Chapter 25 The Imperial Concubine Hosts a Banquet with Hidden Murderous Intent, Intending to Use Her Poetic Talent to Humiliate the Eunuch

"As for you..." she said coldly. "One hundred strokes of the cane, one year of salary forfeited, three months of confinement. Get back to your quarters and reflect on your actions!"

"Th-thank you, Your Highness, for sparing my life." Head Eunuch Wang Defu, as if granted amnesty, scrambled away from the bedchamber.

The storm had passed.

Emperor Liu Sheng stood to the side, not saying a word from beginning to end.

Yet, inside, he was so frustrated he felt like vomiting blood.

[Ding! Crisis resolved by others, mission failed, reward cancelled.]

Thirty years of Martial Arts Cultivation, just like that, gone.

He looked at Xiao Cui, who was kneeling on the ground, trembling with lingering fear, and felt a surge of anger.

Meddlesome girl.

If you hadn't jumped out, those thirty years of Martial Arts Cultivation would have been mine already.

He secretly swore to himself.

I've noted this debt.

Xiao Cui, just you wait. Sooner or later, I will make you properly "compensate" me for the thirty years of Martial Arts Cultivation I lost.

As for how you'll compensate me...

The corners of Emperor Liu Sheng's mouth curled into a malicious smile.

...

News of Head Eunuch Wang Defu losing power at Cining Palace spread through the entire inner palace as if it had grown wings.

Inside Changchun Palace.

Imperial Noble Consort Su Waner listened to the report from her trusted eunuch, her stunningly beautiful face clouded with gloom.

"What did you say?"

She slammed her teacup onto the table with a sharp "bang."

"That old thing, Head Eunuch Wang Defu, not only failed to topple that slave named Emperor Liu Sheng, but actually ended up ruining himself instead?"

"Y-yes, Your Highness," the eunuch replied, trembling. "Now, the entire Cining Palace has practically become the domain of Emperor Liu Sheng. I hear the Empress Dowager trusts him implicitly and follows his every word—she's even closer to him than to her own son."

Imperial Noble Consort Su Waner's brows locked tightly together.

She had assumed Emperor Liu Sheng was just a small fry who had gotten lucky and caught the Empress Dowager's eye.

But now it seemed things were far from simple.

Even an old fox like Head Eunuch Wang Defu, who had been steeped in palace life for decades, had suffered such a huge loss at his hands.

This Emperor Liu Sheng was definitely no ordinary man.

A strong sense of crisis surged into Imperial Noble Consort Su Waner's heart.

She knew very well that the Empress Dowager had always been dissatisfied with her and the Emperor, while deeply missing her own son, Prince Yan, who held heavy military power.

Now, the Empress Dowager suddenly had such a capable right-hand man by her side, one with heaven-reaching means and her deep trust.

Would she... use this Emperor Liu Sheng to cultivate power in the palace, support Prince Yan, and shake her and the Emperor's position?

Once this thought emerged, it made Imperial Noble Consort Su Waner restless.

No.

This must not be allowed to happen.

She had to think of a way to suppress Emperor Liu Sheng's arrogance and also give the Empress Dowager a warning.

But what method should she use?

A hard approach would definitely not work. Emperor Liu Sheng was currently the Empress Dowager's favorite, and touching him would be a slap in the Empress Dowager's face.

Imperial Noble Consort Su Waner paced back and forth in the hall, tapping her forehead with her fingers, contemplating a strategy.

Suddenly, her eyes lit up; a sinister plan surfaced in her mind.

She instructed the palace maid beside her.

"Go, relay my decree."

"Three days from now, I will host a flower viewing banquet in the Imperial Garden and invite all the ranked concubines of the inner palace. Also, draft an invitation and personally deliver it to Cining Palace, respectfully requesting the Empress Dowager's presence."

The palace maid was somewhat confused. "Your Highness, what is this..."

Imperial Noble Consort Su Waner's lips curled into a cold smile.

"I just want to use this opportunity to make that ignorant slave make a complete fool of himself in front of everyone."

