The Emperor was vexed and bewildered by the strange phenomenon. He called out for Yinglu, and the eunuch scrambled through the doorway. “Your Majesty, this slave is here.”
“Go and summon Shufei.”
Yinglu acknowledged the order. “This slave will go at once.”
A short while later, the exquisitely dressed and beautiful Shufei gracefully entered and curtsied. “This consort pays her respects to Your Majesty.”
“Mm, you may rise.”
“Thank you, Your Majesty.”
Shufei walked to the Emperor’s side and began to gently massage his shoulders, casually mentioning, “Is my cousin in a poor mood?”
The mere thought of his predicament made the Emperor frown.
But who would believe such a tale of supernatural forces?
Moreover, his cousin was backed by the Ji family. The matter of the Emperor experiencing a strange encounter must not be allowed to spread, lest the literati seize upon it and write grand articles, claiming that his decrees had incurred Heaven’s displeasure, thus forcing time to rewind again and again to make him change his orders.
It wasn’t that the Emperor hadn’t considered this possibility.
During the numerous time rewinds, he had picked out the important memorials he had reviewed and examined them repeatedly and carefully.
The Emperor waved a hand. “It’s a matter of the court.”
Since it was a matter of state, Shufei tactfully refrained from asking further, smiling gently as she said, “Then upon seeing this consort, you can forget all those vexing matters. What do you say, cousin?”
The sovereign’s heart is as deep as an abyss, and the current Son of Heaven had perfected this trait to the extreme.
Even Yinglu, who had served His Majesty for many years, dared not claim to have fully grasped his master’s temperament.
“Mm, have the meal served.”
After the meal, Shufei went to bathe and change.
Everything proceeded as normal. Although there was no tender affection, the Emperor never treated people crudely. Her slender, fair hand unfastened the Dragon Robe for the impassive man, and the Dragon Vein Engine started…
In the next second, the Dragon Robe was back in place, and the Dragon Vein had stalled.
The Emperor: “…?”
Was Heaven even against him propagating the royal line?
He truly had an imperial throne to be inherited!
Refusing to believe it, he untied the Dragon Robe again a few minutes later, and the engine started once more.
The underpants that had just been slightly lowered were back in their original position.
The clothes coming on and off was a minor issue.
The most important thing was that the Dragon Vein had stalled out again.
Physiologically, he was set back a second; psychologically, he was severely frustrated.
And repeatedly starting and stalling was truly damaging to the engine.
“…Your Majesty?”
Seeing the Emperor propped up on the headboard with a gloomy expression, Shufei couldn’t help but feel apprehensive.
“Forget it. I am not in the mood tonight. You may return.”
Even with Shufei’s thunderstruck expression, the Emperor was in no mood to coax her. He waved his hand and had Yinglu carry her back. Shufei dared not say more, her heart weeping. She had been summoned to Weiyang Palace, only to be sent back without having attended to the Emperor. By tomorrow morning, Jianzhang Palace would surely be full of people laughing at her!
After the Emperor lay down, he braced himself for Shufei to be “sent” back.
However, time flowed normally once more. When he slowly awoke in the morning, he finally had no choice but to accept reality—
It seemed Heaven did not want him to choose a consort for the night.
Meanwhile, after Yun Jiao woke up, she blissfully enjoyed the Chestnut Cake she had painstakingly reloaded twice to get last night, of which a large portion remained because she hadn’t wanted to overeat.
The daily routine of learning the rules was extremely dull.
For Yun Jiao, fine food was one of her few comforts.
As for the other new ladies, they were more concerned with the real-time dynamics of the rear palaces.
During breakfast, Attendant He sidled over to whisper to her, “I can’t hold it in anymore. I’ll tell you a secret, but you can’t tell anyone else.”
“Alright.”
“Do you know why Consort Ji is so happy today? She barely ever cracks a smile at us. Take a bold guess why.”
“She had a private rendezvous with the Emperor last night?”
“…No, that’s a bit too bold. Tone it down,” Attendant He said, lowering her voice. “Her legitimate elder sister, Shufei, was summoned to Weiyang Palace last night but was carried back without attending to the Emperor… It’s said that her relationship with Shufei was already bad back at their family estate. I thought Shufei was extremely favored, but it seems she’s not all that.”
Yun Jiao listened, lost in thought.
The way of thinking in this era of imperial power was truly male-centric.
Why was it necessarily Shufei’s fault?
Couldn’t it be that the Emperor was the one who couldn’t perform?
Of course, for the sake of her nine generations of the Yun clan and the ant nest in front of her residence, Yun Jiao did not voice her speculation that “the Emperor couldn’t perform.” Instead, she redirected her attention. “You’re so well-informed. I’m practically blind in the rear palaces. I’ll have to rely on you from now on, Sister He.”
Attendant He said she had connections in the rear palaces and that with her looking out for Yun Jiao, life wouldn’t be too bad.
She even comforted Yun Jiao, telling her not to fear being unfavored. “The Emperor is good and capable, but it’s not the Emperor who serves us in the rear palaces; it’s the palace maids and eunuchs. As long as you handle them well, you can still live a comfortable life.”
Yun Jiao nodded obediently. “You’re so kind, sister.”
