Chapter 8
Early the next morning, Daiyu paced her room hastily, the rug muffling her steps. She was dressed in a beautiful powder blue dress with a pale-yellow sash that washed her out, and although the clothing was beautiful, she felt like an imposter. Like she didn’t belong, and she truly didn’t.
When she caught sight of herself in the mirror—of the gauze wrapped around her throat—she shuddered to think of Muyang and the cruelty he had displayed. Her hand touched the hollow of her throat and she suppressed another shiver.
She still hadn’t seen Feiyu and these past few days—especially after yesterday’s disastrous meal with the emperor—showed her that she badly needed an ally. But the masked mage hadn’t made an appearance at all, and she felt utterly alone.
She needed to find an escape plan. Muyang knew which village she was from, so he could very easily find her family and murder them if she fled now. Which filled her with more anxiety and anger at herself. Yesterday had shown her that Muyang didn’t know exactly who she was, and that meant if she had left with Lanfen a few days ago, he wouldn’t have been able to track her. But she had fumbled her plan, and now she was stuck here.
What could she do to escape? Fake her death and flee? Make the emperor grow bored with her? But the latter seemed dangerous—what if he killed her because she didn’t interest him anymore?
Her mind grew more tangled and she kicked the corner of her couch’s leg in frustration. A jolt of pain shot through her ankle and shin, and she hissed in pain. Flopping down on the cushions in frustration, she covered her face with a perfumed pillow, wanting to scream into it but holding herself back.
Tears burned the back of her eyes and she blinked them away quickly. She was just a simple farmer’s daughter. How had she gotten caught up in all of this? She wasn’t even the type to aspire for greatness, or to have ambitions like wooing the emperor, but here she was, plopped into a position that many women would kill for. And yet it appeared like she would die because of it.
For a while, she just lay on the couch, staring up at the square coffered ceiling of her room—each sunken indent containing a design of a dragon curling within itself. Everywhere she looked, something reminded her of the emperor’s reign, whether it was the ceiling with his dragon symbol, the polished tiles beneath her feet that showed the luxury of the palace, or the platters of fruit with dragons etched around the rims.
Daiyu finally pushed herself into a sitting position. She couldn’t remain here and feel sorry for herself. She didn’t know when she would see Feiyu—or if she would ever see him again—so she needed to have a backup plan for when she would escape this place.
She jumped to her feet and hurried to the doorway. She placed her hands on the ornate doors but hesitated when she imagined Muyang’s beautiful face twisted in suspicion at her. What if he thought it was strange for her to be loitering around the palace like a common thief? What if he still thought she was a spy? Would it be better to stay here?
No, she thought. If she remained, there was a good chance she would never leave this place. She needed a plan, and she needed to act, even if it meant drawing the emperor’s suspicion.
Her mind made up, Daiyu pushed open the door and slipped into the hallway. The guard who was assigned to her door straightened and gave her a surprised look.
“My lady,” he said, blinking at her like he hadn’t seen her before. “You’re not allowed?—”
“Can’t I wander the halls of the palace if I’m to be the emperor’s wife?” Daiyu asked with a small smile, hoping she appeared innocent. When the guard frowned, she continued, “Surely, it won’t hurt to walk for a bit so long as I have you by my side? I doubt His Majesty will care if I decide to cease my boredom by exploring this grand place. Don’t you agree?”
The guard—a young man with a mop of black hair and round eyes—shifted on his feet uneasily. “I’m not sure …” he said after another pause. “His Majesty didn’t give me any direct orders …”
“And so he didn’t explicitly say to keep me locked in here, did he?” She jerked a thumb at her door and kept a cheery expression on her face. She prayed he allowed her to leave, even if it meant he was trailing behind her the whole time. “Come now, I’m bored and there’s no one to talk to, so I’d love to wander the halls and the gardens. I’m sure His Majesty won’t mind.”
He swallowed, and finally, after another moment of awkward silence, he nodded. “I … I suppose it wouldn’t hurt.”
“Excellent! How about you lead me to the royal gardens? I’ve heard wondrous stories of how magnificent they are.” Daiyu ambled down the hall while the guard walked in front of her. He kept a tight grip on the shaft of his spear, his knuckles white with pressure. Daiyu briefly wondered if he was nervous to be with her, or if it was because he was straying from his usual duty of guarding her door.
As they continued through the halls, Daiyu kept track of where they were going and how many twists and turns they took. Her mind became jumbled with the many identical, polished corridors, but she tried to remember the intricate octagonal windows, tapestries, and different colors of each hall—something that made it stand out and would be easy to remember.
When they passed through a hallway with circular windows with delicate lattice work and, upon closer inspection, a snake and moon design around the circumference of it, Daiyu slowed in her steps. The snake and moon were the symbol of the previous MuRong dynasty, which Drakkon Muyang had overthrown. She would’ve thought that all signs of that dynasty would’ve been wiped from this palace when he took over four years ago.
