People in the Qin Dynasty sought good fortune and avoided misfortune.

Chapter 57, Hu Meiren's Oddities for Words

The palace of King Han, the bedroom of Consort Hu.

Xu Qing followed Ruo Tao into the palace. The palace maids and eunuchs stayed outside the sleeping quarters, and there were only two or three guards near the sleeping quarters.

Seeing this somewhat familiar scene, Xu Qing stopped in her tracks.

"Miss Ruotao, why aren't these people serving in the palace?" Xu Qing asked.

Ruotao glanced at the somewhat nervous Xu Qing and began to explain.
"Today is the day His Majesty worships his ancestors. Although the beauty said she could not accompany His Majesty to worship his ancestors, she would still purify herself and fast to pray for His Majesty's well-being. Therefore, all the other palace maids and eunuchs were dismissed to prevent disturbing the beauty."

"Last night the beauty stopped eating and has been feeling weak all day, so we asked the imperial physician to take her pulse and see if it was a lingering illness from before."

"I see."

Xu Qing felt somewhat relieved. After all, Hu Meiren was not a seductive woman; she didn't have that much courage or means.

Moreover, it was still daytime. If Hu Meiren really had the audacity to be so lewd in broad daylight, she wouldn't have spent so much time just engaging in simple teasing.

Ruotao led Xu Qing to the palace gate and gestured for Xu Qing to go in by himself.

Xu Qing straightened his clothes, picked up his medicine box, and walked into the palace.

As soon as Xu Qing entered the palace, he smelled a unique fragrance; the incense burner placed in the hall was emitting wisps of white smoke.

Smelling the incense in the air, Xu Qing had a bad feeling and quickly activated his Evergreen Skill.

He and Chao Nu Yao were quite close, and they often spoke frankly with each other. Occasionally, Chao Nu Yao would tell Xu Qing about the uses of incense.

At this time, the incense burning in the incense burner has the effect of captivating the mind.

"What are they trying to do? Are they trying to interrogate me through incense and extract the truth about the Fire Rain Manor tragedy?"

Xu Qing pondered for a moment, hesitating whether to continue inside.

The palace gate suddenly closed, and before Xu Qing could turn around to check, Hu Meiren's weak voice rang out from inside the boudoir.

"Is it the Imperial Physician? I'm in the inner room."

Hu Meiren's voice was as delicate as ever, but this time it was filled with weakness.

Xu Qing glanced at the tightly closed palace gates and activated his Evergreen Skill. He was now immune to all poisons and was not worried about the incense's allure.

Having prepared himself to continue his deceiving words towards Lady Hu, he headed towards her boudoir.

Upon entering the boudoir, the scent of incense became even stronger, and Xu Qing lowered her head and walked outside the curtain.

"This humble official, Xu Qing, greets the beauty," Xu Qing said, bowing.

Hu Meiren looked at Xu Qing outside the curtain, a slight smile playing on her lips, and said...
"Come in. This isn't the first time you've come to take my pulse. Why are you being so formal?"

Seeing the graceful figure behind the curtain, Xu Qing carried the medicine box and went inside.

After passing through three layers of curtains, Xu Qing looked at Hu Meiren on the bed and a look of surprise flashed in his eyes.

Although Hu Meiren is usually very generous to him, and he is often dressed in revealing clothing, this is the first time she has been this generous.

The fox beauty wore a simple pink bodice, her shoulders bare, with two pink ropes hanging from her neck.

The exaggerated size of her breasts pushed up the bodice, exposing half of her round, white, and tender breasts.

The short bodice could only cover half of her breasts, leaving her smooth, flat abdomen exposed with slightly undulating skin that made people want to take a second look.

She wore an extremely short white lace skirt, revealing half of her round and full peach-shaped breasts.

Her long, smooth legs were unadorned, her fair skin glowed with a cool light, and her delicate little feet were crossed.

Her toes, painted with cherry blossom pink nail polish, gripped the thin blankets, her calves slightly bent, a sight that made one's blood boil.

Her beautiful hair was casually draped over her shoulders, and a smile graced her alluring and delicate face. Her fox-like eyes cast a seductive glance.

Seeing this, Xu Qing swallowed hard and quickly lowered his head, afraid that if he continued watching, he would lose control of himself.

Is this how you test your cadres? If you do that, I'll confess everything!

Seeing Xu Qing's shy expression, Hu Meiren's smile deepened, and she extended her slender hand.

"Imperial Physician, I suddenly feel weak today. Please take a good look at me." Hu Meiren's voice was soft and seductive.

The incense in the air rushed wildly towards Xu Qing's nostrils, causing her to momentarily lose her composure and almost lose her senses.

"it is good."

