The Empress Arrives: Rebirth of Concubine Hua

Chapter 285 Suspicion of Mei Zhuang
Zhen Changzai looked at the embroidery frame in An Da Ying's hand. The double-petaled lotus flowers were fresh and pleasing to the eye.

"I like it. This flower of mine reminds me of a poem."

An agreed happily.

"Sister, you are very talented, and I am all ears."

Zhen Changzai said modestly.

"How can I be said to be talented? I have only read a few books and know a few words. I really don't deserve your praise, sister."

An agreed and urged Zhen Changzai with a smile.

"Sister just said that she remembered a poem. I've been waiting for a long time. Please recite it quickly."

Zhen Changzai muttered softly.

"Born free from the dust and dirt, why should I have many names in the world? I have only the moon and the wind in my life, and the prosperity and decline of the four seasons are left to the mist.

I know my roots are pure ice and jade, and people say my figure is as beautiful as silk. The morning light is bright and fragrant for ten miles, and I beat the oars for you and sing Wu songs.

Everyone praises the lotus for its purity and elegance. They only see its beauty but forget that it also struggled out of the mire.

It can be seen that there are many hardships hidden under the glamour.”

An agreed, lowered her head, and began to embroider the flower stitch by stitch, saying with a smile.

"My younger sister is not as knowledgeable as my elder sister, and she cannot compose poetry.

I can only sing a few little songs that are not worthy of being performed in a formal setting, and this is also related to Fuqiu."

Zhen Chang suddenly became interested and said happily.

"Sister, you can actually sing a little song? That's great. I'm bored during my illness, so why don't you sing a few lines for me?"

Seeing that there was no one around and only a few servants serving him, An agreed without hesitation and said.

"Then I will show off my ugliness to make my elder sister happy."

An agreed and cleared her throat, then continued to embroider the flowers in her hand while singing leisurely.

"Lotus can be picked in Jiangnan,

The lotus leaves are so lush,
Fish play among the lotus leaves.

Fish play on lotus leaves in the east,
Fishes play on lotus leaves in the west.

Fish play on lotus leaves to the south,
Fish play on lotus leaves to the north. "

Zhen Changzai said enviously as she listened to An Da Ying's singing voice.

"My sister's singing is like the sound of nature, which makes people feel intoxicated. It's a pity that my hands are like this, otherwise I would definitely accompany my sister with a song."

Liu Zhu, who has always been carefree, has been feeling very tormented these days because he failed to take good care of Zhen Changzai.

Now when I heard this, I felt even more uncomfortable.

"My lady, it's all my fault that you got hurt."

Zhen Changzai cast a gentle gaze on Liu Zhu, whose face was filled with guilt.

"Silly girl, I don't blame you. I was the one who asked you to push the swing hard.

By the way, what happened to the swing? Have you checked it out? What happened?"

Liu Zhu Dao.

“I was worried about you that day, so I went there with Zhou Ninghai the next day. I wanted to take a closer look.

But I heard that the Emperor has ordered the swing to be dismantled, and has also ordered that no more swings be set up in the Imperial Garden from now on."

Zhen Chang was stunned and said anxiously.

"How did the emperor know this? Why didn't you tell me a few days ago?"

Liu Zhu Dao.

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty must have heard that you fell off the swing. I don't know.

I didn’t tell you that you had to work hard to recover from your injuries a few days ago.”

An agreed.

"Sister, maybe the emperor is afraid that something bad will happen to the concubines again? Why is your reaction so strong?"

Zhen Changzai sighed and said.

"I'm just worried that the emperor might think I'm being reckless."

An agreed and smiled, comforting Zhen Changzai. "You are worrying too much, sister. Although sister has not yet been favored, everyone has witnessed that sister is gentle and calm.

How can it be called reckless? Besides, this kind of accident is not the first one for my sister, so the emperor would not think so.

Sister, just rest and recover. Only when you recover, you will have a chance to gain the Emperor's favor."

