It was already winter, and there was a heavy snowfall last night, so the snow in the yard had not yet been cleaned up. Shen Qingwan knelt straight, and soon the snow under her knees was slightly melted by her body temperature, wetting her plain skirt.
Lianyun initially thought that her mother would find a way to deal with the matter, and Xiao Shushen would not go too far in public. However, she did not expect that Xiao Shushen's original intention was just this, and she knelt straight and said nothing.
After all, she still felt sorry for her master and was very dissatisfied with Xiao Shushen's behavior. Although she knew it was wrong, she still glared at her fiercely and said with anger: "Empress, this job was given to my queen by the emperor. It should be decided by the queen who goes and who stays. How can you punish the queen for this!"
Xiao Shushen was not angered by what she heard, she just looked at Lianyun coldly without saying anything. Aunt Gui beside her spoke for her and scolded her, "How dare you! Are you accusing the Empress of meddling in other people's business? Is this crossing the line? The Empress is the master of the harem. If any of the beauties in the harem make a mistake, the Empress has the right to deal with it on behalf of the Emperor! You have been following your master for so long, and you haven't learned such a basic rule!"
Lianyun knew she had said too much, but she still blushed and wanted to continue to refute, "You!"
"That's enough!" Shen Qingwan, who was kneeling on the ground, finally spoke and scolded her, "Lianyun, you still have to understand the rules."
Lianyun opened her mouth, still feeling aggrieved, but she also knew that she had lost her composure and done something she shouldn't have done. If she continued, it would only bring more trouble to her queen, so she could only shut her mouth angrily.
But Xiao Shushen obviously would not let her go so easily. Seeing that they were silent, she spoke lightly, "The master has no rules, and the servants he brought out don't know the rules either. In this case, I will take good care of him on behalf of your master. Aunt Gui..."
After receiving her eye contact, Aunt Gui walked forward and kicked Lianyun, who was standing next to Shen Qingwan, hard. Lianyun felt pain in her knee and fell to her knees beside Shen Qingwan.
Shen Qingwan's eyes turned cold. She looked up from before, and her eyes swept gently over Nanny Gui and Xiao Shushen, then retracted her gaze and looked straight ahead. She was held hostage by someone and was temporarily at a disadvantage, but she would remember what she had done today and would return it exactly in the future.
Xiao Shushen caught a glimpse of her gaze at that moment, sneered nonchalantly, and said to Lianyun, who was forced to kneel down and dared not stand up but was unwilling to accept it, "Since you support your master's actions so much, then go in and out with her."
Lianyun clenched her fists and said nothing more. Instead, she followed Shen Qingwan's example, straightened her back, looked straight ahead, and knelt stubbornly.
The ladies who were watching the show were still whispering, but now they were frightened by her swift and decisive approach that no one dared to question and were silent for a moment. The courtyard suddenly became silent. Xiao Shushen did not leave, but just looked at the women in the courtyard indifferently. She was very satisfied with the intimidation she had caused.
"The Emperor has arrived!" The eunuch's sharp voice broke the silence, and then a bright yellow voice walked into the courtyard with the crowd.
"Your Highness, long live the Emperor..."
"Stand up." Fu Yuheng raised his hand, signaling everyone to stand up.
"Your Majesty, what are you doing..." Xiao Shushen walked over and asked gently. She was a little uneasy, as he had been doting on Shen Qingwan recently, and she was worried that he had heard rumors and came to help her out.
"I happened to be passing by, so I came over to take a look." Fu Yuheng looked around, frowned slightly and asked her, "Queen, what's going on?"
Xiao Shushen felt relieved. As long as he didn't come here specifically for her, he wouldn't embarrass her in front of everyone. She knew he was asking the two people kneeling on the ground, so she carefully considered her tone and explained, "It's wrong for Concubine Xian to trust the words of the concubine and choose the concubine with personal feelings. I'm afraid she will make a big mistake, so I came here to give her some advice."
As she spoke, she observed his expression calmly. Fu Yuheng just frowned, but didn't say anything. After listening to her, he looked at Shen Qingwan indifferently, didn't let her stand up, and only asked: "Why do you do this?"
Shen Qingwan pursed her lips, looked up at Fu Yuheng, and said, "Your Majesty, I think we should respect the wishes of the concubines."
There was hope in her eyes. She knew that he was not the kind of person who liked to take advantage of others and should be able to understand her actions.
But unexpectedly, he just glanced at her without any response to her words. Instead, he turned to look at Xiao Shushen and said, "Thank you, Queen, for your concern."
Xiao Shushen was secretly delighted, and put on a gentle expression, saying softly: "Managing the harem is my duty."
He nodded, asked the servant behind him to take the fur coat he brought out, and put it on her with his own hands, "Your cold has just gotten better, you should rest more in the palace and don't overwork yourself. It looks like it will continue to snow soon, so go back to the palace early."
She was somewhat flattered, but couldn't lose her composure in front of the other concubines, so she could only suppress her pride and calmly answer her question, "Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. My health has improved a lot, and now my sister, the virtuous concubine, needs to reflect on herself, and the selection of concubines cannot be delayed, so I will help to keep an eye on her if I can."
Fu Yuheng nodded, but didn't say whether she should be in charge, but he didn't directly tell her to take on the task of the talent show. "Don't force yourself if your body can't handle it."
After saying that, he signaled everyone who was accompanying him to leave. Apart from asking that question, he never cast his gaze towards Shen Qingwan again.
As early as when he was putting clothes on Xiao Shushen, Shen Qingwan had withdrawn her gaze from him, with a blank expression, looking straight ahead. She was disappointed in her heart. It seemed that she had misjudged him all along.
He actually just walked away without saying anything for her. Her eyes drifted towards the direction he left, and she tried hard to hold back the tears that were about to fall out of her eyes.
It started snowing again, from the fine snow to heavy snow like goose feathers. Xiao Shushen was quietly reprimanding the concubines, teaching them how to behave in the palace. Aunt Gui had held up a paper umbrella for Xiao Shushen when the snow started to fall. When she saw that the snow was getting heavier, she dismissed the concubines and set off to return to the palace. When they left, no one even looked at her and Lianyun, as if they didn't exist.
Only she and Lianyun were left kneeling alone in the heavy snow, with no one paying attention to them.
Shen Qingwan tightened her lips, and finally her eyes were filled with bitterness. But she did not regret helping the woman who did not want to enter the palace to leave the palace. She knew she deserved the punishment for this, so she did not resist.
But when she saw him treating her so coldly, she couldn't help but let the feeling of loss spread throughout her body and mind.