Xu Qing took a deep look at Hu Meiren, went over his prepared response in his mind again, then stepped forward, took Hu Meiren's hand, and gently knelt down to take her pulse.

Holding her smooth little hand in hers, before Xu Qing could even take her pulse, Hu Meiren grabbed Xu Qing's hand and pulled him forward.

Before Xu Qing could react, Hu Meiren's charming and delicate face was close to his, her lips slightly parted, and a puff of cigarette smoke blew onto Xu Qing's face.

Xu Qing felt a jolt in his heart, and several double images of Hu Meiren's face appeared before him.

Just as Xu Qing lost his composure, the Evergreen Technique within his body circulated, instantly restoring his clarity.

It seems this woman is determined to find out the truth about the Fire Rain Manor tragedy today. I must give her an explanation today, otherwise who knows what other methods she might use in the future, Xu Qing thought to himself.

So Xu Qing pretended to be drugged, swayed, and collapsed onto the bed.

Hu Meiren looked at the unconscious Xu Qing with a smile on her face.

Looking at Xu Qing's handsome face, Hu Meiren couldn't help but show a trace of regret and sorrow.

"It's not that I want to treat you like this, but that Madam Mingzhu is a vicious woman that you can't handle. I'm doing this for your own good."

As she spoke, Hu Meiren pulled Xu Qing into her arms, her slender fingers gently stroking his handsome face.

After Xu Qing massaged her last time, she hadn't heard of Xu Qing taking Madam Mingzhu's pulse for two or three days, so she assumed that Madam Mingzhu had given up on Xu Qing, which put her at ease.

But before she could be happy, she heard that Madam Mingzhu had summoned Xu Qing for a medical consultation in the middle of the night, which made her heart sink again.

In the past two weeks, her maid Ruotao has seen Xu Qing being summoned away by Lady Mingzhu's maid in the middle of the night more than once while he was on duty at the Imperial Hospital.

As for why Xu Qing was summoned away, she knew without even thinking that it was nothing more than Madam Mingzhu plotting against Xu Qing again, wanting to continue to ruin him.

She knew about Madam Mingzhu's methods, and how could someone as kind-hearted as Xu Qing possibly handle them? So she couldn't help but worry about Xu Qing.

After much deliberation, she decided that she had to increase the intensity of her efforts to ensure that Xu Qing's heart remained firmly with her. Only in this way could Xu Qing not be misled by Madam Mingzhu's methods.

If she were to rashly increase the intensity on someone like Xu Qing, it would backfire. So she remembered the incense that Lady Mingzhu had asked her to use to bewitch King Han An.

Xu Qing had no idea what Hu Meiren was thinking; he just felt a little suffocated.

Listening to Hu Meiren's self-talk, Xu Qing became even more nervous. He looked at Hu Meiren and realized that she didn't seem to want to interrogate him about the truth of the Fire Rain Manor tragedy.

Looking at Xu Qing's handsome face, Hu Meiren's gaze couldn't help but wander a little, and she muttered softly.

"I am only doing this to repay a debt of gratitude, so that Mr. Xu will not be harmed by Madam Mingzhu."

Wait, you've started role-playing? I may have the surname Xu, but you're not the White Snake!

Xu Qing screamed inwardly, but outwardly had to continue pretending to be unconscious.

He was worried that if he suddenly woke up, he would scare the other person and cause them to be discovered by people outside, which would be disastrous.

As soon as she finished speaking, Hu Meiren's slender fingers untied Xu Qing's belt, her lips, painted with red rouge, tightened, and a look of hesitation flashed across her exquisite and charming face.

As she thought about what she was going to do next, a deep blush crept onto Hu Meiren's cheeks.

Seeing Xu Qing around every day, she had long wanted to give herself to him, but the thought of her other deals with Madam Mingzhu made her think twice before acting.

If she were to lose her virginity, Madam Mingzhu would surely notice. She was not afraid of the other party's revenge; it would only mean death. She was worried about implicating Xu Qing, so she had no choice but to resort to this desperate measure.

Imperial Physician, Mr. Xu, please don't be offended. I will repay you with my life after I defeat Lady Mingzhu.

Half an hour later, Hu Meiren looked slightly tired, but her eyes were full of satisfaction and smiles as she looked at Xu Qing.

Sweat dripped down Hu Meiren's fair and firm skin, and her hair on her forehead was damp with sweat, making her feel a little sticky.

"In that case, I will no longer worry about Madam Mingzhu."

Standing up from the bed, Hu Meiren felt a slight soreness in her calves. After glancing at the unconscious Xu Qing, she got up and walked to the side to touch up the rouge that had been smeared on her skin.

(End of this chapter)