Chapter 51 – Elder Sister, I Want to Enter the Palace

A palace maid approached Su Ling. After bowing, she lowered her voice and said,
“Second Miss Su, this servant comes on Her Highness’s orders to invite you over.”

Su Ling was stunned. She instinctively looked at her elder sister.

Su Miao smiled calmly. “Which Her Highness do you mean?”

The palace maid respectfully replied,
“Of course, Her Majesty the Empress Dowager.”

Su Ling felt a wave of unease in her heart. Why would the Empress Dowager suddenly want to see her?
Besides, how could they be sure this maid really served the Empress Dowager?

Su Miao held her younger sister’s hand, giving her fingers a light squeeze to help her stay calm.
“What is your name?”

The maid respectfully answered,
“This servant is called Cui Lu.”

The Empress Dowager’s summons—who dared to defy it?

Su Miao placed a hand over her own abdomen, then turned to look at Su Ling, hinting that she should pretend she had stomach discomfort and needed to relieve herself.

Although doing this might anger the Empress Dowager, at least it was safer.

Su Ling understood the signal.

She followed the maid for a short distance, preparing to clutch her stomach and pretend she felt unwell. But at that moment, she heard Dong Xinrui’s voice.

“Cui Lu, what did the Empress Dowager order you to do?”

“The Empress Dowager wishes to see Second Miss Su,” the maid answered with a bow.

Dong Xinrui nodded, glanced at Su Ling, and said nothing further. She led several noble ladies away.

After hearing the exchange between Dong Xinrui and the maid, Su Ling felt a bit more at ease—at least this Cui Lu really was one of the Empress Dowager’s people.

So she decided not to pretend she was ill anymore. After all, she didn’t want to offend the Empress Dowager.

She was the second legitimate daughter of the General’s Estate; the Empress Dowager wouldn’t make things too difficult for her.

When Su Miao saw her sister actually leaving with the maid, her heart gave a heavy thump. She clutched her embroidered handkerchief anxiously.

What to do? She could only hope nothing would happen.

The maid walked half a step behind Su Ling, pointing ahead.
“Second Miss Su, Her Majesty is at the Imperial Garden.”

Su Ling did not think much of it and followed. From the flower appreciation banquet to the Imperial Garden was quite a long way.

Fortunately, along the way, she occasionally encountered palace maids and eunuchs, so she wasn’t too frightened.

They reached the Imperial Garden.

The maid’s expression remained calm.
“We’ve arrived. Just ahead is the Imperial Garden. Second Miss Su, walk straight through, and you will see Her Majesty in the pavilion.”

“You’re not going with me?” Su Ling asked suspiciously, feeling uneasy.

“That place is not where a servant like me is permitted.” After bowing, the maid turned and left.

Su Ling looked around. The surroundings were very quiet. For a moment, she hesitated—should she turn back or continue into the garden?

In the end, she thought, since she was already here, she might as well go in.

She stepped into the Imperial Garden.

**

Meanwhile, Dong Xinrui returned to Cining Palace.

She took the initiative to tell Dowager Empress Dong that she had deliberately instructed the maid to lure Su Ling to the Imperial Garden.

“Aunt, I only sent her to the Imperial Garden. I didn’t do anything truly wicked. Besides, His Majesty rarely goes to the Imperial Garden, doesn’t he?”

Dong Xinrui wrapped her arm around the Empress Dowager’s, speaking gently,
“I was just planning to have someone fetch her back in a moment. I just didn’t expect she’d be so easily fooled.”

“The Imperial Garden is a place His Majesty frequents. How could she not think about it? Who would let an outsider lady stroll into the Imperial Garden?”

The Empress Dowager pressed her fingers to Dong Xinrui’s forehead in exasperation.
“You—did that girl offend you?”

Dong Xinrui snorted softly.
“Her cousin offended me. If she wants to blame someone, she can blame her cousin.”

The Empress Dowager couldn’t do anything about her. She turned to instruct the palace matron,
“Go bring Second Miss Su back to the flower appreciation banquet and send her a hairpin from me.”

The palace matron acknowledged the order, bowed, and left Cining Palace.

Dong Xinrui’s eyes grew faintly red.
“Aunt, you truly do love me.”

She was genuinely grateful that the Empress Dowager had always doted on her.

“You—next time, don’t act recklessly again. This is the imperial palace. Though I can protect you, the person with the greatest authority here is the Emperor. If you provoke him, it will not end well.” The Empress Dowager couldn’t bear to speak harshly.

