Palace Fighting: Naive Concubines' Ascent to Power-Chapter 434 Slow Down

The hall fell silent for a moment.

With only a moment to assess the situation, Xiao Jizi, not caring for formalities, immediately paid his respects and exclaimed loudly, "Greetings to His Majesty, greetings to the master, the meat pies have arrived!"

The Emperor, eager to divert attention, followed up, "What meat pies, bring them here quickly."

"Yes."

When the meat pie arrived beside him, the Emperor gave Zhang Qing a knowing look, tenderly stroked Lian Hua’s hair, and softly said, "Nannan, aren’t you hungry? How about we eat some meat pie?"

The matter of the book might be related to his Little Concubine. He would inquire with Zhang Qing later, but now what was pressing was to soothe his Little Concubine. He mustn’t frighten her.

Zhang Qing quickly grasped the situation, circled behind the Emperor to the table, took a book the Emperor often read, and carefully replaced the book that was on the table, hiding the exchanged one in his chest.

Lian Hua was bewildered, unable to catch up with the sudden change from discussing crimes to meat pies.

The aroma wafted to her, and as she turned her head, she saw the meat pie right in front of her, held by Xiao Jizi.

She looked up at the Emperor, dazed, and saw his expression was as tender as usual, not at all like the unfamiliar demeanor he had when he first came in.

Her tense body involuntarily relaxed, leaning softly against the Emperor; this was still her Majesty, unchanged.

The Emperor saw the change in her expression and also secretly breathed a sigh of relief, knowing she had calmed down.

He realized that he had overreacted, had forgotten where he was, that such behavior was meant for outsiders, not for his own loved ones—it would frighten them.

After replacing the book, Zhang Qing walked away from the table and also sighed in relief. His Majesty cherished Master Lian, and seeing that Master Lian had come back to her senses was good, very good.

In Canglan Court, matters concerning Master Lian were always straightforward. It was he, used to the complex affairs outside, who overthought things.

He should have reminded His Majesty right away. Thinking this, he couldn’t help but blame himself.

The Emperor kissed Lian Hua’s forehead, "Nannan, would you like to try some meat pie? It looks crispy on the outside and tender inside, quite delicious."

Lian Hua shook her head, not really wanting to speak, still needing time to recover.

At that moment earlier, she felt a pang of panic, not because His Majesty would punish her, but because...

The Emperor’s heart tightened, surely she had been scared.

He dismissed Zhang Qing and Xiao Jizi, and once they left, he gently asked, "What’s wrong, Nannan? Did I speak too loudly earlier and frighten you?"

Lian Hua shook her head again, softly saying, "No, I wasn’t."

She wasn’t scared.

The Emperor grew anxious, not knowing what troubled her, and hugged her, continuously soothing her back, trying to reassure her with words, "I promise, there won’t be a next time for what happened earlier. Don’t be afraid, Nannan."

Lian Hua slightly pulled away from the Emperor’s embrace, looking up as he lowered his head to look at her.

She saw a touch of concern hidden in his eyes and couldn’t help but raise her hand to caress his face, earnestly asking, "Brother Zhao, will you change in the future?"

Could he become someone she no longer recognized?

The Emperor was taken aback but quickly understood the reason for her question.

Unable to resist, he took her hand in his large palm and placed it on his heart, looking at her levelly, with tender cherish in his gaze, "Even as looks fade, years pass, and worlds change, my heart for Nannan will never change."

Then he suddenly smiled, "I have never felt such gratitude in this lifetime for meeting Nannan. If heaven is kind, I hope to meet Nannan in life after life."

His eyes shone brightly.

Lian Hua was so entranced that His Majesty’s gaze gave her great comfort and security.

Her heart gradually settled down, its beats warming up slowly but surely.

Then her lips puckered; she wanted to laugh and to cry. His Majesty understood her, giving her the greatest promise and making her feel very secure.

How could she have such thoughts just because she felt a moment of unfamiliarity? Such a silly thought indeed.

The Emperor watched as tears began to well up in her eyes, and his heart ached. He quickly embraced her, "It’s my fault, don’t cry, sweet girl, it’s my fault."

In his arms, Lian Hua finally calmed down completely, and her heart began to feel lively again. Thinking about it, she found herself a bit ridiculous; His Majesty was always so kind to her, considering her in everything, practically bending over backward for her. Why should she feel uneasy?

It was truly an unnecessary worry.

Unable to help herself, she hugged the Emperor tightly and shook her head; she did not want to cry, she even wanted to laugh.

The Emperor, unable to see her expression, thought she was crying and felt even more heartache, starting to console her gently, "Don’t cry, my sweet girl, how about I make it up to you?"

Lian Hua heard the misunderstanding in His Majesty’s words and felt a bit embarrassed, yet afraid to worry him, she couldn’t help but push against his chest with both hands and separated a little from him, looking up, "Your Majesty, I am not crying."

Looking down, the Emperor finally saw the smile on her face and felt relieved, exhaling a long sigh of relief.

The thing he feared most was his Little Concubine crying; her tears always pained his heart.

He couldn’t resist kissing her forehead gently, "Feeling better now?"

Lian Hua blinked, biting her lip and nodding shyly before burying her face in his chest and whispering, "I feel the same."

The Emperor was perplexed, "The same about what?"

Lian Hua felt her face heating up, her arms wrapping around the Emperor even tighter.

The Emperor suddenly realized that his Little Concubine’s words were a response to his promise that would never change.

His heart bloomed like spring flowers, and his laughter spilled out, unable to stop the corners of his mouth from turning up.

He knew that his Little Concubine was never stingy in expressing her love.

Unable to resist, he leaned down to her ear and asked again, "The same about what? Nannan, I want to hear you say it..."

His voice was slightly hoarse, and mostly inviting.

Lian Hua’s face burned even more. She felt both shy and sweet, speaking in a voice as soft as a mosquito, "Like Brother Zhao, Nannan wants to be with Brother Zhao forever..."

The Emperor’s smile grew wider, his eyes filled with irrepressible mirth, and he kissed her earlobe gently, feeling it wasn’t enough, moved to kiss her forehead, then her brow, her eyes, her cheeks...

With her face flushed red, Lian Hua let him kiss her until the Emperor attempted to carry her to bed, which was when she finally reacted with an "Ah!" "My meat pies!"

Hadn’t it been settled just a moment ago? Where were they now?

The Emperor, somewhat resigned, let her go, thinking the Imperial Physician was indeed right about his excessive liver fire; he had indeed been indulging himself.

His Little Concubine was amusing; only now remembering the meat pies, still able to think of them at such a moment...

Breaking free from the Emperor’s embrace, Lian Hua took his hand, "Your Majesty, meat pies must be eaten hot to taste good, I had forgotten."

In the kitchen, they smelled so good, especially seeing Xiao Linzi enjoying them with contented ’mmms’ and ’ahhs.’ She wondered if they were still warm now because cold they would not taste good.

Leading the Emperor to the hall, they saw the plate of meat pies on the dining table, round and plump, looking absolutely delicious.