The Emperor was about to step into the main bedroom to see if anyone was there when he heard a faint voice coming from the adjacent dressing room:
"...Xiao Qing, I’ve never bathed with petals before, they sll so nice, haha..." the voice of the Little Concubine, intermittent, as if coming from the bath.
"Then, master, add more," said the voice of the Little Palace Maid, sounding closer, probably inside the dressing room.
"Yes, indeed, when I co out, I’ll sll all fragrant, His Majesty will surely like it..."
The dressing room was connected to the hallway and the dressing room to the bath chamber.
The Emperor listened intently and could faintly hear the sound of water.
He imdiately realized that his Little Concubine was bathing in the bath!
Ripples arose in his heart, and the Emperor felt the room’s heated floor grow hotter, making his whole body uncomfortably warm.
It was torture, having abstained so long, normally exerting every effort to restrain himself when with her, yet just before dinner she inadvertently provoked him, filling his mind with images of a lotus rising from the water.
Rembering her words about going into the bath together, turmoil surged within the Emperor behind the partition.
He swallowed hard, took a deep breath to calm the heat, and tried to find sothing to distract himself, but her voice kept coming from inside, mixed with the sound of water, involuntarily making him imagine the scene of her bathing.
Such a fatal temptation...
The Emperor resisted and resisted, but ultimately could not hold back any longer.
He thought he would just take a quick look; his Little Concubine disliked being attended by others, and the Little Palace Maid in the dressing room couldn’t see what was happening inside, so what if sothing were to happen?
Moreover, such a bath should not be lingered in for long, as it could easily cause a person to faint.
Thinking this, the Emperor could no longer contain himself, and imdiately turned and made his way through the partition into the dressing room.
Xiao Qing was sitting there, accompanying Lian Hua in the bathhouse. Seeing the Emperor enter, she was imdiately startled and about to cry out.
With an uneasy expression, the Emperor swiftly stopped Xiao Qing from speaking and whispered for her to withdraw, saying he would watch over her.
Xiao Qing cast one last glance at the screen depicting a hundred birds, hesitated, and then withdrew from the dressing room.
Initially, at the Side Hall, His Majesty had never entered when the mistress was bathing, maintaining strict propriety, but at that ti the washroom was very small.
Outside, she couldn’t help but secretly ask Xiao Jizi if it was alright not to attend the mistress.
Upon hearing this, Xiao Jizi quickly covered her mouth and mysteriously told her that matters between superiors were none of her business, "Hear no evil, see no evil," and to learn from Xiao Linzi, the fool, and do simply as told.
Xiao Qing nodded blankly in agreent.
Inside the palace, the Emperor stood by the dressing room, and the voices from the bath beca clearer. All he had to do was draw back the screen, and that lotus flower would be right before his eyes.
It was unbecoming of a gentleman...
Yet in front of his Little Concubine, with whom he was intimately close, why should he play the gentleman...
The ti the Emperor had set had long passed, yet he continued to restrain and endure, always considering Lian Hua’s health and fearing to hurt her, constantly suppressing his desires and telling himself to wait a bit longer.
Now, standing in front of the bath chamber, a battle raged in the Emperor’s mind, and he hesitated to draw the screen...
"Mmm~ This bath feels so good, I don’t even want to get up," Lian Hua sighed comfortably from inside.
She playfully flicked droplets of water and scooped up a handful of petals from the surface, tossing them up while issuing a laugh like tinkling bells, feeling truly content with the bathhouse. It was splendid for bathing to her heart’s content, almost enough to swim in, and even had petals in it.
After washing so more, she said, "Xiao Qing, grab the towel for , I forgot it earlier." She was ready to dry off.
Soon, the sound of a screen being moved reached her ears. She did not look back and muttered to herself, "His Majesty will be back soon, and he hasn’t bathed yet. It will take a while to drain this pool. It’s better to bathe and rest early."
His Majesty was too tired, and needed to rest early.
In the past few days under her supervision, His Majesty had been resting early, which was very good.
A soft towel was passed to her, and Lian Hua glanced at it, saying, "Place it on the stone platform."
She muttered to herself, thinking that while the petal bath was nice, it was too wasteful and hard to clean afterward. It was rely a novelty. It would be better to bathe less frequently next ti, as it left petals all over her body, face, and hair.
She lifted her arm, looked at it, and saw petals all over her arm, indeed proving that indulgence was not in her destiny.
She quickly brushed them off with her hand, turned around, and prepared to get up when she suddenly felt sothing amiss.
The shadow on the curtain looked so much like... She couldn’t help but look up.
"His Majesty?..."
Her mouth slightly agape, she stared stunned at the person before her...
The flickering lamplight and the misty waters, who was it that stepped in, disturbing the tranquil pool?
The next day, as the early sun pierced the dense fog with a glimr of light, streaks of morning rays spread across the entire Capital City.
The four quarters of the city woke from their slumber and soon beca bustling.
Shop clerks in the alleys had cleaned and opened the doors early, waiting for custors to arrive.
Small traders carried their goods to the market; those who arrived early had already set up their stalls.
The opera singers had set up the stage the day before, and now singers of various roles were busy preparing behind it.
Citizens converged from all directions toward the city center, the streets becoming gradually livelier as people continuously flowed into the city.
So people headed early to the Imperial City, rushing to the place where the governnt distributed Longevity Cakes every year only to find a long line already ford, they beat their chests and regretted not waking up earlier to join the queue.
By dawn, the entire Capital City had co alive, everyone busy and their faces flushed with excited smiles, even those in a hurry were filled with a joyous spirit, heading towards the celebration.
The entire sky celebrated, long live our Emperor, may His reign last forever, today is indeed the day of the grand celebration of the Longevity Festival!
In a lane in the Southern City, Old Lady Wu wore her finest clothes, had her most precious gold hairpin in her hair, and wore a gold bracelet that she usually hesitated to wear, rushing along with her elder sister-in-law and Er Ya.
Everyone wore their finest and most elegant clothes, especially Er Ya, who was dressed brightly and attractively.
Along the way, the elder sister-in-law nagged Er Ya for dallying and missing the optimal ti. When they reached crowded areas, she ensured Er Ya was close by her side, instructing her to keep tight, not to get separated by the crowd.
Old Lady Wu saw such a lively scene for the first ti, her eyes dazzled. Unconsciously slowing down, she was reminded by her elder sister-in-law to catch up.
The group moved excitedly towards the direction of the Imperial City.
At another end of Southern City, mbers of the Lian Family also gradually woke up from their sleep. Lian Wanzhen was the earliest to rise, performing the morning rituals of boiling water, washing his face, and brewing tea. By the ti he finished, the others were awake.
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