It was the middle of the night, and the servants in every palace had already retired for the evening.
“Get out! All of you, get out of my sight!”
A sharp roar, accompanied by the sound of shattering porcelain, pierced through the silence, sounding particularly shrill.
The maid Rong Xin was jolted awake instantly. Fumbling for her clothes to get out of bed, she saw Yun Qin on the adjacent bed had also been startled awake. Yun Qin was peering out the window, her face filled with alarm.
Even though she saw this face every day, Rong Xin still found herself momentarily dazed. The young girl had dark, arched brows, ruby lips, and skin like translucent jade. In the cold moonlight, she seemed to possess a soft, glowing luster.
As the new year passed, Yun Qin’s beauty had only grown more striking…
Rong Xin thought, somewhat inappropriately, that such looks would be a blessing beyond measure if they belonged to a noble mistress. But on someone of their lowly status, it was nothing but a source of trouble.
“Sister Rong Xin…” Yun Qin turned to look at her, her almond eyes slightly wide, reflecting a touch of innocent charm. “Was that Her Ladyship’s voice?”
Rong Xin snapped back to reality. As she quickly straightened herself up, she said, “Don’t worry. It’s only natural for Her Ladyship’s moods to fluctuate during pregnancy. I’ll go check first. You should get ready and come over quickly too. Her Ladyship will be angry if she can’t find anyone.”
“Alright,” Yun Qin replied, rolling out of bed.
She followed close behind Rong Xin as they walked out.
The biting chill of the wind outside instantly cleared her groggy head. Only then did she realize it was still pitch black out.
Yun Qin sighed inwardly. Who could have thought that someone like her, who had never even made it to an 8 AM class in her past life, would now be living a life where she woke up earlier than a rooster, slept later than a dog, and had to be on call twenty-four-seven?
Three years had already passed like this.
At this thought, she couldn’t help but count on her fingers. With the new year, she was now sixteen. There were still nine years left until she could be released from the palace at twenty-five.
Nine years…
Nine years wasn’t exactly short, but it wasn’t overly long either. Right now, she was just a lowly palace maid. This body had no family left outside the palace. If she wanted to support herself after leaving, she had to strive for a promotion and a raise, and work hard to save up silver.
Her mistress had recently been found pregnant, and the Emperor had specially granted her a private kitchen. Yun Qin planned to secretly learn some skills from the cook. Once she left the palace, she could open a pastry shop. She even knew how to make Western-style desserts; she’d surely make a fortune then.
Yun Qin walked toward the front hall with light, quick steps, slapping her face to clear the stray thoughts from her mind.
Her mistress, Concubine Hui, had entered the palace two years ago. Yun Qin had been assigned to her as soon as she left the Palace Administration Bureau.
The current ruler, Emperor Xuancheng, had been on the throne for only three years. In that time, he had selected over twenty concubines for his harem. Aside from Consort De of Zhaohua Palace, who had borne a prince, no other consorts had become pregnant.
Naturally, the Emperor was overjoyed when he learned the mistress was pregnant. Once the pregnancy was stable, he immediately raised her rank and granted her a title. Two days ago she was still Lady Su; today, she was to be addressed as Concubine Hui.
This should have been a joyous occasion, yet the atmosphere in the main hall was somewhat stagnant.
Since entering the palace, Concubine Hui had been relatively favored. The Emperor would visit her occasionally. However, since her pregnancy was confirmed, the Emperor had only visited once. Furthermore, he had spent the last three nights at Yukang Palace.
Lady Liu lived in Yukang Palace. She had entered the palace at the same time as Concubine Hui and held the same initial rank, so there was naturally much friction between them.
Lady Liu had a flamboyant personality. These past few days, she had publicized everything down to how many bowls of rice the Emperor had eaten, basking in the spotlight. Usually, Concubine Hui held the upper hand over Lady Liu; seeing the other side flourishing so brightly now naturally made her feel miserable.
Added to the sensitivity of pregnancy, Concubine Hui’s temper was like a powder keg.
Turning the corner of the corridor, Yun Qin heard the sound of a scolding.
“If you want to show your face before the mistress, use your brain! How dare you say just anything? Everyone knows the Emperor went to Yukang Palace, but who else dared to tell the mistress? Yet you just had to blurt it out. If you upset the mistress and something happens to the child, I’d like to see how many heads you have to lose!”
