No one slept on the Mid-Autumn night.
After Jiang Ling left Chui Gong Hall, the rear palace under the moonlight resembled a drop of water falling into a calm lake, sending ripples in all directions.
A Ruo and Fang He followed closely behind Jiang Ling, occasionally exchanging glances. They remained silent throughout the journey. Upon returning to Xie Fang Pavilion, Jiang Ling sprawled across the daybed as usual.
“This servant has brought a damp cloth. Cai Ren, please freshen up.” A Ruo and Fang He brought water into the room, diligently attending to Jiang Ling as she washed her hands and drank tea.
Jiang Ling casually took the cloth, pressed it to her face, and wiped haphazardly. Fang He took the cloth back, exchanged a look with A Ruo, and said with an ingratiating smile, “For Cai Ren to be invited to dine with the Emperor is the greatest honor.”
The imperial cuisine of Yuan Mingdi was ten or even a hundred times better than that of Xie Fang Pavilion. But for Jiang Ling, it could hardly be considered the greatest honor.
The matter of Lan Yue Hall had yet to be resolved. Even if Jiang Ling were the most careless person, she couldn’t focus solely on the food.
A Ruo said, “Since the Emperor invited you to dine, Cai Ren should strive harder. If the Emperor had kept you for the night…”
For the night!!!
Jiang Ling had been too nervous in the bedchamber to even consider this possibility. Hearing A Ruo’s words, she sprang up abruptly, startling A Ruo so much that she swallowed the rest of her sentence.
“Cai Ren… what’s wrong?” A Ruo stammered, staring at Jiang Ling’s wide-eyed expression.
Fang He tentatively asked, “Did Cai Ren offend the Emperor, which is why he didn’t keep you for the night?”
Jiang Ling’s face was expressionless as she stared blankly ahead. After a long moment, she wordlessly and stiffly collapsed back onto the daybed.
All the women in the rear palace hoped to serve the Emperor for the night, as it represented imperial favor. Moreover, if they conceived a royal heir—even if only a princess—their lives would be much better than those of childless palace women.
What Jiang Ling was more concerned about was: what if she didn’t enjoy it?
Although the palace women were all pure and untouched, there was no guarantee that Yuan Mingdi hadn’t sneaked out of the palace for illicit affairs or lacked hygiene, potentially exposing them to gynecological infections.
What if she contracted a disease from Yuan Mingdi?
Just as one wave subsided, another arose. Jiang Ling felt utterly hopeless.
Even returning to the modern era as a cute little dog would be better than being an imperial concubine in a palace intrigue story.
The next day, the attention previously focused on Jiang Ling instantly shifted elsewhere.
Because Yuan Mingdi summoned imperial concubines to Chui Gong Hall one after another. From Imperial Concubine Lin down to low-ranking consorts from remote palaces without official rank, his favor showered across the rear palace like thunder and dew.
For a time, some received favor and were rewarded with promotions, while others, like Jiang Ling, left unchanged.
A Ruo and Fang He brought back various news every day. Jiang Ling gradually grew numb, moving from her initial anxiety and unease.
Su Yue and Noble Lady Xu were also summoned to Chui Gong Hall, but neither served the Emperor for the night. The West Side Courtyard remained quiet, as if nothing had ever happened.
Time swiftly reached the end of August. The deep autumn of Jing City arrived abruptly after a night of rain.
The rain fell
“Noble Lady Xu, Noble Lady Xu has been banished to the Imperial Temple!” A Ruo gasped as she rushed before Jiang Ling, unable to contain herself.
Jiang Ling jolted, “What? Has the Gong Zheng Si concluded its investigation?”
“Earlier, Eunuch Huang from the Emperor’s side brought people and took Noble Lady Xu away from Chun Jin Pavilion,” Fang He quickly added.
Jiang Ling instinctively glanced toward the West Side Courtyard and pressed further, “Did anyone from the Shang Yi Bureau get implicated there?”
Fang He followed Jiang Ling’s gaze and replied, “This servant does not know.”
Jiang Ling was certain that Su Yue was the mastermind, while Noble Lady Xu was merely a foolish pawn coaxed into seeking her own doom.
It seemed Yuan Mingdi was indeed a muddle-headed fool, ultimately punishing only a minor underling.
Nevertheless, Noble Lady Xu’s punishment proved Jiang Ling’s innocence.
“Noble Lady Xu’s fate may well be yours. Only, yours will be even more wretched. Now go collect your monthly stipend.”
Jiang Ling chuckled, seizing the chance to intimidate the two. Seeing their faces pale with fear, she sat back down and began meticulously selecting osmanthus blossoms.
