CHAPTER 646: CHAPTER 646 YOU SMELL SO GOOD!

"My Lady, I know someone from my hometown in the Imperial Kitchen. I will speak to him to take good care of you in secret!"

"Also, I’ve befriended a sister in the Ministry of Internal Affairs. They won’t deduct too much from your monthly allowance."

"You won’t have a hard time getting by!"

"This is also how I repay your kindness!"

Having said that, Hua Cha bowed her head three times and then left.

After that, Hua Cha never came back to serve.

She gave away all her saved-up monthly allowance and secured a job watching over the flowers and plants in the Imperial Garden, becoming a Second Class palace maid.

This job was not easy and offered no perks at all.

But for the current Hua Cha, it was already very good.

She could eat her fill, dress warmly, survive, and witness the spring’s departure and autumn’s arrival, the flowers blooming and withering.

No longer did she have to worry about her master’s beatings or the Consorts’ scheming!

Wasn’t that already quite precious?

However, Honored Lady Jiang had bad luck.

Having offended the Emperor, the Empress, and Consort Xian Pin, she couldn’t possibly lead a good life.

Even though Hua Cha used her connections to ensure she wasn’t tortured too harshly, Honored Lady Jiang still didn’t live long.

She was filled with depression, without hope, only wishing for death.

So when the autumn chill came, she didn’t make it through and passed away.

When Hua Cha heard the news, she also fell ill. After all, they had been master and servant for two years, and no one’s heart is made of iron.

There were still feelings involved.

After falling ill and weeping bitterly, Hua Cha secretly offered incense for Honored Lady Jiang, fulfilling the duty of their relationship as master and servant.

But these are all events that happened later, so let’s not talk about them for now.

「Meanwhile, in the Harem.」

As the Emperor’s mood improved, the Harem also became more lively.

The chrysanthemums were in full bloom in the Imperial Garden.

The Consorts, like swallows and orioles, gathered in groups, fluttering through the sea of flowers, forming a beautiful scene.

There was also excitement in Qingya Residence.

Xia Ruqing wanted to eat chrysanthemum-filled mooncakes, so she went with Zi Yue and the others to the Imperial Garden to pick flowers.

They chose the tenderest petals and picked a whole basket full.

The Little Eunuch from the floral department saw this and, eager to please her, even presented her with a pot of newly cultivated roses.

The Little Eunuch introduced them happily.

"This type of rose is different from previous varieties. It has a long blooming period, blossoms beautifully, has the right color, and is soft and delicate. Most importantly, the petals are edible!"

The moment she heard it was edible, Xia Ruqing immediately perked up.

"Edible? How do you eat it?"

She looked at the pot of roses that Xiao Xizi was holding as if she was appraising a delicacy.

The Little Eunuch gave an embarrassed smile.

"I don’t know about that; I just heard it from my master!"

The ladies in the palace naturally have to be more elegant than one another, right? Who would eat flower petals!

But the Little Eunuch didn’t know that this Lady in front of him really did eat petals!

Xia Ruqing was somewhat disappointed but still instructed Xiao Xizi to bring the pot of roses back with them.

Turns out, the roses were indeed nice. Intensely and seductively red, the more you looked, the more appealing they became.

"Nature really is miraculous!" "So beautiful!"

How wonderful it would be if there were lipstick of this color.

In ancient times, there was no specialized lipstick, only rouge. It had to serve as both lipstick and blush, and without options like deep red, light red, or Tao Hong, there was only ever red.

Isn’t that too monotonous?

Thinking of Dream of the Red Chamber and the girls in the Grand View Garden using various petals to make lip rouge, Xia Ruqing began to daydream.

Since I have nothing better to do, could I maybe give it a try?

With that thought, Xia Ruqing instructed Xiao Zhu Zi.

"I really like this pot of roses. Make sure you take good care of it!"

Xiao Zhu Zi was now almost the Chief Steward of the plant nursery at Qingya Residence. He was in charge of all the flowers and trees in the front and back courtyards, as well as the wild vegetables, green vegetables, and lotus ponds in the back garden.

He had become an expert in caring for plants. Xia Ruqing felt assured leaving it in his hands.

In the following days, she sent someone to the Ministry of Internal Affairs to find several books on making rouge, which she then studied one by one.

One particular morning, Xia Ruqing was poring over a book when Zhao Junyao suddenly came in. Unannounced, he sat directly beside her and patted her shoulder.

"Who is it?" Xia Ruqing was a bit impatient.

Zhao Junyao patted her again.

Finally, Xia Ruqing looked up, "Who..." "Emperor... Emperor..."

Her eyes widened in shock, and she scrambled to her feet in a flurry.

"Your Majesty, what brings you here... Greetings, Your Majesty!"

Zhao Junyao helped her up while laughing.

"Why can’t I come? What are you reading that has you so engrossed?"

Xia Ruqing was somewhat embarrassed. "Your concubine... was not... not reading anything!"

After saying this, she quickly looked at Zi Yue and the others. "What are you waiting for? Hurry up with the tea!"

Zi Yue was puzzled, "My lady, the tea has already been served!"

Xia Ruqing saw that indeed a bowl of freshly brewed tea was on the tea table.

"Hmm..."

Zhao Junyao sat on the heated brick bed, sipped the tea, and flipped through the book she was reading.

"You’re reading this?"

Xia Ruqing was embarrassed and just wanted to find a hole to crawl into.

"Your Majesty..." she murmured, her voice as soft as a mosquito’s.

Inside, she severely scorned herself. It seemed the Emperor had indeed been announced, and Zi Yue had even brewed tea. So, had she really not heard anything? How embarrassing!

"Your Majesty, it’s really nothing. They’re just some idle books for ladies, so please don’t look!"

Zhao Junyao had already flipped the book open. The first line on that page read: Methods of making rouge.

Zhao Junyao suddenly laughed.

"I thought it was something secretive!" he said, tossing the book aside.

Such things couldn’t possibly interest a man like him.

"I told you not to look!" Xia Ruqing murmured under her breath, finally able to breathe a sigh of relief.

She straightened the book and placed it aside, then picked up her own tea to sip lightly.

As she relaxed, she suddenly noticed a strange fragrance in the air.

"The tea smells so good today!" "Zi Yue, what did you add?!"

Zi Yue was confused, "My lady, it’s the usual. I didn’t add anything!"

"Hmm?" Xia Ruqing, who had a keen sense of smell, felt there was something odd about the tea.

But... putting the teacup down, her nose still caught that peculiar fragrance.

"If it’s not the tea, then what is it?" she asked, sniffing the air around her.

"It smells so good!" The closer she got to Zhao Junyao, the more delightful the scent became.

"Your Majesty, so it was the incense you were using!"

Zhao Junyao then realized and laughed.

"It’s not incense; it’s a kind of candle from the Western Regions!"

"They in the Western Regions extract essential oils from plant seeds and petals, adding them to the wax used for candles!"

"Once the candle burns, the fragrance of the essential oils is released, scenting everything and making one’s skin fragrant!"

Xia Ruqing was dumbfounded.

"So that’s what it was!"

So ancient people also had scented candles! How wonderful!

She quickly composed herself and smiled.

"This scent is really nice..." It reminded her a bit of 21st-century lavender.