The Empress Wears Gucci

43

          "How foolish that woman!" Hua Er exclaimed, hugging the pillow in frustration. 

          "Agreed. She had the audacity to ask you a second time! Who does she think she is?" Su Yin scoffed. She crossed her arms aggressively while she gently sat on the chair behind her.

         I lay on my bed, staring at the ceiling. "I have a bad feeling about this."

         I selfishly feared for my life. If the Empress wasn't going to frame Guan Shu, she might resort to framing me. Call me selfish, but I would sleep better at night knowing that I wasn't going to be framed. But looking at Guan Shu, I knew she would sacrifice her life for me. Guan Shu would be executed. I would be executed. It was either one of us, and I couldn't let the Empress win. I'd have to stay alive to bring the Empress down if anything happens. 

         I am selfish. When I started living in the harem for months, I started to adapt to survival instincts; it was every woman for herself. While I could sacrifice Guan Shu, I still had a heart. It was like I'd rather her get blamed instead of me...but I couldn't let that happen.

        My heart was too warm. 

        "Guan Shu," I called out. Guan Shu turned to look at me. I noticed her wet eyelashes. "I'm not going to let Her Majesty hurt you, do you understand?"

         Guan Shu shook her head as she craned her neck to stare at the ground. "No, milady... I am willing—"

        "No." I pushed myself up so I was sitting down on the edge of the bed.

        Emptiness. I was so tired of this mess that I almost felt empty. I wanted so badly to gather the ingredients for the recipe to get Jaxon and me out. I haven't communicated with him as the days go by. The situation was getting more out of hand that I couldn't tell Jaxon what had happened in case he does anything reckless. I wanted this to be over and done with. 

        Of course, it wasn't that easy.

         "I am not letting you go." I strictly wagged a finger at her. "The Empress will fight for this, but I will make sure she goes down if she ever tries—"

         There was an immediate burst of movement into my chamber. It happened so fast that I didn't have an instant reaction to what was going on. Two guards swept Guan Shu off her feet—not in a positive way—and aggressively attempted to drag her out. Her screaming, yelling, and punching did not help her. I was still in my headspace before I noticed. 

         I jumped to my feet but was bombarded by more eunuchs and guards ushering all of us out of the chamber. I kept my mouth shut but followed along. The guards were not friendly, I've learned that from my first arrest. 

        My heart was beating so fast, that I could hear it as we followed the two main guards to the large courtroom. As Hua Er, Su Yin, Fen Ai, and I made our way to the hall, Jaxon leaned close to me, close enough that I could smell the fresh jasmine from his body. 

        Jaxon lowered his body and neck and whispered, "What the hell did you do?"

        "Nothing," I whispered while I kept my eyes in front of me. "Jaxon, I'm scared."

        There was no tough girl act. My heart was beating so fast that I had to catch my breath because I kept thinking it skipped a beat. As I swallowed, the big lump in my throat created enough noise for Jaxon to reassure me by squeezing my shoulder softly. 

        "Bring in Guan Shu!" a eunuch yelled while all of us settled down.

        Guan Shu was thrown into the spotlight. Her body hit the floor with a big thud and I almost cringed. I balled the fabric of my hanfu up in a fist. There were so many people, so many of them were watching this. Why? Why would they want to watch this horrific display of sabotage?