The Queen sealed her heart and locked up her love, and the Emperor was trapped in the crematorium

Concubine Qi seemed to have the words "I want to win favor" carved on her face. How could Xie Yaoqing not see such an obvious intention? She was not blind and her eyesight was good.

However, she was not angry. Since she did not stop other concubines from competing for favor, how could she treat Concubine Qi differently and prevent her from seeking favor? Concubine Qi was proud of her family background and the fact that she and Xiao Chengxu were cousins, so she was complacent and looked down on others. Then let everyone in the harem see how much favor this so-called good cousin can get.

As expected, not long after paying her respects, Xie Yaoqing heard from the palace servants that Concubine Qi was carrying a food box and heading straight to the Qianqing Palace, saying that she was going to deliver food to the Emperor.

In the afternoon, she searched everywhere around the Qianqing Palace for the earrings she had accidentally lost. She went to the Qianqing Palace several times a day, but unfortunately, she didn't even see Xiao Chengxu in the end. She could only go there with high hopes but return home in disappointment.

Night fell, but Concubine Qi was still restless.

Xiao Chengxu had just stepped into the gate of Kunning Palace and hadn't even had time to sit down when a eunuch from Qionghua Palace came to Kunning Palace and said that Concubine Qi was ill and asked Xiao Chengxu to go to Qionghua Palace.

Facing this request, Xiao Chengxu didn't even bother to raise his eyelids, and simply ordered Feng An beside him: "Immediately send a decree to the Imperial Hospital, and have all the doctors on duty come to Qionghua Palace to treat the imperial concubine's condition."

Then he added: "No matter what kind of difficult and complicated disease it is, we must spare no effort to cure the imperial concubine. You stay in Qionghua Palace."

As the chief eunuch in front of the emperor, Feng'an's presence meant that the emperor paid attention to him wherever he appeared. Generally speaking, ordinary concubines would not receive such treatment when they were sick. It can be seen that Concubine Qi was different from other concubines in the harem and was obviously more favored and cared for by Xiao Chengxu.

However, for the ambitious Concubine Qi, this was far from enough - what she wanted to see was only Xiao Chengxu himself, not a eunuch, even if Feng'an was following Xiao Chengxu's oral order.

The young eunuch from Qionghua Palace was embarrassed and began to stutter: "Your Majesty... The Imperial Concubine is not feeling well. Your Majesty went to visit her. With your dragon energy blessing, the Imperial Concubine's condition may get better. I beg Your Majesty to move to Qionghua Palace."

Xie Yaoqing stood by and listened quietly, with the corners of his mouth slightly raised, and he couldn't help but sneer in his heart.

She had originally expected Concubine Qi to come up with some unique and brilliant tricks, but she didn't expect it to be so mediocre.

Isn't this the same trick used by other concubines? Pretending to be sick to attract attention is a trick that has been used for a long time and has no effect at all.

Xiao Chengxu frowned slightly, as if he had guessed Concubine Qi's intention.

His face showed a bit of impatience, and he said in a cold voice: "Am I some kind of miracle doctor? As long as I appear in front of the imperial concubine, her illness will be cured immediately? If you are sick, you should go to the imperial physician for treatment. The earlier the treatment, the sooner you can recover. What are you still standing there for? Go and get the imperial physician for your master."

The young eunuch was so frightened by the rebuke that he trembled all over. He knew that he had said something wrong and offended the emperor, so he dared not delay for even a moment, not even daring to breathe, for fear of angering the emperor again and incurring more severe punishment. So he lowered his head and staggered away in a hurry.

Seeing this, Xie Yaoqing at the side said softly, "Your Majesty, are you really not going to visit the Imperial Concubine? Since the Queen Mother left the palace, the Imperial Concubine has no one to rely on. Now that she has suddenly fallen ill, she must be panicking and helpless. It is only natural for her to want to see the Emperor for comfort."

Xie Yaoqing was not so kind as to speak well of Concubine Qi. She just wanted to use Xiao Chengxu to annoy Concubine Qi. It was more painful to get something and then lose it than to never get it at all. It would be more interesting if Xiao Chengxu went to Qionghua Palace but did not stay and just left after taking a look. She was overjoyed just now, but in a flash she was not happy anymore.

Xiao Chengxu pondered secretly and felt that what Xie Yaoqing said made sense. If the imperial concubine was really ill and he didn't care about it, it would be difficult to explain to the Qi family. After all, the Qi family was still useful to him at the moment, and the new policy reforms he was implementing urgently needed the Qi family's help, so it was not appropriate to be indifferent to the imperial concubine.

After thinking about it, the originally strong unhappy expression between Xiao Chengxu's brows faded a little.

