Yongning Palace——

Looking at both sides, Wan Yuyao coughed slightly, and the hall quieted down.

With gloomy eyes aimed at Wan Li, Wan Yuyao slowly said,

"Today I will meet the sisters from the imperial harem. It may be an inconvenience for you to stay here as a courtier. Please wait for me in the side palace hall."

After hearing this, Wan Li curled his lips, greedily gazed at Gu Yunjin's pretty face, and replied without turning his head.

"Eldest Sister, why the rush? I haven't seen you in the palace for a long time. Why did you hurriedly push me out even without giving me a seat? Since I am your brother, naturally I'm not anyone else from concubines. How could you have a party without me?"

Wan Yuyao looked stiff and didn't speak.

Concubine Ye was trying a jade necklace in front of her chest. She caught a glimpse of Wan Li's unwilling look and put on a smile to mediate the dispute.

"Yeah, yeah, His Highness is worried about Your Grace. Your Grace pushed His Highness out at his first visit. Is it the blame on our concubines for coming at an inappropriate time? If so, how could the concubines stay in Your Grace's palace anymore?"

Wan Yuyao sighed lightly and said lazily,

"Fine, fine, stay if he likes to."

Her eyes changed slightly, turning to Gu Yunyao who was silent on the other side. Wan Yuyao's smile gradually became cold.

"Sister Yu, don't sit alone. Go to pick some jewelry you like."

Gu Yunyao stood up and nodded.

"I appreciate Your Grace and Your Highness's kindness. Your Grace has just rewarded me, and I am so satisfied that I don't dare to be rewarded again without merit."

Wan Yuyao didn't persuade her anymore. Her eyelashes drooped lightly, and a cold light flashed across her eyes.

With red nails stroking the sleeves with the pattern of phoenix and gold silk, Wan Yuyao sneered slightly, and said,

"Sister Yu, I know that you worked hard last night. It is not easy to serve the Emperor before you recover. I specially ordered the kitchen to stew a bowl of tonic soup. At this time, the temperature is just right. Drink it while it's hot. It's good for your health."

As soon as she finished speaking, a female slave of the palace came in from the outside, holding a tray in her hand, on which was a colored glazed bowl with a pattern of yellow dragon and phoenix.

The hall abnormally quieted down again. Several eyes cast simultaneously on the steaming colored glazed bowl.

Wan Yuyao opened her eyes wide, and the uncontrollable excitement coated her beautiful face with an evil expression.

Suddenly her eyes shone a bright and aggressive light. She coldly curled her lips and smiled weirdly.

"Sister Yu, quickly drink this bowl of tonic soup. All the sisters and I are still waiting for you to give birth to the prince as soon as possible, giving the gift of new life for the royal family."

Wan Li held his hand and stood straight in the hall, and asked,

"Smell so good. What kind of soup is this?"

Concubine Ye covered her nose with a silk handkerchief and smiled.

"Of course, it is Dangshen black chicken soup! Your Highness doesn't know that Dangshen and black chicken are a perfect match. The two foods are one cold and the other hot. The food is compatible. The stewed soup is the most beneficial for women's tonic. It seems Your Grace really likes Sister Yu."

Concubine Ye was born in a doctor family. Three generations since her great-grandfather all served as the imperial doctor in the Palace of Dayi.

She knew best what was added to that soup, and the weight was not light!

Wan Yuyao casually stared at Concubine Ye, saying,

"I know that you are used to being jealous. If you are interested, you should learn from Sister Yu about how to serve the Emperor with all-out effort, which can also save my worry."

Concubine Ye and the others got up and bowed, saying in unison,

"As your command, Your Grace."

Gu Yunyao felt nervous. With a clear light flashing in her eyes, she immediately figured out that colored glazed bowl.

Drinking soup was probably the real purpose of the Imperial Noble Concubine's invitation for her to Yongning Palace today.

Something was wrong with that bowl of black chicken soup. If it was poisonous, it would be slow to take effect.

There were still several concubines present, and Gu Yunyao naturally couldn't put off. Even if she felt ill after drinking the soup and returning to her palace, these concubines could be witnesses to help the Imperial Noble Concubine give false evidence.

In an instant, the black chicken soup was served in front of Gu Yunyao's eyes. The maid aimed her eyes on Gu Yunyao's twitching facial features, forcing her to immediately drink the soup up.

Song Qin walked out, knelt before Gu Yunyao and kowtowed frequently to Wan Yuyao, begging in sadness.

"Your Grace, please forgive my master! She has always been in harmony with others in the Palace, only seeking a safe place to stay. Please show mercy, Your Grace. Don’t embarrass her anymore—"

Song Qin had been in the Palace for a few years, and had known too many secrets in the imperial harem.

That year, Meiren Yu, her last master, was favored. On her period, Wan Yuyao cajoled her into drinking saffron soup and left her infertile for life. Finally she died of depression in the Palace.

Now Wan Yuyao was probably going to repeat the same trick again, forcing her new master to submit.

Seeing Song Qin crying, Concubine Ye’s beautiful face didn't show mercy, but a hint of sarcasm and sneer. Her sharp words followed.

"Oh, what are you talking about? Your Grace worries about your master, and just rewarded her a bowl of soup. How could you measure the stature of great men by the yardstick of small men?"

The concubines on both sides immediately babbled, accusing Gu Yunyao and her maid of being rude.

Without waiting for Wan Yuyao to speak, Wan Li rushed to Song Qin angrily, raised his palm tearing through the air with a cold wind, and slapped Song Qin's soft face fiercely.

With the fiery pain, her weak body immediately fell to the ground.

While everyone was still in a daze, Wan Li fiercely kicked on Song Qin's waist, and then he kept kicking and screaming.

