Standing off to the side, Ling Jingyan wore an expression of utter shock, her mind a complete blur.
What on earth was going on? Why had Empress Xu suddenly decided she wanted A’Shu to enter the palace? And A’Shu hadn’t even refused — she had actually stepped forward of her own accord and agreed to it!
What was A’Shu really thinking?
For something with such uncertain consequences, how could she agree without a moment’s hesitation?
Wei Jieyu had been unable to stop it in time, and inwardly she was filled with regret and self-reproach. But on her face she displayed a joyful smile. “This is truly wonderful! Once you’re in the palace, Her Majesty will have someone to keep her company and ease her boredom.”
She then turned to Empress Xu with a smile. “I wonder how Her Majesty plans to summon Ninth Miss Ling into the palace? Will it be the way your humble servant entered the palace back then, or will she be made a female official of Jiaofang Hall, the way Lüzhu once was?”
With matters having reached this point, no one could change the outcome any longer. The most she herself could do for Ling Jingshu was to fight as hard as she could to secure her a status that would let her gain a real foothold in the palace.
Everyone knew the full story of how Wei Jieyu had entered the palace years ago. Wei Jieyu had been a commoner woman, and after entering the palace she could only serve as a maid. Lüzhu, on the other hand, had been the proper daughter of an official family — once she entered Jiaofang Hall, she had been made a female official from the very start, overseeing more than a dozen palace maids beneath her.
Ling Jingshu’s family background was comparable to Lüzhu’s, and so her status ought to be similar to Lüzhu’s as well.
Quite a few people present clearly understood this implication in Wei Jieyu’s words.
Inwardly, Ling Jingshu felt secretly grateful for Wei Jieyu’s protective hint, and quickly picked up the thread with a smile. “Thank you, Lady Jieyu, for your kind intentions. To be able to attend Her Majesty’s side is already a blessing for this humble girl. How would I dare wish for more? I humbly beg Her Majesty to let this humble girl enter the palace as a mere maid. I am willing to attend Her Majesty morning and night.”
Inwardly, Wei Jieyu nodded with approval.
Ling Jingshu truly was clever — these few words had come at exactly the right moment.
By setting her own position lower, Empress Xu, in front of everyone present, would find it all the harder to treat Ling Jingshu unfairly.
“Palace maid” and “female official” might sound similar, but their status and treatment within the palace were worlds apart. The former was like an ordinary maidservant in any household — washing clothes, cleaning, and all manner of menial labor, and if done poorly, scolding and punishment followed readily.
The female officials by Empress Xu’s side, however, each had their own designated duties, similar to stewards in a noble household. They had no need to handle menial chores themselves — they had only to give orders for the maids to carry out. They carried themselves with considerable dignity as they moved about the palace.
Sure enough, Empress Xu laughed and said, “I truly haven’t misjudged you. You haven’t even arrived at Jiaofang Hall yet, and already your heart is wholly devoted to me. Rest assured, I never mistreat those by my side. With your refined and gentle nature, it would be far too unjust for you to serve as a mere palace maid. You shall naturally enter the palace as a female official.”
She went on gently, “Today is New Year’s Day. Go home and spend a few days with your family, and once the Lantern Festival has passed, I’ll have someone come fetch you into the palace. You may bring along two of the maids you’re accustomed to using, to attend to your daily needs. Once you’re inside the palace, leaving again will be rather inconvenient. But you’ve been specially summoned by me, so you’re not like the others. If you ever have urgent business, simply tell me, and with a token in hand, you’ll be able to leave the palace.”
Ling Jingshu had not yet risen, and continued kowtowing in gratitude.
Wei Jieyu said with a smile, “Her Majesty favors Ninth Miss Ling so much, even your humble servant feels a little jealous watching.”
The other consorts joined in with smiles as well. “Indeed, your humble servant feels quite envious too, watching this!”
