The Emperor's Obsession

Chapter Four||Right Into The Devil's Den

The Great Palace, Xiang Empire, 1479
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"Meet the emperor.."
"Meet the emperor.."
"Meet the emperor.."
Those words repeated themselves in Lihua's head, echoing from every corner of her mind. They stayed there until she accepted them. Until she accepted this strange, strange reality. Nervousness, anxiety, fear, and doubt all merged into one and squeezed and scratched her heart with their icy claws. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. Was Official Chun lying to her? Surely, he wouldn't lie about such a thing. But grandfather never mentioned anything about meeting His Majesty. All he said was that he was to go to the palace to deliver herbs, but not a word about the emperor.
She stared at the middle-aged man with wide eyes, disbelief swimming in them. Finally, after moments of silence, her voice returned. She swallowed, staring at him like he just grew a tail, before saying, "wh.. what?"
Official Chun gave her a look one could almost identify as pity. "Must I repeat it for you, miss? Did you not hear me?"
"I.." She blinked, "no, no, I heard you.. But..th-there has to be a mistake! Grandfather never said anything about meeting the emperor. He only told me to take the herbs to the palace and return home as soon as I'm done." She explained, stuttering a few times as she got the words out.
His eyes narrowed, "are you calling me a liar?"
"What? No, I just—"
He merely shook his head and cut her off, "I don't mean any disrespect, Miss Wu, but that is not my problem, nor is it my concern. You may discuss it with Sir Zhao Lin later when you go home, but for now, you mustn't keep the emperor waiting." He summoned a maid and told her to take Lihua to some man. Minister Hyung, she thought, was his name. She wasn't sure since she wasn't listening.
She was going to meet the emperor. The emperor himself!  Was this a dream? Was she dreaming? Or imagining all of this? She slowly moved her hand to her face and pinched her own cheek, then winced at the slight pain. "But I.. I.." She whispered. She saw then maid nod obediently and gently gesture for the girl to follow her.
"Wait a minute—"
"Goodbye, Miss Wu." Official Chun brushed her off, waving his hand in a dismissive way as he turned back to his work.
Is he serious right now? What on earth is going on?!
The quiet maid bowed a little, keeping her head low. "Please follow me, my lady." She says politely, her voice soft and shy. Lihua held back the urge to sigh and groan in frustration and followed the timid woman silently. None of them spoke a word. She didn't know about the maid, but for her, this was getting awkward as hell.
"What is your name?" Lihua asked, breaking the silence.
"Heo Mei, my lady." The maid responded. "Mei.. That's a nice name." She complimented with a soft smile.

Mei blushed slightly, "thank you, my lady."
After that, it was silence again. The two women didn't say anything, for they had no idea what to say. The maid, even if she did have something to say, couldn't. She could only speak when spoken to. A question popped into Lihua's mind and her curiosity pushed the question through her lips, "tell me, Mei, what is the emperor like?"
The maid stiffened.
Lihua could've sworn she saw pure fear flash in her small eyes, which made her frown slightly in confusion. Why did she suddenly become so tense? Did I say something wrong? Did I offend her in some way? She thought, still frowning.
"Mei?" She said after a few minutes, "what's the matter?"
"We have arrived." Mei said, stopping in front of two large wooden doors. Several guards stood there stiffly, their calculating eyes studying their surroundings carefully, searching for any sign of danger. This was it. This was the throne room, where the emperor was. Lihua raised a brow at how fast the maid spoke, as though she was in a hurry. "I must get going now. I'm going to get a beating if I don't." Mei said the moment she saw an elderly man walk over to them. She bowed and left before Lihua could say anything else.
"Wait..! Mei—"
"Miss." Lihua's attention snapped to the man with the straggly grey beard and grizzled hair. He wore plain crimson red robes, showing his high status, and a black hat. His face was tan and wrinkly, and his eyes were observant and judging. Maybe this was the minister Official Chun had mentioned.
She bowed and spoke respectfully, "Minister Hyung, I am Wu Lihua, granddaughter of Wu Zhao Lin—"
"What are you doing here then? Isn't your grandfather supposed to be here?" He asked with narrowed eyes and a suspicious stare.
Lihua wanted to glare at him for interrupting her, but she managed to calm herself down and simply replied, "well, yes, but—"
"Why?"
By the gods, if you don't stop interrupting me, I will murder you in your sleep.
"My grandfather is ill. He is unable to come to the palace so—"
"So he sent a woman instead."
".. What? With all due respect, Minister Hyung, I do not see anything wrong with that." Lihua's finger twitched. She wanted to strangle him! Who did this man think he was?
"Nevermind. Let us go inside now." He waved his hand and motioned for her to follow him as he walked towards the large doors. The guards bowed and opened them, allowing the two to step inside the great, magnificent hall..