The Tyrant’s Drama Queen Empress

CHAPTER 9: I Heard I Like You a Lot

　　That night.

　　Shen Ling collapsed onto the bed, drenched in sweat. She covered her face with a handkerchief, still panting lightly. During the day, Xie Yuanxun had dyed her fingernails and toenails. By nightfall, he pinned her down on the bed and kissed her until she was completely overwhelmed. Just like before, he still did not kiss her face or lips, but everywhere else was fair game. Especially her hands and feet.

　　At first, she was screaming internally, calling him a total pervert. Not long after, he had her breathless and flushed red all over.

　　Shen Ling thought to herself that next time, she would never let him dye her nails again. Not her hands, not her feet, not a single one. This bastard had definitely been stimulated by that red nail dye.

　　In her eyes, it was just ordinary red pigment. But to Xie Yuanxun, it was the same color as blood flowing from a human body.

　　In the end, Xie Yuanxun held her as they slept. Lying in his arms, Shen Ling secretly thought that she was actually useful to him. Senior Eunuch Feng had said it himself. Ever since she started staying with him at night, Xie Yuanxun slept much more easily than before. That meant she no longer had to worry about the possibility of him suddenly ordering someone to drag her out and kill her one day.

　　After muddling along for so long, she had finally felt a rare sense of safety.

　　Midnight.

　　Xie Yuanxun looked at Shen Ling sleeping soundly beside him, his expression strange as she kept giggling in her sleep.

　　“Hehe… hihihi…”

　　Xie Yuanxun yawned. Propping his head up with one hand, he leisurely watched her. He wanted to know when her silly, dreamlike laughter would stop.

　　In the end, he stared at her like that for most of the night.

　　……

　　Jing Fēi came to Chang Le Palace several times after that. Every time, she made sure to come when Xie Yuanxun was not around. Today was no exception. Shen Ling had Liu Zhu invite her inside. The moment Jing Fēi saw her, she started calling her “little sister” over and over. Shen Ling honestly had no idea what Jing Fēi was here for. She did not look like she was here to see Xie Yuanxun at all.

　　If not him, then surely she was not here just to see her, right?

　　Shen Ling was only a Guiren. What was there about a mere Guiren worth Jing Fēi thinking about?

　　She really could not figure it out. So every time Jing Fēi came by, Shen Ling smiled more and spoke less, deliberately turning herself into the most boring piece of wood imaginable.

　　“Don’t you get bored staying in Chang Le Palace every day, little sister?” Jing Fēi asked.

　　“No,” Shen Ling replied.

　　—I see Xie Yuanxun every day. I am not bored at all.

　　Jing Fēi continued, “I remember when I first entered the Palace, I was curious and wandered around everywhere. Sometimes I would even visit other consorts and chat with them. Little sister, you really have a rare temperament.”

　　As she spoke, a hint of jealousy crept into Jing Fēi’s tone.

　　When Jing Fēi had first entered the Palace, she really could not sit still and wandered around everywhere. The place she went to most often was the Imperial Garden. Back then, she was hoping for a chance encounter with His Majesty. Instead, she tragically witnessed His Majesty personally ripping off a woman’s head and kicking it around like a ball. She was so scared she almost wet herself. She dropped to her knees, trembling uncontrollably. She did not even know when His Majesty left the garden. After returning to her palace, she fell seriously ill, and from that day on, she hid away like a frightened quail.

　　Jing Fēi had originally thought Shen Ling would be just like her former self, unable to stay put. Who would have guessed that Shen Ling’s self control was this good, managing to avoid trouble completely and giving her nothing interesting to watch at all.

　　“Your Grace flatters me,” Shen Ling said.

　　Chang Le Palace was extremely comfortable. Shen Ling was not someone who liked running around in the first place. If Xie Yuanxun did not exist, she could squat in Chang Le Palace for a lifetime without complaint.

　　“Little sister is beautiful and has such a gentle temperament. No wonder you have earned His Majesty’s favor. Your complexion looks so rosy. I imagine you have received quite a lot of His Majesty’s dragon essence. You are truly glowing from being so well nourished.”

