Everyone Wants To Harm Me - Chapter 61

After that, I couldn’t focus on anything else he had said — my mind had been consumed by those two words: serving the Emperor.

How could His Majesty have even considered such a thing? He was my uncle! And it had been less than a month since my aunt had passed away. How could he… most importantly, I hadn’t wanted to serve him. I hadn’t wanted to be his concubine.

Even if Yu Chongrui hadn’t liked me, I hadn’t wanted to marry anyone else — at least not then.

What should I have done?

My hands and feet were ice cold, and I didn’t know what to do. Thankfully, Eunuch Li arrived just in time to help me out. He announced that Consort Chu sent someone to ask if His Majesty would be checking the Third Prince’s homework after school that day.

Before leaving, His Majesty said to me, “You should stay in Yanning Palace tonight. I will come to see you later.”

He told me to stay in the palace and said he’d come at night… That meant he really intended to do this?

I was on edge, restless in Yanning Palace. Although no one guarded the door, I had been summoned. How could I leave without permission? Could I just run away? Even if I escaped from the palace, where would I go?

I couldn’t rely on my family. If they knew the emperor took a fancy to me, they wouldn’t just refuse to help — they might even tie me up and send me straight to the dragon bed.

If my aunt were still alive, she would never allow this…

Wait — I might not be able to leave the palace itself, but I could leave Yanning Palace, right? Princess Yongjia… she once said I could seek her out if I was ever in need. Could I ask her for help?

I rushed out of Yanning Palace, and no one stopped me at the door. The sun had already set, and the palace lanterns were beginning to light up. I ran all the way to Zhaoyang Palace.

Princess Yongjia was preparing to eat. When she saw me run in, panic-stricken, she stood up in alarm.

“Yaoyao, what’s wrong? Did His Majesty finish speaking with you? What did he say?”

“Princess, save me!” I grabbed her hand tightly. “His Majesty… He… He wants me…”

“What does His Majesty want you to do?”

What should I say? His Majesty hadn’t explicitly said he wanted me in his bed — was I just assuming it from his expression? The princess was already displeased with His Majesty’s fickle temperament. What if she confronted him in anger?

Yu Chongrui warned me not to reveal my special ability unless it was to someone I trusted completely, like my aunt.

He also told me that men sometimes harbor thoughts of desire when they see beauty. As long as they didn’t act on those thoughts, they could still be considered honorable. If I just avoided the situation, His Majesty likely wouldn’t force the matter.

I steadied myself and told the princess, “His Majesty asked me to stay in Yanning Palace… I’m scared…”

The princess sighed with relief. “I thought something serious happened. Yanning Palace is empty now, and the Imperial Consort is gone. Why would His Majesty have you stay there alone? Seeing those things will only make you more upset. Don’t go back. Sleep here with me tonight — we can talk and catch up.”

If the princess was willing to take me in, then I had nothing to fear. No matter how impulsive His Majesty might be, he wouldn’t storm into his sister’s palace to seize someone.

The palace servants brought in the evening meal, and the princess invited me to join her. Midway through dinner, Eunuch Li arrived.

“Oh, so you’re here with the princess. I had such a hard time finding you,” he said, shaking his whisk with a hint of frustration. “His Majesty said he didn’t finish asking questions and would speak with you later. Why did Miss He leave Yanning Palace without permission?”

I gripped my chopsticks tightly, unable to hide my unease.

The princess asked, “Does His Majesty have anything urgent to ask?”

Eunuch Li replied, “Noble Consort Chu’s messenger came earlier, so His Majesty went to check the Third Prince’s homework first.”

The princess thought to herself, I bet Consort Chu heard that His Majesty had summoned a beauty and deliberately interrupted. She’s always caught up in these petty schemes to fight for favor. If His Majesty so much as glances at a passing cat or sparrow, she’s bound to imagine all sorts of nonsense! Does she really think my brother is the type of man to fall for some fresh face and dishonor his recently deceased consort’s niece?

…But he really did have that thought.

The princess then asked, “We’re still in the middle of dinner. Does Miss He need to return to Yanning Palace right away? That place is too quiet, and the servants there are incompetent. Let her rest here tonight.”

Eunuch Li shook his head. “His Majesty is busy in Xuanzheng Hall right now. Once he’s finished asking a few questions, I’ll escort Miss He back to the princess.”

“Xuanzheng Hall?” The princess thought for a moment. “Then take her there and bring her back quickly. If you delay too long, the Yanfu Gate might be locked for the night.”

“Princess, I… I…” I stammered, unsure how to refuse. “It’s already dark outside, and… there’s a difference between men and women…”

“What are you thinking?” The princess frowned before understanding my concern. “Besides… that’s Xuanzheng Hall!”

I knew that Xuanzheng Hall was located behind Zichen and Ganlu Halls. It was originally a place where the emperor rested and changed clothes before and after court sessions. During his reign, Emperor Wu added a sleeping chamber to Xuanzheng Hall and would sometimes stay there for months without returning to the harem. Later emperors often followed this practice, residing in Xuanzheng Hall when not visiting their concubines to demonstrate their dedication to state affairs and distance themselves from indulgences.

