Xie Zhixing had a mind to observe the origin and character of the Yun Family, using the same cautiousness as when dealing with high-ranking ministers of the previous dynasty, maintaining an inscrutable expression, not swayed by desire. He thought, how hard could it be? Even the old fox Ji Chengzhong had been deceived by him multiple times, yet he nearly lost his composure in front of this little Servant Consort.
After discovering that no matter how many times time was reversed, the Emperor would not be refreshed and moved to the adjacent quarters, Yun Jiao had no choice but to brace herself for serving the Emperor for the night.
To speak of it, this was not a hard task.
The Emperor was more handsome than the SSR illustration in "Deep Palace," his only shortcoming being that he was not a paper character but a monarch who could make her nine generations disappear on the spot. Yun Jiao was a bit scared. But with the backing of time reversal and a modern soul, although scared, she was often careless and spoke incorrectly.
"You are very afraid of me."
Xie Zhixing stood by the bed, easily noticing the trembling of her fingertips as she served him in changing clothes: "What are you afraid of?"
Yun Jiao: "Afraid the Emperor will execute my whole clan."
Xie Zhixing: "..."
Yun Jiao clutched his robe, rewinding time by a second, and in a soft voice changed her words: "The Emperor is imposing and extraordinary; this Concubine is fearful."
She harbored no grand ambitions.
Her goal for the first time serving the Emperor was simply not to offend him.
One by one, the buttons of the Dragon Robe were unfastened, revealing to Yun Jiao the eight-pack abs that opened up to her, causing her to involuntarily swallow.
Since it had to pass censors, "Deep Palace" had no content below the neck!
This was a sight she had never seen before!
"If you like,"
Seeing her hesitation, Xie Zhixing took her hand and pressed it against his waist and abdomen, attempting to use his charms: "Why not feel it carefully?"
As soon as he finished speaking, he saw Servant Consort Yun swiftly knead his abs in a flash, even daringly poking at his lines with her fingertips. Immediately, she rewound time by three seconds, then shyly lowered her head: "Your Majesty is of invaluable stature, this Concubine dares not."
Her cheeks flushed, there was no trace of the boldness from moments ago.
Xie Zhixing had never seen such shamelessness in a woman.
However, he quickly realized that she was indeed quite timid. With even a slight touch, her face turned completely red, her watery eyes looking at him shyly, elevating his mood a notch. After all, he was a healthy adult man, and even if he wasn't obsessed with desire, he had been restraining himself significantly.
"Your Majesty, slow down, wait..."
Servant Consort Yun's voice was so tender and sweet it could be wrung for water.
What she didn't know was that the more needy she appeared, the more it ignited a man's desire to conquer.
"I do not wish to wait."
Xie Zhixing raised his brow.
With time continually being rewound, preventing him from favoring other concubines, she had better be prepared to bear it all from him…
The next moment, the undergarments returned to him.
The Dragon Vein forcibly extinguished.
"Your Majesty, this Concubine is ready."
Yun Jiao lifted her face, giving him a sweet smile, completely unaware that the man before her was about to explode.
When Xie Zhixing was suffocating with suppressed emotions, he noticed Yun Jiao subtly showing a sign of relief.
She unexpectedly kept reversing time just to buy herself some breathing space!
Xie Zhixing found it incomprehensible.
Such an extraordinary ability used for this purpose? He restrained his urge to voice the question, finally reluctantly slowing down to give her enough room to breathe: "Ready now?"
"The Emperor need not worry about this Concubine."
"I told you not to force it."
Acting tough now, reversing time later would injure his Dragon Vein.
Ying Lu, standing watch outside, couldn't help but feel a storm roaring in his heart—even though the Emperor's tone was cool and hard, the implied meaning was genuine consideration for Servant Consort Yun. Never did the Emperor, when favoring a concubine, care for the other, much less go out of his way to research and enjoy methods of pleasure... Just what kind of honor did this Yun Family have!