She looked at the maid, her eyes flashing with calculated light.

"Go and find out more about that Emperor Liu Sheng's background."

"Replying to Your Highness, I heard he was transferred from the Cold Palace. He was previously a low-level servant who didn't know a single character."

"Good, very good."

The smile on Imperial Noble Consort Su Waner's face grew wider.

A crude, lowly slave dares to jump around in front of her?

She had already thought it through.

At the flower viewing banquet, she would force Emperor Liu Sheng to compose a poem in front of everyone.

She bet that a eunuch, and one from a crude servant background at that, couldn't possibly have any ink in his belly.

When the time came, he would inevitably be awkward and reveal his ugliness.

The Empress Dowager would lose face and naturally grow suspicious of him.

She would then take the opportunity to attack, using "offending the imperial presence and ruining the elegant atmosphere" as an excuse to have him beaten, crushing his arrogance.

Killing two birds with one stone.

Imperial Noble Consort Su Waner's plan seemed brilliant, as if she could already see Emperor Liu Sheng kneeling on the ground, begging for mercy in his pathetic state.

...

Three days later, in the Imperial Garden.

Flowers were in full bloom, competing in beauty.

The concubines of the inner palace, all dressed in their finest, gathered together.

The Empress Dowager, accompanied by Emperor Liu Sheng and Qin Shuang, arrived fashionably late.

Imperial Noble Consort Su Waner immediately approached with a face full of smiles.

"This concubine welcomes the Empress Dowager."

After exchanging a few polite pleasantries, her gaze fell upon Emperor Liu Sheng, a flash of imperceptible contempt crossing her eyes.

The banquet began with music and dance.

After three rounds of drinks, Imperial Noble Consort Su Waner picked up her wine cup and stood up.

"Mother Empress, today the peonies in the garden are in full bloom, truly a time when 'the blooming season moves the capital.' In such beautiful scenery, would it not be a pity if there were no poetry to enhance the mood?"

She looked at Emperor Liu Sheng and said with a beaming smile.

"I hear that Chief Steward Liu is quick-witted and deeply favored by Mother Empress. Why not ask Chief Steward Liu to improvise a poem for this garden full of spring scenery? It would allow us sisters to witness Chief Steward Liu's talent. What do you think?"

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone's gaze turned toward Emperor Liu Sheng.

It was here.

Emperor Liu Sheng sneered in his heart.

Did she really think such a small trick could make him look bad?

...

After Imperial Noble Consort Su Waner's voice fell, the Imperial Garden instantly plunged into a strange silence.

All the concubines' gazes were focused on Emperor Liu Sheng, their eyes filled with playfulness and schadenfreude, waiting to see a show.

Making a eunuch compose a poem in public?

Imperial Noble Consort Su Waner's move was truly vicious.

Everyone knew that most eunuchs in the palace came from poor families and struggled just to survive; they had no opportunity to read or write.

Let alone compose poetry.

This was clearly intended to make him embarrass himself in public and use the opportunity to humiliate the Empress Dowager behind him.

The Empress Dowager's expression, as expected, darkened.

She hadn't expected Imperial Noble Consort Su Waner to pull such a stunt, and while she was secretly annoyed, she couldn't lash out on the spot.

She looked at Emperor Liu Sheng with some concern.

Emperor Liu Sheng, however, remained as calm and composed as ever.

Meeting everyone's gaze, he showed not a shred of embarrassment. Instead, he bowed to Imperial Noble Consort Su Waner, neither servile nor overbearing.

"I am honored by Imperial Noble Consort Su Waner's praise."

"This servant comes from a crude background and is indeed unversed in literature. However, serving the Empress Dowager daily, I have heard much and occasionally stumbled upon a few clumsy lines. I fear they are unworthy of such an elegant setting and might offend the ears of you ladies."

His words were humble yet flawless, lowering his own stance first.

Imperial Noble Consort Su Waner sneered inwardly, assuming he was just finding a way to back down.

