Chapter 6

“Haven’t we reached your residence yet?” Yao Xi asked quietly. The young master led her out of the dark area, and the surroundings gradually became livelier. In order to avoid being seen by the eunuchs and palace maids passing by, Yao Xi had to shrink her neck and lower her head from time to time.

“We are almost there,” Long Yi replied. Everyone in the palace had fallen asleep, and no one was passing by on the road. Long Yi couldn’t help but laugh at the timid look of the eunuch beside her. She wasn’t afraid of death, but she was clearly afraid of falling into the hands of the Queen Mother. It must be said that Wan Yi’s ability to be both hated and feared by everyone was also her power.

Yao Xi nervously supported the young master and walked a little further. She couldn’t help but ask again, “Are we not there yet?”

She was desperate to die. It wasn’t that she wasn’t afraid of death, but what else could she do now, having come this far? There was no way to survive, so she could only find a way to make her death less painful. Whether the Queen Mother would feel unsatisfied after her death and whip her corpse was beyond her control.

Long Yi said nothing but simply held Yao Xi’s hand and continued walking slowly.

Yao Xi felt increasingly tormented. The young master beside her walked at a leisurely pace. They seemed to be trapped in a maze with no way out. They walked along the palace road, turning left, going straight, turning right, going straight again, and then turning right once more… Yao Xi regretted agreeing to send him back to the palace.

Seeing that the surroundings were well-lit and the young master was walking steadily, not as drunk as she expected, Yao Xi decided it was time to quit. She didn’t want to risk being tortured just to send this woman, whom she had only met once, back to the palace. “You seem sober now; how about I leave you here?”

“Perfect. We’re here,” Long Yi replied, stopping.

Yao Xi followed Long Yi’s gaze and saw three large characters written on the plaque above the palace gate in front of them: Ning’an Palace.

So focused on avoiding detection, Yao Xi hadn’t realized that the woman was leading her to Ning’an Palace. This was the tragedy of being directionally challenged. Her foolishness had led her into a trap.

But this woman knew she was afraid of falling into the hands of the Empress Dowager and still brought her to Ning’an Palace?

Yao Xi quickly realized what was happening. This young lady wasn’t heading back to the palace; she was clearly trying to win favor with the Empress Dowager! It was her own fault for misjudging the person. She drank two glasses of wine from her and foolishly followed her because she seemed kind. She had heard stories of concubines using any means to climb the social ladder, but she never imagined she’d be so unlucky as to have someone step on her life to climb up.

Not wanting to be caught and tortured, Yao Xi turned to flee. Long Yi smiled and spoke to the eunuch guarding the Ning’an Palace, “Bring him back.”

Yao Xi, a weak girl, couldn’t outrun the real eunuchs. In an instant, she was caught and brought back to the gate of Ning’an Palace. She struggled and shouted at Long Yi, who remained smiling beside her: “I have no grudge against you, but you’re using me to curry favor with the Queen Mother?” Since meeting this man, he had always been smiling, but now she found his smile unnerving, his presence menacing.

The most dangerous thing is a dagger hidden behind a smile.

Long Yi smiled at the indignant Yao Xi and said, “Since the eunuch is determined to die, why not help me? It will be a worthy death!” She turned to the eunuch guarding the door and said, “Go and tell the Empress Dowager that I have something to ask of her.”

“Your Majesty, the eldest princess requests an audience.” Yan Xi, who had stayed up all night with her master, was struggling to keep her eyes open but forced herself to remain alert.

Wan Yi glanced at the bronze clepsydra on the floor and said, “It’s already midnight, isn’t it? Tell her I’ve gone to bed and that she can return tomorrow if she has something to discuss.”

Long Yi, the eldest princess, was not only the emperor’s sister but also the daughter of the late queen, one year older than Wan Yi. In the past, the late emperor had wronged the late queen to bring her into the palace, and the queen’s death was somewhat connected to it. Long Yi had always despised her, and her hatred for the late emperor was even greater.

The two had never gotten along, so there was no need to meet, especially tonight when Wan Yi was in a bad mood. Seeing Long Yi would only worsen her mood.

Long Yi had originally lived in her fiefdom but had returned to the capital because the anniversary of the late queen’s death was approaching. She would leave once the anniversary had passed. During her time back in the capital, she had met Wan Yi only once—when she came to the palace to pay respects. The emperor had been present at that time, and they had exchanged no more than three sentences before dinner was over.

“Tell her to come back.” Wan Yi changed her mind, stopping Yan Xi from leaving to deliver the message. Long Yi hated her so much that it was unlikely she would come to Ning’an Palace without a reason, especially not in the middle of the night. “Let her in.”

“I beg you, let me end my life.” Yao Xi was terrified when she was brought into Ning’an Palace. Tears streamed down her face, as she could only imagine the terrible fate that awaited her at the hands of the Queen Mother. It was something she felt she couldn’t endure.

Long Yi had only been joking to scare Yao Xi, but seeing the young eunuch so frightened and crying made her put aside her playful intentions. With a serious face, she said, “I was only trying to scare you. When we meet the Queen Mother, we’ll tell her the truth—that you got lost and ended up at the Moon Viewing Pavilion, and I brought you here to stay and serve you. I will take responsibility for your mistake.”

Of course, this wasn’t entirely true. Long Yi had preferred to drink alone at the Moon Viewing Pavilion, which was on a hillside and offered the best view of the palace. She often visited it at night to overlook the palace while drinking. Due to the presence of the eunuchs from Ning’an Palace, many details couldn’t be revealed.

Long Yi wasn’t someone who liked to interfere with other people’s business, especially when it came to Wan Yi’s troubles. There were so many wrongdoings in Ning’an Palace that Long Yi usually turned a blind eye unless they affected her directly. Today, however, she had decided to help the young eunuch, partly because she was annoyed at how incompetent he was, and partly because she considered the eunuch her ally against Wan Yi.

