Little Palace Maid Desires a Higher Seat of Honor - Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Changle Hall

The autumn night brought a hint of bitterness, accompanied by a touch of restlessness. The night sky was low and dark, with no stars in sight, except for a lone moon hanging high in the sky.

No one could sleep tonight, as everyone was waiting for news from the Emperor.

As the night deepened, the palace walls began to light up with lanterns, but there was still no news from the Emperor. A sense of restlessness spread, and it was expected that the Emperor would visit the harem tonight, as it was the day the new concubines entered the palace.

The Heyi Hall was also waiting.

Lu Cairen had just taken a bath and was still warm and fragrant. Her cheeks were rosy, and she looked alluring. She sat in front of the dressing table, her hair not yet dry, and kept turning her head to look outside the palace. She seemed unable to sit still.

Yun Si stood quietly with her head bowed.

After waiting for a long time, Lu Cairen couldn’t help but pout: “Has the Emperor gone to the Qingyu Pavilion?”

The Qingyu Pavilion was the residence of Su Meiren, the highest-ranking new concubine, who happened to have a slightly higher rank than Lu Cairen. Although Lu Cairen didn’t say much, she was clearly bothered by this.

Yun Si didn’t respond immediately, as she wasn’t the closest person to Lu Cairen in the palace.

Fortunately, Song Rong quickly replied: “Don’t worry, Mistress. Maybe we’ll receive news soon, and it might even be the Heyi Hall that the Emperor visits tonight!”

Lu Cairen let out a soft humph, unsure if she believed it or not. However, Song Rong’s words were comforting.

After waiting for another quarter of an hour, there was still no news from the Emperor. Lu Cairen couldn’t sit still anymore. She turned her gaze away from the bronze mirror and looked at Yun Si, who was standing beside her with her head bowed. Lu Cairen blinked: “Yun Si, go find out what’s going on. Why is there no news yet?”

Yun Si smiled wryly in her heart. Inquiring about the Emperor’s whereabouts was a taboo, but she knew that Lu Cairen must have been taught about this during the selection process. Despite knowing the risks, Lu Cairen still asked her to find out, leaving her no room to refuse.

Moreover, it was rare for concubines in the palace not to inquire about the Emperor’s whereabouts.

Yun Si’s eyes curved into a smile, and her eyebrows, which were shaped like willow leaves, seemed to bend slightly as she smiled. She knew she was charming, but she didn’t look up. Instead, she kept her head bowed and replied respectfully: “I’ll go right away.”

After she left, the palace fell silent for a moment.

Lu Cairen continued to try on jade hairpins in front of the bronze mirror. Song Rong seemed hesitant to speak, but eventually, she couldn’t help but say something.

Seeing Song Rong’s expression in the mirror, Lu Cairen became curious: “What’s wrong?”

Song Rong glanced at the palace door, making sure Yun Si was not there. Then she spoke in a low, worried tone: “Why did Mistress choose Yun Si to serve in the palace?”

There were already servants in the palace, including Xiao Rongzi. Upon hearing Song Rong’s words, Xiao Rongzi clenched his sleeve tightly and glanced at Lu Cairen and Song Ruo discreetly.

Lu Cairen didn’t understand: “She’s beautiful, isn’t she?”

Having a beautiful woman like Yun Si around would be pleasing to the eye.

Song Rong was taken aback for a moment. After a while, she said with frustration: “But she’s too beautiful. Doesn’t Mistress worry about that?”

Yun Si’s beauty would not go unnoticed, and it might catch the Emperor’s eye. Song Rong didn’t dare to say it outright, but her words were clear enough.

Lu Cairen hesitated for a moment before waving her hand: “She’s been in the palace for a long time. If she had any ulterior motives, she wouldn’t have waited until now.”
“Besides, with her status, if the Emperor really noticed her, she wouldn’t still be just a court maiden.”

