Chapter 1: The Ubiquitous Palace Intrigue

July is scorching hot, with a slight chill in the mornings and evenings, but the midday sun remains blazing.

The sun was shining brightly, and the bluestone ground seemed to be covered with a layer of water, making one dizzy at a glance.

The room was so stuffy that it was hard to breathe, and the cicadas were chirping incessantly, adding to the unease.

The palace maid Fanghe lifted the curtain and entered the room, panting heavily as she threw the food box onto the table. Hearing the noise, A'ruo put her needlework into a basket, came out from the side room, and spoke to her in a low voice.

"It's so hot, and all we get are greasy dishes. There's not even a bowl of ice," Aruo complained.

"The kitchen is full of delicacies, it's just that we don't serve the favored master, so we don't get a chance!" Fanghe sneered and slammed the bowls and plates onto the table.

"Keep your voice down," A'Ruo whispered a reminder.

"What are you afraid of? Do you think you can punish us?" Fanghe retorted defiantly.

Even so, the movements were still a bit lighter.

The mistress of Xiefang Pavilion is out of favor, and everyone in the Imperial Kitchen, from the head of the Imperial Kitchen to the ladies-in-waiting, is adept at flattering the powerful and belittling the weak. If a dish is broken, a punishment is inevitable.

Their conversation reached the ears of Jiang Ling, a man of considerable talent. He remained unmoved by their resentment.

Because she transmigrated into a palace intrigue novel, where palace intrigue masters were everywhere.

The original book is still being serialized. Jiang Ling reads quickly, skimming through the pages, his thoughts jumping around. He is used to fragmented reading and only retains a vague memory in his mind.

The cheat software is there, but unfortunately only one-tenth of it is enabled.

The original owner was merely a background character in the book, a low-ranking fifth-grade talent.

Jiang Ling herself suffers from severe social anxiety and prefers to be alone. Once she interacts with or speaks with people, she becomes flustered and short of breath after only a few sentences, as if she has done something wrong.

In conclusion, she does have a way of dealing with those skilled in palace intrigue.

That would be to kneel down and beg for mercy: "Master, spare my life!"

Unfavored concubines in the imperial harem dared not be too blatant about their food, clothing, and daily necessities, except for their attire, which concerned the royal family's reputation.

Other things, such as food being cut back and not having ice bowls in the sweltering summer, are perfectly normal.

When one person attains enlightenment, even their chickens and dogs benefit from it. Jiang Ling was neglected, and A'ruo and Fanghe, who were sent to serve her, lost their futures as well.

Jiang Ling understood their desire to eat well and drink well; after all, she also wanted to live a comfortable life.

Unfortunately, neither of them had the fate nor the ability!

Moreover, Jiang Ling's life was far more miserable than theirs.

The past two months have felt like an eternity.

Jiang Ling's wish used to be to lie around doing nothing every day.

Now she can be considered to be doing nothing, and the difference between the two is more than a hundred thousand miles.

The most fundamental difference is that she used to be free and independent. As long as she had her phone, she didn't mind staying home for ten days or half a month.

Jiang Ling is now so bored that he's almost in the same state as Keyun, who has lost her child.

Based on the experience summarized from short videos and palace intrigue novels, crowded places such as the Imperial Garden are high-risk areas.

People's hearts are unfathomable. Jiang Ling was not good at dealing with people and could not detect the hidden traps in their words, so he simply stayed at home.

The other residents of Xiefang Pavilion would occasionally come to visit. Jiang Ling couldn't avoid them, so she would reluctantly sit with them for a while; this was her entire social life.

The few books in the room, such as "Admonitions for Women" and poems for women in their boudoirs, were Jiang Ling's second treasure, and were essential items when she used the toilet.

The number one treasure is the daily yield of one-third of a basin of ice.

Jiang Ling sat on the Luohan couch, guarding the copper basin wrapped in a thin blanket in front of him, silently reciting the Heart-Cleansing Mantra.

She didn't know how to recite the Heart-Cleansing Mantra, but she kept repeating in her head, "Heart-Cleansing Mantra, Heart-Cleansing Mantra, Heart-Cleansing Mantra... Hurry, hurry, as the law commands, quickly lower the temperature!"

In this awful weather, the only way to cool down is through willpower and metaphysics.

Unfortunately, none of this helped. Jiang Ling was only wearing a thin silk undergarment, and sweat was still pouring down like raindrops.

"My lady, it's time for your meal," A'Ruo reported as she entered.

Jiang Ling hummed in agreement, remaining seated and motionless.

