Jiang Yan struggled to haul the heavy bucket of water up from the well, then poured it into the washbasin full of dirty clothes.
Now, Jiang Yan was nothing more than the lowest-ranking maidservant in the palace.
She wore coarse cloth garments; her face was sallow and haggard, her hands rough and calloused.
Compared to the delicate beauty she had shown a year ago, she was like a completely different person.
At the beginning, relying on the hundred taels of silver Gu Jiu had given her, Jiang Yan had successfully made her way from the Northwest to the capital, and from there managed to enter the palace.
But once inside, her luck ran out completely.
No money, no backing, no connections, not even fluent court speech, just a beautiful face.
In the palace, beauty was both the rarest and the most common thing.
Without money to grease palms, and with her striking looks provoking envy, she was punished and sent to the Laundry Bureau, condemned to endless washing day after day.
Jiang Yan rubbed her aching waist, her expression numb.
Suddenly, she froze, staring at the reflection in the water.
Was that really her?
Was that haggard face in the water truly her own?
She looked down at her hands again. Were these the hands of the radiant, flower-like Jiang Yan she once was?
In less than a year, she had withered this much.
In another two years, would she even have her beauty left? Would she still have a chance to rise again?
Tears burst forth.
She crouched on the ground, sobbing harder and harder.
She didn’t want to die in the Laundry Bureau, didn’t want to spend her life washing endless clothes.
With the bitter cold of winter and the scorching heat of summer, if this went on, she would soon become an old, ugly woman, never again to have a chance at turning her life around.
She couldn’t go on like this.
She hadn’t entered the palace to wash clothes. She had to change her fate, she had to rise.
Wiping her tears, she gritted her teeth and finished the last load of laundry.
She skipped dinner, retreating to her room to secretly count her savings.
All she had in the world amounted to eight taels and two mace of silver.
What could such a paltry sum do in the palace? Practically nothing.
But she refused to accept it.
After thinking for a while, Jiang Yan took out five taels, tucked them into her clothes, and slipped out.
With a bribe of silver, she persuaded the gate matron to let her sneak out of the Laundry Bureau.
Now, where should she go?
Jiang Yan pondered. Her needlework was quite good. If she could get into the Needlework Bureau, it might be her chance.
Resolving herself, she chose her direction and hurried off toward the Needlework Bureau.
“You trying to get yourself killed? Keep your mouth shut.”
Halfway there, she was suddenly yanked into a clump of flowering shrubs. Jiang Yan nearly fainted from fright; the blood drained from her face.
Her mouth was clamped shut, and she could only make muffled sounds.
A voice hissed in her ear: “If you want to live, don’t make a sound.”
Wide-eyed, Jiang Yan saw a group of eunuch pages pass by, each with a cold, murderous look on his face.
Only when they had gone did her captor release her.
She spun around. It was a young eunuch, not yet twenty.
If Gu Jiu had been there, she would have been surprised.
Back in the Northwest, when she had gone to inspect the horse farm, she had passed a ruined temple and seen a little beggar there. And now, that very beggar had become a eunuch in the palace.
“You–” Jiang Yan started to scold him.
Zhou Miao snorted. “That was the men from the Judicial Office just now. Didn’t you see them? If you had run headlong into them, you’d have died without even knowing why.”
Jiang Yan shuddered violently.
Even her voice trembled as she asked, “That group just now, were they really from the Judicial Office?”
“What else could they be?”
The Judicial Office. In recent months, even within the Laundry Bureau, the name alone had become terrifying.
The great palace purge had killed thousands; most had died at the hands of the Judicial Office.
Rumour had it that once someone entered that place, they should abandon all hope of leaving alive.
Instead of wondering how to survive, most thought it better to pray for a quick death, so at least they wouldn’t suffer too much before the end.
Hugging herself, Jiang Yan whispered in fear, “Thank you. You… what’s your name?”
“Zhou Miao. Ten years from now, you’ll have to call me Eunuch Zhou.”
