It was late evening by the time Chen Yu finally felt like leaving his bed. Although the shifts for the two main meals had already passed, the maids diligently brought in a spread of snacks without a hint of complaint for the consort who hadn't moved all day. Watching the line of servants bustling to fetch and carry, Chen Yu idled on the lounge, admiring their insincere politeness.
This Lu Guanting was quite good.
By deliberately showing equal amounts of attention to every concubine, he ensured that there was no benefit to currying favor with any of them, instead the emperor remained the sole master of the palace. On the other hand, he'd managed to implement strict control so that the façade of propriety was perfectly maintained.
Look, every bow was not a bit higher or lower than it should be, and there wasn't a single mark of flattering or bullying in both the quality and quantity of the dishes.
It seemed this imperial life would be more fun than Chen Yu had expected.
Having filled his stomach with the delicacies, however, he found that he had nothing to do. As a member of the emperor's harem, he couldn't go out to make some of his favorite money, nor was there any digital entertainment. Ancient worlds boasted outstanding talents in the arts, but having claimed a fever, he couldn't openly bring in any performers.
With a sigh, Chen Yu loosely arranged his floor-length silvery-white robe and decided to settle for touring the palace surroundings. According to the description in the plot, there was a hidden lake that would nicely cool him off from the stifling summer heat. So, savoring the sweet taste of a flawlessly fermented jujube wine, he strolled out a short distance past the neatly manicured gardens and into the forest.
Along the way, he didn't pay much mind to the eunuchs saluting him or the two maids following behind him. Responding to these servants would be going out of character, since the original owner hadn't been an egalitarian, kind-hearted aristocrat type. Zhang Hua hadn't been cruel, he had just hardly ever noticed the existence of commoners because his focus had been entirely on surviving the treacherous waters of the noble circles.
Well, perhaps, a bigger factor was that these damn clothes were too long and clingy, he had to concentrate to remain graceful.
Once Chen Yu finally reached the lake, he sat on a large rock outcropping, shaking off his shoes and socks then drawing his gown aside to dip his bare feet into the refreshing water. Basking in the chill, he sighed with pleasure and leaned back onto his elbows. The moonlight that shone through the clouds made his white robe glow like a beacon and outlined his alluring features, which were flushed from the wine.
Seeing the uninhibited view, the two servants who'd accompanied him stepped back with red faces.
In his study, Emperor Taihe was finishing up his work and preparing to retire to his palace when a guard reported Consort Jing's activities. Lu Guanting narrowed his eyes upon hearing that an ill consort had walked out that far in this heat. What was he up to?
Stopping by the lake would only require a slight detour, so he decided to appreciate for himself how General Zhang had raised his son to deceive the monarch.
But when he arrived at the edge of the forest, he was greeted with the scene of a drunk beauty lying disheveled in the dark, carelessly splashing water with his arched, naked feet. While the sight was intoxicating, Lu Guanting merely glanced at it for a moment before returning to his palace.
No matter how attractive it was, he wouldn't touch anything that smelled treacherous. For a consort to deliberately inform the emperor that he was unwell then show up outside as if he didn't seek imperial favor, was he hoping to disturb the water and catch a fish? Or did he anticipate gaining his interest by irritating him?
Regardless of what Zhang Jia's son intended, this emperor refused to play along.
Actually, Lu Guanting was truly giving himself too much credit. Chen Yu had indeed sensed his gaze, but he simply didn't care, he didn't plan to hold on to that golden thigh. Such a deep mind, he didn't want to trouble himself to fathom.
With this beautiful misunderstanding, Chen Yu didn't meet Emperor Taihe in person until two weeks later.
Meanwhile, he roughly figured out what must have happened in the plot.
Piecing together Emperor Taihe's past, Chen Yu raised his eyebrows. This Lu Guanting, his hands were just dripping with blood ah. But the point that mattered to Chen Yu was that the original owner had grasped the emperor's ruthless and paranoid behavior, affecting the actions that he took.
Upon ascension to the throne, Emperor Taihe had inevitably relied greatly on the military in order to establish his country's supremacy. During this period, Zhang Jia's outstanding performance on the battlefield won widespread admiration from the common people, so much so that Lu Guanting became suspicious that General Zhang had acquired too much influence. Therefore, Zhang Hua had been made a consort to harness the powerful reputation of the general's household behind him.
In fact, Emperor Taihe's concerns weren't groundless, Zhang Jia really aspired either to have its son bear the next emperor or to replace the current one.
Thus, when the original owner perceptively realized that he'd been fed infertility medicine on his first night at the palace and sent a secret report home, the elders gave up on peaceful succession and made preparations to seize the kingdom. A few months later, Zhang Hua received an order to eliminate the existing crown prince, sacrificing himself if necessary, which would then pave the way for the family to revolt.
