The queen is sober in the world, and she is winning every step of the palace fight.

Wu Xiangrong also stood up and said with a smile, "That's perfect. I want to go see Sister Ying too. She keeps saying she's been feeling tired lately, and I've been thinking about her but I don't dare to bother her too much. So I'll go with you this time, sit for a while, and see her."

The few of them were extremely close, so Fei Wan took Wu Xiangrong to see Zhishu.

After Zhishu was promoted, because her promotion was not too high and could not be compared with Feiwan, she still lived in Shunfei Palace and the emperor did not let her move.

When they arrived, Zhishu was not in her room, but in Shunfei's yard, sitting with Shunfei, admiring the flowers and drinking tea.

Seeing Fei Wan and Wu Xiangrong coming, Concubine Shun, whose rank was much higher than both of them, did not act arrogantly at all. She stood up and greeted them with a smile.

"It's a nice day today, and it's a rare occasion for you all to come over. I'll have someone bring some more snacks so we can sit down and talk. Let's have dinner here. It's really boring to eat alone on weekdays."

Concubine Shun was very enthusiastic.

After Fei Wan and Wu Xiangrong exchanged greetings, everyone sat down in order.

"How are you today, sister? You're pregnant and can't drink tea." Wu Xiangrong was concerned about Zhishu.

Zhishu's calm expression warmed up a bit. She smiled and pointed at the bowl in front of her and said, "My health is just like that. I'll just take care of it. But this isn't tea. It's Concubine Shun's sweet osmanthus dew. It's light, sweet and soft. It tastes better than sweet osmanthus wine, but it won't make you drunk."

Concubine Shun asked someone to bring two more bowls for Wu Xiangrong and Fei Wan to try.

"Last autumn, I picked freshly opened osmanthus flowers, mixed them with dew, and sealed them in a small jar. Then, with the first snow of early winter, I swept them off the leaves and placed them quietly in the jar. I mixed them with that year's spring and autumn teas, as well as plum blossoms from the twelfth lunar month. I fermented them for a few days, then repeatedly steamed and fumigated them. Finally, I made a fragrant dew, sealed it in a glass bottle, and buried it under the osmanthus tree. After three months, I can take it out and use it."

Listening to Concubine Shun's description of the production process of the fragrant dew, Wu Xiangrong could only smack her lips in amazement: "It's amazing that you have such patience. If it were another concubine, I'm afraid I would have thrown it away before completing even one step."

There was a hint of bitterness in Concubine Shun's gentle smile. She looked at the flowers in full bloom in the yard, lowered her eyes and filled her own lamp.

"I'm bored all day long. If I don't find something to do, time will seem endless. You're still young, and it's time to have fun. Besides, you always have to serve His Majesty. With endless things to do every day, it's natural that you can't concentrate on these things."

She, too, had come from the Qiandi Palace, having been a concubine in the palace. Her family background was neither high nor low, her looks were neither high nor low, and she had a mild temperament and ordinary talents. While the emperor didn't think much of her, he nevertheless made every effort to support her. Based on her seniority, she was promoted to the rank of concubine. Speaking of which, aside from Concubine Qing, she was the only one in the Qiandi Palace back then, and it was surprising that she shared this sense of loneliness.

Fei Wan and Zhi Shu were both in great favor, so they didn't respond after hearing it.

Wu Xiangrong smiled and said, "Your Majesty is so quiet. In fact, in terms of age, I seem to be a year older than you, right? But I am bored all day and just sleep. I am impatient to do these delicate tasks. Before playing with Sister Zhao and the others, I was bored to death in Zhuhui Palace. I was afraid that if I got caught in the rain, I would become a mushroom in the corner. These days, I feel like I am alive again. If Your Majesty feels bored, I will have the courage to come and bother you often. Please don't think my rudeness will bother me."

These words made Concubine Shun laugh, but with an embarrassed look on her face.

