Chapter 24 First Steps into the Palace
"Have all the congratulatory gifts for the various palaces been prepared?" Hearing the lively commotion outside, Lü Yingfeng also felt a surge of excitement.
Xue Xin smiled generously – “Your Majesty, rest assured, everything is prepared. The standards are no higher than those of the Empress, and similar to those of Consort Hua. The materials chosen are things like gold and jade that are not easy to tamper with. Hong Xihai has already taken them with him.”
Lü Yingfeng always trusted Xue Xin to handle things. She peeked out the window and saw a little maid standing alone in the west wing of the palace. After thinking for a moment, she turned around and said, "Don't forget to prepare a separate gift for An Ying, who came to our palace. After all, she is in our palace, so we can't treat her poorly."
"Okay." Xuexin nodded in agreement, then turned and went out to prepare.
After parting ways with Zhen Huan at the palace gate, An Lingrong walked alone along the palace road with the young eunuch leading the way. The vermilion and bright yellow glazed tiles along the way, the endless palace road, and the numb palace servants passing by made her extremely reserved and afraid to speak.
"Congratulations, Your Highness, Yongshou Palace is a wonderful place." The young eunuch leading the way was naturally quick-witted; he seemed completely oblivious to the young lady's awkwardness and said with a fawning smile.
"Yongshou Palace is close to the Emperor's Hall of Mental Cultivation. It's large and beautiful, and the Consort Xin, who sits in the main seat, is a kind person." The little eunuch smiled and bent down to lead the way.
Hearing this, An Lingrong felt a little more at ease, and her tense and stiff expression relaxed somewhat.
"Your Highness, we've arrived. This will be your residence from now on." The young eunuch who had led the way stopped and turned to An Lingrong respectfully.
An Lingrong looked up and glanced around, her gaze sweeping over the three characters "Yongshou Palace" written in silver and iron strokes. This place was indeed more magnificent than she had imagined.
The young eunuch waited for a moment, but seeing that the young mistress only bowed slightly to him without showing any intention of acknowledging anything, the smile he had maintained all the way finally crumbled.
He thought to himself, "It's such a shabby job. I always thought it was a good one."
Since there was no reward, the young eunuch did not want to linger any longer and turned to leave, but then he heard a voice coming from inside the palace.
"Please wait, sir!"
The young eunuch was quick-witted; he recognized the voice immediately and cleverly turned around, fawningly saying, "Isn't this Aunt Xuexin? Why did you come out in person!"
Xue Xin put on a calm smile, took out a purse from her bosom and handed it to the little eunuch—"You dare to ask about my affairs? You're too bold."
After saying that, she pointed to the purse in his hand—"This is a gift from Miss An, you should thank me."
"This servant thanks Your Highness An for the reward!" The purse was quite heavy, and it was clear that Consort Xin had done this to give Consort An face. The little eunuch immediately knelt down and kowtowed to An Lingrong, saying, "This servant thanks Your Highness An for the reward."
An Lingrong was startled when he knelt down like that, and took a step back in fright. But a pair of warm hands helped her stand up.
"Please slow down, my lord."
An Lingrong turned to look at Xuexin. Judging from the young eunuch's words, this should be the head maidservant of Consort Xin. If it weren't for the young eunuch's reminder, she would have thought Xuexin was a concubine or mistress in the palace.
Although she didn't have much jewelry, her clothes and accessories were all exquisite. Just look at the jade pendant by her ear; it was crystal clear and without any impurities. She had only seen such a fine item a few times. Her clothes and handkerchiefs were also made of the finest materials. If the servants around her could dress up so elegantly, then Consort Xin must be even more elegant.
Seeing An Yingying's dazed look, Xuexin felt a little relieved. She was afraid that a troublesome young mistress would move into Yongshou Palace, causing unrest and corrupting the three young masters.
"Baojuan, what are you standing there for? Come and pay your respects to your mistress." She called out to the inside, and a palace maid dressed in light pink with her hair in two small buns ran towards the door.
"This servant, Baojuan, greets Consort An."
