Eunuch Su, Eunuch Su!

Before dawn, the sound of people getting up could be heard from the corridors beside the Qiande Hall. Doors creaked open, water splashed, boxes and chests were moved, and greetings were exchanged. The sounds, faint at first, grew louder and louder, filling the air with the bustle of human activity.

Indeed, today was a rare day. It was a day when one could get up early without worrying about waking others. Because of the festival, everyone living in these corridors, every single one of them, had to get up early for duty.

However, Huiming was not involved in the hustle and bustle. Besides being intentionally or unintentionally alienated by everyone because of Consort Wei, she herself did not have the opportunity to chat with everyone.

As early as when everyone had just gotten up to wash up, she had already tidied up everywhere. She put on a brand new set of turquoise jacket and white pleated skirt that had just been distributed a few days ago, and a turquoise cloak with fur trim over it. She coiled her braided hair into a bun at the side of her ear, and finally wrapped a few small velvet flowers of the same color in her hair. Looking in the bronze mirror, she looked extraordinarily delicate and fresh, which made people feel comfortable. Only then did she carefully put away the pouch she had embroidered yesterday in her arms, and went out while it was still dark. Today, the Qiande Hall was completely renovated, and even the palace people walking around seemed to be more numerous than usual, making it extraordinarily lively.

Although Huiming got up early, she did not go directly to work. She looked at the sky and went to the west corner gate where the palace people entered and exited. She found an inconspicuous corner and stood there, counting for half an hour. Sure enough, she saw the person she was waiting for. She stepped forward and bowed to Su Jin, who was coming on duty, and said crisply, "May you have peace on this longest day, Eunuch Su."

That's right, today was the winter solstice, also known as the longest day. Apart from the New Year, this was the most important festival in the palace. All the palace people could receive food and new clothes. When acquaintances met, they would greet each other with "May you have peace" according to their status, which was considered a good omen.

Because of the festival, Huiming dressed up carefully. She was dressed in brand new clothes, her voice was clear, and her cheeks were slightly red from the cold weather, but it was as if flowers were blooming in the snow, revealing a faint charm. The inexplicable gloom of the past few days was also gone today. She was as lively as a fledgling that had just grown its feathers, which brightened people's eyes.

On such a formal day, even Su Jin, who had already decided to distance himself, was stunned for a few breaths when he saw Huiming like this. He also stepped forward, stood up straight, bowed solemnly, and returned the greeting almost word for word, with great sincerity: "May you have peace on this longest day."

Eunuch Su did not wear his usual eunuch uniform today. Although it was also new, it was a set of brand new chestnut-colored cotton robe with a dark cloak over it. His waist was loosely tied with a rhinoceros horn belt, which made his thin waist and straight back even more prominent. He looked fresh and handsome. Even this originally inconspicuous color, when worn by Eunuch Su, immediately had a different kind of charm.

It was the same etiquette, but when Eunuch Su did it, it seemed extraordinarily elegant and refined, as if there was a kind of gentle and elegant demeanor even in the dim night.

Huiming admired him in her heart. Knowing that he was busy today, she did not delay and directly handed over the pouch with the peace knot, saying with a little embarrassment, "My hands and feet are slow, and the rest is not finished yet. I thought that today is the winter solstice, so I sent this pouch first so that you can use it with your new clothes."

Su Jin was stunned. He had already prepared himself for the past few days, waiting for Huiming to come and send the pouch and the knot so that he could harden his heart and say some words of rejection, so that she would not do such a thing again.

Just now, when he saw her take out the pouch, although his heart ached as if pricked by a needle, he still forced himself to clench his fist and made up his mind. Who would have thought that before he could finish making up his mind, Huiming actually said that the things were not finished yet, and this pouch was only one of them?

It didn't matter if she only gave him one, but should he say those harsh words or not?

Even Su Jin was stunned at the moment. Facing Huiming like this, he had finally made up his mind and mustered up half of his ruthlessness, but it was all for naught. He was so choked up that he couldn't speak for a long time. Finally, he reached out and took the pouch, and mumbled, "Thank you for your trouble."

Of course, Huiming did not know that her action of only sending half of the gift had actually stopped Eunuch Su from saying those words of alienation and coldness.

She had already planned to send only one pouch today. Not to mention that she had put a lot of effort into the embroidery for Eunuch Su, she simply couldn't finish it in the past few days. Even if she had such fast hands, she wouldn't be stupid enough to send out both the pouch and the knot at once.

Of course, Huiming had always been clear about her purpose. She wanted to be close to Eunuch Su, not just to give him gifts. With such a good opportunity, she could split the meeting into two times, so why did she have to use it all up at once? After all, she had been serving in front of the emperor for decades, she was not that stupid!

Because of this, Huiming was not surprised to see Eunuch Su accept it. She just thought that if she had known that Eunuch Su was wearing chestnut clothes today, she should have changed the color of the pouch. This sapphire pouch was meant to match red, but it didn't match this outfit very well.

Just as Huiming thought of this, she looked up and saw that Eunuch Su had already tied the pouch to his waist. Fortunately, the pouch was not conspicuous, and with Eunuch Su's elegant demeanor, although the color did not match very well, it looked strangely harmonious.

