flstandardbreds Chapter 115: The Gloomy Eunuch and the Imperial Concubine (18)
Chapter 115: The Gloomy Eunuch and the Imperial Concubine (18)
The Queen was a little surprised to see her sitting there, and said in a caring voice:
"Is Mingpin fully recovered?"
Ruan Guannan smiled and bowed, expressing his gratitude:
"Thank you for your concern, my concubine is much better now."
"More than much better, seeing your rosy complexion, I thought you were faking your illness."
After saying that, he covered his mouth and smiled as if jokingly.
Ruan Guannan's smile faded, he glanced at her calmly, and said calmly:
"Are you questioning Imperial Physician Li's diagnosis, Lady Zhang? Which Imperial Physician in the Imperial Hospital will be willing to treat you in the future?"
Lady Zhang shuddered and shrank back in her chair, not daring to say a word.
She just said it on the spur of the moment, and she started to regret it after she said it.
She was also one of the concubines who entered the palace at the same time as Nguyen Guannan. From the moment she served the emperor, she could not help but look forward to gaining his majesty's favor.
But she was disappointed after all. After she slept with the emperor, she didn't show any expression. Not to mention promotion, she didn't even get any reward.
After that, the emperor seemed to have forgotten her and never summoned her again.
This group of newcomers seemed to be just a foil to Ruan Guannan, dull and incompetent.
So when I saw her today, I couldn't suppress the bitterness in my heart any more. I was so overwhelmed by jealousy that the sour words came out of my mouth.
Ruan Guannan retorted and ignored her. His attitude of ignoring her was very obvious. This was probably the highest level of humiliation.
In recent days, the atmosphere in the palace has gradually become dull and depressing.
Ruan Guannan felt even more depressed as the atmosphere became heavier.
The border is in turmoil, the Xiwu Kingdom is invading frequently, and my father and second brother are going to the battlefield!
Ruan Guannan was very worried and sent two letters home in just three days.
In addition to the daily instructions, they also specifically emphasized that they should always keep the talisman with them.
The Ruan family father and son were very touched and naturally obeyed her in everything.
Ruan Guannan also wrote a letter to his mother, asking her to keep an eye on Ruan Jingxing and not let him sneak to the border.
She didn't know if it could be changed, but the amulet could be considered a second layer of protection.
Amid her worries and prayers, a huge army led by General Ruan and led by Second Brother Ruan and Third Prince Xiao Cheng, rushed to the border battlefield.
After the army left the capital, the atmosphere in Shengjing City remained tense, and Emperor Xiao Hong was looking forward to news of victory from the border every day.
As the leader of the harem, the queen took the lead in living frugally, encouraged everyone to spend thriftily, and prayed for the border troops.
A month later, Xiwu and Xinxuan finally went to war. The battle lasted for more than two months, and finally the first victory news came on the eve of the Mid-Autumn Festival.
The emperor was overjoyed and decided to hold a grand Mid-Autumn Festival banquet in the palace.
On the Mid-Autumn Festival, Fusang and Jinrui wanted to dress up their master, but Ruan Guannan waved his hand to refuse.
Her father and brother were fighting for their lives on the front lines. As long as they did not return victoriously, she would always be worried about them and had no intention of dressing up to attend any party.
Fusang thought for a moment and then tied her hair into a graceful lily bun, securing it with a white jade peacock hairpin.
A coral silver ring was worn on her slender jade fingers, making them look even whiter and longer.
Paired with a moon-white Ruyi Luo skirt, the bright and beautiful woman instantly becomes noble and unattainable, just like the graceful white lotus in the pond, untainted by any dust of the world.
Arriving at the Qingyuan Hall, Ruan Guannan went straight to his seat and sat down.
Since entering the ranks of middle-level concubines, Nguyen Guannan's position has moved up a lot.
Ruan Guannan ignored the surprised or jealous looks around him and greeted his neighbors with a smile.
Concubine Liu nodded indifferently, while Concubine Yi rolled her eyes rudely, touched her belly and looked at Ruan Guannan provocatively.
What we know is that she is pregnant with a child;
If you don’t know, you’d think she has hidden a rare treasure and shows it off wherever she goes.
Ever since being tricked by Ruan Guannan, Concubine Yi has been hiding in her Yun'en Palace for a long time and has not come out.
I don't know where she got the wig from, it looks weird no matter how I look at it now.
Ruan Guannan was too lazy to argue with the pregnant woman and just focused on eating the fruits on the table.
I originally wanted to change my previous style just to be more low-key.
As a result, everyone attended the event in a grand manner and many flowers bloomed, which made her stand out.
Ruan Guannan's appearance was already outstanding, and now she became an unparalleled beauty in the eyes of others.
As soon as she came in, she vaguely felt two pairs of eyes fixed on her.
Ruan Guannan slowly looked in the direction of one of the rays and met a deep and burning gaze.
She paused slightly, then naturally withdrew her gaze.
"My dear, but the banquet is not to your liking?"
Suddenly, a majestic questioning voice came from above.
Ruan Guannan looked up subconsciously and saw the emperor sitting on the throne looking at her with a smile on his face, waiting for her reply.
She picked up the handkerchief beside her, wiped the corners of her mouth, and said with a smile:
"Your Majesty, I enjoy the banquet very much. But if Your Majesty wants to reward me with some dishes, I will also accept it."
Her voice was sweet and charming, echoing in the hall.
"Hahahaha, so squeamish."
The emperor was delighted, smiled, pointed in her direction, and said gently:
"If that's the case, there's no need to reward me. Come up and have dinner with me."
