In the Tianfenggong, no man other than the Emperor was allowed to come in. Of course, this held true for most of the Inner Palace. But the Tiangfenggong and Nuanfugong - the Palaces reserved for the Empress and the Empress Dowager respectively - were the most sacred places in the Inner Palace. No man could enter without permission. And in the case of Nuanfugong, even the Emperor had to seek permission from the Empress Dowager to enter.

There was, however, one exception to the rule.

The Grand Preceptor Xie Wanying. As the Empress’s father, he had been granted permission to visit the Tianfenggong with prior notice and the Nuanfugong with the prior permission of both the Emperor and the Empress Dowager. He was granted this privilege not only because he was the father of the Empress but also because he had played the most vital role in helping the Emperor regain the throne. As such, the Empress Dowager treated him and his daughter amicably, something no other minister or concubine could ever dare to hope. And so, the Empress’s position in the Imperial Harem was unshakeable, even if the Emperor one day stopped favoring her.

Today was one of the days when he visited the Empress. The guards knew him and allowed him to pass without protest. But he had been surprised to see the familiar maids of the Empress Dowager waiting outside the Empress’s parlor. So, he was less surprised once he was granted permission to enter and found the Empress Dowager sitting there.

A bow and a soft greeting later, he was sat at the same table.

“What brings you here, father?”

The man tilted his head. “What? Can I not come to see my daughter?”

A soft scoff left the Empress Dowager. “I supposed you came to see how your daughter’s doing after getting acquainted with the new concubine and her son?”

Ah, yes. The Empress Dowager, her uncanny ability to gauge what was on a person’s mind, and her straightforward bluntness. The former was the cause of her ascension to the position of Empress and later Empress Dowager, and the latter was the result of it. This woman had never been someone to be trifled with, even at her lowest.

“You cannot blame me for worrying for my daughter,” he said, conceding.

“Your daughter is handling it just fine,” the Empress Dowager said, tilting her head. “I daresay she is handling it better than I would have.”

A sense of pride swelled in him. He had always known this daughter of his was the one who inherited his wit and ambition. If she were a son, she could have reached the pinnacle of power in court. But alas, she was born a woman and the world was not kind to women who did not follow the dictate laid out for them. But his daughter was never disappointed. She aimed for the pinnacle that women could reach, the position of the Empress. It was she who had convinced him to take a risk with Huang Yasheng, and it had paid off. And now, she sat as the Mother of the Kingdom.

Of course, Grand Perceptor Xie knew that his daughter was perfectly capable of handling a mere peasant. He just wanted to know what she had planned and, of course, see that she was alright. She was carrying the Emperor’s child after all. She had already miscarried thrice. And she was in a delicate condition now. So, of course, he was worried. The reason he gave previously was partly right.

“You are dealing with them?” He asked. “I thought the Emperor told you to stay your hand.”

Xie Taiying took a long sip from her tea and then set the cup back down on the table. “He did. I am obeying him.”

“And?”

That could not be it.

“I don’t have to deal with them. The Imperial Consort has taken that responsibility on her own.”

Xie Wanying chuckled. “And I suppose you nudged her in the right direction?”

His daughter smiled blandly at him. “I have no idea why you would say that, father. The Imperial Consort quite dislikes the new concubine. It did not help that she made trouble with a concubine from the Imperial Consort’s faction on her second day here. I merely granted Imperial Consort the permission to choose instructors for the concubine and her son.”

The Empress Dowager tilted her head. “I wonder how long it would take her to run to the Emperor crying.” She looked like she was genuinely contemplating. “That woman looked like she had seen some hard times. It might take a while.”

Subdue the new concubine with intimidation and perhaps a little bit of violence first and then point the finger at the Imperial Consort. It would not reduce her position at all, but it would shake the Emperor’s favor towards her and her father the Prime Minister. After all, she would have hurt the mother the first child of the Emperor.

“However,” he started, looking at his daughter. “The Emperor seems protective of the Imperial Prince. It would do you well to move with caution. It might spell disaster if the Prince is harmed too much.”

The Empress shook her head. “Do not worry, father. It will not. I have … suggested to the Imperial Consort that the Prince should be guided gently, even though some punishment might be necessary. If she chooses to not listen to my suggestion, well … that is not quite my fault, is it?”

The Grand Perceptor smiled and nodded. “You are absolutely right.”

“Very well, if you are done talking about that worthless woman, let us enjoy our tea in peace,” the Empress Dowager said, cutting off any further talk about the newest concubine.

“Tell me, Grand Preceptor. How is your wife? I have dearly missed my childhood friend.”

---

Samaya curiously examined the fading red marks on her hands. It was her third lesson already. Third day with Senior Palace Attendant Li. Almost a week in this harem.

The woman had a wooden scale and she had used it whenever Samaya had repeated a mistake, even once. She had started learning calligraphy and also how to conduct herself as a ‘lady of the Imperial Harem.’ Not only that, she was also being taught noble and royal etiquette, for when she would attend any public programs. It was in these lessons that she found out that she was supposed to serve the Emperor food whenever they sat together. Which … seemed ridiculous to her modern mind, but made perfect sense when she considered the hierarchy of this place.

This woman - Instructor Li, as she told Samaya to call her - really thought she was doing something here. She had this condescending, patronizing attitude, her nose upturned as she spoke down to Samaya as if she was the scum of the earth. Samaya let the insults slide off her easily. Most of her instructors back at TEA would eat this woman alive.

