Chapter 25: Spoil Her to the Max (2/2)

“If you knew this would happen, why did you give her to the Crown Prince in the first place? Now that the Crown Prince is infatuated with her, and the Emperor has even developed murderous intentions, do you think she is still someone you can be concerned about?”

Lu Yunjian looked listless, neither speaking, explaining, nor responding.

His features were sharp and handsome, somewhat too sharp, stunning at first glance and startling upon closer inspection.

But now, his subdued brows and eyes gave him a desolate and bleak appearance.

The Empress lifted her skirt and paced the room, 

“The Ning family has already fallen to this state; she is already a discarded piece, a discarded piece.”

Her exquisite makeup exuded coldness, 

“Even the most beautiful porcelain, once shattered, is shattered. If you go to pick it up, you might hurt yourself, and if you’re not careful, it could even endanger your life and family.”

Lu Yunjian raised his thick eyelashes and lazily said, 

“Your Majesty, I haven’t said anything against you, have I?”

The Empress looked at Lu Yunjian’s lazy demeanor and couldn’t help but laugh, 

“I have been exhausting myself here, and what about you?”

Speaking of this, she felt a bit frustrated, 

“If only I could have my own child, I wouldn’t have to go through such trouble. It’s a pity that I am not blessed with a child, forcing me to painstakingly plan!” 

“If you lose your soul over a mere woman and let others see through it, knowing the origin of this woman, then we would be the sinners of our family!”

The Empress had no children of her own, and her position as Empress was quite frustrating. 

For over a decade, she had been cautious, walking on thin ice.

For her own sake and for the sake of her family, she had to engage in some scheming.

When she found out that Lu Yunjian had a stunning woman outside, she proposed this plan, hoping to plant a pawn beside the Crown Prince for future use. 

Who would have thought that this woman would be so incompetent, not only failing to stay but also falling into the Crown Princess’s trap.

Lu Yunjian, hearing this, looked at the Empress, 

“Your Majesty, perhaps you could try to have a child?”

Upon hearing this, the Empress’s gaze instantly shot towards him, looking at him in disbelief, 

“Yunjian, what are you saying? Are you piercing my heart?”

She asked word by word, her eyes already moist.

Under her gaze, Lu Yunjian slowly averted his eyes.

The room’s atmosphere was stifling, only the sound of their breathing, one after another.

After a long while, Lu Yunjian finally said in a hoarse voice, 

“Sister.”

He didn’t say much more, but his voice carried guilt.

The Empress looked somewhat dazed, shaking her head, 

“Enough, let’s not talk about it.”

She turned around, allowing her emotions to gradually calm down, 

“But there is one thing you must pay attention to.”

Lu Yunjian asked, “What is it?”

The Empress said, 

“A few days ago, when you saw the Emperor, was there anything different about him?”

Lu Yunjian frowned, then shook his head, 

“No.”

The Empress thought of the suspicious marks on Emperor Jingxi’s neck and sighed, 

“I always feel that something is off with the Emperor these past few days.”

Lu Yunjian, hearing this, smiled, 

“The Emperor probably had a woman. I saw it.”

The Empress asked, 

“Oh? Where did she come from?”

Lu Yunjian said indifferently, 

“I don’t know. I only caught a glimpse from afar. She must have been a stunning beauty.”

The Empress thought deeply, 

“This is indeed rare.”

Lu Yunjian said, 

“It’s nothing. He hasn’t taken in any new women in the harem these past few years. At his prime, how could he truly be indifferent?”

The Empress smiled coldly, 

“This is good. Bring her back to the palace, and it will be lively.”

***

Last night, Ah Wu slept sweetly.

She had already freed herself from the shackles of worldly virtues. 

After all, she would not hang herself, nor would she regret. 

She should be happy; she had slept with two emperors and a royal uncle, surely a unique record in the Da Hui dynasty.

She slept soundly, but was awakened early the next morning by some noise. 

She lay on her side on the bed, hugging the brocade quilt, listening carefully.

It seemed like the sound of drums and music, ethereal and distant, like celestial music.

Today, the Emperor would perform the prayer rituals, which must be a grand and awe-inspiring scene. 

The Empress would participate, the Crown Prince would participate, and Lu Yunjian would also participate.

Speaking of which, they were still relatives, one big family.

Ah Wu imagined the scene of their meeting, imagining Lu Yunjian and the Crown Prince shaking hands and laughing together, which was quite amusing.

After noon, she had her meal and was about to rest when Futei arrived, directing several young eunuchs who carried a gilded copper jewelry box, a large lacquered box, and a sandalwood and jade treasure ship jewelry box.

Ah Wu casually opened them to look and was quite surprised.

Inside were all sorts of rare and beautiful jade items.

She picked up a small cat hairpin, a gold hairpin inlaid with a lifelike cat carved from amethyst, transparent and sparkling, the cat’s expression lively and spirited, its eyes black and shiny, the size of rice grains, made of some unknown gemstone.

She found it amusing and pinned the hairpin in her hair, looking at herself in the large bronze mirror, finding it more and more interesting.

But she also felt puzzled, 

“This is quite fun, but it seems like something for children.”

In an ordinary household, such a rare amethyst would surely be carved into a serious and dignified object, something presentable and useful in important occasions.

But now, such high-quality jade was carved into a small cat hairpin, clearly not dignified enough.

Futei thought to himself, this was originally intended for Princess Dening, of course, you wouldn’t know.

But he didn’t dare to say more, only smiling and saying, 

“Since the Third Prince gave it to you, naturally, he thinks it suits you. As long as you like it.”

Ah Wu said, 

“Hmm, I do like it very much.”

But in her heart, she thought, 

“Hmph, what Third Prince, isn’t he just the old emperor who became someone’s father!”

