On The Self-Cultivation Of A Favored Concubine - Chapter 7

In the courtyard of the Chenxin Palace, several tall and lush parasol trees grew, currently in the season of dense foliage and widespread shade.

Liu Qinglan was wearing a pair of evening slippers with three inch heels, adorned with gold leaves and colored clouds on the front and back. She was dressed in a long hem, wide sleeved palace gown, her waist cinched by a complex and intricate belt that wrapped around her small waist layer by layer.

Beside her, the stern faced Old Nanny Gao held a bamboo cane as she instructed, “As a woman, you must not bounce when you walk. You should move slowly, with a graceful sway. Your posture when standing should not be boneless and overly seductive, but neither should it be rigid as iron. Concubine Yue, you have never received the upbringing of a proper young lady, so you must start learning from scratch.”

The intense sun shone on Liu Qinglan’s fair face. In just a moment, fine sweat had beaded on her forehead. Yet, she couldn’t move, or Old Nanny Gao would strike her calf with the bamboo cane.

So much suffering just to be a person, Liu Qinglan sighed, her eyes eagerly glancing toward the dense shade beneath the parasol trees on the opposite side.

Just moments ago, the Empress was sitting there leisurely drinking tea, personally supervising her learning of palace rules and etiquette.

Although separated by several yards, Liu Qinglan could still feel the wisps of purple qi emanating from the Empress, like a gentle breeze, infiltrating her dantian and enriching her spiritual energy.

Liu Qinglan found joy in her suffering, staring intensely at the Empress. Then she saw the Empress’s slender jade-like hands pick up a white porcelain teacup and slowly drink. Liu Qinglan watched, her throat dry. Standing under the blazing sun for too long, she also wanted a drink of water.

So, Liu Qinglan swallowed.

Xie Xuanzhao sensed something, looked up, and met the small concubine’s ardent, eager eyes.

She looked as if she wished she could pounce and swallow her whole.

Xie Xuanzhao frowned unhappily, ignoring the sudden jump in her heart. She stood up. “Yan Mo, you stay here and supervise.”

Yan Mo quickly agreed, lowered her hands, and respectfully saw the Empress into the room.

Liu Qinglan watched with longing eyes as the great beauty disappeared from her sight, shouting internally: Don’t go, let me rub up against your spiritual energy again, meow meow meow…

But Xie Xuanzhao didn’t hear her plea, stepping into the room without looking back. The bead curtain immediately dropped, blocking Liu Qinglan’s view.

So, all that remained in the dense shade of the parasol trees was the rocking chair where Xie Xuanzhao had just rested, and the teacup and a round fan on the side table.

“Your Ladyship, please stand properly!” Old Nanny Gao’s annoying voice suddenly reminded her. Liu Qinglan snapped back to attention and quickly straightened her back again.

“Too straight. The Emperor won’t like it. A girl’s posture shouldn’t be like a soldier’s,” Old Nanny Gao said disapprovingly. “There must be softness.”

Liu Qinglan was miserable. Who knew what this old nanny’s standard was? She was clearly making things difficult!

“From now on, Your Ladyship must stand for a full half hour without making any unnecessary movements,” Old Nanny Gao was merciless.

Half an hour! Liu Qinglan glared at her resentfully.

Old Nanny Gao remained unmoved, standing in front of her and saying, “Your Ladyship, as a woman, your gaze should always be gentle and kind, and your facial expression should be restrained. You must not stare at people with wide eyes; it is very unseemly.”

Liu Qinglan continued to glare at her, widening her round, cat-like eyes even more, the black and white clearly distinct.

“If Your Ladyship insists on staring at this servant, then this servant can only cover Your Ladyship’s eyes with a cloth strip first,” Old Nanny Gao said, preparing to fetch the cloth.

Liu Qinglan instantly became timid. “I won’t stare anymore!”

“Thank you, Your Ladyship,” Old Nanny Gao uttered these four words expressionlessly.

Liu Qinglan was so angry she wanted to stomp her feet.

Half an hour was long, and Liu Qinglan knew she definitely couldn’t stand still for that long. Her eyes darted around, and she quickly came up with an idea.

She gathered her demonic power and transformed it into a wisp of qi. This wisp of qi could detach from her main body and allow her to hear everything and see everywhere. However, this wisp of qi could not travel too far from the main body, or it would quickly dissipate due to lack of demonic power to sustain it.

Fortunately, traveling throughout the Chenxin Palace was enough.

Liu Qinglan stood motionless, as if she had entered a trance. The wisp of qi that flowed out of her body happily sped toward the Empress’s sleeping chamber.

If this wisp of qi could be seen, it would look exactly like a Feifei. Liu Qinglan’s true form a raccoon like creature.

Liu Qinglan quickly saw the Empress. She chuckled to herself and eagerly landed on Xie Xuanzhao’s fragrant shoulder.

Because she was in her sleeping chamber and the weather was hot, Xie Xuanzhao had taken off her outer robe, leaving only a tube top inner garment that exposed her shoulders. Below her neck was a expanse of snowy white skin, and two mounds of white flesh were on the verge of spilling out from the edge of the tube top.

