“Xia Mian, read.” The clear, forceful female voice echoed through the room. Fu Xinghe stopped her from time to time and pointed at someone, ordering her to recite the maximum penalty for a specific statute.
“Execution,” “death by beating,” “bestowal of white silk.” Words of death lingered in the air. No one dared not listen.
Fu Xinghe set The Great Xi Code aside and tapped the table lightly. “If you want imperial favor, rely on your own abilities. Do not use despicable tricks on me. If I discover any of it, I will not be lenient. I let you enter, and I can just as easily make you leave.”
She deliberately observed everyone’s expressions, her gaze settling on Yan Pianpian and Yu Feng. “I assume your fathers have already analyzed my natal family’s situation for you.”
She paused, then said in an exceptionally sincere tone, “His Majesty belongs to you. I will not compete with you for a favor. Mutual respect, mutual noninterference. Put your limited energy into serving the emperor.”
After that, Fu Xinghe added a few words meant to rally them. “His Majesty is burdened with state affairs and widely learned. He disdains sentimental entanglements. If the inner palace is filled with smoke and chaos and His Majesty is unwilling to step inside, then everyone loses together. You all entered the palace at the same time. Seek common ground while reserving differences. Pull in the same direction and twist yourselves into a single rope.”
She picked up a delicate, translucent coconut water chestnut cake and put it into her mouth. “Steam the water chestnut cake properly first, then think about dividing it. Understand?” Her words were thunderous.
The others stared at Fu Xinghe in a daze. The selection had dragged on for so long that they could more or less guess His Majesty’s intentions. Once it was stated outright, they could not help but follow Fu Xinghe’s line of thought and flesh it out.
Xia Mian felt her scalp go numb. Wasn’t Consort Qian’s meaning simply that the entire harem should work together to draw His Majesty’s attention away from state affairs first, then talk about everything else?
If His Majesty heard this, he would explode with rage.
Yet there was nothing wrong with what the consort said. Xia Mian felt dazed, as if she were listening to some treatise on imperial governance.
Fu Xinghe stopped at that point. Whether a few people understood or not did not matter. As long as she could remove herself from the mess and, incidentally, irritate the tyrant, it was enough. “Xia Mian, see them out.”
After finishing one piece of water chestnut cake, Fu Xinghe slowly considered how to improve the flavor next time.
Perhaps because she was not yet accustomed to palace life, she had begun craving all kinds of snacks. If she could not eat them, she wanted to make them herself.
She immediately burrowed into the kitchen to experiment with lüdagun.
Soybean flour was toasted in the pan until lightly golden, bursting with fragrance. Thick, rich sweetness filled the air as she rolled prepared glutinous rice dough through it, then rolled it into small quilt-like logs.
Xia Mian stood to the side handing her plates. The imperial consort had spent seven consecutive days researching pastries in the small kitchen. Starting with water chestnut cake on the first day, she made each item twice, and the second batch was always a hundred times better than the first.
Lüdagun became a daily staple. The consort usually only tasted one or two pieces fresh out of the pot, giving the rest to the servants.
Xia Mian had not expected her daily routine to become standing guard while the consort made pastries. Both she and the consort had put on a bit of weight. Fortunately, the consort did not have an excessive sweet tooth. Otherwise, Xia Mian felt that if this continued, even her martial arts would deteriorate.
Fu Xinghe touched her cheek. The original body had been thin, with a sharp chin. When she had first arrived, she would feel dizzy upon waking. After her recent relentless efforts, there was now some flesh when she pinched her face. It was certainly very different from how it felt that night in the thatched hut.
She pinched her waist as well. She needed to get a plumper there too.
“Time is tight. The task is heavy.”
If she ever ran into the tyrant head-on, she could not allow him to make even the slightest association.
Thinking this, Fu Xinghe grabbed another fluffy, sweet brown sugar malagao.
Then she took another piece.
She ended up lying on the consort’s couch, overstuffed, reflecting on herself. How could she eat so much?
Ultimately, it was because deep down she was afraid of Meng Dongting discovering her identity. It was her body’s instinct urging her to change her appearance.
Fu Xinghe clicked her tongue twice. So it turned out she was this timid. Truly useless.
