Hearing footsteps entering the hall, Gu Yi slightly tidied the loose hair on her shoulders.
After all, Noble Consort Shu was the Great Mu Dynasty’s foremost beauty; she couldn’t look too disheveled.
Gu Yi, half-reclining on the wooden couch, lowered her head in greeting, “Greetings to Noble Consort Shu.” As the visitor approached, she smelled a rich fragrance of powder and perfume.
Noble Consort Shu saw that Consort Gu was wearing only plain undergarments, her almond eyes downcast, but her complexion was not bad, white with a touch of pink.
She reached out as if to help her up, “Consort Gu is injured, there’s no need for such formalities. Please rise.”
Only then did Gu Yi look up at Noble Consort Shu before her. She saw that her lips were bright red, her eyebrows and eyes meticulously drawn, and a gold-foil hibiscus decorative patch adorned her forehead.
A stunning, intense beauty.
Gu Yi smiled, “This concubine is extremely grateful for Noble Consort Shu’s visit.”
Noble Consort Shu smiled with pursed lips, “Consort is too polite. We are sisters after all, no need to be so formal. Where are you injured? Is it serious?”
Gu Yi pulled back the quilt, revealing her bandaged calf wrapped in several layers of white gauze, “The injury is on my leg, but it’s not serious.”
Noble Consort Shu made an “mm” sound. After Sister Gu’s attack, His Majesty must be extremely distressed. Sister should focus on recovering soon.”
Gu Yi found it strange that Noble Consort Shu would mention the Emperor unprompted. If it had been Noble Consort De bringing it up, she could understand it as jealousy, but coming from Noble Consort Shu, it felt… strange…
So she gave a dry laugh, “This concubine will certainly rest well and recover quickly.”
Seeing her smiling face, Noble Consort Shu said, “I just came to check on you and won’t stay long… Sister should rest well.”
She turned to leave but suddenly stopped, “I have some pain-relieving medicine for injuries in my Caiwei Palace. I’ll send someone to deliver it to you later so you won’t suffer as much.”
Gu Yi nodded, “Thank you, Noble Consort.”
After Noble Consort Shu left, Tao Jia finally returned to the bedchamber, looking visibly relieved.
Gu Yi couldn’t help but ask curiously, “What was Noble Consort Shu like when you saw her before?”
Tao Jia made a “hmph” sound. “Noble Consort Shu rarely has a good reputation. They say she has a proud temperament, as if she doesn’t regard others highly. But the Noble Consort Shu this servant saw before was refined and reserved, speaking little.”
That indeed sounded like the Qi Shu from the book—a dignified lady from a noble family who was once the most prominent figure in the capital.
A hot candidate for the Crown Princess position.
Unfortunately, Crown Prince Heng had died.
Sigh.
Gu Yi didn’t dare get too involved with her and could only respond cautiously.
But was her visit today just to see her leg?
While lost in these thoughts, another announcement came from outside, “Talent Zhao requests an audience outside the hall.”
Gu Yi waved her hand, instructing Tao Jia, “Let her in.”
Zhao Wan entered the bedchamber and made a graceful bow, “Greetings to the Consort.”
Gu Yi smiled, “No need for formalities. I was just about to send someone to call for you.”
Zhao Wan asked, “Is it about the Chuwan game?”
Gu Yi nodded, “My leg is injured, so I’ll have to rely on you to take care of things these next few days.”
Zhao Wan smiled gently, “It’s this concubine’s duty. Consort need not worry.”
Gu Yi then went over the Chuwan game map with her again, ensuring everything was perfect.
But Zhao Wan, befitting her role as the female protagonist, had thought through everything very thoroughly.
“For the chuwan game, with so many consorts, we can use small stakes, only playing for ten stakes. Whichever palace reaches ten stakes first wins. What does the Consort think?”
Gu Yi immediately wanted to team up with the female lead and said, “Good idea! Let’s do as you suggest!”
With the female protagonist’s superb ball skills, winning the entire game would be a matter of minutes, and in the palace chuwan game, each stake was worth a hundred taels of silver, so ten stakes would be a thousand taels!
Without Noble Consort De’s scheming to worry about, Gu Yi could already see the prospect of getting rich overnight!
Seeing Gu Yi’s overly eager expression, Zhao Wan smiled shyly, “This concubine will check the venue setup in the Imperial Garden according to the map these next few days. If there are any questions, I’ll come back to consult with the Consort?”
Gu Yi nodded, not forgetting to add, “Also, don’t forget to send the invitation to Noble Consort De in Luoying Palace for her review.”
Zhao Wan acknowledged.
Gu Yi thought for a moment, then said slowly, “If you’re free, you can also practice with the clubs these next few days! With my leg injury… Heluo Palace is entirely relying on you!” Despite her protagonist halo, they still needed to be well-prepared.
Zhao Wan was inwardly surprised that Lady Gu seemed to place such importance on this chuwan game…
She had often played ball with relatives at home during her childhood, so her skills were not bad.
“The Consort is right. Ah Wan will also spend time practicing these next few days.”
“Excellent!” Gu Yi excitedly grasped both of Zhao Wan’s hands, “If you need anything these next few days, just send someone to let me know!”
Zhao Wan acknowledged with a “yes,” her gaze inadvertently falling on Gu Yi’s leg, “Consort, is the injury severe? The Chuwan game is still five days away. If the Consort needs, you could have craftsmen make a walking stick to make movement easier.”
Gu Yi waved her hand, “No need to worry. Today at the chen hour (7-9 am), the craftsmen’s office already sent someone with designs for a walking stick. The imperial physician said I should be healed in a few days. Besides, Chuwan requires holding the club with both hands; I’ll manage within my capabilities.”
Zhao Wan’s eyes flickered slightly.
