It was the middle of the afternoon, with a boundless azure sky and not a hint of cool breeze.

The scorching sun hung high, heating the blue bricks underfoot to a burning temperature.

Xiaoyan stood in place, feeling the hot air rising from beneath his feet, which only made his mind more agitated. Seeing Talent Gu’s posture of submission with her head lowered irritated him even more.

He turned his gaze away from her and strode toward the front hall.

Eunuch Gao was momentarily startled, then quickly followed, noticing that the Emperor’s brows remained deeply furrowed in silence throughout the journey.

He couldn’t help thinking to himself that she had indeed violated the Emperor’s taboo. No matter how she tried to make amends afterward, it would be of no use—she still hadn’t caught the Emperor’s eye…

But just as they reached the outside of Tianlu Pavilion, Eunuch Gao suddenly heard the Emperor ask: “What family is this Gu from? It seems her father is a local prefect?”

Eunuch Gao was shocked internally, but his face immediately broke into a smile: “Your Majesty has an excellent memory. Talent Gu’s father, Gu Changtong, is the Prefect of Fu Prefecture, of the fifth rank… He was originally a judicial commissioner at the Qing Prefecture government office and was transferred to Fu Prefecture only two years ago.”

“Is that so…” Then he truly shouldn’t have met her before. Could the jade-throwing incident last night have been a coincidence?

Eunuch Gao recalled the register submitted during the initial selection and continued slowly: “Gu Changtong requested the transfer from Qing Prefecture two years ago. He and Shen Xu from the Ministry of Revenue were scholars in the same imperial examination. Before going to Qing Prefecture, he also served in the Jizhou Division of the Ministry of Revenue…”

Glancing surreptitiously, he saw that the Emperor seemed genuinely attentive, so Eunuch Gao boldly continued: “Gu Changtong is a jinshi graduate, but his family is not prominent. Although he has been an official for over ten years, after reaching the sixth rank, he found it difficult to advance further. When he was transferred to Fu Prefecture, it was a poor region and not considered a desirable post. Gu Changtong filled the vacancy and was only then promoted to the fifth rank…”

Xiaoyan nodded and entered Tianlu Pavilion without further comment.

Eunuch Gao knew when to stop and closed his mouth at the appropriate time.

It was the Hour of the Monkey (3-5 PM).

In Caiwei Palace, Consort Su had rarely displayed such anger.

Her phoenix eyes glinted coldly as she surveyed the palace maids kneeling in the hall.

Yuhu knelt at the front, kowtowing: “Please calm your anger, My Lady. It was all this servant’s unauthorized decision. Thinking that maids from Xiuyi Palace often come to deliver items and have previously entered the study, yesterday I instructed her to place Concubine Wang’s newly acquired tea ceremony scroll in the study. Who would have thought… This servant will certainly make amends and have the study properly arranged…”

Consort Su said coldly: “My study—can anyone from Xiuyi Palace simply enter as they please?”

Yuhu kowtowed several more times emphatically, repeatedly saying: “This servant acknowledges her guilt. Please calm your anger, My Lady.”

Consort Su glanced at her again—after all, she was an old servant brought from home.

At this point, further punishment or attempts at making amends would be useless.

“All palace maids in Caiwei Palace will have their wages deducted for three months and receive thirty strikes with the paddle. If there is a second offense, you need not remain in Caiwei Palace.”

“Thank you for your mercy, My Lady.”

Having spoken, Consort Su returned alone to her study, pacing back and forth, her mind still restless and uneasy.

Last night, after finishing her scripture copying, she had placed her wolf-hair brush in the bamboo-root inkstone but accidentally dropped it on the floor. As she bent down to pick it up, she discovered a blood-red bead the size of a fingernail that had rolled out from under the lacquered landscape cabinet.

A dosage mother pearl.

Consort Su immediately anxiously opened the secret compartment in the cabinet. The tri-colored treasure box had indeed been disturbed—the lid had been carelessly closed, and inside lay several rounded, blood-red mother-of-pearl dosage mother pearls.

