There are too many female protagonists with deceased husbands in the Qin Dynasty's Past Books.

Could it be that they are in the bathhouse? It's early in the morning, and the King of Han hasn't come here yet, so why would he need to bathe and change clothes?

Something's strange.

As it turned out, Jiang Mo's vigilance and wariness towards Madam Mingzhu was not unfounded. Before she even met Hu Meier, she sensed something was wrong based solely on her intuition.

The desire to find out the truth grew even stronger.

Then she gracefully reached out her jade-like hand, her fingers adorned with dark blue nail polish, and took the food box from the maid beside her. With a smile, she strode into the palace.

"Why be so formal, sister? There are no outsiders here."

"Besides, His Majesty specifically instructed me before attending the morning court session. How could I feel at ease if I didn't personally deliver the items to you, my sister?"

Convinced that Hu Meier wouldn't come out to stop her, Madam Mingzhu strode even more recklessly into the depths of the palace. Soon, the bed with its curtains drawn came into view.

Sure enough, no one was on the bed.

Madam Mingzhu didn't think she could catch her husband cheating so easily, but she still carefully scanned the bed with her eyes.

It is indeed a bit chaotic.

That's actually within the normal range. If I had to say something, it would be that I might not sleep very soundly, and I didn't see any obvious evidence such as suspicious water stains or torn clothes.

As Madam Mingzhu was examining the bed closely, she heard a noise coming from under the bed.

Her already slightly upturned eyes suddenly became exceptionally sharp, making Madam Mingzhu exude an even stronger sense of pressure befitting her high position.

"What is that?!"

Without her permission, the palace maids who were with Lady Mingzhu immediately stepped forward, questioned her, and bent down to lift the drooping bed sheet.

No one.

A fox with a fluffy tail suddenly darted out, rolled its eyes at Madam Mingzhu, and seemed quite annoyed that someone had disturbed its sleep.

This fox...

Madam Mingzhu frowned slightly. She knew that Consort Hu kept some pets, but she hadn't expected them to be so intelligent. The way Consort Hu rolled her eyes just now had really surprised her, and she couldn't help but be drawn to them.

No, no, why bother with that fox? The important thing is to find the person!

For a moment, Madam Mingzhu’s attention was diverted, but she quickly came back to her senses and started walking toward the direction from which the faint sound of water was coming.

She was certain that Hu Meiren was in the bathhouse.

I'm just not sure if it's just one person.

"Little sister, why are you in the bath so early in the morning? I've been looking for you everywhere, I thought you'd disappeared!"

Feigning concern, she asked a question, and before the other could respond, Lady Mingzhu pushed open the partition door and stepped into the bath. While she dared to force her way in while Consort Hu was bathing, the palace maids around her dared not do the same.

They all stopped outside the door, waiting for instructions.

Upon entering the bathroom, one is immediately greeted by a wave of steam, the warmth of which caused a light sweat to break out on the back of Madam Mingzhu's neck as she rushed in.

The water was actually hot?

Could it be that they didn't suddenly hide here, but were prepared in advance?

In this era, there were no fully automatic water heaters, and the Korean royal palace was not built on a volcano or hot spring. Although the hot water in the bath was not poured in bucket by bucket, it still required a long preparation time in advance.

Boiling hot water cannot be obtained hastily.

Amidst the swirling mist, Hu Meier was seen soaking alone in the pool, her back against the smooth rocks at the edge. Her chestnut hair was pulled up high, revealing her slender, snow-white neck and rounded, fragrant shoulders.

Upon seeing someone burst in, she gasped and instinctively clutched her chest.

"It was really hot last night. I woke up covered in a light sweat and was thinking of washing myself, but I ended up neglecting my sister."

"It's very humid here, so please wait outside for a while, sister."

No substantial evidence was found, but Madam Mingzhu still showed no sign of giving up. Hearing that Consort Hu intended to turn her away, she merely smiled.

"It's alright. But why don't you have any maids to serve you, sister?"

As she spoke, Madam Mingzhu stepped closer to Hu Meier, her gaze piercing through the rising steam into the bath.

Countless petals drifted on the surface of the pool, obscuring the view of those peering down.

Under the influence of the constantly rising heat, the pool water, which should have been clear, took on a milky white hue, making it possible to see large shadows underwater.

shadow?

Chapter 22 This is trying to suffocate me.

'Could the person be hiding beneath this pool of hot water?'

This thought made Madam Mingzhu's gaze playful. She didn't rush to interrogate her directly, and even deliberately avoided the shadows shimmering on the water's surface.

His gaze casually swept across his surroundings.

With seemingly casual steps, he slowly approached Hu Meier in the bath.

Every step felt like a brutal trampling on the other person's heart.

