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Chapitre 21

"Little sister, if you keep going, you'll reach Xihua Gate. You're not trying to escape from the palace, are you?" She grabbed Wen'er and asked in an older sister's tone.

"Hey, how did you know I'm a woman?" Wen'er had always thought her male disguise was very successful, but this girl recognized her at a glance.

She smiled, a very bright smile: "First of all, I've never seen such a delicate and cute little eunuch before, so I took a second look."

Then, upon closer inspection, I noticed you have pierced ears. Having said that, his smile faded, and he said seriously, "Don't even think about escaping. Yesterday, a palace maid tried to disguise herself as a eunuch to escape the palace, but Eunuch Zhang discovered her and almost broke both her legs!"

She had initially thought the girl was a palace maid trying to escape. Wen'er thought to herself that this girl had a kind heart; even though they were complete strangers, she was kind enough to warn her about the potential dangers. More importantly, the girl had just praised her for being "delicate and cute," which made her feel very pleased.

"Sister, who are you?" Wen'er asked. This would be the first person she met in the palace.

The girl replied, "My surname is Zhu, and I am a court attendant."

It turned out she was a palace attendant, the second-to-last rank of imperial concubine. At that time, apart from the Empress, the other imperial concubines were divided into eight ranks: Consort Chen, Noble Consort, Virtuous Consort, and Wise Consort, all of the first rank. The nine concubines—Zhaoyi, Zhaorong, Zhaoyuan, Wanyi, Wanrong, Wanyuan, Chongyi, Chongrong, and Chongyuan—were of the second rank. There were nine Jieyu (third rank), nine Meiren (fourth rank), and nine Cairen (fifth rank), collectively known as the Twenty-Seven Ladies-in-Waiting. There were twenty-seven Baolin (sixth rank), twenty-seven Imperial Attendants (seventh rank), and twenty-seven Cainu (eighth rank), collectively known as the Eighty-One Imperial Wives.

The Imperial Attendants, along with the Consorts and Ladies-in-Waiting, held the lowest status. Without the Emperor's favor, they were practically no different from palace maids, and sometimes even subjected to the servitude of higher-ranking concubines. Judging from the plain-faced appearance of this Imperial Attendant Zhu, she had clearly not yet received the Emperor's favor.

"Sister Attendant, have you ever seen the Emperor?" Wen'er asked her, pretending to be very curious.

Imperial Attendant Zhu was taken aback: "Why are you suddenly asking this?"

Wen'er raised an eyebrow and smiled, "It's nothing, I just feel a little strange that I haven't seen him since I entered the palace."

Zhu Yushi sighed softly and said, "How could the Emperor be seen so easily? I've seen him only a handful of times. The last time I was very close to him was two years ago, when I first entered the palace." At that time, she stood with a dozen or so other imperial attendants, waiting for the Emperor's selection. He coldly walked past them, casually pointed at one of them, and the chosen girl was escorted out by the eunuchs to bathe and change, awaiting his favor. She, on the other hand, left dejectedly with the other attendants, and never received his favor again.

Wen'er then asked, "What about seeing it from afar?"

"From afar?" Imperial Attendant Zhu smiled. "That's not too difficult. I saw him from afar five days ago."

Five days ago. Not too bad, not too long ago. But Wen'er suddenly thought of another question: "How far away were you from him then?"

Imperial Attendant Zhu made a rough estimate and said, "It's probably three or four hundred paces."

Three or four hundred steps! Isn't that about the same distance as watching fireworks?

This girl is one of the unlucky ones. Wen'er thought, if I were her, I would never just sit and wait to die.

"Oh dear, you should hurry back to your palace. Which concubine's palace are you serving in? Don't let her find out you're trying to escape; it'll be troublesome if she's not easy to talk to."

Wen'er didn't answer her question, but just smiled lightly at her and asked again, "Is the Emperor handsome?"

"Ah?" Zhu Yushi thought for a moment, then blushed and said softly, "Of course..."

When she first met him, he was so aloof and ignored her. Nevertheless, his dashing appearance cut through her reserved exterior like a sharp blade, revealing her budding girlish feelings.

"You were so kind to me today, thank you," Wen'er said, winking playfully. "Maybe one day I can help you."

"Help me with what?" Imperial Attendant Zhu smiled, not taking it to heart.

At this moment, the eunuch sent by the princess to find Wen'er spotted her, ran towards her, bowed, and asked, "Are you Miss Wang?"

Wen'er nodded.

"Princess Shu and Lady Wang are waiting for you at Yaojin Pool."

"Okay, take me there," Wen'er instructed.