Indeed, even considering her lack of favor, she was still much better off than Wu Xiangrong had been. They both came from the Imperial Palace, but Wu Xiangrong's previous life was truly miserable. In her obscurity, she was neglected by the Imperial Household Department, lacking food and clothing. In winter, she didn't even have enough charcoal to keep warm, and when she fell ill from the cold, she lacked medical care or medicine. She finally took a chance, but it went wrong, offending Concubine Jian and the others, and was bullied to the point of being worse than death.

After all, she was still a concubine and was always looked after by the emperor. Apart from being out of favor, she lived her life as usual.

In front of Wu Xiangrong, she had no reason to feel lonely.

So he quickly smiled and said, "Sister Wu is willing to come, I am more than happy. You are a lively and festive person, and it is best for you to come to my palace to talk."

The slightly awkward atmosphere dissipated just like that. Wu Xiangrong was quite good at creating an atmosphere.

Xu Yu talked about the joke of that day again.

Zhishu asked what the real answer was. She said that the last six words that day were just a cover-up for everyone. She felt that Wu Xiangrong must be hiding something.

Wu Xiangrong covered her mouth and laughed: "A rooster and a hen, two characters would be 'two chickens', four characters would be 'still two chickens', six characters..."

Concubine Shun also listened and asked, "What is it? Tell me quickly."

Wu Xiangrong clapped his hands: "Idiot! Still two chickens!"

Concubine Shun didn't understand. "Why is it still 'two chickens'? Isn't it six words?"

The maids around her all understood what she heard and lowered their heads to suppress their laughter.

Concubine Shun was stunned for a long time before she suddenly understood. She pointed at Wu Xiangrong and laughed so hard that she was speechless.

Fei Wan couldn't help but laugh, "No wonder you looked so strange that day. If I tell His Majesty the answer, I'll punish you for disrespect."

Wu Xiangrong left Xi Fu and apologized to Concubine Shun: "My concubine is rude, please don't blame me, Your Majesty. I won't do it again next time."

"It's just a joke, sit back down!"

After Concubine Shun had laughed enough, she sent a palace maid to the kitchen to instruct them to send more food tonight and invite Fei Wan and others to dine together.

Fei Wan wanted to stay here and observe, so she didn't refuse.

When she had some time, she left Wu Xiangrong to talk to Concubine Shun, and she and Zhishu went back to Zhishu's room to wash up.

There was no one around, so Fei Wan asked quietly, "Are there any clues?"

Zhishu let down her long black hair and combed it carefully with a rhinoceros horn comb, with the corners of her mouth curved coldly.

“I have a little bit, but it’s the same as having nothing.”

"How to say?"

"It's true that there's something fishy in my food, but I haven't found the cause yet."

Zhishu whispered to Feiwan that she had been secretly investigating her consumption these days, paying special attention to her diet.

Finally, I discovered that there was something wrong with the water chestnuts in one of her common dishes.

The water chestnuts had recently tasted bitter, but late summer was past their prime, and it was common for them to taste unpleasant, sour, or bitter. She hadn't previously considered this. Later, when she couldn't find the problem, she began to investigate these seemingly unrelated anomalies.

"I asked Chu Qingmu to take the water chestnuts from my meal back for inspection. He found out that the water chestnuts had been soaked in medicine."

Fei Wan frowned: "What medicine? Is it toxic?"

"It's a combination of several herbs. It's not very toxic, but it will make you feel sleepy and sluggish from time to time. Continuous consumption will affect your pulse."

"Like a pregnancy pulse?"

Zhishu shook her head. "No, if you only take those water chestnuts, it will just be an ordinary slippery pulse. Chu Qingmu said that the potion was prepared according to the unconventional prescription recorded in ancient books. If you want to show the pulse of pregnancy, you need a key herb and yellow wine as a medicine."

"Yellow wine?"

"Yes, that day at Changle Palace, Concubine Xian entertained guests with the rice wine 'Danxia Amber' brewed by the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion. I drank a few glasses and then vomited."

Zhishu's face was cold.

Is it the virtuous concubine? Fei Wan frowned.