I Quit Being This Female Lead (GL) - Chapter 24

Mangkai had never felt that one month could be such a long period of time.

The next morning, Mangkai woke up from the warm blankets.

She had originally thought winter in ancient times would be very cold, but when Mangkai awoke, she only felt warm, as if the temperature had suddenly risen again.

Slowly opening her eyes, what came into view were the simple bed curtains. Although she had been banished to the Cold Palace, the Empress’s standard of living was still quite good. Mangkai lazily stretched inside the covers, rolling over to sit up on the bed.

“Hah…”

Mangkai rubbed her eyes while yawning.

“Your Highness, are you awake?”

Suddenly, Mangkai heard someone speaking outside the bed curtains. The voice sounded older; it wasn’t Xiao Lu.

“Yes, what is it?”

Mangkai smoothed her long hair, asking nervously, “So early in the morning, is something the matter?”

“Nothing is wrong,” the older woman outside the curtains said. “If Your Highness the Empress is awake, please wash up. Consort Chun will be coming to pay her respects shortly.”

Consort Chun?

Mangkai thought for a moment, but couldn’t recall who this person was.

However, getting up to brush her teeth and wash her face was necessary. Even if this person weren’t coming, she still had to get up.

Two maids assisted Mangkai in washing up and dressing. Xiao Lu stood by, laughing happily as she watched Mangkai being dressed beautifully.

“Your Highness is so beautiful.” Xiao Lu flattered her. “Our Empress is truly the prettiest woman in the palace~”

Mangkai looked at herself in the bronze mirror, inspecting her reflection.

Mangkai knew that her own appearance in reality was only average. If she had to say, she was merely delicate and cute. However, the appearance of the person in the book was vastly different from her own.

The person in the mirror had delicate features, bright eyes, and white teeth. Blue silk was entwined with a gold hairpin. Although not as extravagantly wealthy as imagined, she was indeed captivatingly beautiful.

Is this the face of the Mother of the Nation?

Mangkai poked her own cheek with her finger; it was soft and smooth.

Xiao Lu placed the last pendulum hairpin into Mangkai’s hair and said contentedly, “Since our Empress is so beautiful, that Consort Chun will definitely feel ashamed when she comes!”

The few palace maids nearby couldn’t help but laugh. “That’s right. Your Highness is naturally beautiful and gorgeous. How could that Consort Chun ever compare?”

“Exactly. She is merely a dancer. In terms of background and talent, she is only fit to carry Your Highness’s shoes.”

“Right, right, right. She is the wicked monster who brings disaster to the country, as described in the play. Our Empress is the Bodhisattva who saves us from suffering.”

After listening for a while, Mangkai couldn’t help but ask, “Who is Consort Chun?”

Everyone: “…”

Mangkai: “…”

Did I say something wrong again?

But she genuinely couldn’t remember who Consort Chun was.

Xiao Lu remained silent for a while, then sighed faintly and said, “Your Highness, I know you don’t like us to mention Consort Chun. She formally completed the rites with His Majesty yesterday. You must be very sad.”

Mangkai: “…”

I’m not sad. I don’t even know who these two people are.

“Your Highness, Consort Chun is just good-looking, with a seductively wicked appearance. You mustn’t let her upset you and ruin your health.”

“Yes, yes, yes. Your Highness is the Empress. His Majesty won’t let you stay in the Cold Palace forever.”

Mangkai sat at the dressing table, listening to the three palace maids chirping and cursing ‘Consort Chun’ around her ears. She couldn’t help but sigh that, no matter the dynasty, women cursing someone always managed to resonate strongly.

“Your Highness the Empress.”

Just then, a person dressed in eunuch attire stood at the door and spoke to the people inside. “Consort Chun, she…”

Xiao Lu snorted. “She finally came. Let her wait in the courtyard first. Our Empress just woke up and is still washing. It will take at least an hour.”

Mangkai glanced at herself in the bronze mirror. Isn’t everything done now?

The eunuch knelt on the ground and stammered timidly for a long time before saying, “That… Your Highness the Empress, Consort Chun went to sleep very late last night. She is still asleep this morning and temporarily… temporarily…”

Xiao Lu glared. “Temporarily what?”

“Temporarily won’t be coming to pay her respects.”

“How dare you!”