She’d been more antsy than she usually would be the past few weeks what with all the relocation and worrying about the safety of her child. Now that she was somewhat settled, so had her emotions. She was still irritated at being yelled at and being constantly told to repeat whatever motions she got wrong - which she knew she did not after the first few times - but it was nothing she could not handle.

She heard shuffling in front of her and raised her head, only to find Ah-Liu standing there, staring intently at the angry red marks on her palms.

She rolled her eyes. “It’s fine, Ah-Liu. I have had worse and you know that.”

Ah-Liu did not speak, but he frowned, a clear sign of disapproval. Samaya chuckled. Was this brat scolding her already? She waved it away dismissively.

“Anyways, have you been doing what I told you to?”

Ah-Liu tore his eyes away from her hands and nodded. He reached inside his sleeves and brought out a scroll, opening it and laying it out on the table.

“I have started from this courtyard and mapped out the Yongyagong. I found two small pathways that lead out of here. One towards the Outer Palace and another towards the Tianfenggog.”

“Nothing to go outside?” She asked frowning.

“No.” Ah-Liu shook his head.

“That can’t be right. There must be some sort of pathway for the concubines to leave in case of an emergency. Keep looking.”

He nodded again. “I have also mapped out the pathway from here to Tianfenggong. It is still very basic, I need to add the other connecting paths but …”

Ah-Liu started to explain the places he had mapped. She had to admit, he was doing a thorough job. She needed a detailed map of the Palace, with everything known and unknown. Now, she could steal one but she was pretty sure those would not contain the hidden gems - the tunnels, the holes in the walls, and the secret paths. This would have taken her months, but Ah-Liy could get this done in weeks.

As much as she hated to admit it. Bringing Ah-Liu was the best decision she could have made.

Once he was done, he wrapped up the scroll.

“Alright, Ah-Liu. Take it slow, okay? I have already memorized the map so far, so you just focus on creating the whole map. I don’t need it to be with me all the time.”

She looked up to see Ah-Liu nodding while putting the scroll back in his sleeve. She frowned at the cold glint in his eyes, having an idea of what was on his mind.

“Ah-Liu, truly I am fine. You know I got more injured while playing around with the damn Brats. And we expected things like this to happen when coming here.” Ah-Liu opened his mouth to protest but she shook her head. “No need to kick up a fuss for something so minor. I am sure she will leave once she finds no response from me.”

Ah-Liu only deepened his frown, his expression downright mutinous. He seemed like he did not agree with one word she said.

“Ah-Liu.” She said, dragging out her voice. It was a silent reassurance and order at the same time. The boy sighed, slumped, and nodded.

She had nothing to do once Ah-Liu was out. She felt almost … listless. It’s been a while since she’d had nothing to do. Years, really. She had allowed missions to consume her back home after … losing him. And then once she was yeeted into this world, she suddenly had a son and a contract with this world’s equivalent of a mafia boss, while also juggling a part-time job as a barmaid on the side while she was not on missions.

So, now, here, living a luxurious life where she had nothing to do except have tea in the morning with the Empress and then wait for her son to come back from his lessons … it was strange. She supposed she could relax. But … even though she had settled a bit, it was hard to relax in this unfamiliar place. As such, she was both listless and restless. It frustrated the heck out of her.

She might have to pick up her training again.

She was leaning back against the chair, staring up at the ceiling when the maid came in with the news of Fu Caiyi visiting.

She gladly welcomed the chance for some interaction.

Fu Caiyi was also a great source of information, Samaya found out soon enough. She was quiet and seemed to keep out of everyone’s way, but she observed. She knew almost all the gossip of the Palace there was to know. So, talking to her was quite enlightening in terms of the inner workings of the Palace.

So, she quickly ordered some tea and some snacks and they quickly devolved into some gossip while the twins played in the small garden in front of her residence. They talk about = who was in favor, who was sabotaging who, whom the Emperor visited the past few nights and why that was important, and how the Empress was almost five months into her pregnancy now, which meant that if she gave birth to a son, her and the Grand Preceptor’s positions in this regime was basically sealed into place unless something major - like treason - happened to topple them.

Fu Caiyi looked quite worried as she spoke the last part. Samaya just smiled and reassured that she was not worried and she did not care whether the Empress birthed a son or a daughter. Fu Caiyi definitely did not look convinced. Samaya did not bother trying. As long as her child was happy, she did not care what others thought.

It was as their conversation started to move away from Harem gossip that the two children came up to them with demands of playing with them. Despite attempts to dissuade on Fu Caiyi’s part, the two little girls insisted, louder and louder, until they were on the verge of throwing a tantrum, much to the embarrassment of the woman. Samaya decided to interrupt and offer herself as a playmate and that was how she was dragged into the garden and blindfolded.

The two little girls circled around her, giggling as they tried to escape her outstretched hands. She could have caught them easily, the loud sounds of their footsteps and their loud laughter a dead giveaway. But she was not going to do that. Let the children play and enjoy their time with her. It was her one soft spot - children.

She pretended to make unsuccessful attempts at finding them. She would get close enough for them to shriek and move away, miss them just by an inch, and then let out a loud “awwww” before turning around and repeating the entire process.

It was the fifth time that she finished doing this and turned around that her head bumped into what seemed to be a broad wall. She lost her balance for a moment and stumbled back a bit, before a hand on her arm caught her and pulled her back to that broad wall.

She frowned behind the blindfold. Who was that? How come she did not feel or hear them coming up behind her?

Reaching up, Samaya pulled off her blindfold and blinked a few times to adjust to the light. She raised her eyes and found those familiar golden irises staring down at her.

---