While at the Moon Viewing Pavilion, Long Yi had noticed the main hall of Ning’an Palace was still lit. She hadn’t expected that Wan Yi was so angry at a eunuch that she couldn’t even sleep. It made sense, though. Wan Yi commanded respect from everyone, and though Long Yi hated her, there wasn’t much she could do about it. Even the emperor had to endure her behavior. If the emperor had to swallow his anger, a lowly servant would undoubtedly be punished. Wan Yi, so arrogant, would surely be furious.

Yao Xi, hearing Long Yi refer to herself as “this palace,” realized that the woman must be at least a concubine. She wasn’t sure if Long Yi truly meant to help her, but she had already resolved that if things turned against her and the Queen Mother decided to torture her, she would end her life on her own terms. She considered biting her tongue or holding her breath, though she wasn’t sure if holding her breath could kill her. If all else failed, she would find a pillar to bang her head against. There was always a way out.

Yan Xi came out to greet Princess Long Yi and saw Yao Xi, the eunuch who had kept her master awake all night. Yan Xi assumed the people from the Garden Bureau had arrested Yao Xi and brought him here, so she didn’t say much and simply followed her master’s orders to usher Princess Long Yi in.

Upon entering the bedroom, Long Yi bowed to Wan Yi, who was sitting on the edge of the kang. “Long Yi greets the Queen Mother.”

Yan Xi leaned closer to Wan Yi and whispered a few words in her ear, and Wan Yi, who had been tense all night, finally relaxed. As long as the little eunuch was still alive, there would be plenty of opportunities to deal with him later.

“You came to Ning’an Palace at this time. If you simply wish to pay your respects, isn’t it too early?” Wan Yi waved her hand, signaling for the palace maid to offer Long Yi a seat. She wanted to send Long Yi away quickly and teach the ignorant eunuch a lesson. Wan Yi felt a thrill at the thought of it.

Long Yi thanked her and sat down, saying, “There is a young eunuch in your palace who missed his duties because of me. He is afraid that Your Majesty will punish him, so he came here for me to explain.”

Wan Yi was also curious about why Yao Xi hadn’t arrived at Ning’an Palace, so she said, “I thought the eunuch was disobeying orders and had people take him away. But it seems there’s another reason. I’d like to hear what caused such a delay.”

The only person who could remain calm in front of Wan Yi was likely Princess Long Yi. “The little eunuch got lost and ended up at the Moon Viewing Pavilion. I didn’t bring any servants, so I asked him to wait by the side to escort me back to the palace. Later, when I heard the Queen Mother had sent people to search for him, I brought him here overnight. He’s now waiting outside the palace.”

“When you told him to serve you, didn’t he mention he was supposed to work in my palace tonight?” Wan Yi looked at Long Yi with some displeasure.

“Of course, he did.” Long Yi met Wan Yi’s gaze and smiled cleverly. “It’s because I drank too much today and acted recklessly, but I’m sure the Queen Mother will understand.”

“Alright. I understand. I won’t punish him for this.” Wan Yi said, though her tone revealed she was eager to get rid of Long Yi.

Long Yi, well aware of Wan Yi’s character, knew she wouldn’t punish the eunuch over this incident. But she didn’t say she wouldn’t punish him at all. Long Yi felt the eunuch might be in danger if he stayed in Ning’an Palace, so she wanted to do one good deed before leaving. “Thank you for your grace, Your Majesty. I would like to ask a favor. The eunuch is a good match for me. Would you consider allowing him to serve in the palace when I leave Beijing?”

Wan Yi didn’t even look at Long Yi as she fiddled with the armor in her hands. “That servant may not have done anything wrong in this matter. But you knew he was supposed to run errands in my palace, yet you ordered him to stay and serve you. That’s inappropriate. I won’t bother with you, but you’re asking me to be your superior?”

Yao Xi was escorted out of the palace. Soon after, Long Yi came out. The palace maid who followed her stood at the door and instructed the other palace maids, “Prepare the sedan chair. Send the princess back to the palace.”

Yao Xi suddenly realized that the young woman who had claimed to be a concubine was actually the eldest princess. The eldest princess, being the daughter of the late queen and the sister of the current emperor, did not need to seek favor from the Queen Mother. With this revelation, Yao Xi began to believe the eldest princess’s words when she said she would protect her from the impending disaster. Her hope for survival was reignited, and she looked at Long Yi with renewed hope, saying, “I, Yao Xi, was blind and failed to recognize Your Highness. Please forgive me.”

She was truly courting disaster. Not only had she offended the Queen Mother, but she had also stolen wine from the princess.

“Your name is Yao Xi?” At that moment, Long Yi had no interest in knowing the little eunuch’s name. She had tried to help him, but her efforts were in vain. She would not risk offending Wan Yi over a mere servant.

If she didn’t know his name, after some time, no matter what happened to him—whether he perished in Wan Yi’s hands or not—he would become just another eunuch in her eyes. No matter how interesting or likable he was, she would eventually forget about him.

But the eunuch had told her his name.

And with that, her perception of him subtly shifted. He was no longer just an anonymous servant; he was a person with a name, someone capable of laughter and tears.

Long Yi offered a sad smile at Yao Xi. “I’ve done what I can. Take care of yourself.” With those words, she turned and walked toward the sedan chair that had been prepared outside the palace gate.

Yao Xi was left bewildered.

What did that mean? Was her newfound hope for survival extinguished just like that? Tears welled up in her eyes as she pressed half her tongue between her teeth, exerting pressure in an attempt to control her emotions.

There was not much time left for her.