I Was Supposed to Be the Villainous Consort

Chapter 99: Chapter 54: If You Dare to Use His Influence, You Must Become His Person

For people who don’t want to strive for the top, but still need to save enough face to avoid hitting rock bottom, it’s best not to be too curious. Life is much more pleasant that way.

Ye Xi was actually a little curious herself, but seeing how composed Song Yunzhao was, she inexplicably calmed down as well. Now, looking at the County Princess’s expression, she suddenly felt a strange sense of subtle glee, though she didn’t dare let it show.

He Lan Yun glared at Song Yunzhao. "You guessed this would happen, didn’t you?"

"What’s so difficult to guess? The top-ranking ladies have always been famous for their talents in the Capital City. I couldn’t catch up even if I ran barefoot, so why would I subject myself to that humiliation?"

He Lan Yun, who had just done exactly that, was stung. ’Her words are so vicious!’

He Lan Yun huffily found a place to sit, and Song Yunzhao and Ye Xi followed her.

Seeing He Lan Yun’s expression, she said with a smile, "Everything has its pros and cons. You should think of it this way: if you’re not the best, you don’t have to constantly worry about being overtaken and lose sleep over it. If you’re not the worst, you don’t have to fear being called a good-for-nothing and utterly disgraced. With scores like ours, we can answer to our families and protect our reputations, all without having to burn the midnight oil to strive for more. Isn’t that wonderful? Isn’t it something to be happy about?"

Huh?

’You can think of it that way?’

’Something feels off, but it also sounds completely right.’

He Lan Yun frowned, deep in thought.

Ye Xi covered her face. ’A perfectly good County Princess is being completely corrupted by Yun Zhao.’

"You have a point." He Lan Yun still couldn’t find the catch, so she ultimately agreed.

Song Yunzhao agreed with a perfectly straight face. "Of course. Would I lie to you? For someone like you, County Princess—beautiful, from a good family, with a forthright and generous personality, with everything going your way—if you were also a master of the four arts, how could anyone else even survive? You have to leave a little room for others to live. It’s good for you, good for me, and good for everyone. Isn’t that better?"

He Lan Yun felt this was very reasonable. She was already so wonderful; there was truly no need to compete for anything more.

Ye Xi couldn’t bear to watch any longer. ’She just wanted to ask Yun Zhao if she had any conscience, conning the County Princess like that.’

He Lan Yun’s mood brightened considerably, her earlier displeasure vanishing completely. "I’m making you my friend, and that’s final." freewebnøvel.com

"Well, thank you for your favor, County Princess." Song Yunzhao wasn’t particularly keen on making friends. ’With a friend like the County Princess, how many messes will I have to clean up for her in the future?’

’And Ji Yunting is still waiting out there. That’s a huge pitfall she won’t be able to sidestep. He Lan Yun’s life is bound to be incredibly *eventful* from now on.’

Sigh.

’But the County Princess did help me. And I do have a little bit of a conscience left. Friends it is, I guess. I can’t just watch her fall flat on her face.’

’Otherwise, what little conscience I have left will actually start to ache.’

Nanny Zhang and the other nannies entered Qiushui Pavilion, their expressions weary, and prepared to announce the results according to procedure.

"You have all seen the rankings. Does anyone have any questions?" Nanny Yin asked, looking out at the group.

Everyone shook their heads. Painting skill is quite objective—the works were displayed right there for all to see, and the differences in quality were obvious at a glance. If there had been no clear distinction in technical skill, the judgment would have come down to artistic conception. As it happened, Qin Xiyue excelled in both, making her claim to the top spot indisputable.

Lu Zhixue was close behind in second. To Yun Zhao’s surprise, Feng Yunjin placed third and Han Jinyi fourth. She mentally reviewed the list. ’As expected of the major supporting characters from the book, each one is truly capable.’

’If Song Qinghan hadn’t been expelled, she would have also ranked in the top five. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have been selected in the book.’

’A shame I knocked her out of the running. Now she’ll never have the chance.’

’Taking everything into account, Qin Xiyue is a master of the four arts, ranking first overall among the candidates. How else could she be chosen to later vie for power with the other concubines in the harem?’

’So far, Song Yunzhao had to admit she admired Qin Xiyue’s abilities. She was the main protagonist, after all. Her stats and skills were bound to be fully loaded.’

He Lan Yun’s face was as black as the bottom of a wok. She just couldn’t stand to see Qin Xiyue in the limelight.

Finally, Nanny Su announced the date of the imperial review: the day after tomorrow. The candidates would have the next day off to relax and prepare for the final trial.

Song Yunzhao was taken aback. ’It’s been moved up again.’

He Lan Yun muttered as well, "Why so soon? Didn’t they say last time that we still had a few more days?"

Ye Xi said thoughtfully, "It might have something to do with the recent incident."

The palace officials were likely afraid of another incident. The sooner the review happened and the rankings were decided, the sooner they could rest easy.

Song Yunzhao noticed that He Lan Yun’s expression was off. After they returned from Qiushui Pavilion, she went next door to pay her a visit.

He Lan Yun ushered Song Yunzhao inside, her expression hesitant, as if she wanted to say something but couldn’t find the words.