Chapter 765 - 542: The Deep Harem, the Long Years

Chapter 765: Chapter 542: The Deep Harem, the Long Years

Baihua Pavilion.

An Shutong was arranging flowers. The traveling palace might be short on other things, but it was never short on flowers. She had few pastimes these days, so she could only find things to do for herself.

Because she was the Empress Dowager’s niece, the other concubines in the harem put on a show of getting along with her, but no one would ever truly be her friend.

She was a person without friends.

When she first entered the palace, she hadn’t cared. The Emperor’s concubines were all rivals. Who could genuinely be friends with whom?

But now, seeing how close the three concubines were, and watching how well Noble Consort Feng and her two friends got along, she slowly began to feel a sense of envy.

This envy wasn’t obvious at first. She had merely thought their good relationship was just an act, a pretense meant to fool the Imperial Concubine.

But over the past few years, she had come to feel, with genuine certainty, that their friendship was real.

It was truly surprising that such a bond could exist in a place like the palace.

From scorn to envy, all in just a few short years.

What she had once disdained was now something she longed for but could never have.

’How laughable.’

’She was laughing at herself, at her own foolish pride.’

Mu Qing lifted the curtain and entered, carrying a tray with an ice bowl. A bed of shaved ice was piled at the bottom, garnished with an assortment of fresh and preserved fruits. On a hot summer day like this, the very sight of it was refreshing.

"My Lady." Mu Qing placed the ice bowl on a small table, then stepped forward to help her mistress wash her hands.

Once her mistress was seated and eating the iced dessert, she spoke again. "Lady Zhao went to Yixin Palace at the front again. I saw that one of her Palace Attendants stayed behind while the other went with her. Her eunuch also disappeared somewhere."

An Shutong nodded slightly. "Did the Empress Dowager summon her for a talk?"

"I didn’t see Nanny Yu come to fetch her," Mu Qing said.

Then Zhao Ling’e must have gone on her own.

"The palace banquet is tomorrow. All of you, be careful. Don’t get too close to Lady Zhao’s people, and pay close attention. If you notice anything unusual, report to me at once," An Shutong instructed.

"Yes." Mu Qing acknowledged the order, then added, "I heard the Empress Dowager wanted to hold the palace banquet on the lake, but the Imperial Concubine didn’t agree. She’s apparently still furious about it."

An Shutong sneered. "That must have been Lady Zhao’s idea. Holding it on the lake... she really has some nerve. How many of us can even swim? And with no prior preparations, who would take responsibility if something went wrong?"

Never mind the Imperial Concubine; even she wouldn’t have agreed to it.

"Exactly. I just find it strange. Knowing the Imperial Consort probably wouldn’t agree, why would Lady Zhao still suggest it to the Empress Dowager? Isn’t she just needlessly making the Empress Dowager unhappy?"

"Who knows. Our Lady Zhao is a woman of many ideas. Ordinary people can’t compare to her." An Shutong’s face was laced with sarcasm. After a moment of thought, she looked at Mu Qing. "Go see if there’s any activity outside."

After Mu Qing left, An Shutong took a few bites of her iced dessert but lost her appetite. She set it aside on the table, took a breath, and stood up to continue trimming the flower branches, trying to calm her mind.

’The Imperial Concubine is so clever; she must have guessed that someone made the suggestion to the Empress Dowager.’

’My relationship with the Empress Dowager has been distant for over half a year, so she probably won’t suspect me.’

’But the Zhao Family hasn’t given up their ambitions, and Zhao Ling’e isn’t willing to accept defeat just like that. She’s definitely plotting a comeback.’

’In that case, I’ll just sit back and watch how Zhao Ling’e digs her own grave.’

But the hand holding the copper scissors lost its strength. She tossed the flower branch in her other hand onto the table, an inexplicable frustration rising in her heart.

She didn’t want to live out the rest of her life so constrained. She wanted a companion.

It was too lonely being by herself.

The harem was a deep, lonely place, and the years stretched on endlessly.

Year after year, month after month, day after day.

’When will it ever end?’

An Shutong pushed open the door and walked out. The layout of Baihua Pavilion was different from the palaces in the capital; it had no main hall or side halls. The quarters she and Zhao Ling’e lived in were on the east and west sides, respectively. Each was three bays wide and separated by a waist-high flower wall. From her side, she could faintly see the other.

She walked down the steps and along the paved path in the courtyard. Soon, she saw a little palace maid in a light green dress enter with a small flower basket. An Shutong beckoned to her from across the flower wall.

The little palace maid froze for a moment, then hurried over and curtsied. "This servant greets Lady An Pin."

"Have you been picking flowers? What are you going to do with so many?" An Shutong asked, smiling at the little palace maid.

The little palace maid was nervous. Her grip on the flower basket tightened as she quickly replied, "Sister Suhua asked me to pick them. She said my lady will use them for her bath tonight."

An Shutong’s eyes swept over the flowers in the basket. She chuckled lightly. "With such a mix of flowers, wouldn’t the scents all blend together when used in a bath? What kind of fragrance would that even be?"

"This servant doesn’t know. Sister Suhua told me to pick them, so I did," the little palace maid said timidly.

"Look how scared you are. It’s not like I’m going to eat you. Take your flowers and go back," An Shutong said with a wave of her hand.

The little palace maid quickly curtsied again and ran off with her basket.

An Shutong glanced at the tightly closed doors of the room opposite hers. Instead of returning to her own quarters, she sat down in the shade of a tree, fanning herself to cool off.

The waist-high flower wall perfectly concealed her figure as she reclined in a rocking chair. An unknown amount of time passed before she heard footsteps and the faint sound of conversation.

She slowly opened her eyes and peered through a gap in the flower wall. She saw Zhao Ling’e, dressed in a pale purple palace gown, walk in with a sour expression, followed by her Palace Attendant, Suhua.

Suhua’s voice drifted over faintly.

"I’ve already asked, but I couldn’t get a definite answer. My Lady, because of tomorrow’s banquet, the Imperial Consort has assigned many of the traveling palace’s attendants to duty at Nanxun Hall tomorrow. There are very few people available."

"It’s just a simple pastry. Is it really that difficult?"

’Pastries?’

An Shutong found this strange.

"Yes. Yong’an Palace hasn’t hosted an imperial visit in many years, so the kitchen was already short-staffed. I heard the kitchen steward has already asked Manager Meng for permission to hire more help."

"Hire people now? Where would they even find them?"

"This servant does not know."

"The banquet isn’t until tomorrow, yet the kitchen can’t spare anyone today? Go and ask them. If they don’t have the staff, see if they can spare a stove for us to use."

"Yes, I’ll go and ask right away."

Suhua turned and hurried away. Zhao Ling’e, frowning, walked up the steps and into her room.

An Shutong, still by the flower wall, silently watched the other side. ’Zhao Ling’e wants to make something herself?’

’That’s quite a novelty.’

’I wonder what she’s plotting now.’

The sun hung on the edge of the sky as twilight began to fall. An Shutong remained motionless in her reclining chair.

Mu Qing returned as dusk settled. She didn’t find her mistress in the room and came out to discover her by the flower wall. She approached quietly, bent down, and whispered, "My Lady, I’ve found something out."