The princess was right. His Majesty was not a tyrant, and he would never do anything inappropriate in Xuanzheng Hall. Even if he were as lustful and reckless as Emperor Zhao, he would only behave that way in the harem, not here.

Was I overthinking things?

Yu Chongrui once told me that while the Mojin Gu could reveal people’s true thoughts, I must rely on my own judgment and not become blind to reality.

I followed Eunuch Li through Yanfu Gate, the passage between the front court and the harem, and climbed the steps leading to Xuanzheng Hall. The front court stood much higher than the harem’s halls. Looking back, nearly half of the palaces were dark and unoccupied.

After the Yongwang Rebellion, the country was left impoverished and weakened, and the harem’s expenses were drastically reduced. When His Majesty first ascended the throne, he only appointed an empress and four concubines. It wasn’t until the empress and Prince Yuanmin both fell ill — and with no heirs — that he selected a group of beautiful women to fill the harem. Noble Consort Chu entered the palace at that time. More than a decade passed, yet few new additions were made to the harem.

Thinking carefully, His Majesty never seemed like a man obsessed with women. In fact… he was particularly ruthless toward beautiful women.

There was once a talented woman named Liu who entered the palace alongside Noble Consort Chu. She was stunningly beautiful — even the empress described her as “heartbreakingly lovely.” She quickly gained favor, but she became arrogant because of it. One day, she claimed that Prince Yuanmin’s illness was incurable and that the next crown prince would surely be born from the newer concubines. Enraged, His Majesty ordered her beautiful head to be cut off. Her father and brother, who gained promotions through her favor, were also demoted and exiled.

That was when I realized what my aunt always warned me — His Majesty’s primary role was not that of her husband or my uncle, but the supreme ruler who held absolute power over life and death.

His Majesty never showed mercy when dealing with those who defied him. If I dared to disobey him, would he kill me too? He summoned me once, and now he was calling me again. What exactly did he want?

I suddenly realized how unusual this entire situation felt.

But I didn’t have time to think further. I arrived at Xuanzheng Hall. Eunuch Li went inside to report my arrival.

Xuanzheng Hall wasn’t particularly large, but on the way in, I noticed a surprising number of people — maids, eunuchs, guards, female officials, and servants — of all ages and ranks. The place had been chaotic, as if everyone who served His Majesty had gathered there.

There were too many faces to observe closely. With my head lowered, I walked into the hall and saw His Majesty seated behind the imperial desk. I stepped forward and bowed.

“Everyone, leave,” His Majesty ordered.

The palace attendants filed out one by one, even Eunuch Li. The heavy door closed behind them, and suddenly, the massive Xuanzheng Hall felt empty — just the two of us alone.

My chest tightened with anxiety.

Tap, tap, tap.

The sound of thick-soled black boots struck the polished golden bricks — slow, deliberate steps approaching me like drumbeats pounding in my chest.

His Majesty stopped in front of me and suddenly reached out, gripping my chin and forcing me to lift my head.

He leaned in closer, and I instinctively backed away, only to stumble and fall to the floor.

“Your Majesty… this… this is Xuanzheng Hall!” I stammered in fear.

“So what if it is?” His Majesty squatted down beside me, his smile sharp and unsettling. The grip on my chin tightened. “What do you think I want to do?”

I couldn’t avoid his gaze any longer. I had to meet his eyes.

There was a smug certainty in them, a sense of triumph — as if he had proven himself right.

“You can see it, can’t you?”

I suddenly understood everything. His Majesty never intended to force himself on me. He didn’t care about adding another concubine to the harem.

He had been testing me.

He had summoned me not because he missed my aunt, but because he suspected I had inherited her ability to see through people’s evil thoughts.

He had left me in Yanning Palace on purpose. He had sent people to speak ill of my aunt and Chang Yu, all to provoke a reaction. When I didn’t respond as he expected, he confronted me directly, deliberately filling his mind with wicked thoughts to see if I could sense them. My attempt to seek help from the princess — and my efforts to avoid him — had only confirmed his suspicions.

Yu Zhongrui had warned me correctly — “Mojin” could help me read people, but it could also cloud my judgment. A person’s true nature wasn’t revealed by their words or even their thoughts, but by their actions.

I should have realized it earlier. My aunt and His Majesty had met in times of peril, sharing life and death. With her “Mojin” ability, she had helped him fend off countless dangers and distinguish true intentions. That’s why he trusted her so deeply, consulting her on major state affairs behind closed doors — something no outsider could fully comprehend.

My aunt, in turn, had loved and trusted His Majesty with all her heart since her youth. She must have told him everything about “Mojin.”

“You and Weilan are both descendants of the Miao people, sharing the same bloodline,” His Majesty said. “You were the last person to see her. The worm in her heart… did it transfer to you?”