Jiang Yan couldn’t help laughing. “Quite ambitious. But why’d your parents give you such a name? Zhou Miao, it sounds like a girl’s name.”
Zhou Miao scowled. “What business is it of yours?”
He had been a beggar, nameless. People just called out “hey, you” or “that little beggar,” and he hadn’t cared.
But when he came to the capital, someone asked him his name for the first time. He thought of that Mr. Zhou who had kept him company in that ruined temple, and took Zhou as his surname.
That man had once told him he was a “good seedling”, so he named himself Zhou Miao, meaning “Zhou’s good seedling.”
Zhou Miao looked Jiang Yan up and down. “Not bad looking. But how did you end up looking half-dead like this? In the palace, how do you expect to rise like this?”
Grief welled up in Jiang Yan. “You think I wanted to end up like this? I had no choice.”
Having grown up on the streets, Zhou Miao was far sharper at reading people than Jiang Yan.
He asked, “Where are you stationed?”
Jiang Yan wiped her tears. “The Laundry Bureau.”
Zhou Miao clicked his tongue twice. “No wonder. The palace gates are about to lock, and you’re still wandering around outside. What are you trying to do?”
Jiang Yan bit her lip. “I want to try my luck at the Needlework Bureau. My sewing skills are very good.”
Zhou Miao sneered. “With a face like yours, try your luck? What a joke.”
“I have money. I brought money with me.”
“How much?” Zhou Miao asked.
Jiang Yan replied shyly, “Five taels.”
Zhou Miao chuckled. “You think five taels of silver can get you transferred from the Laundry Bureau to the Needlework Bureau? Do you think people in the palace are so poor they’ve never seen silver? Idiot.”
“I’m not stupid. My guniang used to praise me all the time, saying I was clever and quick to understand things. I learned reading and writing faster than others.”
Zhou Miao was surprised. “So you’re literate? You even had a master before, why on earth did you decide to enter the palace?”
Jiang Yan stayed silent.
Zhou Miao gave a cold laugh. “When I call you stupid, I mean it. Doing needlework, do you think that’s real work? Do you want to go blind at such a young age? Since you can read and write, don’t you realise that’s your greatest asset? It’s worth more than your face.”
Jiang Yan was stunned. “I… I didn’t know. Nobody ever asked if I could read or write.”
When she first entered the palace, faced with an unfamiliar environment and strict rules, she only remembered to keep her head down and follow the rules, never daring to stand out. Her cleverness was never put to use. By the time she realised, she had already been assigned to the Laundry Bureau, where turning her fate around was nearly impossible.
Once there, every day was spent washing clothes. Naturally, she never thought that literacy was her greatest asset. Meanwhile, her once-pretty face grew more and more haggard.
“Truly stupid,” Zhou Miao said disdainfully. “Look at me, because I can read and write, I found myself a patron the moment I entered the palace, and got a good position.”
Jiang Yan grew anxious. “Then what should I do now? Xiao Miaozi, I’ll give you all five taels of my silver, just help me think of a way, won’t you? From your accent, you’re also from the Northwest, right? I’m from there as well, we’re fellow townsfolk, please help me.”
Zhou Miao looked at the silver in Jiang Yan’s hand with disdain. “Don’t just call anyone a fellow townsman. The Northwest is huge. Where are you from?”
“I’m from Jinzhou. I even once worked in the Jinzhou Prefect’s fu.”
At the mention of the Jinzhou Prefect’s fu, Zhou Miao’s heart stirred. He hadn’t forgotten that the little girl who had cursed out Mr. Zhou at the ruined temple was from there.
Because of those words, Mr. Zhou had changed his ambition and rekindled his fighting spirit.
And because of those same words, Zhou Miao had come to the capital, completely changing his destiny.
He looked Jiang Yan over again. He didn’t press her about the Prefect’s fu for now.
Instead, he simply pocketed her silver. “Fine. Since we’re fellow townsfolk, I’ll help you this time. Go back and wait for news.”