The one speaking was Rong Xin, who had arrived a step earlier. The one being scolded was the young maid, A’jing.
From these words, Yun Qin understood most of what had happened. She was about to step forward to ask a question when the curtain of the main hall was suddenly lifted.
Another senior maid, Rong Zhi, stepped out, sweeping a dark gaze over the three of them.
Unlike the others, Rong Zhi had entered the palace with their mistress and was her most trusted confidante.
Although Rong Xin was the managing maid, Rong Zhi was the one who truly called the shots in Chunxi Palace. Even Rong Xin’s name had been modeled after hers.
When Rong Zhi’s gaze swept over her, Yun Qin immediately had an ominous premonition.
Sending someone for an imperial physician in the middle of the night would be fine, but surely she wasn’t going to send someone to Yukang Palace to fetch the Emperor!
But as the saying goes, what one fears most is what one meets. As soon as Yun Qin regained her composure, she saw Rong Zhi’s eyes settle on her. “Her Ladyship is unwell. Go to Yukang Palace right now and bring the Emperor here.”
Yun Qin’s heart sank. Before she could react, Rong Xin pulled her behind her back.
“Rong Zhi, perhaps I should go. Yun Qin doesn’t go out often; she probably doesn’t even know which way the doors of Yukang Palace face.”
Rong Zhi spared her a glance and sneered, “You are the managing maid of this palace; we’re all waiting to hear your orders, sister.”
Seeing Rong Xin’s expression change, Rong Zhi grew even more smug. She glared at Yun Qin. “Go, quickly! This is Her Ladyship’s command. Don’t think you’re something special just because someone is backing you up. Concubine Hui is the one who has the final say in Chunxi Palace!”
Since she had invoked the mistress, Yun Qin knew this was indeed Concubine Hui’s intention. Such a task was a stroke of misfortune for whoever it fell upon.
Better it be her alone who suffered the misfortune.
Yun Qin stepped out from behind Rong Xin and said to Rong Zhi, “Sister is right. How could we dare disobey Her Ladyship’s command? Might I ask, Sister, should I also summon the imperial physician while I am at it?”
Rong Zhi was not so dim that she couldn’t hear the implication—that she was merely a messenger. If Yun Qin obeyed, she was obeying the mistress, not Rong Zhi.
Rong Zhi’s face darkened, and her gaze toward Yun Qin looked as if she wanted to devour her. “It is not your place to speak! Be off with you!”
Yun Qin glanced at her, then slowly lowered her eyes. She gave a slight curtsey and turned to leave.
Rong Xin held back A’jing, who wanted to argue with Rong Zhi, and watched Yun Qin’s departing back with a face full of worry.
“Are you coming in, sister, or must Her Ladyship come out to invite you?”
Yun Qin heard the voice behind her as she stepped out of the palace gates.
The moment she was outside, her rigid posture slumped slightly.
Based on her experience reading countless palace drama novels, going to fetch the Emperor in the middle of the night—whether successful or not—rarely ended well.
If you fail, the mistress won’t forgive you. If you succeed, the rival won’t forgive you. Even the Emperor himself wouldn’t have a good impression of you.
Yun Qin clenched her fists. At the very least, this was an opportunity—an opportunity to stand out in Chunxi Palace.
After today, Rong Zhi would only become more aggressive in making things difficult for her. Therefore, no matter what, she had to bring the Emperor to Chunxi Palace this time.
With this thought, Yun Qin doubled back to the servant quarters of Chunxi Palace and found a familiar eunuch, Xiao Dezi, telling him to go fetch an imperial physician.
Xiao Dezi was the eunuch on night watch today and was well aware of what had happened in the front hall. Knowing the mistress hadn’t actually ordered a physician, he felt a bit hesitant.
“This isn’t just to help me; it’s to help yourself,” Yun Qin said. “She keeps the inner chambers locked down like an iron fortress. On your own, when will you ever get ahead? If I bring the Emperor back, I will naturally mention you to Her Ladyship. If I don’t, and Her Ladyship is angry, the physician will come in handy just the same. It’s just a bit of legwork; either way, it won’t hurt you.”
Xiao Dezi laughed immediately. “Sister, look at what you’re saying. It’s not about the benefits. If Sister gives an order, how could I not obey?”
“Less talk, more walking. Go, quickly.”
“Yes, I’m going right now.”