The Emperor, as well as civil and military officials, had a rest day every ten days. These typically fell on the tenth, the twentieth, and the last day of the month. Thus, on the tenth day, Zhao Junyao also rested. Having stayed up late the night before, he woke later the following day. When he arose, Xia Ruqing was still asleep. Zhao Junyao looked at her, noting her complexion was somewhat pale. He ordered, "Do not wake her; let her sleep." "There’s no need to go to the Empress’s place. Have someone send word!" Li Shengan responded. Palace Attendants assisted Zhao Junyao in dressing, and he casually had some breakfast. Then he headed straight for the Imperial Study Room. When Xia Ruqing woke up, it was the sunlight streaming through the window that roused her. She turned over and stretched languidly. Out of habit, she called, "Zi Yue..." Usually, there was no need for Zi Yue to come when she was spending the night in Zhaochen Palace. But this time, Zi Yue was indeed waiting outside. Hearing movement inside, she hurried in. "My lady, you’ve finally woken up!" "What time is it now?" Xia Ruqing rubbed her eyes and asked. Zi Yue said, "My lady, it’s almost Noon..." Xia Ruqing instantly became alert. "What?" "Noon? Are you sure?" Zi Yue couldn’t help but chuckle. "What’s there to be unsure about?" "My lady, you should really get up now!" Xia Ruqing quickly regained her composure. "Yes, yes! I need to get up quickly. Speaking of which, the Empress..." "You haven’t paid your respects to the Empress yet!" Zi Yue then said with a smile, "I’ve already reported your illness on your behalf, and Lady Yu Lan specifically instructed me to take good care of you!" Xia Ruqing was a bit confused. "It was..." "It was Eunuch Li who told me to go!" Xia Ruqing nodded thoughtfully. "Then why did you come here?" Zi Yue replied, "It was also Eunuch Li who sent word for me to come over!" Xia Ruqing frowned. "But I only came here last night, and no one else knew! Now that you’re here, everyone knows I’m here!" Zi Yue looked somewhat helpless. "My lady, don’t worry, the Emperor has everything under control!" Xia Ruqing pouted and muttered to herself silently, As if he would care about me! In her heart, though, she felt as if she’d had a taste of honey. In fact, when Zhao Junyao sent for Zi Yue, he hadn’t thought that much about it. He simply considered who she was used to and called for them to serve her, to save her the discomfort of adjusting to someone new. And as for clandestine favoritism? Heh, it’s all part of the game, as they say. Fınd the newest release on 𝔫𝔬𝔳𝔢𝔩·𝔣𝔦𝔯𝔢·𝔫𝔢𝔱 If the Emperor truly wanted to protect a woman, he could do so in any way he wished. Why would he need to act like a thief?! He wasn’t sleeping with another man’s concubine, after all! 「Indeed, once Zi Yue left, the Empress promptly received the news.」 Zhaochen Palace was so dazzling. Every entry and exit couldn’t escape the watchful eyes of the Harem. Upon hearing the news, the Empress sneered. "Lady Xia is still the most capable. What illness? It’s clearly just..." Only then did Yu Lan curl her lips in disdain. "Humph! And I actually believed she was ill! I even told her palace maid to take good care of her! I never thought she’d pull a stunt like that!" The Empress laughed helplessly. "You can’t blame her. What else can an Honored Lady do but obey orders? Do you think she really has the power to seduce the Emperor?" With the Emperor’s temperament, he was always so indifferent, so cold toward everyone. Unless someone genuinely suited his taste, no amount of seduction would work! Yu Lan was somewhat puzzled. "Your Majesty, it’s understandable that the Emperor is annoyed with Noble Concubine Shih, but why has he stopped visiting even us? Your Majesty, you are the Empress!" The Empress smiled helplessly and sighed. "Perhaps... the Emperor believes I was behind the Noble Consort’s fall!" As she was speaking, Sister Ji came in. "Empress..." The Empress quickly asked, "Sister Ji, how did your visit go?" Sister Ji, following the Empress’s orders, had gone to visit Noble Concubine Shih and the Little Prince. However... how could the Noble Consort possibly let her see them? Sister Ji just shook her head. "I couldn’t see them! The Noble Consort said... the Little Prince was premature, his health is poor, and the Imperial Physician ordered complete rest!" The Empress smiled triumphantly, as if something had been confirmed, and said with relief, "Exactly... How could she possibly allow a visit! If she had allowed a visit, it would mean that the Little Prince was doing well. That would be a major issue! Not allowing a visit means he’s not doing well, which is good news!" Thinking this, the Empress felt happy again. "Sister Ji, you have worked hard. Yu Lan, make some tea!" 「September passed in a flash.」 Although Zhao Junyao was annoyed with the Noble Concubine, it didn’t mean that he favored the Empress any more. In any case, he didn’t visit either of them. For more than half a month, he spent two nights with Consort Hui Pin, visited Consort Ning to see the Princess, and otherwise didn’t come to the Harem at all. Even for nighttime company, he summoned a few Honored Ladies! Of course, Lady Xia was still the most favored. With favor came a comfortable life. And just like that, it was only the end of September, yet the Ministry of Internal Affairs had already delivered charcoal. It was not just any charcoal but premium Silver Thread Charcoal. This type produced no smoke at all when burned indoors and was long-lasting. One brazier full could keep a room warm for an entire day. Although it was a good thing, Xia Ruqing was still somewhat shocked. "It’s barely October! It’s a bit early to burn charcoal, isn’t it? Besides..." Besides, according to her rank, she shouldn’t be receiving such high-quality charcoal! The Little Eunuch from the Ministry of Internal Affairs who delivered the charcoal just smiled widely and said, "Not early at all, not early at all! This servant only dared because someone gave instructions!" Xia Ruqing thoughtfully nodded and didn’t say anything else. Who else could it be? It must be from my husband, the Emperor! It must be said, life is good when one is favored! Her goal was to be favored, to become the one he treasured most in his heart! Although... her status was still low, life was certainly comfortable! One can’t get fat with a single bite. We’ll take it slow! 「In early October, there were several rains, and the temperature dropped significantly.」 When she woke in the morning, the ground was covered in a thick layer of frost! Returning from paying respects to the Empress, Xia Ruqing removed her cloak as soon as she entered the room. "My shoes are a little damp!" Zi Yue hurriedly found a pair of thick shoes for her. Xia Ruqing frowned upon seeing them. "These are no good. They’re rock-hard and awkward to walk in!" The so-called thick shoes were made with thick fabric, and ancient people liked to use paste in shoemaking. The method was similar to modern multi-layered cloth shoes. The only difference was that paste was also applied to the shoe uppers, making them very stiff to wear. But undeniably, such shoes, whether embroidered or judged by their appearance, held their shape very well. The women in the palace particularly favored this style. For Xia Ruqing, they were fine to wear outside. But inside her room, she didn’t want to wear them! "Make me a pair of cotton-padded shoes!" She was afraid of the cold; as soon as the weather turned chilly, her hands and feet would become icy. She couldn’t always stay by the brazier. Zi Yue, having never seen such shoes, asked, "My lady, what kind do you want?" Xia Ruqing sketched a pattern of a shoe from memory and showed it to her. Mhm, this was how her maternal grandmother used to make cotton-padded shoes for her when she was little. As for the shoe pattern, her drawing was truly terrible, but she had genuinely done her best. Fortunately, Zi Yue had a pair of deft hands that could turn the rotten into the miraculous.