I Was Supposed to Be the Villainous Consort

Song Yunzhao was delighted. "Really?"

"A sovereign does not speak in jest."

Song Yunzhao immediately cheered up. ’It’s so much better with the Empress Dowager out of the palace.’ Look, Feng Yi could even take her out of the palace now. "So when are we leaving? Should we bring the child?"

"Do you want to bring him?" Feng Yi asked, looking at Yun Zhao.

Yun Zhao was torn. She wanted to spend some time alone with Feng Yi, but she couldn’t just leave their son in the palace—not with An Shutong still around. Suddenly, she looked at Feng Yi and said, "Feng Ze is so big now, but he’s never been to his maternal grandparents’ home. What if we send him to my father’s place?"

Feng Yi nodded. "Alright. We’ll send him over first thing in the morning and pick him up when we return to the palace."

Song Yunzhao was overjoyed. She got up, threw herself into Feng Yi’s arms, and wrapped her arms around his neck, saying, "My father will definitely be thrilled."

The Eldest Prince wasn’t just any ordinary grandson, after all. It wasn’t easy to see him.

"Then it’s settled," Feng Yi said.

Song Yunzhao hadn’t expected Feng Yi to agree so readily. She gazed at him, her dark, bright eyes clear and sparkling, filled with affection. Her summer clothes were light, and a thin gauze sleeve slipped down to reveal a section of her fair, delicate arm. Feng Yi looked down at the woman locked in his embrace. Her jade-like face was tinged with a faint pink, her eyes seemed to be filled with starlight, and a red agate pendant rested on her collarbone. The arm holding her tightened slightly as he lowered his head and kissed her.

The ice basin in the hall melted silently. The bed curtains in the chamber swayed gently. The tips of Yun Zhao’s hair were damp with sweat, her gaze soft and rippling like autumn waters. Seeing this, Feng Yi felt a new wave of heat surge through him. The curtain he had just lifted was swept shut once more...

They were supposed to leave the palace the next day, but in the end, Yun Zhao couldn’t go. After a whole night of "battle," anyone’s back would need a day off to recover.

Feng Yi, however, went to the morning court in high spirits, while Song Yunzhao fell back asleep and didn’t stir until the sun was high in the sky.

Feng Ze came to knock on her door early in the morning. Nanny Qi, afraid of disturbing Ming Fei’s rest, quickly coaxed the little master away and took him to the Imperial Garden to play. With most of the harem’s concubines gone to the traveling palace, taking the Eldest Prince out was much less worrisome.

Anshun followed with several eunuchs. A few cleared the path ahead, while others guarded the rear, ensuring the Eldest Prince was protected from all sides.

Anshun knew very well that his master had placed him by the Eldest Prince’s side, entrusting him with the prince’s safety. This was a sign of trust, and of course, he had to protect the Eldest Prince well to live up to his master’s high expectations.

From a distance, An Shutong heard the sounds coming from their direction. Before she could even get close, she saw a large group of eunuchs clearing the path. Through a sea of flowers, she caught sight of a small figure running in the garden.

It was the Eldest Prince.

An Shutong turned around and started walking back almost immediately. Mu Qing, stunned for a moment, hurried to follow her.

’She’s one of the few able-bodied concubines left in the palace.’ If anything were to happen to the Eldest Prince, she wouldn’t be able to escape blame. Naturally, An Shutong wanted to stay as far away as possible.

Anshun heard the movement, glanced over, and saw them walking away before retracting his gaze. He then continued to follow the Eldest Prince at an unhurried pace.

Song Yunzhao slept for the better part of the day. Since she couldn’t leave the palace today anyway, and knowing her son was having so much fun in the Imperial Garden that he’d forgotten all about returning, she got up, had a bite to eat, and went to see him.

The little boy was watching a pond full of koi, clutching fish food in his hand and scattering it into the water. Seeing a school of koi leap from the water to snatch the food, he laughed with delight.

