Song Qingshu was filled with confusion; he had clearly heard this voice before, yet he could not recall who it belonged to. Fortunately, the other party did not leave him in doubt for long. Soon, several palace maids surrounded a beautifully dressed lady, gracefully walking into the courtyard. With a face as delicate as white jade and hands as slender as white jade, under the moonlight, she appeared like a statue of Guanyin, stunningly beautiful and captivating.
Song Qingshu was taken aback; it was actually her!
This lady in palace attire was none other than Ah Ke.
After Song Qingshu had brought Ah Ke back to Yanjing City during his mission to Shanhaiguan, he had been busy with various matters and had not seen her since. No wonder her voice sounded familiar, yet he could not remember her.
The old maid and eunuchs in the room turned around upon hearing the commotion. Once they recognized her appearance, they all knelt and paid their respects, saying, “We greet you, Lady Wu.”
“Lady Wu?” Song Qingshu frowned slightly, recalling what he had heard in Yangzhou City. It seemed that Han Dingxiao had secretly rescued her from Yanjing City, and then Wu Sangui, in order to ally with the Southern Song against the Qing Dynasty, had sent her to the Southern Song Palace to become Lady Wu.
*Wu Sangui is truly shameless,* Song Qingshu thought disdainfully.
Back then, Wu Sangui had secretly intended to betroth Ah Ke to Fukang’an to form an alliance with Prince Bao. After his plans were thwarted by Song Qingshu, he sent Ah Ke to the Forbidden City, attempting to arrange a marriage with Kangxi. Now, he had sent Ah Ke to the Southern Song.
Tsk tsk, a w0man married three times, he truly could do such a thing.
However, Ah Ke was indeed unfortunate; logically speaking, whether it was Fukang’an, Kangxi, or Zhao Gou, they were either emperors or heirs apparent. Such a marriage would not have been a disgrace to her, yet each time the marriage failed: Fukang’an died, Kangxi did not dare to accept her for the sake of his reputation, and Zhao Gou was willing to accept her, but unfortunately, he was a eunuch emperor, leaving her as a nominal consort.
Song Qingshu, who was well-versed in the art of joy and adept at observing Qi, could tell at a glance that Ah Ke was still a v1rgin. To leave such a stunning beauty untouched, unless her husband was not a man, it seemed Zhao Gou was indeed a eunuch emperor.
*It is probably because of this that he has a twisted and perverse psychology, leading him to kill someone like Yue Fei,* Song Qingshu thought with disdain.
After entering, Ah Ke scanned the room and, upon seeing the white silk and poison wine, her eyelids twitched involuntarily. She said in a deep voice, “Whose idea is this?”
The old maid, who had previously been arrogant in front of Li Yuanzhi, now changed her demeanor and respectfully replied, “It was ordered by the Grand Steward.”
Ah Ke waved her hand, “Understood, you may leave now.”
The old nurse became anxious, “But…”
Ah Ke huffed softly, “Do you dare not listen to my words?”
The old maid hurriedly explained, “This old servant does not dare, but the Grand Steward is actually just following orders…” She did not finish her sentence, but everyone present understood that the Grand Steward of the entire palace only took orders from one person.
Ah Ke’s delicate brows furrowed slightly, clearly feeling a bit troubled. However, after thinking of something, she still spoke, “I will naturally go to speak with the Emperor. You may leave now.”
“Yes.” With the conversation reaching this point, the old maid naturally did not dare to say anything further. She signaled her companions to tidy up and then left.
“You all stay at the door; without my command, do not enter,” Ah Ke instructed the palace maids behind her, then walked directly to Li Yuanzhi.
At this moment, Li Yuanzhi had regained her senses. Looking at the beautiful lady before her, even as a woman, she felt a stir in her heart. She had been in the palace for some time and had seen Ah Ke a few times before, yet seeing her again still left her in awe of her beauty.
“Thank you, Lady Wu.” Although they had no prior acquaintance, Ah Ke had saved her today, and Li Yuanzhi would not be so rude as to forget her manners.
Ah Ke lightly hummed in response, her attitude extremely cold.
Li Yuanzhi was taken aback; although she did not understand why the other party was so distant, she was not the type to ingratiate herself.
The room quickly fell into silence. Ah Ke seemed to realize the awkwardness of the atmosphere, cleared her throat, and casually exchanged a few pleasantries with her.
Li Yuanzhi could tell that she was lacking in enthusiasm, and coupled with her own recent distress over her father’s situation, she directly spoke up, “Lady Wu need not beat around the bush. What brings you here in the middle of the night? Just say it plainly.”
Lady Wu was currently favored in the palace, continuously receiving titles and rewards from the emperor, while Li Yuanzhi had been cast into the cold palace and was always in danger of losing her life. The two could be said to be completely from different worlds, and Li Yuanzhi did not believe that the other party would come for no reason.
On the roof, Song Qingshu also showed a puzzled expression, unable to understand why Ah Ke would seek out Li Yuanzhi.
Inside the room, Ah Ke hesitated for a moment before finally speaking, “I heard that you and… you and Song Qingshu are quite familiar?”
As soon as she said this, not only Li Yuanzhi but even Song Qingshu was taken aback, never expecting her to mention him.
“I suppose… we are somewhat familiar,” Li Yuanzhi thought of the scene from that day when Song Qingshu had pinned her down, and her pretty face unknowingly turned a bit red.
Noticing her shy expression, Ah Ke suddenly felt a bit irritated and cleared her throat, “Then tell me about matters related to him.”
Li Yuanzhi was startled, “What is the relationship between Lady Wu and Brother Song?”
“I have no relationship with him,” Ah Ke snorted coldly, “Just focus on telling me about him.”
“Is that so?” Li Yuanzhi looked at her with suspicion, thinking that Brother Song was known for his charm; could it be that he had an affair with Lady Wu? With this thought, her expression became even stranger. It was known that the Southern Song palace was never short of beauties, yet with Lady Wu’s arrival, she undoubtedly overshadowed them all, becoming the most beautiful woman in the harem. How could someone like Brother Song manage to get involved with her? He must be quite impressive.
Li Yuanzhi was always quirky, her thought process different from that of ordinary women. Her first reaction was not jealousy but rather admiration for Song Qingshu’s charm, which was telling. “I wonder what aspect of Brother Song Lady Wu wants to hear about?” After all, she had saved her life, so Li Yuanzhi did not refuse to answer her questions.
“Well…” Ah Ke pondered for a moment and said, “I have actually heard quite a bit about him, but it’s all hearsay, and it might have been distorted along the way. I want to hear some real stories… How about you tell me about your relationship with him?”
“Ah?” Li Yuanzhi exclaimed. It was fine to talk about Song Qingshu, but how could she discuss their private matters with an outsider?
“Is that not acceptable?” Ah Ke looked at her displeased.
“That’s not to say it’s impossible,” Li Yuanzhi hesitated for a moment and said, “Alright then, the story begins when my father and I encountered bandits on our way south to take up his post… Later in the Forbidden City… in Shengjing… in Yangzhou…”
Li Yuanzhi certainly would not be foolish enough to reveal everything, so she chose to share some inconsequential details with her.
As she recounted everything that had happened with Song Qingshu, Ah Ke’s expression changed unpredictably. Suddenly, she slammed the teacup on the table to the ground and stood up angrily, shouting, “Someone, come and slap her!”