I Was Supposed to Be the Villainous Consort

This time, Song Yunzhao was truly angry.

She waited until 7:30 AM, when Nanny Yu rushed back to report, "My Lady, Meng Jiuchang has gone to Huayang Palace to deliver a message."

Song Yunzhao had long since finished getting ready. She immediately took Xiangxue’s arm for support and headed out.

From Wangyou Palace, it was a straight walk west to Huayang Palace, no turns required.

She walked at a leisurely pace. After passing Changle Palace, just as she approached the vicinity of Princess Consort Zhuang’s Zhaoyang Palace, she heard the sounds of the Imperial Carriage’s retinue clearing the path behind her.

Song Yunzhao immediately stepped aside, standing by the road and fixing her eyes on the Emperor’s palanquin.

Zhang Maoquan spotted Song Jieyu and immediately went forward to report, "Your Majesty, Song Jieyu is ahead."

Feng Yi waved his hand, and the palanquin came to a halt. He tilted his head slightly and saw Song Yunzhao standing by the road. "My dear concubine, where are you off to?"

Song Yunzhao’s expression remained neutral at his words, but inwardly, she was grumbling nonstop. ’Why can’t I be here?’

’That’s right. I was waiting for him here on purpose. If I go with the Emperor, let’s see how Qin Xiyue can possibly win his pity!’

"I heard that Consort Qin has fallen ill and was just on my way to visit her. I never expected to encounter Your Majesty here." Song Yunzhao put on a perfectly calibrated expression of surprise. Then, with a flick of her eyes, her look became much more pointed. "Could it be that Your Majesty is also on his way to visit Consort Qin?"

Meeting Song Yunzhao’s pointed gaze, Feng Yi felt a sudden, inexplicable pang of guilt.

’Why should I feel guilty?’

He cleared his throat before nodding. "Come with me."

Without a second’s hesitation, Song Yunzhao cheerfully boarded the Imperial Carriage, sat down beside the Emperor, and wrapped her arms around his. Grinning, she said, "If I had known Your Majesty was going to visit Consort Qin, I would have just waited for you at Wangyou Palace. You could have given me a ride."

Feng Yi was speechless.

He didn’t quite feel like talking.

Song Yunzhao pretended not to notice the Emperor’s awkwardness. ’Hmph, at least he knows how to feel awkward. I suppose he’s still salvageable.’

She was already a seasoned pro at lodging complaints. To prevent Qin Xiyue from stirring up trouble in front of the Emperor, she felt it was necessary to give him a little warning first. So she said, "I heard that Consort Qin isn’t just sick. She personally came to Wangyou Palace to invite me to learn flower arranging with everyone else. As Your Majesty knows, I’m not a particularly active person, so I declined."

Feng Yi listened, tilting his head to look at her. "Consort Qin invited you to arrange flowers?"

"Yes. Don’t you find it strange? Why should all the concubines in the harem have to learn that? With that kind of time, I’d rather read the storybooks Your Majesty found for me," Song Yunzhao grumbled.

"Aren’t you curious at all?" Feng Yi asked again.

Song Yunzhao looked up at the Emperor, puzzled. "What’s there to be curious about? Back home, my sisters and I would sometimes arrange a few vases for fun when the mood struck us. We never studied it seriously, though—we just messed around with them. I wasn’t very fond of it even back then."

"You don’t like it?"

"I am a hopelessly unrefined person. I can’t bring myself to do such elegant things."

Hearing this, Feng Yi found himself agreeing. After all, Song Yunzhao was someone who liked worldly things like gold and silver. ’Well, as the Emperor, so do I.’ "If you refused, you refused. If you don’t like it, you don’t have to go."

"Mm, I didn’t go. But later, at the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet, Consort Qin and Chen Guoji were busy distributing flowers for everyone to place on their dining tables. I found the fragrance too overpowering and thought such a strong scent would ruin my appetite, so I refused to have any on my table."

At this, Song Yunzhao looked up at Feng Yi and lowered her voice slightly. "After Consort Qin fell ill, I looked back and felt quite fortunate that I didn’t participate. She was perfectly healthy, and then suddenly she was sick."

"You think Consort Qin’s illness has something to do with the flowers?"

"I would never say such a thing. I merely think that Consort Qin overworked herself with all this flower arranging business," Song Yunzhao said self-righteously.

Feng Yi chuckled, but his expression slowly turned serious.

Seeing the Emperor’s pensive look, Song Yunzhao was secretly overjoyed. ’Yes, let the Emperor think. Let him think long and hard. In the book, Qin Xiyue was incredibly patient, but that’s only because I wasn’t there to throw a wrench in the works. The combat prowess of the other three concubines was nothing compared to mine, so she could afford to stay calm and play the long game with them.’

’But as a mere supporting character trying to survive, I have no desire to run in circles with them. Every single one of them has a powerful family for support. A poor, pitiful thing like me has no way out except to cling tightly to the Emperor’s golden thigh.’

Song Yunzhao figured it was probably her own overly proactive attitude that was disrupting the "protagonist’s" stable performance.

’It can’t be helped. We’re all just trying to survive. It’s not like I want to be the villainess, right?’

Song Yunzhao didn’t disturb the Emperor’s thoughts. She lowered her head and placed her palm against his. The comparison made her realize that his fingers were a good bit longer than hers. Moreover, the Emperor’s fingers were long and slender with well-defined knuckles, a stark contrast to her own chubby digits.

Feng Yi observed her strange action and asked, "What are you looking at?"

Song Yunzhao was still marveling at them and blurted out without thinking, "Your Majesty’s hands are really beautiful."

Feng Yi: ...

’Can she ever say anything proper!’

The moment the words left her mouth, Song Yunzhao blushed. A glance from the corner of her eye revealed Zhang Maoquan’s shoulders shaking with laughter.

Song Yunzhao looked up at the Emperor and said, with more bravado than justification, "I’m speaking from the heart! I dream of having fingers as long and slender as yours, Your Majesty, but just look at mine!"

Feng Yi looked at Song Yunzhao’s small, chubby hands, suppressed a laugh, and said, "I find my dear concubine’s hands to be unique and quite charming." With that, he enveloped her small hand in his own large one.

’Unique? He just means fat.’

Song Yunzhao poked the Emperor’s palm with her fingertip in protest, only for him to grip her hand even tighter.

In no time, they arrived at Huayang Palace. Zhang Maoquan went forward to clear the way, and the Imperial Carriage was set down. The Palace Attendants of Huayang Palace came out to welcome them, and when they saw Song Yunzhao disembarking with the Emperor, the looks on their faces were truly a sight to behold.

Song Yunzhao noted the dark expression on Nanny Zhuo, Consort Qin’s Housekeeper, but paid it no mind. She simply looped her arm through the Emperor’s. ’My only job right now is to be a living mascot.’

"This servant pays her respects to Your Majesty. Greetings, Song Jieyu."

The Emperor said lightly, "Rise. How is Consort Qin?" He walked inside as he spoke, not shaking off Song Yunzhao’s arm and allowing her to walk alongside him.

A flicker of emotion crossed Nanny Zhuo’s eyes before she lowered her head to reply, "The Noble Consort has taken a toll on her health this time. The Imperial Physician said she will need a good while to recuperate. Your Majesty has arrived at the perfect moment; the Noble Consort is awake."

Song Yunzaho snarked to herself, ’It doesn’t matter when the Emperor arrives. Qin Xiyue will *always* be awake.’

Feng Yi said nothing in response and walked directly into the main hall.