Affability

With the routine similar to the last time, Xie Ning bathed, dressed up, and changed clothes, but there was a subtle difference in Chief Palace Attendant Luo’s attitude that Xie Ning could feel.

The details of the bath need not be mentioned, but during the dressing process, Luo’s gestures, strength, and technique were more attentive and meticulous than last time. When using powder, she opened four different boxes for Xie Ning to choose from!

Last time, didn't she just powder her face directly without asking? How could she have the chance to choose?

Such a big difference, Xie Ning was not that blunt, how could she not feel it?

No wonder the women in the harem all strived to be at the top of status, because the benefits were so irresistible. There was only one emperor, but too many beauties, which was such a cruel ratio. In the harem, there were three thousand beauties, and every one of them wanted to sell their youth and beauty to the emperor, the only buyer.

Youth and beauty came with an expiration date, and most importantly, they were worthless after a few years. How could sellers stimulate the buyer’s desire to purchase something with such a limited shelf life? So, everyone had their own skills: music, painting, calligraphy, singing, dancing, and other embellishments, not to mention some people who faked fainting, injuries, or said astonishing things in front of the emperor. Some even found out the emperor's route in advance and played music, sang, and danced on the way he was passing by... All these things were not new.

Therefore, even though it was not the first time, Xie Ning still felt confused. She didn't have any extraordinary talent, so what did the emperor see in her?

With this question in mind, Xie Ning sat on the sedan chair.

Xie Ning had met Bai Gonggong before, but this time after entering the palace, she dared to secretly glance around.

She had heard people joke about how luxurious the emperor's life was. "What a life the emperor has!" they would say. "He sleeps in a golden room, eats from golden bowls, and enjoys braised pork with every meal. He changes his bed with different concubines every night and if he wants, he can shout for someone to be stripped and beaten every day.”

Xie Ning chuckled to herself. She could confidently say that the emperor's room was not made of gold, nor were his bowls. As for eating meat and sleeping with concubines...

Just then, the emperor walked in. Xie Ning quickly stood up to greet him.

"Come and have a seat," the emperor said, his mood seeming quite good. "The noodle soup you served for lunch was quite good."

Xie Ning didn't know what to say, so she could only reply, "I am humbled, Your Majesty."

The emperor could tell that she was more apprehensive than she had been when they met in the Haunting Fragrance Pavilion earlier that day.

The emperor was used to people fearing and respecting him. But now that they were alone, he hoped she could relax a bit and be livelier.

"What books have you read?" he asked.

"I only know a few characters and haven't read many books," Xie Ning replied.

The emperor sat down next to her and felt her shrink away slightly.

"I saw some books on your bookshelf today. Did you bring them with you to the palace?"

Xie Ning shook her head slightly. "I obtained them after entering the palace."

"Is that so?" The emperor was intrigued.

Xie Ning had to explain, "There was once a Chief Palace Attendant Yao who taught me for a while when I first entered the palace. She even gave me two Buddhist scriptures. I thought the characters were beautiful and would practice writing them. Later on, I found some other books to read in Haunting Fragrance Pavilion."

"What kind of books?" the emperor asked.

All kinds of books, really, but Xie Ning didn't have much of a choice when it came to picking books.

Books were very valuable in the palace. Of course, there were a lot of Buddhist scriptures, since many of the women in the palace were devout Buddhists. But Xie Ning wasn't particularly interested in chanting and eating vegetarian meals. She just wanted to learn how to read and write. She also found two collections of poems by famous poets from the previous dynasty. Before New Year's, an old Chief Palace Attendant who was leaving the palace gave her dozens of books, greatly enriching Xie Ning's collection. She had read them all, and her writing had improved a bit. She couldn't say that she wrote very well, but at least her characters were straight and neat.

She picked and chose her words carefully as she spoke to the emperor. He became intrigued and took her hand, standing up and saying, "Come here."

Xie Ning followed the emperor over to a room off to the side, which was lined with bookshelves filled to the brim with volumes. This sight made her temporarily forget that she was holding hands with the emperor.

So many books, she thought.

