"Hmph!" Noble Concubine Shih gave a sidelong glance and sneered coldly.
Honored Lady Hu's face turned even paler. Her previous words had also offended Noble Concubine Shih, who was the Emperor's childhood friend—wasn't her seniority even greater?
At that thought, her legs went weak with fear. The consequences of offending Noble Concubine Shih were almost too frightening to contemplate. Her forehead was pressed tightly against the ground, and she lacked the strength to even rise.
Xia Ruqing elegantly sipped her tea. The fragrance filled her mouth and teeth—hmm, not bad at all.
In the end, it was the Empress who came forward to smooth things over. "Alright, Honored Lady Hu, stand up. You have been in the palace for a year now; you should understand the importance of speaking and acting cautiously!"
"This servant will heed the Empress's teachings!" Honored Lady Hu said as she stood up tremblingly.
The Empress nodded in satisfaction. After some more conversation, everyone dispersed.
Upon leaving Jiaofang Hall, once all the noble ladies had departed, Honored Lady Hu glared fiercely at Xia Ruqing and walked away, flinging her handkerchief behind her.
Xia Ruqing played with the jade bracelet on her wrist, concealing a hint of mockery at the corner of her mouth. We are all supposed to be equals; what kind of airs is she putting on? In my memories, this Honored Lady Hu frequently tormented the body's original owner. Back then, I was just a Lady, so her bullying was somewhat bearable. But now that we are both Honored Ladies… I can't let myself be disadvantaged again, can I?
「The day before the Mid-Autumn Festival.」
The Emperor's gifts were distributed. The Empress's share was naturally the largest, followed by Noble Concubine Shih's. The rest were distributed according to rank. Zhao Junyao rarely expended much thought on such matters, usually leaving the arrangements to Li Shengan according to protocol.
However, among this year's tribute items were a few boxes of rouge from the Kingdom of Goryeo. The Kingdom of Goryeo was known as the land of roses, and its tribute rouge was made by juicing countless fresh rose petals and mixing them with a secret formula of fragrant dew. Not only was the color bright and even, and moisturizing to the skin, but it also carried a delicate rose scent when applied, making it deeply loved by the women of the Harem. This year, Goryeo had faced flooding, causing a significant decrease in rose production. Consequently, the rouge tribute was not as abundant as in previous years.
Li Shengan was quite troubled. "We are exactly one box short! What should we do?"
The Empress Dowager received three boxes, while the Empress and the Noble Consorts each received two. The remaining consorts were allotted one box each, but even this was not enough. According to protocol, all ladies of the Sixth Rank and above were entitled to one.
"Only one of Lady Xia and Honored Lady Hu can receive a box, and it wouldn't be right to favor one over the other," Steward Hai Dasheng of the Ministry of Internal Affairs said, greatly troubled.
"How about Steward Li asks for the Emperor's opinion?" Hai Dasheng suggested cautiously. Both were Honored Ladies, and with only one box of rouge, he could not make the decision. However, if the Emperor made the choice, wouldn't that simplify matters? Who would dare to dispute it?
Li Shengan hesitated for a moment, then heaved a sigh and went to inquire. Such a trifle would usually never merit disturbing the Emperor. But when lacking direction in matters of tribute, who would dare to make a careless decision?
「Zichen Hall.」
Zhao Junyao was reviewing documents. Upon hearing of the matter, he didn't even lift his eyelids and simply said, "Give it to Lady Xia. As for Lady Hu, find something else of good quality to give her!"
In fact, he couldn't quite remember who Lady Hu was. Besides the veterans from the Eastern Palace, he could hardly match names to faces among the dozen or so newcomers from the previous year. But he did remember Lady Xia. A faint smile touched his lips, and he subconsciously touched his shoulder, as if the row of bite marks were still there.
She really is a bewitching little demon, Zhao Junyao thought to himself.
「Zhaohua Pavilion.」
After her noon rest, Xiao Xizi had already inventoried the Mid-Autumn Festival gifts and arranged them neatly on the table in the outer room.