Jiang Yan grabbed his sleeve. “Where can I find you?”
“You can’t. Only I can find you. If you don’t trust me, then take your silver back and resign yourself to washing clothes in the Laundry Bureau for the rest of your life.”
“I…” Jiang Yan gritted her teeth. “I trust you won’t cheat me. This is my last bit of silver. If you do trick me, I’ll haunt you even as a ghost.”
Zhou Miao snorted. “With such a beautiful face, why waste it becoming a ghost? Don’t worry, you’ll hear news in no more than ten days.”
They parted ways, each vanishing into the night.
When Jiang Yan returned to the Laundry Bureau, she found her bedding had clearly been searched. Luckily, her silver had been hidden well and hadn’t been discovered.
She shook with anger, glaring at the maid she shared the room with.
The other girl looked arrogant, rolling up her sleeves, ready to fight at any moment.
Jiang Yan’s frail body was no match. Her roommate was broad-shouldered and strong, easily capable of felling her with a single blow.
Jiang Yan thought for a moment, then swallowed her anger. Once she left the Laundry Bureau, she could find a chance to take revenge.
Zhou Miao worked quickly. It hadn’t even been ten days before someone came to the Laundry Bureau to summon Jiang Yan.
Nervously, she left with them.
She walked further and further, until she finally arrived at Ganlu Palace, where Xue guifei resided, and was assigned as a palace maid responsible for sweeping and cleaning.
Though a cleaning maid was only a small step above a laundry maid, Ganlu Palace and the Laundry Bureau were worlds apart.
Overcome with joy, Jiang Yan wept tears of relief. Zhou Miao had not deceived her. At last, she had escaped the Laundry Bureau. This was her first step upward.
The Xie family held the funeral and burial, and immediately busied themselves with dividing the family property.
Because of this, Xie shi visited the Xie residence every day.
Gu daren, mindful that she had just lost her elder brother, didn’t stop her.
In fact, upon hearing that the Xie family was splitting up, Gu daren was quite pleased.
He instructed his nephews, Gu Cheng and Gu Gong: “From now on, keep your distance from the Xie family.”
Gu Cheng bowed and obeyed.
Gu Gong, distracted, said, “But with jiujiu gone, if we also distance ourselves from the Xie family, won’t it look like we’re kicking them when they’re down?”
“Utter nonsense.” Gu daren flew into a rage. “The Xie family are nothing but upstarts. I don’t need to kick them when they’re down. Others will step on them soon enough. If I hear you spouting such nonsense again, you’ll get the paddle.”
Hearing that he might be caned, Gu Gong was so frightened that he dared not utter another word.
In a foul temper, Gu daren went to the back courtyard to find Bai yiniang.
Bai yiniang was usually the gentlest of women, and that night Gu daren stayed in her rooms, expecting her to attend to him.
But the Twelfth Young Master was sick, and Bai yiniang had spent the entire night caring for him without sleep, her face drawn and weary.
When she heard Gu daren had come, for once, she actually felt a twinge of irritation.
She hurried to tidy herself up and went out to receive him.
Gu daren took one look at her and froze. How had she grown so plump?
The Twelfth Young Master had already passed his hundredth day; why was Bai yiniang still so round and full?
Bai yiniang herself was helpless. Since giving birth, she had never properly recuperated in confinement, worrying day and night over her child.
Not only had she grown haggard, but her weight had not gone down. In fact, she seemed to be getting heavier.
For some time, she had used the excuse of poor health to avoid seeing Gu daren.
But now that the child had reached a hundred days, she could no longer refuse him.
Yet the way Gu daren’s eyes lingered on her made her heart sink, and an ominous feeling crept in.
Timidly, she asked, “Laoye… have I grown ugly?”
Gu daren wanted to say, Yes, you truly have grown ugly. Not just a little ugly, so much so that I have no interest left at all.
But he gave her a shred of face, cleared his throat, and instead asked, “I hear the child is ill. Is it serious?”
