The Empress summoned him.

Just as dawn was breaking and the small peach tree outside the window was still shrouded in morning mist, the hurried footsteps of a eunuch broke the tranquility of the Cold Palace. "Her Majesty the Empress has decreed that palace maid Lin Zhao be summoned to the Phoenix Palace for an audience immediately—" The high-pitched voice pierced through the thin mist, carrying an unquestionable authority.

I sat bolt upright in bed, the sachet in my hand falling onto the pillow. The Empress had just visited the Cold Palace yesterday, and now she suddenly summoned me—a private audience, no less—which made my heart skip a beat. Ya Huan, awakened by footsteps, rubbed her eyes and ran from the next room: "Sister A Zhao, what's wrong? What does Her Majesty the Empress want with you?" Consort Rong also rushed over, wearing an outer robe, her eyes filled with worry: "Could it be…could it be that yesterday's events upset her?"

Consort Xian emerged from the room, her expression calm: "Don't panic. If she truly wanted to make things difficult for you, she wouldn't have left the Dragon Well and fertilizer yesterday. Go now, and listen more and speak less. I've already sent someone to deliver a message to Consort Hui; she will meet you outside the palace gates." Consort Su handed me a small cloth bag containing a few calming pills: "Take this. If you feel nervous, take one. No matter how powerful the Empress is, she won't openly make things difficult for you."

I took the cloth bag, nodded, and followed the eunuch who delivered the decree outside. My footsteps trod on the dew-dampened flagstones, the cool touch sending a shiver down my spine, which inexplicably reminded me of my childhood when I would walk with Aunt Sun to buy breakfast at the alley entrance—it was the same wet flagstone path, and Aunt Sun would walk ahead, saying, "Hurry up, don't dawdle," but she would quietly slow down to wait for me.

As we approached the entrance to Fengyi Palace, Consort Hui was indeed waiting there. She took my hand and whispered, "The Empress is in a bad mood today. Once you go in, don't say much. Just answer whatever she asks. I've already had someone inquire. Yesterday, after she returned to the palace, she had an argument with the Emperor, and I suspect she took her anger out on you." I nodded, took a deep breath, and followed the palace maid into Fengyi Palace.

The main hall of Fengyi Palace was magnificent, with bright yellow curtains hanging down and thick carpets covering the floor, making each step silent. The Empress sat on her throne, her face gloomy and much colder than yesterday, much like Aunt Sun from our childhood, who would come to "settle scores" with us after being scolded by her husband. "Do you know your crime?" she asked, her voice icy and devoid of any warmth.

My heart tightened, and I quickly bowed, "This servant does not know, please enlighten me, Your Majesty." "Does not know?" The Empress slammed her hand on the table, splashing tea from her cup. "Yesterday, while you were in the Cold Palace, you dared to have Consort Rong embroider a handkerchief for the Dowager Consort Xian, and you even dared to hold a banquet. Isn't that a contempt for palace rules?"

I knew perfectly well that this was just an excuse she was making up. I remembered the Empress Dowager's admonition to "listen more and speak less," and simply lowered my head: "Your Majesty, we were just celebrating the arrival of spring and acted on a whim. We had no intention of disrespecting palace rules. If we have offended Your Majesty, please forgive us."

The Empress stared at me for a long time, her gaze sharp, but she didn't lose her temper. After a moment, she suddenly said, "Raise your head." I slowly raised my head and saw the weariness in her eyes, and a hint of barely perceptible grievance, just like Aunt Sun secretly wiping away tears when I was a child. "Are you really happy in the Cold Palace?" she suddenly asked, her voice low and devoid of its previous authority.

I hesitated for a moment, then answered truthfully, "Your Majesty, although life in the Cold Palace is bitter, I am happy to have the company of Consort Xian and Consort Su." The Empress's lips curled into a self-deprecating smile: "Happy? It's just a group of disgraced people gathering together to comfort each other. What's there to be happy about?" She paused, her voice suddenly softening, "In this Phoenix Palace, I enjoy endless riches and honors, yet I have no one to confide in. The Emperor is only concerned with the affairs of the court, and the palace maids and eunuchs only think about pleasing me. No one is truly kind to me."

Looking at her, I suddenly remembered the stiffness with which she handed me the osmanthus cake yesterday, and the awkwardness with which she brought me the Longjing tea and fertilizer. It turned out that she summoned me to the palace not to interrogate me, but to find someone to confide in. Just like how Aunt Sun would deliberately find excuses to come to our house when I was a child, sitting in the courtyard complaining about how "life is hard to bear," when she really just wanted someone to listen to her.

“Your Majesty,” I said softly, “true love is not something that can be bought with wealth and status, but rather with companionship and understanding. Just like me and the ladies in the Cold Palace, we have no riches, yet we support each other through hardship. That is true love.” The Empress was silent for a moment, tears welling in her eyes, but she stubbornly turned her face away: “I don’t need these things. I am the Empress, and all I need is power and honor.”

But her voice was choked with sobs, just like Aunt Sun's voice when I was a child, saying, "I don't need you to keep me company." I didn't speak again, just stood there quietly. After a long while, the Empress said, "You may leave. You must not tell anyone about what happened today." She paused, then added, "If the Cold Palace needs anything in the future, just send someone to Fengyi Palace to let us know." As she spoke, she took out a jade pendant from her sleeve and tossed it to me, "Take this; it will make it easier for you to come and go from Fengyi Palace in the future."

I picked up the jade pendant, bowed in thanks, and turned to leave. As I reached the door, I suddenly caught a glimpse of the Empress secretly wiping away tears, her movement quick as if afraid of being discovered. My heart warmed, and I remembered how, when I was a child, Aunt Sun would give me a piece of candy after complaining, saying, "Take this, don't let your mother know."

As I walked out of Fengyi Palace, Consort Hui hurriedly came to greet me: "How was it? Did she make things difficult for you?" I shook my head and handed her the jade pendant: "Her Majesty the Empress did not make things difficult for me, and even gave me this jade pendant." Consort Hui looked at the jade pendant in surprise: "This is the Empress's personal jade pendant. She actually gave it to you. It seems that she really considers you one of her own."

When I returned to the Cold Palace, everyone was waiting at the entrance. They all breathed a sigh of relief when they saw me return safely. Ya Huan ran over and took my hand: "Sister A Zhao, I'm so glad you're alright! Did Her Majesty the Empress make things difficult for you?" I smiled and shook my head, briefly recounting what happened at Fengyi Palace, but omitting the part about the Empress's complaints.

At night, I lay in bed, holding the jade pendant the Empress had given me. The pendant was warm and smooth, carrying a faint fragrance. The "drip-drip" sound in my ears sometimes rose and fell, and the scene before my eyes would occasionally blur—the main hall of Fengyi Palace would sometimes turn into the living room of Aunt Sun's house when I was a child, and the Empress's face would overlap with Aunt Sun's face, and then quickly separate again.