Chapter 155: Presumptuous

Chapter 155: Presumptuous

In the flower hall of Mingluan Palace.

Imperial Consort De and Consort He were still sitting in their usual seats. The former glared at the latter, who remained nonchalant, finishing a whole cup of tea in one go and then signaling a palace maid to refill it.

Seated below was Noble Consort Duan, but at that moment, her clothes were dusty, her hair was disheveled, and her originally exquisite lotus makeup was smeared. She was sobbing quietly, holding a handkerchief to her right cheek. Despite the handkerchief, the imprint of a slap was clearly visible on her face.

The only one relegated to sitting on a low stool was Beauty Tang, who sat with proper posture yet glanced at Noble Consort Duan with an unmistakable look of disdain. Beauty Tang bore no apparent injuries, but her meticulously arranged Lingyun hairstyle had somewhat collapsed, conspicuously adorned with a brightly blooming palace pink plum blossom in her hair.

Jiang Hui entered from the warm chamber, glanced at everyone below, and composedly took her seat on the Phoenix Throne. Accepting the tea cup offered by Shan Zha, she took a sip before asking, "Now, tell me, what exactly happened?"

As soon as she finished speaking, the Noble Consort hurriedly stood up, exclaiming, "Your Majesty, Consort He definitely did it on purpose! I was standing aside, minding my own business, when Consort He said she was separating Noble Consort Duan and Beauty Tang, but then she ended up hitting me instead!"

"What do you mean by 'ended up hitting me'?" Consort He asked, looking surprised. "Noble Consort, I'm not very good with the Central Plains language. What does 'ended up hitting me' mean?"

"You!" Frustrated, the Noble Consort pointed at Consort He and struggled to speak, "Truly barbaric and unteachable!"

Having said this, she sat back in her chair, sulking silently.

Her maid Haitang, sharing her mistress's worries, stepped forward, first saluting Jiang Hui and then explained, "Your Majesty, the weather was pleasant today, and my mistress heard that the plum blossoms and wintersweets by Taiye Pool were blooming beautifully, so she thought of taking a walk. At Zhaoyue Pavilion, we happened to meet Noble Consort Duan and Beauty Tang, who were also out to enjoy the scenery, and decided to join them."

Pausing for a moment, she continued, "But when we reached the Plum Garden, Noble Consort Duan and Beauty Tang both took a liking to the same plum blossom, leading to a dispute... quite intense. My mistress sent us to intervene, but she stepped back, unaware that Consort He would suddenly appear from another side. Saying she wanted to stop the fight, Consort He accidentally bumped into my mistress, nearly pushing her into—"

Haitang glanced at Jiang Hui, lowering her voice before continuing, "—the scuffle between Noble Consort Duan and Beauty Tang. We plead for Your Majesty to do justice for my mistress!"

Consort He, upon hearing Haitang's words, showed no reaction, even casually picking up and eating a lily pastry from the table, not in a hurry to defend herself.

Jiang Hui didn't immediately question Consort He, instead turning to ask, "Noble Consort Duan, what is your side of the story?"

With the Empress's inquiry, Noble Consort Duan's soft sobs grew louder for a moment before stopping. She replied, "Your Majesty, I don't know. Noble Consort Duan and I share the Fuyang Palace, and everything was fine originally. We planned to admire the flowers at Taiye Pool together, but when we arrived at the Plum Garden, I found the palace pink plum blossoms quite lovely and had a maid pick one. Beauty Tang claimed she had also taken a liking to that very blossom and wanted to snatch it from me. Of course, I refused, and then..."

As she spoke, Noble Consort Duan covered her face and began to cry again, her distress evident.

Lady Tang, seated on a low stool, snorted disdainfully and adjusted the plum blossom branch in her hair. She then knelt down, surprisingly not contradicting Noble Consort Duan's statement. She directly said, "Empress, it's true that I and Noble Consort Duan both fancied the same plum blossom. In a moment of excitement, I accidentally hurt her. Please punish me as you see fit."

