never been summoned before, who were as anxious as ants on a hot pan.
After all, the day after the Emperor's birthday is the day for the re-election, which is only a few days away. Everyone couldn't help but get close to Tong Jia Wanru, and of course some also got close to Shi Rongyue.
After all, the scene of the other party following the prince back was seen by others. Some wanted to learn from his experience, some wanted to flatter him, and more wanted to go to Changyin Pavilion to listen to opera with him.
Because the Empress Dowager was a fan of opera, she became fascinated with it after listening to the opera of the Jiangnan Kunban troupe, and went to listen to it every day thereafter.
Tong Jia Wanru and Shi Rongyue would not be left behind, and during this period there were also new people who went there. Chuxiu Palace was extremely lively for a while. In comparison, Shi Nanxi's side was quiet and deserted.
The reason she came back that day was that she fell into the water as an excuse. She didn't want anyone to notice anything unusual. Plus, she was drugged with an aphrodisiac and almost had sex with Kangxi... As a result, she was physically weak and in order to avoid Kangxi, she stayed in bed to recuperate. She never went to Changyin Pavilion again and she stayed there for three days.
During this time, apart from Concubine Yi sending someone to visit and deliver medicinal herbs, no one else disturbed her. So she lay in bed all day to recuperate, and Shi Rongyue went out every day, which led to their quarrel again and no one else knew about it.
Kangxi did not take any action regarding the Chinese medicine, but Shi Nanxi was not in a hurry because this showed that Kangxi had more doubts about Shi Rongyue and she would not be able to be proud for long.
So after taking today's medicine, she continued to calmly read the poetry collection. After graduating from university in modern times, she devoted herself to work and basically returned what she learned to her teacher.
Now that she was going to enter Kangxi's harem, and the other party was a learned man, she had to seize the time to learn more poetry.
After Hongying helped the Second Princess drink her medicine, she turned around and saw the Second Princess picked up the book to read again. She couldn't help feeling a little worried.
That day, after listening to the emperor's piano, the second princess kept talking about the emperor, her eyes changed slightly, and even the despair in her body disappeared.
She was so excited that she cried with joy. The Second Princess finally understood her feelings for the Emperor. Especially after she learned about the souvenir incident between the First Princess and Madam Shi, even she, an outsider, felt heartbroken for the Second Princess.
Fortunately, the Second Princess is now protected by the Emperor and can enter the palace directly without being sent away. However, she didn't expect that when she mentioned the Emperor later, the Second Princess would avoid the topic even more sensitively than before, so she had to keep it to herself.
Shi Nanxi, who was reading a book, felt Hongying's hesitant expression and did not say anything. She killed three birds with one stone by taking advantage of the aphrodisiac incident.
First, it excited Kangxi so much that he could no longer restrain his affection for her.
The second is to give himself an opportunity to change his feelings towards Kangxi.
Third, it gave her a legitimate reason to no longer endure being controlled by Shi Rongyue and Madam Shi.
Now all she needs is one last opportunity, an opportunity for her and Kangxi to express their feelings to each other, and that opportunity has already appeared, so she only needs to wait quietly.
The room was quiet, with only the faint sound of turning pages. After an unknown amount of time, there was a noise outside the door.
"Sister Shi Er, are you feeling better?" The next moment, the bead curtain fluttered and Tong Jia Wanru walked in with a smile on her face.
Shi Er...sister? Shi Nanxi's hand paused, and the next moment she turned to look at Tong Jia Wanru who came in. She put down her hand, pursed her lips and revealed a shy smile:
"It turns out that it's Sister Tong Jia. Thank you for your concern. I'm much better now. Hongying, go and serve tea to Sister Tong Jia."
Hongying was about to serve tea when she heard this, but Tong Jia Wanru quickly stopped her:
"Don't bother. I just came back from the opera and was about to set the table. I missed my second sister Shi Er because I haven't seen her for a few days. The Ministry of Internal Affairs happened to send a tribute peach called "Spring Snow", so I'll give you one to try."
After she finished speaking, Baicao behind her came forward with a plate. On the plate was a big, red peach that gave off a strong fragrance.
Seeing this, Shi Nanxi glanced vaguely at the two boxes on the table, which were also filled with tribute peaches "Spring Snow".
One of them was given to Shi Rongyue by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and the other one was forced upon Hongying by Xiao Chunzi on her way back from getting the medicine.
She seemed startled for a moment, then lowered her eyes, tucked her hair around her ears, and whispered:
"Thank you, Sister Tong Jia, for thinking of me. However, tribute peaches are precious and rare, and I am just a patient. There is no need to waste such a good thing, and..."
At this point, she lowered her voice and said, "Sister, I have some tribute peaches here, too."
However, Tong Jia Wanru misunderstood what she heard:
"I know that Sister Shi Er also has tribute peaches, but I sent these as a token of my love. I was originally going to wait for you to wake up before leaving Changyin Pavilion that day, but the emperor said that you would be moved back to Chuxiu Palace after you woke up, so I had no choice but to follow him."
At this point, she bit her lip lightly, and a blush appeared on her cheeks.
After hearing this, Shi Nanxi's eyelashes trembled violently, and her hand holding the book tightened. After a while, she spoke, but her voice was slightly more hoarse than before:
"I heard Hongying tell me about what happened that day after I woke up. Thank you, Sister Tongjia, for your concern. I will accept it with a thick face."
Tong Jia Wanru smiled even more deeply when she heard this. That day, she told her cousin the emperor that she would come to visit Shi Nanxi, so she naturally could not forget it, lest her cousin the emperor know the misunderstanding in his heart.
Afterwards, the two chatted for a while and Tong Jia Wanru said goodbye. She had just finished listening to a play and was hungry. Baicao behind her carefully handed the tribute peach to Hongying.
"Sister Tong Jia, take care."
After Tong Jiawanru and her servant left, the room became empty again. Shi Nanxi held the poetry collection but her expression was dazed and she couldn't concentrate on reading anymore.
Seeing this, Hongying glanced at the tribute peach in her hand, then looked at the Second Princess cautiously, and whispered:
"Second Princess, don't think too much. The emperor followed Princess Tong Jia that day because he was worried about you. As for these tribute peaches, they were only given to Princess Tong Jia by the Ministry of Internal Affairs. You told me that your portion of Xiao Chunzi was the best and largest tribute peach that the emperor personally selected. The emperor's love for you..."
"Hongying, stop talking."
Upon hearing this, Shi Nanxi's long and thick eyelashes trembled, casting a shadow under her eyes, and she immediately spoke up to stop Hongying from speaking any further.
Seeing this, Hongying stopped talking and it was like this again.
She clearly saw that the emperor had a clear affection for the second princess, and the second princess also understood the emperor's affection for her. The two of them even had physical contact. It seemed that the emperor would welcome the second princess into the palace. Shouldn't the second princess be happy? Why did she avoid the emperor even more?
But seeing the second princess's reaction, she had no choice but to bite her lip and said:
"Second Princess, the weather has been getting warmer recently, and the peach blossoms in the back hall are blooming more beautifully. You've been lying in bed for a few days, why don't you go out for a walk?"
Because of Tong Jia Wanru, Shi Nanxi couldn't read the book anymore, so he nodded.
When the master and servant packed up and went out, the concubines who were unable to go to the singing pavilion were taking a break outside the door. They were gathered in groups of three or four to talk.