“Yes. Xinrui knows she was wrong.” Dong Xinrui replied with a warm smile.

**

Su Ling walked in the Imperial Garden for a while but didn’t see any pavilion. She soon sensed something was wrong.

Though this was the Imperial Garden, it was winter, so there were no flowers or greenery to admire.

This was by Ling Gurong’s order—he felt it was a waste of silver to maintain flowers and plants in the Imperial Garden.

Su Ling decided to head back the way she came.

Suddenly, she froze.

Her eyes widened slightly, and she couldn’t stop her hands and feet from trembling.

Chief Steward Feng frowned.
“Impudent—who dares trespass in the Imperial Garden!”

Which young lady had such nerve?

Su Ling saw the young Emperor wearing a dragon robe.

The man was handsome and distant.

Hearing the eunuch’s voice, she hurriedly bent her knees in a deep curtsey and said respectfully and nervously,
“This subject’s daughter is the second legitimate daughter of the Zhennan General’s Estate. Greetings to Your Majesty.”

Ling Gurong raised his eyebrows slightly and spoke in a cool tone.
“The Su family?”

Wasn’t that Tang Chaoyang’s maternal family?

He began to walk away, only instructing,
“Escort her out.”

Just then, the palace matron arrived in haste. Seeing the Emperor, her heart gave a jolt.

She bowed and quickly explained,
“Your Majesty, Her Majesty the Empress Dowager had intended to come to the Imperial Garden. She specially summoned Second Miss Su here to converse. But Her Majesty felt unwell and returned to Cining Palace.”

Ling Gurong’s expression carried a hint of concern.
“Has the Imperial Physician been summoned?”

“Her Majesty said she wished to wait until the banquet ended before calling the physician.” The moment she finished speaking,

she heard the young Emperor instruct Chief Steward Feng to personally summon an Imperial Physician to take the Empress Dowager’s pulse.

“Nothing is more important than Her Majesty’s health.” With that, he left the place.

After the Emperor departed, Su Ling finally let out a sigh of relief. She realized she had just dared to look directly at the Son of Heaven.

Her pretty face flushed pink. The new Emperor was truly handsome.

Originally, she had wanted to enter the palace only to become a minor consort. Now, she felt even less opposed to it.

Her elder sister probably had no desire to enter the palace. When she returned home, she planned to discuss it with her.

The palace matron bowed to Second Miss Su and cast a swift glance at her blushing face.

In an instant, she understood why Second Miss Su was flushed.

The young Emperor was indeed an exceptionally attractive man. It was only a pity that he had little interest in women.

All these years, he hadn’t even kept a single bed companion, which was rather odd.

If the Imperial Physicians hadn’t repeatedly confirmed that His Majesty’s health was normal, everyone would have suspected something was wrong.

The matron personally escorted Second Miss Su back to the banquet and delivered the Empress Dowager’s gift of a hairpin before bowing and leaving.

When Su Miao saw her younger sister return safe and sound, the anxiety that had been gripping her finally eased.

She breathed a quiet sigh of relief.

“Elder Sister, I made you worry,” Su Ling said sweetly.

“Just wait until we get home—I’ll deal with you then.” Su Miao snorted.

Several noble ladies noticed that a matron from the Empress Dowager’s household had personally brought Su Ling back.

They exchanged glances, then deliberately approached the Su sisters to try to find out what had happened.

Luckily, Su Ling still had some sense and did not mention that she had met the Emperor.

The flower appreciation banquet finally concluded around 3 PM.

The Empress Dowager perused the roster of noble ladies, selecting five names.

“Matron, deliver this booklet to His Majesty.”

As for whom the Emperor might choose to be Empress, she could not truly interfere.

The Dong family, in order to avoid arousing imperial suspicion, had not sent any daughters into the palace.

**

The Su family’s carriage left the palace.

Inside the carriage, the two sisters no longer bothered to maintain perfect posture.

Today had been exhausting.

Su Ling passed the hairpin the Empress Dowager had gifted her over for Su Miao to see, lowering her voice to describe everything that had happened after she followed the palace maid away.

When she reached the part about encountering the Emperor, her voice carried a shy, sweet undertone.

Su Miao frowned slightly. She knew her sister well and sensed something was amiss.

Su Ling leaned closer, hugging her sister’s arm.
“Elder Sister, I want to enter the palace.”