My husband, in particular, was drenched in a cold sweat; he was terrified that Mother might catch the pair in the act and drag them before Emperor Shengzong.
Mother certainly had every reason to do so—by exposing them, she could secure Shengzong's favor all for herself.
Just as my husband stood there, sweating profusely and at a complete loss for what to do, I whispered to Mother, "Mother, for my sake, please don't tell the Emperor about this, alright? If you do, my husband will be punished! Besides, the only reason my mother-in-law did this is because life in the inner palace is just so lonely! Once the Emperor's initial fascination with you fades and he stops visiting, won't you find yourself craving a man to fuck you, too?"
As soon as I finished speaking, my husband looked at me with an expression of profound gratitude and squeezed my hand tightly.
"You two little fools—who ever said I was going to snitch? In fact, I was planning to ask Sister Pang to teach me a thing or two about seducing men! His Majesty's cock is decent enough, but he's quite limited in his repertoire—he simply can't satisfy me! I'll be visiting Sister Pang often from now on; I'll have her introduce me to a few men so I won't have to spend my nights alone in an empty chamber anymore!"
Mother said this with a brazen, wanton look on her face.
Hearing her words, my husband finally let out a sigh of relief. In truth, my husband's concerns were entirely unnecessary. If he only considered the extent of Mother's power, he would realize that she had no intention of lingering in the imperial palace—let alone any interest in causing trouble for Consort Pang.
When Yao Qiyuan snuck out of the Noble Consort's chambers, we were already hiding nearby; given his level of ability, there was no chance he could have detected us.
Once he had departed, the three of us entered the chambers.
Pushing open the doors, we immediately caught sight of Noble Consort Pang, who was seated before her vanity, attending to her appearance.
She was completely naked, her beautiful, bare back exposed fully to our view.
As he gazed at that lovely, unclothed back, my husband's breathing grew rapid—it seemed he was quite taken with his mother-in-law's physique!
Considering the wanton, lewd nature of women from the Demonic Path, it was highly likely that the two of them had already been intimate.
Upon spotting us in the mirror, Consort Pang turned around with a languid grace, showing no concern whatsoever that her entirely naked body was on display before my husband.
"Oh my—Sister Long," she purred, "what brings you to my quarters? Don't you have to attend to His Majesty today?"
Her coquettish tone carried a hint of jealousy and playful teasing, yet there was no trace of genuine hostility.
"Please, Sister, don't take offense. His Majesty is being looked after by the Princess of Jing today, so he has no need for me. I thought I'd drop by to see you—after all, our children are married now!"
Mother replied.
Seeing that Consort Pang was about to say something more, my husband lunged forward into her embrace and whispered a few words into her ear. My mother and I didn't listen in, yet we knew perfectly well what he was saying.
As soon as my husband finished speaking, Consort Pang's face turned deathly pale.
Just as she was about to say something, my mother stopped her and remarked, "There's no need to be afraid, Sister. I won't breathe a word of this to anyone—rest assured. I won't be staying in the imperial palace for much longer; once a certain matter is settled, I shall be on my way. I only have one thing to ask of you: please, think carefully about what kind of life you truly desire. Once your own kin have satisfied their own desires, will you still be able to live the life you want? Does the world you inhabit even allow for such a life?"
After my mother spoke, a complex expression crossed my mother-in-law's face, and she let out a soft sigh.
"My son-in-law and I have some things to discuss, and I imagine you and your daughter-in-law have things to talk about as well? We'll take our leave, then—you two carry on with your conversation!"
With that, my mother took my husband by the hand and left the Noble Consort's chambers, leaving only my mother-in-law and me behind.
Once they had gone, my mother-in-law took my hand and sat down on the very bed where she had just been fucking Yao Qiyuan.
Looking at this mature, beautiful woman—who appeared so kind and gentle, with not a trace of the demonic sorceress about her—I suddenly found myself at a loss as to how to interact with her.
She was, I realized, completely different from how I had imagined her to be.
"Tianxiang, tell me—do you love my son, your husband?"
Consort Pang asked, her expression earnest.
"I... I don't! I'm sorry!"
Facing Consort Pang in this moment, I found it impossible to lie; I could sense the genuine sincerity in her words.
Before a mother who loved her son so deeply, I could not bring myself to tell a lie. "Sigh! Just as I thought! Your true motive for getting close to my son was to gather information about the Demonic Path, wasn't it?"
"Exactly! I also intended to sow discord among you—to create a rift between you and Pang Xing's group. I know that someone as selfish as Pang Xing would never look out for your interests; if the situation demanded it, he wouldn't hesitate to sacrifice you all."
I replied with complete sincerity.
"True enough! I'm well aware of that, which is why I've been so troubled lately—torn between helping my brother and his faction, or simply washing my hands of the whole affair."
"If it pains you so much, why not just stay out of it entirely? As long as you don't stand against us, I can guarantee that we won't hold you accountable for anything. In fact, if you provide us with information about Pang Xing and his associates, we'll make sure you're treated like royalty. Even if you can no longer be the Emperor or the Empress Dowager, we'll ensure you continue to live a life of imperial luxury."
"My, aren't you a bold girl! Making such grand promises—just how exactly do you plan to 'take care' of me?"
Consort Pang asked, a smile playing on her lips.
In response to Consort Pang's question, a mischievous smirk tugged at the corners of my mouth. "Mother-in-law," I said, "you must be exhausted from attending to Lord Yao. Let me give you a massage!"