The night deepened, and Jin Hua Palace was enveloped in silence.
Jiang Huan knelt on both knees, the chill of the blue bricks piercing her kneecaps like countless icy needles, the pain spreading finely and densely throughout her body.
She gritted her teeth, trying her best to shift her body's weight onto her calves, alternating the pressure between her left and right knees to ease the discomfort.
But the suffering she had to endure remained undiminished.
Palace intrigue truly took a toll on one's health.
Most importantly, she had already stood up the Emperor once before.
If she failed to show up again tomorrow, it would be the second time!
With that emperor who was quick to order beheadings, she couldn't be sure of her fate.
Lost in these chaotic thoughts, Jiang Huan knelt through the entire night.
The next day.
After the morning court session, Huo Lin returned to the Hall of Mental Cultivation. Instead of Jiang Huan, he was met with food delivered from the Imperial Kitchen.
Expressionless, he picked up the silver chopsticks and ate the vegetables without any appetite.
Huo Lin felt aggrieved, more uncomfortable than if he had swallowed a fly.
Hadn't Jiang Huan patted her chest yesterday, promising to cook for him every day? Why was there no sign of her today?
The food from the Imperial Kitchen made him nauseous just looking at it. The vegetables were as bland as plain water—how could they compare to the aroma of Jiang Huan's fried chicken and fries?
The more he thought about it, the more something felt off. Could it be that because he hadn't told Jiang Huan what he wanted to eat yesterday, she hadn't come?
Hiss, that was a possibility!
No, he had to send someone to find Jiang Huan immediately. He couldn't miss out on delicious food over such a trivial matter.
Huo Lin took out the menu Jiang Huan had given him, selected a few dishes, and copied them onto a new slip of paper.
He handed the slip to Chen Jinxi and instructed, "Take this to Changzai Zhuang."
"Yes."
Chen Jinxi accepted the slip and headed to Jin Hua Palace. To his surprise, he saw Jiang Huan kneeling in the courtyard outside the main hall.
Jiang Huan's face was deathly pale, with faint dark circles under her eyes and colorless lips. She looked as though she might collapse at any moment.
"Changzai Zhuang!"
Chen Jinxi was horrified and rushed over to help her up.
Jiang Huan's legs, numb from kneeling all night, began to ache with a fine, dense pain. A layer of sweat beaded on her forehead, and she furrowed her brows.
In her dazed state, she saw the young eunuch's face and thought she was dreaming.
She had knelt for an entire night and had even mastered the skill of sleeping while sitting up.
If Chen Jinxi hadn't been there to support her, she would have surely collapsed.
A palace maid who had been overseeing Jiang Huan's punishment stepped forward to intervene.
"Consort Yu has given orders. Without her permission, Changzai Zhuang is not allowed to rise or leave."
Chen Jinxi's expression instantly turned stern. He glared, exuding an imposing aura.
"His Majesty sent me to find Changzai Zhuang. I'd like to see which wretched creature dares to stop me! If you delay His Majesty's affairs, I'll dismantle your lazy bones and feed them to the imperial hounds!"
The palace maid, being a lowly servant, didn't dare utter a word of refusal upon hearing that Chen Jinxi had invoked the Emperor's name.
With a grim expression, she stepped aside. "This humble servant wouldn't dare."
Chen Jinxi snorted coldly and led Jiang Huan away.
Back in the West Side Hall, Jiang Huan drank some hot water and sat on the soft couch, finally catching her breath.
Her head still felt a bit dizzy, and she remembered to ask, "Sir Eunuch, what brings you here?"
"His Majesty sent me to deliver this to you." Chen Jinxi said, handing Huo Lin's written slip to Jiang Huan.
Jiang Huan took the note and saw several dish names written on it.
These dishes all required considerable effort to prepare. Had Jiang Huan not been punished, they would likely have been ready by now.
But now it seemed impossible.
Despite her attempts to evade punishment by cutting corners last night, her knees had inevitably been injured. Prolonged standing would be sheer torture.
So cooking was out of the question!
Yet she couldn’t let the Emperor think she was unwilling to cook.
