Entering the palace means entering a high position; I'm His Majesty's cousin, who am I afr

Pei Yan was engrossed in reviewing the memorials, taking a break to rest his eyes every half hour or so.

While resting, his gaze inadvertently fell on Shen Jiayu.

At first, things were fine; the woman looked at the notes with great interest, seemingly finding them quite novel.

Later, his eyebrows and eyes became listless, and his eyelids became heavy.

Pei Yan heard her yawn several times in that hour.

I don't know if it's because I didn't rest well last night, or because I was bored, or both.

At noon, when Pei Yan got up from behind his desk, Shen Jiayu was already asleep on the desk.

Pei Yan walked up to her and glanced at her.

She had already sorted and organized the several stacks of documents on the desk. She picked up a few and looked at them, sorting them vertically and even according to the importance and urgency of the matters.

Some of the notes contained her annotations, some marked with question marks, indicating areas she didn't understand, while others were comments or opinions.

Pei Yan put down the memorial in his hand and his gaze fell on that exquisitely handsome face.

He knows.

Aside from her strong temper, she is actually very intelligent and quick to grasp things. She is not much inferior to the concubines who have held power for many years; she just lacks experience and knowledge.

That's good. Diligence can make up for lack of talent, and these are things that can be gradually improved and accumulated. Now that the three consorts are in power and maintaining a balance of power, it is the best time for her to learn.

When she rises to a high position and takes power, there will be less constraint and difficulty.

Pei Yan always knew that he was biased.

After all, she was fundamentally different from the other concubines. He and she shared an unbreakable bond and affection.

Now that things have come to this point, Pei Yan doesn't think his cousin will remain at the rank of Zhaoyi.

He will give her the rank of a second-grade imperial concubine and the power to assist in managing the palace.

He even had higher expectations for her.

Pei Yan traced the contours of Shen Jiayu's face with his gaze, then let out a deep sigh.

"Cousin, don't disappoint me."

Shen Jiayu was sleeping soundly when she suddenly felt short of breath. In her dream, she frowned and mumbled something.

But air still couldn't get in, and she felt suffocated.

Shen Jiayu opened her eyes groggily and found that someone was pinching her nose.

Shen Jiayu pouted, "Your Majesty..."

Her tone was sweet and soft, like someone who had just woken up, making you want to tease her even more.

Pei Yan pulled the person up: "Wash your face and go have your meal."

Shen Jiayu shook her drowsy head and nestled in his arms. "Can I not eat? I want to sleep."

Pei Yan coldly refused her: "No."

Shen Jiayu let out a wail as he dragged her out of the imperial study. After washing her face with cold water, she finally came to her senses.

I ate a meal and then took a nap.

The emperor and empress continued with their own routines.

After Pei Yan finished dealing with official business, Shen Jiayu finally had some free time to fiddle with the unsolved puzzle.

She was so engrossed in it that she remained absorbed in it until nightfall.

When he returned from his bath, he saw that the golden fifteen-linked rings were deformed and could no longer be turned.

Shen Jiayu was taken aback.

Sitting on the couch, Pei Yan said calmly, "The palace maid slipped and fell just now."

Shen Jiayu: "..."

She didn't believe that reason.

The servants who attend to the emperor are always steady and nimble, and how could they have fallen like this if they accidentally knocked it over?

This was clearly broken on purpose.

Shen Jiayu couldn't help but roll her eyes inwardly.

What a petty man! All she did was ignore him for not talking to him much that afternoon.

They actually resorted to such despicable tactics.

How awful!

Of course, Shen Jiayu only dared to mutter these words to herself and dared not say them aloud.

But she wasn't one to be trifled with, so she pretended to be disappointed, "Alright, anyway, I'll be able to solve this one soon. Tomorrow, I'll have them solve a twenty-ring puzzle so we can play for a little longer."

Pei Yan: "..."

After a long pause, he said, "I forbid it."

Shen Jiayu put her hands on her hips and asked, "Why?"

Pei Yan said, "Playing with things will lead to the loss of ambition; one should not become obsessed with this pursuit forever."

His words were so grand and eloquent that Shen Jiayu was amused and exasperated.

This man is far too possessive.

Living people are fine, but inanimate objects are not allowed either.

They even accused her of being domineering, when she herself was clearly more unreasonable.

Shen Jiayu's face fell, and she nuzzled him, asking, "Then what will I use to relieve my boredom?"

Pei Yan remained silent for a moment, then said, "Isn't there an emperor?"

Shen Jiayu suddenly looked up at him.

That's a very ambiguous statement...

It made her immediately misunderstand...

"What are you thinking about again?" Seeing her ears turn red, Pei Yan knew she had misunderstood. He frowned slightly and said helplessly, "I'm being serious."

Shen Jiayu blinked innocently.

Pei Yan pushed her away, put down the book in his hand, and said, "Let's play chess. I'll give you a ten-stone handicap and teach you slowly."

Shen Jiayu was speechless for a moment.

What a cunning man.

He did it on purpose, making her focus on him no matter what she did!

*

Shen Jiayu stayed at Xuanzheng Hall for quite a long time this time.

She didn't return to Yihua Palace until just before the Mid-Autumn Festival.

It's not so much that they went back, but rather that they fled back.

During this period of time, Shen Jiayu has come to fully realize how terrifying the emperor is!

Who exactly said that her cousin was cold-hearted, apathetic, and uninterested in women?

Actually, it's the complete opposite, okay?!

She had suffered terribly when she first gained his favor, but after they became a couple, he became even more demanding.

At night, she barely got any sleep, as he tossed and turned her over and over.

Shen Jiayu was dizzy from reading the memorials during the day, and even more confused at night.

Her good cousin had the Imperial Clothing Bureau make her several new outfits, and every evening he would have her try them on one by one and then give his opinion on them.

I feel like I'm about to fall apart from all the stress.

Having thus obtained a legitimate reason, Shen Jiayu left Xuanzheng Hall without looking back.

With the Mid-Autumn Festival approaching, relatives of imperial concubines are allowed to visit them in the palace.

Since the Duke and his wife would definitely be going to the palace, Shen Jiayu wanted to adjust her condition, get in good spirits, and properly welcome her parents.

After sleeping soundly for two nights in her palace, Shen Jiayu was no longer listless; she was full of energy and radiant.

August 14th, the tenth year of Zhaoqi.

The sky is clear and the clouds float in the breeze.

At the very first morning, the entire palace was bustling with activity.

This day was a rare occasion for the concubines to see their families, and they all dressed up meticulously.

Everyone at Yihua Palace was busy.

Today, Shen Jiayu wore a pomegranate red brocade palace dress with silver thread embroidery of peony patterns. Her makeup was also exquisite and elegant, and a golden begonia pearl tassel hairpin hung down beside her ears, swaying and shining with her movements.

After dressing up, her beautiful and radiant appearance was even more striking.

Her current appearance is even more noble than before she entered the palace, and her eyes even bear a hint of the imperial majesty that makes people dare not look directly at her.

After getting dressed, Shen Jiayu boarded a palanquin and headed to Cining Palace.

The Duchess of Zhenguo had previously sent a letter to the palace, saying that she would first pay her respects to Empress Dowager Shen today, and then come to her palace.

But Shen Jiayu couldn't wait.

So we went straight to the Cining Palace.