Chapter 6 Summoning

The door opened from the outside and hot air rushed in.

Sun Ren looked up angrily and saw Dan Ying, the queen's maid, standing in front of the door with a sullen face.

His face suddenly changed, and all his anger flew away to Java. Cold sweat dripped down his forehead. "Aunt Danying, you are very busy. If you have anything to say, you can just send someone to tell me. Why did you come here in person?"

Danying saw Wu Wenxiu lying on the ground and sneered, "If I hadn't come here in person, how could I have known that you, Sun Ren, were so bold and presumptuous that you even dared to persecute the person the master wanted?"

Sun Ren's face turned pale, and he fell to his knees. "I deserve to die! I had no idea that Miss Wenxiu was the one the Queen wanted. If I had known, I wouldn't have dared to bully her even if I had a hundred guts!"

Danying didn't even look at him. She walked straight to Wu Wenxiu and helped her up. "Sister Wenxiu, are you okay?"

Looking at Danying who suddenly appeared, Wu Wenxiu couldn't believe it. The Queen... Was the Queen really going to summon her? The resentment in her heart instantly turned into ecstasy.

She held Danying's hand tightly, tears welling up in her eyes, but a slight smile appeared on her lips. "Sister Danying, I knew you wouldn't forget me."

Danying was about to speak when she saw that her fingers were broken and bleeding, and her nails were cracked. She quickly took her hand, took out a handkerchief, and gently wrapped the wound. "It's because I came too late that you, my sister, have been wronged." Her voice was full of guilt and pity.

Wu Wenxiu shook her head. "It's not my sister's fault. It's just that Sun Ren is such a wicked man. He asked me for a poem but failed, so he beat me up."

"So that's how it is. This man really deserves to die. Let's go and see the Queen first, and then we'll settle the score with him later."

Danying took Wu Wenxiu out. The young eunuch outside the door was so scared that he knelt down on the hot stone bricks, his forehead pressed against the ground, not daring to move.

When Sun Ren heard the word "settlement of accounts", he immediately remembered the Queen's cruel methods. His eyes went dark and he fainted.

After a while, he was awakened by the sobbing voice of "godfather". When he opened his eyes, he saw his rootless godson holding his arm and rocking him, with tears and snot all over his face.

Sun Ren grabbed him and asked in a trembling voice, "You told me before, what happened to the imperial guard who was whipped by the queen?"

The young eunuch was stunned for a moment before answering, "He died that very night."

Sun Ren felt a chill in his heart, his head was buzzing, and he almost fainted again.

He stood up with trembling legs, "Help me go to the Queen's Palace quickly. I have to go and apologize in person."

The young eunuch immediately supported him and walked out.

Soon, the two arrived at the gate of the Queen's Palace. Of course, they couldn't enter the palace.

Sun Ren took off his clothes, bare his upper body, and knelt down on the long street in front of the palace gate. The scorching sun made him dizzy and his legs trembled, but he could only grit his teeth and persevere.

————

Wu Wenxiu followed Dan Ying through the corridor dappled with sunlight and came to the main hall.

She was extremely excited at the thought of meeting Queen Chi in person soon, the woman who single-handedly disrupted the government, the woman who could change her destiny.

I breathed hard and managed to calm myself down.

As she walked into the hall, she felt a cool breeze and fine white mist spreading from the crystal clear iceberg, instantly taking away the heat from her body.

There were many people standing in the room, but there was no sound. All I could hear was Danying's voice reporting, "Master, Miss Wenxiu is here."

Wu Wenxiu lowered his head even lower, and out of the corner of his eye, he only saw a little bit of the dark blue robe of the man on the high seat.

She immediately knelt down and prostrated herself on the ground, "Maid Wu Wenxiu pays respects to Her Majesty the Queen."

Seeing Wu Wenxiu's great courtesy towards her, Chi Qi was slightly surprised. She said in a gentle tone, "Stand up and take a seat."

Danying brought a stool and asked Wu Wenxiu to sit down. Wu Wenxiu thanked him and sat on half of the stool. Then he lowered his brows and eyes, waiting quietly for questions.

Chi Qi was busy cleaning up the emperor's old man. If Dan Ying hadn't reminded her, she would have really forgotten about this person.

She narrowed her eyes slightly and looked at Wu Wenxiu. Judging from her appearance, she was a gentle and timid girl, but her poems were completely different. On the contrary, they were wild and sharp.

Chi Qi spoke slowly, "Your poems are indeed good and full of literary talent. I just happen to be in need of a learned person. However, rather than testing your knowledge, I'd like to know—"

He paused, then spoke again, his voice suddenly cold, "Wu Wenxiu, what do you want?"

Wu Wenxiu raised her head and suddenly met Chi Qi's gaze. In an instant, she felt a dangerous feeling as if she was being stared at by a hunter, and her heart beat faster.

It took her a while to come to her senses and think carefully about how to answer this question.

What does she want?

She was proud of her literary talent and wanted to show her strengths instead of being buried in the palace and living a sloppy life; she had great ambitions and wanted to use her pen as a sword instead of disappearing in history and becoming unknown.

But the key to the problem is not what she wants, but what Queen Chi wants to hear.

