Tangli Fried Snow

Sherry knelt on the ground, burying her head deeply in her knees.

This was the first time she had ever knelt so thoroughly. It seemed that she had never knelt before anyone since arriving in this ancient era. The soldiers didn't like making people kneel, and she had never seen an official before. The Empress Dowager was the woman with the highest status in ancient times. Even the emperor could kneel to her, so why couldn't she kneel to her?

Moreover, knowing that she was going to enter the palace, she even learned from Xiao Yanzi in advance and made a thin "kneeling easy" sew-on her knees, making kneeling "easier".

The Empress Dowager looked at the young girl who was bowing respectfully and thought to herself that although she looked plain-looking, she had a captivating figure with a curvaceous body. When she was lying on the ground, she had slender shoulders and a slender waist.

The Empress Dowager's kind voice rang out from above: "Good child, get up quickly."

Sherry obediently stood up, and the Empress Dowager beckoned to her, saying, "Come here."

Shirley stepped forward in response, and a palace maid immediately brought her a small stool, which she then sat down opposite the Empress Dowager.

The Empress Dowager instructed her not to be overly formal and to carefully observe her. The girl was young, with a dignified appearance and clear, bright eyes; she was clearly a clever and good child.

Sherry also secretly glanced at the Empress Dowager across from her a few times. This Empress Dowager must have been a beauty in her youth, with a touch of ethereal elegance. She wore a lilac-colored, wide-sleeved palace dress embroidered with tortoise and crane patterns, understated yet luxurious and sophisticated. She had a well-proportioned figure, fair skin, and slender fingers, giving her the air of a well-bred lady from a respectable family.

Her eyes, in particular, are full of brilliance, indicating that she is a wise woman. Just by looking at her, one can tell that she is a respectable elder.

Sherry didn't want to keep staring at her, so she quickly lowered her head like a quail.

Seeing the little girl's well-behaved manner, the Empress Dowager smiled gently and asked affectionately, "What's your name?"

"My name is Jiang Muyan."

“Anyone capable of extraordinary things must be an extraordinary person. You saved Aunt Zhuxiao from the brink of death today, and Ruyi and I want to thank you properly.”

Sherry was surprised by the Empress Dowager's kind tone and gentle manner, so she quickly bowed and said, "This servant dares not, it's just that I happened to have choked on food before, so I have some experience."

"Quickly help her up. I already told you, you don't need to be so polite."

Ruyi quickly stepped forward to help her up. Xueli glanced at her and saw Ruyi looking at her with a smile, her beautiful eyes full of gentle laughter.

"Good sister, no need for formalities. I called you here because there's good news."

Ruyi called out to the outside, and immediately Eunuch Su personally led several people in, carrying several trays on which were placed some gold and silver jewelry, silks and satins.

The Empress Dowager said, "Ruyi, take her to see her."

The eyes of everyone in the room were fixed on Sherry.

Ruyi took Xueli's hand and led her over. There were three trays in total. The first tray contained some gold and silver, the second contained some jewelry, and the third contained some fine fabric for making clothes. There was even a piece of fluorescent fabric, which seemed to be the shimmering brocade that her sister-in-law had mentioned.

Wow! This piece of material is worth a fortune! The Empress Dowager is really going all out.

But now that she's trapped in the palace, she can't spend her money, she doesn't like wearing jewelry, and the fine fabrics aren't suitable for sweeping. None of these gifts can move her.

What she wanted most was to save her life and, ideally, regain her freedom.

Ruyi introduced each item to her and showed it to her, and Sherry responded with a smile.

No matter what Ruyi said, Sherry maintained the same expression and gesture.

Everyone was taken aback. The Empress Dowager smiled and said, "What's wrong? Does Xiao Muyan look down on my gifts?"

Sherry was startled and hurriedly replied respectfully, "Your Majesty, I was born into poverty and was sold by my parents. I was forced to live a life of wandering. My greatest wish was to have a stable place to live and enough to eat. Now that I live in the palace, I can live peacefully every day and have enough to eat and drink. I am already very content to serve such a good mistress as Your Majesty. I have never seen so many good things before, and I never thought I would receive so many good things. I am momentarily stunned. Please forgive me, Your Majesty."

The Empress Dowager gave Ruyi a wink, and Ruyi ordered someone to put the things down first.

She then pulled Sherry back to sit down next to the Empress Dowager.

The Empress Dowager asked Ruyi, who was standing beside her, "Ruyi, what do you think of this child?"

Ruyi smiled and said, "She's just a teenager, yet she remained calm in the face of danger and saved her aunt from peril. She's courageous. When she came to see the Empress Dowager and spoke to her, she showed no fear and remained clear-headed and composed. What's most admirable is that she didn't show any joy when she heard about the reward or saw the gold and silver. She's not greedy for merit or profit. It's the Empress Dowager's good fortune to have such a clever and lovely girl."

