When someone has been unlucky for many years and suddenly encounters a joyful event, their reactions may vary. Some people will be overjoyed and forget themselves, while others... like Chen Fei, are worried and troubled with unrelenting anxiety.

  Why did His Majesty think of her again? Was it someone who mentioned her in front of him?

  Moreover, Your Majesty has come today, but who knows if he will come tomorrow or the day after? If there is only this one day of splendor, then it would be better if he had not come at all.

  Chao Sheng listened to Chen Fei talking softly with Sui Mu in the house, but Sui Mu didn't know about this matter either. The Yanxia Palace had been quiet for a long time, and even the news from outside was not well-informed. Sui Mu did want to comfort Chen Fei and let her feel at ease, but she also didn't know if the Emperor would put Her Majesty in the back of his mind again after this time, so how could she speak recklessly?

  "Come in, Chao Sheng."

  Chen Fei's hair was only loosely tied up. She probably got up early to see the emperor off and had been thinking about this matter ever since, so she didn't bother to wash and dress properly.

  Chen Fei smiled slightly at Chao Sheng and said, "I heard that the soup last night was your idea? The Emperor said it was very delicious." On the side, Sui Mu had already opened a small box and took out a golden hairpin to give to Chao Sheng. Chao Sheng hastily declined, saying she didn't dare accept it. Chen Fei laughed and said, "It's not worth much. When you're two years older, you should start putting up your hair anyway, so keep this for then."

  Chao Sheng thanked him again and again before taking the hairpin. As soon as he held it in his hand, Chao Sheng weighed the hairpin and found that it wasn't very heavy. The round pearl on top of the pin was probably hollow. However, this was already the first valuable thing Chao Sheng had owned in this life.

  At the end of the year, she asked: "What kind of hairstyle does Your Ladyship want to wear today?"

  Chen Fei gazed into the mirror, raised her hand to touch her face, and then quickly put it down as if covering something up: "Yesterday, the Emperor even praised me, saying that hairstyle looked good. Today, let Cang Sheng take charge again."

  The tide rises with one wave - as expected, the golden hairpin was not taken in vain.

  The corner of her eye caught a glimpse of Mei's figure flashing outside the bamboo curtain...

  These days are spent... with internal worries and external troubles, it's really too worrisome.

  Chao Sheng cheered up and said with a smile: "Your Majesty, how about combing the hair into a hanging curtain style?"

  This morning was quite fulfilling, I helped Chen Fei with her hair and re-dyed my nails. I had no idea that dyeing one's nails could be so complicated and particular. This servant is not skilled, she was assisting on the side. By her feet were placed a flower mortar, flower pestle, fine sieve, and in a square box beside her, divided into many small compartments, were cinnabar, begonia, alum, fine salt, red sand, lime, perfume, pearl powder...and also pinned to a piece of fine cotton cloth were silver spoon and silver scraper, all in all, it was an eye-opener for me.

  "Learn from this, it's a delicate task."

  Chao Sheng opened her eyes wide and looked carefully. This nail dyeing was not a daily chore, Chao Sheng had only seen the palace girls do it themselves before, that is, they would crush flowers and apply them to their nails, the colors were deep and light, but most of them were not red, but a kind of orange-red, and some even turned into tea yellow, which didn't look very good. However, at the end of the year, for Empress Chen's nail, layer by layer carefully applied with well-adjusted flower juice, on the perfectly shaped nails seemed to be coated with a layer of pink pearl light, looking not like dyed, but like natural luster and flush, flowing and moving people.

  The women in the palace are meticulous about beauty and grooming, it can be said that they have reached the pinnacle.

  It took more than two hours to roughly finish, and Empress Chen's two hands couldn't touch anything, not even the teacup or bowl, so Sui Mo served her water and food.

  It's exhausting just watching, serving by one's side is no easy task! I was too naive in my previous thoughts.

  After lunch, Empress Chen took a nap and then an eunuch arrived with an imperial edict, summoning Empress Chen to Duan Xiang Pavilion to accompany the emperor.

  The Empress Dowager Chen was overjoyed.

  It can be said that it was accidental at first, but the emperor didn't just come yesterday, and today he's still thinking about Chen Fei. What does this mean? This means the emperor has put Chen Fei back in his heart again!

  This made Chen Fei overjoyed.

  Fortunately, it was only a short rest, and Chen Fei's hair didn't need to be re-combed, just slightly touched up. This Haitang's drooping curtain originally had a few points of lazy beauty, paired with Chen Fei's pearl-linked shirt and wave-pleated skirt, very much like Xi Shi's delicate and weak demeanor.

  Chen Fei got into a sedan chair carried by two men and left. Sui Mu stood at the gate of the Smoke and Cloud Palace, seeing her off until she was out of sight.

  Looking back, Chao Sheng asked in his later years: "Can't sister also go and serve?"

  "Towards the end of the year, he shook his head: 'There is no such rule in the palace, besides, can there be no one serving the emperor himself?'"

  That's right.

  The two of them saw the green mirror standing by the flower bed together.

  Qingjing didn't even greet them, she just turned around and left with a flick of her head.

  His face didn't show any sign of being offended, instead, he smiled and said: "Look, someone can't sit still."

  Chao was born old and honest, lowering his head without speaking.

  She still doesn't understand this kind of high-level intrigue at all.

  It's precisely because she doesn't understand that she won't rush in blindly and cause trouble.

  "Tonight... " The eunuch paused for a moment, although Chao Sheng was young, but since he was in the palace, there was no need to avoid saying anything: "The empress may not be back. Just right, while the empress is away, I'll take you to familiarize yourself with the inner chamber, what things should be placed where, so that when it's needed tomorrow, it can't be found."

