First of all, a quick thank you to all of you who brought this story to its highest #8 in Historical Fiction! All of you are the best! I really can't believe this... I mean there are tons of stories which are better and this story beat them and was at #8! Just wow...
So.... This is chapter 23. Read on! :)
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Author's POV:
"What is this?! You call this food?! Make it again! This tastes horrible!" She flips the plate, it drops onto the floors, the snacks on it shattered into pieces, leaving unpleasant sight before her. Her eyebrows only furrow deeper, getting annoyed by unsightly scene splattered beneath her.
"What are you doing?! Keep these away, immediately! Are you a fool?!" Her pitiful servant only flinches as she suddenly screams at her, then immediately tends to the mess caused by her horrible and unreasonable master. She fights the urge to tear, it has been a routine to her.
The air stills for a moment and Concubine Leanne feels a moment of uneasiness, until the doors to her palace is suddenly slammed open, and a group of servants barges in and separates, lining into two. Then appears a woman dressed in bright orange dresses, her silky black hair is pulled back, up high, fastened with golden pins and hair decorations. A big bright red peony is positioned in the middle of her hairdo. Two strips of red cloth are placed over her phoenix hairpins, fluttering with every step she takes.
That woman's eyes are sharp as eagle, glaring at Concubine Leanne with contempt flashing clearly behind those eyes. Her bright red lips is pulled into a smirk, her facial expression is filled with danger.
"Your Highness Empress..." Concubine Leanne, taken aback by the number of people suddenly barging into her palace, gapes and stands up from her seat, secretly trembling behind those dresses thatc have successfully hidden her limbs.
"Concubine Leanne seems to have forgotten your position and status ever since your pregnancy. Quickly kneel before Her Highness Empress!" Lis voice erupts from the eerie silence that has engulfed the palace. All Concubine Leanne could do is simply blink her eyes as her heart beats faster then ever, then slowly lowers her body into a kneel, wondering whatever crime she might have committed now.
"Concubine Leanne is pregnant with Emperor's child. Of course she must be greatly looked after. I have personally asked for Emperor's permission to look after you and your child, and His Majesty has permitted me to do so. Your servants are inefficient. Starting from today onwards, all your palace servants will be replaced by servants from my palace. I have also assigned my personal physician and a midwife to take care of you." Empress words are carved deeply into Concubine Leanne's mind, herself trying her best to digest every single meaning of her words. But having lived in the palace for a while, Concubine Leanne has easily caught the wicked plans behind those acts. Her lips tremble in fear as she pushes her hands against the floors, supporting her body that has weakened in just a few moments.
"Your Highness Empress... Please...no... Let me go..." She wants nothing to do with the Empress, but the woman with the highest status in the harem has a trump card against her. She could not defy her or otherwise it would greatly harm her family's well-being, especially her father. Tears start to travel down her cheeks as she crawls, with her pregnant belly, towards the Empress, grabbing onto her dresses, begging.
"What are you doing?! I am being kind by taking good care of you and the child in your stomach. Why are you behaving as though I am going to harm you?!" Empress, irked by how low Concubine Leanne has stooped to, forcefully pulls back her sleeves and dresses, away from the woman she deems disgusting who is lying on the grounds almost lifelessly, crying.
"You better off behave. Your family's bloodline is all depending on how well you listen to me, and how well you keep that mouth shut." Empress growls lowly, her voice almost swallowed by the silence of the room, and the stillness of the air. When her eyes are diverted down, she feels immeasurable amount of satisfaction, seeing how the pregnant witch is lying on the floor helplessly, crying and begging her in vain.
"Guards, take down the servants in this palace! All of you, take care of Concubine Leanne, properly. There must be no mistake done." Empress presses great weight on her words, eyeing on every single servant she has just brought from her palace, while they all keep their eyes down, afraid of meeting her eyes. Then, she lowers her body, until her face is level to Concubine Leanne, her eyes staring into that poor girl's, sharp and piercing.