Jiang Hui glanced at her, understanding her intentions, and said calmly, "In that case, Lady Tang is punished with ten days of confinement and must copy the palace rules ten times. Noble Consort Duan, do you have any objections?"

Although Noble Consort Duan felt the punishment was light, she also understood that although Lady Tang had hit her and even marred her face, it was only an ‘accidental’ slap, at most disrespectful but not malicious harm. Thus, the punishment was actually appropriate.

Therefore, she bowed her head and said, "No objections, Your Highness."

Jiang Hui nodded, "It’s a pity that Noble Consort Duan's face was injured. Here is some snow face cream; take it with you."

"Thank you for your grace, Empress," Noble Consort Duan immediately expressed her gratitude.

Having dealt with these two, Jiang Hui turned to Consort He and asked, "Consort He, is what the maid of Imperial Consort De said true?"

Consort He was still eating lily pastries. Hearing Jiang Hui's question, she gulped down her tea to swallow the food in her mouth and said vaguely, "I just wanted to separate Noble Consort Duan and Lady Tang. Those maids dared not really pull them apart, and I didn’t see Imperial Consort De there; I accidentally bumped into her."

"What do you mean you didn’t see her!" Imperial Consort De, reminded of the time Consort He mocked her at the Zhaoyue Pavilion for not being visited by the Emperor, felt old and new grievances surge, and said angrily, "Am I invisible in your eyes?!"

Consort He looked at her closely, then chuckled, "Imperial Consort De is as beautiful as a flower; how could I not see you? Ah, they were fighting so fiercely at that time, I really didn’t notice you!"

"Enough," Jiang Hui intervened to stop Consort He from further provoking Imperial Consort De, "Consort He, although your intentions were good, you did bump into Imperial Consort De. You are punished with three days of confinement."

After speaking, she picked up her teacup, and everyone seated below stood up, bowed, and left the Mingluan Palace, except for Consort He.

After the others had left, Consort He approached Jiang Hui and asked, "Empress, about this confinement, can it be longer? I think three days is too short. How about three months?"

Jiang Hui raised an eyebrow, glanced at Consort He, and asked casually, “How many months along are you?”

“You guessed it?” Consort He couldn’t believe it, showing two fingers to Jiang Hui, and grumbled, “How can I be confined for eight months?”

“Don’t worry, if someone’s not foolish, they won't target you; if they are foolish, they can't target you,” Jiang Hui said calmly.

“That’s not what I’m worried about!” Consort He exclaimed, lowering her voice, “I’m worried that the Emperor will insist on visiting me if he finds out. We both dislike each other; there’s no need for him to pretend.”

Jiang Hui sighed softly, stood up, and walked towards the warm pavilion, leaving Consort He alone in the flower hall to brood.

In Fuyang Palace, Baihua Pavilion.

Lady Tang, attended by her maids, changed into a new dress and re-styled her hair. Sitting by the window, she carefully placed the plum blossom into a vase, smirking, “I can’t stand her; it feels good to finally get back at her! Wind-cold? I’ll make her too ashamed to see the Emperor!”

A concerned maid beside her said, “My lady, that was a bit impulsive. Noble Consort Duan does have some favor. If she complains to the Emperor…”

“Complain about me? She’d speak ill of me behind my back to the Emperor anyway,” scoffed Lady Tang, reassuring her maid, “Don’t worry. My father has been of great service lately, and the Emperor has favored me these days. It’s my time to be brazen. Besides, my straightforward and vengeful nature might even please the Emperor.”

“But…” the maid hesitated, “Your status is lower than Noble Consort Duan’s. What if you lose favor, how will she treat you then?”

“Lose favor?” Lady Tang’s smile remained, “Everyone loses favor eventually, whether in the palace or in the mansions. Why not be audacious while I can? Anyway, I’m not one to suffer in silence!”