"Even if I go, it will be useless. It will not help the imperial concubine's condition. I am not a doctor, how can I bring the disease back to life and save people?"

Xie Yaoqing was simply helpless. She had made her words so clear, but Xiao Chengxu still needed a way out. How could this man be so troublesome?

Complaining in her heart, Xie Yaoqing said, "You can't say that. Although the emperor can't cure illnesses, the imperial concubine must be happy to see him. With the emperor's comfort and compassion, the imperial concubine must be in a good mood. When she is in a good mood, her illness will heal faster."

Xiao Chengxu pondered and nodded.

"The Queen has a point."

"Then Your Majesty, please go quickly. The Imperial Concubine is still waiting for you."

Xie Yaoqing slowly stood up and prepared to see him off.

However, Xiao Chengxu suddenly said, "I think it would be better for the Queen to go with me. I am not good at speaking, and I am afraid it will be difficult for me to comfort the good concubine. I have to trouble the Queen to do this for me."

If it were in the past, Xiao Chengxu would never have made such a request.

Because in the past it was Xie Yaoqing who took the initiative to ask to follow, and she would never feel comfortable letting Xiao Chengxu stay in the same room alone with the concubines in the harem.

But now Xie Yaoqing just wants to be lazy and doesn't want to get involved in those troubles, let alone play the role of the unpopular villain.

But at this moment, Xiao Chengxu refused to give her this opportunity.

With no other options, Xie Yaoqing had to ride on the imperial chariot with Xiao Chengxu and go to the Qionghua Palace.

Along the way, Xie Yaoqing was in a bad mood. Wasn't this causing trouble for her? She could tell with her toes that Concubine Qi didn't care about her comfort at all. She was afraid that when she saw her, she might get sick from being angry.

Moreover, she could have just laid comfortably on the beauty couch, with Rendong massaging her shoulders, Zhiyu reading interesting storybooks and telling her fascinating stories, and chatting with Nanny Fang about daily life. When she was thirsty, Juexia would serve her tea in time. It would have been so comfortable and relaxing.

But what about now? Being forced to go out to visit a love rival in the middle of the night is really disappointing.

Xiao Chengxu didn't seem to notice the resentment in Xie Yaoqing's heart. He gently raised his hand and straightened her slightly crooked hairpin.

"It seems like I haven't seen you wearing the white jade plum blossom hairpin for a long time."

Xie Yaoqing smiled.

"I was worried that it might get damaged, so I ordered it to be put away. Wearing different jewelry every day is fresh, and I don't lack jewelry."

After saying that, Xie Yaoqing blinked and revealed a playful expression.

Xiao Chengxu nodded slightly to show his understanding, but then he added: "But I still like to see you wearing that plum blossom hairpin. Would you like to wear it someday?"

Xie Yaoqing: “…”

Trying hard to put on a fake smile, he replied with a smile, "Okay."

Xiao Chengxu seemed satisfied. He gently embraced Xie Yaoqing in his arms, with his large hands resting on Xie Yaoqing's slender waist.

Xie Yaoqing was speechless.

Is Xiao Chengxu sick? Does she need his approval for what kind of jewelry she likes? He even interferes with a hairpin, which is really inexplicable. Is there anything special about the white jade plum blossom hairpin?

Suddenly, Xie Yaoqing thought of something.

The white jade plum blossom hairpin is indeed special.

That was the first birthday gift Xiao Chengxu gave her. Xiao Chengxu had spent a lot of time and effort to carefully select the jade from countless beautiful jades, and invited the most skilled craftsmen to spend a lot of time and energy to carefully carve it.

A complex ripple arose in Xie Yaoqing's heart.

Xiao Chengxu would be kind to people. As long as he was willing, he would treat a person well with all his heart. His sincerity and deep affection would make people unconsciously indulge in it.

When Xie Yaoqing first heard about the arranged marriage, she had no special feelings towards Xiao Chengxu. She only knew from her father and brother that he was a prince who was both civil and military, highly regarded, and had a bright future.

On the wedding night, Xiao Chengxu gently lifted her red veil, revealing a bright moon-like smile, eyes full of smiles, and softly called "wife". When she heard the vow of "I will only love one person in this life, and never have two hearts", her face flushed. At that time, the impression Xiao Chengxu left on her was that he was very handsome, had a nice voice, and was polite and well-mannered. She felt that perhaps she was lucky, even if it was a marriage granted, she married a man of her dreams.

But she truly fell in love with Xiao Chengxu in the first two years of her marriage.

Xiao Chengxu's gentleness, thoughtfulness, and understanding... everything about him gradually eroded Xie Yaoqing's heart like a gentle spring breeze, making her fall in love step by step and unable to break free.