Bai yiniang’s face clouded with worry. “Laoye, could you invite Hu taiyi to examine the Twelfth Young Master? None of the other doctors inspires confidence.”
Gu daren stepped inside to glance at his youngest son. The boy was small, not growing much.
Bai yiniang came in too, lifting the child into her arms. “He’s been sick these two days, vomiting milk, and has lost some weight.”
Gu daren said, “Hu taiyi may not be available. I’ll have people inquire if there are better paediatricians in the capital. Don’t worry yourself too much, leave things to the servants. You should focus on regaining your health.”
Bai yiniang shook her head. “I can’t rest easy leaving him with the wet nurse.”
Seeing this, Gu daren understood. Tonight’s plan of having Bai yiniang serve him was ruined.
Forget it, he thought. He had no interest left anyway.
After sitting for a short while, he found an excuse to leave.
Cui Liu came over and said, “Why didn’t yiniang keep laoye here? He seldom comes.”
Bai yiniang gave a bitter little smile. “Keep him? From the moment he stepped in and looked at me that way, my heart went cold. He only stayed to save face, nothing more.”
“Please don’t say that, yiniang.”
Bai yiniang shook her head. “I know myself. I know very well what I look like now. Laoye prefers women with slender figures. Look at me, I’m nothing like that anymore.”
Cui Liu hurriedly said, “Yiniang, you mustn’t keep staying up all night with the child. You need to take care of yourself. The young master depends on you.”
Bai yiniang gazed at the baby in her arms. “I know… but I can’t trust anyone else.”
“What if I take him at night instead?”
Bai yiniang frowned. “You’ve worked all day. How could you manage nights, too?”
“I can take turns with the wet nurse. With me watching her, you can rest easy.”
“…That may be the only way.”
Gu daren’s look had rung alarm bells for Bai yiniang. She couldn’t go on like this.
She needed to recover her health, regain her figure and beauty, and win back Gu daren’s favour.
Gu daren left Xiangsi Yuan in low spirits.
Hu yiniang? Wei yiniang?
He shook his head. Neither would do.
He sighed. All he wanted was someone to sit and drink with him, yet there was no one.
He had only three concubines in his household, and all of them were past their prime. Even gentle, alluring Bai yiniang had become ugly after childbirth.
Gu daren felt dejected. He, the Prefect of the Capital, was living such a pitiful life. Forget having beauties to warm his bed. He didn’t even have a charming face to look at.
With a cold snort, he decided to gather a few colleagues and go drinking with courtesans instead.
Xie shi had just returned to the residence when servants reported that Gu daren had gone out.
“So late, and he went out?”
The servant cautiously replied, “I heard laoye went to a pleasure house.”
Xie shi froze. “Are you certain?”
The servant nodded.
Xie shi frowned. Since returning to the capital, Gu daren had never once gone out drinking with courtesans. Why now, all of a sudden?
She asked, “What exactly happened?”
“Laoye went to Xiangsi Yuan to see Bai yiniang, but stayed only long enough for a cup of tea before leaving, and straightaway went out to the courtesans.”
At this, Xie shi laughed.
She asked Chun He, “What’s Bai yiniang’s situation now?”
Chun He replied, “I heard she spends every day caring for the child, never going out. These past two days, the Twelfth Young Master has been ill.”
Xie shi arched her brows in a smile. “Well, isn’t that perfect timing. Come, we shall all go to Xiangsi Yuan. As the principal wife, with the child sick, I must personally go and see him.”
“Taitai is truly compassionate,” Chun He flattered.
Xie shi, with her maids and old servants in tow, marched grandly into Xiangsi Yuan.
When Bai yiniang heard the news, she said, “Why is she coming? Could it be to watch me make a fool of myself?”
Cui Liu urged, “Yiniang, please go out quickly. If you delay, I fear taitai will seize on another fault.”
With a cold little snort, Bai yiniang rose and went out to receive Xie shi.
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