"If you want to blame, blame yourself for being too eager to jump out of the water." She whispers, before breaking into a laugh, a laugh that is filled with wickedness and evil, a laugh that stirs up goosebumps on all servants present. Before the Empress leaves, she eyes her physician and the midwife, squinting at her, signalling for them to do their work well.
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Author's POV:
Her hands are holding onto a red tray filled with books, as her feet pace tiny little steps in a hurriedly manner towards Crown Prince's palace, past one of the many palace gardens. The leaves have browned, many are falling, like a rain of brown, yellow and golden colours. It is a beautiful and breathtaking sight while the chilly wind blows, ridding any negative thoughts ever existing in one's mind. The view is just that refreshing.
When Jade is about to turn around, a man whose face she is familiar with appears from around the corner, alone, without any servant or lackey following. She stops in her tracks, her eyes caught in his. She unconsciously blinks her eyes away, away from his eyes. Her eyes are locked onto the grounds before her, and when a pair of feet comes into her view, she curtsies.
"Greetings, Third Prince."
"Rise." Is his only word to her. She heeds his word and raises from her curtsying position. They both fall into silence, a silence with only the sound rustling of leaves heard.
"Seventh Sister has written a letter." His voice is monotonous. It sounds dead. It sounds lifeless.
"Father Emperor showed me the letter." He pauses, his voice carries so much bitterness, so much sadness.
"She said she is leading a good life." Again he pauses, before continuing, "But she never said that she is having a happy life."
"Why Your Highness Third Prince is telling me all these?" Her question does surprise him. And he asks himself the same question she asks him. Why her? After some moments of pondering, he could not even find an answer.
"I do not know. You just seem trustworthy." He replies, without looking at the woman before him. "Even more than myself." He adds, as he silently chuckles in his heart. He could not even trust himself any further. He could not trust himself to stand up again as his soul has crumbled ever since Seventh Princess left. But being Third Prince, being Yan Leon makes him having to force himself to. Or at least...puts on a facade that he has.
"Third Prince is a strong person."
"How so?"
"If Third Prince is not, Your Highness would not be walking out anymore." Jade's lips move on their own, without herself realising. But her words strike deeply in Third Prince's heart, for her words carry so much weight, for her words are true.
Seventh Princess will never return anymore. Even if she does, that would have meant that disasters have happened to her at the North, such that she has to return. He does want her to return.
But he does not want her to go through any hardships there.
From the corner of their eyes, they notice a group of eunuchs, rushing towards their direction, the front most being Eunuch Fan. Noticing them, Eunuch Fan's lips are curled into a smile, a smile of not having to walk for too long.
"The arrival of Imperial Edict!" Eunuch Fan's shrieking voice startles the two who have been drowning in the silence of the autumn. They both turn around, their eyes filled with surprise at the arrival of Eunuch Fan, with a golden scroll in his hands, especially Third Prince. There is no reason for an Imperial Edict to be passed down.
Unless there is something going on that no one knows.
"The Imperial Edict has arrived. Jade Leanne, receive it." Those are the words of Eunuch Fan, as he lifts his arms, his fingers stretching the scroll open. But the shock in Third Prince and Jade is such that they both are still staring at Eunuch Fan in confusion.
"Why have you not knelt and receive the Edict?" Immediately Third Prince kneels, ready to receive. Jade, however, her breathing grows hard while her hands tremble. There is a hard feeling, as though something is telling her not to kneel and run away. But her body gives in, she kneels as if her body drops to the grounds, while her hands put the tray aside. The wind blows chilly that afternoon, but just at that moment, the wind has eerily stopped blowing.
"Your humble servant Jade Leanne receives Imperial Edict." Jade opens her mouth, almost whispering while under those long sleeves of hers, she grabs onto her dresses, tight and hard, mentally preparing herself.
"Delivering the Imperial Edict. Emperor's Imperial Edict says, second daughter of Officer Yoo Leanne, Jade Leanne, is respectful and filial towards her parents and has done well duty as a palace servant. From today onwards, Jade Leanne is to be betrothed to Crown Prince Zeth Leon as Mistress Leanne. Receive the Imperial Edict." Those words come like a thunder. A sudden thunder during a clear day, which then comes with a series of repeating storm afterwards. Those words would not stop echoing in her mind, they would not stop repeating themselves.