Yun Jiao had expected to suffer on her first night, yet unexpectedly, the Emperor was gentle with her.
Afterwards, she curled into a small ball in his arms, and gently called out to him.
Her voice was sweet, dispelling Xie Zhixing's irritation. He gracefully lowered his head to listen to her: "Hmm?"
Yun Jiao: "Your Majesty, you're surprisingly quite kind." Previously, she misunderstood him, thinking he was incapable.
Xie Zhixing: "…"
He expressionlessly pressed her head into the covers: "Rest early."
-----------------
This night was hard for the entire harem.
The Emperor hadn't entered the harem for a long while, often overturning the plaque but sending the concubines back the same, and today was a rare blessing after a drought. But this blessing unexpectedly fell upon someone none of them anticipated. Many concubines sent people to inquire, and upon hearing that the Emperor stayed at Xianfu Palace with Servant Consort Yun, they pondered for a long time but couldn't recall who she was.
Moreover, many of them thought they weren't the most aggrieved.
The one who should be most aggrieved was Lady.
The Ji Family had conspired for so long to get Consort Ji into the palace, yet was outshone by a small, insignificant Servant Consort with no backing. The sisters were left quite disgraced.
The second to be aggrieved was Concubine Li of Xianfu Palace.
The Emperor happened to shelter from the rain at her palace, but she couldn't keep him there.
Concubine Li, proud of her beauty, would hardly resort to pushing the Emperor onto others for favor. Currently, the one who resented the Yun Family most in Six Palaces should be her.
...
"Mistress, Mistress."
Awoken from her dream by Xue Ya's soft voice, Yun Jiao instinctively reached out to the side.
Empty.
Seeing this, Xue Ya said, "The Emperor got up early for the morning court and specifically instructed us not to wake the Mistress. But the Mistress should nonetheless get up now and freshen up."
"Did I oversleep long?"
"Not very long, actually, the Emperor just left."
After sitting up in bed, Yun Jiao closed her eyes allowing the palace maids to dress her.
Once fully dressed, she headed to the main hall, encountering Attendant Lady Sun, who had been waiting outside early. After Yun Jiao performed her greeting, Attendant Lady Sun did not tell her to rise, instead staring at her indignantly: "Servant Consort Yun sure is lucky! Were you worn out last night?"
"A little tired, but it shouldn't delay me from paying respects to Concubine Li and Empress."
Attendant Lady Sun snorted, still not commanding her to stand.
Yun Jiao maintained her half-courtesy, her knees slightly trembling.
No choice, a higher position oppresses.
Just then, Concubine Li hurried out, and upon seeing the scene, her delicate brows furrowed: "Why is Servant Consort Yun squatting here? There's no need to salute before my arrival, stand up!" As Yun Jiao stood up, Concubine Li earnestly questioned: "Did you serve the Emperor well last night? If there's anything to be improved, you must tell me."
Attendant Lady Sun couldn't hold back and showed a bewildered expression.
Yun Jiao was somewhat surprised too.
Both thought that since the Emperor spent the night in the West Wing, Concubine Li would be the angriest, even if she didn't dare to lash out, she surely wouldn't treat Yun Jiao well. Unexpectedly, Concubine Li cautiously looked at Yun Jiao and nervously rubbed her hands together: "To put it plainly, was the Emperor displeased yesterday?"
Hearing this, Attendant Lady Sun understood.
Most likely, Concubine Li had offended the Emperor, and he went to the West Wing, giving Yun Jiao an unearned stroke of luck. Being 'upstaged' by Yun Jiao was certainly frustrating for Concubine Li, but if she had angered the Emperor beforehand, she was more worried he might be angry with her from now on.
But Yun Jiao hadn't figured this out.
She just thought Concubine Li was surprisingly nice.
In "Deep Palace," the leading lady with high jealousy would have hit her with a stick by now.
She cheerfully said, "In response to the Lady, the Emperor didn't seem displeased yesterday."
Just as Concubine Li relaxed, the imperial edict arrived.