Along the way, special palace matrons guided the young women to the hall where the selection ceremony would be held. As she walked, Ye Jinyun secretly observed the imperial palace. It looked exactly like the palaces she had seen in television dramas in her previous life—crimson walls, emerald tiles, and magnificent golden splendor.
By the time they arrived outside the Selection Hall, groups of young ladies had already gathered inside, chatting among themselves. Ye Jinyun followed Ye Jinrong into the hall.
“Jinrong, come over here quickly!”
The speaker was Zhang Lanzhi, the eldest daughter of the Zhang family and Ye Jinrong’s close friend.
Seeing her, Ye Jinrong smiled brightly and hurried over.
“Lanzhi, you’re here too! That’s wonderful.”
Zhang Lanzhi nodded happily. Then she glanced at Ye Jinyun before pulling Ye Jinrong aside and whispering,
“How did your second sister end up joining the palace selection? With her appearance, isn’t she afraid of frightening His Majesty?”
Ye Jinrong sighed and replied softly,
“What can we do? His Majesty issued a decree requiring all eligible daughters of court officials to participate. If we didn’t let her come, wouldn’t my father be guilty of deceiving the emperor? At the very least, she has to show up and go through the motions.”
“That’s true,” Zhang Lanzhi agreed. “But now that so many people will see her face, won’t she just embarrass herself even more? If I looked like that, I wouldn’t dare show my face after returning home. Coming to the palace for the selection looking like that is simply inviting ridicule.”
Ye Jinrong glanced toward Ye Jinyun. Seeing that she appeared not to be paying attention, she lowered her voice even further.
“Exactly. If it weren’t for the emperor’s decree, she probably would never have had the chance to witness a scene like this in her entire life.”
After standing around for a while, Ye Jinyun grew bored and found an empty seat to sit down.
Hearing the conversation between Ye Jinrong and Zhang Lanzhi, she felt utterly speechless.
Ladies, if you’re going to gossip about someone, at least move farther away. Her hearing was excellent, and they were seriously disturbing her peace and quiet.
More and more candidates entered the hall. Zhang Lanzhi pulled Ye Jinrong around, searching for acquaintances among the young women and greeting them.
“Jinrong, let me introduce you. This is Bai Ruoli, the daughter of the Prime Minister.”
She gestured toward an elegantly dressed young woman with a noble and delicate beauty.
“Greetings, Sister Bai.”
Ye Jinrong curtsied politely.
Bai Ruoli merely nodded faintly in acknowledgment.
Ye Jinyun sat to the side, bored out of her mind. Eventually, she decided to step outside for some fresh air.
As soon as she reached a flowering crabapple tree in the courtyard, she heard someone call her name.
It was Qiao Xuening, the daughter of the Imperial Censor. Ye Jinyun had met her while accompanying Ye Jinrong to various gatherings of noble ladies. Aside from Qing’er, she was currently the only person in this ancient world with whom Ye Jinyun shared a reasonably good relationship.
“Xuening, why are you standing out here?”
Qiao Xuening smiled gently.
“I didn’t want to stay inside. There are too many people in there—it feels suffocating. The air outside is much nicer, and I feel more comfortable here.”
Ye Jinyun nodded.
She knew that Qiao Xuening’s health had never been particularly good. Being in crowded places for too long was indeed difficult for her.
Like Ye Jinyun, Qiao Xuening had lost her mother at a young age. She also had a younger brother. Their father was Qiao Heng, an Imperial Censor.
After his wife’s death, Lord Qiao had never remarried. He had raised his daughter and son alone, treasuring them more than anything.
Although he doted on them, he never spoiled them. Instead, both children had grown up with excellent temperaments. His only worry was that his legitimate daughter had been frail since childhood, causing him endless concern.
“Xuening, how could Lord Qiao bear to let you enter the palace selection?” Ye Jinyun asked curiously.
Qiao Xuening was practically the apple of Qiao Heng’s eye. How could he willingly send her into a place as dangerous as the imperial palace?
With a faint smile, Qiao Xuening explained,
“Father didn’t want to. He even intended to petition His Majesty for an exemption because he was worried my health wouldn’t endure it. But I didn’t want him to become entangled in court disputes on my account, so I begged him to let me come and simply go through the process. His Majesty has already met with Father and assured him that I won’t be selected for the palace.”
“That’s good,” Ye Jinyun said with relief. “Otherwise, I’d really be worried. What if you entered the palace and people bullied you?”
The two stood beneath the flowering crabapple tree, chatting intimately.
Soon, another group of richly dressed young women entered the courtyard. Qiao Xuening quietly pointed out several of them, introducing those she recognized.
Ye Jinyun listened carefully.
At least this way, she would know who was who and avoid accidentally offending any of these noble young ladies.
Although Ye Jinyun was technically a daughter of the Minister of Revenue’s household, she was far from favored. Because of her facial birthmark and because of Ye Jinrong’s influence, she rarely attended social events. Many noble ladies were unwilling to associate with her.
As a result, the number of people she knew could be counted on one hand.