"Chief Steward Liu is too modest." She pressed on, giving Emperor Liu Sheng no room to retreat. "Any talent that Mother Empress appreciates must be excellent. Do not decline further."

"Since that is the case, this servant will make a fool of himself."

Emperor Liu Sheng smiled and did not decline again.

He turned around, casting his gaze toward the peonies in the garden that were in full bloom.

He stood with his hands behind his back, his tall, straight figure amidst the flowers possessing a certain dashing, elegant air.

At this moment, the eunuch's robes he wore seemed less glaring.

Many of the young concubines present, looking at his handsome profile and tall figure, couldn't help but feel a secret pity.

Such a good appearance, why must he be a eunuch?

Just as everyone was lost in their own thoughts, Emperor Liu Sheng's clear voice slowly resonated in the Imperial Garden.

"The peonies before the courtyard are flashy but lack character; the lotuses on the pond are pure but lack sentiment."

As the first line of the poem was spoken, the garden, which had been somewhat noisy, instantly fell silent.

The few concubines who understood poetry showed expressions of surprise in their eyes.

This line was a good opening.

Using the flamboyance of the peony and the purity of the lotus for contrast, it highlighted the uniqueness of the peony, a truly extraordinary concept.

Imperial Noble Consort Su Waner's brows also furrowed slightly.

Emperor Liu Sheng did not pause; his voice rose slightly as he continued to recite.

"Only the peony is truly the beauty of the nation; when it blooms, it moves the entire capital."

Boom!

These last two earth-shattering lines were like a thunderclap, exploding in everyone's minds.

"Only the peony is truly the beauty of the nation; when it blooms, it moves the entire capital!"

What spirit! What artistic conception!

It vividly depicted the peony's regal, luxurious aura, crowning it as the king of all flowers.

In the Imperial Garden, there was not a sound.

Everyone was stunned by this poem.

They looked at Emperor Liu Sheng, their eyes filled with disbelief.

This... was this really a poem that an uneducated, crude eunuch could compose?

Imperial Noble Consort Su Waner's face was now ugly to the extreme.

The smile on her face froze completely, as if she had been slapped hard across the face, stinging with pain.

She had intended to make Emperor Liu Sheng embarrass himself, but instead, she had given him the opportunity to shine brilliantly and steal the spotlight.

Trying to steal a chicken only to lose the rice!

Just in this dead silence, a voice as crisp as an oriole leaving the valley, carrying a hint of irrepressible excitement, broke the silence.

"What a 'Only the peony is truly the beauty of the nation; when it blooms, it moves the entire capital'!"

Everyone looked towards the source of the sound and saw a young woman dressed in pale purple palace attire, with an orchid-like temperament, slowly standing up in a nearby pavilion.

She was about seventeen or eighteen years old, stunningly beautiful, with an inherent air of nobility and scholarly elegance between her brows.

She was the late Emperor's most beloved daughter, the current Emperor's own younger sister—Eldest Princess Zhao Linger.

Eldest Princess Zhao Linger was an avid lover of poetry and a famous talented woman in the capital.

Hearing such a masterpiece today, she couldn't resist the itch to comment and, forgetting the occasion, couldn't help but call out in praise.

Her bright eyes were currently fixed on Emperor Liu Sheng without blinking, filled with sparkling interest, curiosity, and appreciation.

Who was this young eunuch?

To have such earth-shattering talent.

And, he looked... very good too.

Eldest Princess Zhao Linger's heart skipped a beat for no reason, and a faint blush flew across her fair cheeks.

Emperor Liu Sheng also noticed the Eldest Princess's gaze.

He nodded slightly in the direction of Eldest Princess Zhao Linger, acknowledging her.

Then, he turned back to the livid Imperial Noble Consort Su Waner, a perfectly appropriate, honest smile hanging on his face.

"Imperial Noble Consort, are these few clumsy lines of mine worthy of your eyes?"

Imperial Noble Consort Su Waner looked at his "innocent" expression and was so angry she almost bit her teeth into pieces.

But she couldn't lash out, and could only squeeze a few words through her teeth.

"Chief Steward Liu... such talent."