This secret compartment, this cabinet—she never allowed anyone to touch it. Who had carelessly disturbed her belongings?

Consort Su closed the secret compartment and hurriedly left the study, reprimanding the servants for disarranging her books. Yuhu came upon hearing the commotion and informed her that Huaihua, a palace maid from Xiuyi Palace, had come to the study in the evening to deliver the scroll.

Huaihua.

Whether she knew or not, whether intentional or not, she could not be allowed to remain.

She had left a coded message for someone during the night.

Qi Shu had waited the entire night, not knowing whether the deed had been accomplished yet.

In the height of summer, the days were long, and even after the Hour of the Rooster (5-7 PM), the sky remained bright.

Tao Jia returned from the Craftsmen’s Bureau with a slightly used set of small chuiwan mallets and a ball, which she handed to Gu Yi.

“This set of mallets is said to have been the favorite of the palace attendants who played chuiwan in the past. It’s just a bit old, which is why it was discarded. If Talent wants to play for amusement, it’s perfect.”

Gu Yi took it and examined it carefully, trying it out: “It fits well in the hand. Not bad!”

Tao Jia smiled: “So Talent also enjoys this ball game. I’ve heard that Consort De from Luoying Palace is fond of it too…”

Gu Yi: “Hehe.” What I love is silver, thank you.

In the previous cycle, she had studied the chuiwan course map no less than a hundred times—where the ball pits were, where the ball bases were, among the ten courses, which was uphill, which was downhill, where there were floral obstacles, where the ground was hard or soft—she knew it all.

Combined with excellent players’ demonstrations as imitation material, and with several months still to go before the chuiwan competition, if she practiced diligently—three days of simulation, five days of actual testing—she didn’t believe she couldn’t win a place.

One hundred taels per course—dreams can come true!

Taking advantage of the remaining daylight, Gu Yi changed into a pair of brocade boots and began practicing striking the ball in Pingcui Palace’s small courtyard.

The wooden ball was struck hard, hitting the brick wall with a series of thuds.

After playing for quite a while, Gu Yi had worked up a sweat.

Fortunately, the sun was already setting in the west, and a gentle breeze brought a hint of coolness.

Tao Jia advised: “Talent has played for so long, perhaps you should rest. Let’s have the evening meal first…”

Gu Yi felt she was gradually getting the feel of it: “All right, I’ll hit five more balls, and that will be it for today.”

With that, she gripped the handle with both hands, using her elbows to power the strike at the ball at her feet.

This strike used a clever force, and the ball soared into the air, flying over the low eaves of Pingcui Palace with several loud bangs, seeming to fall onto the palace path, bouncing even further.

Gu Yi smiled awkwardly, “I’ll go look and pick up the ball.” After all, they only had one.

Tao Jia wore an expression of wanting to laugh but forcing herself not to, making an acknowledging sound and following her out.

The evening glow still provided light, but the deep palace path was already half in shadow, half in light.

The Western Garden was rarely frequented, and after sunset, it was even more like an uninhabited realm.

Gu Yi looked carefully and saw that the small ball had rolled quite a distance along the path, almost reaching the end.

She quickly pursued it, taking just a couple of steps before raising her eyes to see a gray shadow flashing past the end of the corridor, heading west, so quickly it seemed like a hallucination.

Gu Yi’s heart sank, and a strange sense of déjà vu welled up spontaneously.

She couldn’t help quickening her pace, gripping the mallet tightly in her hand.

Reaching the end of the corridor, she saw a large locust tree on the eastern side, blocking out the sky. Behind the tree seemed to be a well, and by the well… was someone lying there?

She was immediately alarmed and turned to Tao Jia: “Quick, go call someone! There’s a person here!”

Tao Jia also peered to look: “This servant will go right away!”

Gu Yi approached and looked behind the tree to see a person lying there, wearing wrinkled jade-green palace clothes, with an apple-shaped face and slightly protruding cheekbones.

She was Huaihua.

Gu Yi crouched down and carefully extended her hand to check for breath.

Her heart suddenly eased—there was still breath.

After waiting for a short while, Tao Jia returned, leading people from the Palace Discipline Office.