Of course, such details weren't provided in the task description.
Chen Yu had learned about this backstory because, being somewhat curious about the general's family, he'd also informed the elders of his barrenness and was given a hint along those lines. No doubt some time later, explicit directions would be sent. Zhang Jia's expectations weren't out of line in Chen Yu's point of view. Zhang Hua had, after all, been supported fairly well for seventeen years of life. This turn of events only meant that the familial relationship had become a business partnership instead.
With this, Chen Yu resolved to take a neutral position toward Zhang Jia. He wouldn't defend them, but he wouldn't attack them either.
In any case, the original owner wasn't a character who would willingly die as a chess piece, he wouldn't have blindly risked himself to poison the prince because he was told to.
However, considering Emperor Taihe's pattern of behavior, Zhang Hua had rightly predicted that Lu Guanting would vigilantly intercept Zhang Jia's traitorous instructions and arrange to eradicate the general's household.
Although he'd never fought in a war, Zhang Hua had grown up surrounded by discussions of strategy. He definitely understood that as soon as the emperor had learned of Zhang Jia's disloyalty, his own death had been sealed. So while he may not have been inclined to throw away his life for sentiment, since he would be executed whether or not he attacked the royal family, he'd chosen to maximize his chances of survival by cooperating with Zhang Jia.
Thus, having calculated that Lu Guanting was too well-guarded to assassinate directly, he had immediately tried to cause a panic in the palace with the crown prince's poisoning, thereby making an opportunity for Zhang Jia to kill Lu Guanting.
Unfortunately, a palace maid he hadn't even noticed before had disrupted his plans, leading to his death.
When Chen Yu processed the story, he couldn't help but smile.
Such undercover conspiracy was somewhat exciting, but the best news was that the original owner hadn't acted out of some jealous frenzy or filial piety. That Zhang Hua was essentially a lazy person who nevertheless possessed both brains and self-respect made staying in character much more satisfying.
As for this emperor, he would have preferred not to bother with him, but since Lu Guanting wanted to protect his power at all costs, Chen Yu would take the time to teach him how exacting the price could be.
---
Today, it was the mid-summer festival, and everyone in the harem, along with the highest levels of nobility, had been summoned to an imperial banquet.
In preparation, Chen Yu didn't apply any makeup, simply sprinkling a few small gold flakes around the teardrop-shaped beauty mark under his eye, but with that decoration alone, his starry dark eyes glittered hypnotically. His silk white robe embroidered with red waves made his skin seem white like snow and gave him an aura of someone unrestricted by worldly shackles, while the two tasseled gold hairpins that loosely held up his silky hair dangled around his face, eye-catchingly trembling with every movement and adding a hint of playfulness.
His dress was uncomplicated, but due to Zhang Hua's inherently indolent nature, Chen Yu had begun preparing quite late.
Thus, when Chen Yu entered the banquet hall, many of the guests had already arrived and were socializing. Following the eunuch's announcement of Consort Jing's presence, there was barely a lull in their chatter.
Although this man was a new addition to the harem, everyone recognized that the emperor had never been moved by beauty and therefore, regardless of this consort's charm, his value would not be high. Only those who couldn't resist their curiosity about how a rare male concubine would conduct himself turned toward the doors.
But encountering that captivating appearance, the crowd gradually became silent.
The women were seduced by his nonchalant, unruly elegance, and the men uncontrollably felt an urge to tame that wild spirit. Every one of them regretted that they hadn't displayed enough respect, fearing that they had offended the one consort the emperor might hold in special regard.
Ignoring the eyes on him, Chen Yu casually walked to his arranged seat, signaling a maid to bring some jujube wine. En, this was sweet enough to substitute for his hot chocolate.
The people who could attend this banquet naturally were not stupid, observing that the consort wasn't in the mood to talk, they soon masked their shock and resumed murmuring among themselves.
The other concubines, however, couldn't restrain their anxiety. Despite the fact that Emperor Taihe hadn't shown particular favor to anyone before, they clearly perceived how irresistibly tempting Consort Jing was. Currently, the harem lacked an empress but was, relatively speaking, a peaceful environment, since everyone acknowledged that competing against each other wouldn't produce any results. If Consort Jing tried to disrupt this balance...their gazes turned assessing.
Chen Yu knew what these people were thinking, but he didn't issue any assurances. After all, he did intend to hook Lu Guanting.
Besides, he'd only taken the trouble to come here in order to meet two people, he wouldn't waste his breath on outsiders.
A short time later, both of his targets strode into the hall.