She tries her best to digest the meaning of every single word which Eunuch Fan has just said. It is a slow process, but when she has, her heart drops. Her world is shattered into pieces and she is about to tear up.
"Mistress Leanne, quickly receive the Edict and thank His Majesty?" That cold voice slaps her back to the reality. The reality where she has to be thankful to have been bestowed upon an Imperial Edict, which she has never wanted. She could not lie, she could not utter those hypocritical words. But she dears her life, very much.
"Jade Ye...Leanne receives the Edict and thanks His Majesty." She raises her arms, spreading out her palms as Eunuch Fan satisfactorily places the golden scroll in her hands. Eunuch Fan cares not for whether her heart has been chaotic due to the Edict, he only cares for His Majesty. His actions are what the Emperor wants, and he carries out Emperor's orders mercilessly, so mercilessly. He leaves with a faked smile on his face, behind him is his group of apprentice eunuchs following.
She kneels there, like an empty shell for her soul seems to have escaped her body. Her grip on the scroll is weak yet strong. So many questions are flooding her mind, so much that she is slowly developing headache. Third Prince eyes her, but he dares not say a word. They are still kneeling, at nothing.
She could never leave the palace anymore. She is now officially a bird caged in the palace, a bird forcefully brought into the palace, only to be caged and be rid of its freedom forever. Her eyes are settled on the big maple tree before her, but her thoughts are gushing so profusely that her eyes seem unfocused. There are so many whys appearing on her mind, there are so many questions left unanswered.
Why is it her? Why is such a thing happening to her? Why is her life turning out almost as though it is not hers? Who is she? Is she Jade Yeva....or Jade Leanne? Where is Jade Yeva? Has she died?
Why is this happening to her? Is it...Crown Prince? Why did Crown Prince....do such a thing?
With the scroll in her hands, she turns left, her vision blurs as finally the tears have escaped her lids, followed by more. Third Prince looks at her, flabbergasted. Through those eyes of Jade, he could see his reflections. Through those eyes too, he sees the same looks on his Seventh Sister, when she first found out about the plans for her marriage.
"....why?" She asks him, but he could never answer her. He does not even know the answer to her question, just like how he never answered the same question asked by his Seventh Sister Moon.
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Author's POV:
"What?!"
"H-His Majesty...passed an Imperial Edict.... To betroth Jade Leanne to Crown Prince a-as...Mistress Leanne...." Lis stutters nervously as she breaks the news to her master.
"NO! Impossible!" She screams, so loudly and so furiously. Everyone in her palace jolts unintentionally, immediately scared of being an innocent victim of her wrath. Her body temperature rises rapidly while her glares grow deadlier and deadlier when all of a sudden a pain shoots up her body, causing her to develop a headache while she gasps for breath. Her delicate hand reaches up for her temple, carefully pressing that part while Lis frantically approaches her master, saying,
"Your Highness! Please do not be too agitated! It will harm your body!" It takes all the Empress has to calm her anger as her headache slowly subsides.
"Why would His Majesty bother about such a lowly palace servant?!"
"Yo-your humble servant heard that....it is His Highness himself wh-who requested for Jade Leanne from His Majesty..."
"Fool! My son Zeth will never act so foolishly!" Her fists tighten against the armrest of her golden chair, while she greets her teeth so tightly. Then she realises something, something that shoots her anger up. Her fingers reach for her thin translucent silk shawl, and grab onto it, pulling it opposite ways.
"There must be someone behind this!" And then the sound of cloth being ripped echoes throughout her chamber.
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Translation:
Mistress Leanne: Lî Zhāo Xùn.
I tried my best to write the Imperial Edict. I hope I didn't disappoint any of you. If I made any mistake, please do tell me!
Well there may be no stories of the characters told in this chapter, but the story has advanced past half, or at least a little more than half. I'm so excited for this story to end soon! Believe it or not, I have already written the ending chapter, but it may change, maybe, I don't know....
So, see you in the next chapter!