"Your Majesty...this is a misunderstanding..." Consort Zhao threw herself onto the ground immediately. In a panicked voice, she continued, "Your Majesty, it isn't what it seems..." Dongyun was so frightened that she was kowtowing repeatedly on the floor. There was a strict rule in the palace that abuse was not to be tolerated, even from mistresses. Although palace maids were beaten and kicked in private all the time, the Emperor had arrived just in time to see Dongyun physically assaulting Lanqi. There was no way she would be able to talk her way out of this.
Lanqi had been so busy trying to protect First-Class Female Attendant Bu that she didn't notice her clothes were torn. First-Class Female Attendant Bu had been crying hard, but she was so frightened when she saw the Emperor that she stopped immediately.
Lanqi knew how this was going to play out. It was the Lantern Festival right now, and they were in the Palace of Compassion and Tranquility. If the Grand Empress Dowager was alerted to this loud commotion, she might choose to take Consort Zhao's side in this argument because of her prestigious status in the harem. In the end, Lanqi and First-Class Female Attendant Bu would be the ones who suffered.
However, this little moment of self-awareness was one that would change Lanqi's life forever.
As she had feared, the Grand Empress Dowager was notified of this almost immediately. Because it was a rather large matter, and because she was afraid that the young emperor—who already held a grudge against the Niohurus as it was—might do something rash in the heat of the moment, she called all of them to her bedchamber to sort things out between them.
Consort Zhao stood next to Aunt Sumala, wiping her tears away with a wronged expression on her face. However, she refused to speak.
Feeling rather impatient, the Grand Empress Dowager ordered the Emperor to explain. Knowing that his grandmother was going to be biased anyway, Xuanye felt a wave of anger wash over him and stubbornly remained silent, too.
The Grand Empress Dowager finally turned to First-Class Female Attendant Bu. "Why don't you tell me what's going on here?" However, the girl was weak and timid, and she was shaking too hard to say a single word.
The atmosphere in the room was becoming more and more awkward. The Grand Empress Dowager's face turned scarlet as her green veins popped in her neck. If she actually got mad, even Consort Zhao might not be able to get away with this scot-free.
Suddenly, Lanqi, who had been kneeling quietly behind her mistress, spoke up. "Grand...Empress Dowager." Everyone turned to look at her with consternation. The Grand Empress Dowager frowned at her, praying that this palace maid wouldn't say anything that might implicate herself.
Lanqi got up and walked forward. She bowed deeply and said, "This humble servant begs an audience from Your Benevolence. Actually, nothing much really happened. I accompanied my mistress to the side room to touch up her makeup. A few moments later, Consort Zhao and Dongyun entered the hall. As our mistresses conversed with each other, I lost my propriety and joked around with Dongyun, saying that I would rip her mouth off her face. But that wasn't true at all—we were just playing around. However, His Majesty came in at that moment and...and saw wrongly..."
"You...!" Xuanye looked as though he was about to explode with anger.
However, the Grand Empress Dowager stopped him immediately. "Emperor, it was you who mistook the situation for something more serious. Are you going to blame a palace maid for it?"
Xuanye was furious and wanted to force Alingga and Consort Zhao to tell their sides of the story, but his grandmother shot him a look, and he knew the matter was over as far as he was concerned.
Aunt Sumala laughed lightly and quickly wrapped up the matter. "The mistresses like to play around. Tonight, the court officials and their wives are all gathered in the Palace of Compassion and Tranquility. If they saw this, what would they think of the imperial family?"
Xuanye continued to glare at Lanqi as Aunt Sumala's words flew over his head completely. He had saved this palace maid a few days ago, but now she had pushed all the blame on him! This was something he simply couldn't tolerate.
Before he could stop himself, he interrupted Aunt Sumala and blurted out, "Grandmother, I want this palace maid for myself." The entire hall fell silent immediately. The Grand Empress Dowager knew that Xuanye was probably still stewing with rage over the fact that they had made him scapegoat. If she didn't obey his wishes, he might get angry again.
She shot a look at Aunt Sumala, who understood her intentions immediately. Aunt Sumala pulled Lanqi up from the ground with a smile and said to Xuanye, "My mistress has already chosen this palace maid for you a long time ago, Your Majesty. Why don't we leave her at the Palace of Accumulated Purity with First-Class Female Attendant Bu first? I'll send her over to you on the fifteenth day of this month..."
"There will be no need to make her a palace maid at my palace. I'll have her in my bedchamber tonight, and she'll be given the title of First-Class Female Attendant tomorrow. And there's that." With that, Xuanye bowed to the Grand Empress Dowager and strode out of the hall.
Everyone looked at Lanqi, their mouths open in shock. Finally, the Grand Empress Dowager sighed and said, "Well, let's do that, then. Get an Aunt to teach her the rules." She turned to Lanqi and asked, "What's your name, girl?"
Lanqi still hadn't recovered from her shock. When she heard the Grand Empress Dowager's question, she said quickly, "My name is Uya Lanqi."