Fang He thought Kangxi would have asked this question a long time ago.
She could never reveal her true origins.
She would gamble on everything else, but never on the cruelty of human nature when it senses the unknown.
She knew all too well that Kangxi’s schemes were beyond her.
She had no idea how many of her slips had already been noticed.
Sooner or later, someone would realize she was different from the original Fang He.
She had long prepared her explanation, revising it countless times in her mind.
But Kangxi had never asked—until now, after they already had two children.
Her mental script hadn’t been updated in ages, so when he suddenly asked, she was caught off guard for a moment.
However, Fang He was always composed in emergencies.
She simply tilted her head back, fixing her gaze steadily on Kangxi.
“I thought you wouldn’t ask anymore.”
Kangxi lightly traced her neck, his tone ambiguous, “I thought you would tell me when you were ready.”
But even if he held that bastard in his hands and cradled him tenderly, giving up the harem’s beauties one after another, he still couldn’t fully trust her.
Fang He pulled back slightly, studying Kangxi’s indifferent expression and smiled.
“Actually, I don’t even know who I am. I only remember… that I died once.”
Kangxi’s eyelid twitched sharply, but Fang He continued with unusual calmness.
“You should know, after Aunt died, I fell down the steps before the side hall of Qianqing Palace. If not for my maternal uncle protecting me, I would have been sent straight to Anping Hall. Right now, there’s probably grass growing on my grave—ugh!”
Kangxi particularly disliked those last words and tightened his grip on her as she went on.
He guessed reasonably: “Was it Wulinzhu Dowager who sent you back?”
Fang He shook her head, “I can’t remember clearly. I only recall that in a daze, I entered a very eerie place and met an old woman dressed in red. She seemed to lead me through some magical places before pushing me back from that realm.”
She avoided describing the apparition of that imaginary old woman in detail.
Even though she had seen the portrait of that great-grandmother in Jingren Palace, the more she said, the more she risked making mistakes.
Being vague left room for maneuver.
Lowering her gaze, she whispered, “When I first came back, I was very confused, because my mind was filled with all kinds of strange things that, when I thought carefully, I couldn’t remember at all. So I don’t know if I am truly her. My personality is completely opposite, yet I remember everything that happened to me growing up.”
Kangxi stroked her back thoughtfully.
“If you really crossed the gates of the Netherworld, defying heaven and reversing yin and yang, that would be no small feat. Your soul would have absorbed the aura of the Huangquan Road. That could explain the confusion.”
Fang He inwardly scoffed, ‘Had this lord read some fantastical storybook?’
That patch-up explanation was even more flawless than hers.
Listening calmly to Kangxi’s words, she raised her head again, her expression suddenly turning wicked, full of mischievous charm as she lightly bit his lip.
“Or maybe I’m some ancient ghost who possessed Xu Fang He’s body. Are you scared, Your Majesty?”
Kangxi showed no expression.
“I am the True Dragon Son of Heaven, protected by dragon qi. Even if you are a ghost or a monster, what can you do to me?”
His hand on her neck felt her pulse slow, so he tightened slightly and bit back.
Kissing Fang He until she was gasping, he finally chuckled softly, “Besides, I’ve watered you with plenty of dragon qi. Judging by how you act, even if you came from the Netherworld, you’d be nothing but a rogue little ghost who lost his way.”
Fang He: “…..”
Speak properly, why are you driving this joke?
Kangxi nuzzled her nose, smiling more playfully.
“Compared to ghosts and monsters, I think you must have gotten some lucky opportunity and turned into a spirit. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have been able to hook me—someone who doesn’t love mortal women—and still become my favorite sly bastard.”
“This whole act today—you must have planned it long ago. Day after day, being with me, and even Consort Yi and the others know, yet you alone kept it from me.”
“That’s because I’m an adult now. I can’t keep snitching like a child, can I?” Fang He blinked innocently, meaning something else entirely.
“Besides, your story isn’t logical. Storybooks say that once a spirit dies, it turns to ashes and smoke. There are only ghosts in the Netherworld, no spirits!”
Kangxi’s gaze flickered slightly.
He knew what the Crown Prince had been up to, but since it wasn’t a matter of life and death, he didn’t want to intervene in everything.
He understood Fang He’s temperament.
As for the Crown Prince… well, Suo’etu must have driven him into a corner.
Some hardship wouldn’t be a bad thing.
He switched the topic, pointing to the booklet of plans.
“Did you learn this from the Netherworld too?”
To make it easy to review, Fang He had pasted sticky notes with summaries on all the pages.
To facilitate adding or removing content anytime, she had the Imperial Household Department install copper rings and made a hard cover like a mounted scroll, turning it into a loose-leaf binder.
Kangxi found it novel.
This method allowed him to precisely flip to the parts he was interested in.
Also, it was easy to take pages out, make annotations, and discard useless sections.
Far more convenient than those sewn volumes bound with hemp thread.
He thought to ask the Household Department to make more copies to send to the Six Ministries’ offices.
“I don’t know!” Fang He said with confidence.
“I just wanted to do things well, and naturally learned these things.”
She secretly scanned him, sensing that the crisis of proving she was truly herself had probably passed, and immediately perked up.
