The Dog Emperor Has Gained Telepathy - Chapter 03 【3】

Chapter 03 【3】

【3】

“I’m attending the emperor at bedtime?!
In the bathtub, Lu Zhiwan stood up in shock.

The sudden exposure of her snow-white body made Xia He blush instantly.

Her mistress was already enchantingly beautiful, with skin as fair and smooth as condensed milk, fine-textured and perfectly proportioned. Never mind His Majesty, a vigorous young man—even she, a woman, couldn’t tear her eyes away.

With such looks and figure, she was sure to capture the emperor’s heart tonight! There was hope for their Liuxia Pavilion’s future at last!

“Didn’t you always say, mistress, that good fortune lies within bad, and bad fortune lurks within good? Our Liuxia Pavilion’s luck has finally turned!” Xia He looked at the woman in the bathtub with hopeful anticipation. “Please get dressed quickly, mistress. This servant will do your makeup and ensure you look stunningly beautiful, making His Majesty unable to forget you at first sight.
Lu Zhiwan twitched her lips. Who needed makeup to be memorable? An imperial consort who knocked him into the river during their first meeting would be hard to forget anyway.

But what was that man playing at? Just this afternoon he’d acted like “let bygones be bygones,” and now, mere hours later, he suddenly summoned her to attend him at bedtime?

Besides, wasn’t he known for keeping women at arm’s length? When she tried to help him up earlier, he looked disgusted. So what kind of bedtime attendance was this?

Could it be that after returning, he grew angrier the more he thought about it and wanted to settle scores? She knew it—this palace that devoured people had no good souls!

On this side, Lu Zhiwan felt anxious and uneasy about the impending bedtime attendance.

Meanwhile, news that the emperor had summoned Lu of Liuxia Pavilion to attend him spread like wildfire through all six eastern and western palaces.

Consort Hu and Beauty Zhao, who shared residence in Changchun Palace, both thought they must be hearing things when they received the news.

“His Majesty summoned Lu Zhiwan? That Lu Zhiwan from Liuxia Pavilion?” Consort Hu found it hard to believe. “How would His Majesty even know someone like her exists?
“She’s nothing but a sly fox who’s good at playing pitiful! She probably caught His Majesty’s attention by pretending to be sick after falling into the water!
Beauty Zhao gripped the arms of her elmwood chair—lacquered red and inlaid with gold-wrapped rattan—so tightly that her sharp, manicured nails dug deep marks into the wood. “Sister Hu, do you think her sudden outing this afternoon might have been to seduce His Majesty?
Consort Hu furrowed her willow-leaf eyebrows, murmuring softly, “No wonder she wasn’t as deferential as usual when speaking with us today… So she went to seduce His Majesty after all…
The more she thought about it, the more convinced she became that something must have happened during the afternoon that they didn’t know about.

After pondering a moment, she ordered a palace maid: “Go investigate where Lu Zhiwan went during the daytime.
At the same time, in the brightly lit Yonghe Palace, Gu Guifei—holding the highest rank in the rear palace—also summoned her trusted eunuch with a darkened expression: “Go to the Hall of Mental Cultivation and find out where His Majesty went today.
The trusted eunuch acknowledged and withdrew. Suyi, the senior palace maid at her side, stepped forward to massage Gu Guifei’s shoulders. “Please calm your anger, Your Highness. That Lu woman is merely a newly arrived junior consort, and her father is just a minor county magistrate under Yuezhou Prefecture. She won’t amount to anything.
“She may be a minor consort now, but after tonight, that might change.
Clad in a lake-blue satin robe embroidered with peacocks, Gu Guifei reclined on her daybed, her delicate fingers clutching a string of vibrant red coral beads. Her beautiful face was clouded with frost. “This Lu woman certainly has remarkable skills. She fell into the water just days ago and hasn’t fully recovered, yet she quietly caught my imperial cousin’s eye… I knew I shouldn’t have meddled last time. I should have let her drown and be done with it.
“You are too kind-hearted, Your Highness.” The maid in plain clothes continued massaging her shoulders: “On the day of the palace selection, you should have dismissed her from the palace.
“Do you think I didn’t want to?” Consort Gu snorted: “But my aunt was right beside me that day, praising this Lu woman for her beauty and gentle disposition. If I had dismissed her, wouldn’t I be opposing my aunt and appearing narrow-minded and intolerant?
Moreover, she never expected that her cousin the emperor, who usually kept his distance from others, would ever summon a consort to his bedchamber!