From Liu Qinglan’s vantage point, she could see almost everything!

Liu Qinglan, standing in the courtyard, involuntarily blinked. It’s too provocative!

And… Her Majesty the Empress’s… is so big and firm…

“Oh my, you little lecherous cat,” Xie Xuanzhao’s red lips suddenly cooed.

Liu Qinglan’s body stiffened. Was I discovered?

Xie Xuanzhao grasped the ball of white fluff she held in her arms, seizing the cat’s paw that had just pressed against her chest. “Xuetuan, no touching randomly.”

Liu Qinglan, preoccupied with the tantalizing sight, hadn’t realized the Empress was actually holding a real white cat in her arms.

This white cat had a pair of deep blue eyes and its fur was sleek and shiny, clearly indicating it was raised with great care. At this moment, it was brazenly lying in the great beauty’s fragrant embrace, rolling and cuddling, even using its little head to fiercely rub against the Empress’s pale, snow white wrist.

Xie Xuanzhao affectionately stroked its fur, letting it play and roll.

Liu Qinglan, standing in the courtyard, had only one thought: Meow meow, I’m so envious and jealous!

The invisible wisp of qi uncontrollably slipped down from Xie Xuanzhao’s shoulder, and then cheekily burrowed between the white cat and Xie Xuanzhao.

Finally, it forcefully squeezed the white cat away.

The white cat felt a force pushing it away, was a bit confused, and tried to get closer to its owner’s belly again.

But there was always something in the middle.

Liu Qinglan was smug. It’s a good thing you, white cat, haven’t become a spirit, otherwise I wouldn’t be able to defeat you!

The white cat sat pitifully on Xie Xuanzhao’s knee, its paws fluttering and meowing incessantly.

Xie Xuanzhao felt a cool current of air briefly wrapping around her abdomen. She looked down but didn’t see anything. Just as she was about to comfort her little pet, Yan Mo announced from outside, “Your Ladyship, Consort Yu is here.”

Xie Xuanzhao picked up the small cat from her knee and placed it on the couch, then stood up, put on her outer robe, and walked out. “Let her in.”

Liu Qinglan’s wisp of qi also began to move with her, following her all the way to the front hall.

By now, the courtyard was empty. Yan Mo had gone inside to report, and Old Nanny Gao had gone to drink water.

Liu Qinglan, standing alone, withdrew her wisp of qi. Looking left and right and seeing no one, she moved her body and quickly ran to the rocking chair where Xie Xuanzhao had just been sitting.

She sat right down, then picked up the tea Xie Xuanzhao had drunk and secretly finished the remaining tea inside.

Liu Qinglan ignored the feeling of being a small pervert, pressing her tongue against the lip print Xie Xuanzhao had left and fiercely licking the residual spiritual energy.

Only after having completely consumed all the remaining qi did Liu Qinglan reluctantly put the cup back.

Her gaze finally fell on the round fan.

Probably because Xie Xuanzhao had been keeping this fan close recently, the residual spiritual energy on it was particularly strong.

Even worse, to coax her little pet, Xie Xuanzhao had applied a catnip-based perfume to the fan.

This was a deadly temptation for Liu Qinglan as well.

Liu Qinglan’s hand uncontrollably reached for the fan. She first brought it to her nose and took a deep, intoxicated whiff, nearly passing out from pleasure.

“…”

Xie Xuanzhao, who had just stepped out, watched this scene speechless. Then her ear tips suddenly turned red. Just as she was about to speak and remind the utterly intoxicated person, she watched as the little concubine secretly like a thief tucked her beloved fan into her sleeve.

After completing everything, Liu Qinglan, believing she had done it unnoticed, carried the sleeve-full of spiritual energy and returned to her spot, resuming the standing posture neither rigid nor seductive that Old Nanny Gao required.

Her expression was calm and utterly satisfied!

Xie Xuanzhao stood rooted to the spot, her ear tips flushed red. Why… why did she steal my fan, and why did she look so flushed?

A sneaky little thing, and quite cute, too… She must really like me.

Xie Xuanzhao’s thoughts ran wild, her gaze uncontrollably drifting towards the young woman in the sunlight.

The girl’s complexion was fair and translucent, glowing white under the bright sun. Her large, pitch black eyes were full of spirit, and her expression was earnest and focused.

Beneath the palace gown were two straight, long legs.

Xie Xuanzhao sized her up and down, finally concluding she didn’t mind her stealing her possession.

In fact, if she genuinely wanted it, she could have simply asked, and she would probably have given it to her without hesitation.

As Xie Xuanzhao thought this, she walked up and stood directly in front of Liu Qinglan.

Seeing her up close, she noticed that Liu Qinglan’s snow white face was flushed a pale pink from the sun, her features were small and delicate, and the thin sweat on her fragrant cheeks subtly carried a faint herbal scent.

I wonder what this little face would taste like if I took a bite…