The Empress Dowager's face broke into a genuine smile, and she nodded in satisfaction.

Upon hearing this, Sherry couldn't help but feel ashamed. "Aunt Ruyi, you've misjudged me! When I first arrived, I was penniless and a complete little money-grubber. It's only recently, as Young Master Jin's kept woman, that I've acquired quite a bit of gold and silver, enough for my needs. Now, in the palace, I really don't spend much money, and there's nowhere to spend it anyway. Most importantly, I'm constantly haunted by the fear of losing my head, so I have absolutely no interest in these material possessions. That's why I can be so calm about seeing all these nice things."

If you say you'll let me out of the palace, give me my freedom, and reward me with all these good things, try it! I'll jump around and tear the roof off.

Seeing her dazed expression, the Empress Dowager smiled and said, "Even if you don't like these things, little girl, you should still keep them. You have to give this old woman some face, don't you?"

Sherry hurriedly knelt on the ground, pretending to be terrified, and said, "This servant dares not, how could this servant dare to look down on the Empress Dowager's reward? Empress Dowager, please do not make fun of me."

The Empress Dowager and Ruyi smiled at each other. Ruyi helped her up again, and the Empress Dowager looked at her and said, "Little Muyan, is there any favor you desire? Why don't you tell me?"

That's finally getting to the point.

She had already prepared her answer, and when she heard the Empress Dowager ask this question, she pretended to consider it for a moment before slowly saying, "When I was a child, I lived at the foot of the mountain and loved running around on it. In the spring, I would dig for wild vegetables, in the summer I would catch fish, and in the autumn I would pick wild fruits. But since I entered the palace, I have been confined to the courtyard and waiting in the room. It is really uncomfortable. I would like to change to a job that allows me to run around. I beg Your Majesty to grant my request."

The Empress Dowager remained silent after hearing this. She had grown up in a secluded mansion since childhood, and after getting married, she stayed in the palace. She had never been to any other place, nor had she ever run around outside and had any fun.

This girl is innocent and naive. She was so free and lively when she was a child. She must have been uncomfortable with the rules and dullness of the palace. That's why she doesn't care about gold and silver and only wants to run around and have some freedom.

It turns out that what she wanted was so simple.

The Empress Dowager said to Ruyi, "Promote her to be a first-class palace maid and let her work for you. Arrange some free tasks for her that allow her to run around, be more lenient and considerate towards her, and let her run errands for you."

Ruyi smiled and agreed. Xueli was also overjoyed. She thanked the Empress Dowager and, together with Ruyi, happily withdrew.

Ruyi liked her more and more as she looked at her. She took her hand and said, "Now that you've been promoted to a first-class palace maid, you don't have to sleep in the dormitory anymore. You also need to keep those gold, silver and rewards safe. I'll give you a small room to live in and add a wooden box for you. Lock your things up."

Sherry happily agreed.

Haha, a promotion, a bonus, and a private dormitory – this is a huge win!

That afternoon, Ruyi had several palace maids clear out a small room for her. It was originally a storage room for miscellaneous items, and it was the westernmost wing of Gyeongbokgung Palace.

Add a bed, a set of tables and chairs, and a brand new suitcase, and you have a great single dormitory room.

As Sherry packed her things, Su He said worriedly, "Muyan, aren't you afraid to live alone? Why don't you go and beg the Empress Dowager to let me move in with you?"

So you can continue to monitor me?

Only a fool would choose you as their roommate.

Sherry laughed and said, "That room is too small. It can only fit one bed. There's really no room for two people. You wouldn't have anywhere to stay if you went there anyway. We're both in the same palace, so we'll see each other all the time. We came to the palace together, so we should look after each other in the future."

Without waiting for her to reply, she turned and left with her things without looking back.

The monthly allowance for first-class palace maids is three times that of before, and they can also receive silver wire charcoal every day. Shirley sleeps in her new dormitory, warming herself by a hot brazier, with a hot water bottle in her quilt. She can practically wake up laughing in her dreams.

Finally, I can remove my makeup and get a good night's sleep.

I got up very early the next day.

After getting ready, she went to Ruyi's place to wait for her instructions.

Aunt Zhuxiao woke up today. Xue Li and Ru Yi went to see her. The old lady had taken a nap and two doses of medicine and was basically recovered. She held Xue Li's hand and thanked her with tears in her eyes, "Good child, I almost stopped breathing yesterday at noon. In my daze, I felt my body was light. Luckily, you called my name in my ear and told me to try to vomit. I managed to muster my strength one last time. If it weren't for you, I would have died long ago."

Ruyi started crying again, and hurriedly said, "Pah, pah, pah, you're talking nonsense. Auntie, you're going to live to be a hundred years old."

