During her leisure time, Shen Hui often enjoyed joining in the lively atmosphere at her younger sister’s place. The kitchen was always bustling with people, and the stoves remained warm throughout the day, exuding a homely charm.
After Liu’er and Qi’er reconciled, they became her little shadows, following her wherever she went.
At the kitchen entrance, the three of them craned their necks, bending side by side as they waved to Shen Wei.
“What are you doing?” Shen Hui asked, noticing that the cooks had all gone to rest, leaving only a few young maidservants chopping vegetables inside. She moved closer.
Shen Wei stood in front of the stove, looking dejected. “Making sesame seed pastries. It’s Nanny Zhang’s specialty, but I’m too clumsy. I’ve tried frying them several times but still can’t get the heat right.”
“Let me taste one.” Shen Hui picked up a pastry and took a bite. It was sweet, crispy, and just the right texture, though slightly bitter. “It’s already quite good. Don’t be too hard on yourself.”
“It’s a bit bitter, isn’t it? You should spit it out.” Shen Wei noticed her hesitation. “I burned them. I keep failing.”
“Failure is the mother of success. Think of it this way—this isn’t failure; it’s the child of success.” Shen Hui, who never liked wasting food, shared these “children of success” with Liu’er and Qi’er.
The two young maidservants, who had never tasted anything so fine, eagerly devoured the oily, sweet pastries.
“No wonder Duan Meimei says you’re clever and witty, always full of playful words.” Nanny Zhang, who had arrived unnoticed, said gently, “A Wei, your sister is right. When I first learned to make these sesame seed pastries from the Shangshi in the palace, I struggled for three whole days without any progress. It wasn’t until a month later that I gradually grasped the trick.”
“Are these sesame seed pastries a palace delicacy?” Shen Hui grinned foolishly. “Then I’m truly fortunate to have tasted them.”
“Yes, but they’re not considered a top-tier treat. If we’re talking about something truly precious, there’s only one sugar cake made by the Shangshi called ‘Jian Feng Xiao.’ It’s soft, white, and round, melting in your mouth.” Nanny Zhang’s expression turned nostalgic. “Unfortunately, that Shangshi has likely left the palace by now, and I wonder who in the palace has inherited her skills.”
The palace had the Palace Food Service Bureau, overseen by a Fifth Rank Shangshi nüguan. Under her were four departments: Food Preparation, Beverage, Medicine, and Provisions. Nanny Zhang had once been a Palace Maid in the Food Preparation Department.
“Can nüguan leave the palace?” Shen Hui noticed Shen Wei looking tired and pulled her to sit on the threshold to rest. As she chatted with Nanny Zhang, she wiped her sister’s hands with a handkerchief.
“High-ranking nüguan naturally can. Those over fifty are granted Imperial Favor and silver to leave the palace. If they return to their hometowns, local prominent families often take the initiative to care for them, providing for them in their old age. If they stay in the capital, the county office sends people to visit them annually, and there’s no shortage of wealthy families eager to hire them as governesses.” Nanny Zhang explained in detail to Shen Hui, answering her questions. “However, only nüguan of the Fifth Rank and above are considered high-ranking. For the rest, if they wish to leave the palace, they can only hope for some event where the Emperor shows mercy and releases Palace Attendants collectively.”
“What if they never get the chance…” Shen Wei, though often slow to react, was thoughtful and picked up on what Nanny Zhang hadn’t said.
Nanny Zhang’s eyes darkened briefly before she forced a lighthearted explanation. “The Palace Food Service Bureau and other bureaus are located within the Lateral Courts, where there are plenty of quiet and elegant vacant residences used to care for elderly nüguan and Palace Attendants. There are always exceptions, like me—I left the palace because the great prince established his own residence and I followed him out.”
"Your culinary skills are exceptional, Nanny Zhang, so of course you're an exception." Shen Hui's flattery was straightforward, but her thoughts ran much deeper.
Considering the timeline, Prince Chu was about to ascend the throne. In the future, she would surely follow her aunt into the palace. Did she really want to remain a lowly palace maid for the rest of her life?
The imperial palace was not like the wangfu. Inside the palace, her aunt could not be considered an absolute, reliable protector who could guarantee her safety.
