The Legend of Zhen Huan: Year after year, we share the spring breeze

"Auntie, take her back!" An Lingrong ordered.

Aunt Xiao always obeyed the eldest lady's decision, so the two of them supported the "young man" back to the inn.

After the doctor felt my pulse, he only said one sentence, "I'm so hungry!"

After being fed some water and porridge, the woman slowly woke up. Realizing she had been rescued, she quickly rolled off the bed and knelt before An Lingrong: "Thank you, Miss, for saving my life. Su Ye has no way of repaying you."

An Lingrong, with her 21st-century soul, couldn't stand seeing someone kneeling down to her, so she quickly pulled her up and put her back on the bed, then asked about her life experience.

Su Ye has been an orphan since she could remember. She lived by begging with a group of beggars in a mountain temple in De'an Prefecture, Hubei Province. Eight years ago, she went into the mountains to pick wild vegetables and found a traveling doctor who was bitten by a poisonous snake and was dying. She collected herbs to drive out the poison according to the doctor's description and saved his life. The doctor was grateful for the life-saving grace and adopted her as his adopted daughter, named her Su Ye, and took her with him to travel around to cure diseases and save lives.

A year ago, they traveled to Dezhou Prefecture, Shandong Province. The doctor was kidnapped by a wealthy man and taken to his home to treat the master. However, the master refused to eat or drink, his face was as pale as gold paper, and he was near death. No medicine could cure him. Upon hearing this, the master's son ordered the servants to throw the doctor out of the house. The doctor hit his head on a tree and died. The wealthy man knew that the father and daughter were from other places, leaving only an orphan with no family background. He threw twenty coins for funeral expenses and wanted to put an end to the matter.

Su Ye naturally didn't want to do that and wanted to file a complaint with the Dezhou government office. However, as she was an orphan, she was beaten out before she even entered the government office. As the weather was getting hotter, her adoptive father's body could not be kept for long, so she could only cry and bury her adoptive father hastily.

But she never forgot the revenge for her adoptive father, so she disguised herself as a man and went to the capital to collect and sell herbs, intending to beat the drum to redress the grievances for her adoptive father.

An Lingrong and Aunt Xiao sighed after hearing this. In this world, it was not easy for a woman to survive, let alone to seek revenge.

"Then do you know that those who beat the drum to report to the emperor will be punished with caning if they are men and tortured with fingers if they are women? How can a weak woman like you bear it? You may die before you even see those officials!" An Lingrong felt a little reluctant.

Su Ye burst into tears. "I know, but my adoptive father raised me for eight years. How can I ignore his unjust death for my own safety? Even if I die, it will not be in vain for him and his daughter!"

Aunt Xiao sat beside the bed, gently wiping her tears and silently comforting her.

"You can collect herbs, but can you treat illnesses?" An Lingrong asked.

Facing his savior, Su Ye spoke truthfully: "Yes. I have been with my adoptive father for eight years. I have been to many places and seen many medical records. My adoptive father often said that my medical skills are no longer inferior to his."

An Lingrong thought for a moment and said, "I am the selected concubine this time. If I am lucky enough to be chosen, I will enter the palace to serve the emperor. Are you willing to be my maid and enter the palace with me? If I have the chance, I will definitely help you to redress the injustice done to your adoptive father!"

Su Ye opened the quilt and got out of bed. He kowtowed and said, "I do. You saved my life, so mine is naturally yours too."

An Lingrong had no choice but to stand up and help her up, saying, "Don't kowtow so easily! Although I saved you, it was just a simple favor for me. If you repay me with your life, then my efforts and gains will not be equal. This is wrong."

Su Ye was at a loss.

"I am just the daughter of a county magistrate. My family background is humble. Even if I enter the palace, I will probably be looked down upon. If you follow me, you may suffer a lot. But if you become mine, I will protect you to the best of my ability." An Lingrong continued.

"I'm not afraid of hardship. Miss, I'll follow you. Even if I have someone to rely on in the future, I'll be happy to endure any hardship." Su Ye said with a smile, but as she smiled, tears began to flow.

After so many years of wandering, what she feared most was not hunger or cold, nor the ridicule and contempt of others, but the feeling of loneliness, no one caring, no one talking, as if she had been abandoned by the whole world. Now that she had a master, she would never be alone again.

An Lingrong looked at her smiling face and felt a little relieved. With a maid who knew medicine, she should be able to have a much easier time in the palace.

In reality, if Yu Yang had her own wishes, she wouldn't have wanted to enter the palace. This wonderful world, with its beautiful scenery, hadn't yet been commercialized by later generations. She could travel around and see what she had come for. But she also knew that her name had been filed with the Imperial Household Department. If she didn't show up on the day of the selection, it might be seen as disrespecting the royal majesty, and her parents and brother, far away in Songyang, would face death. Furthermore, she lacked a travel permit or household registration certificate, and if she left the house, she could be arrested as a runaway slave at any moment.

An Lingrong had no choice but to wait patiently for the day of the selection of concubines.

Two days later, Concubine Xiao rented a courtyard house with a single entrance, covering an area of approximately 300 square meters. The entire courtyard consisted of four houses: the main house, the east wing, the west wing, and the back house. Although the place was not large, the courtyard was spacious, with good light and ventilation, enough for three people to live in. A row of green bamboos planted against the wall in the courtyard, the rustling of the bamboos in the wind was quite poetic. An Lingrong was very fond of it and moved in immediately with Concubine Xiao and Su Ye. After all, the daily expenses of the inn were not small.

Only after she had some free time did An Lingrong have time to think about this audition.

The current emperor is Emperor Kangxi's fourth son, Yinzhen. On November 1722, , the st year of the reign of Emperor Kangxi, he ascended the throne in the Hall of Supreme Harmony in accordance with the late emperor's will. He changed the reign title to Yongzheng, and the second year, which is this year, is the first year of Yongzheng.

The Emperor is over forty years old and is no longer as passionate about matters between men and women as he was in his youth. He is only obsessed with government affairs every day. There are only a few people in the harem, including the Empress, Hua Fei, Duan Fei, Qi Fei, Jing Fei, Li Fei, Cao Guiren, Xin Changzai, etc. He has only three sons and two daughters. Compared with the record of 35 sons and 20 daughters of the Emperor Kangxi, it is simply not good to look at. Therefore, this selection is aimed at enriching the palace and breeding heirs.