Story of Yanxi Palace - An English Narrative

Episode 2.1

The concubines all stood up, awaiting his announcement. Who was selected to serve the Emperor tonight?

Li Yu waddled forwards and bowed respectfully, "His majesty requests your ladyships to retire to your residences." 

The concubines visibly deflated, looking disappointed.

"Why?" Asked Noble Consort Gao, her fine jade-like forehead creasing, "Is his majesty spending the night alone again?"

Li Yu assented.

Gao Ningxing's temper immediately turned sour. She lifted her arm lazily and said bitterly, "Let's go. What is there to wait for anyway?"

Watching the back of her retreating form, Concubine Yi let out a breath of relief.

----

Finally, the girls had arrived at the dormitories, they sighed gratefully and were just about to run headfirst into the covers when Aunt Fang coughed and eyed them pompously. 

"Now that you have all passed the tests in embroidery and cleaning, you are now all maids of the Imperial Palace and under my supervision." She said, stroking her handkerchief.

Linglong smiled pleasantly, "We are new here and unfamiliar with the rules, Linglong can only trust Auntie to take us under your wing."

Aunt Fang laughed breathily, "Oh, no one can 'take you under their wing' in the Forbidden City. You can only rely on yourself, may fortune be on your side."

The girls shivered, feeling the hair on the back of their necks rise at the sound of her laugh. 

Jinxiu's eyes opened wide and she asked, "Auntie... what do you mean by this?"

"Oh don't worry, you'll find out in the future." Aunt Fang said cryptically. With that she left the room, rasing her handkerchief to hide a smirk.

For a second, the girls stood unsure of what to do. It wasn't until Jixiang made a sudden dash for the beds that they began to move. Jixiang leapt onto the furthest bed and dumped her bag on the second along. 

"Yingluo!" She called, grinning, "Yingluo! Come here!"

Linglong and Jinxiu froze, seeing the bed they had aimed to choose had been occupied- being at the end, it had the most privacy- and occupied for that Wei Yingluo! Jinxiu bristled and gritted her teeth. First cheating, then showing off in front of Manager Wu and now exploiting Jixiang's friendship! It was too much! 

Seeing Jinxiu's expression, Linglong quickly grabbed her wrist and lead her to the opposite end of the room. 

Meanwhile, Jixiang smiled brightly at Yingluo who was busying herself with unpacking, "Yingluo... thank you so much for today!"

Yingluo looked up and a ghost of a smile appeared on her face, "You're welcome."

The two girls unpacked their things and readied for bed together. Abruptly, Yingluo asked, "Are all the girls here new?"

Jixiang tilted her head, "Yeah! Why?"

"Oh, It's nothing, I just wanted to see if I could ask about the rules of the Palace." She said.

Hearing this, Jinxiu sneered, "I think, someone just wants to find a way to suck up to Aunt Fang."

"Ah!" returned Yingluo, a hint of sarcasm in her voice, "If that's what you think, then it must definitely be so."

The jab didn't go unnoticed. "You-" 

Linglong grabbed Jinxiu's arm and shook her head gently. 

"Why must I stop?" Exclaimed Jinxiu, shaking off her hand, "Just look at her! Acting as if she's so much more capable than us, better than everyone, playing as if she's the saint and we're the villain! Jixiang, do you really think she was helping you? Listen, she was just using you to show off in front of Manager Wu!"