Chapter 2

At this very moment, Li Shuyao truly grasped the terrifying nature of a protagonist in a palace intrigue novel.

Her pupils contracted twice, and the person before her immediately sensed something amiss. Lady Wuya stopped paying attention to the bruises on her face, instead lowering her gaze to stare directly into Li Shuyao’s eyes. "Sister Shuyao..."

"Hiccup." Under extreme nervousness, Li Shuyao let out a hiccup.

The words died on Lady Wuya’s lips. The dark ink in her obsidian eyes swirled and dissipated, the smile at the corners of her lips transforming into a look of deep helplessness. "Are you full, or are you hungry?"

"Um... hungry." Li Shuyao pretended to be bashful, lowering her head as a faint blush crept onto her cheeks.

Her hands hidden beneath the quilt clutched her stomach as she explained in a low voice, "I was too heartbroken yesterday to eat, and after getting up today, I felt too embarrassed to see anyone, so..."

She left it at that.

Lady Wuya, however, understood perfectly. After all, the reason Li was punished in the first place was due to her own back-channel instigation.

Refraining from further questioning, she patted Li Shuyao’s temple before rising and heading outside. Before long, she returned with a rosewood tray holding a bowl of steaming rice porridge, two small dishes of pickled vegetables, and a fragrant scallion pancake.

"You haven't eaten in a long time," she said. "It wouldn't be good to have anything too greasy, so just make do with these for now."

While Lady Wuya was gone, Li Shuyao quickly composed herself. She decided to briefly forget the plot of the book and treat Lady Wuya as a trustworthy sister for the time being.

She happily threw off the quilt and stepped out of bed, smoothing her waist-length black hair behind her ears. She secured it with a wooden hairpin and flashed Lady Wuya a bright, radiant smile. Her voice was crisp and energetic. "I understand. Thank you, Sister Lianchu."

"Since you’ve already called me sister, why be so formal?" Lady Wuya replied with a feigned gesture of refusal, setting the dishes on the room's round table.

Li Shuyao tidied herself up a bit and walked over.

She was truly famished. Once seated, she didn't stand on ceremony, picking up her chopsticks and stuffing a piece of scallion pancake into her mouth. Her impatient manner caught Lady Wuya off guard, causing her to freeze for a moment before the smile in her eyes deepened.

Lady Wuya remained silent, watching Li Shuyao eat.

Li Shuyao ignored her, burying her head in her bowl and eating with relish. In no time, the bowl and plates were empty, though she was only about seventy percent full.

Reluctantly, she set down her chopsticks and gave Lady Wuya a pleading look that clearly said, "I want more."

Lady Wuya put on a stern face and shook her head. "No more. Let's wait until the evening meal."

In the Qing Dynasty, the evening meal was usually around one or two in the afternoon. Since it was only around nine in the morning, it wasn't many hours away.

Li Shuyao obediently stopped making a fuss and rose to clear the dishes onto the tray. Just as she was about to take them to the small kitchen, Lady Wuya stopped her. "Let me go. I saw Wenya and the others there when I got the porridge; it would be better for you to avoid them."

Without explaining why, she took the tray from Li Shuyao’s hands and turned to leave.

Only after her silhouette disappeared did Li Shuyao puff out her cheeks in frustration, feeling quite depressed.

The timing of her arrival was unfortunate; it was the day after the original owner had a falling out with Lady Guoluoluo.

Ten days ago, it should have been her turn to guard the storehouse. However, the night before her shift, Lady Guoluoluo had approached her, claiming her mother had fallen gravely ill. She said she had already informed the head matron, who allowed her two days off to visit, provided she finished her own duties first.

One of those duties was guarding the storehouse. According to the rotation, Lady Guoluoluo was scheduled after "Li Shuyao," meaning she would have to wait two more days to leave the palace. If "Li Shuyao" were willing to swap with her, Lady Guoluoluo could finish her shift and return home that very evening.

Lady Guoluoluo had been so sorrowful and pitiful that "Li Shuyao" naturally couldn't refuse.

Little did she know that by agreeing, she had handed Lady Guoluoluo a heaven-sent opportunity...

When news broke that Lady Guoluoluo had been named a "Guan Nüzi" (official concubine), it became the envy of every palace maid in the Forbidden City.

Lady Wuya, who was close to "Li Shuyao," soon sought her out and asked with feigned surprise what had happened.

"Li Shuyao" explained the sequence of events with some bitterness. Lady Wuya frowned instantly. "Lady Guoluoluo is ill? Why didn't my mother hear any news of this?"

Realizing her slip, she looked at her apologetically. "Forgive me, Sister Shuyao. I don't mean to doubt Qingyao; it’s just that this is all so coincidental... Perhaps my mother’s information is simply outdated. When I go to the Imperial Household Department later, I’ll ask for you."

At these words, the original owner’s face had turned deathly pale, her lips trembling, unable to utter a complete sentence.

Seeing this, Lady Wuya had hurried forward to hold her arm, whispering comfortingly, "I’m so sorry, Sister Shuyao, I didn't mean it." She paused, then added, "It’s just a pity. After all, if we're talking about looks, you are even prettier than Qingyao. It’s just... it really is such a shame."

With just a few "green tea" remarks, Lady Wuya ignited the raging fury in "Li Shuyao’s" heart. Losing all reason, one thought kept looping in her mind: Lady Guoluoluo had stolen her fortune!

After enduring for a few days, she couldn't take it anymore. Yesterday, during a break, she had stormed off to the back quarters of the Palace of Heavenly Purity, had a fierce argument with Lady Guoluoluo, and unilaterally announced the end of their friendship.

