Little Palace Maid Desires a Higher Seat of Honor - Chapter 118

Chapter 118: The New Year’s Banquet

It was no secret that Yun Si had gone to Kunning Palace to pay her respects. As soon as Tan Yuanchu left the Imperial Study, he heard of it from Xu Shunfu, who sneaked a glance at his reaction.

Tan Yuanchu merely nodded unhurriedly.

“She’s been cooped up in the palace for quite a while. It’s about time she went out for some fresh air.”

Xu Shunfu gave an awkward smile and lowered his head, silently grumbling to himself, when Lu Pin had been pregnant, whose order had it been that she remain confined to her quarters?

But when it came to Xi Xiurong, suddenly he only remembered that staying indoors too long might make her feel stifled, and wasn’t the least bit concerned that crowds and chaos might be harmful to the imperial heir?

Xu Shunfu sighed inwardly, truly, people are not treated equally.

After Tan Yuanchu boarded the imperial carriage, he tapped the armrest, and his faint voice came from within. “To Chu’an Palace.”

Xu Shunfu immediately ordered the route changed.

Inside Chu’an Palace, Yun Si was selecting an outfit for the banquet with Qiu Yuan. Her belly had grown noticeably, and the Imperial Wardrobe Bureau had been making frequent trips to deliver new clothing, just yesterday, they had sent two new gowns: one in lake green, and one in rouge red.

Yun Si’s delicate brows were drawn in slight indecision. She naturally preferred the rouge red, but at the banquet, wearing it would make her stand out a bit too much.

When Tan Yuanchu entered, he saw her holding the lake green gown in one hand, yet her gaze kept straying to the other one. He raised a brow.

“What’s the matter?”

Yun Si swallowed, a little embarrassed to say it aloud.

Qiu Yuan, timely as ever, spoke up for her. “Her Ladyship is deciding which gown to wear to tonight’s banquet.”

Tan Yuanchu knew Yun Si well. He simply took the lake green gown from her hands. Yun Si’s apricot eyes went round in surprise, but Tan Yuanchu only had Qiu Yuan hand her the rouge red gown, speaking lightly,

“Wear what you like.”

Tan Yuanchu lowered his gaze to her, his eyes seemed mild, but the depths grew darker.

It was just a gown; why should she be so torn over it?

Yun Si wrinkled her face slightly, voicing her worry in a muffled tone, “But this concubine fears it may be seen as overstepping… and I’m afraid… it might offend the Empress.”

Tan Yuanchu said blandly, “There’s nothing overstepping about it. You may wear it.”

“As for the Empress, she will only wear yellow for the banquet. You won’t clash with her.”

With that calm, decisive statement, he left her no room to waver.
The young woman’s apricot eyes shone brightly as she confirmed with him, “Truly?”

Tan Yuanchu nodded.

A smile bloomed instantly on her face, her apricot eyes seeming to hold scattered starlight, so beautiful that it drew the corners of his lips upward almost without thought.

Suddenly, Yun Si caught hold of Tan Yuanchu’s sleeve.

“Will there be fireworks tonight?”

Tan Yuanchu was a little surprised. “You like them?”

In the palace, fireworks were not often set off, only during the Mid-Autumn Festival for family reunion. Although the New Year’s banquet seemed grand, there were many affairs to attend to, so it was rare to have such festivities.

Yun Si hooked her fingers around his bit by bit, openly voicing her request,

“This concubine has been in the palace for four years, and only last year during the Mid-Autumn Festival, when I followed Your Majesty, did I see the scene of fireworks blooming in the sky. It passed in an instant, leaving me thinking of it ever since.”

Tan Yuanchu quietly waited for what she would say next.

The young woman’s apricot eyes fell on him, her voice soft, “This concubine wishes for this year’s fireworks to be set off for me.”

In the years since entering the palace, fireworks were often present, but her status had been too low, making it hard for her to truly focus on enjoying them.

Even last year at Mid-Autumn, with Consort De and Qi Guipin present, she had not enjoyed them to her heart’s content.

The more of a regret something was, the more it lingered in one’s mind.

This was her first time attending the palace banquet as a ranked consort. Perhaps it was greedy, but she wanted today to be different from previous years.

Tan Yuanchu looked at her, perhaps she didn’t realize that her expression now was filled entirely with expectation, making it impossible for anyone to refuse her. After a long while, Tan Yuanchu finally spoke, his voice deep and husky, asking slowly,

“Only this one request?”