A Ruo and Fang He exchanged uneasy glances, not daring to utter another word. They hunched their shoulders and scurried away.
Jiang Ling paused, watching the droplets fall from the eaves tiles. The misty rain cast a haze over both the heart and the eyes, veiling everything in gloom.
Before long, A Ruo and Fang He came running back. Jiang Ling snapped out of her thoughts and, noticing their still-empty hands, asked, “What’s happened now?”
“Cai Ren, people from the Gong Zheng Si are here, the Gong Zheng Si has come!” A Ruo and Fang He cried out in shrill, panicked voices, tripping over each other to speak.
Jiang Ling’s heart leaped to her throat. She set down the bamboo sieve and hurried out. At the entrance of Xie Fang Pavilion, she saw Huang Liang and Song Gongzheng from the Gong Zheng Si approaching, trailed by several palace maids and eunuchs.
Song Gongzheng walked side by side with Huang Liang under an umbrella. She appeared to be around forty, her hair impeccably styled, her face lean, and her eyes exceptionally sharp.
“Jiang Cairen.” Song Gongzheng and Huang Liang halted and bowed respectfully to Jiang Ling.
Jiang Ling nodded in acknowledgment and inquired, “What brings you two here?”
Huang Liang replied, “By His Majesty’s order, we have come to Xie Fang Pavilion to find Su Cai Ren.”
Jiang Ling’s spirits lifted instantly. She had misjudged Yuan Mingdi earlier—he wasn’t entirely foolish after all.
Eager to witness the spectacle, Jiang Ling forgot her usual caution. She slipped into her wooden clogs and eagerly followed them to the West Side Courtyard.
Su Yue emerged to greet them, her face pale as she stood beneath the corridor eaves. Xue Yan and Ming Cui stood solemnly behind her, both filled with trepidation.
Huang Liang, with his hands tucked into his sleeves, announced Yuan Mingdi’s oral decree: “Su Shi, consumed by jealousy, has engaged in gossip and slander, inciting Xu Shi to harm others. She is demoted to Imperial Attendant and relocated to the Imperial Temple for reflection.”
Song Gongzheng immediately added, “Seize Xue Yan and Ming Cui!” No sooner had she spoken than several eunuchs and sturdy palace servants stepped forward and restrained Xue Yan and Ming Cui.
Xue Yan struggled, wailing shrilly, “Spare me, Song Gongzheng, spare me! I’ve already confessed—it was all Cairen’s orders, I had no choice but to obey!”
Ming Cui trembled with equal fear, but she did not plead for mercy. Instead, she wept silently, gazing sorrowfully at Su Yue as she said, “This servant can no longer attend to you, Cairen. Please take care.”
Since Su Yue was still considered one of Yuan Mingdi’s women, the eunuchs merely stood by her side without laying hands on her. The composure she had maintained earlier now shattered; her eyes reddened rapidly as she stared blankly at Ming Cui.
Ming Cui and the palace maid Xue Yan were muffled and dragged away. Su Yue chased after them like a madwoman, rushing into the rain and shouting, “Ming Cui, Ming Cui! Let her go! Ming Cui!”
Huang Liang frowned and jerked his chin toward the eunuchs. They immediately stepped forward to block her, saying in a sinister tone, “Imperial Attendant Su, by His Majesty’s decree, if you keep running wild, don’t blame us for being impolite.”
Su Yue seemed oblivious. Restrained by the eunuchs and unable to move, she frantically screamed Ming Cui’s name.
The palace staff quickly escorted Xue Yan and Ming Cui out of Xie Fang Pavilion. Su Yue broke free abruptly, turned to glare at Jiang Ling, her eyes filled with venomous hatred as she cursed, “You wretch! You think you’ve won! Hahaha, I’ll just wait and see how long someone as foolish as you can keep laughing!”
Huang Liang grew irritated and waved his hand. “Take her away, take her away!”
Jiang Ling was utterly perplexed as to why Su Yue hated her so intensely. She said to Huang Liang, “Eunuch Huang, I’d like to ask her a few questions.”
Huang Liang paused, then waved the eunuchs aside. Su Yue’s hands were freed, and she straightened her back, smoothing her damp, disheveled hair with a contemptuous snort.
After a moment of silence, Jiang Ling asked, “You and I have no enmity between us. I truly believe I’ve never provoked you. Why do you hate me so much?”