After venting, she felt aggrieved and hid in a corner to weep, returning to her room red-eyed and dejected.

In the room, Matron Jiya, who oversaw their daily lives, was waiting with a dark expression.

The moment she returned, she had her pressed into the courtyard without a word. In front of the other maids, she ruthlessly punished her with ten slaps for "insubordination," each strike landing heavily on the original owner’s crumbling pride.

After the crowd dispersed, the original owner crawled back to her room, touching her swollen, stinging cheeks and crying all night. By dawn, her consciousness had faded, and Li Shuyao had arrived in her place.

...

It was only while sorting through the memories that she realized "Li Shuyao," fueled by Lady Wuya’s instigation, had become convinced that Lady Guoluoluo, jealous of her beauty, had colluded with Matron Jiya to harm her face.

She didn't know that the moment she left yesterday, Lady Wuya had followed her, listened to the entire argument, and then rushed back to report her to Matron Jiya.

When Matron Jiya learned from Lady Wuya that she had gone to settle scores with Lady Guoluoluo, she broke into a cold sweat, wishing she could throttle "Li Shuyao" on the spot.

Ever since Lady Guoluoluo had gained the Emperor’s favor, he had rarely visited the inner palace, instead summoning her almost daily. Anyone in the palace could see her rising status. How dare "Li Shuyao" challenge the Emperor’s favorite concubine?

Fortunately, Matron Jiya remembered how close the two had once been and worried they might just be having a lovers' quarrel. If she punished Li Shuyao too severely, she might face retaliation from Lady Guoluoluo later...

After much thought and considering Lady Wuya’s advice, she decided to settle the matter with ten slaps in front of everyone.

-

On the other side, Lady Wuya returned after delivering the tray.

Mindful of the purpose of her visit, she shut the two doors tight the moment she entered.

The room, facing north, was already damp and dark. With the doors closed, the light dimmed even further. When Li Shuyao snapped out of her thoughts, the sudden gloom startled her, and she briefly wondered if her life was about to end prematurely.

"There is one more thing."

Fortunately, Lady Wuya spoke up.

Li Shuyao steadied herself and asked curiously, "What is it?"

Lady Wuya sat down beside her. "Matron Jiya said that you’ve likely been exhausted and haven't rested well these past few days, which is why you..." She paused, not continuing.

Having read the original book, Li Shuyao silently filled in the blanks: *...which is why you lost your mind, harbored such filthy and base thoughts, and went to offend the Emperor’s favorite. To avoid further disasters, it is better to reflect in your room, lest the Emperor get angry and implicate everyone in the maid quarters...*

The words were harsh, but the logic held.

Matron Jiya wasn't a kind person. She likely wanted to wait and see how Lady Guoluoluo would react to see if she had truly severed ties with "Li Shuyao." If she had, Matron Jiya wouldn't even need to act; the schemes of the other maids would be enough to ostracize "Li Shuyao" until she had no place left to stand.

And if Lady Guoluoluo still cared about her...

Then that would be a different strategy entirely.

"Matron Jiya actually pities you. She said you don't need to report for duty for a few days and should stay in your room to tend to the wounds on your face. As for the rest... we'll talk about it once your wounds have healed."

There would be no "talking about it."

Li Shuyao thought gloomily to herself.

In the original book, after being slapped, "Li Shuyao’s" hatred for Lady Guoluoluo deepened, especially with Lady Wuya’s constant "reminders."

She had spent her "paid leave" exclusively on skincare and eavesdropping on the Emperor’s movements, hoping to use her "beauty" to enchant the Emperor, ideally causing him to neglect all other concubines and favor her alone...

A beautiful dream indeed.

Li Shuyao silently mocked herself.

She thought for a moment, then looked up at Lady Wuya with a sincere expression. "Alright."

As she spoke, her willow-leaf eyebrows arched, making her look innocent and pure, like a naive child.

For some reason, Lady Wuya felt a sudden sense of unease.

But it was only a fleeting illusion.

She tightened her grip on her fingers, her expression turning worried. "Also, there’s the matter of Qingyao."

As she spoke, she stealthily observed Li Shuyao’s face. Seeing her lower her eyes in sadness, her side profile looking truly dejected, a sense of satisfaction surged through her. She continued, "Actually, Qingyao doesn't have any malicious intent..."

Li Shuyao kept her head down, blinking her eyes.

*Finally,* she thought. *The protagonist’s top-tier tea-art performance.*

In an instant, she decided on a counter-strategy: the ultimate move known as "sincerity."

Adjusting her expression, she looked up, her watery eyes still filled with intimacy and trust for the person before her. She smiled softly. "I know. Whatever you say is right, Sister!"

"If you say Qingyao isn't bad, then she isn't bad!"

Lady Wuya choked on her words, her heart tightening in confusion.

*What is wrong with Li?*

She probed further, "I was thinking, perhaps she had some unavoidable difficulty?"

"Difficulty?" Li Shuyao raised an eyebrow, then suddenly realized, "Yes, that must be it!"

She then wiped the corner of her eyes—dry of tears—with a mix of fake and genuine emotion. "Oh my, Qingyao has had it so hard."

*Hard?*

Lady Wuya couldn't believe her ears. Her expression went blank for a moment, and her tone became increasingly hesitant. "Then, about what happened before..."

Before she could finish, Li Shuyao had already stood up, clenching her fists. With a righteous expression on her delicate, pale, oval face, she said solemnly, "I understand everything now. Thank you for the reminder, Sister! I’m going to go apologize to Qingyao right now!"

Lady Wuya: "..."