She had been in the palace for eight days now. Counting the days at the Fu residence before that, it had been more than half a month. Wenhua Hall was a fine place for retirement, just a bit stifling. She could not rely on pastries forever to pass the time.
Turning a page of a history book, Fu Xinghe asked casually, “Has the harem been peaceful lately?”
After eating so much of the consort’s food, Xia Mian felt obliged to answer. She thought for a moment and reported some inconsequential matters. “Replying to Your Highness, there have been no major incidents. Just a few minor ones. Concubine Yu heard that His Majesty often visits the Imperial Garden and spent three consecutive days playing the zither in the garden pavilion, hoping the music would attract him. Yan Cairen refused to be outdone and played the morin khuur. Both injured their fingers.”
Fu Xinghe asked, “And then?”
Xia Mian hesitated.
Fu Xinghe looked at her with reproachful eyes. You clearly have not reached the exciting part yet.
Xia Mian had no choice but to continue. “At first they competed in technique. Later, seeing no one in the Imperial Garden, they began confronting each other, competing over who could play louder.”
At that point there was no technique left at all. The two melodies rose and fell sharply, shrill and piercing, carrying from the north corner of the garden all the way to the south.
“His Majesty was playing chess with the Third Prince in the southern pavilion of the Imperial Garden and lost his temper.”
It was more than just losing his temper. Meng Dongting’s expression was extremely ugly. At first, he heard faint, intermittent music and pretended not to notice, not even curious who was playing. Who knew they would escalate, the sound making him want to kill someone.
The Third Prince even joked, “The musician is truly devoted. Why does Your Majesty not go take a look?”
Meng Dongting had no experience dealing with women’s affairs. Punishing such a small matter harshly seemed inappropriate. After enduring it, he could only order Fu Gonggong to cut all the strings in the harem, killing the chicken to warn the monkeys.
Because Fu Xinghe did not play any instruments, the palace attendants never came to Wenhua Hall to cut strings.
Fu Xinghe nearly applauded the table in delight, forcing herself not to laugh too openly in front of Meng Dongting’s eyes and ears.
Serves him right. Just wait. There would be more entertainment to come.
Fu Xinghe’s daily amusement now depended entirely on Meng Dongting. She told Xia Mian, “Any stir in the harem, tell me everything you can.”
Seeing her eager-for-drama expression, Xia Mian was left speechless.
Another day passed. Xia Mian left Wenhua Hall with the consort’s drawings and delivered them to the Imperial Kitchen’s carving artisan, asking him to carve a full set of molds according to the designs.
Meng Dongting passed along Yuhua Path. From afar, he spotted Xia Mian and only then remembered that there was still a consort in the palace.
He slowed his steps slightly. Xia Mian immediately understood, leapt forward, and approached.
Meng Dongting asked, “What is the consort busy with?”
If Fu Xinghe heard this, she would definitely want to slap him.
Busy? What could she possibly do? Did he not know in his own heart?
Xia Mian replied respectfully, “Her Highness reads every morning, personally prepares soups and dishes in the small kitchen in the afternoon, and strolls in the small garden in the evening.”
Meng Dongting nodded, fairly satisfied. He was about to leave when, during the brief pause while speaking with Xia Mian, Concubine Yu seized the opportunity to come and pay her respects.
“This concubine acted impulsively and competed in music with another the other day, offending Your Majesty. Knowing I was wrong, I personally made yellow jade cakes from my hometown and respectfully asked Your Majesty to taste them.”
The palace maid beside Yu Feng held a tray of pastries. They were square blocks, clear and lustrous, resembling pieces of yellow jade.
Xia Mian glanced at them. For some reason, she felt they were inferior to what Consort Qian made. They also looked familiar, as if the consort had made something similar a few days ago.
Strangely enough, Yu Feng claimed this was a hometown pastry, yet the consort knew how to make it too. The consort seemed to have dabbled in snacks from all over the world.
Meng Dongting had no interest in pastries. Hearing her introduction, he realized she was one of the musicians from that day. Rather than thinking she had learned from her mistake, he found her tactless.
The emperor’s expression darkened. The maid holding the tray began to tremble, but since Yu Feng had not spoken, she could only hold it up shakily.
