Changsheng: Peak at the Beginning

When Concubine Wan saw Shen Meizhuang, who was wearing a coarse linen dress and had only two silver hairpins on her head, she couldn't help but burst into tears. She stepped forward and tightly held Shen Meizhuang's hands, which had turned black and a little rough. She only shouted "Sister Mei" and her throat was blocked and she couldn't utter a word.

Lady An was also shocked to see Shen Meizhuang in such a miserable state. She walked forward and just called out "Sister Shen" and then was speechless.

This cold palace was originally just an ordinary remote palace. According to everyone's consensus, a place where the emperor's grace has not been there for a long time would be as cold as ice, so the original name of this palace has been forgotten and it is only called the cold palace.

But there were not many people here. As one of the few normal people, Shen Meizhuang was temporarily settled in the east hall after she came in. Later, because there was a crazy concubine abandoned by the previous emperor who was causing trouble all the time in front of her, she simply moved to the quiet back hall to live. Then she and Caiyue, the master and servant, really had a lot more peace and quiet. Now, the crazy Fei would not come to the back hall to cause trouble.

Although Shen Meizhuang was in the cold palace, she was not completely ignorant of what was happening outside. As long as she wanted to find out, she only had to spend some money or give two handkerchiefs to the housekeeper, and she could get a lot of information.

So she knew that Concubine Wan missed the canonization ceremony because she was disrespectful to Empress Chunyuan, and was later demoted to a concubine because of the fall of the Zhen family. Then, she regained favor because of a stunning dance and became Concubine Wan again.

In her opinion, Concubine Wan's journey has been worthy of the words "ups and downs", while Concubine An's promotion along the way was much smoother and more stable.

But she could also see clearly that Concubine An must have developed a grudge against Concubine Wan, but she didn't know why Concubine Wan had dragged her to the cold palace today.

It was not sunny outside, and there happened to be a four-corner pavilion in the back hall, which was dilapidated but had been cleaned up by Shen Meizhuang and Caiyue. Shen Meizhuang invited Concubine Wan and Concubine An to talk in the pavilion.

Caiyue came over with a pot of water filled with mint that grew freely in the flower beds of the cold palace. Caiyue knew that Concubine Wan and Concubine An were honored guests, so she added the little honey they had into the water so as not to make Shen Meizhuang rude.

After taking a sip, Concubine Wan praised the mint honey water highly. Concubine An was not like Concubine Wan who could recite a few lines of poetry, but she also felt that the mint honey water was sweet and delicious and very thirst-quenching. After the conversation about tea was over, Concubine Wan apologized to Shen Meiyu.

"Sister Mei, it's not that I'm ungrateful and betrayed the sisterhood between you and me. It's just that my life has not been easy since Sister Mei came here. Now my parents and two sisters are exiled to the northwest, which happens to be under the jurisdiction of Nian Gengyao's former subordinates. I am worried every day and forgot about you. This is indeed my fault."

Shen Meizhuang had of course resented Wan Guiren at first, but now that she had come to visit her, how could she turn her face away? She could only say that she didn't blame them and that she understood them, and she also had to pretend that she was worried about Zhen Yuandao and his wife, and the sisters Zhen Yurao and Zhen Yuyin.

Shen Meizhuang and Wan Guiren were both respectable people, and the upbringing they received was the most in line with the requirements of this society. As for An Guiren, when she was at home, she was always worried about her livelihood, and only learned some perfume making and embroidery by her talent, which could not be considered upbringing. But she developed a sensitive and delicate mind, and it was obvious at a glance that the relationship between Shen Meizhuang and Wan Guiren was not as close as they appeared.

Wan Guiren wanted to stir up Shen Meizhuang's hatred towards Concubine Nian, so she pretended to sigh unintentionally: "Even if Concubine Nian no longer has Nian Gengyao, the Nian family is still an official in the previous dynasty, and Concubine Nian has not been deducted from her food and clothing. It's a pity that Sister Mei was implicated by Concubine Nian and ended up in this cold palace. It's really true that good people don't get good rewards, and that evil person has to cause harm for a thousand years!"

Of course Shen Meizhuang still hated Concubine Nian, but after entering the cold palace and experiencing some setbacks, she felt that her mind had improved a lot. In particular, the nanny in charge of the cold palace was not an ordinary person. After learning that Shen Meizhuang was not smart, she also gave her advice openly and secretly. So even though Shen Meizhuang is still aloof, at least she is not the kind of person who would say "why not eat meat porridge?"

So Shen Meizhuang was not angry when she heard what Wan Guiren said, but she just said with a little loneliness: "Huan'er, please don't say that. Concubine Nian was able to keep her position as a concubine even after Nian Gengyao fell, relying on the relationship between her and the emperor over the years, and the prince who was killed because of a conspiracy. And what do I have? Falling into the water was a conspiracy, and getting pregnant was a conspiracy. In front of the emperor, I don't have any bargaining chips at all..."

Seeing Shen Meizhuang being so negative, Wan Guiren was a little anxious. She didn't expect Shen Meizhuang to think like this. She had blamed the emperor in the past and thought that the emperor was a heartless man. So she quickly refuted Shen Meizhuang and said, "Sister Mei, are you willing to be tortured like this? Do you want to see Concubine Nian walk out of Yikun Palace one day?"

Shen Meizhuang finally understood that Concubine Wan wanted to use her to deal with Concubine Nian, but she was now in the cold palace and had to plan even for her three meals a day. How could she muster the interest to make any plans?

"I am already like this now, Huan'er, you should take this as a warning. The feelings between Concubine Nian and the emperor have not been completely squandered, and the emperor still feels guilty about her. So if you want to strike Concubine Nian, you can only wait until Concubine Nian has completely worn out the emperor's old feelings."

After saying that, Shen Meizhuang held the chipped cup and drank the mint water in it. She was really grateful to An Guiren. "Thank you Lingrong for coming to see me today. I really didn't pay enough attention to you in the past. Now that you can come to this cold palace, I am grateful. But don't come here in the future, and don't send anything, lest you ruin your bright future because of me, an abandoned concubine."

An Guiren could tell that Shen Meizhuang was sincere in what she said. She always returned favors, so she advised Shen Meizhuang: "Sister, your talent is not inferior to anyone in the harem. Why can't you forgive the emperor for his coldness that day?"

Shen Meizhuang just felt a little embarrassed. She had realized that her perception of herself was wrong. She entered the palace to be a concubine, and her family did not ask for her support. They only asked her to take care of herself in the palace and not to bring trouble to the family. They did not ask for more.

But she boasted that her talents were no less than those of men, and she had been raised as the principal wife since childhood, so she thought that she entered the palace to be the queen. She behaved more dignified and generous than the queen, so it was no wonder that Concubine Nian couldn't stand it.

Originally, she had never thought of all this, but after arriving at the cold palace, the housekeeper saw that she was acting so noble that she would not go along with the corrupt practices of others, so she scolded her severely. This finally made her realize her situation in the harem, so she somewhat regretted some of her actions that day, and was even more worried about the resentful words she had said to the emperor.