“Your Majesty mustn’t play favorites so blatantly. When your humble servant comes to Jiaofang Hall to keep Your Majesty company in the future, please don’t ignore me in favor of someone else.”
The consorts chimed in one after another, filling the hall with lively chatter.
Empress Xu was coaxed into laughter. “Each and every one of you keeps finding new ways to flatter me into a good mood. If I keep smiling like this, I’ll end up with two more wrinkles at the corners of my eyes.”
The titled ladies also began speaking up one after another, and the atmosphere in the main hall grew thoroughly lively.
…
Having knelt on the ground for so long, Ling Jingshu took the opportunity to rise to her feet, retreating to one side together with Sun Shi and Ling Jingyan.
Only now did Ling Jingshu realize with a start that her palms were slick with cold sweat, and her back was damp with it as well.
Ling Jingshu kept her head slightly lowered, yet she could still sense the many strange, fixed gazes upon her.
Curious looks, envious looks, jealous looks, hostile looks, gloating looks — and no shortage of those simply eager to watch the spectacle unfold.
Two particular gazes were especially intense and sharp, sweeping across her cheek like blades.
Whose were they?
Without betraying any reaction, Ling Jingshu quietly raised her eyes and soon located the woman who had been staring at her all along — standing to Empress Xu’s left, dignified and lovely in appearance, with an elegant bearing and a smile at the corners of her lips.
It was the newly installed Princess Yan.
Still young, with little guile, she maintained her smile, yet the eyes fixed intently on Ling Jingshu were filled with hostility and ill will.
It was clear that Princess Yan had misunderstood the true meaning behind Empress Xu’s “favor” toward her, mistakenly believing that Empress Xu intended to marry her off to Prince Yan as a secondary consort — which was why she now looked at her with the especially jealous gaze of one rival laying eyes upon another.
Among the many people in the main hall, those who shared Princess Yan’s misunderstanding were certainly not few.
No one knew the true intention behind Empress Xu’s actions.
With everyone talking at once and Jiaofang Hall quite lively, exchanging a few quiet words didn’t draw much attention.
Sun Shi looked at Ling Jingshu with a complicated, hard-to-describe expression, sighing in a lowered voice, “Why were you so impulsive just now? Something this important, and you agreed to it just like that, without a second thought.”
Ling Jingshu replied in a low voice, “Eldest Aunt, you saw the situation just now as well. There was no room for me to refuse at all. By speaking up first myself, at least I came out of it with a bit more dignity.”
Empress Xu had already made up her mind to bring her into the palace — even if she escaped this time, she wouldn’t escape the next.
Sun Shi fell silent, at a loss for words.
Ling Jingyan suddenly took hold of Ling Jingshu’s hand.
Jiaofang Hall was filled with warmth, yet Ling Jingshu’s hand was utterly cold.
Ling Jingyan’s nose stung, tears suddenly welling up at the corners of her eyes, her trembling voice slightly choked. “A’Shu, do you really have no choice but to enter the palace? Couldn’t you plead with Her Majesty, say… say you can’t bear to leave your family, that you won’t go…”
Had it not been for her awareness that this was not the place for it, Ling Jingyan would already have burst into tears, sobbing uncontrollably.
A pang of bitterness rose in Ling Jingshu’s heart, but on her face she forced a light, easy smile. “Being able to enter the palace to attend Her Majesty is the kind of good fortune others can only envy. Don’t worry about me.”
She paused, then added in a low voice, “Cousin Jingyan, there are too many eyes here. Please don’t cry.”
Empress Xu was still seated up there on the phoenix chair! If she were to see Ling Jingyan shedding tears here, wouldn’t that just give her another excuse to make trouble?
At this reminder, Ling Jingyan’s heart gave a jolt, and she immediately forced her tears back, squeezing out a smile — though it was a rather stiff, awkward one.
Seeing this, Ling Jingshu felt a bitter ache in her heart as well, and instinctively tightened her grip on Ling Jingyan’s hand.