Lu Cairen’s father was a second-rank official, and her brother was a new favorite in front of the Emperor. She was proud of her background, and even if she didn’t mean to, her words revealed a sense of superiority over the court maidens. The servants in the palace kept their heads down, remaining silent and pretending not to hear or see anything.

Song Rong’s voice was hushed, but she seemed somewhat convinced. In the end, she swallowed her words and didn’t say anything more.

After all, it wasn’t suitable to cause too much trouble for the new master in the palace.

When the master and servant fell silent, Xiao Rongzi finally relaxed his clenched sleeve. He kept his head down, not letting anyone see his expression.

********

After Yun Si left the Heyi Hall, she didn’t immediately go to inquire about the Emperor’s whereabouts.

It was ridiculous. As a low-ranking court maiden, where could she go to find out about the Emperor’s movements? She just needed to wait outside, and soon, news would arrive.

She waited outside for about a quarter of an hour before hearing the news that the Emperor had entered the harem.

But when she heard which palace the Emperor had gone to, Yun Si couldn’t help but smile wryly. She sighed softly and turned around to return to the Heyi Hall.

In the Heyi Hall, Lu Cairen was already dressed and ready. When Yun Si returned, she immediately asked: “What’s the news? Did you find out anything?”Yun Si bowed her head respectfully: “Mistress, the Emperor has gone to the Changle Palace.”

As soon as she finished speaking, Yun Si looked at Lu Cairen with concern, as if worried that Lu Cairen might feel unhappy about this.

Lu Cairen was indeed taken aback. The name of the palace sounded familiar, and after a moment, she connected the palace to the concubine Yang Jieyu, who was favored by the Emperor. Yun Si had mentioned her earlier.

But why did the Emperor go to Yang Jieyu’s palace on the day the new concubines entered the palace?

Lu Cairen couldn’t understand, but at least it wasn’t Su Meiren’s palace. She wouldn’t be overshadowed by Su Meiren again. Although she felt a bit down, Lu Cairen accepted the news relatively well: “Alright, I know.”

She had been busy all day, waiting for the Emperor’s visit. Now that she knew the Emperor would be visiting the Changle Palace, she didn’t want to wait any longer. After eating a hasty dinner, she sent everyone away to rest.

When the candles in the Heyi Hall were extinguished, the entire palace fell silent.

Yun Si quietly exited the main hall. Since it was Lu Cairen’s first day in the palace, Song Rong would be keeping watch at night. This was also a signal to the palace servants that Song Rong was Lu Cairen’s favorite.

Yun Si lowered her head, hiding her emotions.

As she turned around to head back to her quarters, she ran into Xiao Rongzi. She looked at him in confusion.

Xiao Rongzi had been clever today, not showing his familiarity with her in front of Lu Cairen. The servants in the palace were a tight-knit group, but that didn’t necessarily mean it was a good thing for the masters. Now, it was late at night, so what did Xiao Rongzi want?

Xiao Rongzi whispered to her about the conversation between Lu Cairen and Song Rong in the palace, telling her every word without omission. He looked up at his sister and pursed his lips, swallowing his worries.

Yun Si’s eyelashes trembled slightly.

“Her status is what it is…” She had heard such words more than once or twice since entering the palace. But she was puzzled. Even commoners could become officials, and many founding emperors rose from humble beginnings. Why couldn’t she, with her lowly status, strive to rise above?

Despite her emotions, Yun Si didn’t show any of it. She seemed like nothing was wrong and said: “Song Rong is the mistress’s confidante. It’s normal for her to have such thoughts. The master didn’t say anything, did she?”

Xiao Rongzi fell silent.

They both knew that as servants, those who served the master closely were considered superior because their words were more likely to influence the master’s opinions and decisions.

Although the master didn’t seem to have a bad impression of her sister now, who knew what would happen if Song Rong kept speaking negatively about her? Maybe the master would start to develop a grudge against her sister.

Xiao Rongzi pursed his lips and lowered his head, hiding the darkness in his eyes.

