The Enchanting Imperial Concubine (Book 2)

Chapter 228 - A Mixed Pot

"Look at Xiurong like that; did she win another victory today?"

NanZhi laughed as she brought in two plates of fresh fruit, making a light-hearted joke.

Today, with her was Huiyue, who also laughed. "Our Xiurong is impressive; of course, she has to win. You didn't see Yi Xiuyuan and Fang Xiuyuan; their mouths are quite vicious."

"Isn't it just to mock me for not being pregnant? Day in and day out, they nibble on radishes and worry about me. If I were really pregnant, they would be the ones getting anxious, restless, and unable to sleep," Ye Yun rolled her eyes.

The women in the harem still lacked a bit in verbal skills. Besides relying on their favored positions and not being able to have children, they could hardly come up with anything new. She was tired of hearing the same old things.

"Have you noticed that Fang Xiuyuan has been more active lately? Although she has always been slightly neglected, she never used to engage in the verbal sparring among the concubines, but now she loves to chime in," Ye Yun said, her words a bit muffled as she poked a piece of watermelon with her silver fork and popped it into her mouth.

Huiyue nodded, "I've noticed too. She probably can't sit still anymore."

"I always feel like she targets me more, but logically, Yi Xiuyuan should be her biggest threat," Ye Yun remarked.

Nan Zhi thought for a moment and then said, "It might be because of the falling out between us. Didn't her maid, who came with her dowry, take the blame and end up gone? The newly promoted one is called Nianwen; the previous one was Qiwun, and the name sounds similar."

"That incident was definitely still her doing. However, she is cautious in her actions, and when the matter was exposed, she managed to distance herself completely. The Emperor is also mindful of her life-saving grace, and since Yi Xiuyuan didn't suffer a miscarriage after all, it seems she has escaped a disaster."

Ye Yun slightly squinted her eyes, recalling the incident of the false accusation, feeling uncomfortable in her heart. In the end, only Yao Shi lost a maidservant, which was still a benefit for her. If things had gone differently back then, it would have been her own life at stake, not Yao Shi's maid.

"The louder the dog barks, the more it bites. Fang Xiuyuan has become an enemy of mine; she is quite scheming. I'll just have to be more cautious of her in the future."

Huiyue and Nanzhi nodded. Having spent a long time in the palace, they had seen plenty of hidden matters and were now very careful.

As for these sinister and deceitful characters, whatever was meant to come would come, and Ye Yun was not one to shy away from trouble. If it came, she would face it head-on.

In the following days, the atmosphere in the harem became quite peculiar. It wouldn't be accurate to say it was strange; rather, it was unprecedentedly regulated. Ning Chen adhered strictly to the Empress Dowager's requirement of equitable treatment, spending one day with each concubine.

Whether it was for a night of intimacy or a meal, he would visit one of them every other day. Starting from the Empress, the order was Shu Fei, Jing Fei, Wang Xiuyi, Fang Xiuyuan, Yi Xiuyuan, Xia Meiren, and Cui Baolin.

Yes, Ye Yun and Chen Jieyu were singled out and excluded. The reason was that both of them had already been visited beforehand.

After a series of arrangements, half a month had passed, and another day would soon be the Double Ninth Festival.

On the eighth day of the ninth month, the Emperor did not go anywhere. However, he did announce that he would return to the palace after the Double Ninth Festival, likely departing on the fifteenth day of September.