An Lingrong's Rebirth: Red

"Empress Zhen, I have finished reading the book today." The Fourth Prince looked up pitifully. He only wanted to see the Emperor and didn't care about Zhen Huan's mood at all.

Zhen Huan frowned in embarrassment. She had originally felt a little sympathy for the young prince, but she had not expected that he would take advantage of the situation to climb up the ladder and embarrass herself in front of everyone.

Lingrong covered her lips and smiled, the Fourth Prince was still young after all.

Although he had some cleverness, it was still not enough, otherwise he would not have lost face for Zhen Huan like this.

"So Concubine Zhen is taking the Fourth Prince to Wanfang Anhe," Ling Rong didn't want to continue talking to Zhen Huan, lest they know she was eavesdropping. "Then I won't delay you two. Concubine Xia and I have some things to do, so I won't stay with you for long."

Xia Dongchun smiled only when she heard that she could finally go fly a kite.

She raised her chin and deliberately snorted as she passed by Zhen Huan, "Zhen Changzai is in the mood to stroll around in this garden, but it's a pity that Concubine Hui is so sad that her eyes are swollen from crying."

"I waited until the end yesterday. Concubine Hui was indeed injured. She looked so pale, it was heartbreaking to look at her." Ling Rong and the other person walked very slowly just to tell Zhen Huan this.

"So what? She doesn't even have her own good sister to accompany her. What does it have to do with you?"

Ling Rong was almost amused by this. She cleared her throat and said, "Lady Hui didn't mention Concubine Zhen yesterday. I guess she was really sad."

"That's the emperor's favorite. How could Zhen Huan give up her favor and care about a sister who has no blood relationship with her?"

Xia Dongchun didn't care whether Zhen Huan heard it or not. She touched her face and pulled Ling Rong closer. "What do you think the emperor likes about her? That face isn't that pretty."

"Yes, yes, Concubine Xia is the truly beautiful one." Lingrong coaxed Xia Dongchun in a half-hearted manner. She secretly winked at Shui and told her to go and see what was going on over there with Zhen Huan.

The two of them finally reached the Back Lake. As Lingrong was feeling unwell, she called for Mingyu's help to fly the kite into the sky.

Xia Dongchun didn't want to ask others for help, so he stood on the bottom of the flower pot and ran two laps with the kite in his hand. Unfortunately, the kite still couldn't fly into the sky.

Instead, he was so tired that he was sweating all over, and could only watch Lingrong standing there flying the kite with a sullen look on his face.

Soon, Zhaoshui came back and said, "My lady, Concubine Zhen went to Wanfang Anhe on her own and did not bring the Fourth Prince with her."

"Mrs. Zhen is the smartest. She will definitely not throw away her favor for an unloved prince."

Ling Rong pulled the kite string and flew the kite higher and higher, "It's just that the estrangement between her and Concubine Hui is inevitable."

Zhaoshui's mind was on Lingrong. She was worried about the baby in the young lady's belly and her eyes were always fixed on the ground.

"I always feel that Lady Hui and the young master have become estranged."

"She and I were just friends of interest. She had a rift with Concubine Zhen, so she came to me, her "sister", to talk about her pain."

But I'm not a good person and I won't try to reconcile them.

Lingrong secretly added to her heart, I wish the two sisters would fall apart and never stand in my way again.

"Little Master..."

"Sister An, Sister Xia!" Chun Changzai ran over at some point. She also held a kite and ran excitedly to Ling Rong.

"Chun Changzai." Ling Rong was still pulling the kite string. She smiled and nodded. "Is Chun Changzai from Bitong Academy?"

"Yes, Sister An." Chun Changzai handed the kite in her hand to the maid neatly. The two of them pulled and tugged, and actually flew the kite into the sky one step earlier than Xia Dongchun.

"How is Miss Hui today?"

Chun often tilted her head, as if she was flying a kite seriously. After a while, she replied, "Cai Xing didn't let me go to see Sister Hui, saying that Sister Hui needs to rest.

Sister An, is it because I am too noisy that Sister Hui doesn't want to see me? "

"You still know how to quarrel." Xia Dongchun finally let the kite fly. She glanced at Chun Changzai, looking very annoyed. "You follow Zhen Changzai around and call her sister every day, but I never see her flying a kite with you."

"Sister Zhen has to accompany the emperor, so she doesn't have time to accompany Chun'er."

Chun Chang smiled innocently, and she didn't seem to care about Xia Dongchun's sarcasm. "Sister Xia has the time to fly kites with Sister An. I really envy her."

