Chapter 40

  The palace maid, presumably because she was tired from moving flowers, slightly raised her head, wiped the sweat with her sleeve, and unexpectedly found that everyone was staring at her, momentarily stunned on the spot.

  But just as she didn't expect it, no one expected that Xinzheku would have such a beautiful woman. How to describe her? She was an extremely beautiful woman, the kind of stunning beauty that made you forgetful with just one glance, her beauty had a fatal attraction, after seeing her for the first time, you wanted to see her again, and after seeing her for the second time, you wanted to hold her in your arms.

  Her eyes were extremely clear, making her look very holy. Her pink lips were slightly parted, giving her a few more unspoken girly charms. Ming Fei's skin was great due to the environment, but her skin seemed to have a hint of surpassing Ming Fei, making you want to touch it just by looking at it.

  Her slender figure was hidden under a loose cheongsam, but still revealed a few hints of her proud posture.

  She is a born beauty, even someone like Kangxi was infatuated with her.

  Mingfei sighed inwardly and glanced at Minglan, who was still lost in thought.

  Inside the inner palace, apart from those timid servants who didn't dare lift their heads, everyone else was still staring at that palace maid.

  Ming Fei let out a light cough.

  This sound was like a stone thrown into the lake that was about to thaw, with a loud crash, the ice surface shattered, and the water seemed to flow freely.

  Kangxi also felt unnatural, he had always thought himself not a person who would be infatuated with beauty.

  In order to cover up his own embarrassment, he had to make himself look serious.

  Even if Mingfei pretended not to see the beauty now, Kangxi would definitely ask himself afterwards. She might as well show her magnanimity, so she smiled and said: "Just that palace maid, come over."

  The palace maid walked respectfully to Mingfei and Kangxi's front and knelt down: "Your servant has seen the emperor, noble concubine."

  "What's your name? Where are you working?"

  "In response to Your Highness's question, I am Wei Ruxue, a servant from the Imperial Storage who is specifically in charge of tending to flowers and plants."

  Ming Fei nodded slightly: "Lift your head up and let me take another look."

  Mingfei felt that everyone around her seemed to be holding their breath, afraid of startling the beauty in front of them.

  She is like a bright moon in the night sky, her body seems to have a faint glow, making people involuntarily feel ashamed of themselves.

  When Mingfei turned her head to look at Kangxi, she saw something different in those unfathomable eyes.

  She also smiled, her curved eyes and mouth corners, as if telling a moving story, can attract people for no reason. She is different from Wei Ruxue, she is also beautiful, but her beauty is warm, like the gentle stream in the mountains, slowly nourishing the land, that unconscious beauty takes root deep in people's hearts, and grows every moment, growing into towering trees.

  Ming Lan muttered: "At first glance, it was indeed very beautiful, but after a closer look, it's not as good-looking as my sister, the noble consort."

  Mingfei patted her on the shoulder and turned back to instruct Peiyu, "Reward her with a pair of bangles, she's not having an easy time either."

  Wei Ru Xue knocked her head again.

  A beautiful maiden living in the palace, how could she not yearn to fly high one day, only she didn't expect the opportunity to come so suddenly, but she was determined that it wouldn't be long before the Emperor would summon her.

  Because of Wei Ruxue's sudden appearance, the atmosphere in the inner palace was a bit strange. Minglan didn't think much of it at first, but later seemed to have a vague feeling that something was off and became listless. Abao had hoped that Mingfei could play with him, but Mingfei had to attend to Kangxi, so he could only pay attention to the other people around him.

  Kangxi looked at her as if he had never seen Wei Ruxue before, still talking to Mingfei about the origin of these flowers and plants with ease, but occasionally, something else would flow out of his eyes, which Mingfei couldn't understand, so she just lowered her head to look at the flowers.

  Inside the temple, a faint scent of incense wafted through the air. Mingfei checked around and found that some were still inside while others had been moved to the courtyard.

  Kangxi sat for a while and then left.

  Li Dequan, a man of great insight, couldn't help but notice Kangxi's thoughts and followed behind him, muttering to himself: "That palace maid named Wei Ruxue is so beautiful, I've never seen anyone in the harem who can compare to her. She's also skilled at taking care of flowers and plants. It would be perfect if she were summoned to take care of the flowers and plants in the Nurturing Heart Hall for His Majesty."