Yun Si swallowed, a little dazed, wasn’t this enough?

Seeing her fall silent, Tan Yuanchu turned his head toward Xu Shunfu. “Have Lu Dongxun go to the Ministry of Rites.”

The New Year’s banquet was not solely an affair of the palace; the Ministry of Rites was busy as well. Fireworks and firecrackers were all kept there. Her sudden request would naturally require manpower and resources to bring them into the palace.

When Yun Shi heard “leaving the palace” and “Ministry of Rites,” she hesitated,

“Wouldn’t that be making too much fuss?”

Tan Yuanchu spoke casually, “In the Former Dynasty, Emperor Xingwen extravagantly built Ququan Palace for his beloved concubine, wasting countless resources and manpower. You only want to see fireworks, does that count as making a fuss?”

Yun Si’s face darkened slightly.

Even if she had not read many books, she knew the Former Dynasty had fallen in Emperor Xingwen’s reign, and that his favored concubine, Lady Wen, was forever branded as a nation-ruining temptress.

If you’re going to comfort someone, must you use such an example?

After a long pause, Yun Si finally squeezed out a sentence.

“Sometimes, you don’t need to speak at all.”

After all, the things you say aren’t very pleasing to hear.

Tan Yuanchu gave a faint, low laugh, pinched her cheek, and softly explained, “I wasn’t comparing you to anyone else.”

He hadn’t belittled anyone, he simply still felt no one could compare to her.

With New Year’s Eve came a rest day. Tan Yuanchu had put down his brush seven days ago, and, rare for him, he had leisure time, spending several hours in Chu’an Palace, right until the evening.

Yun Si had already finished her grooming, changing into that rouge-red cloud-patterned brocade gown. She wore no powder, yet the gown’s color alone set off her skin as fair as snow. Her willow brows arched delicately, her lips crimson without rouge, her black hair loosely gathered at the back without heavy hairpieces, so as not to cause a headache later.

Tan Yuanchu reclined on the soft couch, his gaze fixed steadily on her. When Qiu Yuan suggested painting a decorative huadian between her brows, he suddenly spoke,

“I’ll do it.”

At his words, the two attendants, busy with their work, finally remembered his presence. Yun Shi’s delicate brows knitted slightly, her apricot eyes full of hesitation.

Qiu Yuan, however, was swift, quickly offering up the tools with both hands.

When Tan Yuanchu stood before her, Yun Shi’s eyelashes fluttered lightly. She bit her lip and softly questioned, “Your Majesty… do you know how?”

Tan Yuanchu’s voice was calm. “The Six Arts of a gentleman, in the days when all the imperial princes studied them, Zhen was among the best.”

He had called himself Zhen again.

Yun Si had no choice but to put aside her doubt, but when the tip of the brush in Tan Yuanchu’s hand touched her forehead, her apricot eyes still trembled slightly, and suspicion crept into her heart, what did the Six Arts have to do with painting a huadian?

Her heart pounded with nerves, feeling the occasional cool touch at her forehead, and she dared not open her eyes.

She didn’t know how much time had passed when a low voice came from above:

“It’s done.”

Yun Si swallowed, trembling as she slowly opened her eyes. The bronze mirror was placed before her, and she saw clearly, her skin was fair, a huadian painted at her brow. At first glance, she breathed a little easier, at least it didn’t look bad.

Only then did she dare to examine it closely. After a moment, Yun Si froze.

The huadian was small enough not to be overly conspicuous, making it hard to tell at a glance exactly what flower it was, but some things were etched into one’s bones, recognizable in an instant.

He had painted it with such care that Yun Si immediately recognized it as a red camellia.

She liked red, yet had always been partial to camellias, though her own inner misgivings had made her prefer white camellias, which felt purer.

Now, staring dazedly at the red camellia at her brow, Yun Si suddenly realized that some things had already passed.

He had long known her past, yet had never asked for details, nor ever begrudged her trying any color. His comfort had been gentle and wordless, and only now did Yun Shi faintly glimpse traces of it.

She remained still for a long while, until someone grew uneasy and pressed his lips together.

“Is it… ugly?”

Yun Si snapped back to herself, lifting her apricot eyes to look at the man in the bronze mirror. She shook her head. “No, this concubine likes it very much.”

