无翼乌工口里番无色无摭挡

Thinking carefully, a woman in her forties or close to fifty, no matter how well maintained, could wrinkles be eliminated and sagging cheeks be raised?

Even if all that could be done, the sunken eye sockets, the wrinkles at the corner of the eyes, and the loss of plump cheeks would only become more harrowing once the makeup was removed.

The palace maid whispered, “Hearing Your Highness say this, I feel a chill in my heart. A woman’s good days are just a few years.”

“Even for young and beautiful girls, few have a good sleeping appearance.” Concubine Jin closed her eyes and spoke leisurely, “Let alone someone of Concubine Xian’s age. Once the Emperor sees her in that state… there’s no need to say it, you can imagine.”

“Although that’s true, this is all our speculation. What if Concubine Xian never took off her makeup?”

“That would be if the Emperor was in her room. Now that the Emperor is here in my palace, she must have gone to sleep in disappointment, without makeup.”

The palace maid looked at her own mistress with some surprise: “I have never heard Your Highness say such things before.”

She had served Concubine Jin for many years, and to outsiders, the noble and indifferent Concubine Jin appeared unconcerned about everything, in fact, she was just lazy.

She was too lazy to deal with those people and those things.

She was even too lazy to think about it.

That’s why people thought she was cold, but in fact, Concubine Jin was actually more of the delicate and simple type.

It’s just that most people didn’t know her well, leading to misunderstandings.

For so many years, when had Concubine Jin ever thought about these things?

Xiangli even thought that not only was Concubine Jin too lazy to think, but she also wasn’t smart enough to think so much.

In the past, even when Concubine Jin was vying for favoritism, she would only pretend to be sick to summon the Emperor, and never attempt to get the Emperor to leave again.

She certainly wouldn’t have thought of the words that followed.

So…

Xiangli asked quietly, “Your Highness, who told you all this?”

“It was my good daughter-in-law.”

As expected.

Xiangli was relieved.

Who else could be so ruthless, besides that cunning Princess Consort?

She not only encouraged Concubine Jin to vie for favor but also taught her to send the Emperor back to Concubine Xian’s chamber.

No doubt Concubine Xian could never have imagined that the Emperor would return!

The palace maid on night duty was dozing off, drowsy and distracted. Hearing that the Emperor had arrived, her muddled mind only remembered to kneel down and salute, not to remind Concubine Xian.

“Has Concubine Xian gone to bed?” the Emperor asked.

The palace maid came to her senses, and hurriedly said, “This servant is going to ask Your Highness to get up and greet the Emperor.”

“No need.” The Emperor waved his hand, “Since she’s asleep, there’s no need to wake her. I will go in by myself.”

As he stepped into Concubine Xian’s bedroom, lifting the curtains, the memory of her charming appearance in the pink dress from the afternoon emerged in his mind.

However, when he looked at the bed with a smile, his grin froze on his face.

Concubine Xian was asleep.

The lantern on the tall bedside table cast a clear light on her current appearance.

She was lying on her back with her face up, her mouth slightly open, and sleeping heavily.

Her face was pale, but not the translucent pallor of a young girl; it was a dull, ashen white.

Her eyebrows were a little sparse, the fine crow’s feet at the corners of her eyes, and even the occasional faint snore.

Even more, one could see the scattered strands of her hair speckled with white.

These white hairs were well-hidden during the day.

At the utterly unguarded night, they shot straight into the Emperor’s field of vision..