Song Ying slowly regained consciousness, her memory still lingering on the moment morning court had ended.
The officials had taken their leave, and the imperial procession had departed…
The next instant, her eyes flew open.
Silken curtains surrounded her, their tassels hanging lightly.
Th-this was Wanchun Hall?!
Once she realized where she was, Song Ying jolted upright.
Not far away, beside a round rosewood table, someone was leaning back in a curved-back chair, his gaze fixed on the book in his hand.
Hearing the movement, his eyes shifted toward her.
Why was that damned emperor here?
No, wait—why was she here?!
Before Song Ying could sort out her thoughts, Emperor Yongzhao had already closed the book, risen to his feet, and started toward the bed.
Song Ying wanted to climb down, but it was already too late.
She hurriedly folded her knees beneath herself and knelt properly.
“This servant behaved improperly. I beg Your Majesty to punish me!”
Emperor Yongzhao gave a cold snort and sat down on the edge of the bed she had just moved away from.
Despite how spacious the imperial bed was, the distance between them suddenly shrank to almost nothing.
Song Ying edged farther inward, wishing she could press herself straight into the wall behind the bed.
Seeing this, Emperor Yongzhao’s dark brows drew together, seemingly displeased.
He stretched out a long arm and braced his hand against the brocade quilt beside Song Ying. His entire body leaned slightly forward, and the oppressive pressure surrounding him instantly descended over her.
“Spare me these empty formalities.” His deep voice sounded above her head. “The imperial physician has examined you. He said you merely suffered from excessive fright, compounded by exhaustion over the past few days.”
Song Ying lowered her eyes and knelt obediently on the bed.
Emperor Yongzhao’s gaze paused briefly on her slender, pale neck.
He had already noticed earlier that the faint fragrance surrounding her today was indeed not as sweet and rich as usual.
It was more like a flower bud battered by the rain. Though a trace of fragrance still remained, it had lost that full, dew-laden vitality. Even the petals seemed wilted and curled, no longer able to produce that tempting nectar.
Still, it didn’t matter.
A flower like this only needed a little watering from him, and sooner or later, it would bloom again—
“I’ve thought it over. Your constitution really is rather delicate. From now on, for every day you serve on duty, I’ll allow you one day of rest.”
Song Ying froze for a moment before a smile slowly spread across her face.
“This servant… thanks Your Majesty for your great grace!”
Emperor Yongzhao watched the joy in her eyes, his gaze darkening slightly.
Showing her favor and allowing her to lower her guard might draw out the old fox lurking behind her more quickly.
Two birds with one stone.
It wasn’t a bad move.
At that moment, Eunuch Runde entered with a bow.
“Reporting to Your Majesty. Vice Minister Fu of the Ministry of Personnel has sent word. He heard that only one palace maid currently attends Your Majesty and fears this may cause inconvenience.”
“Concerned for Your Majesty’s well-being, the Vice Minister wishes to offer his second daughter to enter the palace and help ease Your Majesty’s burdens.”
Emperor Yongzhao’s expression darkened.
The Ministry of Personnel…
Fu was one of Gao Boshen’s men.
This offer of a daughter had undoubtedly been ordered by Gao Boshen.
On the surface, it was said to ease his burdens. In truth, they wanted to plant an informant beside him and probe for weaknesses.
That old fox certainly had long claws.
He had been about to reject the proposal outright and tell Runde to send the person away.
But then his thoughts shifted, and he glanced toward the bed at the pair of ears that had quietly perked up.
Song Ying’s fear in court earlier today had not seemed feigned.
He might as well allow this woman into the palace and watch from the sidelines to see just how muddy these waters could become.
Besides, if he rejected them immediately, the concern he had just shown Song Ying might appear too deliberate.
With that thought, Emperor Yongzhao said, “Vice Minister Fu is thoughtful. Then… let her stay.”
At the side, Song Ying’s ears twitched.
Looks like that damned emperor wasn’t having an easy time either. People were practically planting spies right outside his front door!
Emperor Yongzhao caught sight of that gossipy little face from the corner of his eye.
“There’s nothing seriously wrong with you. Go back to your own room and rest for now.”
Song Ying obediently agreed and swiftly withdrew from Wanchun Hall.
Hmph. That damned emperor was clearly sending me away so he could whisper secrets with Eunuch Runde, right?
She had barely stepped out of Wanchun Hall and hadn’t gone more than a few paces when Eunuch Runde’s voice came from behind her.
“Miss Song, please wait!”
