In March, spring is in full bloom, and mulberry leaves are lush and green.
The annual royal silkworm-raising ceremony has arrived as scheduled.
This was the first important national ceremony presided over by the Empress after she entered the palace, and its significance was no less than that of her initial investiture ceremony.
On this day, the sky was clear and the breeze was gentle.
Within the royal mulberry garden on the outskirts of Beijing, colorful flags fluttered and the ceremonial guard was imposing. Imperial concubines of various ranks, as well as wives of officials of the second rank or above in the court, all dressed in their finest attire, gathered here to witness the ceremony.
Before the Altar of the Silkworm Goddess, Lin Wanwan, dressed in a black sacrificial robe embroidered with auspicious clouds and a phoenix crown, stood solemnly and gracefully, displaying the demeanor of a queen mother.
Beside her, Xiao Che, also dressed in a dragon robe, was present. Although he did not participate in the sacrificial ceremony, his presence undoubtedly added unparalleled glory and weight to this ceremony presided over by the Empress.
Meanwhile, in the viewing area not far away, Empress Dowager Wang sat in the most honored position, with a gentle and loving smile on her face, looking no different from usual.
Beside her, Consort Hui, née Chen, was also dressed meticulously today, in a light green palace gown that made her even more beautiful and charming. She stood respectfully beside the Empress Dowager, her eyes carrying a perfect balance of obedience and... an undisguised expectation.
Everything seemed so harmonious, so perfect.
It was as if a grand drama was about to begin, and all the actors were already in their places.
Lin Wanwan's gaze calmly swept across the entire room.
She saw the extremely subtle, exchanged glances between Consort Hui and the Empress Dowager.
I saw a fleeting, smug smile on Consort Hui's lips.
And so we saw it: sitting on the dragon throne, seemingly resting with his eyes closed, but actually with a man who seemed to thrive on chaos, with a "good show is about to begin" image floating above his head.
Lin Wanwan's mind was clear and peaceful.
She slowly withdrew her gaze and took a deep breath.
So……
Let the show begin.
The auspicious hour had arrived, and the high-pitched announcement of the master of ceremonies resounded throughout the mulberry garden.
The silkworm-raising ceremony officially begins.
The elaborate sacrificial rituals proceeded in an orderly manner.
As the chief officiant, Lin Wanwan performed every movement with standard elegance, without any flaws.
Finally, the ceremony reached its most crucial moment—the Empress personally picked the first mulberry leaf to offer as a sacrifice to the Silkworm Goddess.
According to procedure, the eunuchs in charge of ceremonial affairs would select the freshest and finest "royal mulberry leaves" from the hundreds of baskets of mulberry leaves offered by silkworm farmers and present them to the Empress.
This was precisely the best opportunity for the Empress Dowager and Consort Hui to make their move!
Out of the corner of her eye, Lin Wanwan keenly noticed that in the line of people presenting mulberry leaves, a strange-looking, shifty-eyed eunuch was quietly falling behind by half a step, creating an extremely small distance between himself and the others.
He is... Xiao Luzi.
It is exactly the same as the description in the "intelligence" about Consort Hui.
Just then, taking advantage of the moment when everyone was looking up at the altar and their attention was drawn to the Empress, Xiao Luzi subtly and very slightly bumped into a eunuch carrying an empty basket next to him.
In the blink of an eye, a subtle switch was made.
The basket of mulberry leaves in his hand, which should have been "clean," had turned into another basket... mulberry leaves that had been "poisoned"!
He continued to keep his head down, carrying the basket of "problematic mulberry leaves," and walked step by step toward Lin Wanwan on the altar.
It's done!
On the viewing platform, a gleam of wild joy flashed in Consort Hui's eyes!
She subconsciously glanced at the Empress Dowager beside her, and the two exchanged another look filled with smugness and confidence.
They could almost see Lin Wanwan, after receiving the basket of "poisonous mulberry leaves," ruin the sacrificial ceremony in front of everyone, and then be condemned to an abyss of no return for "disrespecting the gods and lacking virtue"!
However……
Just as the eunuch named Xiao Luzi was about to step onto the last step of the altar!
Just when everyone's hearts were in their throats!
An unexpected change has occurred!
"ah--!"
A shrill, panicked scream suddenly rang out from behind the Empress!
Suddenly, Ruolan, the most capable head maid of the Empress, seemed to slip and lose her balance. She crashed uncontrollably into a candlestick with dozens of huge tallow candles on it!
"Clang—!"
A loud bang!
The huge, heavy brass candlestick collapsed instantly when she bumped into it!
Burning candles rolled all over the floor!
A few sparks instantly ignited the dry, bright yellow silk carpet laid on the altar!
