Red Chamber 11
A Yuan had just finished her morning meal in Qianqing Palace when Chang’an, the Emperor’s chief steward, arrived: “This servant pays respects to Noble Lady Lin. Congratulations, Noble Lady Lin. Yongshou Palace has been prepared, and His Majesty specifically instructed this servant to escort Noble Lady Lin back to Yongshou Palace.”
“You’ve worked hard, Chief Steward.” A Yuan’s voice was soft, seeming somewhat bashful because Chang’an had mentioned the Emperor, her cheeks flushed.
“Not at all, not at all, this is all within our duties.”
The usually stern Chief Steward Chang’an was exceptionally cheerful today. Since early morning, a smile had been fixed on his face. Now, seeing Noble Lady Lin’s delicate appearance, needing a palace maid’s support even to walk, his smile grew even wider.
There was a certain… inexplicable affection and gratification?
After all, the child he had personally raised had finally grown up. Chang’an almost wished he could pull out a handkerchief and weep—it had been truly difficult. Previously, seeing how His Majesty loathed those Personnel Palace Maids, he had thought His Majesty was unwilling to be close to women.
Now it seemed His Majesty was simply unwilling to be close to Personnel Palace Maids specifically.
Where there’s a first, there will be a second. Chang’an now looked toward Chuxiu Palace with shining eyes. He only hoped these young mistresses could soon conceive His Majesty’s children, give birth to the First Imperial Prince, and make His Majesty’s path to personal rule smoother.
Exiting Qianqing Palace, the imperial sedan chair was already waiting at the foot of the steps.
A palace maid supported A Yuan’s arm as she helped her onto the sedan chair. The procession then left Longfu Gate and headed toward Yongshou Palace.
Qianqing Palace and Yongshou Palace were very close.
Turning left after exiting Longfu Gate brought them to Yongshou Palace. Though it couldn’t compare to Yikun Palace, it was still considered an excellent palace residence. Especially since during the day, the Emperor spent most of his time at Qianqing Gate meeting with officials and handling state affairs, and Yuehua Gate, the closest to Qianqing Gate, was even nearer to Yongshou Palace.
Apart from Jingren Palace, there was no palace residence better than this one.
The sedan chair landed at the entrance of Yongshou Gate. At this moment, Yongshou Gate was wide open, revealing the white jade screen wall inside, as well as the faintly visible trees behind it and the upturned eaves of the main hall.
A Yuan stepped down from the sedan chair, and a young palace maid nearby, showing good awareness, immediately stepped forward to support A Yuan’s hand.
A Yuan: “…”
Though she was somewhat tired, she wasn’t to the point of being unable to stand.
However, for her younger brother’s confidence, she didn’t mind being a bit more ‘delicate.’
Seeing Noble Lady Lin unconsciously leaning on the palace maid beside her, Chang’an knew she was thoroughly exhausted. Without further ado, he led Noble Lady Lin through the gate.
Rounding the screen wall, A Yuan saw two rows of palace servants kneeling at the foot of the main hall steps: one row of palace maids, one row of eunuchs, each numbering over ten. As she was only a Noble Lady, naturally not all of them were there to serve her.
Sure enough, Chang’an stepped forward: “By His Majesty’s oral decree, the Noble Lady is specially granted residence in the main hall of Yongshou Palace.”
The main hall?
A Yuan was somewhat surprised inwardly. It seemed this first woman was truly quite special. To be able to reside in the main hall, which was meant for concubines of higher rank, with only a Noble Lady’s rank and title—it appeared this young Emperor had a bit of a ‘first-time attachment.’
However, this was beneficial for A Yuan.
Now that she had taken the young Emperor’s first experience, she only needed to plan carefully, then give birth to the First Imperial Prince and First Imperial Princess, and her life would be set!
Looking at the long scroll of tasks in her mission bar, A Yuan’s mood improved considerably. My darlings, just wait a little longer. Once I’ve firmly established my footing, I’ll come and favor you one by one!
Chang’an saw that Noble Lady Lin was so overjoyed she seemed dazed, and quickly gave a light cough.
A Yuan snapped back to attention and hurriedly performed a curtsy toward the direction of Qianqing Palace: “Thank you for His Majesty’s gracious favor.”
