Chapter 3 is comparable to a grand wedding.
Deep within the palace, the renovation and preparation of Guanju Palace were in full swing. Yuwen Che issued an imperial decree early in the morning, ordering that everything must be in place within three days, and that all items used must be extremely luxurious, comparable to... no, even surpassing the standards set when the Empress entered Fengyi Palace.
The officials and eunuchs of the Imperial Household Department were busy, sweating profusely. Furniture made of golden nanmu wood, pearl curtains from the South China Sea, wool carpets from the Western Regions, and exquisite porcelain made in the imperial kilns... were carried into Guanju Palace in a continuous stream. Most astonishingly, the emperor himself ordered that the main palace be decorated like a wedding chamber—dragon and phoenix candles, a canopy with a hundred sons and a thousand grandsons, and a wedding bed covered with red dates, peanuts, longans, and lotus seeds, everything was complete.
"Li Dehai." Yuwen Che stood in the still-busy Guanju Palace, his gaze sweeping over the glaring red, his voice devoid of emotion, "Go to the Imperial Wardrobe and have a set of wedding clothes made for me... no, everyday clothes, in red." He almost blurted out "wedding clothes."
Li Dehai's heart pounded, almost thinking he had misheard. Since His Majesty ascended the throne, apart from special occasions such as sacrifices, when had he ever worn such a bright color? And was it everyday wear? Or wedding attire? This... this is clearly... taking a wife?
“Your Majesty, this… welcoming the Imperial Concubine into the palace… is not in accordance with regulations…” Li Dehai tried to subtly remind him.
Yuwen Che glanced at him indifferently: "Do I need to repeat myself?"
Li Dehai was so frightened that he immediately fell silent and bowed, saying, "This servant obeys the decree!" He understood that His Majesty was probably not taking a concubine, but rather about to hold a "grand wedding."
The news spread like wildfire, reaching every corner of the inner palace. Empress Shen, in the Phoenix Palace, watched the palace maids whispering and their fearful expressions, listened to her confidante's report on the preparations at the Guanju Palace that rivaled the Emperor and Empress's wedding, and the news that His Majesty would actually wear red robes. Finally, she could no longer maintain her composure.
With a crash, a fine set of official kiln teaware was smashed to the ground, shattering into pieces.
"This is outrageous! Yuwen Che! You've gone too far!" The Empress's chest heaved violently, her beautiful face contorted with extreme anger and resentment. "To bestow upon me the title of Imperial Consort? This is clearly a marriage proposal! When have you ever given me even the slightest bit of face?!"
"I am your legal wife, I am your first wife."
"Where do you think you're putting my face? How am I supposed to maintain my position in this harem?"
She recalled her grand wedding day, adorned in a phoenix coronet and embroidered robes, surrounded by a ten-mile-long procession of red bridal procession, entering the royal family in unparalleled splendor. But her husband, the young emperor, hadn't even shared a cup of nuptial wine with her before a border emergency forced him to don armor and depart overnight for war, leaving her alone in her empty chambers, making her the laughingstock of the entire harem! Even after returning from his campaign, he always made excuses to avoid consummating their marriage. For years, she had clung to the empty title of Empress, enduring the subtle mockery of the harem, believing that His Majesty's nature was such that he was indifferent to everyone. But now, a merchant's daughter, she had received everything she had ever dreamed of—Yuwen Che's favor…or rather, love, an extraordinary honor, and even this real "wedding" she had never experienced before!
"Su Luoxue..." The Empress gritted her teeth as she uttered the name, her eyes filled with venom. "I'll see how long you can be so smug! This harem isn't a place a merchant's daughter like you can navigate!"
People inside the palace were divided, while outside the palace, the Su family was caught in a strange atmosphere.
The emperor's gifts poured into the Su family, with gold, silver, jewels, and fine silks filling the small hall. However, the last thing to arrive completely threw the Su family into a panic.
It was an exquisitely beautiful brocade box. Inside was a complete wedding dress, a bright red gown embroidered with lifelike phoenix patterns in gold thread, adorned with pearls and jade, exuding unparalleled luxury; next to it was a heavy phoenix crown, adorned with nine dragons and four phoenixes, glittering with jewels, clearly a set of regalia reserved for the Empress's wedding!
"This...this..." Su Wenyuan pointed at the phoenix coronet and wedding robes, his hands trembling violently, his face pale. "This is usurpation! It's a capital offense! Your Majesty...where does Your Majesty intend to place my Su family?!"
