In the imperial palace of Xin, the Phoenix Palace was grander than any other, the one that could compare to the Dragon Palace of the emperor. It is said that the emperor had assigned the best architects to build it for his empress. The floor was spread with high-grade marble that was polished until it shined like jade. The huge pillars were carved into various artistic designs and washed with brilliant white. Even the vase lying at the inconspicuous corner was personally made by famous masters.

At this moment, the servants were scurrying around as they nervously whispered in a hushed tone.

“What? His Majesty turned the plate?” a maid looked with wide eyes at the eunuch who brought the news.

The emperor had already stopped turning the plates on the night of the palace events as he usually spent those nights with the empress. Although he didn’t say anything about it, it happened on the night of a few consecutive palace events so everyone in the Phoenix palace had implicitly assumed it as the tradition. Because of it, considering today was the day of spring banquet, when they heard that the emperor turned the plate, they were all shocked.

“Who will tell this news to the empress?” another maid looked at the others.

“Don’t look at me, I won’t go this time.” One of them hurriedly waved her hands and stepped back.

Nobody dared to relay the message to the empress. They all looked at each other's faces which showed clear resistance. Everyone knew what would happen inside and they didn’t want to be the one to suffer the empress’ wrath. Finally they looked at the new maid who had come to the Phoenix Palace only a few days ago and was clueless as to why nobody dared to go inside.

Inside a luxurious chamber of the Phoenix Palace, the pleasant smell of the scented incense lingered in the air. A woman who had just had a relaxing bath sat in front of the mirror, her smooth skin still glistening with droplets of water. A servant was using a soft towel to dry her long glossy hair from the back. Her nimble fingers moved in the woman’s hair with expertise as she meticulously wiped it without tangling any strand of hair.

“Your Highness, this is the rose cream that was sent from Jin. It is said that this is made from a rare wild rose found only in the mountains. And if one applies it on their skin, its red color will help in retaining the natural pink blush of youth.” Another servant, who was keeping back the jewelry cleaned after the empress had worn in the banquet, remembered and pulled out a box from the drawer.

The empress smiled and took the cream in her hand, “It must be sister-in-law who sent this. Even though I am already married, they still dote on me like before. Was there any letter with it?” 

“Yes, Your Highness. It came with a letter.”

“Then what are you standing here for? Hurry and bring it to me. I want to know how my child An Rou is doing there.”

The servant ran to bring the letter. At this moment, another servant entered the room. Her eyes darted around with curiosity and excitement as it was the first time she had entered the inner chamber. She didn’t know why the other servants were giving her this opportunity to personally convey the message to the empress but she was really happy to get the chance of coming in contact with the empress on the very first week of her working here.

She bowed to the empress before speaking, “Your Highness, there is a message from His Majesty.”

The empress was applying floral moisturizer on her face. Hearing the message was from the emperor, her eyes curved with a smile, “What did His Majesty say?”

“His Majesty has already prepared for someone to bring the First Princess next month.”

The empress turned her head in surprise, happiness apparent in her face. She was curious who the emperor would send to bring her darling daughter, “Who is it?”

The empress’s happy mood affected the maid as well, “Your Highness, it’s His Excellency, Prime Minister Lu.”

“Lu Tong Xiao?” The empress’s eyes gleamed with elation. She knew that the emperor would not deny her request. Although he didn’t give her a positive answer as it was difficult considering Lu Tong Xiao’s position. But to think that His Majesty actually made him agree to go to Jin, the empress smiled in satisfaction. After all, it was for their daughter whom His Majesty loved so dearly.

But he could have personally told her about this good news so why send the message?

The maid was still standing there as if she had more to say. “Is there anything else?”, the empress asked.

“His Majesty will not be coming here tonight. The eunuch said that he turned Consort Shu’s pla-” 

The maid had yet to finish her words when she heard a loud noise. The empress had swept everything on the dressing table. Startled by the sudden noise, she hurriedly looked up when a hairpin came flying to her direction and sliced from her cheek down to the ear.

“Ahhhhhh” The shocked servant couldn’t stop the cry of pain. After a moment, she touched her cheek with her trembling finger and saw that it was covered with blood, indicating that her face would be scarred for life.

“That vixen! I knew that bitch would seduce him at the banquet. How dare she, how dare she!” The empress was seething with anger. Her beautiful face twisting to a scary one. With how kind and benevolent she appeared in front of everyone, no one can guess that she could even look this way, not even the emperor. “Did that bitch forget her place just because I didn’t do anything to her when she wore that dress that overshadowed mine, the empress’s?”

The scared servants in the inner chamber hurriedly kept their distance from the empress and minimized their presence while looking at the unfortunate maid who was still lying on the floor.

In addition to her fury, the empress was further irritated by the maid’s wail. Glowering, she pointed at the injured maid who was crying on the floor, “And what is this lowly servant bawling for? Drag her out and flog her until she cannot cry anymore.”

Two servants hurriedly came in and dragged the maid out who was still crying from the pain. Although they felt pity for her, if they didn’t drag her out of there, it’d be them who would be the subject to the empress’s wrath.

After the sudden outburst, the empress closed her eyes and took a deep breath to calm herself. She then sat before the mirror with a straightened back and continued applying moisturizer like nothing happened. Unlike the mess on the floor with scattered objects, she had already returned to her calm as if she was not the tornado that had swept it all. A few servants shivered while they cleaned the mess, careful not to make any sound. Their heart ached to see the golden hairpins being twisted due to the impact of the fall. The commoners could not afford them after working all their lives and here, it was being thrown away like a rock. Life really isn’t fair to all.