"Eunuch Chen, could I trouble you to relay a message to His Majesty?" Jiang Huan offered a feeble smile. "The dishes His Majesty requested require extensive preparation time. However, after being punished by Consort Yu to kneel all night, my knees are injured, making it truly impossible for me to prepare meals for His Majesty today. Once I've recovered tomorrow, I'll prepare extra dishes to make amends."
Who wouldn’t be upset after kneeling all night?
This was the perfect opportunity to redirect the blame toward Consort Yu.
Besides, as an invalid, even if the Emperor were to assign blame, the first strike wouldn’t fall on her.
When Chen Jinxi heard Jiang Huan mention her injury, he recalled what he had witnessed in the main hall and couldn’t help but inquire further.
"Would Changzai Zhuang be willing to share the reason for your punishment? If His Majesty asks, this humble servant can help explain the situation on your behalf."
How wonderful, Jiang Huan thought to herself. Eunuch Chen had clearly understood her hint—those fries she’d given him hadn’t gone to waste.
Only a fool would pass up such a perfect chance to tattle!
Jiang Huan furrowed her brows, letting the ends droop sorrowfully.
If it was acting they wanted, she’d bring home an Oscar.
"Yesterday, I went to the Hall of Mental Cultivation to deliver food to His Majesty. Upon returning, I was forcibly taken away by Consort Yu’s attendants. Consort Yu accused me of leaving without permission and violating palace rules, so she punished me by making me kneel all night."
As she spoke, Jiang Huan’s eyes reddened slightly. She lifted her gaze, her round almond-shaped eyes appearing both innocent and aggrieved.
After hearing her account, Chen Jinxi couldn’t help but feel indignant on her behalf.
It was obvious Consort Yu had deliberately found an excuse to punish Jiang Huan. Though his lowly status prevented him from confronting Consort Yu directly, he could still say a few words in her defense before the Emperor.
With resolve in his eyes, Chen Jinxi declared, "Changzai Zhuang, rest assured. If His Majesty inquires, this humble servant will report everything truthfully."
"In that case, I thank you, Eunuch."
Without another word, Chen Jinxi turned and hurried straight to the Hall of Mental Cultivation to deliver the message to Huo Lin.
"Your servant pays respects to Your Majesty. Changzai Zhuang has asked me to relay a message."
Huo Lin gestured for Chen Jinxi to rise, his gaze cold. "What message?"
Chen Jinxi, neither subservient nor arrogant, recounted everything truthfully: what he had witnessed in the main hall involving Jiang Huan, her inability to cook for Huo Lin that day, and the reason for her punishment.
Upon hearing this, Huo Lin’s eyes turned icy.
"Utter nonsense!"
He slammed a memorial onto the desk, an aura of midwinter frost seeming to emanate from him.
He had been eagerly anticipating Jiang Huan’s cooking all day, and now Consort Yu had gone and injured her!
First, she served a bowl of sweet and sour ribs to disgust him, and now she was bullying his chef.
It seemed Consort Yu had grown tired of living.
Unforgivable!
"Wang Degui! Relay my decree: Consort Yu, for her lack of virtue, is demoted to Changzai!"
With the Emperor enraged, no one dared approach to invite trouble.
Upon receiving the decree, Wang Degui immediately set off for Jin Hua Palace to convey Huo Lin’s orders.
Although Consort Yu—now Changzai Yu—had been punished, Huo Lin found no satisfaction in it. A gloomy atmosphere lingered around him the entire morning.
Time gradually passed, and soon it was noon.
Huo Lin set down the memorial in his hand and glanced out the window, allowing himself a brief moment of relaxation.
Seeing this, Wang Degui asked in a low voice, "Your Majesty, it is already noon. Shall we have the meal served?"
The thought of the food prepared by the Imperial Kitchen made Huo Lin's stomach ache, leaving him with no appetite at all.
It would be a waste to have it served anyway. The thought alone stirred a wave of irritation in his heart.
If it weren't for Changzai Yu, he would have already enjoyed a delicious, steaming feast today!
However, although Jiang Huan said she couldn't prepare those elaborate dishes for him, she still had to eat. Did that mean…
A faint glimmer lit up Huo Lin's dark eyes, as if a ray of sunlight from outside had inadvertently slipped into them.
"No need. I will go see Changzai Zhuang," he said, rising to his feet. With long strides, he headed toward Jin Hua Palace.