The wicked imperial concubine is courting death again; the comments section teaches her how to win w

"How could that be?"

Qi Yitang said, "You did exceptionally well, much better than Yuan Shu."

Yuan Shu, hidden in the shadows, wept silently.

He was avoiding suspicion because he was afraid His Majesty would gouge out his eyes. If he didn't have that thing and serve her closely, how could the Empress have been kidnapped by thieves?

Chi Zheng hesitated for a long time, but finally asked the question that was on her mind, "Then why does Your Majesty still need to recruit new people to replace your subordinates?"

Besides the Shadow Lord who commands the Shadow Guards, there is also competition among the Shadow Guards themselves.

Whoever performs the task well will gain the master's favor and receive better tasks and richer rewards.

But now, two of her defeated rivals have appeared, and they're even on equal footing with her...

Even though Chi Zheng was incredibly dull-witted, he still felt a little uneasy.

Qi Yitang clicked her tongue lightly, "Chizheng, you don't really want to stay by my side forever, do you?"

Chi Zheng was silent for a moment, then whispered, "Your Majesty, the Fourth Young Master and I are from two different worlds. It's impossible."

The secret guards were never human, but rather royal artifacts, kept in the dark and without official registration.

They generally only have two outcomes—either they fail to complete their mission and die, or they become too old and slow to move and are disposed of; very few of them have a good end.

No bodyguard has ever been allowed to marry.

Once married, the husband, children, and in-laws will all become weaknesses that could lead to their defection.

The royal family forbids a sharp blade from growing out of its sheath, as that would dull the blade.

Moreover, if she sets this precedent, and all the other guards start thinking about getting married, then no one will be loyal to her duties.

Qi Yitang has always preferred a simple and straightforward approach, and is too lazy to bother with all the complicated details.

Since the rule that guards cannot marry was set by the royal family, then it is up to the royal family to break it.

Since the person has been given to her, how to settle Chizheng is up to her.

Besides, marrying into the Qi family isn't marrying an outsider. How could Fourth Brother possibly rebel?

That would turn the whole world into a place of debauchery, would that be acceptable?

"Chizheng, Fourth Brother has never liked anyone else. I don't believe you can't feel his sincerity towards you. I ask you, do you really have absolutely no feelings for Fourth Brother?"

Chi Zheng's fingers curled slightly inside her sleeve.

Qi Yitang stared at her, "Don't lie to me, tell the truth."

Chi Zheng finally nodded slightly, "Mm."

Qi Yitang chuckled, "Then that settles it. If they're truly in love, why worry about so much when they can enjoy these few decades of happiness? Besides, don't you want to be my sister-in-law?"

sister in law?

Chi Zheng's ears turned slightly red, and she said in a low voice, "This subordinate dares not."

【Aka-nee, Aka-nee, why don't you blush when you eat?】

[It feels like the female supporting character is about to become a heartthrob; this plot twist is really strange.]

……

After testing Chi Zheng's feelings, Qi Yitang wrote a letter overnight and had it delivered to Qi Jiyun.

The people are mostly taken care of; the rest is up to you.

Qi Jiyun quickly replied: "I won't thank you enough; from now on, you're my sister."

Qi Yitang's lips twitched: "..." Who wants to be the older sister? Really.

Staying in the palace is indeed safe, but it's just too boring and there's not much fun in it.

Qi Yitang was bored out of his mind, so he had Cui Zhiyin and Yue Mingzhu, who lived in a villa on the outskirts of Beijing, brought to the palace for a small gathering.

Cui Zhiyin's eyes were still not healed, but she seemed much more relaxed than when she was in the palace.

The villa in the suburbs of Beijing didn't have as many rules as the palace, and family members could visit often, so the two of them lived quite comfortably.

Yue Mingzhu is still the same Yue Mingzhu. She can eat a whole braised pork knuckle, plus three large bowls of rice, two bowls of braised pork, and a basket of milk-flavored steamed buns in one meal. After finishing, she can still stuff two pieces of osmanthus cake as a snack.

Just watching her eat made Qi Yitang feel hungry.

However, when she picked up a piece with her chopsticks, she found the pork knuckle greasy and somewhat nauseating.

No wonder the comments section is full of mukbang videos; what others eat and what you eat are two completely different things.

In addition, Qi Yitang even brought up her "refined hobbies" from back then.

When she was drawing erotic pictures, she was still a virgin. Although she had imagined some of the poses, they were really pushing the limits of human endurance and now seem outrageous.

Now she's at least considered an expert in this field, and has a firsthand understanding of its intricacies.

When I picked up the pen again, I felt a surge of inspiration, and the lines I drew were much smoother than before.

Qi Yitang planned to finish the painting and sell it to Xie Yunxing, claiming it was a unique copy, to rip him off.

Qi Yitang hadn't forgotten Xie Yunxing's arrogant demeanor in front of her, so she deserved to be tricked.

Of course, this kind of thing had to be drawn secretly behind Xie Ling's back, otherwise there would be endless trouble.

……

In February, the weather gradually warmed up, the snow melted, and tiny buds, the size of rice grains, sprouted on the bare branches of the Imperial Garden.

Qi Yitang stayed in the palace, focusing on "creation," and didn't feel particularly bored.

That day, Xie Ling returned from court, and behind him, eunuchs carried in two large, red-lacquered wooden boxes, which were placed heavily in the center of the hall.

Qi Yitang leaned closer curiously, "What's in here?"

Li Degui smiled and had someone open the box. "Your Majesty, please take a look."

The moment the wooden box lid was lifted, the entire room seemed to light up. Inside the box on the left lay a magnificent phoenix robe, its base a deep red, brocade embroidered with golden phoenixes, and its hem adorned with delicate South Sea pearls—intricate and dignified.

The other brocade box contained a phoenix crown, adorned with nine dragons and four phoenixes, made of gold thread, and inlaid with pearls and rubies, its jewels gleaming brilliantly.

Yunzhu and Yunying stared in disbelief.

Qi Yitang loved these gorgeous clothes and jewelry the most, and her eyes lit up immediately. She reached out and touched the fabric of the phoenix robe.

It was so smooth it almost slipped through my fingers; the gold thread embroidery was slightly raised to the touch, densely packed, and I wondered how much effort it had taken to create it.

She'd been the empress for several months and had completely forgotten that she and Xie Ling hadn't actually gotten married yet.

The main problem is that it took too long to complete. We took measurements together at the beginning, and now it's finally finished.

"Why don't you give it a try?" Xie Ling asked, looking at her.

Qi Yitang had the same idea, and had someone carry the phoenix robe to the inner hall, but suddenly stopped and looked back at him suspiciously.

"Once I change, you won't suddenly become a beast and rip it off in no time, will you?"