This old emperor is truly flirtatious, preparing so many trinkets to please some concubine, and now it’s all come to her, an outsider.

She played with the amethyst cat hairpin and then looked at the other items, so many good things, she could pick and choose at will.

There were all sorts of jewelry inlaid with pearls and jade. 

She soon found a jade ruyi scepter, with a gold base engraved with lingzhi and floral patterns, inlaid with many gemstones, including cat’s eye, lapis lazuli, rose quartz, all clear and sparkling, making it hard to look away.

Ah Wu was overjoyed, hugging the jade ruyi scepter, thinking that she had indeed been foolish before.

Such a generous person, casually giving away rare and precious items, could only be the emperor.

Besides the emperor, who else could be so lavish?

Indeed, as he said, he could give her far more than she had imagined!

Futei watched from the side, smiling, feeling pleased. 

Young women, fond of gold, silver, and jade, which the imperial family had in abundance, could indulge her to her heart’s content, making her obedient and submissive before the emperor.

And he, naturally, had to be careful, taking good care of her now, not daring to offend her.

Though she was just kept outside, in these times, being someone the emperor broke the rules to keep outside was truly a favorite!

Originally, Emperor Jingxi said he would accompany Ah Wu the next evening, but Ah Wu didn’t hold much hope.

He was not an ordinary man, but the ruler of a nation.

As an emperor, his harem was filled with all sorts of beauties. 

Once his gaze left her, it would surely be attracted to someone else.

So she wasn’t in a hurry; being kept by the emperor in Yikun Garden wasn’t bad.

This was the emperor’s private garden, with excellent views, and the servants were attentive. 

What more could she want?

But unexpectedly, after noon, as she was sleeping soundly, she was suddenly awakened and 

told that the Third Prince had summoned her.

Summoned?

Ah Wu opened her sleepy eyes, 

“If he wants to come, let him come…”

After saying this, she lay back down to continue sleeping.

But the maid didn’t let her sleep, insisting on waking her up, 

“The Third Prince has summoned you.”

Ah Wu was a bit annoyed; who wouldn’t be when woken from a deep sleep? 

“I’m sleeping, I won’t go, I won’t go!”

Upon hearing this, the maids around her were stunned, looking at each other.

The emperor’s decree, summoning her to accompany him, was a great honor. 

If any concubine were summoned, they would surely rush over, but this one actually wanted to sleep?

They hesitated for a while, then tentatively tried to wake Ah Wu again.

Ah Wu opened her bleary eyes, confusedly thinking.

After much thought, she only remembered how Emperor Jingxi had disciplined her.

“Behave properly!”

“Stop being so delicate!”

“At least try to be sensible!”

These words swirled rapidly in front of A’wu, making her frown in irritation.

She impatiently said to her maid, 

“No, I won’t go. Ignore him!”

After saying that, she lay back down and continued sleeping.

The maids had no choice but to softly relay the message.

They thought that Emperor Jingxi would naturally be a bit displeased, but who would have thought that moments later, he would appear at the door. 

They were startled and quickly bowed in greeting.

Emperor Jingxi waved his hand, signaling them to leave.

He changed into soft shoes and walked straight into the room, bypassing the screen to look at A’wu lying on the bed.

She was curled up there, sleeping soundly like a kitten, her pale pink nose twitching slightly with each breath.

He was speechless for a moment, then found it amusing: 

“Sleeping so much during the day, you might have trouble sleeping at night.”

But who would have thought that A’wu would raise her hand, swatting him away, then turn over, facing away from him and continuing to sleep. 

The eunuch nearby saw this and his expression changed slightly.

Emperor Jingxi, however, didn’t seem to mind. 

He gestured for the eunuch to leave, then lifted the hem of his robe and sat beside the bed. 

Leaning down, he whispered softly in her ear, 

“Shall I take you out to play? If you don’t wake up, I won’t take you.”

His low, gentle voice reached A’wu’s ears. 

Still drowsy, she didn’t even open her eyes, but she wanted to go, so she mumbled, 

“Where are we going…?” 

Emperor Jingxi, with his hands behind his back, replied lightly, 

“Nowhere special, just teasing you.”

A’wu:”….”

She grabbed a pillow and, without looking, tossed it out, then buried her head back into the bed.

Actually, she wasn’t sleepy anymore, but she just didn’t want to deal with him.

Emperor Jingxi reached out with his long arm and caught the pillow effortlessly, placing it aside. 

He sighed, “Look at this temper.”

He suddenly felt a bit helpless. 

He had just been dealing with the unruly crown prince and came back only to find this little lady throwing a tantrum. 

A’wu, still facing away from him, muttered, 

“I’ve always been spoiled and capricious, never proper, and I don’t know how to behave!” 

Emperor Jingxi was momentarily speechless at her words.

Her memory was indeed sharp.

He slowly took her wrist into his long fingers and coaxed her softly, 

“Don’t be mad. I’ll take you out to eat something delicious. Get up and get ready.” 

As he spoke, he clearly noticed her fingers twitching slightly.

Tsk-

How greedy.

But A’wu still didn’t get up. 

She put on an act, 

“What’s there to eat? Probably nothing special. If it’s not good, I don’t want to go…”

Emperor Jingxi deliberately leaned close to her ear, his voice low and tender, 

“With catkins floating in the air, yellow leaves covering the ground, and the cool autumn rain, we’ll roast the fresh game I just hunted, sprinkle some seasoning on it—it’ll be tender and juicy—”

A’wu sat up immediately, 

“Alright, let’s go then.”

Emperor Jingxi looked at her obviously eager expression and raised an eyebrow slightly.

He didn’t say anything out loud, but in his heart, he thought, 

“If she ever gets sold off one day, it’ll definitely be because of her greed.”