Story of Yanxi Palace, Chapter 56: Aloe Vera Juice

   She fled in panic.

Wei Yingluo had no idea why Hongli; the Emperor had looked at her that way. She only felt uncomfortable all over. So she hurriedly found an excuse, saying that according to the imperial physician’s instructions, she needed to handle the used bedding and sheets. Then, under the Emperor’s displeased gaze, she gathered up an armful of quilts and linens and left the sleeping chamber.

Though they were items to be disposed of, they had been used by the Emperor himself and could not be treated carelessly. Therefore, after she left, Li Yu came out to help her deal with them as well.

This is truly a good opportunity.

Seeing no one else around, Wei Yingluo immediately put on a smiling face and asked, “Eunuch Li, on the tenth day of the first lunar month, during the imperial clan banquet in the Qianqing Palace, I picked up a jade pendant in the garden. Its appearance is clearly no ordinary item. I figured that if it wasn’t lost by His Majesty, then it must have been lost by one of the clan members. Could you help me take a look and appraise it?”

If she hadn’t previously taken that troublesome errand upon herself, Li Yu would surely have closed his eyes to rest at this moment and not bothered to reply with even half a word. But not only had she tactfully shouldered the task herself, she had handled it beautifully—and Li Yu could never forget the special look Hongli had given her…

“No need to look. I can tell you right now.” So Li Yu smiled and replied, “The jade pendant you picked up definitely does not belong to His Majesty or any member of the imperial clan.”

“Oh?” Wei Yingluo was stunned. “Eunuch is so certain?”

“That night His Majesty toasted everyone one by one—who would dare leave their seat?” Li Yu said with certainty. “The item doesn’t belong to them, because not a single person at the banquet left the feast.”

Wei Yingluo’s face showed disappointment. She let out a soft sigh. “So that’s how it is… Thank you, Eunuch…”

Li Yu, wanting to do her a favor, spoke again: “Do you have that jade pendant on you? Let me take a look—perhaps I can spot something telling.”

“…I left the jade pendant back in Changchun Palace and didn’t bring it with me. But I still remember the pattern on the tail of the jade.” As she spoke, Wei Yingluo used her hand to trace the design in the air for him.

After she had gestured a few times, Li Yu on the opposite side suddenly exclaimed in surprise, “Ah—Fucha! This isn’t something belonging to the Empress; it’s the jade pendant of Fucha, the imperial guard!”

Wei Yingluo’s expression froze for a moment, but she quickly feigned delight and said, “After going in such a big circle, it turns out to be a joke! Very well—once I return to Changchun Palace, I’ll return it to its rightful owner! Many thanks, Eunuch!”

Such a trivial matter was nothing to Li Yu, yet he hoped she would keep it firmly in mind.

Because he could see that the way Hongli looked at this woman was distinctly different…

“Bang!”

The teacup shattered on the floor, and a person dropped to their knees with a thud.

“Such scalding hot tea—how is anyone supposed to drink it?” Hongli sat on the edge of the bed, his face covered in fury.

Several days had passed since Hongli fell ill, yet his temper had only grown more explosive. The slightest misstep would cause him to hurl cups and smash bowls, making life miserable for those who served him.

Fortunately, not everyone had to suffer—Hongli only liked to have one particular person attend to him.

“Where is Wei Yingluo?” Hongli asked coldly. “Where has she run off to?”

The young eunuch inwardly groaned in misery. If she had been present, how could it possibly have fallen to him to come in and serve? Still, he answered truthfully: “Yingluo… she was just in the courtyard a moment ago. Right now, this slave doesn’t know where she went…”

Hearing this, Hongli’s anger flared up again. He kicked the eunuch over and roared, “Get out! All of you, get out!”

The young eunuch scrambled away on hands and knees. At that moment the door behind him suddenly opened. Wei Yingluo leaned against the doorframe. Seeing the scene inside, she hurried in and said, “Does Your Majesty have any orders?”

At the same time, she gave a small wave behind her back. The young eunuch understood at once, shot her a grateful look, and hurriedly fled the sleeping chamber.

Hongli noticed her little gesture but paid it no mind. He only glared at her with blazing eyes and demanded, “Where did you just run off to?!”

Wei Yingluo was somewhat mentally and physically exhausted by now. Her original purpose in coming here had been to get close to the people around Hongli so she could pry clues about the culprit from their mouths. Yet somehow Hongli kept summoning her to serve by his side every single day. To outsiders this looked like great favor; to Wei Yingluo it felt like eight lifetimes of rotten luck.

