After the gathering at the Palace of Earthly Tranquility concluded, the consorts and concubines departed in order of rank.
On the palace path outside the Palace of Earthly Tranquility, Su Yuewu was walking when she heard footsteps approaching from behind. Turning around, she saw Chen Yanqiao.
Chen Yanqiao quickly caught up to her, bowed with a deferential expression, and whispered, “Thank you, Your Highness, for stepping in earlier regarding Consort Lin’s matter.”
Su Yuewu’s first impression of Chen Yanqiao was that she had betrayed her former mistress, which was not favorable. However, after witnessing Lin Yue’s attitude toward Chen Yanqiao today, she suddenly felt it was understandable.
With a mistress like that, who wouldn’t want to break away?
Moreover, Chen Yanqiao’s “betrayal” merely meant she no longer willingly allowed herself to be ordered around. In the earlier situation, she could have appealed to the Empress, stating her grievances. Under the watchful eyes of everyone, Lin Yue would have had no defense.
Yet she remained silent, tacitly accepting the Empress’s judgment that “both were at fault.”
Since they would be sharing the same palace from now on, as long as Chen Yanqiao’s character was not fundamentally flawed, Su Yuewu was willing to maintain a good relationship with her.
“You should find a time to make things clear to Consort Lin, letting her understand that you are now a palace consort and will no longer be treated like a servant as before. Otherwise, the next time Consort Lin sees you with me, she will still fly into a rage as she did today.”
Chen Yanqiao gave a bitter smile. “I understand Your Highness’s kindness, but as you saw, Lin Yue is not someone who can be reasoned with.”
“That’s true,” Su Yuewu glanced at her and said lightly, “As long as you reside in my palace, I will not stand by and watch you be wronged without cause. As for the rest, you’ll have to rely on yourself.”
Chen Yanqiao replied gratefully, “Your Highness has already done more than enough. I thank you and dare not ask for more.”
Behind them, Jiang Junrou watched from afar as the two walked side by side, chatting happily. Her long lashes trembled slightly, concealing the deep disappointment in her eyes.
“Master, I told you to go over, but you refused. Now you’re here regretting it again. Ah, you’re always like this!”
The maid Chan’er was both angry and anxious.
Jiang Junrou shook her head softly. “I’m not upset. Earlier, when she was arguing with Consort Lin, I didn’t even have the courage to step forward and help her. What would I do going over now? I’m just watching…”
Chan’er had nothing more to say. “Fine, then keep watching. As my lady says, you might as well never interact with anyone and live a solitary life!”
Jiang Junrou said nothing and turned to walk back toward the Palace of Gathered Elegance.
…
Su Yuewu and Chen Yanqiao chatted intermittently as they walked. As they neared the Palace of Earthly Honor, they suddenly saw an entourage blocking the path ahead.
Exchanging a glance, both saw suspicion and wariness in each other’s eyes.
After all, this was the only path leading to the Palace of Earthly Honor. Blocking it here clearly indicated ill intentions.
Su Yuewu, however, showed no fear and walked forward calmly. Chen Yanqiao followed two steps behind, her head lowered.
As they drew closer, they could see the woman standing beneath the entourage.
She wore an elegant yet simple moon-white palace gown with exquisite embroidery, adorned with jade hairpins and silver ornaments. Her earlobes were graced with a pair of white magnolia earrings. With a slender jaw, a waist as delicate as a willow, she appeared pure, fragile, and utterly captivating.
“Greetings to Consort Su!”
Su Yuewu was the first to curtsy in salute, with Chen Yanqiao following closely behind.
Su Yunshu was supported by a palace maid, originally watching a few sparrows hopping about on the distant tree branches. Hearing the voice, she slowly turned her gaze back.
She first looked Su Yuewu up and down, then glanced at Chen Yanqiao, commanding, “You may withdraw.”
“Yes.”
Chen Yanqiao keenly sensed the unusual atmosphere; the relationship between these two Su cousins seemed somewhat strange. Before leaving, she glanced at Su Yuewu, only to see no sign of distress on the other’s face.
Su Yunshu watched Chen Yanqiao’s figure disappear at the intersection of the palace path before turning back, coldly staring at Su Yuewu and getting straight to the point: “Why did you enter the palace? Is it to compete with me for something? For His Majesty? Or for Aunt?”
Su Yunshu’s palace maids had already guarded both ends of the palace path, so she spoke without restraint, unafraid of being overheard.
She recalled the scene when her aunt had selected Su family women to enter the palace. Only she shared the closest bloodline with her aunt, who had initially favored her the most. His Majesty had also been gentle and considerate toward her. Back then, whenever she cried, the entire Eastern Palace would revolve around her.
But later, all of this changed because of Su Yuewu.
Fearless and unrestrained, she could laugh and play, delighting her aunt with both affection and exasperation, and captivating His Majesty so deeply that he could no longer see anyone else, even sending the other Su women out of the Eastern Palace.
Clearly, all of this had originally been hers.
Finally, when her cousin grew tired of Su Yuewu, she returned to the Eastern Palace and regained everything she had lost. Now in the palace, with her aunt’s support, her status could rival that of the Empress. Yet Su Yuewu had come again…
As soon as she arrived, even Consort Zhang Xian, who had merely given birth to a princess, dared to speak insolently to her.
If it had been Su Yuewu from two years ago, she might not have understood the meaning behind these words. But now, she clearly saw the jealousy and hatred in her cousin’s eyes.
Su Yuewu looked at her and smiled: “Your Highness, Her Majesty the Empress Dowager is the mother of all consorts in the rear palace and the grandmother of all princes and princesses. His Majesty is the sovereign father of the realm and the husband of all women in the rear palace. They do not belong exclusively to any one person. How can there be any talk of competition?”
“Spare me these high-sounding words,” Su Yunshu said with extreme annoyance. “I ask you only one thing: Did you enter the palace of your own will, or was it the Su family’s decision?”
Su Yuewu lowered her gaze. “His Majesty held a grand selection, and this concubine, being of suitable age, entered the palace voluntarily.”
Su Yunshu sneered. “So it was your own decision. In that case, be careful in the palace from now on. Do not provoke me, or I will send a letter home and have my father speak to your father!”
A faint glimmer flickered in Su Yuewu’s eyes.
She wondered whether she should tell this cousin that she was actually troubled by not knowing how to deal with her own family.
In comparison, Concubine Yun was easier to handle. As long as she established herself in the palace, her father, however reluctant, would not prioritize a concubine over his own interests.
The difficult one was her father.
Women often blamed other women for their misfortunes, but Su Yuewu did not think this way. While her mother’s death was indeed orchestrated by Concubine Yun, her father was not innocent in the matter.
If in the future she were to watch him rise swiftly in his career, enjoying smooth official advancement, remarrying a beautiful wife, and taking lovely concubines—all while basking in her reflected glory—she feared she might not be able to resist taking a knife, storming into the Hall of Mental Cultivation, holding it to Shen Heng’s neck, and having the entire family executed for treason.
Su Yunshu thought she had intimidated her, and the knot in his heart eased slightly, with a faint trace of contempt appearing in his eyes.
What good was it to win the favor of his aunt and the emperor? In the imperial palace, without a powerful maternal clan as backing, it was ultimately like flowers reflected in a mirror or duckweed floating in a pond—gone with a single gust of wind.