Eastern Palace – Inner Court
The Eastern Palace was organized like the imperial court, with all departments in place. The inner court was the same. However, just like the Crown Prince’s officials—where only a few positions were permanently filled and others were held part-time by court officials—the Eastern Palace officially had six bureaus of female officials, but they were often short-staffed. One junior director often had to handle the work of several bureaus.
After leaving Zhufang Hall, someone led Yan Zigui to receive her palace uniform. Then she was to report directly to the Eastern Palace.
“Sister, I have to go straight to the Eastern Palace? I can’t go home first?” Yan Zigui asked anxiously. “I just arrived in the capital and don’t understand these rules. I thought after the exam I could go home and wait for the results. I didn’t know I would start work immediately.”
“You can’t go home,” Qingluan said with a smile. “But don’t worry. On rest days, after discussing it with the other female officials in the Eastern Palace, you can request permission to leave the palace and visit your family.”
“How often are the rest days?”
“Female officials rest on every day that ends with the number eight.”
Yan Zigui calculated in her heart. Today was the eleventh. She would have to wait seven days. And even then, she could not leave automatically—others would need to allow her turn first. She removed one of her pearl earrings and slipped it into Qingluan’s hand.
“Good sister, my two maids just returned from the frontier with me. I entered the palace without giving them any instructions. They must be completely lost.”
“They will surely wait at the palace gate for me today. Please help me go there and pass on a few words, so I can feel at ease.”
Qingluan looked at the pearl in her palm. It was good quality.
“Fine. What do you want me to tell them?”
At the palace gate, Gancao and Dansha held each other’s hands and waited anxiously. Around that time, only a few people came out. Those who entered the final hall exam were usually kept, except in rare cases. So not many people waited at the gate that day.
When Qingluan arrived, she did not need to look carefully to know those two were servants of the Yan family.
She waved them over and asked, “Are you servants of the Yan family?”
“Yes, yes.” They nodded quickly. “We serve Miss Yan.”
“Your young lady was worried that you would panic if she didn’t return, so she asked me to pass on a message. She told you to take good care of the courtyard, ignore other people’s gossip, and most importantly, stay safe and wait for her to come back.”
“When will our young lady return?” Dansha asked with tears in her eyes.
“There are three chances each month. From how clever your young lady is, I believe she will get her turn this month,” Qingluan said, preparing to leave.
Gancao stopped her and took out a heavy pouch from her clothes. She handed it over. “We didn’t know our young lady would stay in the palace, so we didn’t prepare anything. Please give this pouch to her.”
Qingluan weighed it in her hand. “Aren’t you afraid I might keep it for myself?”
“If your sister likes it, then consider it our respect to you. Please take good care of our young lady,” Gancao said with a polite smile. “When are the rest days for palace servants? We’ll come again and see you.”
Qingluan laughed lightly. “Rest days are every day ending with eight. You enter and leave through this gate. You can go out in the morning but must return before the gates close.”
Qingluan delivered the pouch to Yan Zigui. At that moment, Yan Zigui was copying the palace rules at her desk. This was part of the entry process—copying the rules served as a reminder not to break them.
Yan Zigui took the pouch and grabbed a handful from inside, giving it to Qingluan. It contained mixed gold and silver pieces.
Qingluan was speechless. “You are so generous. You won’t have enough left to manage things.”
“I am generous only to you, Sister,” Yan Zigui explained. “If you hadn’t given me this pouch, I wouldn’t even have it.”
“No wonder your maid spoke that way. She learned it from you,” Qingluan laughed. She accepted the money without hesitation and returned Yan Zigui’s pearl earring. “I won’t take payment twice for one task. You are open and straightforward. I’ll make you my friend.”
Yan Zigui took back her earring. “Good sister.”
Qingluan then told her about the Eastern Palace. “There are currently three female officials here. Only Qian Ming holds the same rank as you—Seventh Rank Junior Director. The other two are supervisors but have no official rank.”
“Although Qian Ming has the same rank as you, she entered the palace two years earlier. She also recognizes Jiang, the Director of the Sleeping Quarters, as her adoptive mother. All the palace maids in the Eastern Palace are under her management. You will need to lower your head at first.”
“I just arrived. Of course I won’t cause trouble,” Yan Zigui said. She claimed her nature was kind and that she would not stir up conflict.
“The Crown Prince is kind and tolerant. He loves music, so everyone in the Eastern Palace caters to that interest,” Qingluan continued. “There is only one taboo: anything related to the late Empress must be handled with extreme care. No disrespect is allowed.”
Yan Zigui nodded.
“Well, since you just arrived, they probably won’t let you handle such matters immediately. Even though you are called a female official, you will likely start with basic maid duties to temper your character. You will understand the tricks slowly. My empty words won’t help much,” Qingluan said as she stood up. “I’ll help you choose a good bed. You continue copying the rules.”
After finishing the copying task, Yan Zigui felt dizzy. A maid left by Qingluan led her to the female officials’ residence. As she walked, she carefully observed her surroundings.
From the palace gate to the exam hall and living quarters, it took about fifteen minutes on foot. Near Zhufang Hall were several palace buildings attached to the flower garden. The plants were not rare, so this was likely not an area for noble consorts or princes to relax.
From Zhufang Hall, they walked about three hundred steps out of the garden to the main palace road. After walking for about half of a quarter-hour, they turned left through a side gate. Inside were several neat palace buildings with single-eave roofs, each three bays wide and deep.
“This is the Six Bureaus,” said the palace maid leading her. Her name was Xiaohong, about ten years old, with three years of palace experience. “These side courtyards and corner rooms are where the female officials live.”
“Sister Yuqin!” Xiaohong waved at someone she knew.
Yuqin wore a brown round-collared robe with a patterned design and a soft official head covering. She frowned when she saw Yan Zigui.
“Why haven’t you changed into your palace uniform yet?”