Seeing this, Huiming swallowed the words of dissuasion that she wanted to say, and only raised her head with a sincere smile, and said seriously, "The pattern on the pouch, I chose bamboo reporting peace, and the pendant below is also a peace knot. They are all good omens. I wish you all the best and peace for a lifetime."

Hearing this, and looking at Huiming's serious and bright eyes, Su Jin's heart beat violently again. Thinking of his previous plan, he couldn't tell whether he regretted it more or was glad more. His chest felt both hot and astringent, and an indescribable feeling filled his heart. For a moment, he was speechless.

Fortunately, Huiming knew that he was busy today. After saying that, she politely excused herself and turned to walk back to the palace. Su Jin stood there in a daze for a long while before he moved again.

After the two of them had gone far away, one after another, the two people who had been standing in the shadow outside the door for a long time slowly walked over.

Hongyun respectfully helped Aunt Wei beside her and whispered, "You see, I told you it was just a rumor. These days, even Yuanbao ignored her. Eunuch Su gave her some face, but she insisted on giving him a pouch. She must be the one pestering Eunuch Su."

Aunt Wei, who was also specially dressed today, looked at the direction the two had left without saying a word. Her face did not show the gentleness and timidity of the past, but a snake-like gloom. After hearing Hongyun's words, she just lowered her eyes slightly, her voice still exceptionally gentle and pleasant: "Is everything ready?"

"Don't worry, Aunt." Although it was just such a headless and tailless sentence, Hongyun immediately understood something and replied in a low voice.

Aunt Wei nodded and continued to walk forward gracefully. She gently patted her palm again, but her words could not hide a trace of danger and viciousness: "You have to be careful. If this succeeds, it is her bad luck. If you fail and are discovered by others, I can't protect you."

Hongyun's palm trembled. She was stunned for a moment, but she still gritted her teeth and replied with a stiff scalp, "Yes."

The winter solstice was a big festival, but the emperor was not feeling well and had been in low spirits. He did not want to make a big deal out of it. Coincidentally, a few days ago, Kangzhou reported that the local area had suffered a severe snow disaster, and countless people were freezing and starving.

After hearing the report, the emperor simply decreed that the usual grand ceremony of offering sacrifices to heaven, the grand banquet for the ministers, the greetings and banquets, and many other complicated matters were all canceled. The saved expenses were all sent to Kangzhou for disaster relief. Even the palace banquet that was originally supposed to be held in the Qingyan Garden was changed to a family banquet in the Yangqian Hall. He ordered that only a small opera be prepared, and that a few princes, princesses, and consorts would stay up for one night, and that was all.

Because of this, Huiming and the other female officials had much less work to do in the morning. After all, the dragon robes, ceremonial robes, and various ornaments worn for the sacrifice to heaven were different from usual. To serve the emperor in dressing, they had to prepare for several days, and get up at least an hour earlier this morning. Not to mention that it was even later than usual.

Since the emperor did not have to offer sacrifices to heaven, and did not have to go to court or deal with state affairs on such a grand festival, Huiming and the others only waited until the emperor woke up at his own pace after the hour of Shen (3-5 pm), and then served him to get up along with the bright daylight. It was actually more relaxed than usual.

Of course, this did not mean that there was nothing to do today. Although the emperor did not offer sacrifices to heaven and ancestors, he gave an oral order that tonight's family banquet would be held in the Qiande Hall.

In the past, such an important banquet had never been held in the Qiande Hall. For this family banquet, even Nanny Xu, who had not been seen for a long time, personally came to the Qiande Hall early in the morning. Together with Aunt Wei, the two chief female officials in front of the emperor, they summoned all the female officials in front of the emperor and the maids who did rough work to make arrangements for tonight's matters in advance.

Because of her rheumatism, Nanny Xu did not watch over them all the time. Therefore, she just stood aside to fill in the gaps and keep an eye on things. The specific instructions and trivial matters were arranged by Aunt Wei.

Aunt Wei was meticulous in everything. After giving instructions to everyone, she finally turned her gaze to Huiming and Liuan, who were at the end of the line: "Huiming, Liuan, after the tea and snacks are withdrawn, you two will wait outside and help the food server serve the food."

Preparing a banquet in the Qiande Hall, even with the four palace maids who served food in front of the emperor on duty today, seemed a little insufficient. In contrast, the job of serving decorations was relatively easy and simple. They just had to wait until the time for washing hands before the meal, and then take the rings and bracelets that the masters had taken off, put them on a lacquer plate, and retreat. They had nothing else to do during the whole family banquet. It was very suitable for them to help at this time, and it was not a close service in front of the masters. They just had to guard in the hall and serve food. Even if something went wrong, it would not be a big mistake. This arrangement was indeed normal.

Huiming and Liuan did not think much of it and both respectfully agreed.

URGENT: Our Google Ads account was blocked due to violations. We'd deeply appreciate your support through donations to help us continue our work. Or we won't be able to continue the translations.

ʕ•́ᴥ•̀ʔっ

Love what you read?