"This Concubine just wants to express thanks for the delicious cup of rose tea and also Your Highness's grace for saving this Concubine from the Emperor's anger." Concubine Jin bowed low as she explained her actions.
"You are welcome. If there is nothing else, I shall take my leave." Imperial Consort Lan had only taken one step before Concubine Jin hastily added, "would it be alright for this Concubine to come to visit Your Highness's palace next time?"
"I would prefer if you could refrain from such actions," Imperial Consort Lan did not pause her steps as she answered in an indifferent tone.
"Imperial Consort Lan, this Concubine has no ill intentions and only wishes to spend some time with you." Concubine Jin was not exactly shocked at being refused. After all, she had a hand in the bullying that Imperial Consort Lan suffered before her promotion and she has not been exactly discreet about it.
"This Concubine is aware that I have treated Imperial Consort Lan wrongly in the past and wishes to make amends. Would Imperial Consort Lan be magnanimous and forgive this Concubine for her past mistakes."
Imperial Consort Lan paused her steps at Concubine Jin's words. Magnanimous? Forgive her past mistakes? Does she take her for a fool? Turning around, Imperial Consort Lan lowered herself to the kneeling Concubine Jin's level. Concubine Jin tilted her head up to meet Imperial Consort Lan's gaze and felt cold chills the moment she saw the sharp glint in her eyes. Although Imperial Consort Lan was smiling gently, Concubine Jin could see that the smile did not reach her eyes. In fact, she feels like Imperial Consort Lan is eyeing her as if she is already dead. Concubine Jin shivered unconsciously when Imperial Consort Lan's slender and pale hands reached out to grab her chin tightly. Concubine Jin wanted to cry out at the sharp pain of having her chin grabbed so tightly but she could not as Imperial Consort Lan's grip was so tight that it locked her jaws.
"I will only say this once. If people do not provoke me, I will not retaliate. If you wish to seek your death, I shall welcome you with open arms." Imperial Consort Lan tone was so cold that it penetrated Concubine Jin's bones. She could feel the truth in Imperial Consort Lan's words and the murderous aura made Concubine Jin tremble in fear. She was so afraid that she collapsed sideways on the floor from her kneeling position, her face pale.
"Do not make me repeat my words, Concubine Jin. The moment I do, it will be the day you meet your maker." Imperial Consort Lan's voice returned to their natural gentle color as she warned Concubine Jin. Having said what she wanted to say, Imperial Consort Lan walked away from the scene with her head held high.
Imperial Consort Lan did not walk too far when she encountered another person walking the same path from the opposite direction. The Harem not only houses the Emperor's women but also the previous Emperor's women such as the Empress Dowager and the other Imperial Concubine Mothers of other princes. However, there are not many women left from the previous Emperor's Harem due to the current Emperor's massacre. There were only a few princes as well, all who were assigned titles and driven away from the capital.
Squinting her eyes, she could make out the black outer robes that hugged the slender and yet muscular body of the man walking towards her. The regal and dignified aura could not be hidden either so Imperial Consort Lan assumes that the identity of that man should be one of the Emperor's brothers, a Duke.
There are not many people that Imperial Consort Lan has to kneel down to after being conferred the title of an Imperial Consort but a Duke is of higher rank than an Imperial Consort. Some may argue that they are almost the same since Imperial Consort is one rank away from the Empress but Imperial Consort Lan begs to differ. Stepping to the side of the pathway, she kneeled down on her knees and placed her palms gracefully together before bowing to the person.
Although a Duke's rank is higher than an Imperial Consort, he cannot ignore a kneeling Imperial Consort. After all, how can a man ignore a kneeling woman? The rules dictate that a lower-ranked person is to kneel upon seeing someone of higher rank. They can only stand up after being acknowledged or after the higher-ranked person walks away. Most people would just acknowledge so as to spare the other person from kneeling for too long but there are times when the higher-ranked person deliberately makes the other kneel for long periods of time to show off his authority. This is looked down upon among the people in high society but it does not stop people from doing it.
