It was all because she’d left in such a rush—she couldn’t very well sleep with the binding on, could she? Now that she didn’t have to share a bed with Qing Niao and stay on guard, it was only natural she’d want to take good care of Hua Jinghua’s figure for once.
Except taking care of it had backfired—now Yuwen Jie was staring straight at her chest. What was she supposed to say? An enlarged heart? A tumor?
Such a foolish excuse—there was no way the Emperor would believe it!
After thinking it over, Hua Chun decided to go with the smartest excuse: “There are a few steamed buns stuffed in there—this subject planned to eat them if hungry tonight.”
Yuwen Jie: “…”
If he believed that, wouldn’t he be the fool? Narrowing his eyes, looking her over curiously, Yuwen Jie stepped forward.
Hua Chun’s hair stood on end in fright, backing away rapidly, clutching her stomach, her face going pale: “Your Majesty, forgive this subject—I have an urgent need, please excuse me!”
“Stop right there!” the sovereign barked.
How could she possibly stop? If she got exposed, and in this manner no less, she’d be dead for sure! Braving the pressure of defying an imperial order, Hua Chun bolted toward the side hall like the wind.
“Hua Jinghua!” Yuwen Jie frowned and strode after her.
Hua Chun was truly panicking now, her heart clenched tight, breathing growing difficult.
She had to run.
That was the only thing she could think to do—it was a matter of life and death, and now it was just a question of who was faster, her or the Emperor chasing her!
Her four-minute-eleven-second eight-hundred-meter physical test speed was no joke. Just as Yuwen Jie was about to give chase, he saw the figure ahead sprint off like a madwoman, faster than a galloping horse, darting into the side hall and slamming the door shut with a bang.
That was a heavy, carved red sandalwood door—how much strength did it take to shut it so cleanly?
What was all this fuss for, out of nowhere? Yuwen Jie pressed his lips together and walked over, knocking on the closed door.
“Your Majesty, this subject is relieving herself, it wouldn’t be proper!” Hua Chun shouted, yanking hard at her own chest binding. “Please forgive this subject!”
Eunuch Qin looked a bit awkward, bowing to the Emperor: “Perhaps wait until the Prime Minister is finished—this really wouldn’t be proper.”
Yuwen Jie gave a short huff, standing at the door: “I’ll wait right here—I still want to see just what kind of steamed buns are stuffed in that chest.”
Hua Chun could hear him outside and nearly cried from panic. What sin had she committed to deserve this—she should have just said tumor after all!
Binding her chest as flat as an airfield, her face nearly turning purple from the effort, she straightened her clothes and found herself drenched in sweat, lips gone pale.
So this was the price of lying—one lie needed a thousand more to cover it up, a single offense snowballing bigger and bigger until it became an unforgivable crime.
Better to work hard at being honest—at least then she wouldn’t have to live on edge all the time.
Grimly opening the hall door, Hua Chun took small, careful breaths, walking up to the sovereign to bow: “This subject was disrespectful.”
The thing on her chest was gone.
The sovereign raised an eyebrow, and without another word, reached out and pressed his hand to Hua Jinghua’s chest, feeling around left and right.
Hua Chun: “…”
Was it really okay to feel someone up so blatantly? Even though she was dressed thick and bound tight, this was still a girl’s chest—could he just touch it like that!
“Did I see wrong?” Yuwen Jie muttered quietly, then asked her, puzzled: “Where are your buns?”
The question made Hua Chun’s face flush again: “This subject got hungry just now and ate them.”
Yuwen Jie’s eyes were full of disbelief, and he stepped back, looking almost repulsed: “You just said you were relieving yourself, and now you say you were eating?”
Hua Chun’s expression went numb. She wiped a hand over her face and gritted her teeth: “This subject… has this particular hobby.”
Yuwen Jie: “…”
He looked at her deeply for a moment, then turned and walked toward the rear hall, tossing back coldly:
“Remember to wash your hands before reading me memorials tomorrow.”
Hua Chun gritted her teeth and cupped her hands in response: “As you command!”
See, friends! This is the price of covering up a lie! No troubles, just tell the truth and live well—that matters so much more than face! Especially since when a lie unravels at the end, you’re bound to lose face anyway—might as well lose it sooner rather than later!
Furiously headbutting the nearby pillar a couple of times, Hua Chun still went back to the side hall, locked the door, undid the binding on her chest, and went back to sleep with a complicated heart.
Perhaps because she’d been frightened, she dreamed all night of being caught by Yuwen Jie as a woman in disguise.
The sovereign held a three-pronged iron fork, skewering her and holding her over a fire, saying as he roasted her: “If you’re a man, you’re still of some use to keep around. If you’re a woman, better to just eat you and nourish the body.”
Hua Chun screamed, desperately wanting to run, but couldn’t move at all.
What a nightmare!
When she woke, the sky outside was still dark. Just to be safe, Hua Chun dutifully bound herself up tight and secure again.
“This concubine has come to attend Your Majesty’s rising.”
In the rear hall of Zichen Hall, Consort Huo Zhaoyi stood by the dragon bed holding the Emperor’s court robes, her soft, boneless-looking hands gently resting on the sovereign’s body.
Half-asleep, Yuwen Jie looked at the person before him, studying her chest for a moment, then reached out and touched it.
“Your Majesty!” At this uncharacteristically intimate gesture from the Emperor, Consort Huo Zhaoyi’s joy clearly outweighed her shyness, and she leaned into him, gazing at him with tender affection.