Xia Ruqing glanced over the items. There were pearl and jade hairpins, fabrics, and spices aplenty. Most of them were produced internally and quite valuable.
She nodded to herself. Whether the Emperor doted on his many consorts or not was another matter; at least materially, they were well taken care of. Although some hadn't been visited more than a few times, they were well-fed and would be provided for throughout their lives. When it came down to it, this was rather conscientious of him. What of the twenty-first century? How many women had thrown body and soul into relationships only to end up wounded and worse off? Since things were already this way, she had to look on the bright side and prioritize living well.
"Eh, what's this?" She picked up an exquisitely delicate little sandalwood box.
"My lady, you might not know, but this is tribute rouge from the Kingdom of Goryeo, and there are only a few boxes of it!" Xiao Xizi said with pride.
Then, he leaned in conspiratorially. "This servant heard from someone in the Ministry of Internal Affairs that when it came to the Honored Ladies, only one box was left. The Emperor himself said to give this box to you, my lady!"
Which meant Honored Lady Hu didn't get one.
Xia Ruqing smiled but didn't take it to heart; it was just a box of rouge, after all. But if Noble Concubine Shih hadn't received any, she wouldn't dare accept it.
She told Xiao Xizi to pack everything away, and then, accompanied by Zi Yue, she went to the Imperial Garden to pick chrysanthemums. Tomorrow was the Mid-Autumn Festival, and she wanted to preserve some petals for mooncake filling.
What Xia Ruqing didn't know was that word about the tribute rouge had already spread.
In the Harem, the Sixth Rank was a watershed. Those below the Sixth Rank were considered minor wives; they had no part in paying respects, receiving gifts, or attending banquets, and could only rely on their meager stipends to get by. If one received no favor, their life was essentially set—it could be said they didn't even have the standing to compete. The situation was different for those at or above the Sixth Rank. Everything was available to them; opportunities to be seen were numerous, as were the areas in which they could vie with others.
So, when Honored Lady Hu discovered she was missing a box of tribute rouge, she exploded with fury. Flanked by her attendants, she charged straight for Zhaohua Pavilion. It had been one thing for her gifts to always be the fewest when her rank was the lowest. But now that Xia Ruqing held the same rank, why was her share still the smallest!
"Where is your mistress? Tell her to come out!" Honored Lady Hu fumed.
As soon as Xiao Xizi saw it was Honored Lady Hu, he had a fair idea why she was there. Nevertheless, he welcomed her with a smile and greeted her respectfully. "Our mistress is not here. If Honored Lady has any orders, instructing this servant will suffice."
"Not here? Hmph! Then we'll go inside and wait for her return!" With that, she pushed Xiao Xizi aside and, with her entourage, barged into the house.
Xiao Xizi saw things were taking a bad turn and hurriedly knelt before Honored Lady Hu to block her path, forcing a smile. "Ordinarily, this servant shouldn't obstruct a visit between ladies. However, when my mistress left, she repeatedly instructed me to take good care of the house." He continued to kowtow as he spoke. "This servant is clumsy and ill-suited to attend to you. If we enter and the rooms get dirtied, our mistress will surely blame me. I implore the Honored Lady to take pity on this humble servant!"
It was the duty of palace maids to serve refreshments; eunuchs typically only ran errands and usually did not enter the inner rooms. Thus, Xiao Xizi made this excuse.
"Rest assured, I don't need you to serve tea or water. Just wait outside the courtyard gate. When your mistress returns, inform me!" Honored Lady Hu declared arrogantly.
Of course, Xiao Xizi would not agree. Without another word, he knelt resolutely, as if prepared to block her path with his very life.
Honored Lady Hu became livid and slapped Xiao Xizi across the face. "You wretched eunuch! How dare you block my way!" With another slap, she seethed, "You dare imply I'd dirty your rooms? Fine, I'll make sure to go inside!"
Having said this, she kicked Xiao Xizi aside. Yet, he scrambled back to his feet with surprising speed and resumed his kneeling position.
Honored Lady Hu's anger intensified. Just as she was about to roll up her sleeves and cause a major scene, unexpectedly… Xia Ruqing returned.