After parting ways with Xiao Rongzi and returning to her quarters, Yun Si closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She wasn’t a saint and had emotions. To release her frustration, she pulled out the silver hairpin from her hair and gently tapped it on the desk, but she didn’t dare make too much noise.

There was a dressing table in her quarters, and the bronze mirror was a bit blurry, but it still reflected her face.

Yun Si looked into the bronze mirror and met the gaze of the woman with almond-shaped eyes. She gently raised her hand to touch her cheek, and the reflection in the mirror mimicked her action. The woman in the mirror had bright eyes and teeth, and her skin was smooth like jade. When she curved her almond-shaped eyes slightly, they sparkled with charm. Everyone praised her beauty, but they also pitied that such a face was born on her.

However, Yun Si didn’t feel pity. Paths were made by people walking on them, and there was no reason she couldn’t create her own path.

Yun Si patted her cheeks, quickly composed herself, and prepared to rest. Tomorrow was the second day after the new concubines entered the palace, and her mistress would need to pay respects to the Empress. She needed to get some rest.

The next day, when Yun Si arrived at the main hall, Lu Cairen was still asleep. After checking the time, Yun Si gently woke Lu Cairen up, earning a soft, pouting complaint that melted her heart. Yun Si couldn’t help but look up, but Lu Cairen didn’t delay and quickly sat up. The servants helped her wash and dress, and after she was ready, Lu Cairen said: “Yun Si, come with me to pay respects. Song Rong will stay in the palace.”

Song Rong was a bit surprised and wanted to say something, but Lu Cairen’s glance silenced her.

Yun Si didn’t say anything and obeyed respectfully. When the master left the palace, it was necessary to leave a trusted servant behind to prevent anyone from causing trouble.
Lu Cairen was being cautious.

Moreover, when it came to familiarity with the palace concubines, Song Rong, who had just entered the palace, couldn’t compare to Yun Si. Lu Cairen had her own calculations.

As a concubine of the Cairen rank, Lu Cairen didn’t have the privilege of an entourage. Only when she was promoted to the rank of Pin could she have an entourage. Even then, only a third-rank concubine could be the master of a palace. Lu Cairen and Yun Si could only walk to the Kunning Palace.

The Chonghua Palace wasn’t far from the Kunning Palace, so they arrived relatively early. However, before they could enter, they heard a burst of laughter and conversation coming from inside.

Lu Cairen was led into the palace by the court maidens, and the hall suddenly fell silent. Everyone turned to look at her.

As a newcomer to the palace, Lu Cairen was almost intimidated by the atmosphere. However, being from a noble family, she quickly regained her composure. She smiled softly and was led to her designated seat.

Yun Si followed her master quietly, glancing around discreetly.

There were about ten masters seated in the hall. Many unfamiliar faces were present, including half of the new concubines. However, Yun Si didn’t see Su Meiren, who was known for her exceptional beauty. The Consort De, as expected, had arrived early and was seated in her usual spot. The laughter and chatter earlier had come from a group of people surrounding Consort De, who had a gentle and kind demeanor. When Lu Cairen paid her respects, Consort De nodded kindly and allowed her to rise, showing no signs of arrogance.

Yun Si lowered her eyes, noticing that Rong Zhaoyi and Yang Jieyu hadn’t arrived yet.

The morning court was scheduled for the Chen hour, and it was the first time the new concubines were paying their respects. Lu Cairen wasn’t late, and most of the concubines had arrived within a quarter of an hour.

Just as the concubines were about to take their seats, a loud announcement was made: “Rong Zhaoyi has arrived!”

As the master of a palace and a third-rank consort, Rong Zhaoyi was entitled to be addressed as “Her Ladyship.” She was currently the most favored concubine in the palace, with a daughter and a high status that even the favored Yang Jieyu couldn’t match.

The Kunning Palace fell silent, and everyone’s attention turned to the entrance.