Chapter 10: Just a Vixen!

"A vixen is a vixen. A noble lady from a scholarly family, a married woman, yet she still comes to seduce the Emperor—bah!"

In the Yanqing Palace, Consort Zhuang’s eyes were red with anger as she paced back and forth in the main hall.

The palace maid, Peizhu, hurriedly looked around. Seeing that no outsiders were present, she immediately closed the hall doors before whispering a word of caution.

"Your Ladyship, please say less. The Emperor does not like to hear such things. Even if that Xie woman were a thousand times worse, you shouldn't say it to the Emperor's face. It sounds as if you are lecturing the Emperor for having an affair with her."

At noon, Zhao Xingjin had come to the Yanqing Palace to have lunch with Consort Zhuang and their son. Everything had been going well, but the Fourth Prince suddenly mentioned how wonderful his enlightenment teacher was, which immediately reminded Consort Zhuang of Xie Jiu.

Consort Zhuang’s temperament was such that if you gave her an inch, she would take a mile. Seeing Zhao Xingjin in a pleasant mood earlier, she had become arrogant again.

She spoke both openly and subtly about how Xie Jiu was unworthy of being Princess Wenxi’s tutor. The more she spoke, the more carried away she became, eventually implying that Zhao Xingjin was a poor judge of character and had been blinded by lust.

In front of the Fourth Prince, Zhao Xingjin had intended to endure it to save face for Consort Zhuang, but she had gone too far. Zhao Xingjin was not a man of great patience, so he eventually lost his temper.

He flicked his sleeves and left.

Consort Zhuang was terrified at first, but once she calmed down, she felt aggrieved and resentful, and her hatred for Xie Jiu deepened.

Hearing Peizhu’s words now, she immediately retorted.

"I would naturally never dare to lecture the Emperor! I am merely reminding him that that Xie woman is no good!"

Peizhu helped her sit down. "As for today’s words, Your Ladyship must never bring them up before the Emperor again. The Xie woman is Princess Wenxi’s tutor; you must remember that."

"Some tutor—that’s just an excuse!" Consort Zhuang remained unhappy. She had been helped to a seat, but she stood up again with a jerk, impossible to keep down.

Peizhu had no choice but to persuade her patiently.

"Your Ladyship, whoever the Emperor says she is, that is who she is. If you insist on exposing it, aren't you making the Emperor lose face?"

"Even if it needed to be said, there are censors in the imperial court and the Empress Dowager and Empress in the harem; it is not your place to manage it. If you insist on speaking, it shows a lack of propriety and will only provoke the Emperor’s displeasure. Isn't that just asking for trouble? Look, the Emperor was unhappy today, and even the Fourth Prince was frightened."

Mentioning the child always softened a mother’s heart.

Thinking of the Fourth Prince, Consort Zhuang finally stopped being stubborn. Although she remained displeased, she did not continue to press the issue.

Peizhu breathed a secret sigh of relief.

She thought to herself that although her mistress was a bit shallow, she at least listened to reason. Otherwise, given that the household had tasked her with keeping a close eye on Consort Zhuang, she would truly be at a loss.

However, before Peizhu could relax for long, Consort Zhuang seemed to think of something. Her beautiful eyes lit up, and she beckoned her closer.

"I remember that the Xie woman’s father, Grand Secretary Xie, is not on good terms with Consort Wei’s father, right?"

"That is correct. Minister Zhang holds the position of Second Secretary and wants to climb higher, so he naturally has to pull Grand Secretary Xie down," Peizhu nodded.

Consort Zhuang’s eyes darted around. "Hmph, that Wei woman has always been a hypocrite. In my eyes, she is just falsely virtuous. I want to see if she can tolerate having another Xie woman in the harem!"

After a moment of contemplation, she beckoned Peizhu to her side, and the mistress and servant whispered a few words to each other.

Meanwhile, on the other side, Zhao Xingjin had already returned to the Chengming Palace.

When Xie Jiu heard the news, she wanted to request an audience, but when she arrived, the doors to the main hall were closed.

Upon asking, she was told that Zhao Xingjin was busy handling state affairs.

