Huanchun, Yukui and the others had been assigned to work at the Palace of Accumulated Purity by Head Eunuch Li himself, and they were good, honest girls. When he called them over and interrogated them, Head Eunuch Li finally figured out who had been acting suspicious for the past few weeks.
First-Class Female Attendant was timid and frail by nature, and she had watched in silent terror as Head Eunuch Li's men took her servants away. That morning, guards from the Department of Punishment had rushed in and took Aunt Wang, Eunuch Zhao and Jingyan away. Although First-Class Female Attendant Bu was frightened, she never liked the three of them, so she eventually calmed herself down and stopped panicking. On the other hand, Lanqi was the one who asked why they had been taken away.
However, Huanchun held her back from asking. "Haven't you heard of the rumors going around the palace? Noble Lady An is already cursing you up and down. How are you going to show your face around the palace again if you don't prove your innocence and get rid of those three? It's all my fault, Mistress. I should have gotten rid of that old fogey when Panxia brought this up. You wouldn't be suffering so much now."
"His Majesty must be suffering even more than I am. Noble Lady An can say whatever she wants—her words can't do anything to me. I'll just wait for the Emperor to resolve this for me. Why mope around at all?" Lanqi replied calmly, looking unbothered. "Ever since I became a concubine, there have been all sorts of rumors about me. This is the most harmful one yet. If I manage to get past this, there's nothing else I can't survive."
Panxia entered the room with First-Class Female Attendant Bu at that moment. Hearing this, she turned to Huanchun and smiled. "Your mistress has the temper of a Buddha! Thank goodness for that, too—everyone else is so worried about this that they can barely sit still, but she doesn't look scared at all."
First-Class Female Attendant Bu said timidly, "I heard that the Department of Punishment is the scariest place in the Forbidden City. Those three might never come back again."
She wasn't wrong at all. The very mention of the Department of Punishment was enough to turn the faces of most servants white. However, people who entered without resisting usually left with their lives. Aunt Wang and the others couldn't bear it anymore after a few hits, and surrendered all the information they had. Thinking the Emperor might need these people as future evidence, Head Eunuch Li decided to let them live for now.
That afternoon, Noble Lady An, Noble Lady Hui and the others had gathered in the Palace of Earthly Honor for afternoon tea with Consort Zhao. All of them were too nervous to bring up the uncanny rumors that had been floating around the palace, but Noble Lady An, who was trying to suck up to Consort Zhao, started cursing at First-Class Female Attendant Bu again. Unwittingly, her words implied that Lanqi was much more favored by the Emperor by the rest of them combined. Hearing this, Consort Zhao's face darkened.
Noble Lady Hui couldn't bear it anymore, and hissed at her to shut up. Just as Noble Lady An was going to say something in retaliation, Dongyun hurried into the room and curtseyed to everyone. Walking over to Consort Zhao, she said, "His Majesty has sent word from the Palace of Heavenly Purity. He wants you to play chess with him right now."
Consort Zhao had been waiting on tenterhooks for this exact moment. Xuanye should've finished his investigations by now, but she wasn't afraid. Before she spread those rumors, she already knew she had this coming for her. Anyway, she had done so to force Xuanye's hand.
There was no more affection left between the two of them. Even if it meant losing the last bit of respect the Emperor had for her, Consort Zhao was desperate to get her hands on what belonged to her. If she couldn't become the Empress, nobody else could either.
The other concubines took their leave. However, they continued to gaze at the Palace of Earthly Honor from afar, wondering what was going on. A while later, Consort Zhao was borne out of the palace in her palanquin, a dark expression on her face.
Noble Lady Hui sighed. "I hope His Majesty is really calling her to play chess. If not, things are going to change around here." After thinking for a while, she turned to her maid and said, "Let's go and visit Noble Lady Rong."
Meanwhile, Xuanye had sat down in his seat under the windows and laid out a chess board. There were several halls in the Palace of Heavenly Purity—however, he refused to see anyone in the hall where he had bedded Lanqi the other day. That hall used to be the usual spot he frequented. Now that Head Eunuch Li was leading her in a different direction, Consort Zhao felt very confused.
She entered the hall to see Xuanye fiddling around with the chess pieces. Just as she was about to curtsey, Xuanye smiled kindly at her. "Sit down. There's no need to be so formal."
How long had it been since she last saw such a warm smile? The last time Xuanye came to visit her in her illness, it was misfortunate that she had look bedraggled, and that the other concubines had been around. Otherwise, without Lanqi around yet, she could've enjoyed a few warm moments with Xuanye. And with how well she had been managing the harem, Xuanye's opinion of her would never have sunk so low.
Feeling a little sorry for herself, Consort Zhao's eyes reddened as she sat down opposite Xuanye. Seeing this, he asked, "What's wrong?"