His expression returned to its usual calm, his habitual nonchalance, one hand resting on her shoulder.

Yun Si’s lips pressed together imperceptibly. She glanced at the sandglass in the hall and suddenly realized a great deal of time had passed. Composing herself, she looked up at Tan Yuanchu.

“It’s nearly time for the banquet… shouldn’t you go and escort the Empress?”

Tan Yuanchu, having waited until now, answered evenly and unhurriedly.

“The Empress will likely go to escort the Empress Dowager so they may enter the Taihe Hall together. I need not fetch her. But you, being heavy with child, it’s inconvenient to go alone.”

Yun Si was stunned.

With a whole palace of attendants at her disposal, how had it turned into her “being alone”?

She caught sight of the huadian on her brow in the bronze mirror, but said nothing. If he wished to wait and go with her to the Taihe Hall, it was an honor most could only dream of, she had no reason to refuse.

As for drawing attention?

If Tan Yuanchu didn’t wait for her today, would others simply leave her alone?

No.
In that case, she had no need to push him away.

—

At the Taihe Hall, nearly everyone had arrived. As Tan Yuanchu had said, the Empress indeed entered together with the Empress Dowager, and with them was Consort Jing.

Someone glanced at the empty seats, in the hall, only His Majesty and Xi Xiurong had yet to arrive.

Word had already spread that His Majesty had gone to Chu’an Palace at noon and had yet to come out. Lips pressed together, more than a few felt an indescribable twinge in their hearts.

Could it be that His Majesty was going to escort Xi Xiurong here himself?

Some thought it impossible, while others felt there was nothing impossible about it.

Even Qi Guipin found herself staring blankly at the palace doors. Back when she was said to hold sway over the entire harem, His Majesty had never personally come to fetch her for a palace banquet. He was always the last to arrive, never granting such an honor to anyone.

Then, when the announcement from outside the hall rang out, everyone rose to their feet and saw the imperial carriage halt before the steps.

The man stepped down first, naturally turning to help the woman inside. As the embroidered curtain was lifted, a slender, fair hand extended outward, held firmly in the man’s grasp.

When the curtain rose fully, everyone finally saw her face, wrapped in a crane cloak, eyes lowered, revealing only the clean line of a pale jaw. When she lifted her gaze, her brows and eyes were exquisitely beautiful. Warm sunlight spilled across her, as though gilding her with an indescribable glow, leaving the onlookers momentarily dazed.

When the two entered the hall, everyone returned to their senses, though traces of astonishment still lingered in their eyes.

Some officials had long heard that Xi Xiurong was favored, yet hadn’t understood why, until today.

But others felt a flicker of disquiet.

Once inside, Yun Si withdrew her hand from Tan Yuanchu’s, not daring to walk side by side with him. When paying respects to the Empress and the others, she also turned slightly aside, showing not the slightest hint of overstepping.

Tan Yuanchu glanced at her with studied nonchalance before withdrawing his gaze. He inclined his head to the assembly.

“You may rise.”

Only then did Yun Si curtsey to the Empress and the Empress Dowager. The Empress took her hand. “You’re heavy with child. Didn’t I tell you not to go through the full formalities?”

A touch of shyness colored Yun Si’s face.

“This concubine forgot for a moment.”

She turned her head to look at the Empress Dowager, only to find the Empress Dowager watching her with what seemed a trace of daze.

Perplexed, Yun Si lightly touched her face and glanced inconspicuously at Tan Yuanchu.
He, too, looked a little surprised, then said casually,

“Mother, what are you staring at? She’s thin-skinned, don’t frighten her.”

At that, the gathered consorts all drew polite smiles. Though they bore Xi Xiurong no personal enmity, they couldn’t help thinking that His Majesty was speaking nonsense with his eyes wide open.

If Xi Xiurong were truly thin-skinned, she could never have risen from a mere palace maid to her current position.

Among the women present, only Consort Jing, seeing her aunt’s expression, understood what she had remembered.

Her aunt was her father’s sister, yet after her father took a second wife, there were new children, so why had her aunt alone shown her such affection?

Because her aunt and her maternal aunt had once been close friends.

Or rather, her aunt and her second maternal aunt had been close friends; and so, after her mother married into the Gu family, her aunt and her mother became close, until her aunt entered the palace for the consort selection.

Through that maternal aunt, she had received many benefits.

