Xiao Yuanzhao held Chu Xiang's hand and sat down together. Liang Zhong was very perceptive and placed their chairs next to each other. Xiao Yuanzhao looked at Liang Zhong with praise. Liang Zhong instantly straightened his back and confirmed that he had guessed the Emperor's intentions — — the Emperor had taken a fancy to imperial gui fei!
After Xiao Yuanzhao sat down, he didn't let go of Chu Xiang's hand. Chu Xiang felt that it was a bit strange and glanced at him without leaving a trace.
[Saving his life and he's moved? Does he not suspect that this might be a self-directed and self-staged trick? Such a white Emperor, he might be moved by the entire harem in the future. An Emperor that is about to be swallowed by a group of spider demons, pitiful.]
Xiao Yuanzhao steadied his expression. He didn't understand what she meant by "white," but thinking that it wasn't referring to his skin color, it definitely wasn't something good. Also, she compared the women in the harem to spider demons and felt that he was pitiful enough to be moved by them. Wasn't she looking down on him too much?
Xiao Yuanzhao smiled slightly as he looked at the palace servants who had laid out the dishes on the table and asked: "This is the first time zhen is eating with beloved concubine, what dishes beloved concubine likes to eat. Is there anything here that you like?"
Chu Xiang swept her eyes. Since he asked, she didn't hold back and pointed at a few dishes, "These are all what chenqie likes to eat. Many thanks, Emperor."
She didn't ask what the Emperor liked to eat because the Emperor couldn't have ingredients that he liked to eat. Otherwise, it would be easy for others to take advantage of him. She silently said [pitiful] in her heart and it was all heard by Xiao Yuanzhao.
Xiao Yuanzhao: … …
He had never felt any discomfort when it came to food. This woman actually felt that he was pitiful?
He found that he really couldn't see through Chu Xiang at all. This woman was warm and gentle on the surface, even a bit reserved. Even though she was extremely beautiful, he had never liked this kind of dodder flower that was only beautiful on the outside. Who knew that when he read her heart, it was actually different from what she appeared to be.
Xiao Yuanzhao was surprised, but he did not show it on his face. He knew that Chu Xiang was hungry, so he picked up his chopsticks and let Chu Xiang start eating. He even asked the servants to serve Chu Xiang some dishes that she liked to eat.
Chu Xiang gave her thanks with a happy expression, as if she was very happy with the Emperor's concern for her. Xiao Yuanzhao knew that she was not moved at all, she only felt that the food was not bad.
He thought of Chu Xiang's intention to let her family protect themselves. When she was almost full, he deliberately mentioned the Chu family. "Today, I had a good talk with Minister Chu and Chu Ze. I found that they are very capable. As the saying goes, capable people do more work. I plan to put them in an important position."
Chu Xiang paused in the middle of drinking the soup and immediately looked at him with an uneasy gaze, "Emperor, it is my father and older brother's honor to be able to serve Emperor, but this concubine doesn't know if they can do it well. Emperor, please don't treat them well because of this concubine."
Chu Xiang's heart sank. If the Chu family was put in an important position, wouldn't they be going against the regent? She had to find a way to escape. Who knew who would win between the regent and the Emperor. It was better to let the Emperor get used to this as soon as possible and dislike her.
Xiao Yuanzhao looked at her unpleasant expression and was a little angry. As expected, the Chu family did not think highly of him. That was why they were not willing to support him and only wanted to avoid this battle.
No wonder Chu Xiang did not fight for favor after entering the palace. If she could not leave Taihe Palace, she would not take a step out of it. It turned out that she was deliberately avoiding him! Which emperor would like a concubine who only had beauty but was restrained in every way? This woman had pretended to be too successful in the past. She had even fooled him!
Xiao Yuanzhao and Chu Xiang's arms touched, and he smiled: "Beloved concubine is too modest. Zhen admires Minister Chu and Chu Ze very much. Do you think zhen is someone who would put officials in an important position for the sake of a concubine?"
