Chapter 10
The palace was so boring.
I liked lively, bustling places. I also liked traveling, seeing mountains and rivers.
Now all I could look at were ants beneath the tree roots.
Still, not having to chant Buddhist sutras with the empress dowager was some consolation.
As I idly played with the ants, a eunuch called outside, “Her Majesty the Empress approaches!”
Tears of joy filled my eyes. I ran out.
I knew Sister cared about me!
Who could resist a sweetheart with a cold face?
Seeing me hurtle toward her, Wei Qinghe swiftly sidestepped my embrace.
No matter. She could turn me down as fiercely as she liked; I’d just sidle up and be adorable.
I blinked at her. “Sister, Sister! You’ve come to see me.”
“Who has? Don’t talk nonsense. I haven’t come to see you.” Her denial was so emphatic that I could more or less conclude she’d fallen in love with me.
She noticed the flowers and plants I’d grown in the courtyard and spoke as she strolled. “His Majesty hasn’t visited the inner palace for days. After some thought, I suspect you frightened him. You caused the trouble, so you must put it right. Tonight is the fifteenth. I’ll send him to you. Do try to persuade him.”
My smile slowly faded.
What an incompetent wife!
Keep hold of your own husband!
Don’t want to spend time with your weakling of a man, so you dump him on me?
She was more interested in the paper-cut cats on my windows than in Murong Su. “You’re quite good with your hands.”
Looking at her perfect profile, I sighed.
Fine. I’d suffer this hardship for her.
I scampered inside and brought out a stack of paper-cut cats. “You keep cats in your courtyard, so I thought you’d like them. I’ve been cutting these for you over the past few days.”
She paused. Her brows slowly drew together.
She studied me, then the paper cuts in my hand.
As though she couldn’t understand what I meant.
At last, she slowly reached out. “…Thank you.”
——
That night, looking at the paper cuts on her window, Wei Qinghe suddenly gave a little laugh.
In the palace, competing for favor and fighting the other women was serious business.
She was used to it.
Then one day Mei Anqing had begun orbiting around her, reminding her of life before she married.
Sometimes, she’d gone out with her sisters in spring and played to their hearts’ content when no outsiders were watching.
The rest of the time, she had to be a good eldest sister, a proper young lady. Later, a good crown princess. Then a good empress.
Suddenly, it all seemed utterly dull.
So pointless.
She went to Murong Su. After listening to her, he looked up.
For some reason, she felt that this was the first time he’d truly seen her.
Truly looked at her.
Studied her closely, as though he didn’t know her.
An inexplicable irritation rose in her.
“I’m afraid Consort Mei will be stamping her feet in rage.” Without realizing it, he smiled like a boy in the first flush of love. “Thank you for your trouble. But there were some ugly rumors in the palace recently. I don’t want to hear anything of that sort again.”
“Understood, Your Majesty.”
Unlike before, Wei Qinghe didn’t linger to chat. She turned and left.
Murong Su treated her well. He had always shown her the courtesy due his wife. She didn’t know why she found him so irritating.
She only felt that if you truly liked someone, you should be like Mei Anqing: see her for who she was at the very first glance, and decide, at that very first glance, to be kind to her.