Song Yunzhao walked over and sat down beside him. "You can’t feed them like that. In a few days, this whole pond of fish will be stuffed to death. You have to feed them small amounts multiple times, understand?"

Feng Ze didn’t understand, but he knew his mother consort wouldn’t let him do it, so he became a little unhappy, pouting and not saying a word.

Song Yunzhao looked at the little boy and didn’t soften. She took his hand and led him out of the pavilion. "Come on, let’s go look at the flowers over there."

"No." Feng Ze didn’t like looking at flowers. ’How can flowers be as fun as fish? The fish move.’

Song Yunzhao’s eyes darted. She crouched down to look at her son. "How about this: you go pick a flower for me, and I’ll come with you to feed the fish tomorrow."

Feng Ze’s little mind whirred. He turned and ran off, plucking a flower the size of a wine cup’s mouth from the edge of the fish pond. Then he trotted back, but instead of handing the flower to his mother consort, he stuck it directly by her temple. After he was done, he even clapped his hands in satisfaction.

Song Yunzhao...

’This little rascal learns fast.’ He had seen Feng Yi place a flower in her hair once, and to think he still remembered it after all this time.

A flower placed by her son—Yun Zhao had to wear it. She scooped the little boy into her arms, and the mother-son pair started heading back. The sun was getting higher, and it was becoming too hot to stay outside.

Halfway there, Song Yunzhao saw a person standing in a pavilion up ahead. It looked like she was respectfully waiting for her.

The moment her steps faltered, An Shutong started walking over. "This concubine greets Lady Ming."

"An Xiaoyi, no need for such formalities. Please rise." Song Yunzhao’s expression was casually smiling, but inwardly, she raised her guard.

After speaking, she turned and handed her son to Nanny Qi. "You take the Eldest Prince back first."

Feng Ze was tired from playing and didn’t resist being held by Nanny Qi, but he looked at his mother consort, a little reluctant to leave.

Yun Zhao leaned down, kissed his little cheek, and said with a gentle smile, "You go back and take a bath first. Look how dirty you are. Mother Consort will be back to play with you in a little while."

Hearing this, Feng Ze finally waved his little hand and left happily.

An Shutong was momentarily stunned as she watched Song Yunzhao kiss Feng Ze. She was especially taken aback by the look in Ming Fei’s eyes as she gazed at the Eldest Prince—it was so warm and soft. Where was the arrogant, domineering air she used to have?

For a moment, she was in a daze.

"An Xiaoyi?"

An Shutong snapped back to her senses, meeting Ming Fei’s suspicious gaze. She quickly said, "This concubine was rude. Please forgive me, Your Ladyship."

Song Yunzhao just found An Shutong to be very strange, not at all like the person described in the book. ’But that doesn’t have much to do with me. As long as we stay out of each other’s way, it’ll be fine.’

"An Xiaoyi, you were waiting here. Were you waiting for me?" Song Yunzhao had no patience for beating around the bush. There were hardly any people left in the entire harem, and the Empress Dowager was away. An Shutong wouldn’t do anything detrimental to either of them under these circumstances.

However, that didn’t mean she was willing to play games with her.

An Shutong hadn’t expected Ming Fei to be so direct. She felt a little uncomfortable for a moment but quickly composed herself and said softly, "This concubine has no intention of offending Your Ladyship. There is just something I wish to say to you."

Song Yunzhao was completely bewildered. ’What could two people in naturally opposing positions possibly have to say to each other?’

Yun Zhao could try her best to win over the likes of Consort Shu and Princess Consort Wan because the three of them were destined to be cannon fodder in the book. There’s always a sense of mutual sympathy among cannon fodder; they could overcome any obstacle to find common ground.

But Qin Wan Yi and An Shutong were different. One was the original female lead of the book, a position that was absolutely unshakeable. For instance, even though she had met Qin Xiyue outside the palace and had offered her a semblance of help, that woman had turned on her ruthlessly, attacking her without a second thought.

As for An Shutong, with the Empress Dowager as her powerful backer, their positions were fundamentally opposed, leaving absolutely no common ground between them.