Chapter 6: Just a Wild Country Girl?

By now, quite a few women had gathered in the main hall of Kunning Palace. When Shen Zhiyi stopped outside, she could hear their laughter and conversation clearly through the door curtain.

She took a deep breath. Bitao lifted the curtain for her, and she stepped inside.

The moment the women saw her, the hall fell silent. Then the chatter grew louder than before.

Zhiyi walked to her place with her eyes lowered, in no hurry to look up. Though she had been the first newcomer summoned by the emperor, she was of the lowest rank and stood almost at the very end of the line. She could feel gazes coming at her from every direction, pricking her like countless fine needles.

“Oh, so this is Attendant Shen?”

The sweet voice came from her left, its contempt undisguised. Zhiyi turned slightly. The speaker was a pretty young woman in a pale yellow dress, a hint of a mocking smile on her lips. Several consorts beside her looked over too, their expressions much the same.

“I hear her father is the head of Dahe Village.”

Another voice joined in from the right. “Did I hear that correctly? A village head?”

“Then isn’t she just a wild country girl?”

Several women covered their mouths and laughed. It wasn’t loud, but everyone in the hall could hear. Zhiyi stood with an unchanged expression, as if she had heard nothing.

“What? Attendant Shen’s father is only a little village head?” the woman in yellow said again, raising her voice for the benefit of a wider audience. The others covered their mouths and laughed once more.

Zhiyi slowly lifted her head and looked at her. She met the woman’s eyes without flinching.

“What of it?”

The laughter stopped abruptly.

Zhiyi stood with her back straight, as though stating a fact that needed no defense. “My father manages our village and has never bullied the people. Ours is the most prosperous village for miles around. I’m proud of him.”

She paused, her gaze resting on the woman in yellow. “If I remember correctly, you’re Attendant Liu, daughter of the Chongyang county magistrate’s deputy, aren’t you?”

Attendant Liu’s expression changed. Clearly, she hadn’t expected Zhiyi to know who she was.

Zhiyi continued in the same calm voice, as casually as if they were chatting at home. “Your family is better placed than mine. How is it that you’re still an Attendant, just like me?”

The hall went completely quiet. It was a devastating answer. She hadn’t cursed or quarreled; she had simply stated the facts. Liu’s father was a county official, Zhiyi’s a village head, yet here they stood at the same rank. What gave Liu the right to look down on her?

Liu’s face flushed crimson. Her lips trembled as she pointed at Zhiyi and forced out a single word. “You!”

Zhiyi held her gaze, then looked down at the slender fingers, their nails painted pink.

Liu was about to say something else when a steady woman’s voice sounded from the doorway, cutting through the noise. “What is all this commotion?”

Everyone turned and curtsied. The empress entered wearing a phoenix crown and deep crimson everyday robes. Her face was graceful and gentle, revealing neither pleasure nor displeasure.

She sat in the principal seat and let her gaze travel slowly over the women, pausing for a moment on Zhiyi’s face before moving on. “You may rise.”

They rose and took their seats. The atmosphere was considerably more restrained than before.

The Noble Consort occupied the first seat to the empress’s left. Today she wore a magenta palace dress, her hair full of pearls and jewels, her makeup flawless. She had not looked directly at Zhiyi since she entered, but now she finally spared her a glance, as though granting a favor. The corner of her mouth turned down almost imperceptibly.

“This Attendant Shen has quite a sharp tongue.” Her voice was neither loud nor soft, but her disdain was unmistakable. “It’s only her first day in the palace, and she’s already bickering in Kunning Palace. She certainly makes herself at home.”

Across from her, Consort Shu adjusted her hair and said nothing, a mild expression on her face.

Seated below Consort Shu, Honored Consort Rou smiled faintly and took a sip of tea before speaking at an unhurried pace. “Attendant Shen comes from the countryside, so her manners may be a little lacking. But we all serve His Majesty; none of us is above another in that respect. Attendant Liu was rather aggressive just now as well.”

It was neatly said. She had addressed both sides without offending either, easing Zhiyi’s predicament without embarrassing Liu too badly. And by reminding them that they all served the emperor, she implied that anyone who kept pressing the matter showed a lack of respect for him.

Zhiyi gave Honored Consort Rou another look. The woman in charge of Changchun Palace wore a muted lotus-colored dress today. Her hair was arranged with meticulous care, and though she wore few ornaments, each was exquisite. A faint smile remained on her face as she spoke, making it easy to like her.

The Noble Consort gave an openly disdainful snort. “She’s only a country woman. How could His Majesty possibly like her? She’s a novelty, that’s all. Once that wears off, who will remember her?”

Honored Consort Jia, seated below her, immediately chimed in, her voice cloyingly sweet. “Your Ladyship is right. His Majesty chose her plaque only because she was new. Once the rest of us have attended him in a day or two, what place will there be for her?”

Concubine Hui laughed too. “Exactly. She’s only an Attendant. Does she really think she’s someone important?”

Most of the other consorts laughed along with them.

Zhiyi kept her head down and said nothing. What would she gain by winning an argument with them? She was here to stay alive, not to quarrel. Besides, the enormous secret she carried in her belly mattered ten thousand times more.

*Laugh all you like,* she thought. *I hope you can still laugh three months from now.*

The empress listened to the exchanges from her seat, her graceful smile never changing. She neither joined in nor stopped them, like someone watching a play.

The Noble Consort spoke again, aiming directly at Zhiyi this time. “Attendant Shen, did you learn proper etiquette before entering the palace?”

Liu quickly put on a fawning smile. “She’s a country girl. What good would a little instruction do her?”

“His Majesty has probably forgotten Attendant Shen already. How could she ever mean even a fraction as much to him as Your Ladyship does?”

The Noble Consort smiled and looked at her. “You do know what to say.”

Liu’s smile grew even more obsequious. The empress also glanced at her with a smile, as if committing her to memory.

Just then, hurried footsteps sounded outside the hall.