Chapter 59
“We recall that it has been one year since you have entered the palace . ” Feng Jin had no impression of Zhuang Laoyan from when she had first arrived . The first time he remembered seeing her was in the peach blossom forest, every twinkle and smile of her flirtatious expressions .
“It has been one full year . When this concubine entered the palace last year, it was also snowing heavily¹ . When Your Majesty passed by this concubine, this concubine sneaked a peek at you . ” Smiling, Zhuang Laoyan leaned against Feng Jin’s chest . “The palace rules state one must not look directly into the dragon’s eyes . When this concubine had sneaked a peek, even my palms were sweaty, scared that others would notice and drive me from the palace . ”
“Now We are by your side, so beloved concubine may take a good look . ” He wrapped an arm around her waist . Said to Gao Dezhong, who stood in the corner, “Gao Dezhong, bring the list We were writing a moment ago here . ”
In no time at all, Gao Dezhong presented that list . On it were many words .
Zhuang Laoyan did not know the emperor’s intention . As such, she averted her gaze from the list .
“This is the promotion list We have drawn up . Take a look . ” Feng Jin handed it to Zhuang Laoyan, his manner of doing so casual to the extreme . As if it wasn’t a list that involved the women of the imperial harem, and rather a piece of worthless paper .
Expression full of difficulty and bitterness, Zhuang Laoyan looked back at the emperor . “Your Majesty, this concubine should not be looking at something like this . ”
“Since We let you look at it, would anyone dare to criticize?” said Feng Jin in a careless manner . “In Our presence, you need not follow those kinds of protocol . ”
When an emperor favored a woman, she did not have to follow any of the palace rules . But once that woman lost his favor, that she had not abided by those protocols before would become an unwashable stain .
She hesitated for a moment, before receiving that piece of paper . It surprised her a little . This was actually the promotion list for after the new year . And there were many names on it .
Consort Xian would be promoted to a noble consort . Noble Imperial Concubine Yan would be promoted to a lesser third-rank chongyi² . Virtuous Imperial Concubine Jiang would be promoted to a noble imperial concubine . And because of what had happened to Zhuang Laoyan, the promotion list also contained Cairen Kong and Ronghua Ye . Cairen Kong would be promoted to a lesser fifth-rank wanyi³ and Ronghua Ye would be promoted to a proper fourth-rank righteous imperial concubine⁴ . And Zhuang Laoyan herself would be promoted in one leap to a mid-tier second-rank xianrong .
Because of her elder sister’s miscarriage, Ronghua Ye had experienced a demotion prior . After her elder sister had suffered a setback, since the emperor still promoted her to a righteous imperial concubine despite spurning her, his intention became a mystery .
“That Virtuous Imperial Concubine Jiang and Cairen Kong have served in the palace for a long time . If it weren’t for the fact that We saw them in your palace, We would have forgotten them . ” Feng Jin took back the list from Zhuang Laoyan’s hands . “We do not visit the harem often . However, we have ascended the throne for many years . There are also many women in the palace . Although We do not favor them, since they are friendly with you, they ought to be promoted . ”
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“Your Majesty, your honored self should not do such a thing because of this concubine . ” Zhuang Laoyan’s eyes were red . She lowered her head, not wanting the man holding her to see her face . “Your Majesty is the leader of the whole country . Always busy . In this concubine’s opinion, as long as Your Majesty is well, nothing else is important . If because of such a matter, Your Majesty becomes distracted, how could this concubine be happy?”
“Don’t think of such things . ” Feng Jin stroked the top of her head . “You are Our beloved concubine . It’s worth spending some effort for you . ” The speaker’s eyes were calm as the still waters of a lake . However, the person with her head lowered did not catch sight of them . And the speaker also did not see the similar calm gaze of the person lowering her head .
The new year arrived . The Department of the Palace sent the gifts each palace and residence ought to receive . Naturally, the things they gave Zhuang Laoyan were of the highest quality . No one dared to embezzle . On the contrary, the Department of the Palace added to her allotment .
Every favored imperial concubine received extra gifts from the Department of the Palace . And Zhuang Laoyan received them all . After accepting the extra gifts, she would reward those who had sent them, abiding by unspoken customs regarding gift-giving and receiving to the utmost .
Ever since two days ago, when the emperor had let her see the list of promotions, Zhuang Laoyan felt she had many responsibilities on her shoulders . Of course, it’s unlikely the emperor did this due to her miscarriage . Virtuous Imperial Concubine Jiang, Cairen Kong, and Ronghua Ye were all people that had interacted with her . Furthermore, they were not part of any faction in the imperial harem . Not long after the emperor had summoned her that day, a rumor spread in the harem: that because of Zhuang Laoyan, those three would be promoted .