Before leaving, she whispered in Zhu Yushi's ear, "I will help you see the Emperor. Very close."

Attendant Zhu asked in surprise, "Who are you?"

"My surname is Wang, and my name is Wen'er. You will know who I am later." She smiled, waved her hand, and then followed the eunuch leading the way towards Yaojin Pond without looking back.

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Taming the Husband

Upon meeting the princess and her consort, Wen'er greeted them nimbly without needing an introduction. The princess, pleased with her obedience, immediately offered her a seat, took her hand, and kindly inquired about her age and impressions of the palace. They then chatted about traditional feminine pursuits such as needlework and poetry. In truth, Wen'er didn't usually enjoy needlework at home, but since the princess brought it up, she readily agreed, displaying the demeanor of a skilled embroiderer.

Because she knew that whenever she met elders and relatives for the first time, they would see that she was just a little girl and the conversation would usually revolve around these trivial matters of needlework. Although she didn't like it, she spent some time memorizing the theories of needlework fluently, just like taking a knowledge test.

Of the two, the princess and the prince consort, Wen'er was more interested in the latter. She had often heard of Wang Shen's dashing and debonair manner, and now that she had met him, she couldn't help but pay him more attention. Therefore, although she chatted with the princess, she would occasionally glance at the prince consort, intentionally or unintentionally. The prince consort, Wang Shen, was clearly more attentive to her sister-in-law, Pang Di. Upon seeing Wen'er, he only offered a perfunctory greeting before engaging Pang Di in a lively discussion about calligraphy and painting. This greatly displeased Wen'er, who thought him nothing more than a lecherous rogue. Having formed this prejudice, she now saw him as someone who, though handsome and possessing a noble air, was ultimately not as elegant and refined as her brother.

As the four were chatting, a woman who appeared to be a maidservant suddenly ran to the pavilion, knelt down to pay her respects to the princess and her consort, and then hurriedly said to Wang Shen, "Your Highness, Lady Wu's chest pain has flared up again, and she's probably fainted!"

Wang Shen was greatly alarmed. He immediately got up, said to the princess, "I'll go back and take a look," and hurriedly headed out of the palace.

The maid then left. The princess stood up, leaning against a pavilion pillar, gazing at the departing figure of her husband, her expression filled with melancholy.

Wen'er asked curiously, "Who is Madam Wu?"

Pang Di interjected, "She must be the princess's mother." She had heard that the princess's mother had been widowed for many years and was in poor health, and that the princess and the princess's husband had always been very filial to her.

But the princess shook her head, looking slightly embarrassed. After a moment of silence, she said, "Xiaowu is the prince consort's concubine."

Concubine? Pang Di and Wen'er exchanged surprised glances: The princess actually allowed the prince consort to take a concubine?

Pang Di thought to himself, no wonder everyone says that the eldest princess of Shu is virtuous, it turns out she really is virtuous to such an extent.

As princesses, they held a noble status and always enjoyed certain privileges. Before Emperor Yingzong ascended the throne, princesses, upon marriage, could even be elevated to the same generation as their parents-in-law, according to imperial regulations, instead of serving them as daughters-in-law. This allowed them to enjoy a free and unrestrained life in their husband's family, free from any constraints. The entire household of the imperial son-in-law treated the princess with utmost respect; marrying a princess was like welcoming a deity, and no one dared to show the slightest disrespect. Under such circumstances, it was extremely rare for a prince consort to dare to take a concubine under the princess's nose. Emperor Yingzong, who always emphasized social order and filial piety, once instructed Zhao Xu regarding the status of a princess after her marriage: "The old system of the state stipulates that when the son of a scholar-official marries an imperial princess, he must be promoted in rank to avoid the respect due to his parents-in-law. This rule is morally unacceptable, and I am always uneasy about it. How can we compromise the proper order of seniority for the sake of wealth and status? If you become emperor in the future, you can issue an edict to change this." After ascending the throne, Zhao Xu indeed followed his father's instructions and abolished this rule of promotion. His elder sister, Princess Shuguo, became the first imperial princess to marry the son of a scholar-official after this rule was abolished. After marrying Wang Shen, she served his mother, Lady Lu, as if she were her own mother, showing her concern and serving her tea and water every day, without any airs of a noble princess. As a result, her beauty spread far and wide, and even the surrounding barbarian kingdoms knew that the Great Song Dynasty had a princess of unparalleled virtue.

However, both Pang Di and Wen'er were puzzled: Did her Medley include allowing her husband to take concubines?

"You are a princess, your father is the emperor, your mother is the empress, and now you are the emperor's elder sister—you have every reason to forbid your husband from taking concubines!" Wen'er finally couldn't help but say.