  The tide is born busy nodding in response.

  Chen Fei's home was still quite well-off, after all, she had been favored for a pretty long time. The trunks, clothes, jewelry and accessories filled up the small suite behind, and as soon as you entered, you could smell a pleasant scent of dried grass.

  "The emperor doesn't like the smell of agarwood and sandalwood, so some of the masters in the palace don't use those scented sachets to prevent moths." At the end of the year, she took out a small cloth bag filled with dried herbs: "This medicine bag needs to be checked and replaced regularly. Not only can it prevent insects and mice from biting clothes, but it can also tell if these things are moldy or not. If they're too moldy, the herbs will become soft, and there will be small mildew spots on the cloth bag."

  Hurry up and write it down.

  Her memory is good, and she teaches her things at the end of the year. She basically doesn't need to say it a second time, which also makes the end of the year very satisfied.

  "Did you see the strip on the box?"

  The tide has already risen, with a note stuck on top, written in small characters.

  "Even I would forget what's in which trunk, so it's convenient to have a note. This is written by year, these trunks contain some old clothes that the mistress hasn't worn for a long time, so they're stored separately." As the years went by, she pointed out the winter, spring and summer ones. Some toys, paintings, embroidery, and fabrics - Zhenzhen carefully remembered them while secretly cursing to herself.

  Chen Fei is really... unassuming and low-key, usually looking simple and elegant at home, but their family wealth is so substantial.

  At the end of the year, I took out this book and counted it against: "Almost all of the queen's things are in my hands, I just logged in here, and checked once a season."

  Of course, the booklet will no longer be given to newborns.

  There was still some other doubt in Cai Sheng's mind -

  At the time when Sui Mu was about to take her as an apprentice, Chen Fei was a person forgotten in this corner. However... The situation has changed over the past two days, and Chen Fei suddenly rose again to be favored by the Emperor. In this situation, Chen Fei might be able to move up another step herself, and if Sui Mu wants to stay, the opportunity will also be much greater. But looking at Sui Mu's appearance is still as usual, still preparing to hand over everything.

  She was so distracted that she didn't realize it until the end of the year.

  "What's wrong?"

  Chao Sheng hesitated for a moment before asking frankly: "Sui Mu sister... have you made up your mind to leave or stay?"

  At the end of the year, I was dazed for a moment and closed the book.

  "This isn't a place for talking, let's go out and talk."

  Although Chen Fei was not around, the small kitchen still kindly asked what Sui Mu wanted to eat for the New Year's Eve - this is a special privilege that only the senior palace maid has. Sui Mu did not take advantage of her power and position to seek personal gain, she just said according to the rules, but the kitchen still sent over three dishes and one soup. Sui Mu invited Chao Sheng: "Sit down."

  Chao Sheng replaced her with a full bowl of rice, arranged the bamboo chopsticks, and also filled his own bowl with rice before sitting down.

  The palace maid's meal was also subject to rules, she couldn't eat too much, and anything with a strong smell was strictly forbidden. Although there were no rigid regulations for eating speed, who dared to spend half an hour on one bowl of rice? The master wouldn't be able to stand seeing you work so slowly! So the two people ate very quickly. After finishing their meal in silence, Cai Sheng cleaned up the bowls and chopsticks and put them back into the picnic box, which he placed at the door.

  The voice was extremely low, almost like a whisper, and the tide was just barely audible.

  "Do you know where all the older palace staff in this palace are?"

  Chao Sheng shook his head honestly.

  She's still young, how can she know what it's like when she gets old?

  "Either in the northern alley of Weiyang Palace or... at Ye Huo Lou, the palace people are slanting."

  The wild fox is aware of the falling tide!

  That place is like a burial mound, and families with some means would never bury their deceased relatives there.

  "The palace maids and eunuchs... are all just slaves in this palace, doing well doesn't count as merit. From the time I entered the palace until now, I've seen many dignified female officials and eunuchs, but have any of them had a good outcome? Not one. The powerful eunuch Wei who was by the previous emperor's side died with him, several female attendants by the empress dowager's side also died with her... only the young palace maid from that palace was released. When the imperial consort left, all the people by her side entered the North Alley... it's almost the same as being a wild fox or a stray dog, just with one more breath. Those people were so glorious and powerful back then, holding great power. They walked sideways in the palace, leaning against the big tree. But what about in the end? Some were abandoned by their masters and died before them. And those who died first? The young palace maid might have been released, but those who knew too much would never be let out."

  A chill ran down his spine.

  It turns out that being an imperial concubine is such a dead-end job.

  "I went to Beigong once, when I was still a little palace maid. The sister who taught me took me there once. That place... that place..." Su Ye picked up her tea and took a big sip: "The scene there is something I will never forget in my lifetime - the image has appeared countless times in my dreams, each time scaring me awake." Su Ye turned around to look at Chao Sheng: "I told myself, I must get out. As long as I'm alive, I'll never end up going back to Beigong again. Even if I die, I don't want to be wrapped in a broken mat and thrown into the palace people's slope. You might not have heard of the palace people's slope, but it's almost like the wild fox den - do you know? Usually, no one dares to go there day or night, the wild dogs' eyes are all green, they're all fed on human flesh, and sometimes when they're extremely hungry, they even pounce on living people..."

  At the end of the year, he said one last thing: "Tide-born sister, if you can find a way out in the future, be sure to go out."

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  Big orange has a sore throat and doesn't want to eat anything, I'm so worried to death...