After A Yuan finished her curtsy, Chang’an continued introducing: “These are all servants I personally selected early this morning. Noble Lady may choose several from among them to serve you closely.”
Originally, according to rank and title, a noble lady was only entitled to four palace maids and four eunuchs. But who could have expected A Yuan to be specially granted residence in the main hall of Yongshou Palace? Unless something unexpected happened, once this lady became pregnant, she would be promoted to the rank of concubine. Therefore, her Stipend Allocation was directly set according to that of a concubine.
Thus, A Yuan could have one health and nourishment matron, six palace maids, two eighth-rank eunuch chiefs, and twelve ordinary eunuchs.
No wonder women who entered the palace would stop at nothing to climb higher. In just one night, A Yuan had gone from being a Candidate Maiden in Chuxiu Palace who had to squeeze onto a communal sleeping platform to becoming a reserve main palace occupant. Such a disparity in status—how could anyone easily maintain a steady temperament?
A Yuan was not in a hurry to choose people for now. Instead, she looked at Chang’an: “The health and nourishment matron you mentioned, Chief Steward…”
“This is Aunt Jin.” Chang’an pointed to a palace maid kneeling at the very front: “She previously served in Qianqing Palace. His Majesty, concerned for Noble Lady, specially assigned her to serve you.”
Aunt Jin? Jin?
What a wonderful surname—it matched her SSR card perfectly!
“This servant pays respects to Mistress.” Aunt Jin immediately kowtowed to A Yuan.
A Yuan slightly bent at the waist, her hand gesturing in mid-air as if to help her up: “Aunt Jin, please rise quickly.”
Only then did Aunt Jin stand up. Looking closely, she was only in her thirties, with few wrinkles on her face, yet she had already become a ‘health and nourishment matron.’
Chang’an had delivered the people and introduced Aunt Jin. What followed did not require his constant supervision. As chief steward, he could not be away from the Emperor for too long, so he bid farewell to A Yuan, who naturally nodded cheerfully.
After Chang’an left, A Yuan first dismissed the other servants, then took Aunt Jin into the main hall.
The main hall of Yongshou Palace had a width of five bays. The central main hall was very solemn and dignified, furnished with one throne seat, two large tripod incense burners, four palace lanterns with green jade pillars, and thick carpets covering the floor. Landscape paintings hung on the left and right walls, and various decorative items were placed on the long narrow tables below. This area was usually kept for passage only. In the future, when lower-ranking ladies entered Yongshou Palace, it would be reserved for them to pay respects to the main palace occupant.
Two doors were set into each of the east and west walls. On the left was the Western Warm Chamber, and on the right was the Eastern Warm Chamber.
The Western Warm Chamber served as the daily activity area, while the Eastern Warm Chamber contained the bedroom, Water Chamber, and a large kang bed. The door to the Western Warm Chamber was still closed, waiting to be arranged after A Yuan settled in, but the bedroom on the east side had already been prepared.
A Yuan led Aunt Jin into the Eastern Warm Chamber.
Although Aunt Jin did not know what her mistress intended to do, she still followed her inside. Who could have guessed that as soon as she entered, she would see her mistress suddenly turn around? Before she could react, she felt a flash of golden light before her eyes, and her vision blurred momentarily.
A Yuan had already been holding the SSR gold card in her hand since she was in the main hall. Taking advantage of the moment when Aunt Jin’s guard was down, she directly slapped it toward her.
After slapping it, she cautiously retreated several steps, leaning her back against the carved door panel opposite the kang bed. Her gaze was sharp as she watched Aunt Jin, wanting to see what reaction she would have.
Aunt Jin first stood rigidly, then instinctively raised her hand to her forehead, shaking her head as if dizzy. After recovering for a while, she straightened up again, her gaze returning to A Yuan.
“Master,” Aunt Jin performed a strange bow to A Yuan.
A Yuan: “…”
“Don’t bow like that in the future!” It was too different from the palace etiquette.
“Yes,” Aunt Jin respectfully lowered her head.
A Yuan stared at her for a moment, and after confirming she was harmless, she moved from beside the carved door to the kang. The kang had already been freshly decorated with cushions, pillows, and bedding newly delivered by the Imperial Household Department, all adorned with python patterns, showing great care.