[Yes! Otherwise, how can you explain this sudden enthusiasm and promotion? You look very smart, how can you be so stupid?]
Chu Xiang felt that this person would not be able to sit firmly on the throne, but she smiled happily on the surface: "The Emperor is wise and powerful. Of course, you will not be affected by the concubines. Then chenqie will thank the Emperor on behalf of my elder brother and my father."
Xiao Yuanzhao looked at Chu Xiang's genuine joy and heard her say that he was stupid in her heart. He was so angry that he lost his temper. This acting skill, even he felt that he was not as good as her. Unfortunately, he could not explain that his change in attitude was because he had heard their thoughts and made sure that they were harmless. He could only sullenly be labeled as "stupid".
However, he was not happy, so of course, he could not let her be happy. He immediately called Liang Zhong, "Go to the Chu family and pass the imperial decree. Transfer Chu Ze to the imperial front as the Imperial Commander. Minister Chu has taught his daughter well and deserves to be praised. Send the generous gift zhen prepared earlier with an additional 30%. "
Chu Xiang looked outside and saw that it was a bit dark, "Emperor, there is no need to rush. It's getting dark."
Xiao Yuanzhao gently held her hand and looked at her with a smile, "Zhen still thinks it's too slow. Zhen should reward them as soon as zhen returns to the palace. Beloved concubine, in the future, Chu Ze will often be in front of the imperial front. You will have a chance to see him in the palace. Beloved concubine, are you happy?"
"I am happy. Chenqie thanks the Emperor." Chu Xiang blushed and nodded. Looking at him, she silently thought of a word in her heart — idiot.
Chu Xiang felt that even if this kind of idiot was not killed by the Regent, he would be killed by his own stupidity. How could he be the Emperor like this? He did not hurry to find out the mastermind behind the scenes and was acting all tender and sweet with her?
Xiao Yuanzhao almost lost his composure. Just as he was about to make trouble, he found that Chu Xiang began to suspect him. She suspected that he was deliberately doing this to test the Chu family. Testing whether she was directing and acting on her own, and also testing whether the Chu family would support him. If it was like this, then this Emperor was still a bit smart.
Chu Xiang very naturally lowered her gaze and began to calculate in her heart. Since Chu Ze became the commander of the imperial front, and Minister Chu was also valued and rewarded, then even if the Chu family did not support him, the Regent would be unhappy. With the Regent's attitude of suppressing the Chu family, it would be even more unfavorable to the Chu family in the future. So, should she kill the Regent and let the Chu family smoothly gain power?
Fortunately, Xiao Yuanzhao was used to pretending to be a pig to eat a tiger for many years, so he did not give himself away in front of Chu Xiang. He just wanted to tease Chu Xiang and see her annoyed. Who would have thought that she would think of so many things in an instant?
She felt that he was stupid and suspected that he was testing her. What did she mean by killing the Regent? She was a girl. Was her attitude towards the Regent so casual? She wanted to kill the Regent so easily? How???
He saw that Chu Xiang's face was still happy and shy, and he could not help but reflect on himself. He always thought that his acting skills were perfect, but when he met Chu Xiang, he realized that he was not good enough. In the future, he needed to learn more from his imperial gui fei. Don't even show a trace of emotion.
Xiao Yuanzhao secretly took a breath and casually said a few words to Chu Xiang. Then he told Chu Xiang to have a good rest and left Taihe Palace.
Taihe Palace was not far from his palace. He wanted to walk outside and clear his head, so he did not ride the dragon carriage and walked all the way back. On the way, he thought of the strong contrast between Chu Xiang's heart and appearance, and he could not help but laugh.
The palace people behind him did not look at each other, but they all thought of the same thing. The imperial gui fei was going to be favored!
Before Xiao Yuanzhao came to Taihe Palace, because he had just seen the Regent, he was not in a good mood. But after coming out of Taihe Palace, he felt very relaxed, as if he had just played a game.
