Chapter 4: Giving You a Chance

This time, the palace maid who came to the Music Bureau was not Yuzhu.

Lan Wu thought for a moment and remembered who this was.

Consort Li had three personal palace maids, all named with the character “Yu”—Mei, Lan, and Zhu. She had met Yu Mei and Yuzhu several times, but after she became Lan Meiren, she heard that Consort Li’s palace maid Yu Lan had changed her name. She didn’t know what Yu Lan had changed it to, and she never saw that palace maid by Consort Li’s side again.

“Miss Lan Wu, please come this way.” Yu Mei led her away from the Music Bureau.

There was quite a distance from the Music Bureau to Consort Li’s Jinghua Palace. Walking on foot would take half an hour, passing through the Imperial Garden and the entrance of Yilan Hall along the way.

Yilan Hall was still unoccupied at this time, its palace gates closed. The plaque above the gate, inscribed with the three characters “Yilan Hall,” looked exactly the same as when she had lived there in her previous life.

Initially, she had lived in the side hall of Yilan Hall, Longyu Pavilion. With no other imperial concubines residing in Yilan Hall, she had enjoyed great freedom.

Later, after being promoted in rank, she begged Chu Mingheng to let her move to a larger palace, almost explicitly stating her desire to live in the main hall of Yilan Hall.

To persuade Chu Mingheng, she danced for him that night wearing golden bells, her bones aching with exhaustion. The next day, she received the edict to move as she had wished.

But it wasn’t to Yilan Hall. Instead, she was moved to the side hall of Consort Shu’s Yifang Hall, Lejing Pavilion.

Originally sent to the Imperial Presence by Consort Li, she had become increasingly conspicuous after gaining the emperor’s favor. Chu Mingheng’s decision to send her to Lejing Pavilion was like throwing a rabbit into a wolf’s den. Terrified, she waited for Chu Mingheng to come and revoke the edict, but he never did.

Thus, she endured a period of torment from Consort Shu in Lejing Pavilion. Because she still had the emperor’s favor, Consort Shu dared not go too far. Chu Mingheng did visit her occasionally, and each time he came, she would complain, exaggerating minor grievances to make him pity her and allow her to return to Longyu Pavilion.

Ten days passed like this. One day, Chu Mingheng suddenly reached out and tapped her forehead, softly saying, “I’ve truly spoiled you.”

She was utterly confused but vaguely sensed something. So, the next time Chu Mingheng visited, she refrained from complaining.

After three days of obedience, Chu Mingheng allowed her to return to Longyu Pavilion.

Thinking back on these events now, Lan Wu couldn’t help but sigh inwardly—Chu Mingheng truly lived up to being an emperor, masterfully skilled in manipulating hearts. After that, she never dared to mention moving into Yilan Hall again.

Now, as she passed by Yilan Hall, she glanced sideways at the palace gates before lowering her head and continuing forward, following the palace maid named Yu Mei. Lost in thoughts of her past life, she didn’t notice the figure approaching from afar on the palace path ahead.

By the time she realized, Yu Mei had already led her to kneel by the palace wall.

Lan Wu lowered her head until it almost touched the ground, her hands clasped before her forehead. With each breath, she could smell the scent of dust.

The emperor’s Imperial Carriage showed no intention of stopping before Lan Wu, yet it halted precisely at the entrance of Yilan Hall.

Hearing the sound of the palace gates opening behind her, Lan Wu couldn’t help but turn her head, stealing a hurried yet cautious glance as if she had done something wrong. She knew she should avert her gaze immediately, but in that brief moment, she saw Chu Mingheng step through the gates of Yilan Hall.

Her heart pounded like a drum. Though it was still afternoon, she felt as if she could smell the cold, icy dew of the night.

Why was Chu Mingheng entering Yilan Hall?

Along the way, she pondered this question so deeply that she was lost in thought. Only upon reaching Jinghua Palace did she push aside the complex thoughts in her mind, forcing herself to muster all her focus to deal with the person before her.

Jinghua Palace was filled with the scent of incense, its heavy fragrance making Lan Wu’s nose somewhat uncomfortable.

Unlike in her previous life, this time when she entered Jinghua Palace, Consort Li was not as enthusiastic.

First, she glanced at Lan Wu, who was kneeling in greeting, and ordered her to lift her face for a closer look.

Once she saw what a beautiful face it was, the deliberately feigned shallow smile on her own face faded by another three parts.

“After watching your dance at the Longevity Festival last time, I took a special liking to you and specifically ordered Yuzhu to find you and bring you to Jinghua Palace.”

Her tone was leisurely, her words sounding as though she did not regard others with importance, merely stating facts.

“Unfortunately, Yuzhu couldn’t find you and ended up stumbling into the water in the darkness of night.”

“Do you know about this?”

Lan Wu did not know, or rather, she had heard about it before but never imagined that the palace maid who fell into the water was Yuzhu.

In her previous life, this incident had never occurred.

Consort Li observed Lan Wu’s expression, partly because she did not believe this person had the audacity to kill, and partly to see whether Lan Wu was truly under the influence of Consort Shu and Consort Rou.

Yuzhu’s body had been retrieved, and while it was said that a thorough investigation would be conducted, in the end, it was only concluded that she had accidentally fallen into the water.

Coincidentally, the day Yuzhu fell into the water was the night after the Longevity Festival. Although it was not on the day of the festival itself, it was still considered inauspicious. The matter reached the Imperial Presence, and Your Majesty issued an edict punishing the imperial guards on duty at the Imperial Garden that day, as well as Consort Rou of Zhaoyun Hall.

Consort Shu’s schadenfreude was almost written on her face, yet she had inexplicably lost a personal palace maid and had nowhere to vent her anger. She could only redirect her rage toward Lan Wu, for on that day, she had originally intended to send Yuzhu to summon Lan Wu once more.

When Consort Rou asked why she had sent Yuzhu out, she did not mention this, only saying that she had wanted Yuzhu to fetch some dried fruit from Yushan Fang for her.

Now, Consort Li scrutinized Lan Wu, attempting to find a trace of panic on her face.

Lan Wu appeared startled, her widened eyes filled with fear: “Your Highness, this servant knows nothing of this matter.”

“Oh? You don’t know?” Consort Li asked her again.

This time, Lan Wu lowered her head and kowtowed, replying once more: “This servant truly knows nothing of this matter. I beg Your Highness to investigate clearly—”

Such a reaction was within Consort Li’s expectations. She thought to herself, how could a mere dancer like Lan Wu have the strength to kill someone?

Thinking this, Consort Li’s expression softened slightly, and she ordered the palace maid beside her to help Lan Wu to her feet.

When Lan Wu timidly stood up, Consort Li grew even more satisfied. Timidity was good—timid people were easy to control.

She dismissed all the palace maids in the hall except for Yu Mei, then smiled and revealed her purpose to Lan Wu.

“Miss Lan Wu, I felt a connection with you the moment I saw you. You are so beautiful, enough to surpass all the imperial concubines in the palace. What a pity…”

Consort Li first praised Lan Wu’s beauty, comparing her to the imperial concubines to feed her ambition, then spoke of pity to make her anxious.

As expected, Lan Wu took the bait.

Consort Li saw Lan Wu’s beautiful eyes shift, filled with shyness as she said she was unworthy of such praise.

She smiled. “Miss Lan Wu, I am giving you an opportunity. Will you take it?”