Zhen Changzai looked at An and agreed, saying seriously.

"Don't just talk about me. You have a beautiful singing voice. When you stand out one day, you will surely be appreciated by the emperor."

An Da Ying still kept his head down, and raised it after a while and said.

"Sister, I have always had a question."

Zhen Chang signaled her with her eyes, and Liu Zhu saw that An agreed to talk, so she took Baojuan and left.

An agreed and said carefully.

“Sister, you know that sister and Sister Shen grew up together and are as close as sisters.

Sister Shen has been favored by the emperor for a long time. Why doesn't she think about winning the emperor's favor for her sister?
Look, sister, Concubine Hua fell out of favor a few days ago, and Sister Shen came to keep us company every day.

As soon as Concubine Hua regained her favor, Sister Shen had to follow her and get busy again.

Sister, why don't you ask Sister Shen for help when you have time some other day?"

In fact, Zhen Changzai felt deeply regretful since she had missed the opportunity to become the emperor several times.

But she thought, it was a good thing that Sister Mei was always with her.

An's promise today magnified the doubts in Zhen Chang's heart little by little.

Yes, Sister Mei has been eating, living, studying and playing with me since childhood, and they can talk about anything.

I don’t know when it started, but it seems like I haven’t had a good conversation with Sister Mei for a long time.

Sister Mei is busy learning how to manage affairs with Concubine Hua during the day, and I heard that she has to learn how to read account books or serve the Emperor at night.

But Zhen Changzai felt that she couldn't do such a thing as going to Sister Mei to seek the emperor's favor.

Isn't Zhen Chang a proud woman at heart?
What An agreed to was reasonable. Sister Mei had a deep relationship with him, yet she never took the initiative to help him win favor.

Zhen Chang was comforting herself, thinking that maybe it was because she had always been calm and non-competitive that made Sister Mei feel that she did not need the emperor's favor.

Zhen Chang is on the road.

"Sister Mei is busy, so I don't want to cause trouble for her. By the way, where did you learn this excellent embroidery skill?"

An Da Ying was still waiting for Zhen Changzai's answer, but she didn't expect her to suddenly ask about her embroidery skills.

An Da Ying unconsciously softened his brows, his tone filled with deep nostalgia.

"My sister's embroidery skills were taught by my mother. My mother was very good at embroidery when she was young. I have been embroidering since I was a child.
I just remember that my mother was always embroidering. My pillow, clothes, and handkerchiefs were all embroidered by my mother.

My mother also taught me embroidery herself. She said that having many skills is always a burden, and girls should have skills that they can show off.

I was ignorant at that time and always asked my mother, what kind of skill is embroidery?

My mother said that at least if life at my husband’s house was not good, I could still embroider things to exchange for money.”

Zhen Changzai said with a smile.

"You are worrying too much, mother. You are the daughter of an official family. Not to mention that your husband's family is not from a poor family.

You are still going to participate in the selection. Once you marry into the imperial family, why worry about money? "

Seeing that she could not finish embroidering the lotus today, An Da Ying called Bao Juan in, took the unfinished embroidery, and continued embroidering slowly when she returned to her own palace.

Zhen Changzai and An Da Ying talked for a while until Zhen Changzai showed a hint of tiredness, and then An Da Ying reluctantly returned to the palace.

Huanbi looked at An Da Ying and went out through the second door before speaking.

"My young master is not feeling well, and yet she has to deal with Young Master An every day. It's really hard work for her."

Zhen Chang is on the road.

"I'm not really dealing with her. Lingrong is timid. The only people in the palace who are on good terms with her are me and Sister Mei.
She is also pitiful, she has nowhere else to go except here with me.

I share the same pain as her, so naturally I want to be closer to her."

Huanbi curled her lips and said.

"But today, Miss An has begun to suspect the relationship between you and Miss Meizhuang.

Although I am also confused, what Miss An said is too straightforward. Aren't you angry, Miss An?"