Chapter 489: Chapter 277 Very Annoying

Hearing Shu Wan’s words, Xu Yinjia looked at her with some surprise, “You are quite clever.”

She hadn’t expected that Shu Wan, who seemed clueless, could actually be so savvy.

“Before entering the palace, my father taught me that being of low status, I must learn to obey,” said Shu Wan. “Only by obeying will I have a good future.”

Such honesty from Shu Wan seemed to dispel Xu Yinjia’s suspicions. She signaled to her personal maidservant with a glance, and the maidservant quickly brought over a bowl of medicine.

“Do you know what this is?” Xu Yinjia asked Shu Wan.

Shu Wan nodded, “I know.”

Xu Yinjia’s brows lifted slightly, “Then tell me, what is it?”

“It’s sterility medicine.”

Xu Yinjia’s eyes sparkled slightly, “Are you willing to take it? In this harem, as long as you have children, you have a foundation to stand on. Don’t you want to rise to a higher position?”

“From childhood, I knew to act within my abilities,” Shu Wan replied. “Even if I had children, I wouldn’t have the ability to protect them as they grow.”

What Shu Wan said was indeed true; after all, a county magistrate’s daughter, no matter how favored, was like a duckweed in the wind, easily uprooted by the slightest tug.

“Won’t you regret it?”

“What I seek is simply to add a bit of glory to my family because of me; I will never regret it.”

In this era, the sole purpose of a woman’s birth was probably to serve as a delicate ornament to bring honor to her family, trading her beauty and body for the advantage it could bring to her father and brothers.

Xu Yinjia felt an empathy with Shu Wan’s words.

Xu Yinjia nodded in approval, “A clear-headed person indeed. Go ahead and drink the medicine.”

“Yes.”

As Shu Wan spoke, she took the medicine bowl from the maidservant’s hands and drank it all in one gulp.

After Shu Wan finished the medicine, Xu Yinjia did not hurry to speak. Shu Wan knew that Xu Yinjia was waiting for the medicine to take full effect.

Half an hour later, Xu Yinjia finally spoke again, “His Majesty said yesterday that he would visit my palace again tonight. When the time comes, you shall serve by my side.”

“Yes.”

With the deal struck, Xu Yinjia allowed Shu Wan to leave.

When Shu Wan returned to her palace, palace attendants presented her with new tools, clothes, and jewelry, their attitudes far more respectful. “By the orders of Consort De, we are here to provide for the young masters. If you have any needs, you may directly tell us.”

Ning Yuan was astonished, “Ziruo, what did you do? Why are they suddenly so nice to us?”

“Just follow my lead.”

Shu Wan said no more, and Ning Yuan asked no further questions.

As the days grew warmer, the peach blossoms in the Imperial Garden had also begun to bloom, standing solitary on their branches, a beauty of their own kind.

The palace was abuzz with rumors that Qi Yuan liked peach blossoms, and now that they were blooming, Xu Yinjia immediately sent someone to bring a plum tree blossom to Qianqing Palace.

“Your Majesty, Consort De ordered someone to send this peach blossom. Shall I place it here for you?”

Chief Eunuch Huang Bing came over, holding a white porcelain vase, intending to place the vase on the table.

Qi Yuan was usually indifferent to such decorations. He glanced over briefly, his gaze freezing slightly, “Who sent this?”

Even though it was just a peach blossom, there was a very delicate touch in the presentation, taking the plum blossom that could seem tacky because of its bright color and giving it an added elegance.

“Replying to Your Majesty, it was sent by the newly appointed Junior Attendant Shu.”

Normally, a minor junior attendant would not be memorable to the Chief Eunuch like Huang Bing.

But upon seeing Shu Wan, he felt that she would have an unforeseen wealth and splendor in the future.

After all, others might not know how deep Qi Yuan’s feelings for the late Empress ran, but being close to Qi Yuan, he was keenly aware.

How to describe His Majesty’s feelings for the late Empress? Perhaps only with a sigh.

Hearing Huang Bing mention Shu Wan, Qi Yuan’s eyes darkened, and a trace of irritation involuntarily rose within him.

This emotion had not appeared on him for a long time, making him feel somewhat foreign to himself at this moment.

Shu Wan did indeed look like her, but that was all there was to it; she was not the one. After all, Zui Yu had vanished for a long time, and that matter was still ongoing; it was impossible for her to come back.

In that instant, Qi Yuan’s disdain for Shu Wan reached its peak. He looked at the vase of peach blossoms, “Throw it out.”

“Ah?” Huang Bing was so surprised that he thought he had heard wrong. Meeting Qi Yuan’s chilling gaze, he quickly took the vase away, “Yes, I shall see to it immediately.”