The inner palace was a place of intrigue. New mysteries cropped up every day before old ones were solved or, more commonly, had their secrets lost forever. Behind the walls of the imperial city, rumours were more run of the mill than the truth, and no rumour attracted more attention than that of where the emperor's favour lay. Concubines, servants, even the court, which was supposed to be removed from the matters of the harem, were personally invested in the gossip.
'Since ancient times, the inner palace was not to interfere in government affairs'?
That might be the rule but the fact of the matter was that the inner palace was inseparable from government affairs, whether His Majesty liked it or not.
As such, from the lowest of slaves to the highest of officials and consorts, a significant proportion of people were befuddled by the latest series of events, which took place outside Changchun Palace every morning without fail.