Xiao Lu was furious and yelled at the eunuch at the door. “She won’t come to pay respects to the Empress? What does this mean? Is she looking down on our Empress!”

The eunuch was terrified and trembling. He was just a messenger eunuch. He quickly kowtowed, crying, “This servant wouldn’t dare, wouldn’t dare! It’s just that Her Majesty the Female Emperor stayed in the Palace of the Emerald Phoenix all night and didn’t return, so she hasn’t gotten up yet. She truly isn’t intentionally skipping paying respects. Please forgive Your Highness the Empress!!!”

After saying this, he started repeatedly kowtowing again.

Xiao Lu heard this, her face turning red with anger. “She, she shameless woman…!!!”

Mangkai listened to the explanation and wasn’t angry at all. Since the person wasn’t coming, she could enjoy some peace and quiet. She reached out and held Xiao Lu’s hand. “Alright, don’t be so angry.”

Then, Mangkai stood up and walked to the door, saying to the eunuch still kneeling on the ground, “Go back and pass on the message. Just say I understand, and tell Consort Chun to come pay her respects when she has time.”

“Yes, thank you for your great generosity, Your Highness!”

“Your Highness!”

Watching the little eunuch dash away, Xiao Lu was terribly upset. She stamped her foot and said, “Why didn’t you make that Consort Chun come and pay her respects? You are the Empress! What is she, anyway!”

Mangkai consoled her. “Isn’t she taking advantage of the Female Emperor’s favor right now? Even if we made her come, she wouldn’t. Why bother making yourself unhappy?”

“But…”

“Enough,” Mangkai put on the posture of teaching a child and said to Xiao Lu, “The Empress is hungry now. Hurry up and prepare breakfast for me.”

Xiao Lu, who was still angry, froze when she heard ‘breakfast.’ “Breakfast? What is that?”

“Hmm…” Mangkai blinked and smiled. “It means zao dian (early meal). Hurry up and prepare it. I’m hungry.”

“Oh, alright, Your Highness.” Xiao Lu realized what she meant and said, “It’s already prepared. Please follow me.”

After eating breakfast, Mangkai strolled around the courtyard.

There wasn’t much to see in the Cold Palace. Mangkai pondered the previous plot. It seemed the original female lead’s father was framed for treason and the entire family was executed, but the Female Emperor, remembering their eight years of affection, only banished the Empress to the Cold Palace.

Later, the modern secret agent female lead accidentally transmigrated here after falling from a building in reality and took over the Empress’s body.

It feels like a pretty ordinary plot.

Mangkai carefully thought it over, then reached out and tested her strength. Since she was a secret agent, she must be very strong, right?

Thinking this, Mangkai turned to look at the peeling wall of the Cold Palace.

The few palace maids following Mangkai watched as she walked straight to the wall, all wondering what she intended to do.

But before they could react, they saw Mangkai raise her fist and punch the wall directly.

Mangkai used all her strength in that punch. All they heard was a cry of pain as Mangkai clutched her hand and screamed, staggering back two steps before falling onto the ground.

“Your Highness!”

“Your Highness!!!”

“Oh heavens, someone come quickly! Her Highness has lost her mind!!!”

Mangkai cried and wailed while clutching her hand. “Why is this wall so hard! My hand hurts so much, wuwuwuwu, it hurts so much, wuwuwuwu…”

In less than the time it takes an incense stick to burn, Xun Fangwen, who was handling state affairs in the Golden Hall, saw her personal attendant approach.

“Your Majesty.”

The attendant bowed to Xun Fangwen, then stood up and said, “I just heard that Her Highness the Empress, in the Cold Palace, has lost her mind and…”

She paused, unable to find a suitably elegant word to describe the image of the Empress punching the wall. After struggling for a long moment, she said, “Her Highness the Empress injured herself in the Cold Palace. It seems she is not in a good mood.”

Xun Fangwen, writing neat simplified characters with her self-designed fountain brush, supported her head and said calmly, “How is the person?”

“The Imperial Physician has gone over. It is said to be only a slight bruise, nothing serious.”

“Oh.”

Xun Fangwen said without looking up, “From now on, you don’t need to report such insignificant matters to me. Only tell me when the person is close to death.”

The attendant looked at Xun Fangwen’s heroic but indifferent expression, and finally sighed and withdrew.

Indeed, nothing is colder than the home of an Emperor…