Did the emperor give these three to her so that she could form her own faction and fight the other factions?
At present, there were three factions in the imperial harem . The first belonged to the empress . The second, Noble Consort Shu . And the last clique was led by Consort Rou . The rest of the imperial concubines put one’s own safety before matters of principle . However, the emperor lifted her so high . One would fear that it was thirty percent from favor and seventy percent to make use of her .
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Wasn’t a woman who wholeheartedly loved the emperor, acted appropriately, and had a background that wasn’t too distinguished or too poor the best pawn? Because of love, women could be strong . And because of love, they were blind . If she truly loved the emperor, one would fear she’d actually think the emperor loved her . That he wasn’t just using her .
“Master, just now, this slave heard an interesting rumor,” said Yunxi as approached with a cup of tea . “During noon today, Zhaorong Xu admired the plum blossoms and recited poetry in the plum blossom garden . Once she had caught sight of the emperor, she did not know her legs had grown numb, falling into the snow . She had such a sorry appearance . ”
Zhuang Laoyan arched a brow . All year round, this Zhaorong Xu had to maintain her act as a scholarly woman . Even in the deep of winter, she still had to put on an extremely delicate appearance . She overdid it today, and consequently lost a lot of face .
“What did the emperor say?” Zhuang Laoyan understood how the other imperial concubines felt when watching something exciting . The harem was boring . If they did not see the jokes made of other people, it’d be much too boring .
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“Word has it that His Majesty had an eunuch support Zhaorong Xu to her feet . He even said a sentence . Can Master guess what His Majesty said?” It was evident on Yunxi’s face that she was taking pleasure in others’ misery to a high degree . Zhuang Laoyan couldn’t help but be interested, asking, “What did he say?”
“His Majesty said, ‘beloved concubine, it’s already winter . Why are you dressed in autumn attire?’” Yunxi couldn’t stop herself from laughing out loud . “This slave heard Zhaorong Xu’s delicate expression had stiffened in an instant after those words . ”
The corners of Zhuang Laoyan’s lips tilted upward . Truly such a faker . Since the emperor had said such words in front of his whole entourage, one would fear he had grown sick of her act .
This emperor’s taste was bound to change . As such, he would never favor the same person forever . As such, the most difficult thing in this world to cater to was the emperor’s taste in women .
As the servant and master were speaking, they caught sight of Fu Bao rushing into the room . “Master, the eunuchs of the Department of the Palace have arrived . They said His Majesty bestowed many things to our palace . ”
Once Zhuang Laoyan reached the sitting room, sure enough there were many gifts there . A steward eunuch of the Department of the Palace smiled as he saluted to her . “Master Zhao, His Majesty has decreed that since tomorrow will be the new year, and since Master Zhao has grown a lot thinner recently, Shangyi Bureau must make some new clothes and we slaves must deliver them over . May your honored self check to see if they are to your liking . ”
The moment the words had left his lips, the eunuchs behind him opened the chest .
Zhuang Laoyan glanced inside . There were cloaks made of fox pelt, blouses paired with wrap-around skirts, embroidered shoes, and many types of jewelry, each with fine craftsmanship . Their styles were also fashionable and new for the year . It was evident that the Shangyi Bureau was very attentive .
“Many thanks to His Majesty for the bestowment . I am very fond of these things . I have troubled Shangyi Bureau and you as well . ” Zhuang Laoyan waved, and Yunxi and Tingzhe approached with pouches of money for the eunuchs .
“The new year is fast approaching . May the gonggongs use these small tokens of appreciation to drink some tea . Thank you for your care this past year . ” A faint smile tinted Zhuang Laoyan’s lips as she took a light sip of tea . Watched as the eunuchs rushed to say they didn’t dare accept her praise, their smiles never changing .
On the thirtieth day of the twelfth month, snow accumulated thickly above the glazed roof tiles in the palace . Zhuang Laoyan rose from bed and noticed icicles from the tree through the window . As Yunxi helped her change clothes, she sighed with emotion . “In a blink of an eye, a year has passed . ”
“It has already been a year,” said Yunxi, adjusting Zhuang Laoyan’s fox fur cloak . She smiled . “When Master had first arrived at the palace, the new year had yet to arrive . ”
A smile blossomed on Zhuang Laoyan’s lips . Naturally, Yunxi did not know what she was truly sighing in emotion for: her time in this world .
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Within the makeup box before her lay many different pieces of jewelry . Each was priceless in the modern age . She selected one with a chrysoberyl cat’s eye⁵ . All of a sudden, she said, “I heard that Jieyu Zhuang fell ill recently?”