“Why hate you? Does hating you require a reason? We both come from humble origins, yet you put on this innocent, aloof act—it’s utterly nauseating! I’ve long had enough of you! What gives you the right to look down on me? What gives you the shameless audacity to call me ‘sister’?”
Su Yue’s eyes were bloodshot, nearly deranged as she lunged toward Jiang Ling, as if wanting to tear her apart. The eunuchs quickly restrained her and led her away.
Jiang Ling still didn’t truly understand why Su Yue hated her.
Perhaps she was unwilling to pick beans in Buddhist devotion, perhaps she was unwilling to face long, lonely years, or perhaps she had lofty ambitions left unfulfilled.
Jiang Ling didn’t want to delve into any of it.
All suffering stems from unattained desires. And such unattained desires are often just futile rage born of incompetence.
Those who seek virtue will find it.
Huang Liang, Song Gongzheng, and their retinue departed, leaving the West Side Courtyard so quiet that only the sound of falling rain remained. The wind blew with a biting chill.
Unconsciously, Jiang Ling tightened her thin jacket and slowly returned to the main room. The clatter of her wooden sandals echoed; she felt no joy in victory, only a listless heaviness.
A Ruo and Fang He were terrified, trembling like quails as they presented the monthly allowance they had collected to Jiang Ling. “Talented Lady, please count it.”
Jiang Ling put away the silver. Fang He, watching her expression carefully, timidly said, “Earlier, some eunuchs and maids came to clean the West Side Courtyard.”
Jiang Ling could guess their thoughts somewhat. Witnessing the fates of Su Yue, Xue Yan, and Ming Cui had frightened them.
Xue Yan was clever; whenever Su Yue had matters to attend to, she was the one who handled them, so Ming Cui was rarely seen. Unexpectedly, in the end, the loyal and reliable one turned out to be the simple and honest Ming Cui.
It would be wonderful to have loyalty like Ming Cui’s, but Jiang Ling knew she couldn’t achieve that herself, and she didn’t force it upon the two. However, Jiang Ling had one requirement: they must not actively harm others.
Although A Ruo and Fang He hadn’t harmed her, it was only because they weren’t clever enough, not because they didn’t want to.
Jiang Ling didn’t feel like speaking or dealing with them. She locked the box, returned to her couch, and continued to space out.
In the afternoon, Jiang Ling rose to find that someone had moved into the West Side Courtyard. It was the newly appointed Talented Lady Gao by Yuan Mingdi, who came to the main room to pay her respects to Jiang Ling.
Jiang Ling looked at Talented Lady Gao’s youthful and delicate face, quickly bending her knees first: “Sister Gao, please have a seat. I’ll have someone tidy up immediately and move to the West Side Courtyard tomorrow morning.”
Talented Lady Gao, who had previously been an Imperial Attendant and was newly favored and granted the rank of Cairen, couldn’t conceal her lasting joy. Hearing Jiang Ling’s words, she couldn’t hide her delight.
The main room was spacious, and residing there signified a different status.
Su Yue had just moved out of the West Side Courtyard when Talented Lady Gao moved in, feeling uncomfortable deep down.
Since Jiang Ling was sensible and willing to move out voluntarily, Talented Lady Gao bit her lip and pretended to decline: “This… isn’t quite appropriate, is it?”
“Appropriate, appropriate,” Jiang Ling, who wasn’t skilled in social interactions, repeated dryly twice, then instructed A Ruo and Fang He to pack her clothes and valuables.
Calling herself “younger sister” and giving up the main room, she only hoped not to encounter another Su Yue.
A Ruo and Fang He didn’t dare to utter a word, following Jiang Ling’s instructions to pack the trunks.
Talented Lady Gao covered her face and laughed, appearing quite troubled: “Since younger sister wishes to live in the West Side Courtyard, I’ll go back and tell them not to unpack the luggage, to make moving easier.”
Jiang Ling agreed and went to fetch her box containing silver and jewelry. Talented Lady Gao walked out of the room cheerfully and ran into two eunuchs.
She had seen one of them named Zhang Shan in front of the emperor at Chui Gong Hall and couldn’t help but show a pleased expression, saying: “Eunuch Zhang is here. I came to greet Jiang Cairen and will return now.”
Zhang Shan raised his hand in salute and went straight into the room, causing the smile on Talented Lady Gao’s face to freeze.
Seeing trunks placed everywhere in the room, Zhang Shan was momentarily stunned, then said: “Jiang Cairen, His Majesty summons you for an audience.”
Jiang Ling, holding the box in her arms, couldn’t help but start to feel anxious.
Was Yuan Mingdi going to start with her again, spreading his favor widely throughout the rear palace?