Since the dishes are greasy, they must be fatty mutton, served with steamed buns and water spinach, bean sprouts, and cabbage that have been boiled until very soft.

For breakfast, we had mutton-filled steamed buns, and my burps still smelled strongly of mutton. Lunch was also mutton, which smelled strongly of mutton, and Jiang Ling had no appetite.

A'Ruo looked back with a complicated expression, but didn't try to persuade her further. She returned to the south window and continued doing her needlework.

In these remote and secluded palaces, such as the Xiefang Pavilion, lived palace women who were not favored by the emperor.

Previously, along with two talented women, Jiang Ling and Su Yue, plus other nobles without official rank, county ladies, imperial attendants, and so on, eight people lived together in close proximity.

Now, only Jiang Ling and Su Yue, the talented lady of the Xiefang Pavilion, remain as imperial attendants, half of the original staff.

It was commonplace to see someone develop hysteria, someone die silently, someone die of illness, and someone be sent to a royal temple for solitary cultivation.

After a while, Jiang Ling opened the thin blanket, reached into the bowl, and felt its icy coolness, secretly delighted. She carefully took the bowl out, brought her face close to it, and felt the coolness emanating from the remaining ice fragments.

Fearing the ice would melt and worrying that the cooled tea would get hot again, Jiang Ling was very busy. She wrapped herself in a thin blanket to protect the remaining ice, picked up the bowl, and drank the "iced tea" she had made.

The bowl was colder than the tea, and it was stale tea, so the taste wasn't very good, but Jiang Ling ate it with great relish.

Of course, nothing in this world is perfect. Jiang Ling gently swirled the bowl, looking regretful: "If only we had wine glasses."

Look at her damn sense of ritual!

After finishing his iced tea, and thinking about how he still had a whole afternoon to kill, Jiang Ling ate a few bites of food and went back to his room for a nap.

It was so hot that Jiang Ling managed to fall asleep only after huddling close to the ice basin. Eventually, the broken ice in the basin couldn't withstand the heat and melted completely.

Jiang Ling rolled over, knocking over the ice basin. It fell to the ground with a deafening crash, startling her so much that she sprang to her feet like a frozen fish.

Aruo Fanghe rushed over from the side room, saw the basin on the ground and the wet thin quilt, and muttered curses under her breath as she went to clean it up.

At this moment, Su Yue appeared at the door, curiously looking at the mess inside the room, and curtsied gracefully: "Sister Jiang, what happened?"

The two are about the same age, both in their early thirties, and are both background characters in the original book.

The hierarchy in the imperial harem was primarily determined by rank and who received their titles first.

The original owner of this body was granted the title of Cai Ren before Su Yue. She lived in the main house of Xie Fang Ge, while Su Yue lived in the west courtyard.

Su Yue has delicate features and fair skin. When she smiles, a dimple appears on her left cheek, making her look sweet and charming.

The original owner of this body was also a beauty, with striking features. In the prime of her youth, even the most beautiful peony paled in comparison.

The imperial harem is never short of beauties. The other two imperial attendants in the Xiefang Pavilion are also in their prime and have exceptional looks.

They all lived in obscurity in the deep palace until they withered away.

"Please sit down, Sister Su." Jiang Ling felt awkward upon seeing Su Yue, even though they were somewhat familiar with each other. After greeting her, he went to the washroom to clean himself.

After dawdling for a while, Jiang Ling reluctantly returned to the side room. Su Yue was still there, discussing needlework with A'Ruo.

Jiang Ling couldn't even sew a button, so she couldn't get a word in edgewise and breathed a sigh of relief, quietly sitting down to the side.

"Sister Jiang." Su Yue put down her needlework and began to talk to Jiang Ling with a smile.

Her smile was sincere and warm, with a hint of flattery as she said, "A-Ruo's needlework is so good, Sister Jiang is truly blessed."

Jiang Ling couldn't quite grasp why A'Ruo's needlework skills were considered a blessing.

Su Yue asked with a smile, "It's Consort De's birthday the day after tomorrow. Sister Jiang, are you planning to give Consort De a needlework as a birthday gift?"

In the original book, Empress Cui died young, and Consort Lin, Consort Zhao, Consort Liu, and others jointly managed the palace affairs.

Upon hearing about the favored Consort Zhao, Jiang Ling's mind immediately went on high alert. She certainly wouldn't go to join the commotion, and besides, she had no idea that Consort Zhao was about to celebrate her birthday, let alone the rules regarding the birthdays of concubines in the palace. She planned to find out more indirectly.