Aunt Zhuxiao took off a white jade bracelet from her own hand and put it on Xueli's wrist. Xueli tried to refuse, but Ruyi forced her to put it on. The bracelet still had the warmth of the old lady's body.

“This bracelet was originally meant for Ruyi’s child, but she’s over thirty and still not married. We don’t know when she’ll be able to have a child. I’m not going to live to see my grandson anyway, so I’ll just give it to you. From now on, you’ll be my granddaughter.”

Sherry was filled with trepidation, but since the women were indeed old enough to be her mother and grandmother, she stopped hesitating, obediently accepted the gifts, kowtowed, and called them "Grandmother."

Aunt Zhu Xiao happily agreed. Then, with a tender heart, she pulled Xue Li aside and chatted for quite a while.

Ruyi told her to rest more before letting Xue Li go.

. . .

The new job was easy; she was just asked to go to various places in the palace to collect and deliver things. No one checked her attendance or watched her. As long as she did the tasks assigned by Ruyi, no one would interfere with her.

At first, she didn't know the way, so Ruyi even sent a young eunuch named Xiangyun to accompany her and guide her.

Xiangyun was a teenage eunuch, with a chubby face and a lively and clever appearance. He became good friends with Xueli in just a few days.

Every day, the two of them would fetch gold thread for the Empress Dowager to embroider, deliver tonics to the ladies in the palace, or bring soup to the ailing Emperor. They would make a few trips each day to complete their tasks, and then they could arrange the rest of their time as they pleased.

In her spare time, Shirley would read books and cram on the knowledge of this dynasty. In just a few months, she had a pretty good grasp of the palace layout, the concubines, princes and princesses in each palace. Of course, that's a story for later.

The most important thing right now is that the end of the year is approaching. Today is the 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month, and there are only seven days left until the New Year. Everyone in the palace is busy preparing for the New Year, and the scene is bustling with activity.

Early this morning, Shirley was given a new task: to deliver the Empress Dowager's gifts to Consort Xian at Lanchun Courtyard.

Consort Xian was a former concubine of the Emperor when he was still a prince. She has two princesses, the elder princess is fourteen years old and the younger princess is nine years old. Today is the younger princess's birthday, and the gifts that the Empress Dowager gave to the three of them are for the younger princess's birthday.

There were a lot of things, including food, clothing, daily necessities, and jewelry. This time, six or seven people went.

As soon as they arrived at Lanchun Courtyard, the Empress's people also arrived. As the head of the six palaces, it was the princess's birthday, so the Empress naturally had to pay her respects.

Both groups were in Consort Xian's courtyard. Consort Xian quickly ordered her head maid to accept all the rewards and gifts. She even took the children and gave rewards to both groups, showing that she was a very tactful person.

If she didn't know how to conduct herself, how could she have given birth to two princesses for the emperor? In the entire harem, Consort Xian was the only woman with two children.

There was one empress, one imperial concubine, two concubines, two imperial consorts, and more than a dozen beautiful ladies-in-waiting.

There were only six children.

One is the Crown Prince, twenty-three years old, living in the Eastern Palace, whose mother, the Consort, has long since passed away. Another is the Third Prince of Empress Jin, eight years old this year. A third is the Second Princess of Consort Shen, thirteen years old this year. A fourth is the two princesses of Consort Xian. And a fifth is the Second Prince born to the woman in the Cold Palace, nineteen years old this year, living alone in Yuqing Palace.

To understand the situation in the imperial harem and the court, we must go back to a long time ago.

Emperor Taizu of Song was weak. During the years of Emperor Gaozu's reign, the court was in chaos, with powerful relatives of the empress in power and eunuchs wielding influence. The country was surrounded by powerful enemies in the north and uprisings broke out in various places in the south. Emperor Gaozu used several of his daughters and sisters to make peace through marriage, ceding territory and paying tribute, in exchange for twenty years of peace and a comfortable life as emperor.

His son, the late emperor, was also a useless man, preoccupied with romance and a life with his favorite concubine. This concubine nearly killed the empress, now the empress dowager. He himself died before reaching forty; rumors say he died on a woman's belly…

He finally ascended the throne, but he was born in a chaotic period when the monarch was weak and the maternal relatives interfered in politics. He grew up in the repressive days of his father favoring his concubine over his wife. He survived and grew up to be a young man. His mother's family was capable and helped him secure the throne.

He ascended the throne at the age of twenty-two, inheriting a court with an empty treasury, powerful ministers, and an annual obligation to pay tribute to others. In the harem, Consort Liu held absolute power, while in the court, Grand Tutor Liu had a vast network of cronies. Even the ministers in the court who were not Grand Tutor Liu's people were either loyal to the Duke of Protectorate, Prime Minister Li, or Grand Commandant Shen; there were no people truly loyal to the emperor himself.