Covering her exposed chest with her hands, Hu Meier blushed and feigned anger as she spoke to Madam Mingzhu:

"Isn't it impolite for you to barge in like this, sister?"

"Does your sister's palace lack a warm bath? Why must you take advantage of your younger sister? Aren't you afraid of angering the King?!"

Simply giving in will obviously not solve the problem.

Despite feeling guilty, Hu Meier still appeared aggressive, attempting to use the name of the King of Han to threaten Lady Mingzhu.

It's common for sisters to bathe together when they're out together.

However, there are many rules in the palace, and many things are taboo. For example, any hint of something like a fake phoenix or a false dragon will be nipped in the bud.

No matter how favored Lady Mingzhu was, she could not possibly flirt with the other concubines.

Hu Meier's timely display of sharpness was indeed effective, at least preventing Madam Mingzhu from actually stepping into the bath without being completely confident.

"You flatter me with those words."

Madam Mingzhu took a slight step to create some distance between herself and Hu Meier. Although she had no intention of actually jumping into the bath, her gaze was not honest.

"I was just envious of my sister's rosy and delicate skin."

"I'd like to know if my sister has any unique bathing secrets that allow her to have such beautiful and delicate skin."

Madam Mingzhu's words were not meant as deliberate flattery.

Perhaps it was because she was in the bath, but like a lotus emerging from the water, Hu Meier appeared even more radiant, more charming and alluring than Madam Mingzhu had ever seen, which intensified Madam Mingzhu's sense of crisis.

Ok?

Is there a blanket missing here?

While chatting casually with Hu Meier, Madam Mingzhu's gaze couldn't help but linger slightly behind Hu Meier.

She remembered that there should be a blanket by the bathtub in her palace.

This was to prevent the soles of the feet from landing directly on the cold ground when entering and leaving the bath, and also to provide a place for the palace maids who were serving nearby to kneel.

However, it seems that Hu Meier never had a blanket here, yet it doesn't quite seem like it.

The stone bricks nearby had varying shades of color, clearly indicating that something had been covering them for a long time before being moved recently.

Why put that blanket away?

Could it be that this beauty Hu's body has only just been deflowered now? How could she, like me, have remained chaste for so many years?

Some absurd things came to mind.

This is why Madam Mingzhu herself insists on doing similar things; otherwise, she would never have made such a connection.

Once this thought arises, it is difficult to suppress.

Seeing the increasingly charming and mature allure in the other woman's eyes, Madam Mingzhu felt more and more certain that her guess was reliable, and couldn't help but sniff twice.

The dampness almost completely masked all the smells.

Yet, faintly, Madam Mingzhu still caught a whiff of a very familiar scent—the smell of blood she had often encountered in her youth.

This really is...

Increasingly convinced of her suspicions, Madam Mingzhu was not in a hurry to verify her conjectures or jump into the bath to pull the person out.

Instead, it played with the mouse slowly and deliberately, like a cat playing with a mouse.

Wanting to see how flustered Hu Meier would appear, Madam Mingzhu strolled leisurely around the bath, deliberately letting her eyes reveal a hint of danger.

It swept across the water's surface slowly and deliberately.

It slowly approached the floating shadow underwater, like a sharp blade pressed against its neck, gradually pushing inward.

It was an extraordinary torment.

Noticing the direction of Madam Mingzhu's gaze, Hu Meier couldn't help but let a hint of panic flash across her eyes. Without time to think, she quickly propped herself up, scooped up a handful of scalding water from the pool, and slowly poured it over her snow-white neck.

Milky white hot water flowed down her beautiful collarbone, across her high and full breasts, and finally into the pool at her waist.

Hot spring water is so smooth it washes away the grease and grime; this is how it should be.

Even Madam Mingzhu couldn't help but be drawn to this magnificent sight, and unconsciously compared herself to the other woman.

Finally, he couldn't help but curse inwardly:

She really is a seductive vixen.

Although Hu Meier's subconscious actions seemed somewhat like an attempt to cover up her actions, they were objectively effective. As she scooped up the water, ripples spread across the previously calm bath.

As the water ripples outward, the petals floating on the surface of the bath sway and then disperse and gather again.

In an instant, the water rippled, and fallen petals gathered and scattered.

The already steaming bathtub became even more hazy and indistinct, making it impossible to tell whether a person was hiding underwater.

If she had no doubts, Madam Mingzhu might have truly been deceived.

Feeling that she had caught the mouse by the tail, she wasn't in a hurry, even though she couldn't confirm that there was someone in the bath.

He continued to slowly scan the surroundings with his gaze.

They wanted to catch a glimpse of the true face of the hazy shadows beneath the pool.