She and her cousin had grown up together and she had been in the palace for two years, yet she never had the chance to share his bed. How could Lu Zhiwan, who had only been in the palace for three months, deserve this?

**

Lu Zhiwan also wanted to know how this rare opportunity had fallen upon her.

By the time the spacious Sedan Chair stopped before the Hall of Mental Cultivation, night had completely fallen. A bright moon enveloped the Forbidden City, making this majestic imperial city appear even more solemn and stern in the quiet night.

“Lady Lu, this way please.
Chief Eunuch Yu Mingjiang led the way ahead. Nearly forty years old, he had cared for and accompanied the emperor since his infancy. Though they were master and servant, their bond surpassed that relationship—the emperor affectionately called him “old companion,” earning him great respect within the inner court.

Now that he personally welcomed Lu Zhiwan and respectfully guided her, it drew sidelong glances from the guards and palace servants at the Hall of Mental Cultivation’s entrance.

Lu Zhiwan felt uncomfortable under the gazes coming from all directions. Her slender fingers clutched the edge of her pink grapevine-patterned outer robe as she feigned composure, following Chief Eunuch Yu into the hall.

Her mind was in turmoil, and she didn’t dare look around. After what felt like an eternity, Chief Eunuch Yu’s slightly thin voice came from ahead: “Lady Lu, please wait here. His Majesty will come after finishing his work.
Only then did Lu Zhiwan look up and gaze forward.

The bedchamber before her was magnificent and splendid, adorned with brocade curtains and brilliant lanterns. Directly ahead was the dragon bed draped with layers of bright yellow curtains—its length and width seemingly larger than her entire bedchamber at Liuxia Pavilion.

The Son of Heaven’s residence was truly extraordinary.

As she marveled, she felt a scrutinizing gaze upon her face. Collecting herself, she saw the clean-shaven Chief Eunuch Yu looking at her with a faint smile: “If you have no other instructions, my lady, this old servant will take his leave.
Lu Zhiwan paused for a moment, forcing a polite smile: “Thank you for guiding me, Chief Eunuch Yu.
Yu Mingjiang smiled: “You’re too kind, Lady Lu.
As he turned to leave, Lu Zhiwan suddenly spoke again: “Chief Eunuch Yu, wait.
“Lady Lu?” Yu Mingjiang stopped, looking at her in surprise.

Lu Zhiwan pursed her lips, unable to conceal her nervousness: “Chief Eunuch Yu, do you know why His Majesty suddenly summoned me?
Yu Mingjiang was momentarily taken aback, then smiled: “My lady, how could servants like us presume to guess His Majesty’s thoughts regarding which consort he summons?
“But he doesn’t…” have interest in women, does he?

Being astute, Yu Mingjiang guessed Lu Zhiwan’s unspoken words but maintained his amiable smile: “That’s precisely why you’re fortunate, my lady. Among all the consorts in the rear palace, you’re the first to be summoned to the Hall of Mental Cultivation. Don’t be nervous—wait here peacefully and serve His Majesty well.
With that, he didn’t linger further, bowed, and withdrew.

As the two large doors of the bedchamber closed, Lu Zhiwan stood alone in this completely unfamiliar, luxurious palace hall. She felt as if covered in thorns, utterly ill at ease everywhere.

Looking back at the enormous ten-pillar Huanghuali dragon bed behind her, Lu Zhiwan’s heart pounded wildly. Could it be that the absurd encounter this afternoon had triggered some domineering CEO effect in the emperor—”Hah, woman, you’ve piqued my interest”—leading him to summon her for attending the emperor at bedtime?

If that were truly the case, was she really going to get intimate with a man she had only met once? Though she was a modern woman, jumping into bed after just one daytime meeting felt far too rushed!

She had no idea how long her chaotic thoughts had swirled when faint rustling sounds came from outside the tightly shut palace doors.

Lu Zhiwan’s heart clenched, her slender back stiffening like a fully drawn bowstring. Standing rigidly by the table as if facing a formidable enemy, she waited for the doors to swing open.

Finally, with a creak, the doors parted.

Bathed in the warm glow of bright candlelight, a handsome man in a loose, smoky-ink-colored robe entered unhurriedly, one hand clasped behind his back.

As his footsteps drew nearer, Lu Zhiwan’s heartbeat quickened, her mind blank from sheer nervousness.

