After entering, he softened his voice and asked, “Your Majesty, may this humble servant, Liang Jiugong, attend to your rest?”
Kangxi frowned, “How dare you! Do you not understand my order? I want―”
Liang Jiugong couldn’t hold back his tears and knelt silently, knowing there was no one else to summon for the Emperor.
Kangxi didn’t finish his sentence, the word “want” hanging in the air as Liang Jiugong knelt.
He slowly blinked, showing a hint of drunken realization.
“Prepare water and attend to my bath,” he said, picking up the sobering soup, pausing, then drinking it all in one go, and calmly ordered.
In truth, Kangxi wasn’t saddened by the news of Fang He’s death at the bottom of the cliff.
He only regretted the misfortune of that unlucky woman.
It was just the loss of a woman, after all.
The sun and moon would not cease their cycles, and he remained the most revered emperor of the Qing Dynasty, able to obtain anything he desired.
Nothing had changed.
On the day Kangxi set off back to the capital, news arrived from Beijing that Nalan Rongruo, after lingering on his sickbed for a year and a half, had finally passed away.
Upon receiving the news, Kangxi calmly acknowledged it and boarded the imperial carriage.
But as soon as he entered the carriage, before the curtains were even drawn, he stumbled and nearly fell headfirst onto the carpet.
Li Dequan was terrified, but Wei Zhu was quick to catch Kangxi.
Kangxi steadied himself and looked back at the blue sky, white clouds, and the sea-like waves of the grassland.
This northern expedition had brought him the surrender of the Rus, the respect of the Northern Mongols, and the temporary suppression of Galdan’s expansionist ambitions through the use of secret agents to incite internal strife among the Dzungars, ensuring the stability of the Qing Dynasty.
But he had lost his wise and sensible son, his childhood confidant… and the woman who had unknowingly taken root in his heart, making him feel that what he had lost far outweighed what he had gained.
The hollow in his heart suddenly ached dully, so much so that he wanted to rush back to that forest, back to the day he had abandoned Fang He, and protect her with his life.
But he knew he wouldn’t, and couldn’t.
The Emperor of the Qing Dynasty could not.
As his grandmother had said, it wasn’t that the Emperor couldn’t fall in love-it was that he didn’t deserve to.
Turning back, he sat as steady as a mountain on the soft couch and glanced indifferently at Wei Zhu, “From now on, you’ll serve in the palace.”
***
Two months later, Fang He, who had been drifting in and out of consciousness, finally woke up completely.
She only remembered someone feeding her medicine and porridge, then sinking into a deep, hazy sleep.
She had no idea whether she had miraculously survived or had died and entered another world.
When she opened her eyes, she found herself lying on what seemed to be a boat.
The cabin smelled heavily of rouge and was decorated with an intimate warmth, swaying gently as if in a cradle.
She wondered if she had transmigrated into a courtesan on a pleasure boat.
Just as she was thinking this, a crisp female voice sounded beside her,
“Ah! Young Master Fan is finally awake! Go and call Madam Liang over. Her hangover soup really works!”
Young Master Fan?
Who?
Her?!
Fang He slowly emerged from her dazed and confused state, only to be struck with shock.
When Madam Liang, summoned by the young maid with her hair still in braids, entered the room, she saw a thin figure suddenly sit up on the bed, wide-eyed as if seeing a ghost, one hand groping between her legs and the other touching her head.
Madam Liang: “…”
Naren didn’t mention this girl had a mental problem!
Fang He didn’t feel anything that shouldn’t be there and confirmed that her hair was still intact.
She let out a deep sigh of relief.
Though she knew that in feudal society, it was easier for men to survive, she still preferred being a woman.
After all, while Kangxi was quite handsome, that half-shaved head of his had halved his looks.
Otherwise, why would she still be thinking about that handsome Mongolian guy?
Feeling reassured, she then noticed a faint pain in her shoulder.
Seeing Madam Liang, who was leaning against the door and smiling, dressed in Han clothing from the Qing Dynasty, she realized she hadn’t died.
Jumping off a cliff and still surviving she really was lucky.
She deserved to live a little recklessly!
“Alright, if you don’t want your shoulder to ache every time it’s windy or rainy, you’d better behave,” Madam Liang swayed closer and sat on Fang He’s bed.
“With your frail body, cold constitution, and unstable foundation, I don’t know how the palace managed to raise someone so pitiful.”
“Luckily, I used some priceless medicine to nurse you back a bit. Don’t waste my efforts.”
Fang He winced, pulling back the arm on her injured side and moving the hand from her head to her chest, feeling a bit breathless.
Madam Liang looked to be around thirty years old.
She immediately started groaning, “Sister, my chest hurts. I can’t bear your kindness…”
All her silver was in the palace, her clothes had been changed, and Xiao Mei and Xiao Hua were nowhere to be found.
She had no money, and as for her life… she didn’t want to give that up either.
“Wuwu… It’s all her fault for being too young. Why didn’t she ask that Northern Mongol wolfman how she was supposed to survive after leaving the palace?
She thought that to leave Kangxi, she had to find a place to hide first, right?
She needed to lay low until the storm passed, recover from her injuries, and then wait for Kangxi to return to the capital before being sent elsewhere.
Of course, she wouldn’t have to spend any money during her recovery.
In the meantime, the Empress Dowager would surely arrange for her and send her the necessary funds.