The whole hall was in uproar. The concubines twisted the handkerchiefs in their hands tightly in anger. Some of them felt even more nervous, but still had smiles on their faces.
The ministers present couldn't help but whisper in their hearts that General Ruan's daughter was really good-looking and her future was probably limitless...
Ruan Guannan did not hesitate. He stood up gracefully, bowed, and walked upwards with brisk steps.
Li Huaiyi looked at the woman walking towards him step by step, the burning desire in his eyes almost unsuppressible.
From the moment the woman entered the hall, his eyes fell on her uncontrollably.
But when he saw her smiling sweetly at others, Li Huaiyi wanted to poison this bastard who caught her eye on the spot.
Ruan Guannan sat down beside the emperor. As soon as he sat down, a figure appeared beside him and he said:
"I serve Master Mingpin."
Ruan Guannan raised his eyebrows slightly.
"Okay, please excuse me, young eunuch."
Seeing that Xiao Anzi was so perceptive, Xiao Hong showed a satisfied look.
Ruan Guannan ate happily and didn't even notice that everything on her plate was to her liking.
And the things that she disliked did not appear in front of her at all.
After eating and drinking, Ruan Guannan was too lazy to watch the scene of the emperor and his ministers flattering each other, so he asked the emperor for permission and left the hall with his maid.
Not long after she left, the eunuch who served her also quietly disappeared in the hall.
And all of this was seen by Xia Luoning below.
Her eyelashes trembled slightly, and a hint of obscurity and darkness flashed in her drooping eyes.
Outside the hall, Ruan Guannan walked to a stone table not far away and sat down. The silver glow from the hazy moonlight fell on the hem of her skirt, as if there was a faint floating light.
But this beautiful scene did not last long and was interrupted by some people.
"You are the emperor's new favorite, Mingpin?"
The visitor was extremely rude and looked her over and over.
Ruan Guannan stood up and bowed, "Greetings to His Royal Highness Prince Heng, I am your concubine."
Xiao Heng nodded proudly.
"Mingpin's beauty is indeed enough to seduce my father."
Ruan Guannan clenched his fists and said calmly:
"Your Highness Prince Heng, you are joking. How come in your words, the Emperor seems to be acting like a tyrant?
I will ask the emperor carefully next time I see him."
Xiao Heng's face froze, and he angrily shouted, "How dare you! When did I ever say something like that?"
"Your Highness Prince Heng, the Emperor wants to see you."
Xiao Heng suppressed his anger, didn't even look at the person who came, and went straight back to the hall.
After a while, Ruan Guannan said calmly, "Why is Eunuch An still here?"
"It's late at night and the dew is heavy. It's not safe for you outside." Li Huaiyi looked directly at the woman and said in a deep voice.
Ruan Guannan didn't know why, but Li Huaiyi's gaze became hot and scorching, making her extremely uncomfortable, so she obediently went back.
Another month passed, and a great victory was finally won at the border, defeating the Xiwu Kingdom. Soon they would return triumphantly with Xiwu's surrender letter and spoils of war.
Ruan Guannan was overjoyed, and his uneasy heart finally settled down.
Once she was happy, the entire Yuhua Pavilion became lively.
Since she was promoted successively, she had a lot more people serving her.
Ruan Guannan was happy. He waved his hand and gave each person ten taels of silver as a reward.
Everyone was delighted and felt satisfied that they had such a good master.
After the army returned to the capital safely, the first snow fell in Shengjing City.
The people were even more excited, believing that this was God's blessing for the Xinxuan army to return with a great victory.
Inside the palace, Ruan Guannan also packed up and prepared to go to her "battlefield".
On this day, Fusang deftly gathered up all her black hair, and flexibly twisted it into a snake-like bun, which she secured with a long hairpin inlaid with gilded flowers and green jadeite.
She wore a red gold and kingfisher-inlaid Ruyi hairpin behind her head. The pendant swayed gently as she walked, which was very lively and beautiful.
A pair of blue jade earrings with kingfisher feathers and pearls were worn on her delicate and small earlobes, which complemented the exquisite bracelet with pearls on her fair wrist.
She had already changed into winter clothes, a thick long skirt with Bixia velvet embroidery and a blue satin gray squirrel cloak with floral patterns.
The multi-layered clothes did not make her look bulky at all, but instead made her look delicate and innocent.
Ruan Guannan pondered for a moment, then raised his hand and picked up the pointed eyebrow pencil to outline his eyes.
Her originally large and delicate eyes suddenly became sharper, less naive, and her whole person became more gorgeous.
Ruan Guannan nodded with satisfaction.
My father and brother have returned victoriously, and today they will definitely be criticized, so they must outshine everyone else!
However, the sarcasm and sour remarks she had imagined did not appear, but instead there was a harmonious picture of happiness.
This instantly deflated her high-spirited heart, and she returned home in frustration and boredom.
On the way back, Ruan Guannan saw Xia Luoning waiting in the distance. His eyes lit up and his pace quickened.
"Sister Xia, are you waiting for me?"
Xia Luoning paused, then nodded with a smile and said, "Yes, General Ruan won a great victory. Congratulations, sister."
Ruan Guannan smiled even more beautifully, took her hand and patted it.
"You have a heart for it. Your father is also fighting for the country. This is the Ruan family's duty."
When talking about his family, Ruan Guannan's eyes were full of warmth and happiness.
Xia Luoning said nothing and just smiled quietly.
After the two separated, the smile in Xia Luoning's eyes gradually disappeared, and a rare sarcastic arc appeared at the corner of her mouth.
family...