The Empress Wears Gucci

09

        My heart skipped a beat. I stayed still, slowly turning my head to face him. My legs began to stiffen. It was at this point where I was too afraid to move. Am I in trouble? Did Niu Lin tattletale? That rat... I imagined getting twenty lashes and I'm already flinching.

        "Y-Yes?" I asked, using a casual tone to hide my anxiousness.

        "The Emperor wants you in the grand hall, miss," he walked towards me hesitantly. "Please come with me."

         I followed the eunuch doubtfully. I had trust issues in the Palace. Sexual assault could follow and I could be deceived into doing something. Power is a very frequent thing people try to obtain, it is like this everywhere and every time. I had to keep my guard up. No pun intended. "Right this way, miss." He bowed and gestured his hand towards the doorway.

        It was the same hall that I was in when I disrespected the Empress. This doesn't look good. A column of females stood in two straight lines, giving me some room to walk through. I continued to keep my guard up. The Emperor and the Empress were sitting on their thrones. An older woman who wore a beautiful purple attire and a dangling headpiece with expensive, bright jewels sat in the middle between them. Her face was stiff but her eyes were warm and friendly. She was, no doubt, important. This lady was definitely his mother. She watched as I got on my knees and bowed. I pressed my hands on the warm carpet.

        "Warm blessings to the Empress Dowager."

        "Please, don't stand on ceremony," the Emperor's mother spoke softly to me. 

        I stood up fast, still in confusion. The room was filled with many concubines; Hua Er walked in behind me and knelt. She greeted the Imperial family and glanced at me. I gave her a confused look and all she did was shrug. I tried to observe everyone else's facial expressions to figure out what was going on, but their eyebrows were knitted while looking at each other for answers as well. 

        Jaxon was nowhere to be found.

        "May I ask, Your Majesty, what is this about?"

        The Empress Dowager, who was, can I mention, the most respected and powerful in the Palace, was speaking to me in a kind manner. She gestured for me to come up towards her. "Come closer, let me take a good look at you."

         I walked up closer to her. I kneeled to her as she brought my chin up with her narrow finger. I was slightly creeped out. Actually, I was very creeped out. She spoke again, "You have been blessed with great beauty." She tucked a loose strand of my hair behind my ear. "Where are you from?"

         "A... village very near... this palace," I stammered, timidly mumbling to her when I answered. "I—"

        "The Emperor has informed me of your virtue and excellence," the Empress Dowager announced. "You are a very kind young lady, and I will allow this to happen."

        "What—" I quickly turned my head to face Hua Er but she looked down.

        I peered at the Empress, who smiled with force. She pursed her lips and stood up to face me. Her eyes were boring into mine as she signalled me to stand up. Her forced smile was painfully obvious. If I wasn't stressed out currently, I would've laughed. The Empress wore a long, red brocade hanfu that dragged behind her as she walked. Her bright, bold red lips matched the hanfu. A eunuch stood next to her and held a tray with a scroll on it. When I stood up, the Empress Dowager nodded at me. 

        "Mother, this goes against the rules," the Empress whispered, trying her best not to provoke the Empress Dowager.

        The Emperor glared at her. "We will allow it this one time, right, Mother?"