The person walked steadily towards her and stopped before her. Imperial Consort Lan kept her head low as she paid her respects.
"This Imperial Consort pays respects to Duke Fei."
"Imperial Consort Lan, the air is chilly and the floor is cold. It will not be good if your illness relapsed. Please rise," Duke Fei held out a hand to which Imperial Consort Lan took to stand up. He is indeed correct. The weather today was windy and she had just barely recovered. If she stayed out too long in this weather, her body might not be able to take it.
"Many thanks to Duke Fei for your concern," Imperial Consort Lan gave a small smile.
Looking at where Duke Fei was coming from, Imperial Consort Lan immediately knew why this man who seldom enters the Imperial Palace is here today. "Duke Fei must have been visiting Her Highness, Imperial Concubine Mother Ling."
"Indeed, I had come to visit Imperial Concubine Mother as well as settle some matters. I am currently on my way to visit Imperial Brother to report some issues so I will not hold Imperial Consort Lan, please excuse me." Duke Fei nodded to her before he walked away.
"Mistress, isn't it said that Duke Fei injured his arm? That's why he wasn't-" The maidservant's words made Imperial Consort Lan recall what happened before the current Emperor's ascension and she quickly shoots her a look that made the maidservant shut her mouth.
"You have been quiet all these while but the moment you open your mouth, your words seek trouble." Imperial Consort Lan grumbled, shaking her head as she resumed her path back to her palace.
What the maidservant implied was that incident when Duke Fei was still a prince and the previous Emperor was still alive. The current Emperor is the third prince born from the Empress while Duke Fei was the seventh prince born from Imperial Concubine Ling. At that time, the previous Emperor was already drowning in lust and ignored his duties as the ruler of the country. The princes and their fractions fought for the throne, it was the survival of the fittest. Kill or be killed.
The previous Emperor had eight children, all are male.
The first prince preferred to be a scholar rather than a ruler. His stance spared his life and he was given the title Duke Lin and given a piece of land by the previous Emperor.
The second prince died when one of his concubines betrayed him and assassinated him one night. The concubine was sent by the Empress but the second prince's maternal family never really investigated. They had lost their pillar of support and they immediately went to seek another.
The fourth prince was similar to his Imperial Father. His harem was the biggest out of all the princes and women cannot help but flock to him even though they knew he was fickle. He had status, looks, and money so an endless amount of women entered his harem. They say a woman's love is the most dangerous thing in the world. With that love, she can do anything for you but at the same time, she can do anything for that love she holds for you as well. The secondary princess of the fourth prince household poisoned the water that the household uses which killed off everyone including the fourth prince. She then kneeled beside his body before she drank the poison as well.
The fifth prince was born sickly and was dealt quite quickly by the third prince. The fifth prince had a childhood sweetheart and that is the third daughter of the concubine from the General Household. The fourth prince seduced the innocent lady and she ended up pregnant. Hence, she married into the fourth prince's household as a concubine. It broke the fifth prince's heart but he firmly believed that she was forced. He went to his brother's estate to get the love of his life back only to be dejected by the lady herself. The fifth prince could not take the blow and he died a few weeks later from heartbreak.
The sixth prince was a businessman and he was seldom in the capital. He ventured outside of the kingdom to do business and amass his wealth. He, like the first prince, announced his stance early and step away from the fight for the throne. He was given the title Duke Chen and a mansion in the capital where his Imperial Concubine Mother is currently living.
The seventh prince is the most outstanding prince the kingdom has ever seen. He was a war hero. He was excellent on the battlefield and held the respect of the entire Imperial Army. The General House supports the seventh prince due to this as well. His martial arts are top-tier and unbeatable in the continent. It seems like God was not being fair when he created the seventh prince because his mind is even sharper. His intellect made him an amazing strategist. With his wit, he managed to push the Empress to a corner and suppress the third prince. However, that incident was the downfall of the seventh prince. On a mission to the outskirts of the capital to suppress a rebel group, he was attacked by a group of skilled experts. No matter how strong the seventh prince was, he could not defend against such a group of skilled experts. The fact that he managed to survive that attack with only a torn tendon on his dominant arm was already a feat but that incident forcefully removed him out of the fight for the throne. The next Emperor who is disabled? The people would not accept it.