It wouldn't do to disturb him. Xie Jiu hadn't had anything urgent to discuss with him anyway; she just wanted to send someone out of the palace to the Marquis of Weiyuan’s estate to retrieve some calligraphy copybooks.

She had promised to get them for the Princess to use.

Of course, Xie Jiu also wanted someone to pack a few of her own clothes and bring them into the palace, so it would have to be Chunrong or Qingfang who went.

However, since they didn't have the palace passes to enter and exit, she had no choice but to bother Zhao Xingjin for such a trivial matter.

Earlier today, when she sent items to Wu Qingchan, she had to pay palace servants to run the errand.

Since it was inconvenient to disturb Zhao Xingjin now, Xie Jiu lingered at the entrance of the main hall for a while before returning.

Zhao Xingjin remained busy for the entire afternoon. He didn't even have a proper dinner set; Yang Zhi'an simply brought in a food box containing three dishes and a soup.

Long after nightfall, the candles in the main hall were finally extinguished.

Xie Jiu lived in the side hall, and being so close, she was naturally aware of these movements.

She felt more and more that Zhao Xingjin was by no means simple.

What kind of incompetent, idle emperor would be so attentive to state affairs, forgetting to eat and sleep?

The night passed without incident.

The next morning, Zhao Xingjin did summon Xie Jiu.

It was about half an hour after the morning court session.

Upon receiving the message, Xie Jiu immediately rose and headed to the main hall. Unexpectedly, she ran into several cabinet ministers coming out.

They had come to discuss matters separately after the court session.

The leader of this group was none other than Xie Minshen.

Meeting face-to-face, they had to exchange greetings.

Xie Jiu was very composed; her gaze did not linger on anyone. She smiled faintly and performed a simple greeting.

Compared to her composure, the cabinet ministers had various thoughts.

As for Xie Minshen, he wanted to find an opportunity to speak with Xie Jiu, but there was clearly no good timing, and noticing that Xie Jiu seemed to ignore him, he grew irritable.

Wei Zhang wore a smiling expression, looking like a gentle and easygoing uncle.

He was the only one who returned Xie Jiu’s greeting with composure.

However, Xie Jiu did not truly believe this man was easy to get along with. To rise from a nobody to become Zhao Xingjin’s right-hand man and assist him in conquering this empire, he was certainly not simple.

As for the remaining ministers, some ignored her, some showed open disdain, and others looked at her with curiosity; their gazes were all different.

"Madam, the Emperor is waiting for you inside," Yang Zhi'an emerged from the hall at the right moment to deliver the message.

Xie Jiu nodded slightly and, under the gaze of the ministers, entered the main hall.

"May the Emperor be blessed with peace," Xie Jiu bowed.

Zhao Xingjin was sitting behind his desk, rubbing his temples with his eyes closed.

Stacks of memorials were piled high on the table; it was clear that the burden of state affairs had exhausted him.

"Shall I massage your shoulders to help you relax, Your Majesty?" Xie Jiu asked softly.

Zhao Xingjin lifted his eyelids and gave a low grunt of assent.

He was indeed quite weary.

Xie Jiu walked behind him and placed her hands on his shoulders, beginning to massage.

"You have such a skill," Zhao Xingjin felt the experience was quite pleasant and relaxed even further.

He leaned back against the chair.

"I used to massage my mother often and specifically learned a set of techniques," Xie Jiu replied. "Since Your Majesty sits for long periods while handling state affairs, more massages will help loosen your muscles and make you feel more comfortable. However, it is still best to go out and walk around more."

Zhao Xingjin enjoyed the attentive service, rotated his neck, and let out a long sigh.

"Indeed. I haven't had time to practice martial arts lately, and my body has become quite stiff. I must find time to practice boxing in the mornings from now on, or I will become completely out of shape."

After speaking, he patted Xie Jiu’s hand, signaling her to stop.

"Did you have something to ask me?"

After he returned from Consort Zhuang’s place yesterday, Xie Jiu had lingered at the entrance of the main hall, and Zhao Xingjin was naturally aware of it.