Children of Loulan

Chapter 281 Confrontation

Now, this long-cherished wish was about to become a reality, and she could not help but imagine the magnificent scene in her mind - she was wearing a dazzling phoenix robe, as dignified and elegant as a fairy, surrounded by a group of palace maids and eunuchs, who all knelt down to salute and shouted "Welcome, Queen". What a magnificent and glorious scene that would be. The concubines in the entire harem would prostrate themselves at her feet and pay homage to her. This ultimate glory intoxicated her and almost forgot all her worries and sorrows.

In the imperial study, the king was sitting steadily in front of the dragon table, the brush in his hand dancing quickly on the memorial, his expression focused and serious. Not long after, Aishan came hurriedly to report: "Your Majesty, the virtuous concubine has arrived!" The king frowned slightly, and a subtle fluctuation flashed in his eyes, but soon he regained his composure. He just nodded gently, signaling Aishan to let the virtuous concubine in. Then, the king put down the memorial in his hand, folded his hands in front of him, and quietly waited for the virtuous concubine to arrive.

The virtuous concubine walked into the imperial study with light steps, with a gentle smile on her face. She bowed slightly and said tenderly: "Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you!"

The king simply glanced at her indifferently and replied coldly: "Well, no need to be polite!" The voice was like ice, instantly making the atmosphere in the entire imperial study solemn.

When Concubine Xian heard the king's cold tone, she knew that the king was in a bad mood at the moment. She was happy in her heart, guessing that the two children must have been lost, but she pretended to know nothing. She raised her head gently, with a firm light in her eyes, and asked softly: "I wonder why the king asked me to come here?"

The king was silent for a moment, a hint of coldness flashed in his eyes, and he slowly said: "Your cousin and Madam Lan had an accident in the imperial garden yesterday. Did you know?"

When Concubine Xian heard the news, she was overwhelmed with joy. She thought to herself that she had finally waited for this day. The king must have found out that the queen was responsible, so he would take this opportunity to punish her. She would soon ascend to the throne of queen.

At this moment, her heart was like a turbulent sea, surging with endless ecstasy, but she knew very well that she could not show it at this time, so she tried her best to suppress the joy in her heart, and showed a sad expression on her face. She slowly said: "I heard about this matter, and I went to the queen's palace yesterday to visit my cousin, but the queen told me that my cousin had a miscarriage and was not suitable to see people, so I didn't see her after all."

After saying this, Concubine Xian raised her head slightly, a trace of worry flashed in her eyes, and she asked with concern: "I wonder how my cousin is doing now? Is the baby in her belly safe? I am really worried about you."

The king sat quietly at the head of the table, his eyes cold as ice. He stared at Concubine Xian closely, as if he could see through her inner thoughts. After a moment, the king spoke slowly, with a hint of chill in his voice: "Do you hope her baby is safe?"

The virtuous concubine seemed not to understand the harshness in the king's words, and quickly responded: "Of course, she is my cousin, and the child in her belly is also my child. What's more, this is her first pregnancy, and my heart is really worried. I just hope she can be safe." At this time, the virtuous concubine's expression became more and more sincere, as if she really cared about the safety of her cousin.

The king still watched Concubine Xian's performance expressionlessly, with a hint of indifference in his eyes. He sat there quietly, but he didn't want to waste too much time with Concubine Xian at this moment. So he shouted to the outside of the door, "Bring the people up!" His voice was low and powerful, as if carrying an invisible deterrent force.

After receiving the order, Aisan took action immediately. He walked into the hall with a steady pace and soon led a palace maid. The palace maid was wearing a palace maid's dress, but her hair was quite messy. She followed Aisan carefully.

After the maid entered the palace, she knelt on the ground without any hesitation. Her movements seemed natural, as if she had been waiting for this moment. The king frowned slightly and asked again: "Xianfei, do you recognize this person?"

When Concubine Xian heard the king's question, she couldn't help but feel a little puzzled. She turned her head to look at the maid, walked up to her with graceful steps, and looked at her carefully. The maid raised her head in a very cooperative manner, and greeted Concubine Xian's scrutiny with a calm look. Her eyes revealed a kind of firmness and confidence, as if to say: "No matter how you look at me, I will not back down."

Concubine Xian carefully observed the maid's face, trying to find some familiar traces. However, after a moment, she shook her head and said helplessly: "My king, I don't know this person!"

At this moment, the maid suddenly spoke, her voice was clear and pleasant, but with a hint of sarcasm: "The virtuous concubine is really forgetful, you have forgotten me so quickly!" This sentence was like a stone thrown into a calm lake, stirring up ripples. The king's eyes suddenly became sharp, and he stared at the maid, as if he wanted to see something from her eyes.

After hearing what the maid said, Concubine Xian showed a hint of displeasure on her face. She looked at the maid coldly and questioned, "I have been a concubine for several years. I have been shuttling back and forth in this huge palace. The number of maids and eunuchs I have seen is as numerous as stars. I can't even count them all. Those figures who came and went flashed before my eyes in a hurry. I have indeed completely forgotten most of them. What is so special about you that makes me remember you?"

The maid chuckled slightly, and there seemed to be a hint of cunning in her smile: "It doesn't matter if the queen doesn't remember me, but the queen should remember my family. After all, they were invited to this capital by the queen's people."

Hearing this, Concubine Xian felt as if her head was shrouded in a fog, and she became even more confused. She sneered disdainfully, with contempt in her eyes: "It's simply a big joke. I don't even recognize you in person, how can I get to know your family?"

After saying that, Concubine Xian suddenly had a strange feeling in her heart, and she always felt that something was wrong. She stared at the maid, with a hint of coldness in her eyes, and asked the maid coldly: "Who are you? How dare you talk nonsense in front of the king? What is your ulterior motive? Tell me!"

The maid was not afraid at all. Instead, she asked back, "My queen, the king is just asking if you know me. Why are you so excited? Have you really done something shameful and are you afraid that I will tell you about it?"

At this moment, the atmosphere between the two of them suddenly became tense, as if a storm was about to come, and they were like two hedgehogs standing in the center of the storm, guarding against each other, but not knowing how to resolve this sudden crisis.

The face of Concubine Xian, which was always dignified and elegant, suddenly became stern. She raised her chin slightly, a trace of disdain and anger flashed in her eyes, and she shouted sternly: "Humph, what a joke, just a little maid like you can know what I did? Well, I also want to hear what shameful things I did!"