She proudly said, “Maybe I know even more than this! Maybe one day you’ll be begging me for help. Do you remember how one should beg? If you forget, you better think carefully.”
“Yes, you can climb trees, speak English, kick people in your sleep, and snore…” Kangxi replied with a half-smile.
Fang He: “……”
‘Well, his tastes are quite particular, huh?’
Kangxi seemed to read her thoughts.
“By the way, I originally planned to have the Court Attire and ceremonial escort ready for Imperial Noble Consort, and pick a day to announce it…”
Seeing Fang He’s eyes brighten sharply, he said coolly, “Since the Consort says so, then let’s wait a little longer. I will issue the decree when I have a favor to ask her.”
Fang He: “…..”
‘So when’s that going to be? In the year of the monkey or horse?’
This shameless bastard owns the entire Forbidden City.
What’s stopping him from just taking it?
She immediately switched to a flattering smile and hugged Kangxi’s waist, gently swaying.
“Then don’t wait. We belong to each other. What need is there for begging? If anyone’s begging, it should be me begging the Emperor~”
Kangxi smiled and said, “Oh? If that’s the case, I’ll have someone bring you the list of gifts. The Imperial Noble Consort’s seal is still in my private treasury—saves having people carry it around.”
Fang He felt oddly familiar with what he said and pouted unhappily, “If it’s in my treasury or yours, it’s fine, but if it’s in your private treasury, you could give the reward to someone else. That’s unfair!”
Kangxi stifled a laugh, wearing a serious face.
“If you want to request the joint decree, you must have the attitude of a petitioner. I can guarantee that anything in my treasury will sooner or later be yours. But if you use this reward to obtain the Imperial Noble Consort title, that’s your gain.”
Fang He was about to argue but suddenly stopped.
She recalled why it sounded so familiar.
When she gave Jiujiu silver tickets and told her to buy food from the small kitchen with them, she said something similar.
Jiujiu protested, saying that the supplies in Yanxi Palace’s treasury belonged equally to the three of them, so since one-third of the silver was hers, why couldn’t she keep it herself?
Fang He sternly replied to her daughter, “Children shouldn’t eat these things. I was clearly giving you a chance to sneak a bite. What’s in my treasury will eventually be yours. But if you use the silver to buy food you otherwise couldn’t have, that’s your gain!”
Thinking of this, she stood with her hands on her hips, furious to the point of steam coming out of her ears.
“What’s wrong with you two? Always eavesdropping!”
Earlier, Jiujiu overheard her intimate teasing with Kangxi and would clutch her bottom, shouting “Eight petals!” causing Fang He, who was usually thick-skinned, to blush uncontrollably.
Now Kangxi was using her and her daughter’s little battles to tease her, making life unbearable!
She turned to leave, but Kangxi easily caught her arm.
“Where are you going?”
Fang He snorted coldly, “I’m going to sleep with my son. You can go find your daughter and match your stink.”
Kangxi chuckled lowly and scooped Fang He up sideways, heading to the bedchamber.
Soon, the gauze curtains trembled, leaking his husky, ambiguous voice.
“What kind of scent am I? Guoguo should taste it for herself…”
At night, Yanxi Palace was lit everywhere, but the private chamber was dimly lit, perhaps stirred by the flickering candlelight sneaking in through the window cracks.
The embroidered curtains swayed more vigorously in the darkness.
The occasional low moans, combined with the curtains’ dance, spread a musk-like yet indescribable seductive atmosphere, making the late spring night feel even longer.
After Fang He fell into a deep sleep from exhaustion, Kangxi washed and lay down again holding her.
Watching her clutch his arm and sleep soundly, he reached out a slender finger, gently brushing her face with the back of it, finally resting on her slightly swollen red lips.
That rogue little mouth never stayed honest.
She only told what she wanted others to know—perhaps not lies, but not exactly the truth either.
But no matter who she was, since Heaven had sent her to him, she could only be his!
Even if she couldn’t fully trust him, as long as she had him in her heart, he could wait a lifetime.
Kangxi closed his eyes and expertly pulled her into his embrace, as always.
***
The next day, the Empress Dowager’s decree issued from the palace immediately stirred a commotion among the people.
The previously scorned Women’s Academy suddenly became the best place under heaven.
Who would have expected that?
Those who had come to Consort Jing outside the palace to arrange for girls to attend the academy but later wanted to withdraw were now politely and eagerly knocking to enroll their womenfolk.
Unfortunately, there was no medicine for regret in this world.
Consort Jing’s people tore up the imperial edict right before their eyes, plainly telling them the Women’s Academy would not turn away any eligible girls.
From now on, there would be an entrance exam.
Having withdrawn once, they had lost the privilege of admission without testing.
Consort Yi and Consort Jing both found Fang He’s decision hard to understand.
Although many candidates came from Han military banners, some were from Manchu banners.
Even without power or influence, their presence would make the academy more prestigious.
After all, there were thirty academies.
Even if each took only a few dozen girls, that still added up to over a thousand students.
Without candidates from all over, plus some extremely conservative families, the capital and surrounding area might not be able to fill so many spots.
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