　　“……”

　　Shen Ling’s mind went completely blank.

　　—Is Jing Fēi trying to scare me to death and then inherit my Chang Le Palace?!

　　Shen Ling wanted to say that she truly had not lost her chastity and was still innocent!

　　But she felt that even if she said it, no one would believe her. Who in the Harem or the Court did not know that His Majesty summoned her, Shen Guiren, to attend him every night? It made it seem like she was deeply favored. She was actually terrified too, okay?

　　“Little sister is so shy. It really makes people want to dote on you,” Jing Fēi said, twisting her handkerchief tightly. She wished she could scratch this fox spirit’s face to pieces and see if she would still dare to seduce His Majesty.

　　Shen Ling’s gaze flicked over the crumpled handkerchief in Jing Fēi’s hand.

　　—Tsk, women.

　　—She praises me with her mouth, but who knows how much she hates me in her heart.

　　“To be honest with you, little sister, I only came to see you because of my father’s instructions. When I first received his message, I was very confused and did not understand why he specifically mentioned you. Later, I figured it out. It turns out my father knew you are Minister Shen’s daughter. On top of that, my father and Minister Shen are on good terms. He was worried you might suffer grievances in the Palace, so he told me to look after you a bit more.”

　　“Do you understand now, little sister?” Jing Fēi continued. “My father, Prime Minister Yang, and your father, Minister Shen, are old friends. They serve His Majesty together at Court. We, in the inner palace, should not let that relationship fall away either. That way, the fathers who care so much about both of us can be at ease.”

　　Only then did Shen Ling truly understand why Jing Fēi had come looking for her.

　　Jing Fēi wanted to recruit her as her little follower.

　　Shen Ling felt that she was finally sensing a bit of that Palace intrigue vibe, but with Xie Yuanxun as the ultimate trump card around, she honestly could not imagine how any scheming was supposed to amount to anything.

　　As for the “loving” Minister Shen that Jing Fēi kept mentioning, Shen Ling felt mildly nauseated. Shen Kangzheng really loved her? She was practically unfamiliar with the word “love” by now, hehe.

　　Shen Ling said, “So it turns out elder sister and I share such a connection. But since we’ve both entered the Palace, whatever ties our fathers have won’t really affect us anymore. I belong to His Majesty. I only want to serve His Majesty well. I don’t think about anything else, nor would I dare make decisions behind His Majesty’s back. Besides, His Majesty likes me very much. He can’t even go a day without seeing me. I truly don’t have any spare time to keep others company.”

　　Jing Fēi opened her mouth, wanting to curse Shen Ling for being shameless, but she hesitated because of Xie Yuanxun and did not dare let the words out. Yet doing nothing at all made her feel even worse.

　　Jing Fēi had considered the possibility that Shen Ling might refuse to side with her, but when Shen Ling actually rejected her, she found it unbelievable. Shen Ling was just a small Guiren. What right did she have to refuse seeking protection under her? Just because of His Majesty’s favor? Was that really so impressive?

　　Jing Fēi’s expression darkened. She had to swallow her frustration and admit that having His Majesty’s favor really was impressive. Otherwise, would she be holding back her anger toward Shen Ling right now? In the end, Jing Fēi left Chang Le Palace with her face held stiffly in place.

　　Thinking about Jing Fēi’s expression before she left, Shen Ling let out a puff of laughter. Jing Fēi had perfectly demonstrated what it meant to smile brightly on the surface while cursing MMP in her heart.

　　Liu Zhu walked up to her and said, “Your Grace, His Majesty has sent someone to summon you to the Beast Garden.”    

　　“Beast Garden? Do you know why His Majesty summoned me?”

　　Liu Zhu helped Shen Ling dress and fix her hair, replying, “It’s said that the Governor of Shanyu County presented His Majesty with a magnificent divine beast. It only arrived in the Capital today. This servant wouldn’t dare guess His Majesty’s intentions, but if I were to see something delightful, I’d also want to share it with you, Your Grace.”