Wouldn't it be better to pass the nüguan examinations, find a leisurely government office similar to the Beast House, and then become a carefree idler? It wouldn't be too late then.
Holding this idea, Shen Hui suddenly became much more diligent.
"Today's handwriting is quite neat and proper, unlike the hasty scribbles of before. You've finally decided to put your heart into studying." Aunt Duan examined the characters Shen Hui had presented twice, raising an eyebrow in surprise.
"So you could tell all along." Shen Hui felt embarrassed.
Aunt Duan had never mentioned it before. Shen Hui had thought these handwriting practice assignments were like the summer and winter vacation homework from her middle school days—trash the teacher wouldn't even glance at.
"I studied under the Third-Rank Female Secretary, Lady Huang. She comes from a scholarly family; her grandfather was the Director of the Imperial Academy during the reign of Emperor Taizu. Besides teaching us the delicate 'hairpin flower' regular script commonly used by nüguan, she also taught me running script and cursive script. How could I not recognize your handwriting, which looks like a swarm of wriggling insects?" Aunt Duan said, exasperated. "You are clever, but you should use that cleverness in the right way."
Shen Hui had no retort and could only offer an awkward, silent smile.
"What are you grinning foolishly about? Go back and keep practicing." Aunt Duan toyed with a rectangular celadon jade paperweight and stated plainly, "Lately, you've been preoccupied with tracking my movements, distracted. The characters you've been submitting—I wouldn't even deign to use them as scrap paper to start a fire."
She had already figured out Shiwu's routine. Every other day, the other girl would take a food box to Consort Zheng's courtyard under the pretext of delivering Cherry Pastries to her foster mother, Nanny Guan. Presumably, the medicinal dregs were brought back hidden inside it.
"I'm just afraid Shiwu might do something bad again," Shen Hui said, dropping the pretense of ignorance.
"This matter is not for you to interfere with." Aunt Duan was afraid Shen Hui might alert the enemy, and she had also promised Madam Xu. "You just focus on practicing your handwriting. Don't disappoint your aunt's expectations of you."
Shen Hui withdrew after that.
Who would have thought that just after leaving Aunt Duan's room, she would see Liu'er rushing over in a panic? The hem of her green skirt was stained with mud, and a silk flower was missing from her hair. "Sister, it's terrible, terrible! Medicinal dregs were dug up under the precious flowers in the huafang. Shiwu told the steward it was you who buried them. She… she…"
Liu'er was panting heavily, out of breath.
"She's planning to bring people to search for evidence?" Shen Hui's expression turned icy. Her mind, blank with shock at first, began to function again, and she immediately guessed what Shiwu intended to do.
"Yes, yes, yes." Liu'er nodded vigorously.
Without another word, Shen Hui dashed straight to her own room at full speed. Even though her hands and feet were stiff with tension, she first quickly reached under the bed, the easiest place to hide something.
She wasn't just guessing randomly.
To prevent trouble before it happened, Shen Hui would sprinkle a thin layer of plant ash in front of her bed every day. Now, that evenly spread ash was in complete disarray—clearly, someone had been there.
"Just as I thought…" She strained to reach further inside and felt a bundle.
"Come quickly, everyone! I saw with my own eyes that Shen Hui deliberately buried the medicinal dregs and ruined the flower soil. There's definitely evidence in her room. Believe me!" Outside the Beast House, Shiwu shouted loudly, leading the huafang steward and maidservants over, eager to pin the crime on Shen Hui immediately.
Hearing the voice, Shen Hui knew it was too late to leave the room. Her heart pounded with fear, but in her desperation, a clever idea struck her—she remembered Aunt Duan's escape route.
Truly, one generation plants the trees, another enjoys the shade!
After confirming there were no other unfamiliar items in the room, she grabbed the bundle, climbed out the window, and searched for the stairs to go upstairs.
The stairs were located on the side of the small building, conveniently out of sight of Shiwu and the others.
Shen Hui went upstairs, lifted her leg over the railing, leaped onto the wall, steadied her balance with a backward hand, and straddled it. She then moved a few steps along the wall before flipping into Jinyun’s private courtyard.
Jinyun caught the familiar scent and didn’t even bother opening its eyes, letting out a series of contented growls, urging Shen Hui to scratch its belly.