Unable to hold back, she let her true feelings slip out: “Your Majesty, there are still other people in the room to serve you…”

Why do you only torment me?!

Hongli’s expression flickered unnaturally for a moment. Then, embarrassed and angry, he snapped coldly, “I itch all over and can’t stand it. Are you telling me to let those clumsy, rough-handed people scratch for me?”

Wei Yingluo looked carefully and noticed several fresh scratch marks on his collarbone—bright red and vivid. If one didn’t look closely, one might mistake them for a woman’s rouge lip prints.

Knowing that the unbearable itching was tormenting him—although intellectually he understood that scratching would only worsen the condition—he still couldn’t stop himself…

Letting it continue like this was no solution. Whenever the itching flared up, he would scratch furiously, and the more he scratched, the angrier he became. But that anger wasn’t directed at himself—it was unleashed on the people attending him… especially on Wei Yingluo.

“Your Majesty, please don’t be angry. This servant has a way to ease your discomfort.” Wei Yingluo presented what she was holding. “Please turn your back to me.”

She had expected to need some persuasion, but to her surprise, Hongli glanced at her hand, then at her face, and without a word turned around. There was a faint rustling as he slowly shed his outer robes, exposing the broad, strong back of a man to her gaze.

Wei Yingluo lowered her eyes. Even now, she still wasn’t entirely accustomed to seeing a man’s body.

But mindful of their respective positions, she quickly set aside her embarrassment and began applying the fresh aloe vera juice she held to his back.

“Physician Zhang said that prolonged use of sulfur ointment can make the skin slightly dry. This servant picked fresh aloe, pounded it into juice, and applied it. While it cannot cure the root cause, it should at least make Your Majesty feel more comfortable.” As she spoke, the dark green aloe juice slid along her fingers onto Hongli’s back, then slowly trailed down the line of his spine and disappeared into the cloth wrapped around his waist.

Hongli was silent for a moment before speaking with his back still to her: “So this is how you curry favor with the Empress—coaxing her until she dotes on you so much, isn’t it?”

Wei Yingluo replied calmly: “The Empress treats this servant with genuine kindness, so naturally this servant repays her with sincerity.”

Hongli scoffed with icy disdain. “I treat you so harshly—surely you must hate me to the bone.”

Of course she did—but such honest thoughts could never be spoken aloud. Wei Yingluo merely smiled and answered: “How would this servant dare?”

Hongli snorted, clearly unconvinced.

Whether he believed her or not didn’t matter to Wei Yingluo. Rather than arguing about herself, she preferred to keep talking about the Empress: “Your Majesty, last night the Empress stayed by your bedside the entire time, fanning you. This servant begged her to rest, but she refused. This morning when I looked, her wrist could barely move.”

Hongli remained silent. With his back to her, Wei Yingluo couldn’t see his expression.

“This servant knows there are countless beautiful women in the Forbidden City, but only the Empress would attend to Your Majesty’s illness despite knowing it was contagious.” Wei Yingluo continued to speak well of the Empress. “Such genuine affection… there will never be another like it in this world…”

“Enough!” Hongli suddenly shouted.

The hand applying the aloe juice paused. Wei Yingluo looked at him in confusion, unsure which of her words had offended him.

“Your Majesty…” she ventured cautiously.

Hongli abruptly turned around. Ignoring the aloe juice still on her hands, he seized her wrist in a tight grip. The sticky juice acted like glue, binding their hands together.

Wei Yingluo was startled and quickly tried to pull away, but whether because the aloe was too viscous or because Hongli was unwilling to let go, she couldn’t free herself for the moment…

“Your Majesty!” she called again.

Only then did Hongli seem to snap out of it. He released her hand, lowered his head, and stared blankly at his own palm for a long moment before suddenly glaring at her with fury: “Since when is it a servant’s place to comment on my affairs? Get out!”

Serving a ruler was like accompanying a tiger—especially one whose moods were so unpredictable and impossible to read.

“…Yes.” Wei Yingluo had been hoping for exactly that. She hurriedly gathered up the remaining aloe juice and retreated. Once outside, she leaned her back against the door and let out a long breath.

Unbeknownst to her, behind the closed door Hongli continued staring in the direction she had left, lost in a daze.

   STORY OF YANXI PALACE CHAPTERS HOME