　　Shen Ling hesitated. “Really?”

　　Was Xie Yuanxun the type to share good things with others?

　　For some reason, she just could not believe it.

　　Liu Zhu fell silent. Then she said stiffly, “R-really… probably.”

　　Shen Ling, “......” Huh? Did Liu Zhu not realize how uncertain she sounded?

　　After getting dressed, Shen Ling headed to the Beast Garden. Although she couldn't be sure if Xie Yuanxun was really just asking her to go see the divine beast, she thought that Xie Yuanxun wouldn't be calling her over to butcher meat for her. Compared to that, the former sounded far more reasonable.

　　But still…

　　What kind of beast counted as a divine beast?

　　……

　　“Roar!”

　　“Awoo!”

　　The Beast Garden housed all sorts of wild, ferocious animals, like tigers, wolves, and the like.

　　Liu Zhu’s face had gone pale as she followed nervously beside Shen Ling. Shen Ling was doing slightly better. She had watched nature documentaries, okay? What was there to be afraid of? At worst, the animals here were just a bit more fierce. Shen Ling clenched her fists inside her sleeves. Even if she had to fake it, she would keep up a Guiren’s composure.

　　Spotting Xie Yuanxun, Shen Ling quickened her steps, smiled, and bowed in greeting. “Your Majesty.”

　　Xie Yuanxun looked at her and asked, “I heard I like you very much?”

　　The smile on Shen Ling’s face froze.    

　　—Holy crap!

　　H-he-he-he how did he even know about that? She had only said those words to Jing Fēi. Could it be that Jing Fēi went to him and leaked it?

　　No way! With Jing Fēi’s courage being even smaller than hers, would she dare go see Xie Yuanxun alone? Shen Ling really did not think so. That left only one possibility—Xie Yuanxun had the ¹Jinyiwei! Were not the Jinyiwei capable of finding out what kind of underwear officials wore, how many times they visited their concubines at night, and even how long each round lasted? But the Jinyiwei could not enter the inner palace. Then fine, Xie Yuanxun must have the ²Eastern Depot and ³Western Depot instead. Anyway, those two were basically the same as the Jinyiwei. All equally terrifying.

　　Shen Ling said, “Please forgive me, Your Majesty. I only said that out of vanity. I will not dare to do it again next time.”

　　Xie Yuanxun said, “You admit your mistake pretty quickly.” Then he added, “By the way, why didn’t you answer yes to the question I just asked? Do you think I do not like you?”

　　Shen Ling’s eyes welled up with tears, moved to the brink of crying. “Your Majesty, how could I not feel how good you have been to me? I am nothing more than a fragile little thing, yet I am blessed enough to bear Your Majesty’s favor. I am truly so touched, sob sob!”

　　—Sorry, but I honestly cannot tell that you like me at all.

　　—And can you really like someone?

　　Does he really know how to like someone?

　　Xie Yuanxun was taken aback. He walked over, pinched her chin, looked into her eyes, and only released her after a long while, saying, “You should live a long life.”

　　Shen Ling, “???” Where did that even come from? That was seriously hard to make sense of.    

    

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Glossary:

¹Jinyiwei (锦衣卫 / Jǐn Yī Wèi) – Literally “Brocade-Clad Guards.” This was the Emperor’s secret police during the Ming dynasty. They were elite bodyguards and spies who could monitor officials, enforce laws, and investigate crimes—often outside normal legal procedures. They were feared because they could report directly to the Emperor and operate with almost no oversight.

²Eastern Depot (东厂 / Dōng Chǎng) – A secret police organization in Ming dynasty China, established by the Emperor to monitor, investigate, and control officials, spies, and even commoners. They reported directly to the Emperor and were notorious for being ruthless.

³Western Depot (西厂 / Xī Chǎng) – Another secret police organization, similar to the Eastern Depot, also used for surveillance and enforcing the Emperor’s control. Usually considered equally feared and powerful.   

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