The Empress Dowager slowly came back to herself, fingers tightening around her prayer beads. Back then, when the Wei family committed an offense, she had been in the midst of a cold war with the late Emperor over her only son being sent away.

By the time she emerged from Chu’an Palace, the matter with the Wei family was already decided, her friend’s fate unknown. In the twenty years since, she had resented her elder brother’s ruthlessness; her own status had long since made her heedless of others’ opinions.

Rong’er was her brother’s legitimate daughter, the last remaining blood of her friend’s family. Weighing both ties, she had naturally felt a special pity for Rong’er.

Thus had come Consort Jing’s entry into the palace.

The Empress Dowager had long known of Xi Xiurong, but had never truly seen her, until now.

She took a deep breath, beckoning to Yun Shi.

“Xi Xiurong, is it? Come here, to Aijia.”

Yun Si was a little taken aback, and Tan Yuanchu glanced at his mother as well. After a moment, he said, “Add a seat for Xi Xiurong.”

Her seat had originally been arranged to Tan Yuanchu’s left, but since the Empress Dowager wished to speak with her, another seat had to be placed by the Empress Dowager’s side. Yun Si sat down with a touch of nervous unease.

No wonder she felt nervous and uneasy.

The Empress Dowager had always refrained from interfering in the affairs of the inner palace, the consort she saw most often being only Consort Jing, and she had never shown special favor to any other.
Yun Si was the first.

Thinking of Consort Jing, Yun Si suddenly realized something and cast her a subtle glance.

Consort Jing was looking at her as well, her expression seemingly complicated. She gave Yun Si an almost imperceptible nod.

Yun Si swallowed, feeling a sudden sense of bewilderment.

Just what sort of a figure had her mother been in the capital back then, that so many people could remember her nearly twenty years later?

The table had already been moved before Yun Si, each dish presented in especially fine detail.

The Empress Dowager clasped her prayer beads tightly.
After a long moment, she asked, “How many years have you been in the palace?”

She knew that Xi Xiurong had once been no more than a servant, and a faint sense of discomfort rose in her heart.
If her dear friend had been alive, how could her child have entered the palace as a maid?

That woman had always been calculating and capable; no matter where she was, she should have been able to live with ease and comfort.

Yun Si sat straight as a reed mat, answering truthfully, “This concubine entered the palace in the second year after His Majesty’s ascension. It has been exactly four years now.”

The Empress Dowager instinctively began to ask,

“Your mother—”

But midway, she realized something and wished to take it back. She hadn’t expected that the young woman, as though guessing her question, would pause a moment before replying softly,

“This concubine’s mother passed away from illness when I was young.”

Passed away from illness.

The Empress Dowager could not say whether this outcome was for better or worse.

She became aware of her son’s occasional glances toward them.
The initial wave of emotion at seeing her friend’s bloodline slowly ebbed, her rationality returning bit by bit. Looking at the young woman before her, it was as though she were gazing upon someone else entirely.

She truly was her friend’s child, the resemblance was almost as if carved from the same mold.

Yet her temperament was different; this young woman was far more restrained than her friend had ever been. The Empress Dowager was not surprised, compared to her friend’s upbringing in ease and luxury from birth, this young woman had clearly endured far more hardship, leaving her no choice but to be reserved.

But in one respect, she was the same as her friend, equally likable.

Yun Si shifted slightly in discomfort. She loved her mother, of course, but she had to admit her memories of her had faded greatly.

Perhaps it was simply too long ago. Her mother had never spoken to her of the past; the only hope she had ever expressed was for Yun Si to live her life smoothly.

Yun Si pressed her lips together lightly.

She didn’t truly wish to speak too much about her mother with others. Her parents had always been her sanctuary.

Moreover, the version of her mother that others described seemed far removed from the woman she remembered. She had never seen that dazzling side of her, and this, unbidden, left her with a lingering sense of regret.

It seemed someone had noticed her discomfort, for a voice came slowly, unhurriedly,

“Mother, the seat beside your son has been empty for quite some time now. You have laughter and merriment at your side, but your son is sitting here all alone. Shouldn’t you take pity on me as well?”

He tilted his head in their direction, his eyes carrying a trace of careless ease, yet anyone could hear the true meaning in his words.

For all the lightness of tone, there was no attempt to conceal that he was asking the Empress Dowager to hand the person over.

Yun Si’s face flushed scarlet in an instant.