Snowblind {complete}

Wet- Ally

A new month began. The solstice approached, and the Festival of Light would soon be upon them. Even though the second rains had come early, heat sweltered the palace.

The Emperor would be expected to issue edicts, though so far in his rule he had declined to do so.

To avoid those who tried to push their agenda with him, the Emperor spent more time in the Hall of Flowers, though he couldn't escape his ministers and officials entirely – many had a relative in the hall.

The morning Lanna saw the tie of wisteria arrive she knew Chowa had been summoned. The purple flower represented knowledge and wisdom, as well as a sense of welcoming. Chowa was less than impressed. The workshop was swamped with orders and they would all need to attend.

Lanna sympathised; she wasn't happy to leave the cosy safety of the workshop either. Both Frez and Epen styled her hair and helped her into a cotton tunic in the Imperial style that Chowa had purchased for her – sky blue in colour and surprisingly comfortable, though Chowa warned her about striding. Small steps must be taken, or the garment would gape. Lanna had often wondered why the concubines never hurried anywhere.

On entering the main chamber, Lanna felt stunned once again by the grandiose red silk heart of the Hall of Flowers. The raised dais made her feel small, though she supposed it was meant to. Her eyes rolled somewhat in the flickering light.

The First Concubine didn't greet them. Chowa had severed ties. Orphony had been marginalised, not even given a place at the foot of the dais. She would be another embittered and fading bloom perhaps inclined to fester into something poisonous.

Chowa ascended the stairs, and Lanna realised her newly acquired High Imperial was about to be tested.

'But, illustrious one,' a voice begged, 'tax policy hasn't been reviewed since your predecessor.'

Lanna mounted the final step and took her position, kneeling in the corner. Chowa bowed and the Emperor nodded, not speaking to her. There were several court officials present, coloured silk garments denoting which department they worked for – red for the treasury and green for agriculture. Two aged women and three middle-aged men knelt before a reclining Emperor. Ashioto didn't sit on his throne: he lay back on satin cushions. The Ninth sat not far from him. Lanna's eyes bulged. She was practically naked.

Large pearls, strung into ropes, hung over the concubine's breasts and nether regions. The arrangement could hardly be comfortable. Lanna squirmed, thinking of the cold pearls sitting between her thighs and running between her buttocks. It was not only indecent; it was unclean.

If the Emperor liked pretty things, then his favourite dripping with pearls and nothing else probably had appeal. It also had the effect of making most ministers unwilling to disturb him. The boy was clever.

Lanna ignored the perfect flesh on display and focused on pretending not to listen to the ministers and the Emperor. The wooden flooring beneath her knees had a swirling grain, the whorls and patterns like waves crashing into a shore.

'The tax policy has served us well thus far,' the Emperor said, his pleasing tones easing into Lanna's ears. 'I see no reason to change it.'

'People have less than in your great father's time,' a woman said, red-faced and looking at her feet rather than at the nubile concubine. 'The weather has been inclement of late, and the harvests have depleted. Less comes to feed the cities. We can buy less from our allies as our revenues have decreased. There is less taxable on each decreased harvest.'

'Many high-hundred villages near the Southern border are in danger of regressing to subsistence agriculture,' a man in green said. 'Something not seen since Emperor Mesphit.'