Consort Gu was injured last night, yet today she was promoted.
The craftsmen’s office had even sent walking stick designs early in the morning.
Everyone said the Emperor elevated her to console her, but she felt there was far more to it.
Zhao Wan gave a faint smile, “Then this concubine will take her leave first. Consort, please rest well.”
*
On the day of the Chuwan game, the weather was unexpectedly pleasant.
A gentle breeze blew, and the warm sun shone high.
Gu Yi, leaning on a pear blossom wood walking stick, moved from the bedchamber to outside Heluo Palace.
The wound on her calf had gradually scabbed over, though she still walked with a slight limp, and the scar itched terribly from time to time.
A sedan chair waited outside the hall. Tao Jia helped her sit in it, and they swayed to the Imperial Garden.
In this corner designated for the Chuwan game, according to the previous map, ball pits had been set up in the field with colorful flags inserted as markers.
White chalk powder had been used to draw the baseline grids for striking the ball.
The distance between the ball base and ball pits mostly ranged around thirty paces, with the farthest being sixty paces.
There were the simplest straight-line flat ground distances for striking the ball, as well as floral and wooden obstacles set between the ball base and ball pits. Some areas had mounds of earth piled to create upward and downward slopes.
Each person had ten stakes, with the difficulty of striking the ball increasing progressively.
A ball entering the pit was considered a win, earning that stake.
A long wooden table had been set up separately in the garden, displaying the chuwan implements.
After alighting from the sedan chair, Gu Yi eagerly went to inspect.
On the table were clubs of varying thickness and different shapes—tsuans, ladles, pokes, as well as one-handed clubs and eagle-beak clubs, etc., which could be selected under different terrain conditions to hit different balls.
At this time, between autumn and winter, the chuwan clubs were made of wood, with the club body reinforced with cow tendon and cow glue, and the handles made of bamboo. A full set included ten clubs, a middle set had eight, and a small set had fewer than eight.
According to the rank of each palace, the chuwan game allowed the four consorts to have full sets. Since there were no concubines of the rank of pin, consorts of the rank of jieyu had middle sets, while the remaining ladies, beauties, and talents had progressively fewer.
To strike the ball well, one needed good clubs.
Even consorts from the same palace could not borrow clubs from each other.
Gu Yi felt that this rule, which clearly distinguished status, was not particularly fair in itself.
But what could she do when the female protagonist could achieve platinum-level results with bronze-tier equipment?
She truly admired her!
Getting rich overnight was no longer just a dream!
Several drum beats resounded through the sky.
A palace attendant announced loudly, “His Majesty arrives!”
Everyone knelt in respect. Gu Yi, leaning on her wooden stick, lowered her head and curtseyed.
“Rise.”
Gu Yi looked up to see Xiaoyan dressed all in black, without his crown, his hair merely tied back with a silk ribbon, a purple sash around his waist—a very neat appearance.
Noble Consort De stood half a step behind him, a smile covering her face, her hair styled in a hibiscus bun, wearing a washed vermilion long dress.
“Your Majesty, the weather is good today, and the garden layout is excellent. This concubine hopes Luoying Palace will win first place today.”
Xiaoyan smiled without speaking. Nearby, Consort Gong joined in, “Noble Consort, you won first place last year. This year, won’t you let your sisters have a chance?”
Noble Consort De covered her mouth and laughed lightly, “Sister Gong, you jest. This year we have many new sisters; who knows what hidden talents there might be.”
Gu Yi thought to herself, that’s right!
Then she heard Noble Consort Shu speak, “In this concubine’s view, the chuwan setup in this garden is thorough in every aspect, showing that Sister Gu is skilled in this game. Perhaps she might win first place.”
Noble Consort Shu smiled brightly at Gu Yi, “What does Sister Gu think?”
Gu Yi paused.
Sister Gu doesn’t want to say anything!
Xiaoyan had just fixed his gaze on Gu Yi. He hadn’t seen her for several days and noticed that her face seemed to have thinned a bit, but her spirit was still good.
On her face was her usual fake smile.
Gu Yi gave a dry laugh, “Noble Consort Shu overestimates this concubine. This concubine merely arranged things according to the ‘Ball Manual’ provided by Noble Consort De. Besides, this concubine has injured her leg, and these past few days, it was Talent Zhao from Heluo Palace who personally organized the chuwan game.”
Noble Consort Shu made an “oh” sound and raised an eyebrow, “Then the Consort should indeed reward Talent Zhao.”
Gu Yi had a flash of inspiration and said, “This concubine thinks just giving rewards is not interesting. This concubine is willing to add stakes for today’s winner—fifty taels, for the winner to claim.”
After all, the female protagonist was on her team, so she’d get it back if they won. As the head of the palace, whether they split it 50-50 or 80-20 later, it would be up to her to decide!
If she got a few more investors, getting rich overnight would be within reach!
With this thought, Gu Yi smiled broadly and asked Noble Consort Shu, “What does Noble Consort think?”
Noble Consort Shu showed surprise and laughed lightly, “Sister is so confident that Talent Zhao will win? In that case, this consort will also join in the fun and add one hundred taels for the winner to claim.”
With Noble Consort Shu’s declaration, many consorts couldn’t back down and also expressed their intention to add stakes.
Xiaoyan, seeing the gleam in Gu Yi’s eyes, smiled and said, “Then I will also add stakes—five hundred taels, for the winner to claim.”
Suddenly, the winner would not only receive the original ten stakes worth a thousand taels but also additional stakes worth another thousand taels.
More importantly, the Emperor had added stakes, showing imperial favor!
Gu Yi was so happy that her face was about to split. She hurriedly used an embroidered handkerchief to demurely cover her smile, “Your Majesty’s great kindness.”