For many years, he only had politics in his heart and had never been close to any woman. This time, he gained the ability to read minds, so when the four concubines were fighting to show off, he probed into their inner thoughts.
Imperial Concubine Xi was arrogant and domineering with a fiery personality. She was the youngest di daughter of the Minister of Revenue, and she was also a spy sent by the Regent into the palace to sow discord in his harem. He already suspected that the Minister of Revenue had sided with the Regent, so he directly confirmed this matter. So Imperial Concubine Xi's outspoken and brainless personality was all for show. She was arrogant and domineering all day long in order to disturb the peace of the harem.
Imperial Concubine Hui was a famous talented woman in the capital. She was very good at poetry and painting. Her father was a third-rank general, but because he was injured, he was idle at home. She did not do anything for the Regent, but because she had some talent, she was very arrogant and did not put the other concubines in her eyes. She was full of thoughts of fighting for the throne and making profits for her family, so her private methods were ruthless.
Imperial Concubine Jin had a cold personality and was as elegant as bamboo. She was good at playing the zither, playing chess, and studying calligraphy. But in truth, she was the most arrogant one, and she was also the most narrow-minded. She would seek revenge for the smallest grievance and was determined to obtain the position of empress. She was very ambitious like her father, the General Who Pacifies the Distant Lands. After ascending to the position of empress and giving birth to a son of the first wife, she would sow discord between him and the Regent. She would then support Imperial Concubine Jin's son to the position of empress.
As for Imperial Concubine Li, she was purely beautiful. Her family had a hereditary title, but it had now declined. She was completely focused on fighting for favor and was good at singing and dancing. She was very suited to being a gentle and understanding flower. But she did not have much of a brain, and her heart was filled with jealousy. She had many thoughts and did not know what to do.
After Xiao Yuanzhao learned of their personalities, he found them even more annoying, and he had even less of an interest in the harem. Who knew that the more he interacted with Chu Xiang, the more he felt that Chu Xiang was interesting.
Chu Xiang did not have any ulterior motives. In fact, she avoided him and the imperial palace like the plague. He thought that he had deliberately pulled the Chu family to his side, and Chu Xiang would be unhappy. As a result, Chu Xiang did not have any negative feelings at all. She just wanted to get rid of the Regent.
Although he only felt that this was the girl's imagination running wild, and he did not believe that she had any ability to get rid of the Regent, he still could not help but feel happy. Even when Chu Xiang thought that he was stupid, that he was stupid, he did not care.
Xiao Yuanzhao returned to his bedroom and dismissed everyone. After pondering on his own for a while, his fingers tapped rhythmically on his knee a few times. A man with a normal face and no presence immediately appeared in front of him.
Chu Xiang was a little surprised to see this scene through the Heaven and Earth Mirror. The emperor had hidden guards? She did not know if the emperor had brought any hidden guards with him when he came to her place. Next time, she could have the Heaven and Earth Mirror pay attention. Once her cultivation was a little higher, she would be able to sense their location on her own.
Chu Xiang saw that Xiao Yuanzhao asked the man who paddled An Yi about the investigation in a low voice. An Yi reported in a low voice in a concise and orderly manner. Only then did she know that Xiao Yuanzhao had almost finished investigating the assassination. It was really arranged by the Regent.
However, now was not the best time to fall out with the Regent, so Xiao Yuanzhao pretended that he had not found anything. He secretly ordered the hidden guards to continue investigating the Regent's underground forces along this line.
Xiao Yuanzhao was not the same in front of An Yi and in front of her. She almost thought that he was a silly and sweet person. Sure enough, the emperor who could make the Regent afraid of the assassination would not be easy to deal with.
This two-faced emperor must have some ulterior motives for treating the Chu family so kindly. It was also possible that he used the Chu family as a chess piece. She had better let him hate her as soon as possible, and then fake her death to get away. It was better for the Chu family to continue to be neutral and low-key. The next time she saw him, she would do something that made him unhappy.
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