Rei stayed in the Shangguan clan mansion for about a month, within that month of life in the Shangguan clan mansion, she was treated fairly well, after all, she was the one who was going to replace their own biological to enter the harsh Imperial Palace as a palace maid.
In the Shangguan clan mansion, Rei was taught and trained by one of the most famous lady teachers as well as etiquette couches in the Qin Empire. Through the teacher and etiquette coaches, Rei learned all the knowledge and skills she needed to know and have as a noble family's daughter. And after Rei had learned everything she needed to know, she was sent to the Imperial Palace as the daughter of the Shangguan clan. In the Imperial Palace, Rei once again gained her harsh and traumatic life experiences...
***
That day was the day when she finally passed the promotion exam for the palace maids and court lady. She was brought to the Qin Emperor along with seven other court ladies and palace maids. The Emperor asked eight of them a question, why and how did they end up in the Imperial Palace?
The first court lady was kind of alert and realized that this might be a trap question, she immediately knelt down with her face on the floor. Upon seeing how frightened the court lady was, the Emperor immediately dismissed her from her court lady's job position and banished her permanently from the Imperial Palace.
The second and third palace maid started flattering the Emperor by complementing how good the Emperor was. The fourth court lady was just like a top student who had gotten their answers prepared beforehand, she gave the Emperor a long speech regarding her ambition to serve the empire and whatsoever. The fifth and sixth court ladies gave some rather controversial but smart and creative answers like how your stupid bosses would expect you to perform in a trivia meeting.
The seventh court lady was a bold one, she answered the Emperor directly that she was there because of the Imperial Decree. Due to her rudeness, she was caned ten times as a small punishment from the Emperor.
And when it's finally Rei's turn, Rei recalls what her adopted mother taught her before. After a short thought, she decided to tell the Emperor what her adopted mother taught her.
"My mother told me that, Shangguan's clan doesn't need a smart and capable girl to be sent into the palace causing them unwanted troubles and misunderstanding. So... I guess I am stupid yet beautiful enough to get Your Majesty's attention but at the same time, not sufficient to seduce Your Majesty."
That's her answer. And yes, with no doubt, she was caned as well but five times more than the previous court lady. The moment she was dragged out of the door, she saw a palace maid walk in with five shots of wine in a tray. Despite she was the one who was going to be caned, she had an uneasy feeling about those wines, and apparently, she wasn't just imagining things...
***
After Rei endured that harsh fifteen strokes of canes, she was greeted by a terrifying sight, the dead bodies of the five remaining court ladies and palace maids were dragged out from the door one by one, and from the corner of her eyes, Rei vaguely saw the face of one of the dead ladies. For some reason, the dead lady's face looked slightly purplish, while her eyes, nose, mouth and ears were bleeding purplish blood.
"That's the consequence of acting smart in front of the Emperor. Anyway... Sorry for the caning just now, Miss Rei. Congratulations on your promotion." said the eunuch who performed the punishment on Rei...
***
"Since then, I have been acting stupid and hiding my real capabilities to a level where it was just sufficient enough to complete my daily tasks nicely. This situation continued for about a year until I was repositioned to the Empress's palace. The Empress is a very nice person as well as the only person who was truly kind to me. After some awful incident, I decided to protect her with my intelligence... And the Emperor seems to have no problems with it. I guess... As long as a servant's cleverness and intelligence were used for their lords, it's acceptable." said Rei.
"Ah... Tsk... So... You do aware that there is something wrong with that jar of dried plum flowers, right?" The King asked, he was slightly troubled by what Rei just told him.
"Well... Not really... I was kind of forbidding myself from suspecting whether it is poisonous or not unless the Empress would want to use it." said Rei, who sounds a bit reluctant to tell the truth.
"What? But why?" The King asked.
"Uhm... How should I tell you this... It's like a habit... A habit that I developed through years of cautious life in the Imperial Palace. After witnessing countless tragedies and death in the palace, I started to believe that a person like me has no right to..."
"No! It's not! And don't you even think of it anymore! You heard me?" The King exclaimed and halted Rei's words as he grabbed Rei's left shoulder in anxiousness.
"Ah... But... All these mindsets started changing when I met you... Your Majesty... You made me realise that... I don't have to act so innocent and naive all the time and it's okay to scheme a bit more for the sake of myself." said Rei as she shyly grabbed the King's hand, placed it on her cheek and felt the warmness.
"I see..."
"And regarding that jar of dried plum flowers... It's not that I never thought about it being problematic, it's just that the moment I received it from the Empress that time, I didn't feel like I had the value to suspect or care of the contents of it since it was a gift from the Empress. Furthermore, I feel totally alright after consuming it for years, so... I thought it should have no problems at all. I... I really don't mean to give you such a poisonous drink that day..." said Rei who thought that the King might be questioning that incident a few months ago.
"Ah... I didn't mean that... Hah... Nevermind. I am just glad that I finally got know to this hidden darkness of your life. And don't worry, I would never allow the same situation to happen again to you." said the King who gently caressed Rei's cheek and hair...