  Kangxi smiled and glanced at him: "You're good at this sort of thing, you handle it."

  Li Dequan let out a sigh: "Hmph!"

  Kangxi walked slowly on the ground with his hands behind his back, suddenly remembering the smile on Mingfei's face, and for some reason, he felt a little dazzling. He shook his head and thought of something else: "Who is on duty today?"

  "Regarding Lord Wan's words, it is Lady Mingzhu."

  Kangxi nodded: "Go directly to the Qianqing Palace."

  Li Dequan responded with a loud shout: "Prepare the sedan chair for the Qianqing Palace!"

  Kangxi left, Minglan snuggled into Mingfei's arms: "Minglan, did you get into some kind of trouble with the Imperial Concubine?"

  Ming Fei smiled and patted her: "Not at all."

  Minglan pouted and said, "Even if the Imperial Concubine doesn't say it, Minglan knows that she shouldn't have mentioned that palace maid. Wei Ruxue is so beautiful, what if the Emperor likes her instead of sister in the future?"

  Mingfei smiled and said, "You're indeed smarter than before, but still a bit young. The Emperor is our own cousin, how could he possibly abandon his own cousin for an outsider? No way, don't think nonsense."

  Minglan suddenly raised her voice: "Princess Rong is deceiving people, didn't the late emperor reject his own cousin for someone else's sake back then?!"

  Mingfei slammed her hand on the table: "How dare you!"

  This kid is really... how can he say such nonsense?

  Mingfei had always been very fond of this younger sister, and didn't even want to say a harsh word to her, let alone scold her in front of outsiders. The little girl's tears fell like pearls, pattering down rapidly, and she herself was so wronged that she couldn't help but say: "Ming... Minglan... I didn't say anything wrong... Guifei... Guifei... Sister is being mean to Minglan."

  Ah Bao didn't understand and heard Ming Lan crying, so he smiled smugly to himself, thinking that he had finally found something to mock Ming Lan with.

  Mingfei has grown up, she really can't bear to scold her, it's just that at this time, looking at that little appearance makes her heart soft, but she can't spoil her habit.

  Xu Ruoxuan took two steps forward and pulled on Minglan's sleeve: "Sister, don't cry, Fourth Brother is teasing you."

  These words are indeed effective, Minglan's crying voice was immediately choked in her throat. With tears in her eyes, she glanced at Abao and saw that he was indeed looking at her with a gloating expression. She couldn't help but glare at him with a fierce look: "Don't laugh! You're not allowed to mock me either, you used to cry all the time! Look at you now, still running around naked, it's ridiculous!"

  He hummed proudly as he spoke.

  A Bao touched his butt, and indeed it was bright on the outside. Upon closer inspection of the entire house, only he had a bright butt. Now he didn't want to either, and every word he said had an extra syllable: "Don't shine!"

  Mingfei couldn't hold it in and burst out laughing, Minglan and Xurong also followed suit.

  The little kid is also shy, his face turned red.

  Ah Bao looked around cautiously and stood with his back against the table, blocking his buttocks.

  Mingfei thought her son now looked like a little hamster that had just come out of its hole to forage, looking around cautiously.

  She held her son on her lap, Abao was a bit resentful and still said: "Don't turn it on."

  Mingfei kissed him: "Alright, if not bright then don't be bright. However, all your pants are like this, you still have to wait for the palace maid on the needle and thread to make new pants for you, at least until tomorrow morning, can you bear it?"

  Ah Bao glanced at Ming Lan, pouted her mouth, and finally nodded.

  Mingfei then instructed the palace maid beside her to go and change Abao's clothes.

  Minglan stood for a while and didn't see Mingfei coming over to her, so she nervously called out: "Elder Sister Guifei."

  Mingfei looked at her and sighed: "As you get older, you can't speak without thinking. Some words are right but can't be said, let alone the wrong ones. This is the imperial palace, not your own home. Be more mindful of what you say in the future. When you grow up, you'll understand how different things will become because of one word you said today."

  One sentence will create the Eighth Brother, and on the premise that she has Ah Bao, it is not certain who the Eighth Brother will be raised by in the end, so the future pattern will be even more different.

