Chapter 10: Chapter Ten: Waves

After Li Zhan drafted the imperial decree to confer the title of Consort upon Fusheng, he did not immediately issue it. Instead, he allowed Fusheng to continue residing in his Longyan Palace, which was now under even stricter security both inside and out. The Emperor had brought a woman back from outside the palace, and because this woman had severely punished the three highest-ranking concubines in the harem—and more importantly, because this woman’s appearance was identical to the late Empress Gao—the harem was no longer at peace. Those concubines who already lacked the Emperor's favor did not know whether to feel joy or sorrow.

When Gao Changge was alive, no woman in the harem dared to compete with her for favor, nor could they. She not only held the position of the Emperor's legal wife but also possessed the Emperor's entire heart. The women of the harem both respected and hated her, yet they could not shake the status of this legendary woman, who possessed both a powerful background and extraordinary intelligence, in the slightest. When she had a falling out with the Emperor, he had angrily confined her to Yongle Palace; who would have thought she would suddenly pass away? They could not help but feel a faint, secret joy, thinking that their days of being favored were finally coming. Yet, they were then suppressed by Xue Ji, followed by the difficulties imposed by the aloof Yin Yu and the tricky, domineering Guo Bi'er. Instead of their lives improving, they were suppressed by these three women to the point of having no way to resist. When Gao Changge was still alive, she did not pay much attention to harem affairs and had been quite lenient toward them; they could not help but feel grateful for her magnanimity and generosity.

Now, things were different. A woman had appeared who looked exactly like the late Empress. From the Emperor's attitude toward her, they knew exactly how similar this woman's appearance was to the late Empress. Her appearance still failed to change the fact that they were unfavored, but at least it allowed Xue Ji and the others to taste bitterness, preventing them from targeting them further.

However, when they truly saw this woman who resembled the late Empress, they could not help but cry out in shock and confusion—this was clearly the face of the late Empress Gao! Yet, her striking cinnabar mole near her eye and her lively, witty temperament and aura were distinctly different from the late Empress!

When Fusheng woke up, she heard Auntie Yun reporting that several Noble Ladies and Talented Ladies in the palace wanted to visit her to check on her illness. After thinking it over, she felt it would be impolite to turn them away and agreed. As a result, she saw a group of women staring at her face with strange expressions. She sneered inwardly, but on the surface, she maintained an air of confusion and innocence. Auntie Yun then directly instructed these people to leave their tonic gifts behind and sent them away.

However, just as Fusheng was about to breathe a sigh of relief at not having to deal with these women, someone arrived from Ci Ning Palace with a message, saying that the Empress Dowager wished to see her.

Fusheng's eyebrows twitched. She silently recalled the Empress Dowager from her previous life, a woman who rarely intervened in harem affairs. The Empress Dowager, Lady Wang, had once been the late Emperor's favored concubine, but she had later been schemed against by the late Emperor's Empress and sent to the Cold Palace. Li Zhan had also been sent to the Cold Palace along with her, and life had been very difficult for the mother and son. Later, when she was young, her father had taken her to the palace for a banquet; she had snuck out to play, gotten lost, and wandered into the Cold Palace, where she encountered Li Zhan sitting quietly reading on the stone steps.

Afterward, she fell in love with Li Zhan, so she begged her father to secretly help the mother and son, and she herself began to plot for him. This was only because, at that time, Li Zhan did not like her, yet she had said in front of Lady Wang, "I will bring you both out of the Cold Palace. Brother Zhan, believe me, I will help you sit upon that throne." At the time, Lady Wang's attitude toward her had been lukewarm, but later, she truly fulfilled the promise she had made that day.

But even after her son ascended the throne, she showed no passion for power. Instead, she spent her days in Ci Ning Palace living a quiet life of vegetarianism and Buddhist prayer, rarely intervening in harem matters. Now, why had she sent someone to invite her to Ci Ning Palace? Could it be because of this face of hers? But even Li Zhan, the man she had loved for ten years, could not be trusted; surely this Empress Dowager, who had not shown much affection toward her over the past ten years, would not be looking at her face to mourn the deceased Gao Changge.

Carrying complex thoughts, Fusheng went to Ci Ning Palace, and Auntie Yun actually followed her. It was likely Li Zhan's instruction, presumably thinking that by doing so, when the Empress Dowager saw that the Emperor had sent his capable aunt to serve Fusheng, she would not make things too difficult for her.

"The Empress Dowager has suddenly felt unwell and asked me to convey her words: it is a pity the young lady made the trip for nothing. Please come to Ci Ning Palace to sit for a while another day." However, when Fusheng arrived at Ci Ning Palace after changing her clothes and grooming herself, Auntie Gui, who was by the Empress Dowager's side, bowed and spoke these words.

Fusheng lowered her head slightly, revealing her beautiful neck, and obediently said, "May the Empress Dowager rest well. Fusheng will come to pay her respects another day." As she lowered her head, she felt Auntie Gui's gaze scrutinizing her. She maintained a respectful appearance, but she was laughing inwardly. It seemed the ripples were beginning to rise.

A note to the readers This chapter has a low word count, please do not blame me~