Chun Changzai was almost openly mocking the two of them for not favoring her anymore. Lingrong had never liked her very much in her previous life, and now she felt even more annoyed when she saw her.

"Chun Changzai is really sharp-tongued, no wonder the Emperor and Zhen Changzai like her." Lingrong used her eyes to comfort Xia Dongchun who was about to lose her temper.

"Chun Changzai, why don't you go to Wanfang Anhe now? I'm sure the emperor and Zhen Changzai are talking about you."

Chun Chang was blinking her eyes, and she stopped pulling the kite string in her hand, trying hard to think about what Ling Rong meant.

Xia Dongchun didn't know what Ling Rong was up to, so she curiously moved closer to Ling Rong and asked her in a low voice what she was talking about.

Ling Rong leaned over to Xia Dongchun's ear, cupped her hands and whispered, "Let's just watch Concubine Chun laugh together."

Xia Dongchun didn't understand what was going on. She followed Lingrong and looked up and down at Chun Changzai, then laughed along with Lingrong in a daze.

Chun Changzai was frightened by the laughter. She kept looking down to check the things on her body and asked the maid beside her to check if her makeup was smudged.

But who knew that Lingrong and Xia Dongchun just smiled, and no matter how Chun Changzai asked, Lingrong refused to speak.

"Chun Changzai will know if he goes and sees it. Why bother asking me?"

Ling Rong was indeed a little tired, so she handed the kite to Zhaoshui and sat down under the shade of a tree to enjoy the breeze.

Seeing that she couldn't get any information from him, Chun Changzai lost interest in flying the kite, so she stomped her feet, took the kite back, and ran away.

"So what did the Emperor and Zhen Huan talk about Concubine Chun?" Xia Dongchun looked curious. She held Ling Rong's hand and insisted that she finish what she was saying.

"How would I know?" Ling Rong smiled mischievously, "She mocked us, and we mocked her, so we must avenge ourselves right now."

"You are really... even more petty than me." Xia Dongchun curled her lips, "If I were higher in rank than her, I would definitely find a way to slap her twice and give her a good scolding."

"You don't have the authority to assist in managing the six palaces, so how can you discipline the concubines?" Lingrong felt frightened when she heard her say she wanted to discipline them.

This scarlet was very scary, and he didn't want to hear Xia Dongchun's screams. If he was implicated, it would be a loss.

"Look at how cowardly you are. You are now in a much higher position than Zhen Huan, yet you don't even think about taking revenge."

There is no revenge, you just don't know it.

Ling Rong coughed and pretended to be pitiful and bullied, "If Concubine Xia is willing to help me, maybe I will dare to retaliate."

"Huh? Haven't I helped you enough?!"

Xia Dongchun was almost laughing at Ling Rong's anger. She reached out and wanted to grab Ling Rong's collar to shake out all the little thoughts in her head.

"Okay, okay, I'm going to Bitong Academy to "retaliate" against Concubine Zhen. Does Concubine Xia want to come with me?"

"I won't go if it means I'm trying to please someone who doesn't like me." Xia Dongchun rolled her eyes, snorted, and ran off to fly a kite.

Ling Rong didn't care. She was there to sow discord anyway, and it would be inconvenient for Xia Dongchun to be there.

Since losing her child, Shen Meizhuang has been hiding in the Bitong Academy to recuperate. The emperor went to see her twice, but was driven out both times by Shen Meizhuang's cold face.

The emperor was not an affectionate person, and the child Shen Meizhuang was pregnant with was really an ominous sign. Even though the child was gone, the emperor did not have a good impression of Shen Meizhuang.

Who knows if she gets pregnant again in the future, will it be another child that affects her lifespan and the country's destiny?

Therefore, after the emperor demonstrated his magnanimity twice, he never went to the Bitong Academy again.

Instead, he asked Zhen Huan to accompany him every day and immersed himself in poetry and books all day long.

"Master An... our master is still not feeling well, so she can't meet guests today." Cai Xing smiled when she saw that the person coming was Ling Rong.

"Then I won't bother you any more," Zhaoshui brought deer antlers and other medicinal herbs to Lingrong, "Today I am mainly sending some nourishing herbs to Concubine Hui, Caixing, you can accept them."

Cai Xing hesitated for just a moment, but still accepted the herbs.

"Master An, wait a moment. I will ask our Master later."

Ling Rong did not refuse. She just had to wait for a while. If Shen Meiyu agreed, she would have the chance to be that close sister.

After a while, Caixing came hurriedly and invited Lingrong in.

As soon as she stepped into the inner room, Ling Rong was overwhelmed by the overwhelming smell of medicine. She stood at the door for a long time to adjust herself before stepping back in.

