The Second World in Ancient Times

"Get up! Sisters, a new day begins!" Before dawn, I stood outside the palace maids' residence and shouted.

The young maids came out, sleepy-eyed. I smiled and encouraged them, "Do your best today! Let's go clean the Queen Mother's palace first."

"Sister Siqing, it's so early." A little palace maid said with a yawn.

"It's better to do it early so as not to disturb the masters' rest. Be careful when cleaning, especially the ornaments, so as not to break them." I reminded.

When we arrived at the Empress's palace, I said to the maid in charge of wiping the tables and chairs, "Xiaohua, this table must be wiped clean enough to reflect your reflection. The Empress likes cleanliness. Also, there must be no dust in the crevices between the carvings on the chairs."

Xiaohua nodded seriously: "Sister, I know, I will wipe it carefully."

I turned to the maid who was sweeping the floor and said, "Xiao Lan, after sweeping the floor, wipe it again with a wet cloth. There must not be any water stains."

Xiaolan responded: "Okay, sister."

After arranging the cleaning, I hurried to the imperial kitchen to check the food. As soon as I entered the imperial kitchen, steaming hot air and various aromas filled my nose.

I found the head chef and asked, "Master Li, how is today's breakfast preparation going?"

Master Li wiped his sweat off his face and said, "Madam, look, everything is prepared according to the masters' tastes. The bird's nest porridge that the Empress likes, and the crystal shrimp dumplings that the Imperial Concubine wants, are both being prepared."

I looked at the ingredients on the stove: "Master Li, this bird's nest looks good, but it needs to be carefully picked to make sure there are no impurities. And the shrimp meat for these shrimp dumplings must be fresh."

"Don't worry, ma'am. We are all experienced." Master Li said confidently.

At this time, a young eunuch came in with a basket of fruit. I stopped him and asked, "Have you washed the fruit?"

The young eunuch replied, "Yes, sister."

I picked up an apple and looked at it. "You can't just wash it. You have to soak it in salt water for a while and then wipe it dry, okay?"

The young eunuch nodded quickly: "I'll go and redo it right away."

After checking the food, I went to the warehouse to check the supplies. As soon as I entered, the eunuch in charge of the warehouse came to greet me: "Madam, you are here. There have been some problems in the warehouse recently."

I frowned and asked, "What's the problem?"

The eunuch pointed to the account book and said, "Some of the accounts don't match. There are a few bolts of silk missing, but they're not in the records."

I looked at the account book and thought for a moment: "Could there be a mistake when registering? We need to re-inventory."

So, the eunuchs and I started to take inventory of the supplies. After a while, a young eunuch suddenly said, "Madam, I found it! These pieces of silk were in the corner, hidden by other things."

I breathed a sigh of relief: "Next time you organize the warehouse, you need to be more careful. Everything should have a clear place. It can't be so messy anymore."

On this day, the palace was going to hold a small banquet. I led the palace maids to set up the banquet venue.

"Sisters, this banquet is to entertain several important ministers, so we have to decorate the scene beautifully and grandly." I said to the palace maids.

"Sister Siqing, how do we arrange these flowers?" A palace maid asked me while holding a bouquet of flowers.

I thought about it and said, "Let's arrange the flowers in a circle in the middle of the table and surround it with colorful silk to create a gorgeous feeling. Also, the wall hangings must be symmetrical and not crooked."

The maids bustled about, and I walked around the room, instructing them: "Hang this lantern higher so the light shines onto the table. Also, make the folds of the tablecloth look more natural."

Just when we were busy preparing for the banquet, a palace maid from the Queen's side came.

"Lady-in-charge, the Empress said the decorations for this banquet are too fancy and should be simpler." The maid said arrogantly.

I knew this was a challenge, but I still smiled and said, "Sister, this banquet is for ministers, and if it's too simple, it might be disrespectful. But since the Queen has given the order, we'll make some adjustments."

I redesigned the decorations, reducing some of the overly ornate elements while maintaining a sense of solemnity. After completing the adjustments, I said to the Empress's maid, "Sister, do you think this meets the Empress's wishes?"

The maid took a look and said, "Well, this is pretty good."

In the daily management of the palace maids, some minor conflicts would arise. Once, two palace maids quarreled over a beautiful dress.

"I saw this dress first, it should belong to me!" a palace maid shouted.

"I like it too, why should I give it to you?" Another palace maid was unwilling to be outdone.

I walked over and said, "Stop arguing. In the palace, we should learn to be humble and give in to each other. No one can take this dress. We can make a similar one. Besides, arguing over a piece of clothing is not a good idea."

The two maids lowered their heads, and I continued, "We are all here to serve our master. We must unite and not let these trivial matters damage our harmony. If this happens again, I will not forgive you."

On the day of the banquet, the Imperial Concubine arrived and frowned, saying, "Why is the banquet decorated so plain? It doesn't look good at all."

I hurried forward to explain, "Your Highness, the Empress requested a simpler order, and I did just as she instructed."

The Imperial Concubine snorted, "The Empress said it should be simple, and you're going to do it this way? Don't you even consider my feelings?"