"Fire! Help put out the fire!"
Someone let out a terrified scream.
The entire solemn and dignified sacrificial site was instantly plunged into unprecedented and enormous chaos!
The palace servants screamed in terror and ran in all directions.
The guards immediately drew their swords and, shouting "Protect the Emperor!", surrounded the Emperor and Empress Dowager.
The concubines and noblewomen in the audience were terrified and their faces turned pale, creating chaos.
Xiao Luzi, who was carrying the "poisonous mulberry leaves," was also stunned by this sudden turn of events and stood frozen in place, at a loss for what to do.
The scene was complete chaos!
Nobody noticed.
Amidst the chaos, Xiao Luzi, who was supposed to be a witness, showed a flicker of panic in his eyes. He looked at the basket of scalding hot sweet potatoes in his hands and glanced pleadingly in the direction of the Empress Dowager.
However, at this moment, the Empress Dowager was too busy taking care of herself to care about him.
Xiao Luzi gritted his teeth and, taking advantage of the moment when everyone's attention was drawn to the blazing flames, he quickly and quietly placed the basket of "problematic mulberry leaves" in a very inconspicuous corner under the altar, where miscellaneous items were piled up!
Then, he picked up another basket of mulberry leaves that looked exactly the same but were "clean" and mingled into the crowd of people fighting the fire.
The whole process was done without anyone noticing.
Soon, thanks to the guards' strenuous efforts, the small fire was quickly extinguished.
The chaotic scene gradually returned to order.
What appeared to be an accidental "fire" passed by without any real danger.
The eunuch in charge of ceremonies asked cautiously whether the ceremony should continue.
After receiving an affirmative answer, the silkworm-raising ceremony continued.
However, the eunuch who had previously carried the mulberry leaves had vanished without a trace. In his place, another eunuch presented Lin Wanwan with a basket of "new" mulberry leaves.
Lin Wanwan took the mulberry leaf and solemnly completed the final sacrificial ceremony.
The whole process went incredibly smoothly.
The Silkworm Goddess did not seem to be angered by the minor accident just now.
On the viewing platform, the Empress Dowager and Consort Hui's expressions were extremely grim.
They never imagined that a flawless plan would be ruined by an "accident" involving a palace maid!
Especially Consort Hui, whose fingernails were almost embedded in her palms.
However, although she was annoyed, she was not too panicked.
In her view, although the plan failed, at least they were not exposed.
As long as people are still alive, there will always be opportunities.
After the sacrificial ceremony, the final step was for the Empress and the concubines to personally feed the "golden silkworms" raised in the palace, which were specially used to spin silk to weave dragon robes.
In front of each concubine was a small basket of fresh mulberry leaves.
Consort Hui looked at the basket of lush green mulberry leaves in front of her, and the resentment in her heart gradually subsided.
With delight, she picked up the largest and tenderest mulberry leaf, preparing to feed it to her most beloved, snow-white "ice silkworm."
However, at that very moment!
An anomaly has occurred again!
The moment her precious ice silkworm touched the mulberry leaf, its entire body suddenly stiffened!
Immediately, as if it had been poisoned, it began to convulse violently and painfully inside the silkworm tray, and what it exhaled was no longer the crystal-clear silk, but streams of black, foul-smelling liquid!
In just a few breaths, the ice silkworm, which had been lively and energetic, became completely stiff and motionless.
Dead!
"ah--!"
Consort Hui was so frightened by this sudden and terrifying sight that she let out a shrill scream, and the mulberry leaf in her hand fell to the ground.
At the same time, an excruciating, unbearable itch suddenly came from the back of her hand!
She subconsciously looked down and saw that on the back of her fair and delicate hand, where she had just held the mulberry leaf, there was something...
Patches of ugly, shocking red rashes appeared!
"My hand! What happened to my hand?!"
"My silkworm! My ice silkworm is dead!"
The successive blows completely broke Consort Hui! Looking at her swollen and red hands and the dead ice silkworm, she let out a terrified, incoherent scream!
This sudden turn of events once again drew everyone's attention to her.
Lin Wanwan immediately showed a face full of "concern" and "shock".
She was the first to walk quickly to Consort Hui's side and grab her already swollen and red hand.
She looked at the ugly red rash, then at the problematic mulberry leaf on the ground, and asked loudly in a tone filled with shock and disbelief:
"Oh dear! My dear sister! What... what happened to you?!"
"How could there be poison in your mulberry leaves?!"
As she spoke, her clear eyes were filled with worry.
But out of the corner of her eye, she subtly glanced at the person in the audience whose face had turned deathly pale...
Empress Dowager.
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