She sat on the edge of the kang, and Aunt Jin immediately stepped forward to help her remove her shoes, assisting her to sit on the bedding. Leaning against the pillows, A Yuan yawned. Her younger brother was fierce, and even with good physical stamina, she was tired now.
“Tell me, why did His Majesty assign you to serve me?”
She didn’t believe that after just one night, the young Emperor would care enough to specially transfer a female official from the imperial presence to serve her.
“His Majesty specifically dispatched this servant to help the master regulate her health, so she may conceive early and give birth to a prince,” Aunt Jin answered truthfully. “However, this servant’s former master was not His Majesty, but the Retired Emperor.”
The Retired Emperor?
A Yuan raised an eyebrow. “Did the Retired Emperor give any orders?”
“None so far,” Aunt Jin shook her head.
A Yuan beckoned Aunt Jin closer and whispered, “Are there any other people from the Retired Emperor in Qianqing Palace?”
“There are two other female officials and two cleaning eunuchs.”
Thinking A Yuan was worried someone might harm the Emperor, Aunt Jin quickly explained, “Among the three female officials, including this servant, only this servant was previously in charge of the three daily meals. The other two are both ceremonial officials and rarely have contact with His Majesty.”
It was precisely because she was in charge of the meals that she could be assigned to A Yuan’s side.
A Yuan thought the young Emperor was truly lucky. With his three daily meals controlled by the Retired Emperor, he had still managed to live safely to this age.
“Master, the food-testing eunuchs in Qianqing Palace are replaced every year.”
So even if she dared to poison the food, she couldn’t kill the Emperor!
“In that case, don’t cut off contact with the Retired Emperor for now. Yongshou Palace will also be entrusted to you. I’m going to sleep for a while. Go and select the palace maids and eunuchs who will serve in the future. I won’t waste my energy on these matters.”
“Yes,” Aunt Jin once again accepted the task with a determined expression.
A Yuan was satisfied. Although the conversation was brief, she already felt Aunt Jin’s loyalty. As expected of an SSR, she even came with a loyalty attribute.
Truly amazing!
Although Aunt Jin had accepted the task, she did not forget to attend to A Yuan as she slept. Inside the carved door, the space was divided into three rooms: the leftmost was the Water Chamber, the middle was the green gauze cabinet, and the innermost room was A Yuan’s bedroom.
It was just as cramped as Qianqing Palace, with the head and foot of the bed pressed against the walls. However, it was much wider than the bed in Qianqing Palace, making it particularly suitable for two people to move around. At the innermost part was a bed cabinet, with drawers and compartments where A Yuan could keep her daily playthings.
After removing her outer clothes and getting into bed, A Yuan covered herself with the quilt and fell asleep.
With Aunt Jin managing things outside, by the time A Yuan woke up, the entire Yongshou Palace had been tidied up in an orderly manner.
A Yuan listlessly held a teacup as she drank water. Before her stood four palace maids, precisely the four personal senior maids selected by Aunt Jin, who were now requesting her to bestow names and acknowledge them as their master.
“Then… Baoqin, Siqi, Daishu, and Ruhua.”
Recalling the four chief maidservants of the Four Springs in Rongguo Mansion, A Yuan suddenly felt a mischievous impulse and bestowed their names upon these four.
“Thank you, Mistress, for bestowing names.” The four senior maids, having received their new names, immediately knelt to express gratitude.
A Yuan nodded: “Rise. From now on, serve diligently under Aunt Jin. I won’t say more.”
“Yes.”
Seeing that A Yuan truly had no intention of giving instructions, Aunt Jin stepped forward and quietly introduced each maid in detail. A Yuan kept Baoqin and Daishu by her side to attend to her, while Siqi and Ruhua were assigned to manage the Western Warm Chamber and the small kitchen, and the Private Treasury and the account books of Yongshou Palace, respectively.
After the introductions, she dismissed them.
However, Baoqin returned shortly after stepping out.
“Mistress, just now Eunuch Youfu, the deputy chief steward of Qianqing Palace, came to relay a message: His Majesty will come to Yongshou Palace later to accompany you for the midday meal.”
A Yuan: “…”
How long has it been since we parted?
Is the little Emperor being a bit too clingy?