Chapter 1

Chapter 1

On the night before my sister and I were to enter the palace, a young Taoist priest wandered past our manor gates, begging for a bowl of congee.

My mother, a kind-hearted woman, invited him inside for a meal.

After the young priest had eaten his fill, he heard that the two young misses of the house were about to enter the palace as imperial concubines. He smiled and said, “Madam, you have provided me with warmth and sustenance, and I have no way to repay you. I shall bind this System to your two daughters. As for how they use it, that will depend entirely on their own destinies.”

I did not know what a “System” was, but I assumed it must be some kind of divine or ghostly power.

From then on, my sister and I were able to receive help from the supernatural.

For instance, at this very moment, my sister and I were inside the System shop. Before us stood rows of wooden slips. Each slip was marked with a redeemable item, and below it, the price in Gold Beads.

The System’s voice rang in our ears, sounding like an overenthusiastic shop assistant: “Congratulations to the two young mistresses for your impressive performance in the recent palace selection! Mistress Qiluo has earned eight thousand Gold Beads, and Mistress Bi Tao has earned five thousand Gold Beads. The rewards available for exchange are all listed on the wooden slips. Please make your selections-”

Before the System could finish, my half-sister Bi Tao lunged for one of the slips. “I want this one! The Moon Shadow Dance!”

She clutched the slip nervously. “Quick, I’ll pay the five thousand Gold Beads. This is mine!”

The System’s voice remained unhurried. “Mistress Bi Tao, the rule of this shop is that the highest bidder wins, not first come, first served. If Mistress Qiluo offers a higher price, the Moon Shadow Dance will go to her.”

Bi Tao’s face turned pale.

She leaned toward me, tugging at my sleeve and whimpering coquettishly. “Big Sister, didn’t Father tell you before we entered the palace? I’m younger than you; you ought to yield to me more.”

I looked at her pitiful expression, knowing full well why she was so desperate.

The Moon Shadow Dance was created by Empress Rouyi. Empress Rouyi was the first wife of His Majesty the Emperor, and they were a deeply devoted couple. However, Empress Rouyi passed away young, becoming an eternal memory in the Emperor’s heart.

After Empress Rouyi’s death, this dance was lost to time. His Majesty the Emperor had expressed a desire to see it again on several occasions, but no one in the harem knew how to perform it.

Tomorrow was the palace banquet. Clearly, whoever could perform the Moon Shadow Dance would be the undisputed star of the evening.

I pulled my sleeve out of Bi Tao’s grasp. Thinking I was about to refuse, her expression tightened instantly. “Lu Qiluo, you…”

I gave a faint smile. “Bi Tao, as your elder sister, it is only natural that I should yield to you.”

Bi Tao was overjoyed and immediately gripped the wooden slip tightly in her hand.

I looked through the remaining slips. Bi Tao’s eyes followed my every move. There were other good options among the slips, and she was afraid I would pick one that might steal her thunder tomorrow.

In the end, I chose an inconspicuous slip: “Sit and Discuss the Way with Worthy Scholars.”

The price wasn’t high-only five hundred Gold Beads.

“This is the one.”

Seeing me purchase that slip, Bi Tao immediately burst into laughter. “Does Sister intend to recite books to His Majesty the Emperor at tomorrow’s banquet? His Majesty doesn’t fancy old scholars.”

She mocked me while wearing an incredibly smug expression.

When we first entered the palace, we were known as the “Twin Beauties of the Lu Family” and quickly drew everyone’s attention.

Since my beauty and talent surpassed hers, I had been the one in the spotlight. Bi Tao was naturally resentful of this.

Fortunately for her, now that I seemed so dim-witted, she finally felt at ease. She likely thought I would be no threat in the future power struggles of the harem.

But what she didn’t understand was that I never wanted to win those petty games.