The Employed Empress 96 Chapter 96: Peonies

Night came.
The lantern was lit, the dinner was served, and a realization hit Wei Yi Yi.
She cannot chew! It's torture to eat.
At first, Wei Yi Yi tried to chew using only one side of her mouth. She looks like some hamster with only one chubby cheek. It only burdened her jaws and once in every three, the food ends up back to the other side. Her broken teeth biting into solid food is so painful she wanted to roll to the ground.
When she attempted to swallow a who dumpling, it stuck on her throat and Xiao Yuan Xi cried in a panic.
Wei Yi Yi concluded, it will be a season of fasting!
Thankfully, the old servant was competent enough to bring her different kind of soup every day.
Ah, the perks of olden times. If she was at their home, He Lian will fatten her up with cup noddles instead.
Like usual, when he's in the middle of procrastinating, Jiang Liu would go seek Wei Yi Yi to involve her.
But for some unknown reasons, Jiang Yu would easily catch Jiang Liu. This scared the living lights out of them as this never happened before.
Both of them thought of their past actions. Were they caught bringing troubles to others? Did he found out that they secretly mess up and make excuses to run around the palace?
"I should be fine," Wei Yi Yi confidently said to herself. Although she like pranking her coworkers at times, she never made trouble for Boss.
"Ah! Maybe he found out my secret routes!" Jiang Liu suddenly said.
"You mean your dog holes?"
"Can't you give at least a nice sounding name?"
Wei Yi Yi kicked him back to his own department. If there's a mess that needs cleaning up right away, it would be Jiang Liu's mouth!
No matter where Jiang Liu approached; whether it is from the side or to the front; even he thought it was a blindside, he would saw his Royal Brother blocking his way.
"Sixth Brother is really idle, always finding time to visit us, husband and wife," Jiang Yu said, his smile doesn't reach his eyes.
This brother! Still going to Xian Feng Palace without a summon!
Jiang Liu could only cry bitter tears as he was forced to help at the imperial study. Should he be happy that the emperor has enough time to go and catch him? But isn't this wrong timing?!
When he was bothering him before he wouldn't even flinch! Now that he found someone else to bother, he was acting like some villain!
Aiyo, sister-in-law, this brother miss you already!
What they didn't expect is that, for every time that Jiang Liu got caught, is every night where Jiang Yu would be free enough to visit Wei Yi Yi at night.
What happened to the workaholic! Please take him back! I can't afford him!
At first, Wei Yi Yi considered it as going to drink with her supervisor after working hours. But as it frequent, Wei Yi Yi felt like this is definitely overtime!
Sometimes he would talk about the court, in which Wei Yi Yi labeled as other department gossips. And then the topic would towards the consorts. It always gives her the feeling of presenting reports.
And to think it is late at night!
When she couldn't take it anymore, Wei Yi Yi turned to save Jiang Liu. The sixth prince was then properly summoned to the palace. They use the excuse of preparing for the beauty selection to be their front.
In actuality, the two of them rant to each other.
"Why is your brother so complicated?! I told him he should visit Ye s.h.i.+ and he was like..." Wei Yi Yi sat up with a straight back and cough. Trying to copy Jiang Yu's deep tyrant voice, she crunched her brows as she said, "She committed a mistake and still in punishment. If I coaxed her or act lenient towards her, how could she learn her lesson."
Wei Yi Yi thought that it's unfair that all works goes to her when she have so many subordinates.
Then she remembered Ye Ai Ning.
Holy fondue! It's her main job to be their wingman!
She scratched the rest of the consorts on the list and plan to make Ye s.h.i.+ her only client slash coworker. That way, she only needs to be nice to one and then prank the rest.
Jiang Liu gave a disappointed look. "You're right. He's so complicated that even I wonder if we really have the same parents."
"Right," Wei Yi Yi nodded.
"I mean, why would he answer like that?!" Jiang Liu slams the table.
"Right. Right." Saving her tea, she raised her cup away from Jiang Liu.
"He should grab you, hug you, then whisper sweet nothings! Reprimanding you for saying other people's name in front of him and making him go away! Declaring that you're the one in his eyes right now!" Jiang Liu said in one breath. His tone was full of emotions.
Wei Yi Yi spurts out her tea. "What books are you reading?! Wake up from them!"
"I thought he become a better man as he kept sending you these ornamental peonies," Jiang Liu poke the vase in front of him. He thought his brother cannot wait for them to bloom to express his feelings but now that doesn't seem to be the case anymore.
Their season has long end and the blooming peonies in Xian Feng Palace have withered. In exchange, Jiang Yu would bring one hairpin with him in every visit.
No one knows, that except for them being the symbol of the female ruler and the king of flowers, Wei Yi Yi doesn't know their meaning.
They acc.u.mulated and instead of wearing them, the Empress put them on a vase.
When Jiang Yu saw them one night, he smiled and said, "I expect them to be hidden away on your jewelry case. But this way, they seem a lot more appreciated... And also beautiful..."
From it, Jiang Yu would pick one and put on her hair every day.