“Good Jinyun, be still.” Shen Hui lifted Jinyun’s plump, fluffy belly and tucked the bundle underneath.
How could such a large bundle compete with the super-sized, chubby leopard Jinyun? Not a trace remained.
Shiwu came up empty-handed.
“Miss Shiwu, where is the medicine dregs?” The supervisory senior maid of the huafang was also shrewd, sensing Shiwu’s guilt, her eyes filled with scrutiny.
“Impossible, let me search again…” Shiwu kept reaching under the bed but found nothing.
Shen Hui might have discovered it, but how could she have had a chance to escape?
Shiwu was on the verge of breaking down.
Moreover, Shiwu was not very familiar with the huafang. After nightfall, in the pitch darkness, she had randomly dug a hole to bury the medicine dregs, unaware that it was the spot where precious autumn chrysanthemums were cultivated.
The medicine dregs were potent, slowly withering the chrysanthemums. The huafang staff were furious and wanted to report the matter to Tian Nüshi, asking her to intervene.
When Shiwu heard about this, fearing exposure, she schemed relentlessly, playing the thief who cries thief, and framed Shen Hui.
“Liu’er, stop! Where is Shen Hui?” Shiwu, disheartened, scrambled up from the ground and grabbed Liu’er, pulling her roughly and hurting her.
“How should I know? She’s probably feeding Jinyun. You can all go to Jinyun’s place to look for Sister Ah Hui.” Liu’er struggled desperately to break free.
But Shiwu refused to let go, and the two were about to start fighting.
“Enough, we in the huafang will accept our misfortune.” The supervisory senior maid of the huafang had no interest in watching the internal strife among the Beast House staff. “Miss Shiwu, take care of yourself.”
Ultimately, the root of the matter lay in the huafang’s failure to supervise properly.
What to do…
Covered in dust, Shiwu slumped to the ground.
In the evening, she still needed to go to Nanny Guan to retrieve the medicine dregs.
She truly regretted it.
But each time she succeeded, Nanny Guan would give her ten taels of silver—that was ten strings of cash! Her monthly allowance was only eight hundred copper coins.
Driven by profit, Shiwu eventually picked up the food box again and went to find Nanny Guan.
“Princess Consort, Aunt Duan has sent a message.” In the evening, in the main hall of Ningyuan Residence, a maid whispered into her ear.
At that time, the Princess Consort of Chu had just finished copying scriptures, her body carrying a faint scent of sandalwood. Paired with her makeup-free face and plain-colored dress, she resembled a serene, ascetic devotee. “Then let’s go. It’s time to visit Consort Zheng, who hasn’t left her courtyard in a long while.”
“Your humble servant pays respects to the Princess Consort.” Consort Zheng had not expected the Princess Consort of Chu to visit and was completely unprepared. She hastily applied pearl powder twice and rubbed rose-scented cream on her face to smooth it out, hoping the rouge would adhere better.
Unfortunately, she applied too much, leaving her temples oily and clearly showing that her makeup was freshly done.
"My dear sister, I know your constitution is delicate, so please don't stand on ceremony. Do sit down." The Princess Consort of Chu smiled gently, waving her hand and offering a light gesture to help Consort Zheng rise. "Although the days still feel slightly stuffy after autumn arrives, the nights grow windy and cool. Unlike us with our robust health, you should switch to thicker bedding. If you don't care for last year's patterns, I can have the Embroidery Workshop make new ones for you. During the Qiqiao Festival, Her Majesty the Empress bestowed upon me several bolts of Shu Brocade with linked pearl medallion patterns. I'll give them to you for quilt covers, lined with a layer of cotton cloth and fur inside—warm yet not overly heavy."
In the past, Consort Zheng would have already changed to thick brocade quilts as soon as autumn set in, fearing drafts and chills. She would have sealed the gaps in the latticed windows with cloth strips and hung two layers of beaded curtains before her door.
The Princess Consort of Chu's smile remained unchanged, her gaze lightly sweeping over the thin summer quilt and cool mat on the couch, thinking to herself that excess is as bad as deficiency.
It was clear that Consort Zheng was truly ill—so ill that she had to conceal it.