“I am not hungry. You may taste it yourself. State affairs are pressing. If you have nothing to do, come before me.”
Yu Feng’s eyes reddened, but Meng Dongting was not one to cherish fragrance and pity jade. He dismissed her coldly.
Meng Dongting truly was busy. Many matters passed through Fu Han’s hands first, then he still had to review them himself, gradually transferring Fu Han’s authority. He pinched the bridge of his nose, troubled over who should replace Fu Han.
Thinking of Fu Han led him to think of the overly quiet consort at Wenhua Hall.
That woman was actually able to remain truly quiet.
Could not all the consorts learn from her? Read some books, cook a bit, then eat it all by yourself…
Meng Dongting frowned. The realization that “the consort eats alone” made him somewhat displeased.
But he could not pinpoint exactly why. In the end, he concluded that it was because the concubine earlier had clearly injured her fingers playing music, yet still insisted she had personally made the pastries. Lying was bad.
On Yuhua Path, Yu Feng lifted her eyes and glared fiercely at the maid. “Could you not have brought it closer? If he cannot smell the fragrance, how would His Majesty have an appetite? What use is it being pretty? Go back and make it again!”
She stormed back angrily. She had assumed that with the consort staying behind closed doors and the two lower-ranked concubines beneath her, including Wang Chanjing who could not be coaxed into speaking even after three blows, she, as the daughter of the Minister of Personnel, would dominate the harem. She should have had the most chances to see His Majesty, the greatest likelihood of bearing the eldest prince, rising in status through her child.
Reality slapped her hard across the face. His Majesty did not step into the harem at all.
The maid had been brought from Yu Feng’s household. Seeing that the concubine was growing anxious, she advised softly, “On the day of the selection, the consort did ask what one should do if one did not see His Majesty for a long time…”
Yu Feng sneered. “Do words spoken during selection count? What is the consort anyway? Wielding a feather as if it were a command arrow. She cannot see him, so of course she wants no one else to see him either, lest they fly above her head.”
The maid paused. She had wanted to say that during the selection, Consort Qian had already hinted for everyone to prepare themselves mentally, that His Majesty was equally cold to all consorts, and that the young lady need not rush, lest she provoke His Majesty’s displeasure. But seeing Yu Feng’s resentment toward the consort, she dared not say the rest.
When Xia Mian returned from the Imperial Kitchen, Fu Xinghe put down her book, eyes bright.
Xia Mian sighed. “Today, Concubine Yu made yellow jade cake and encountered His Majesty on Yuhua Path. His Majesty did not eat it.”
If it were someone else showing such concern for His Majesty, Xia Mian would think it was deep affection. As for the consort… never mind.
“Soft or hard, he accepts neither. Oil and salt cannot penetrate.” Fu Xinghe summarized. Still, at least this time the tyrant had not ordered the destruction of all the harem kitchens. He retained some rationality.
There were not many legitimate reasons to see the emperor openly. As long as one did not commit an offense, everyone wanted to try. This time, His Majesty had not made a big show of force, which instead became a positive signal to others.
Over the next few days, Fu Xinghe busied herself with her little desserts, occasionally hearing who had done what and where Meng Dongting had been intercepted again in the Imperial Garden.
She grew puzzled. “Does His Majesty dislike sweets?” He could not possibly refuse so many times.
Xia Mian had a gentle temperament and did not openly reject people. Whenever Fu Xinghe looked at her with an inquisitive gaze, she could not help but share a few inconsequential tidbits, earning a sincere smile from the consort that seemed to brighten the entire palace.
“It is not that he dislikes them. Outside of his three daily meals, His Majesty rarely eats.”
Something flashed rapidly through Fu Xinghe’s mind. Meng Dongting had strong shoulders and arms and a tall, lean build. He did not look like someone fond of sweets… But what use was this information?
Her gaze shifted to Xia Mian’s face. After sampling sweets with the consort day after day, even her cheeks looked a bit fuller.
Wait,Fu Xinghe thought of a vicious scheme.
If someone fed the tyrant every day until he grew fat, how would he defeat her eldest brother Fu Yunqi in the next martial selection?
Brilliant. Victory without battle. Let Meng Dongting experience the most poisonous heart of an imperial consort.