It’s not that she was shameless.
Once she earned some money, she would definitely find a way to secretly return the funds.
But who would have thought that the woman would just take her and jump off a cliff?
She had no idea what time it was now.
Did she leave the palace only to end up with nothing?
No, she couldn’t think about it.
The thought made her heart feel cold and empty.
Thinking of the gold and silver she had left in the palace, she felt as if a huge hole had been torn in her chest, letting in a cold, whistling wind.
Madam Liang covered her stomach, giggling uncontrollably, and threw a flirtatious glance at Fang He and said:
“Well then, should I give you a rub?”
“Everyone knows that the only heir Old Fan left behind is particularly generous. Now that I’m past my prime and business isn’t going well, I’m counting on you to help me get a new flower boat.”
Hmm?
Fang He perked up.
She smiled sweetly and gently held Madam Liang’s small hand, her voice full of tenderness. “Beautiful sister, what are you talking about? You’re still in your prime. Let’s talk more about how generous I can be.”
Generosity meant money, and that was a topic she loved to discuss!
Madam Liang:”…..”
She and the little maid guarding the door were both laughing uncontrollably.
Madam Liang’s tears were streaming from laughter. “Oh dear, I can’t take it anymore…”
Fang He: “……”
Can you say something serious?
“Naren didn’t tell me you were this funny. If she had, I would have sent her the deed of sale long ago,”
Madam Liang said after finally calming down. “Oh, by the way, Naren is the woman who took you and jumped off the cliff. She wasn’t afraid of scaring you to death, nor of how she’d explain it to the nobles.”
Fang He leaned quietly against the bed, as if Madam Liang wasn’t talking about her at all.
Now that she was out of the palace, those past events had nothing to do with her.
With sharp eyes, she pulled a plate of pastries by the bed into her arms, relying solely on her sparkling eyes to urge Madam Liang to continue.
Madam Liang’s eyes flashed with amusement. “The palace maid Fang He saved the emperor twice, was pursued by assassins, and rather than suffer humiliation, she jumped off a cliff and died, her body lost to the wilderness…”
Fang He swallowed a pastry, smacking her lips and shaking her head. “Tsk tsk, good people don’t live long. That girl died so tragically.”
Madam Liang:”….”
“Then what? Then what?” Fang He stuffed another pastry into her mouth, eagerly urging her on.
Madam Liang chuckled and continued,
“The Empress Dowager issued a special decree posthumously honoring Fang He as the Consort Xi. Her remains were collected and cremated, and a cenotaph was erected in the royal mausoleum, buried with the rites of a noble consort.”
“A month ago, the local gentry Old Fan of Yangzhou passed away, leaving behind only his young son, Fan Shaohui, who was fond of visiting brothels. Lustful yet impotent, he squandered the family’s wealth and drowned while hiding from debt in the countryside.”
Fang He widened her eyes and exclaimed, “So where am I now?!”
Madam Liang: “……”
Naturally, you were saved by a loyal servant, who guided you to dig up the wealth Old Fan had hidden, repay the debts, and from then on, you turned over a new leaf and returned to…”
“Back in my hometown, Yizhen County, I’ve been living in the old family house.”
Fang He: “That doesn’t make sense. Repent and reform… and end up on a pleasure boat in the county town?”
“That’s just like a dog that can’t stop eating filth,” Madam Liang scoffed.
“If I didn’t let you stay on the pleasure boat, how could I treat your injuries and help you recover without anyone noticing that you’re actually useless?”
Fang He choked for a moment, then nodded pitifully: “That makes sense. So, how much money do I have left? Is the old house just mine now?”
Even if there were a loyal servant, she couldn’t become Fan Shaohui!
Madam Liang smiled: “Although Naren doesn’t act like a typical woman, she’s very meticulous. Old Fan was stingy, and Fan Shaohui didn’t treat the servants as human beings. There’s no such thing as a loyal servant anymore. The deed of the so-called loyal servant has long been in Naren’s hands.”
“The other servants have also been properly settled by her. She’s now the cook in the old house.”
“The old house has that loyal servant who used to buy servants for ‘Young Master Fan’ locally. The Fan family’s accounts still have five hundred taels of silver, ten acres of paddy fields, thirty acres of dry land, and a manor.”
“Once you’re better, I’ll also leave this life behind and become your housekeeper!”
Fang He was mentally giving Naren a big thumbs-up.
Who could have imagined that jumping off a cliff would land her a house, money, a cook, and a wife?
She grinned happily: “That’s wonderful! I’ve been missing someone as thoughtful and beautiful as you by my side. With you around, I’ll never wander around pleasure houses again!”
Fang He quickly started brainstorming in her mind about what kind of low-profile yet profitable business she could start.
Sweet words flowed out of her mouth without a second thought: “From now on, you’ll be responsible for being as beautiful as a flower, and I’ll work hard to earn money to support the family. Why don’t I just marry you, and we’ll have twins and live a good life together!”
Madam Liang laughed, the corners of her eyes crinkling: “You’re always talking nonsense. How do you know it’ll be twins?”
She didn’t have that kind of thing.
Fang He winked at her: “I can’t just watch you keep a male companion, can I? We’ll each have one… ahem, if Sister Naren is open to it, maybe it’ll be triplets?”
Madam Liang: “……”