His Favored Empress

Recruitment

A wave of nausea washed over Shaugn as he rubbed his temples. The bumping along inside the carriage disturbed the little one in his stomach. Why hadn't someone invented the rubber tire yet? He made a mental note to instruct the seamstresses to make thicker pillows when he got to the palace. All this bumping was annoying.

Something flew into the window of the carriage and landed in his lap. Shaugn stopped rubbing his temples and picked it up. He lifted the round object covered in wax paper to his nose and sniffed.

"It's candied ginger."

Shaugn jumped so hard the candy nearly flew out of his hand. He glared at the shadow guard who appeared out of thin air. "Rou, you bastard!"

Rou caught the teacup flying at his head. "Sorry, empress. You looked uncomfortable." He sat the teacup down and saluted.

"Growing humans does that to a person," Shaugn mumbled. He shoved the candy in his mouth and closed his eyes as they hit a pothole. Rou put the fan by his side and disappeared from the carriage. The warm spiciness of the ginger settled his stomach and he breathed a small sigh of relief. There was too much to do and he had no time for sickness this day.

When they returned to the palace, it was near lunch time. Shaugn popped into the kitchen and taught Garnet and the cooks how to make grilled cheese and tomato soup. He instructed the largest dining room be set up. Then he returned to his room to freshen up. He sent for the housekeeper and instructed that all the children in the palace, even the servants, join him for lunch – without their parents.

The women of the harem were busy wracking their brains trying to figure out what ploy the empress was scheming this time. They ran around with their nannies and maids making sure the children were dressed in their finest and adorned with extravagant headgear. Each trying to outdo the other, each child was more lavishly dressed than the next.

The servants and their children gathered in one of the meeting halls for the steward to give out instruction. They were lamenting to one another wondering if their child offended the empress somewhere. They scrambled to make sure their children's hands and faces were clean and that their hair was combed neatly. The head steward tried to assure them that the empress was in good spirits and that the children were fine.

"Perhaps there is something good coming to our families," one of the stable hands who was straightening her son's hair said. Her son wasn't officially employed like many other children. He just accompanied his parents while they worked and did small errands here and there like sweeping or wiping something down.

"Sir," a thin woman with a small voice raised her hand. "My child...is still an infant."

The servants turned to the bundle strapped on the gardener's back. The child blinked at them with big black eyes and giggled. The head steward blinked a few times then turned to one of the messengers. "Inform the empress."

Shaugn was speaking with Toshi and Nirik when the messenger informed him of the situation with the servants. He tapped his forehead lightly with his fan. How could he forget about infants.

"Those with children under two are exempt. But tell them there will be something for them specifically later."

The messenger saluted. "Yes, your majesty."

Five minutes later, the sounds of many little feet sounded in the hall. The steward lead the children inside and showed them to their seats. Shaugn was impressed. Even though some of them had dirty or torn clothes, their faces and hands were clean and their hair neat. They had also been organized by age from ten all the way down to two. They stood just inside the dining room looking around in awe.