Yunxi smiled weakly . “Reporting to Master, this slave heard that ever since His Majesty had removed her nametag from the selection, she fell ill . Her condition improved two days ago, and Her Majesty the empress bestowed her some tonics yesterday . ”
“Her Majesty has always been benevolent . ” Zhuang Laoyan smiled in an insincere manner . Her poor relationship with Jieyu Zhuang wasn’t something that had appeared after one to two days . Yesterday, the empress had bestowed a few bolts of Sichuan embroidery⁶ to herself, and bestowed tonics to Jieyu Zhuang . Such actions were actually very balanced .
“Jieyu Zhuang is my elder sister . I ought to worry about her a little . ” Zhuang Laoyan turned her jadeite bracelet around her wrist . “Take out the hundred-year-old ginseng from my storage and give it to Elder Sister . So as to help nourish Elder Sister’s body . ”
“Master is kind . This slave will do as your honored self wishes . ” Yunxi curtsied, turned around, and made for the storage to find the ginseng .
On New Year’s Eve, the principal consorts of the nobility and high-ranking officials came to pay respects to the empress dowager and the empress . The imperial concubines must wait until evening to bow three times and kowtow nine times to the three most noble people in the palace . As such, Zhuang Laoyan was able to take a rare nap of laziness . After she had someone send Jieyu Zhuang the hundred-year-old ginseng, in others’ eyes it was an act . However, in Jieyu Zhuang’s eyes, it was merely to humiliate her .
Zhuang Laoyan did not forget that the moment she had arrived in this world, she had been punished to kneel before the doors of Jingyang Palace . And Jieyu Zhuang had looked at her with a gaze full of contempt .
When I was in dire straits, you taunted me with your gaze . How do you know that when you’re down and out, I wouldn’t give you the same look?
Women always held grudges . Zhuang Laoyan had never considered herself someone with a sharp sense of integrity .
As Yunxi led two palace maids to Jieyu Zhuang’s residence, her first-ranked palace maid, Xieyu, was sitting by the door in the middle of embroidering . After catching sight of Yunxi, she first fell into a daze, before rushing to stand and salute .
Yunxi was Xiuyi Zhao’s first-ranked palace maid, one who was always by her side . Xiuyi Zhao’s status was higher than her master’s . Naturally, her status was a lot lower than Yunxi’s .
“Why has Miss Yunxi come?” asked Xieyu in a careful manner after she had escorted her to the sitting room .
A smile bloomed on Yunxi’s lips . “Is Jieyu Zhuang present? Our master heard that Jieyu Zhuang has fallen ill and had this slave deliver some nourishing medicine . If Jieyu Zhuang is present, may I trouble Miss Xieyu to inform her . ”
Xieyu knew that her master did not get along with Xiuyi Zhao . However, at this moment she had no choice but to yield . “May Miss Yunxi wait a moment . ”
Yunxi did so, before seeing Jieyu Zhuang approach with Xieyu’s hand for support, her expression poor . She glanced at Jieyu Zhuang’s clothes, which were not new . Saluted in accordance to protocol . “Greetings to Jieyu Zhuang . ”
“Why did Zhuang Laoyan tell you to come here?” Jieyu Zhuang looked at Yunxi, expressionless .
Smiling, Yunxi stood up straight . “Responding to Jieyu Zhuang, Master heard that your honored self is not well and had this slave deliver some things over . Hoping Jieyu Zhuang will not dislike them . ”
“How could I dare to dislike the things of the magnificent Xiuyi Zhao?” Jieyu Zhuang sneered . “Otherwise, I won’t be able to maintain my position as a jieyu . ”
“Jieyu Zhuang is too serious,” said Yunxi, still smiling . “Since Master’s bestowment has already been delivered, this slave ought to return . ”
Once she had heard those word “bestowment,” Jieyu Zhuang’s expression changed again . However, she gritted her teeth . “This concubine thanks Xiuyi Zhao for the bestowment . ”
That she could not compare to Zhuang Laoyan at present was a fact . If it wasn’t for Zhuang Laoyan, why would the emperor have removed her nametag from the selection? Why would she be unable to even see the emperor’s face?
After Yunxi had stepped foot outside the sitting room, she heard a crash behind her . As if a box had been hurled to the ground .
“Miss Yunxi…” said the low-ranked palace maid behind her, furious . As if she was dissatisfied with Jieyu Zhuang’s inability to discern the good from bad .
Once more, Yunxi smiled . “Let her do as she pleases . ”
Jieyu Zhuang’s good days were already over .