It wasn’t until the young emperor stood before her, frowning as he cast her a sidelong glance, that he asked, “Did you truly learn palace etiquette before entering the palace?
Only then did Lu Zhiwan snap to her senses and hurriedly curtsied. “This humble consort… Lu-shi, pays respects to Your Majesty. May Your Majesty enjoy boundless fortune and peace.
Her trembling words faded into silence, yet no command to rise followed.

Lu Zhiwan remained in her curtsy, not daring to move a muscle.

She could feel the gaze of the man before her sweeping over her—starting from her elegantly coiled hair, trailing down the nape of her neck, over her spine and arms, then returning from her toes to settle on her forehead.

This silent scrutiny made her increasingly anxious, as if she were a lamb caught by a hunter, and he was deciding where to make the first cut.

Just as her legs trembled and she felt she could hold the pose no longer, a deep voice finally sounded above her: “Rise.
Lu Zhiwan felt as if she’d heard heavenly music. Suppressing the numbness in her calves, she straightened up and uttered a heartfelt, “Thank you, Your Majesty.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the man stride toward the spacious dragon bed, and her momentarily eased heart leaped back into her throat.

Seriously? Straight to the main event after just one sentence? Couldn’t they share a drink to set the mood or exchange a few more words to get acquainted?

Xiao Jingting sat down at the edge of the bed and glanced up at the woman still rooted in place, looking as stiff as a wooden puppet. His brow arched slightly.

In the hazy candlelight, the woman wore her hair in an ethereal feixian bun, dressed in a ya-colored ruqun embroidered with orchid sprays. Over it, she had on a translucent sha-pink gown that draped her youthful, graceful figure. Beneath the sheer fabric, her silver-red undergarments and snow-white arms were faintly visible—like pure snow atop a sacred mountain veiled in mist, pristine yet tinged with allure.

This appearance was a world apart from the water-drenched madwoman he’d met by the river that afternoon.

Unconsciously rubbing his thumb against his fingertips, Xiao Jingting’s gaze flickered. Who would have thought this lunatic could clean up so nicely? She’s actually quite good-looking.

Had Lu Zhiwan known that her “celestially beautiful” attire earned only a “quite good-looking” in Xiao Jingting’s eyes, she would have scoffed at his poor taste.

But for now, she stood frozen, holding her breath and fidgeting uneasily, like a convict awaiting the judge’s verdict.

The intimidating gaze above lingered for a long while before slowly shifting away.

Then the emperor by the bed lightly tapped the edge, his tone indifferent: “Are you nervous?
More than just nervous, Lu Zhiwan felt she was about to suffocate and faint from breathlessness.

She lowered her head, her voice strained: “Your Majesty’s imperial majesty is profound. This humble consort is truly apprehensive in the presence of your heavenly countenance…
“You didn’t seem apprehensive when you took liberties with me by the river in the daytime.
Liberties? Lu Zhiwan was stunned. Meeting the man’s deadpan face, she couldn’t help but cry injustice: “Your Majesty, please see clearly! All my actions during the day were to help Your Majesty regain consciousness. I absolutely had no intention of taking advantage of your vulnerable state! If Your Majesty doesn’t believe me, I can swear to heaven to prove my sincere intentions.
The long fingers tapping the bed edge stilled. Xiao Jingting looked at her: “From your words, it seems you feel wronged about taking liberties with me?
Lu Zhiwan quickly shook her head: “Not wronged, not wronged at all.
Xiao Jingting: “Then you admit to taking liberties with me.
Lu Zhiwan: “???
“This humble consort did not!” She had already explained it wasn’t taking liberties—why was this man so stubborn?

Just as she was about to explain the emergency principles of artificial respiration and cardiopulmonary resuscitation, the man by the bed straightened his posture, his profound gaze once again falling upon her face.

The emperor’s majestic aura was too overwhelming. Being stared at like this by him, Lu Zhiwan felt as if she had been put under a immobilization spell—her mind turned to mush, unable to think.

The two looked at each other across the space, neither speaking. The hall became quiet again.

Outside the window, bamboo shadows danced faintly. An evening breeze slipped through the window crack, causing the candlelight to flicker.

After a long while, the emperor by the bed finally withdrew his ambiguous gaze.

Just as Lu Zhiwan was about to sigh in relief, she heard the man’s hoarse voice slowly say: “Come to the bed.