"Get up," An Lingrong responded softly, then tried to help her up herself.
Xuexin saw all this and then gave An Lingrong a friendly curtsy: "This servant is Xuexin, the head maid of Consort Xin of Yongshou Palace. If you need anything after you enter the palace, please just tell me."
"I wouldn't dare trouble you, Aunt," An Lingrong waved her hand and said shyly, bowing her head.
Xuexin led the way to An Lingrong's bedchamber, introducing the rooms as they walked: "Young Master An, your bedchamber is the west wing. The main hall is where our Empress resides, the east side hall and the east wing are where our Fifth Prince and Sixth Prince reside, and the wing connected to the main hall is where the First Princess resides."
"Oh right, the room next to Your Highness is the west wing, where Consort Xin's mother stayed during her stays in the palace. This is also a favor from His Majesty."
An Lingrong listened attentively, but what came to mind was what Fang Ruo had said in the Zhen residence: "Consort Xin is blessed with two sons and a daughter... Having offspring means having something to rely on."
It seems so now. Life in the deep palace was unbearable. Having one's own child by one's side and one's mother being able to enter the palace often was a blessing that no one else could match.
She lowered her head, her trembling eyelashes concealing the deep envy hidden in her eyes.
Having said this, Xuexin stopped at the entrance of the west hall, not wanting to go any further. "Young Mistress An, this is it. Our Lady said that if there is anything missing or lacking, please let us know. Please don't make yourself suffer."
An Lingrong quickly glanced at her future residence and was deeply grateful to see how elegantly it was furnished. She bowed towards the main hall of Yongshou Palace and, remembering Fang Ruo's teachings, said, "I am deeply grateful for Consort Xin's kindness. Once I have finished settling in here, I will go to pay my respects to Your Highness and personally thank you."
Xuexin stepped aside, her smile widening – “This servant will certainly speak on behalf of Your Highness. This is a congratulatory gift from our Empress to Your Highness.”
After saying this, Chunxi, the second-class palace maid who had been silently following behind, stepped forward with the box in her hands and slowly handed it to Baojuan.
Watching the two figures leave, An Lingrong led Baojuan to the inner hall. She stared at the exquisitely carved wooden box for a long time before gently lifting it. Inside, there was a pile of fabrics, jewelry, and hairpins, all of which were usable at her current rank.
An Lingrong even saw several purses among them, which contained exquisitely crafted gold and silver melon seeds and peanuts, usually used for tips.
Consort Xin knew she couldn't even afford the silver for a reward, yet she had already thought of preparing for this. If it weren't for Xuexin today, she didn't know how much more embarrassing she would have been.
An Lingrong felt embarrassed, and her eyes welled up with tears.
She had never been cared for so tenderly before, and she couldn't describe the feeling in her heart. "Consort Xin is a good person, I...I will definitely repay her."
In stark contrast to the warm atmosphere on her side, the temperature on Zhen Huan's side plummeted.
After parting ways with her, Zhen Huan followed the young eunuch toward her palace, but the further she walked, the more desolate it became. Not only did Liu Zhu and Huan Bi sense something was wrong, but Zhen Huan herself was also quite nervous.
Although the little eunuch said, "It's not deserted, it's quiet," it was still quite unexpected to see the Suiyu Pavilion, a palace far removed from the hustle and bustle of the world, with a dilapidated stage inside.
Only this osmanthus tree is still lush, adding some color to the lifeless courtyard.
Kang Luhai's round face was full of ingratiating smiles—"This was specially instructed by Her Majesty the Empress. Plant more osmanthus flowers in Suiyu Pavilion to symbolize the arrival of a new noble and the auspiciousness of the harem."
Zhen Huan, curious, leaned forward to smell the flower branch. It was indeed refreshing. Being a little girl at heart, she immediately smiled with satisfaction.
After entering the inner hall and meeting the people from Suiyuxuan, before they could even rest, they heard hurried footsteps approaching from outside.
"By order of Consort Hua, I have come to congratulate Your Highness on entering the palace."
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