Seven days later, the rear palaces’ special agent, Attendant He, told her, “This is bad. It seems Shufei has truly angered the Emperor this time. The Emperor hasn’t set foot in the rear palaces for seven days, nor has he chosen anyone’s plaque!”
Yun Jiao was shocked.
It seemed the Emperor really couldn’t perform anymore.
…
Half a month passed. Not only had the new ladies in Chu Xiu Palace failed to calm down, but they had grown even more restless.
This restlessness reached its peak when Shufei’s head palace maid came to Chu Xiu Palace to tell Consort Ji that she was invited to Yanxi Palace as a guest the next day, and that the young mistress should prepare herself well.
“What guest for a reunion? It’s clearly a recommendation to the Emperor!”
“Doesn’t Shufei look down on her illegitimate younger sister the most?”
“The Ji family must have spoken. Who told her that her own belly is so disappointing.”
The ladies seethed in secret.
But on the second day, Consort Ji failed to make the trip—she had broken out in a red rash. The imperial physician came to diagnose her and told the young mistress not to worry, that it was just a common pollen allergy. She should stay away from flowers and plants, and it would soon fade. Consort Ji had been wholeheartedly anticipating her legitimate sister’s help. Knowing that she couldn’t go today and that the Emperor might not grant Shufei this favor again, she immediately broke down in tears.
“I’m allergic to tulips, and there are no tulips in Chu Xiu Palace! Someone must be trying to harm me! Wet Nurse, you must seek justice for me!”
It was always quiet in Chu Xiu Palace, so everyone heard Consort Ji’s wails.
Attendant He ate an extra bowl of rice to the sound of this crying and polished off all the pastries from Yun Jiao’s portion.
Unexpectedly, a short while later, the frost-faced Wet Nurse Ye walked in and said she was here to summon Yun Daying.
Yun Jiao’s heart tightened.
Believing that one could never have too many saves, she would always keep an extra save file just in case of a sudden incident.
With this save file from three days ago, she felt slightly more at ease.
Wet Nurse Ye led Yun Jiao to Consort Ji’s room. Attendant Zhang was glaring at her with resentment. A screen was placed by the bed, and the sound of sobbing could still be faintly heard from behind it.
“Daying Ji, this is Yan Dianzheng from the Shangong Bureau,” Wet Nurse Ye said.
These past few days, Yun Jiao had been diligently learning the rules, so she knew what this was. A Dianzheng was a female official in the rear palaces, responsible for investigating matters within the palace, enforcing rules, and carrying out punishments. A new lady in Chu Xiu Palace having an allergic reaction with a suspicious cause was not enough to alarm the Empress, but someone had to be found to handle it. The Dianzheng was the best and most authoritative choice.
“Greetings, Yan Dianzheng.”
Yun Jiao nodded at her.
“Since Yun Daying has arrived, I will briefly explain the matter.”
Consort Ji had an allergic rash and insisted it was impossible for her to have come into contact with the allergen. Moreover, her rash was so severe that it couldn’t have been from a small, accidental inhalation; someone must have done it on purpose. She insisted on an investigation, and the Shangong Bureau had no choice but to comply. The investigation turned up a clue—traces of pollen were found on Consort Ji’s bedding, and Consort Ji’s palace maid, Qingmei, claimed that she was the second person to retrieve Consort Ji’s washed and dried bedding, and the one before her was none other than Yun Daying.
Yun Jiao cursed her bad luck.
On the rare occasion she decided to be diligent and go earlier than anyone else, she ended up implicated.
Attendant Zhang’s eyes welled with tears. “She was jealous of Consort Ji and deliberately sought an opportunity to cause trouble, which is why she went to get the bedding herself.”
Yun Jiao said, “Is it possible that it’s because I didn’t bring a maid with me into the palace?”
Attendant Zhang was taken aback, a look of confusion showing through her teary eyes.
“How can a person not have a maid?”
The joys and sorrows of people are not interconnected. Yun Jiao just felt that everyone was very rich.
Selected new ladies could bring one maid into the palace, and one with a servitude contract was more trustworthy to use.
Yan Dianzheng, who had been silent until now, finally spoke. “I have investigated all the palace maids who washed and dried the bedding. They have basically been ruled out as suspects.”
Hearing this, what was there for Yun Jiao not to understand?
Consort Ji had no reason to waste a great opportunity for advancement to frame her. Someone else must have done it, and she was just the unlucky scapegoat.
Yun Jiao calmly observed, memorizing every detail of the event. Just then, a palace maid she didn’t recognize walked in and curtsied. “Yan Dianzheng, an unrecorded jar was found under Yun Daying’s bed.”
A carmine-red jar was exposed to everyone’s sight.
Yun Jiao: “That’s not mine.”
Yan Dianzheng turned to look at her, her gaze as sharp as a torch.
Yun Jiao: “My family can’t afford such fine Foreign Glazed Porcelain.”
“…”
It was a very convincing argument, but Yan Dianzheng looked at her calmly. “The physical evidence was found in your room. Does Yun Daying have anything else to say? Since you cannot afford such fine porcelain, was this jar given to you by someone else?”
Things having come to this, Yun Jiao knew that her words carried little weight and that today, she wouldn’t be able to clear her name even if she jumped into the Yellow River.
She decisively chose to reload to three days ago.