The eighth prince had been missing since he went on an investigation mission to one of the borderlands. He had bought his army of 10 thousand people and the entire army disappeared with the prince himself. When people were sent to the borders to search for the missing people, they only discover a land shrouded in black mist and those who entered never came out. After that, the entire area was cordoned off and no entry was permitted. To this day, the eighth prince remains missing.
Other than the seventh and the eight princes having the same Imperial Mother, the other princes have different mothers. Imperial Concubine Ling remained in the palace because she is too sick to move out with her son, the seventh prince. So the seventh prince would return to the Imperial Palace to visit his Imperial Concubine Mother every few months. The Emperor cannot ban his brother from entering because of the backlash it would cause. Although the seventh prince was not able to become the Emperor, it does not mean that the people had once supported and wanted the seventh prince to be the next Emperor if not for his arm. If he banned his brother from entering, the masses will naturally criticize him and so, he had to allow his entrance to the Imperial Palace.
The moment Imperial Consort Lan saw the black clothes, she had an inkling as to who is walking towards her. There is only one person who would wear black so well as if the color was invented solely for him. His long obsidian black hair that hung around his lean figure paired with the black robe he always wears gives off a majestic aura. The silver embroidery on the black robe shines under the sun and pairs well with his pale skin. It remains a mystery how can a general such as Duke Fei remained so pale under the hot sun and bloody battlefield. Whichever the case, Duke Fei is definitely a looker. All the ladies rushed to be his woman even though his arm is no longer the same, even if he has no chance to become the Emperor, just because of his face.
Imperial Consort Lan is not someone who cares about looks. Actually, she does not really care about anything other than those close to her like her family. It is extremely difficult to become one of the few people she trusts but once you are one of them, she will do anything to protect those that she cares about.
Just like the man standing in her inner chambers by the window right now. He is her personal bodyguard that accompanied her from when she was extremely young. His name is Xue and it was Imperial Consort Lan who named him after seeing the first snowfall when he was introduced to her by her Father. As her bodyguard, he naturally protects her but at the same time, Imperial Consort Lan would protect him without a second thought should there be a need.
The night has fallen when she first noticed another presence in her inner chambers. She had just finished dinner when she sensed an unnatural wind brush her cheeks. Dismissing her maidservants, she entered her inner chambers and close the door tightly behind her.
"Young Miss," Xue greeted.
"I have been married for so long, it feels weird to be called a young miss." Imperial Consort Lan snorted as she sat down on one of the chairs in her room.
Xue had always dressed in black with a black mask over his face to cover his identity. Faced with his mistress, he pulled his mask down and gave her a grin. "Young Miss will always be Young Miss to me," Xue replied before he handed her a small piece of paper.
Unfolding the paper, Imperial Consort Lan read its contents before snorting. She took the paper and placed it above the flickering flame of her candle, burning it. A strange glint lighted in her eyes as she watched the paper catch fire and slowly turn into ashes.
Xue watched her actions quietly, waiting for her command. Imperial Consort Lan only turned to face him after a stick of incense and smiled. This is a genuine smile, not one where she smiles out of politeness, not a forced smile. Xue looked at her and could not help but be reminded of those innocent days where she had not entered the palace yet. Those peaceful days where the sheltered Young Miss can smile and laugh without a care for the world.
"Help me pass these to Father," Imperial Consort Lan handed Xue a stack of papers. It is the letters which she was writing to her Father before Imperial Consort Qin came to look for trouble. Xue took the thick stack of papers and stuffed it in his robes, his eyes never left the smiling face of his mistress.
"It has been a while since you smiled like this," Xue commented as he struggled to stuff all the papers into his robe.
"Oh, that is because-" Imperial Consort Lan paused a little, pondering on the right word to use before her smile turned a little twisted, a piercing glint in her eyes.
"I am looking forward towards what is to come."