She wasn't necessarily a book lover before but being trapped in the palace with nowhere to go and nothing to do, no friends to make, and no entertainment, books were her only companions.

seeing her being so fixated on the bookshelf, as if her eyes were glued to it, the emperor secretly admired her love of literature. It was better than the shallowness of those who only knew of luxurious treasures.

The emperor picked up an ink brush and handed it to her, saying, "Come, write a few words for me to see."

Xie Ning was dumbfounded.

Wasn't she here to keep him company in bed? Why did it suddenly turn into an exam on writing? Could her handwriting even be seen by people?

The emperor saw her hesitation and smiled, "Just write, even if it's not good, I won't blame you."

Xie Ning had no choice but to listen to him, but she didn't know what to write all of a sudden.

In this moment, all she could think of was the scene of the fish she saw earlier in the morning, with round lotus leaves on the water's surface and petals floating on the water from an unknown source, causing small ripples.

She picked up the brush and wrote this line on the paper. The emperor watched beside her, noticing that she held the brush awkwardly and her wrist trembled a bit.

A connoisseur could easily discern the quality of her calligraphy briefly. No one had ever bothered to teach her proper writing techniques, otherwise she would have learned the correct pen-holding posture beforehand.

“Peach Blossom River, fat mandarin fish.”

The emperor was amused as soon as he saw her handwriting.

This was really an eyesore, especially the character “shui” (water). The vertical line in the middle looked like a reed stick and let alone the character “gui” (mandarin fish). It had more strokes than the other characters. To made it clear, she had to write the character larger. As a result, the character was a whole circle larger than the others. But even though it was much bigger, the strokes on the right side of “gui” were still all smudged together, making it look like a black ball.

Xie Ning was very upset with herself. Why did she have to write such a difficult character as “gui”? She should have written something simpler with fewer strokes.

"Not bad, not bad," the emperor reluctantly praised her. "Did you learn to write from someone?"

For a young girl to come up with handwriting like this on her own was quite remarkable.

The emperor didn't find it funny and was even moved by her hard work and dedication.

"Why did you think of this line of poetry? Do you want to eat fish?" he asked.

Xie Ning justified herself quietly, "I saw the falling flowers and swimming fish in the basin this morning and thought of it."

Why would he think she was thinking about food? Was it because she wrote about fat fish?

He underestimated her.

But Xie Ning couldn't help feeling a little guilty. When she was watching the lotus flowers and goldfish this morning, she did have thoughts about eating.

At that time, she thought that although the goldfish in the basin were beautiful, they were not practical. If she had two carp instead, they would be much fresher and more delicious.

The emperor took her out and casually ordered, "Go to the kitchen and see if they have mandarin fish. Steam one and bring it out."

As expected, there was a steamed mandarin fish on the dinner table that evening.

The emperor's sharp gaze softened in the glow of the candlelight, and a tender smile played at the corners of his lips as he beckoned her to eat. "Please, do enjoy," he said.

Xie Ning savoured the succulent and fresh delicacy of the carp, while pondering to herself what that smile could have meant. Was he making fun of her for being a glutton?

While he watched Xie Ning quietly enjoy her dinner, the emperor thought the fish to be tastier. The eunuch who served them was extraordinarily attentive, and he chose a piece of the juiciest, most tender belly meat for the emperor to dip in the sauce. Being cooked exquisitely, it almost melted in the emperor’s mouth, and he couldn't help but think about Xie Ning's soft, little hand in his own.

After the meal, Xie Ning was once again summoned to the emperor's chambers for a night of passion. This time, it even happened twice!

Just as Xie Ning thought her task was complete after the first time, the emperor surprised her by taking her from behind for a second round. The second time around, the emperor's movements were slower and more tender.

By the end, Xie Ning was completely spent and couldn't even get up by herself. Two palace maids had to help her up and take her to clean herself before resting in the head palace.

As soon as she touched the pillow, she fell asleep, or rather, passed out. She was just too exhausted. Her body was tired, and her mind was even more so.

It was different from the first time. During the first time, she didn't feel much besides pain and exhaustion. But this time was a little different.