Palace Fighting: Naive Concubines' Ascent to Power

Xiao Jizi became even more uneasy upon seeing this. Could it be that the Young Master had been scared out of his wits? Xiao Qing was really too thoughtless, offering such weak protection to her master; what if she'd frightened the master terribly? His Majesty was so fond of the Young Master. If His Majesty were to blame them for this scare, they wouldn't be able to bear it.

Lian Hua felt as though she was trapped in chaos from which she could not escape, where shadowy figures flickered, some crying, others laughing, accompanied by the sound of chains dragging along the ground. It seemed someone was angrily scolding while brandishing something, but it was all hazy, and she couldn't make out the scene within the chaos. She felt like a sorrowful, lonely spectator, floating and sinking simultaneously.

Suddenly, a loud "waahh" of crying snapped her back to reality. Regaining her senses, she weakly looked towards the source of the sound.

There was Xiao Qing, kneeling on the ground and clutching her legs, bawling her eyes out and saying between sobs, "Young Master, I won't dare do it again, I really won't dare anymore, please don't scare me, waah..."

Meanwhile, Xiao Jizi, sweating profusely from anxiety, was incessantly calling out for the Young Master.

Lian Hua smiled wanly. What on earth was wrong with these two? How could Xiao Qing be so incoherent as to even bring out 'I' in her speech? If outsiders heard this, she might be punished for failing to distinguish between superior and inferior. Shaking her head helplessly, she said, "What's going on? How did you end up like this?"

Now seeing the Young Master finally responsive, Xiao Jizi immediately pulled Xiao Qing away and asked with concern, "Young Master, are you all right?"

"What could be wrong with me?" Lian Hua asked with amusement. She didn't understand how these two had gotten into such a state in just a moment's distraction.

Xiao Qing, overjoyed and still wiping away tears, laughed, "Ha ha... hic... sob sob, Young Master, it's so good that you're all right, hic... Xiao Qing admits her mistake, I must change my ways from now on." She alternated between crying and laughing, hiccupping all the while, which looked rather comical.

Seeing this, Xiao Jizi felt sure that the Young Master had returned to normal and he released a heavy sigh of relief, feeling suddenly weak and collapsing to the ground as if he had narrowly escaped death, his clothes soaked through with cold sweat.

Coming to his senses, he thought viciously, once back he must severely reprimand Xiao Qing, to properly instruct her on how to behave in the future so that she does not act heedlessly and endanger the Young Master again.

"What could be wrong with me? Get up, all of you. What does rolling on the ground mean?" Lian Hua spoke, not knowing why, but she felt tired, as if she had been through something, exhausted in both body and mind.

Xiao Jizi scrambled up from the ground and stood before Lian Hua, tentatively asking, "Young Master, do you remember what just happened?"

"Hmm? Did something happen?" Lian Hua asked, puzzled.

Xiao Jizi was startled upon hearing this. Why did it sound as though nothing had happened just now?

That's not right, something still felt off. Xiao Jizi kept his doubts to himself, thinking the Young Master had only just recovered and must not be agitated again. He decided to ask Xiao Qing privately later about what had occurred before his arrival.

Xiao Qing didn't notice anything wrong. In her eyes, as long as the Young Master was fine, nothing else mattered.

Just as she was happily standing up and wiping her tears and snot, she said to Lian Hua, "Young Master, you have no idea how much you just..."

Xiao Jizi was horrified upon hearing her start to speak. Good heavens, why bring up something that should be left alone? Her capacity for causing trouble was just too great. What if remembering the recent events caused the Young Master to lose her spirit again? Tsk tsk tsk, may it bring great fortune.

Before she could finish, Xiao Jizi hastily pulled her over, giving her a meaningful look to silence her, and continuing her sentence by saying, "You have no idea how beautiful you looked just now, you had all of us servants completely mesmerized. Look at the air about you, you truly resemble a fairy descended from the heavens. I must have accumulated virtue in my former lives to be able to serve a master like you. Basking daily in your fairy-like aura makes me feel utterly refreshed."

The more he spoke, the more sincere he seemed, as if every word came from the heart.

Seeing Xiao Jizi's glance, Xiao Qing instinctively shut her mouth, realizing that the words she was about to utter might not be appropriate. Unconsciously, she had come to rely on Xiao Jizi as the mainstay.

Then, listening to his bluffing, Xiao Qing was dumbfounded, feeling that Xiao Jizi was a real talent, one she couldn't even emulate if she were to be reborn.

"Ah? Really? Hahaha~ This is making me too embarrassed." Oh, Xiao Jizi had such a keen eye, how lovely it felt to be praised for her beauty. Lian Hua beamed with joy. Oh, this was indeed too embarrassing.

After laughing a while, she felt this was inappropriate, sensing that as a master, she needed to set an example and not to lead her servants into flippant behavior. Thus, she cleared her throat and said, "Xiao Jizi, you mustn't do this in the future. We must be humble even in truth, and when praising, it should be done modestly, hahaha…" She trailed off, unable to maintain the facade and bursting into laughter again.

Xiao Jizi, with a smile on his lips, shook his head helplessly, secretly exclaiming how naive and endearing the Young Master was, so easily led astray.

On the way back, Xiao Qing chattered on, while Lian Hua interjected with a tael or two of response, looking somewhat weary.

Xiao Jizi saw this and felt anxious, yet he dared not show it, lest the Young Master notice something was amiss.