The Job Of An Imperial Concubine

38

TJOAIC 38 – BOTCHED SCHEMES (拙劣计谋)

In one night’s time, unable to be considered long or short, the present imperial concubines perhaps were starting to grow tired or perhaps not. But since the emperor sat upright, no one dared to say they were leaving.　

Zhuang Laoyan was somewhat regretful. If she had known she would be stuck here sitting, she wouldn’t have come to experience all the excitement. Currently, half the night had passed. Even if she were sleepy, she still had to endure and fight for consciousness. This juncture was when their acting skills would be put to the test the most.　　

A noise suddenly sounded from within the room. A few imperial physicians and Yuyis filed out of the inner chamber, kneeling before the emperor. “Your Majesty, this official is incompetent. Third Prince… has already left the world.”

Zhuang Laoyan realized that the room, which had originally been quiet to the point where their breathing could be heard, became deadly silent. She raised her head. Looked at the emperor. She noticed that while the emperor’s countenance seemed neutral, his gaze had chilled. Zhuang Laoyan averted her eyes. Such a strong gaze caused her to tremble in fear.　　　

“Announce Our order: Third Prince will be bestowed the name of Lao and conferred the title of Prince Ning. He will be buried in the Jin Tomb¹.” Feng Jin slowly rose to his feet, no longer looking in the direction of Third Prince’s inner chamber. Voice steady and serious, he said, “Return to Qianzheng Palace.”　　

“Sending off Your Majesty,” said the imperial concubines all at once. After that, the room grew silent to the extreme once more. 　　

Once the emperor left their line of sights, the empress looked at the women in the room. Her tone was somewhat apathetic. “You’re dismissed.”　　

“Yes,” said the imperial concubines, performing the full ceremony in a well-behaved manner before retreating. Right now, Third Prince had encountered a bad outcome in Consort Xian’s care. The ones sporting a headache were naturally the empress and Consort Xian. What did it have to do with the rest of them?　　　　　　

 After Zhuang Laoyan and the others retreated, she openly eyed Cairen Kong, who was kneeling at the side. She saw that that woman’s face was pale to the point of frightening, the latter’s eyes wide. Even though the interior of the room was bright, her appearance was horrifying.

If Zhuang Laoyan was correct, this Cairen Kong was staring at Consort Xian with an extremely sinister and frightening gaze. As if… Consort Xian were the murderer.　　

The moment Zhuang Laoyan thought Cairen Kong would go mad, she stood all of a sudden. And she performed a full ceremony of paying respects in a courteous manner to the empress. Then she staggered away.　　

The empress furrowed her brows. But in an instant, it were as if she had come to a realization. In the end, however, she did not say anything, letting Cairen Kong leave as she pleased.　　

Cairen Kong’s proved slow in her departure. After she stepped foot outside the palace doors, a palace maid approached her to support her. Once Zhuang Laoyan passed her, she did not know whether it were a psychological reaction, but a slight chill brushed through her body.　　

As she sat on her sedan, Zhuang Laoyan thought the night was a bit cold. After traveling a distance, she shivered. Her thoughts traveled to Third Prince who had passed away out of the blue. She rubbed her forehead. In this imperial harem, no one could easily live. Being a eunuch wasn’t easy; being a palace maid wasn’t easy. It was even hard as an imperial concubine. If one received a bit of favor, and had a strong family to support them, then one still had a bit of hope. But if a person did not have a decent birth identity and position, and wasn’t favored, they would immediately disappear without a sound. One would fear no one would actually be sad about their departure.