Song Ying turned around in confusion and saw Eunuch Runde hurry over.
“Miss, His Majesty specifically instructed that since you’ve only just recovered, from now on you may inform the imperial kitchen of your meal preferences in advance. They will prepare your three daily meals according to your tastes. If there’s anything you’d like to eat, just say so.”
“Really?!”
Sleeping and eating were Song Ying’s two most important concerns.
Had that damned emperor suddenly developed a conscience?
But after another thought, she found it perfectly reasonable.
Hmph. Of course he’d developed a conscience! He should have done this long ago. She now held something as vital as that damned emperor’s lifeline in her hands. Naturally, he ought to treat her better.
“How would this old servant dare deceive you, miss?”
Eunuch Runde smiled.
“This old servant will go to the palace gate to receive the newcomer now. In a while, someone from the imperial kitchen will come to the side hall and ask what you’d like to order.”
“Oh, there’s no need to trouble them like that!”
After hearing that she could rest tomorrow and had even gained this kind of special privilege, Song Ying was suddenly full of energy.
Her eyes curved with her smile.
“Eunuch, go ahead and attend to your business. This servant can go to the imperial kitchen herself to place the order. While I’m there, I can even ask for a bowl of your favorite lotus cream for you!”
Eunuch Runde burst out laughing and pointed at her teasingly.
“You little girl. Clearly, you’re the one craving that lotus cream!”
Song Ying wasn’t embarrassed in the slightest.
She replied with complete confidence, “Who in this world doesn’t like lotus cream? If one bowl isn’t enough, then two!”
“Hahahaha!”
Seeing Song Ying hold up two fingers, Eunuch Runde laughed heartily.
“Very well, very well. You make a good point. Then this old servant shall wait for the lotus cream Little Miss Song brings back.”
With that, he shook his head with a smile and turned toward the palace gates.
The towering vermilion palace walls separated the world inside from the one beyond.
At the palace gates, the cold wind whipped against Fu Lanyue’s thin dress—
Her father had personally delivered her, step by step, to the gates of the forbidden palace.
Several hours earlier, her father had returned from the palace and, for the first time ever, summoned her—his concubine-born daughter—to his study.
Her mother rushed over after hearing the news, sobbing her heart out as she begged her father to withdraw his decision.
Fu Lanyue hadn’t understood what was happening.
But her father had merely brushed her mother’s hand away and turned to her.
“Yue’er, since childhood, you’ve never been skilled at the qin, chess, or any of the scholarly arts. You also have little talent for calligraphy or painting. Even when it comes to managing household affairs, you’re far less clever and capable than your elder sister.”
Her father’s voice was hard.
“Now the palace is in need of people. Your appearance is at least passable. If you can catch His Majesty’s eye, it will bring enormous wealth and honor to both you and the Fu family!”
With only those few words, Fu Lanyue’s entire future had been decided.
She was the second daughter of the family, born to a concubine.
A marriage had originally been arranged for her with a respectable scholarly family. She only needed to reach the age of her hairpin ceremony before she could marry.
Yet for the sake of such uncertain wealth and status, her father could simply give her up.
And the opportunity he spoke of was nothing more than entering the emperor’s presence as a low-ranking palace maid.
The palace was deep and treacherous, and His Majesty was known for his eccentric temperament.
Her father simply couldn’t bear to send her legitimate elder sister instead.
Fu Lanyue lowered her head.
Eunuch Runde was already waiting at the palace gates.
When he saw Fu Lanyue’s red, swollen eyes, he immediately understood.
“Miss Fu, please follow this old servant.”
Fu Lanyue wiped her tears carelessly with her sleeve, lifted her skirt, and followed him.
Tears were salty.
But she was so afraid.
Afraid that the days ahead would be bitter.
Her father had been cruel, but there was one thing he hadn’t said wrong—
If she could win His Majesty’s favor, it would truly bring unimaginable wealth and status.
It was her path to survival.
And her only hope.
During her first few days in the palace, Fu Lanyue lived as though walking on thin ice.
She was housed in the palace maids’ quarters.
Other than the daily allotted meals delivered to her and the mandatory three baths each day, all she could do was wait.
She didn’t know what she was supposed to do.
Nor did she know what her future would become.
It wasn’t until more than a month later that an imperial decree came down appointing her as a “Third-Rank Female Attendant to the Imperial Presence.”
Only then did she gain the right to wait outside Wanchun Hall for orders.
She stood respectfully below the steps outside the hall with her head lowered, remembering the instructions her father had given her before entering the palace.