“Not quite the same.”
Just as she was waiting for him to say something sweet, she heard these baffling four words instead. Consort Huo Zhaoyi froze, then watched as Yuwen Jie sat up, withdrew his hand, and got straight up to have Eunuch Qin help him dress.
Utterly puzzled, Consort Huo Zhaoyi looked down at her own chest.
Was he dissatisfied that hers wasn’t big enough, or what? Why the sudden interest in this?
Seeing Consort Huo’s odd expression, Eunuch Qin gave a light cough, and something dawned on him in his heart.
Lately, His Majesty had truly grown quite attentive toward Prime Minister Hua.
Accurately guessing the Emperor’s intentions was the way to better please him and keep him happy—that was every head eunuch’s duty. After being confused for so long, Eunuch Qin had finally seen through it all, and now felt settled in his own mind.
Yuwen Jie, dressed in his dragon robes, glanced back at Consort Huo Zhaoyi holding the tea, saying flatly: “Without my summons, do not come to Zichen Hall.”
Consort Huo froze, her smile completely fading, and she couldn’t help but grow anxious: “Your Majesty, this concubine didn’t mean any offense—it’s just been so long since I’ve seen Your Majesty…”
“Return to Wanbao Hall.”
There was no discernible tone in the Emperor’s words, but going by their plain meaning, she’d done something wrong today. Huo Xianrou grew flustered—after all, this Emperor was notoriously moody; one day he could favor someone greatly, the next day send them straight to the cold palace. She didn’t want to end up there.
“This concubine will return at once, but this concubine has also prepared a new dance—when Your Majesty is tired, you’re welcome to come watch it.”
Yuwen Jie ignored her, and after washing up, headed toward the side hall.
“Consort, this way please,” Eunuch Qin gestured.
Consort Huo stood up reluctantly and asked quietly, “Who has His Majesty been with lately?”
Eunuch Qin smiled: “With this servant, of course. Rest assured, my lady—he hasn’t favored you, but he hasn’t favored anyone else either. Things at their extreme reverse themselves—please stay composed, my lady.”
Pressing her lips together, Consort Huo nodded. Eunuch Qin knew the Emperor best of anyone; even if his words weren’t pleasant to hear, she had to heed them.
“Thank you for the guidance, Eunuch.”
Eunuch Qin nodded and strode out to catch up with the Emperor.
Yuwen Jie’s expression today seemed rather preoccupied. He pushed open the side hall door to find Hua Jinghua already dressed and having breakfast.
“Are we going to court?” Swallowing the pastry in her mouth, she quickly stood. “We can leave right now.”
“Finish eating first,” Yuwen Jie frowned. “Wouldn’t want you hiding food on yourself again.”
“Heh heh.” Hua Chun smiled, stuffed down two rice cakes, swallowing them whole, and said: “This subject is done eating.”
Making the Emperor wait at the door for her—she wasn’t tired of living, after all!
He glanced at her but said nothing more, turning to walk out.
Hua Chun walked alongside Eunuch Qin, following beside the imperial carriage all the way to the front court.
Along the way, Eunuch Qin thoughtfully handed her a cup of tea, saying, “The Prime Minister ate in such a rush—better have a sip of tea to settle it.”
“Thank you!” Hua Chun, nearly choking to death, hastily took it and gulped it down.
The sovereign glanced sideways at them but said nothing.
At the morning court session, Prince Xi stood in his usual place, only now those implicated in yesterday’s corruption scandal were entirely absent, their vacancies not yet filled, leaving the court looking rather sparse.
The moment Hua Chun entered, she spotted Li Zhongtang, still smiling, chatting with General Meng and the others, his back straighter than usual, his whole bearing somehow different from before.
“Prime Minister Hua.”
More surprising still, the moment he saw her, Li Zhongtang and the others came up warmly to greet her: “Is the Prime Minister alright?”
What could possibly be wrong with her? Hua Chun pursed her lips: “My thanks for your concern, gentlemen.”
Li Zhongtang chuckled warmly, his expression full of kindly benevolence, not a trace of the coldness he’d shown her in isolating her these past few days. Hua Chun couldn’t help but sigh inwardly—what use was such a face if it didn’t match the heart, just a mask worn over nothing.
The Emperor entered the court proper a while later, and the moment he sat down, before even telling everyone to rise, he had Eunuch Qin read the imperial edict first.
“By the Mandate of Heaven, the Emperor decrees: Upon investigation, there are officials in the court guilty of corruption and bribery, causing the common people to go without food or adequate clothing. This grieves me deeply. I have therefore dispatched men to seal off more than a dozen official residences, confiscating tens of thousands of taels in ill-gotten silver, to be used for the benefit of the people. All officials implicated are hereby demoted to commoner status, expelled from the capital, and forbidden from ever returning. Their family property is to be confiscated, and their wives and daughters exiled along with them, as a warning to all. So decreed.”
Hua Chun pressed her lips together and joined the others in shouting long live the Emperor, then rose to her feet.
Fortunately, Yuwen Jie had been on her side this time, or things would have gone far worse for her. But Grand Tutor Tang… at his age, banished from the capital forever, unable to ever return—it left her feeling somewhat sorry for him too.
Though her memory wasn’t the best, she always remembered who had helped her. Even though Grand Tutor Tang had later used and targeted her to some extent, when she’d first arrived in this place and gotten beaten, he’d been the first to rush out and plead on her behalf.
So Hua Chun decided she should go see him off.