"A bitchy maid doesn't know the courtesy. I will kill you today—"

Song Qin gritted her teeth bitterly, tolerating Wan Li's beating.

"Stop..."

Gu Yunyao leaned forward to protect her chief maid. With tears in her scarlet eyes, she trembled and begged.

"Calm down! Lord! It is not wrong for her to protect me. If you have to punish someone, punish me instead of her."

It was a little noisy outside. The next moment, the curtain was raised again. Gu Yunxi walked into the Main Hall with a food box in her hand.

When her gaze passed over Gu Yunyao, there was a violent headwind in her heart. But Gu Yunxi still held respectful and humble appearance, and did not reveal any fierce emotions from her heart.

In front of the whole audience, she stepped forward, stopped at a suitable distance, and bowed to Wan Yuyao.

"I, Tu Muxue, a female slave of Chuxiu Palace, have met the Imperial Noble Concubine, and wish Your Grace a good health."

She turned around and saluted to both sides.

"I have seen masters and the Shenle Marquis."

The concubines sat quietly in chairs, each with a different face. Some were panicked and some were disgusted.

Wan Li looked closely. Seeing Gu Yunxi's plain appearance, he curled the lips with disgust.

Wan Yuyao leaned in a daze for a while, and then suddenly turned into anger. She slammed her hand against the golden armrest of the armchair, and yelled.

"How dare you! Who allowed you to come in? How could the palace maid trained by Concubine Xu be so rude—"

Gu Yunxi hurriedly knelt, put the food box lightly aside, and said modestly,

"Your Grace, calm down. Knowing that you are sick, my master specially ordered me to make a few new appetizers and take them to Your Grace's palace."

"Among them, a dish called Jiuzhen Volcanic Crisp tastes special but complicated. I am afraid of making errors by retelling, which will prevent Your Grace from tasting the essence of food."

"Therefore, at this time, if Your Grace don't dislike it, I am willing to serve Your Grace to taste this snack."

For nothing else, Gu Yunxi just wanted to delay as much time as possible until the Honor Guards of the Empress arrived.

Wan Yuyao was so impatient at this moment that she wasn't in the mood to taste snacks at all.

After Gu Yunxi finished speaking, her cold eyes swept across a female slave of the palace next to her, implying her to take the food box.

Immediately she waved her hand to Gu Yunxi.

"Okay, leave your things and go."

Gu Yunxi blinked. Her expression was somewhat innocent and childish.

"Your Grace, the way that the volcano-shaped snack is tasted is really different. Please forgive me and let me serve you personally before leaving, alright?"

Wan Li was suddenly angry. He raised arms, roaring.

"Don't you understand human language? Her Grace tells you to get out, so just get out. Don't make trouble for yourself!"

"Yes, yes, Your Highness, don't be angry. I will get out of here..."

Gu Yunxi put on a face full of panic and grievance. Her thin body stood up, bowed slightly, and turned away.

Before walking a few steps away, she suddenly ran into the female slave of the palace who was holding the tray.

"Ah", the girl screamed and watched the colored glazed bowl drop out of her hand, falling to the ground and broken.

Staring at the soup, her face was pale and her body was paralyzed, falling to the ground.

Next to her, Gu Yunxi lowered the head, hiding her silently smiling eyebrows in the shadows.

Just now, while the concubines were scrambling to pick up jewelry in the chest, Gu Yunxi had hurried to Yongning Palace but was stopped by the eunuch.

Gu Yunxi begged but in valid. As a last thought, she opened the food box and showed the snack inside to the eunuch.

He had never seen such a strangely shaped dessert. It looked like a little and dark hill. It stood in the center of the white jade plate with a pattern of birds and branches, and the black and white were complementary to each other. There was a small low part at the top of the mountain, and icing sugar was spread around it like snow.

He heard Gu Yunxi's words about pouring wine and igniting it to eat this snack. In short, she said something difficult to understand.

The eunuch was confused, but also afraid if Her Grace asked later, he would be punished because he couldn't tell it clearly, so he let Gu Yunxi go into the palace alone.

Gu Yunxi strode to the corridor of the Main Hall and heard concubines forcing Gu Yunyao to drink soup, Song Qin crying, and Wan Li violently yelling, as well as the fearsome punishment.

Gu Yunxi couldn't think too much, raised the curtain, pushed out maids at both sides trying to stop her, and stepped into the Main Hall.

Seeing the spiced soup spilt all over the floor, Wan Li was the first to react from the silence. For a moment, his facial features were ferocious. He cursed Gu Yunxi with his fingers pointing.

"What a bold and stupid maid! How do you dare to knock over the tonic soup rewarded by Her Grace to concubines? Did you know the penalty for that crime?"

Gu Yunxi nodded. Between her eyebrows was a pretended panic. She tremblingly begged.

"Show mercy, Your Grace and Your Highness. I walked in a hurry without paying attention. Please forgive me this time."

At this moment, the copper bell sounded crisply, and then a white shadow flashed vigorously.

Wan Yuyao's pet, a white cat, went out of nowhere. It quickly came out probably because of smelling the meat, holding a piece of chicken beside the broken porcelain and chewing it.

"Ah! Snowball!"

No one expected this. Concubine Ye raised her voice and yelled, but she suddenly shut up and looked at Wan Yuyao in astonishment.

Wan Yuyao was somewhat calm. Because she had done a lot of such evil things, she was used to covering up her emotions properly. She only firmly grasped one hand of Lihu, her chief maid, with infinite hatred in her heart-broken gaze. She quietly watched the white cat swallow the meat and then lick the soup stains on the floor.

Gu Yunxi's eyes were cold. She could clearly see the changing expressions of Wan Yuyao and Concubine Ye.

After the eyes suddenly darkened, she understood everything.

"I dare to ask Your Grace that what you have added to this tonic soup?"