Chapter 12: 012 The Empress Dowager is Helpless

“Yo! I didn't expect little sister to be such a great beauty?” After seeing Liu Qian'er sit down, Li Xi swayed her hips as she walked up to her side, speaking with disdain.

Liu Qian'er was startled. Calling her "sister" meant she was likely one of the Emperor's concubines, but from the look of it, the newcomer did not come with good intentions! She lifted her head with a slight smile and said softly, "Sister overpraises me; how could I possibly compare to you?"

"Sister is too kind!" Li Xi knew there was subtext in her words. Her face flushed and paled in succession, and she had no choice but to find a way to save face. She spoke slowly, "Since sister has nothing to do, perhaps you should wander over to sister's Qinxin Palace sometime."

The sky dimmed, and darkness gradually enveloped the entire earth...

The ministers departed one after another, and the concubines returned to their respective sleeping palaces. Li Xi also left He'an Palace, albeit very reluctantly.

Liu Qian'er slowly stood up, feeling a numbness in her feet, likely from sitting for too long. She performed an elegant bow and said, "Empress Dowager, your servant will also take her leave now!"

"Qian'er, stay and accompany us a while longer!" The Empress Dowager looked at Liu Qian'er with a smile.

Although today was her first time meeting Liu Qian'er, the girl had left a very good impression on her, even disrupting her original plans. She had thought she would teach her a lesson today—having entered the palace over a month ago, the girl had failed to come pay her respects, and had even delayed her appearance on such a momentous day. However, the moment she saw Liu Qian'er, all her anger vanished without a trace.

Liu Qian'er paused for a moment before responding, "Yes!"

"Can Qian'er tell us what is going on?" the Empress Dowager asked.

Liu Qian'er naturally knew what the Empress Dowager was asking: how had she become so beautiful? She sighed and said, "To answer Mother, Qian'er does not know what happened either. Ever since entering the palace, I have changed." After a pause, she continued, "Perhaps the Imperial Palace is a good place, and that is why Qian'er has become beautiful!"

"Oh? Is that so?" The Empress Dowager was full of confusion, yet she had no choice but to believe Liu Qian'er's words. Otherwise, what other reasonable explanation could there be?

"At first, Qian'er didn't dare to believe that I had become beautiful." The more Liu Qian'er spoke, the more immersed she became, eventually saying bluntly, "Later, when I looked closely at myself in the mirror, I realized it was true!"

"No wonder..." The Empress Dowager did not finish her sentence. No wonder that divine fortune-teller she met back then had told her that a woman with "trees and grass" was a singular woman. Looking at her now, she truly was a singular woman; otherwise, how could one find such a miraculous method of disguise under the heavens?

"Mother, no wonder what?" Liu Qian'er looked at the Empress Dowager, who had stopped mid-sentence, and couldn't help but ask.

"It's nothing." The Empress Dowager snapped back to her senses and continued, "Has the Emperor visited Yilan Palace yet?"

Liu Qian'er shook her head. Had the Empress Dowager not mentioned him, she would have forgotten. Today was the Empress Dowager's birthday; as her son, how could he not show his face? Was their relationship poor, or was the Emperor simply an unfilial son?

"It is truly difficult for you!" The Empress Dowager patted Liu'er's shoulder, her thick brows furrowed as she spoke word by word, "Even I am powerless against him! Even though today is my birthday, he hasn't come to see me even once!"

"Mother!" Liu Qian'er called out softly. As a mother, how heartbreaking must it be to not receive importance from one's son? Thinking of her own mother, who had once nearly cried herself blind over her own disobedience, Liu Qian'er felt a pang of heartache. She comforted her, "Mother, perhaps the Emperor is busy with important matters!"

"Qian'er, you don't need to comfort me." The Empress Dowager slowly stood up and let out a deep sigh. "He spends all his time lingering outside the palace; I know all about it!"