Shen Meizhuang was leaning back, covered with layer upon layer of thick quilts.

In this still hot weather, there was no sign of sweat on her face, as if she had really been drained by the miscarriage.

"Sister Shen..."

"Thank you, sister, for sending so many precious medicinal herbs here," Shen Meizhuang showed a relatively sincere smile on her face. She held Ling Rong's hand, "Thank you, Ling Rong, for remembering me."

"I haven't dared to come visit you these past few days, for fear that you haven't recovered yet and would be a burden to me."

"I've been taking the medicine prescribed by the imperial physician these days, and I've actually gotten much better." Shen Meizhuang sighed, and looked towards the door, "It's just that I'm sad in my heart, and I don't want to see anyone who comes."

Ling Rong remained silent. She held Shen Meizhuang's hand and listened carefully.

"The Emperor is here, the Empress is here, and even Concubine Hua sent a ginseng.

But she... just asked Liu Zhu to send some gifts, and she didn't even want to come into the Bitong Academy to see me."

Unexpectedly, without Ling Rong's instigation, Shen Meizhuang began to feel resentful.

Ling Rong hesitated whether to respond, but Shen Meizhuang continued talking to herself.

"I heard that she accompanies the emperor every day, so I guess she really doesn't have time. But if a tree stands out in the forest, the wind will destroy it. She shouldn't..."

"Sister," Ling Rong interrupted Shen Meizhuang and spoke softly, as if she was a little jealous, "In sister's eyes, I think only Zhen Changzai is a true sister."

This time it was Shen Meizhuang's turn to remain silent. She used to think that only Zhen Huan was a true sister.

However, this real sister seems to have completely changed. She murdered Lingrong in the past and was addicted to an affair with Prince Guo.

Now he is hurting me again. If it weren't for that bowl of safflower medicine, how could I have lost my child?

What’s hateful is that all the imperial doctors covered up for her and never told her the truth about the loss of her child.

If the midwife my father arranged for me had not known medical skills, I would still be kept in the dark.

Now she doesn't dare to come to Bitong Academy to visit me. It seems that the books of sages she read still have some effect and she knows what guilt is.

"Sister Shen?" Ling Rong was left aside by Shen Meizhuang for a while. She waved her hand impatiently, trying to draw Shen Meizhuang's attention back.

"Lingrong... I also regard you as a sister. Although we met after entering the palace, it has been a year now."

"Sister, you are comforting me now," Lingrong tactfully withdrew and sat aside when she saw Caixing bringing medicine to Shen Meizhuang, "I know that you and Zhen Changzai have known each other since childhood, and your relationship is so good that you even use a hairpin.

And I, in no way, can compare to that.”

Hearing that Ling Rong believed so much in her relationship with Zhen Huan, Shen Meizhuang felt a little uncomfortable.

She took the bitter medicine and drank it all in one gulp without even frowning.

Caixing originally offered some plums to suppress the bitterness, but was pushed away by Shen Meizhuang.

She wanted to say that she and Zhen Huan could no longer be sisters, but when she thought that Ling Rong was just a concubine she knew in the palace, she swallowed back these heartfelt words.

"You and she may be different, but I treat you equally."

"Okay, since I know Sister Shen is the most gentle, I will just be at ease being her younger sister.

It’s just that Zhen Changzai and I… put Sister between us, and she’s caught in a dilemma.”

Only then did Shen Meizhuang suddenly remember that Lingrong, like herself, had lost her child because of Zhen Huan.

But she didn't understand. There was no deep friendship between Zhen Huan and Ling Rong, so it was understandable that Zhen Huan harmed Ling Rong.

I have been friends with her for many years, so how could she be so cruel as to attack her good sister?

"Lingrong, do you...hate her?"

Lingrong smiled slightly. She raised her hand and covered her mouth with the fan, leaving only a pair of eyes exposed, looking coldly at Shen Meizhuang.

"What about Sister Shen, do you hate her?"

Lingrong did not get an answer from Shen Meizhuang. When she and Zhaoshui walked out of Bitong Academy, Shen Meizhuang was still sitting on the couch in a daze, motionless like a puppet.

It seemed that Ling Rong's question was too profound, and she needed to think about it all night before she could figure it out.

But Shen Meizhuang didn't have time to think about whether she should hate Zhen Huan.

Because that night the Emperor issued an order to return to the palace at noon the next day. Everyone received a notice to pack their bags, except Shen Meizhuang.

Shen Meizhuang was deliberately left in the Old Summer Palace by the Emperor.