Madam Liu was already so frightened that she slumped into her chair, only able to shed tears. Ordinary merchants had never seen such an object, which represented the supreme glory of women in the world and was only found in plays. But this glory was too great, too hot to handle; they could not handle it and would only be burned.
Su Luoxue stared at the glaring wedding dress and phoenix coronet, a wave of immense fear washing over her. Even in her naiveté, she knew what the phoenix and the crimson hue meant. She wasn't going to be a concubine; it was as if she were going to… replace someone. She trembled with fear, instinctively clutching her brother's sleeve as if it were her only lifeline.
Su Jingxing's expression was also grim. He understood the danger behind this better than his parents and sister. His Majesty's actions were practically putting his sister on the spot! He immediately said to his panicked father, "Father, now is not the time to panic. You must find out the truth about the situation in the palace immediately, especially the Empress's attitude, and... why His Majesty is acting this way."
Su Wenyuan seemed to wake from a dream, nodding repeatedly, "Yes, yes, Xing'er is right..." He didn't care about the money and immediately ordered his trusted steward to go around making inquiries.
In the stillness of the night, Su Luoxue sat in her boudoir, her eyes red as she gazed at the phoenix coronet and wedding gown set laid out on the table. Fuling sat beside her, her brow also furrowed with worry.
The door was gently pushed open, and Su Jingxing walked in, gesturing for Fuling to go out first.
He walked to his sister's side, his heart aching at her dejected state. He remained silent for a moment before speaking slowly, his voice low and serious: "Luoxue, there are no outsiders here now. Tell your brother, do you want to enter the palace?"
Su Luoxue raised her head, her eyes filled with confusion and fear: "Brother, I...I don't know...I'm scared..."
“It’s right to be afraid.” Su Jingxing held her cold hand. “The palace is not a place for people like us. Every step there is fraught with danger, and every word and action is being watched. His Majesty may bestow upon you this supreme favor today, but tomorrow he might neglect you because of a single word from someone else. Moreover, you haven’t even entered the palace yet, and you’ve already offended the last person you should have offended—the Empress. If you enter the palace with such a low status, where does that leave her? How can she tolerate you?”
As Su Luoxue listened to her brother's analysis, her body trembled even more violently.
Su Jingxing looked at her, a resolute glint in his eyes: "Luoxue, if you don't want to enter the palace, it's not too late now."
Su Luoxue suddenly looked up: "Brother, what do you mean?"
"Run." Su Jingxing lowered his voice, his tone resolute. "Leave tonight! Pack plenty of silver notes and valuables. I'll arrange for someone to send you out of the city tonight. Go to the borderlands, go anywhere, the farther the better. Never come back to the capital! Don't look back. Don't care about your parents, don't care about the Su family, and don't care about any imperial edict! If the sky falls, I'll hold it up!"
"No!" Su Luoxue blurted out, "If I run away, what will happen to my parents? What will happen to the Su family? This is disobeying the imperial decree, a crime punishable by the execution of the entire family!"
"That's still better than you going in and being devoured until there's nothing left!" Su Jingxing said excitedly. "Once you enter the palace, it's like entering a deep sea; from then on, your family becomes strangers! There, without family to protect you, you can only rely on yourself! Your dignity, your happiness, even your life, may be at risk from day to day! Xue'er, although the Su family is just an ordinary family, we don't need you to sacrifice your whole life to protect us. Listen to your brother, if you don't want to, leave now! Don't delay for a moment!"
Seeing her brother risking his life to protect her, Su Luoxue burst into tears. She knew he meant well, but… defying the imperial decree and running away, implicating her family, was something she couldn't do. And then, the image of that person flashed through her mind… he was the emperor, so forcefully determined to take her into his harem. Could she really escape? And if she did escape, what would be her fate?
She was caught in an unprecedented struggle and fear. On one hand, there was the danger of the inner palace and the possibility of freedom described by her brother; on the other hand, there was the safety of her family and the irresistible imperial decree.
Meanwhile, Su Wenyuan finally spent a lot of money to find out some fragmented but shocking information: the empress came from a prominent family, but had not given birth to a child after many years in the palace, the emperor almost never stepped into the harem, and had only one eldest prince, who was born to a palace maid by chance, and was only three years old.
These news items were like adding insult to injury, plunging Su Wenyuan into despair. The Emperor's harem was indeed a cold, icy abyss. In his heart, Luo Xue was still just an immature child, about to be drowned in it, unable to struggle.
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