  Minglan nodded silently.

  Looking at Minglan's appearance, Mingfei let out a soft sigh again. People will always grow up, and her younger sister will also have to grow up eventually.

  Kangxi was a man of decisive action. In the morning, he saw Wei Ruxue, and by the afternoon, Wei Ruxue had already been transferred to the Nurturing Heart Palace to tend to flowers and plants.

  It had been raining for several days, and the air was getting humid. When the wind blew by, it carried the scent of mud, grass, and flowers. The wooden palace creaked as it absorbed the moisture, and when the doors were opened, the sound echoed far away, startling the birds that were hiding under the eaves to escape the rain, causing them to fly away in a flurry, heading towards the vast sky. She watched those birds, kept watching until they completely disappeared into the rain.

  "What is the imperial concubine looking at?"

  "Watching birds."

  "Are birds because they are free?"

  "Freedom?"

  "Yes, birds can fly freely."

  Ming Fei gazed absent-mindedly at the horizon, feeling carefree?

  Light footsteps, like urgent raindrops, came from afar and drew near. The cheerful voice always managed to dispel a few clouds of gloom in her heart: "Guisister and Ruoxuan are looking at something good? Have you forgotten about me again?"

  Ming Fei and Xu Ruoxuan turned around at the same time.

  Minglan was stunned: "Obviously, Guifei sister and Ruoxuan sister don't look alike, but somehow I thought they looked a bit alike just now?"

  It's also unclear why, but Mingfei suddenly started liking to talk to Xu Ruoxuan, she felt that Xu Ruoxuan could understand her, and Xu Ruoxuan similarly thought that Mingfei was someone who wouldn't harm her but could understand her.

  Maybe it's because they have similar experiences.

  Mingfei didn't bother anymore about where Xu Ruoxuan came from, as long as she didn't know the history of the Qing Dynasty.

  Mingfei led Minglan's hand into the house: "Look at Ruo Xuan, she is so young yet so steady. In the future, follow her and learn from her."

  Ming Lan responded with a straight face, but turned around and made a silly face at Xu Ruo Xuan behind her, which also made Xu Ruo Xuan burst out laughing.

  Mingfei gently patted: "Fell out with Abao again?"

  Ming Lan said disdainfully: "He's so young, I won't bother with him, I don't care about him."

  Mingfei looked at Abao, who was putting everything back in order on the couch, and then glanced at Minglan, who was lowering her head and fiddling with her fingers: "You're just being stubborn, don't be petty, you still have your homework to do, hurry up and write it, or else when you get home, your mother will scold you again."

  Minglan's face fell, but she still pulled along a companion: "Let Yu Xuan come with me too."

  Mingfei took a glance at Xu Ruoxuan and nodded: "Alright, let's go."

  The two of them had gone down, and Pei Yu whispered to Ming Fei's ear: "Although it is said that they are serving flowers and grasses, but these few days the Emperor has always summoned them to serve as attendants for writing, I heard people say that Wei Ru Xue can still recognize a few characters, and the Emperor doesn't mind."

  In the Qing Dynasty, women of humble origins like Baoyi and Xinzheku were illiterate. Kangxi was also a man who valued propriety, so this time it can be seen that he truly liked Wei Ruxue.

  She nodded: "These words can't be said here, but we need to let more people know, do you know how to do it?"

  Pai Yu said: "This thing can still be done by me."

  Mingfei smiled and said, "Alright, go ahead with your business."

  Kangxi was such a successful emperor, but now he is just a young man in essence. As a man, it's impossible for him to be unmoved by beauty. Even if Wei Ruxue will soon be abandoned by Kangxi, she must think of ways to make her time in favor as short as possible. Nalan Xiangxue is about to enter the palace, and her days may not be peaceful for many days.

  The author has something to say: Is it that I'm writing worse and worse, these clicks~~~~

  And, considering I've worked hard on this article, please give me more likes and comments. It's really tough to write articles these days, especially when there's no support from readers. If that happens, it'll be even harder to continue writing, so don't take it lightly, show your support!!!

  Also, I really suspect that there's something wrong with the click-through rate, but I have no way to investigate. Is there any method for me to accurately count the number of clicks from beautiful people? If this continues... sigh...