“At present, His Majesty keeps only one palace maid by his side. Her name is Song Ying.”
“There is clearly something unusual about this matter. Yue’er, when you enter the palace, compete if you can. If you cannot, then take a step back—but you must investigate this woman’s background thoroughly.”
A palace maid whom the Son of Heaven had chosen to keep alone beside him…
How could she still be merely a palace maid?
She was clearly an imperial consort without a title.
If that was truly the case, would there still be any path to survival for Fu Lanyue in this palace?
On her first day of duty, she waited outside Wanchun Hall together with Eunuch Runde and saw no one else.
On the second day, however, she saw a woman dressed in the uniform of a fourth-rank palace maid skip cheerfully into Wanchun Hall.
A pink-and-green palace uniform?
…That clothing was clearly the wrong rank.
According to palace regulations and ceremonial protocol, only first- and second-rank palace maids were permitted to enter the hall and serve inside.
How could she?
On the third day, the woman disappeared again.
On the fourth day, that lively pink-and-green figure reappeared.
Fu Lanyue could finally restrain her curiosity no longer.
Taking advantage of a moment when no one else was nearby, she quietly asked Eunuch Runde, “Eunuch, that older sister… the palace uniform she’s wearing doesn’t seem to be the proper rank for someone serving before His Majesty?”
Eunuch Runde replied indifferently, “It is His Majesty’s will.”
Fu Lanyue persisted.
“Then… why is she on duty some days, yet nowhere to be seen on others? Is such… lax behavior truly permitted?”
Eunuch Runde gave the same answer.
“It is His Majesty’s will.”
Those two identical answers only made Fu Lanyue even more curious about this Song Ying.
“Eunuch, may I ask where that older sister resides? Could you perhaps… allow Lanyue to pay her a visit? It would make things easier for us to work together in the future.”
This time, Eunuch Runde finally showed a slightly different reaction.
He lifted his chin a little and casually pointed toward somewhere not far from Wanchun Hall.
Fu Lanyue followed the direction he indicated.
The moment her gaze landed there, her pupils contracted sharply—
That was…
The side hall directly beside the emperor’s sleeping quarters.
The side hall stood so close to Wanchun Hall that calling it a place beside the emperor’s very bed would hardly be an exaggeration.
Only an imperial prince, or perhaps… an imperial consort who enjoyed exceptional favor, would dare even dream of residing there.
Song Ying actually lived there?
If Song Ying truly was the person dearest to His Majesty’s heart, then Fu Lanyue’s insignificant little schemes probably wouldn’t be enough to withstand even a single finger from her.
Compete?
What could she possibly use to compete?
She had been far too naive.
Having made up her mind, Fu Lanyue said, “Thank you for your guidance, Eunuch.”
Over the following days, Fu Lanyue became even more cautious while on duty.
She kept her eyes lowered and constantly paid attention to every movement around Wanchun Hall.
And the more carefully she observed, the more she realized that this Sister Song truly was different from everyone else.
The inner hall was a forbidden area.
Even Eunuch Runde himself could only enter after being summoned.
Yet Song Ying could freely carry tea and refreshments in and out of the inner hall.
What shocked Fu Lanyue even more was the change in His Majesty.
His Majesty had always possessed an overwhelming imperial presence.
Even standing outside the hall, one could feel the suffocating pressure surrounding him.
But on the days Song Ying was on duty, Fu Lanyue always felt that His Majesty’s voice sounded slightly less cold when issuing orders, and even the sounds of him turning through memorials seemed somewhat less agitated.
Finally, she caught a glimpse of the truth.
That day, Eunuch Runde had not yet returned from his meal, leaving Fu Lanyue alone outside the hall.
Almost as though possessed, her gaze became fixed on the narrow gap between the doors—
Inside, Song Ying adjusted the charcoal beside the couch.
As she rose, a small decorative knot slipped from her sleeve and fell silently onto the carpet.
She didn’t notice at all and merely lowered her head before resuming her position at the side.
But the emperor, who had been resting with his eyes closed on the couch, opened them at some unknown point.
His gaze fell upon the small knot.
Then, Fu Lanyue saw—
Emperor Yongzhao picked it up between his fingers.
Then brought it to his nose, closed his eyes, and gently inhaled its scent.
Fu Lanyue’s eyes widened in shock.
Inside the hall, Song Ying seemed to sense something and abruptly turned her head.
Fu Lanyue’s entire body stiffened.
Only then did she hurriedly lower her head.