Perhaps, serving Her Majesty the Queen wholeheartedly and being loyal is the correct answer.

But this is not her true heart.

Wu Wenxiu looked directly at Chi Li, his dark eyes revealing determination. "I want power."

Chi Li smiled. "Power? If you want to be a talented woman, you should pretend to be indifferent to fame and fortune. After all, a woman who wants power will only be criticized by thousands of people."

Wu Wenxiu changed her previous weak demeanor and said firmly, "If a woman can only live in poverty and be at the mercy of others for a good reputation, then I would rather be infamous. As long as the Queen is willing to use me, I can do anything for you, even if it means bearing the infamy."

She looked at Chi Yu with a calm expression on her face, but only she knew how violently her heart was beating at that moment. Would Queen Chi appreciate her or would she think she was inferior?

But she was really fed up with the hard life in the slave house. She wanted money, power, a good life for her mother, and revenge on those who bullied her.

She took a deep breath and waited for the queen to make a judgment, which would change her fate, either climbing to the top of a mountain or falling into the abyss.

Chi Yan's expression was stern. "You are very honest."

Wu Wenxiu took a deep breath, her curled fingers touching her palms, which were covered in sweat. Was this really unacceptable? She felt a little uncomfortable.

Chi Qi continued, "I like your honesty. People who can face their own desires are more worthy of my trust."

She raised her hand, took off the golden token from her waist, and handed it forward. "I will appoint you as my secretary. From now on, you will stay by my side and help me organize memorials and documents."

Danying quietly reminded her, "Master, there is no such position as Shishu in the palace."

Chi Yan glanced at her and said, "Starting today, it will be there."

Danying was so smart that he immediately fell silent.

Wu Wenxiu, who had been given an official position, was stunned as if she had been hit by a huge pie. After a while, she came to her senses and hurriedly stood up and walked forward. Before she could move, her left foot tripped over her right foot and she almost fell.

He finally staggered to Chi Li, took the token with both hands, raised it above his head, and knelt down to express his gratitude. "Thank you, Queen, for your grace." His voice was shaking.

Chi Qi was about to ask her to get up, but she caught a glimpse of her hand wrapped in a handkerchief. After asking, she found out that Sun Ren had beaten her.

"Hmm?" Chi Qi's eyes darkened. The person who dared to hit her must be tired of living.

She even stepped on the hand holding the pen. If her hand was really injured, who would copy books and draft imperial edicts for her?

Chi Qi pressed her fingers against the bridge of her nose, closed her eyes and pondered for a few seconds before she managed to suppress the murderous intent in her heart. This kind of person was not worth her effort.

"I think he doesn't need to do the job of the slave prison anymore. Wu Shishu, I'm leaving this man in your care. You can handle him as you see fit."

"Yes." Wu Wenxiu responded respectfully, then lowered his eyes to hide the deep hatred that was welling up in his eyes, and left the room.

Danying escorted her out, holding her hand with a smile on her face, and jokingly said, "Wu Shishu, you are now favored by the Queen, and your future is boundless. But don't forget me, your sister."

Wu Wenxiu saw her gentle smile and was stunned for a moment before he understood what she meant. He felt a chill in his heart.

Everyone in the palace knows that Danying loves money the most. She will never refuse anyone who pays her to do something for her.

But it was also thanks to her that she accepted everyone who came to her, otherwise how could a criminal like her have the chance to become the queen's maid?

Now that things were done, she naturally wanted to express her gratitude. Danying's words were a compliment on the surface, but implicitly meant that she should remember to repay the favor.

Wu Wenxiu was not an ungrateful person. She knew that she would need Danying's help in many things in the future, so she said hurriedly, "Sister, I am deeply grateful for your recommendation. I only regret that I am penniless and cannot repay your kindness. I will thank you with a generous gift in the future."

Danying smiled and shook her head. "Why wait until tomorrow? There's a generous gift right here at my door. If you really want to, why not use it to thank me?"

"What?" Wu Wenxiu was confused.

Danying's smile deepened, and she said in a tone of reproach, "Ah, are you a nerd? You don't understand this? The master has already ordered you to deal with Sun Ren. He's a chief eunuch, and he must have embezzled a lot of money over the years. If we make him return all that money, wouldn't that be a generous gift?"

Wu Wenxiu's eyes widened. Is this possible?

She wanted to take revenge on Sun Ren, but she only wanted to make him suffer a little. Otherwise, it would be too eager for quick success and instant benefits for her to steal other people's property and put the money into her own pocket just after becoming a secretary.

Wu Wenxiu was about to refuse when he saw a man hurriedly walking towards him from the palace gate. He looked panicked, as if something big had happened.

Before she even got close, the maidservant shouted, "Sister Danying, Eunuch Sun from the slave house is kneeling outside the palace gate. He has fainted. I'm afraid someone might have died. You should go and take a look."

Wu Wenxiu was shocked. Sun Ren actually came to the Queen's Palace to kneel and apologize. She was secretly worried. Oh no! If she punished him severely after he had used this self-torture trick, wouldn't it cause more criticism?

If outsiders continue to think that the queen is not good at judging people, the token she just obtained will be in jeopardy.