Ling Shan rolled her eyes silently.
What did he mean by “looking quite pleasing to the eye”?
So it was only today that her face was finally worthy of catching his eye?
“Your Majesty, is there something on this servant's face?” Ling Shan asked deliberately.
Jun Wuyuan's eyes suddenly flashed. His round almond - shaped eyes were filled with nervous disbelief.
What was he doing?
Could it be that the cup of tea just now had been laced with some kind of spell by this silly goose?
Otherwise, how could he have been so distracted by looking at this silly goose?
Ling Shan: “......?” Heh.
Wasn't Jun Wuyuan, this tyrannical emperor, crazy?
Spells?
What kind of poison could be more poisonous than Jun Wuyuan himself?
The extremely poisonous Jun Wuyuan spoke.
“Oh, it seems there's a drop of bird poop on your face.”
Ling Shan: “......”
Silence, endless silence.
The smile on Ling Shan's lips was so forced that it was about to disappear.
In her heart, she was cursing like a volcano erupting: Jun Wuyuan, you bastard!
There's bird poop on your face!
There's bird poop on your whole family's faces!
If Jun Wuyuan could hear Ling Shan's thoughts, he would know how filthy those curses were.
After a brief moment of silence, Ling Shan forced a smile on her lips.
She had to sound grateful: “Really? It's this servant's sin to have offended Your Majesty's holy eyes. I'll clean it up right away. Thank you, Your Majesty, for not blaming me.”
Jun Wuyuan: “.....”
Why did he feel inexplicably guilty?
He must have drunk too much tea today and was drunk.
Otherwise, why would such strange emotions keep popping up in his head?
“What's this?”
The matter of the bird poop was dropped. Jun Wuyuan's gaze fell on the sparse green shoots.
Ling Shan took a deep breath, silently put away the clean silk handkerchief without a single mark, and smiled:
“Your Majesty, this is a kind of melon called ‘cold melon’ that came from the Western Regions. This servant doesn't know if it can survive. I tried to plant it a few days ago, and unexpectedly, it sprouted this morning.”
Cold melon?
What was that?
[What cold melon or hot melon? This silly goose has been tinkering with things in the peach orchard. Has she forgotten what she came to the Taiji Palace for?]
Ling Shan: “......” Shocked, right?
What did Jun Wuyuan mean by this?
Could it be that he thought she was being lazy about trying to climb into his bed?
No way?
Was Jun Wuyuan's tyrannical emperor persona collapsing so soon?
“Tasty?”
Jun Wuyuan felt her brief glance fall on his face and then quickly move away. He frowned slightly.
[Am I some kind of ferocious beast?]
Ling Shan rolled her eyes silently in her heart.
Didn't he have any self - awareness?
“It's extremely delicious. In two more months, Your Majesty will be able to enjoy it. I'm sure Your Majesty will like it very much then.”
Ling Shan's face was full of confident radiance. If you listened carefully, you could even hear the sound of her eager swallowing.
It seemed that this so - called cold melon was quite delicious?
“Then I'll be waiting. If it's not tasty, it's a great crime of deceiving the emperor.”
Jun Wuyuan shifted his gaze and hooked his lips in a half - smile.
The crime of deceiving the emperor naturally meant the execution of the offender's entire clan.
Ling Shan: “......”
You tyrannical dog!
If the cold melons were really edible, she wouldn't give him a single bite!
“Your Majesty is the true dragon emperor. How dare this servant commit such a great crime of deceiving the emperor in front of you?”
Ling Shan spouted words of loyalty without hesitation: “In front of Your Majesty, this servant only has a heart that is loyal and unwavering to you. I would never dare to have such a rebellious thought.”
[It's easy to talk the talk, but one must also walk the walk to be more convincing, right?]
“I, of course, trust you.”
Jun Wuyuan casually raised his eyes and showed his fangs: “Otherwise, why would I be at ease leaving you by my side, right? You'll also go with me to the Dragon Boat Festival grand ceremony in a couple of days.”
[It's just the right opportunity for me to see with my own eyes how this loyal and unwavering heart is devoted to me.]
Ling Shan: “......”
It was over. He was really coming after her this time.
---
Before Liang Jiusi returned to the Taiji Palace again, she scrubbed herself up and down, inside and out, no less than three times.
She used the special perfume and powder made by Ling Shan, changed into a clean and tidy robe, and then resumed her duties.
After Liang Jiusi returned to the Taiji Palace, Jun Wuyuan “showed great mercy” and gave Ling Shan two days off.
During these two days, Ling Shan stayed in the peach orchard tinkering with small things.
Yang Qiyuan didn't know where she was busy and didn't show up these two days.
It seemed that Ling Shan was the only one in the entire peach orchard.
The whole Taiji Palace seemed to have forgotten about Ling Shan. Moreover, a rumor quietly spread.
The girl Ling Shan sent from the Cining Palace had fallen out of favor!
The Emperor didn't even want to see her and just let her fend for herself in that remote and desolate place.
After all, most people in the Taiji Palace knew that although the peach orchard in the Taiji Palace sounded nice, it was actually the burial place of countless wronged souls.
It was said that ghosts haunted there in the middle of the night.
Maybe that little maid who had suddenly become the most favored one in front of the Emperor had already lost her life.
Ling Shan, who was staying in the peach orchard, didn't know this rumor. Instead, Queen Mother Wang in the Cining Palace got wind of it first.
Especially during the morning court these two days, Jun Wuyuan didn't know if he had taken the wrong medicine.
Not only did he start to go crazy and not sleep, but he also punished several members of the Wang family's faction in the court.
This sudden move was like sounding an alarm. The two previously non - interfering forces in the court immediately became tense.
And the news that Ling Shan was disliked and had fallen out of favor was like a drop of kerosene, instantly igniting the relatively calm lake.
Jun Wuyuan's actions these two days were undoubtedly a hard slap in the face of Queen Mother Wang and the Wang family.
It was said that the ornaments in the Cining Palace were shattered all over the place that day, obviously showing the Queen Mother's overflowing anger.
In the imperial palace and the imperial city, due to this “strange wind,” there was an additional sense of solemnity as if a storm was approaching.
Amidst this solemnity, the Dragon Boat Festival on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month arrived.
Early in the morning, Ling Shan was dragged by Yang Qiyuan, who had disappeared for two days and then suddenly reappeared, to change her clothes. Then she was stuffed into a carriage.
The carriage moved slowly and was very bumpy. Even before noon on the Dragon Boat Festival, it was so hot that people felt panicked.
Ling Shan was alone in the carriage. Unable to bear it anymore, she fell into a drowsy sleep.
Unexpectedly, she, who wasn't carsick or bus - sick, would one day be carsick in a carriage.
In her drowsy state, she even had a dream, a beautiful dream that would never happen again.
In the dream, Ling Shan took a plane for the first time. Looking at the blue sky and white clouds, she flew out of the mountainous area.
Ling Shan still remembered the joy of achieving her long - awaited wish and breaking free from the shackles and confinement.
But this joy didn't last long. As soon as she opened her eyes, she was no longer the original Ling Shan.
In the darkness, there was a face that looked exactly like hers, distorted with hatred.