mesbooks Chapter 301 Eunuch Li, You've Pulled the Wrong Number
Chapter 301 Eunuch Li, You've Pulled the Wrong Number
On the fourth day after returning to the palace, Su Nuannuan lay languidly on a recliner under the grape trellis in the courtyard, fanning herself. Sunlight filtered through the dappled grape leaves, casting dappled patterns of light and shadow on her. She closed her eyes slightly, enjoying this moment of tranquility.
However, amidst this tranquility, her thoughts gradually drifted away. She thought of her duties as a Noble Consort, and of the Emperor's frail health. Although she didn't have much affection for the Emperor, as a Noble Consort, she felt she should still fulfill her duty and visit him at the Hall of Diligent Governance.
"Jinse," Su Nuannuan called softly, "Go and have Zhixiang make a bowl of lotus root starch dumplings. Once they're done, put them in the food box. I'm going to visit the Emperor."
Jinse responded and turned to leave. Su Nuannuan continued to lie on the recliner, her gaze fixed on the grape trellis.
This grape trellis was planted by a young eunuch in the palace after she left. At that time, the grape trellis was just a small grapevine planted in a corner of the courtyard.
Unfortunately, the grapevine froze to death once during the winter. Upon learning this, the young eunuch took advantage of his spare time to return to the now desolate Cuiwei Palace and replanted the grapevine. From then on, he took meticulous care of the grapevine, personally handling everything from watering and fertilizing to pruning.
Today, the grapevines have grown quite lush, with green leaves as green as jade, and bunches of grapes hanging heavily on the trellis, as if telling the story of time.
Su Nuannuan couldn't help but sigh; this grape trellis was perhaps the only plant in Cuiwei Palace that was being tended to. In this deep palace, people's lives were often lonely and indifferent, but this small grape trellis had become a source of warmth in the heart of that little eunuch.
Su Nuannuan lay leisurely on the recliner, a slight smile playing on her lips as she asked, "Where has Little Chess gone to keep busy again?"
The little chess piece is the eunuch in charge of planting these grapes.
Upon seeing this, Jinse quickly replied, "Your Majesty, Eunuch Xiaoqi should be in the vegetable garden at the back right now."
Upon hearing this, Su Nuannuan chuckled, waved her fan, and said leisurely, "This little chess piece really is someone who can't sit still."
At this very moment, the little chess piece was indeed busy in the vegetable garden behind Cuiwei Palace.
"Eunuch Li, you've pulled the wrong thing!" The little chess piece suddenly noticed what Li Quan was holding and hurriedly reminded him.
Upon hearing this, Li Quan suddenly stood up, a hint of embarrassment on his face, but he still stubbornly retorted, "How could we possibly pull the wrong thing? You must have misjudged it!" As he spoke, he casually threw the "weeds" in his hand into the pile of grass on the ground, his movements appearing somewhat flustered and unnatural.
The little chess player stared at the rice seedlings amidst the weeds with a pained expression, a wave of sorrow washing over him. He then turned his gaze to Li Quan, who stood to the side, noticing that Li Quan's expression was somewhat unnatural.
The little chess piece sighed inwardly, but he still put on a smile and said to Li Quan, "Eunuch Li, you've been busy all day, you must be exhausted. Why don't you go to the front yard and rest for a bit? I can handle the rest of the work by myself."
Hearing Xiao Qizi's words, Li Quan glanced at his smiling face, a faint smile playing on his lips. He deliberately adopted a serious expression and said, "Well, in that case, I'll go to the front yard and see if the Empress has any instructions."
After Li Quan turned and left the backyard, Xiao Qizi breathed a sigh of relief. He quickly walked to the pile of weeds, squatted down, and carefully picked up the seedlings that Li Quan had thrown in. He examined the seedlings closely and found that their roots had been broken, and they obviously could not survive.
The little chess piece shook its head helplessly and threw the seedling back into the pile of weeds.
When Su Nuannuan returned to the palace, the Imperial Household Department was quite tactful and sent back all the palace servants who had previously served at Cuiwei Palace. Although Su Nuannuan took her two children to guard the imperial mausoleum, she still made proper arrangements for those palace servants who could not be taken with her. However, these palace servants were not to serve the new mistress, but were assigned to other places.
Su Nuannuan was worried that those who had served her would be persecuted by the new master because of her, so she specifically instructed Li Quan to properly arrange for these people to be placed in the flower room and peach grove.
This gave Xiao Qizi some free time to return to Cuiwei Palace and plant grapes. Before Su Nuannuan returned, Xiao Qizi picked all the ripe grapes and gave them away. After all, over the years, he had built up some connections through this method.
When Su Nuannuan returned to Cuiwei Palace during the Crown Prince's wedding, she had already noticed the grape trellis. However, at the time, she was preoccupied with the Empress's orders and had no time to pay attention to anything else, so she naturally didn't bother to inquire about the grapes in detail.
When Li Quan returned to the front yard, he immediately saw his mistress lounging leisurely in a recliner. She had a round fan facing upside down and was gently rocking the recliner, looking quite content.
"You're back." Although Su Nuannuan didn't open her eyes, she immediately knew that Li Quan had returned when she heard footsteps, so she said casually.
Upon seeing this, Li Quan quickly bowed and asked respectfully, "Does Your Majesty have any instructions?"
Su Nuannuan waved her hand and replied lazily, "No, you go ahead and do your thing!"
"Yes." Li Quan bowed again and then slowly withdrew.
"Your Majesty, the lotus root starch dumplings are ready." Zhixiang walked over carrying an exquisite food box and reported softly.
Su Nuannuan, who had been lounging lazily on the recliner, slowly removed the fan from her face upon hearing Zhixiang's voice, revealing a beautiful and refined face. Her eyes were as clear as autumn water, her long eyelashes fluttered slightly like butterfly wings, her skin was as white as snow, and her jade-like face exuded a faint scholarly air.
Su Nuannuan handed the fan to Jinse, who was waiting nearby, and then gracefully stood up from the recliner. Her movements were light and natural, like a blooming flower swaying gently in the breeze.
"Zhixiang, Jinse, come quickly and help me see if there's anything wrong?" Su Nuannuan smiled slightly at Zhixiang and Jinse and asked softly.
Jinse walked quickly to Su Nuannuan, looked her over carefully, and then said with a smile, "Your Majesty, your makeup is a bit smudged and your hair is a little messy. Why don't we go back to your bedchamber and redo your makeup?"
Su Nuannuan touched her cheeks and then her hair, and couldn't help but laugh: "Yes, I am a bit disheveled. I'll listen to you and go back to my palace to do my makeup."
After saying this, Su Nuannuan turned and walked towards her bedchamber. Her steps were light and elegant, as if she were walking on clouds. Jinse, holding a fan, followed closely behind Su Nuannuan, fanning her and keeping away mosquitoes.
Zhixiang glanced at the food box in her hand, sighed helplessly, and then quickly followed after him.