The leading female official from the Palace Discipline Office wore a blue official garment with a red palace order hanging at her waist, around forty years of age.

She spoke: “Is this Talent Gu?”

Gu Yi stood up: “Indeed, and which Auntie from the Palace Discipline Office are you?”

The female official said: “This humble wife’s surname is Shen.”

A familiar face.

Gu Yi then said: “Just now I came out to retrieve my chuiwan ball, chased it here, and found this palace maid lying by the well. She still has breath at the moment. May Auntie Shen quickly summon the Imperial Physician to examine her?”

Female Official Shen nodded, and two jade-green-clad female officials behind her jointly lifted Huaihua onto a wooden stretcher.

“This humble wife will take this person to the Palace Discipline Office now and summon the Imperial Physician to examine her. However, this matter is truly suspicious. The Palace Discipline Office handles matters of discipline and punishment, and we need to investigate this case. May I trouble Talent Gu to accompany this humble wife to the Palace Discipline Office to explain the matter in detail for the record?”

Gu Yi nodded: “As is proper.”

The Palace Discipline Office was some distance from the Western Garden. By the time the group arrived, the palace lamps had already been lit, illuminating the four-cornered hall brightly.

Gu Yi saw an Imperial Physician in blue robes with a white hat and black belt standing in the hall.

When Eunuch Gao in the front hall heard the palace attendant’s report, he naturally learned of this matter.

This wasn’t a major incident, but since it occurred in the Western Garden, he had to report it to the Emperor.

Xiaoyan only asked: “Who was by the well?”

Gao replied: “I heard it was a second-class palace maid from Xiuyi Palace.”

“Why would a Xiuyi Palace maid be in the Western Garden? Who discovered her?”

Gao answered truthfully: “I heard it was Talent Gu.”

Talent Gu.

That Talent Gu again.

Xiaoyan pondered for a moment, then rose from behind his desk: “Let’s go to the Palace Discipline Office to take a look.”

Gu Yi stood to one side, watching the Imperial Physician check Huaihua’s pulse and then lift her eyelids.

But Huaihua showed no sign of regaining consciousness.

After examining her for a while, the Imperial Physician before them stopped.

Seeing his slightly narrowed eyes, furrowed brow, and puzzled expression, Gu Yi couldn’t help but grow tense as well.

Just at that moment, a loud announcement came from outside the door: “His Majesty the Emperor arrives!”

The Palace Discipline Office instantly fell silent as everyone straightened their garments and prostrated themselves.

Gu Yi felt her knees weaken as she, too, prostrated herself.

“Greetings to Your Majesty.”

“Rise.”

Xiaoyan’s gaze swept around, settling on the Imperial Physician: “What does Imperial Physician Hu say?”

Imperial Physician Hu bowed his head and made another salute: “Reporting to Your Majesty, according to this humble official’s observation, this person’s life is not in immediate danger, but she seems to have been made to drink some medicinal concoction, which is why she remains unconscious.” Seeing the Emperor’s silence, he felt compelled to continue: “However… there is one thing this humble official does not understand.”

Xiaoyan made a sound of acknowledgment.

Imperial Physician Hu lowered his head even further: “This person’s right hand seems to be injured, but there is no visible wound. Only her four fingers are red and swollen. This humble official has looked for quite some time but cannot determine the cause. Perhaps… perhaps she touched something, or ate something, that caused this abnormality.”

As he spoke, Gu Yi directed her gaze toward Huaihua’s right hand and saw that her fingers were indeed as the Imperial Physician described—swollen and red, looking like four small carrots.

Thinking of this, Gu Yi’s heart skipped a beat.

Xiaoyan, however, slowly asked: “According to the Imperial Physician, what might this person have touched?”

Imperial Physician Hu heard his tone, though calm, somehow caused a thin layer of cold sweat to form on the back of his neck. His throat moved slightly before he answered: “This official is inadequate. At present, it is still unknown. Each person is different, and what the skin and hair reject also varies. This humble official can wait… wait until this palace maid awakens, perhaps then we can inquire in detail to find the cause…”