I quickly said, "Your Majesty, calm down. I will make some adjustments to make the scene more beautiful."

I led the palace maids to quickly add some flowers and decorations to the venue, making the atmosphere of the banquet more warm and gorgeous, and the imperial concubine was satisfied.

After finishing the banquet, I went to the palace maids' residence to visit them.

"Sisters, everyone has worked hard recently. Are there any difficulties?" I asked.

A palace maid said, "Sister, we have been feeling a bit cold at night lately. The quilt is too thin."

I said distressedly, "I'll talk to the people in charge of supplies and ask them to change everyone's blankets to thicker ones. Also, if anyone feels unwell, please tell me and I'll call a doctor to see them."

The maids nodded in agreement, and I continued, "We are like a family here, so we must take care of each other. If anyone bullies you, tell me and I will stand up for you."

The distribution of supplies within the palace was also a problem. Once, a new batch of spices arrived, and all the palaces wanted them.

A maidservant of a concubine came to me and begged, "Lady of Love, our queen really likes that new spice. Could you please give us more?"

I smiled and said, "Sister, the amount of spices is limited. Every palace needs them, so we have to distribute them fairly. But I will do my best to meet the needs of the Queen."

I distributed the spices reasonably according to the number of people and needs of each palace. Although some palaces were not very satisfied, everyone understood after I explained it clearly.

One day, I was checking the trimming of the palace garden when I heard a commotion. It turned out that some young eunuchs were fighting and accidentally knocked over a bucket of water, soaking the skirt of a concubine.

The concubine angrily scolded: "You blind people, look at what you have done to my skirt!"

The young eunuchs were so frightened that they knelt down and begged for mercy. I quickly ran over and said, "Your Majesty, please calm down. They were careless. I will take you to change your clothes and have your skirt cleaned."

I took the concubines to change clothes and then severely criticized the young eunuchs: "How can you be so reckless in the palace? Be more careful in the future. Fortunately, there was no serious problem this time. If the master was injured, could you bear the consequences?"

Another time, the imperial kitchen suddenly caught fire, and when I arrived, the fire had already spread.

I shouted, "Go get some water and put out the fire! Tell the doctor to be on standby to prevent anyone from getting hurt!"

The maids and eunuchs all took action, some fetching water, some carrying things. The fire was raging, and I was extremely anxious. At this time, the guards responsible for palace security also arrived, and with everyone's joint efforts, the fire was finally put out.

I looked at the mess in the imperial kitchen and said to the chefs, "Everyone, don't panic. Check to see if anyone is injured. Then we can find a way to restore the imperial kitchen to normal operation as soon as possible. We can't delay the masters' meal."

After the fire in the imperial kitchen, I became more strict in checking the meals.

"Chef Li, in this situation, we have to ensure the safety of every dish. Have all the kitchen utensils been checked? Is there any damaged?" I asked the head chef.

Master Li replied, "We've checked everything, Madam. We're using new utensils and preparing all the ingredients fresh."

I looked at the busy imperial chefs and said, "We must be careful this time. No more mistakes can happen. This concerns the health of the masters and the stability of the palace."

I also told the eunuchs who were delivering the food, "When you deliver the food, be mindful of your surroundings and don't allow anyone suspicious to get close to you."

After the chaos in material management and the fire in the imperial kitchen, I decided to rearrange the warehouse.

I told the eunuchs in charge of the warehouse, "This time we have to put the warehouse in perfect order. Flammable items should be placed in a separate area, valuable materials should be stored in special cabinets, and moisture-proof measures should be taken."

The eunuchs started to act, and I joined in. We divided the warehouse into different areas, labeled them, and stored the supplies by category.

"From now on, every item entering and leaving the warehouse must be recorded in detail, and inventory must be taken regularly. We can't have the chaos we had before." I instructed the eunuchs.

The palace's festive celebrations required elaborate preparations, and on the eve of the Mid-Autumn Festival, I began making arrangements.

"Sisters, the Mid-Autumn Festival is coming, and we need to decorate the palace to create a festive atmosphere. Hang lanterns in the shape of jade rabbits at the entrance of each palace, and place some statues of Chang'e flying to the moon in the garden." I said to the palace maids.

"Sister Siqing, where is the food for the banquet?" asked a palace maid.

"The banquet food must include moon cakes of various flavors, as well as osmanthus wine. We will also arrange for musicians to play some cheerful music and dancers to perform the dance of Chang'e flying to the moon." I planned.

In the process of handling these daily trivial matters, I felt the pressure from all sides. The power of the Empress and the Imperial Concubine was still secretly competing with each other, and my every move was under their surveillance.

Once, a female official who was close to the Empress said to me, "Si Qing, you have to be careful in what you do recently. Don't offend anyone you shouldn't offend."

I smiled and replied, "Thank you for the reminder, sister. I will pay attention. I am just doing my job well and hope that the palace will be peaceful."

At the same time, I also know that some palace maids and eunuchs are jealous of my status and may do something behind my back, but I am not afraid and still perform my duties with all my heart.