"According to the rules, what should we give as a gift?"

As soon as the words left his mouth, Jiang Ling, though outwardly expressionless, was inwardly nearly going crazy.

What a roundabout way of speaking!

Su Yue was taken aback, then covered her face and giggled: "Sister Jiang is so funny. There are so many sisters in the palace, and so many birthdays, there are no rules. Close sisters just exchange birthday gifts and get together for a drink."

Indeed, there were over forty palace women with official titles and nearly thirty without. If they all sent gifts to celebrate, the harem would be busier than a morning market.

Jiang Ling subconsciously felt that Su Yue's intentions were not simple and that she must be trying to find out something. Fearing that saying too much would lead to trouble, she simply kept quiet.

Su Yue's eyes darted around, a slight worry creeping onto her brow: "The Empress Dowager is deeply favored by the Emperor, receiving constant gifts and having seen all sorts of fine things. Even if I emptied my coffers, I couldn't come up with a decent birthday present. I only intend to go and pay my respects and offer my congratulations. Would Sister Jiang like to come along?"

They lived together in Xiefang Pavilion. If Su Yue went to offer birthday greetings, it would seem presumptuous of her not to go.

Left with no other choice, Jiang Ling nodded: "I'll go too."

Upon hearing this, Su Yue smiled again, "Then I will go with Sister Jiang the day after tomorrow."

After Su Yue left, A'ruo stepped forward with a basket, picked up the nearly finished silk stockings, and said, "This is what I made for you, Lady Consort. It will be finished tomorrow. You can take it to Consort De as a birthday gift."

Jiang Ling opened her mouth slightly, unable to hide her surprise.

The Imperial Clothing Bureau only made outer garments for palace women. As for intimate clothing, such as undergarments and stockings, they had to take the cloth home and make them themselves.

A'Ruo usually kept quiet while doing needlework, and Jiang Ling assumed she was making it for herself. Little did he know, it was actually a birthday gift for Consort Zhao.

“Lady Su was asking me all sorts of questions to test me, but I won’t tell her.”

Aruo was indignant and pouted, "Don't be fooled, Consort Su. She has ill intentions. She's definitely preparing birthday gifts to please Consort De. If she gains the Consort's favor, she can show off in front of the Emperor and get him to choose her again."

Jiang Ling was dumbfounded. She guessed that, apart from her, all the ants in the harem were good at palace intrigue!

Even A'Ruo could see the intention behind Su Yue's actions, so how could Consort Zhao not know?

Having decided to stay away from the high-stakes games, Jiang Ling's resolve only grew stronger. She simply followed the crowd and went to offer her congratulations.

On the day of Consort Zhao's birthday, Su Yue dressed up early and went to the main house to wait.

Jiang Ling was so nervous that his whole body stiffened as he stepped out of Xiefang Pavilion for the first time to go to Funing Palace, where Consort Zhao lived, to offer his congratulations.

A note from the author:

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My next book for pre-order: "An Ancient Guide to Resisting Violence". The synopsis is below. Please add it to your favorites.

Cheng Nian transmigrated into the body of the youngest legitimate daughter of the Cheng family, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel in the capital. She was only six years old and had an older brother and sister.

Father, Vice Minister Cheng: He was a refined and elegant man with exceptional abilities, and rose to the position of Vice Minister at a young age.

Mother Madam Shen: She was literate, came from a family of scholars, and was gentle and loving.

Cheng Nian, a corporate slave who toiled and struggled in his previous life and eventually died suddenly: This time I can finally relax.

Until this day, Cheng Nian noticed that Madam Shen's arm, which she had inadvertently exposed, was covered in bruises. Some of the marks had faded, clearly indicating that old wounds had not healed and new ones had been added.

It turns out that the crying she vaguely heard in the middle of the night was not a dream.

It was Madam Shen who was being tortured and beaten by Vice Minister Cheng.

Not only Madam Shen, but the other concubines were the same.

She was subjected to domestic violence by Vice Minister Cheng.

Reading Guide:

This is fictional; please do not attempt to verify its accuracy.

Note: The ranks of imperial concubines are set as follows:

1. Empress

2. Consort (First Rank, with Imperial Consort being the highest; the others are not ranked).

Imperial Concubine

Consort Shu

Consort De

Consort Xian

3. Concubine (Second Rank)

4. Jieyu (Rank 3)

5. Beauty (Rank 4)

6. Talented Person (Fifth Rank)

7. Other concubines without official rank

benefactor

Lady

Master Attendant