The guard opened one of the doorways and more light flooded the passageway. He gave her a small nod. “This is the north entrance of the gardens. Unfortunately, you’re only allowed in this part of the gardens, unless the emperor gives direct orders to allow you to the rest of the royal gardens.”
She bobbed her head. “How many different sections of the gardens are there?”
“Four or five,” he answered with a shrug as they stepped outside.
Birds tweeted above them and Daiyu breathed in the smell of jasmine, peonies, and sweet plum blossoms. Sprawling trees heavy with fruits and pink blossoms, beds of colorful orchids, and bushes of roses and lilacs surrounded them in thickets. From afar, she could see the stone benches, ponds full of colorful koi fish, animal statues, and stone pergolas embossed with designs she couldn’t make out from the distance. For a moment, Daiyu could only pause and stare in awe. She hadn’t expected to step into something straight from a fairy tale.
“My lady?” The guard turned to her with a curious, concerned expression. At seeing her stunned look, he glanced at the garden, clearly not as impressed as she was. “Shall we continue?”
“I … Yes.” Daiyu hurried after him as they strolled deeper. She almost forgot about her escape plan as she took in the sights of butterflies, dragonflies, birds, and flora.
Between gawping at colorful fish swimming in clear streams and searching for potential routes she could take, they went through the gardens slowly. She made a mental map and kept track of places she could potentially hide—like behind the benches, or the thickets of trees and bushes.
“Are there many guards here?” Daiyu asked as they passed two more guards, who barely gave them a side glance.
“Ah, yes. Since this is an open courtyard, we have to be careful that spies or intruders don’t sneak in here.”
“Oh? Is there a way to get inside here?”
He gave her a strange look, and Daiyu clamped her mouth shut. Was that too on the nose?
“Well, if they can climb up to the roofs.” He shrugged and pointed to the curved roofs on one side. “The only other way is if they’re already in the palace, but I don’t see why they would want to enter here then.”
A frown tugged at her lips. If this was a courtyard-style garden, then that meant she couldn’t escape through the gardens.
“My lady, I think that’s enough of a walk for today,” the guard said, pausing as if to turn around.
She opened her mouth to protest, but something caught her attention at the edge of her vision. A trio of women were walking her way, and she recognized the woman in the middle. What was her name again? Jia?
The trio slowed when they noticed her, and the woman leading the pack tilted her head to the side at the sight of Daiyu. Her doe-like brown eyes widened and she snapped her fingers. “Oh!” the woman said. “I remember you!”
Daiyu smiled uncertainly. She was the woman who had helped lead her to the Lotus wing when she had been looking for Lanfen. “Ah, hello.”
“Good morning, Lady Jia.” The guard straightened and lowered his head in respect.
Jia nodded at him, then eyed the fine dress Daiyu was wearing, a crease forming between her painted eyebrows. “Weren’t you … a servant back then?”
Daiyu laced her hands together to keep them from fidgeting. “Actually, no. And I’m … well, I’m in a strange position, to say the least.” She laughed uncomfortably, and the other two women with Jia leaned forward to inspect her.
“A strange position?” one of the women asked.
The other woman raised her brows. “You … You aren’t possibly the woman His Majesty chose, are you?”
Jia gasped and gave Daiyu another once-over. “Oh, you are, aren’t you?”
When Daiyu nodded, the three women exchanged surprised looks with one another. Jia stepped forward and took Daiyu’s hands in her own, an excited jitter around her. “Oh, you must tell me everything! How did His Majesty choose you? Why did he choose you?” She giggled and turned to one of the women to her side. “You know he hasn’t chosen anyone in years, so we’re all so very curious about what you did!”
“Are you three … here for the royal selection?” Daiyu asked.
Jia’s eyes widened. “Oh, heavens, no. I’m already a married woman, and these two ladies here are my maidservants, Chun and Ying.”
Chun and Ying bobbed their heads at the introduction.
“My husband is in a meeting with His Majesty, so I have a few hours to kill here. And anyway, what better way to spend the time than to hear about how you bewitched the emperor? You must tell us everything!” Jia looped her arm in Daiyu’s and led her down one of the paths.
Daiyu could do nothing but be dragged by the giggling flock while her guard trailed behind them silently. She didn’t particularly like the term bewitched and could only wonder what people had heard about her. Unease weighed on her chest, but it was probably better to converse with these people, especially since Jia seemed to be a noble lady, or someone of high importance if her husband was having a meeting with the emperor. Maybe she could get information out of her?
When they went inside a pergola by the lake, they all sat on the stone benches and began talking at once, asking her how and when she met Muyang.
Daiyu traced the crane carvings in the seat and picked at the debris indented in the lines. “W-Well,” she said as the women leaned in closer to her. “It was nothing special, really. I came here—” She licked her lips, tasting the bitter cosmetic used to paint them red. It probably wasn’t wise to tell them the truth, so she went with what she told the emperor. “I came here instead of my sister, and the emperor seemed to notice me and picked me. I didn’t do anything special.” She omitted the part about how she had accidentally bumped into him in his bathing chambers, as that didn’t seem appropriate, and the last thing she wanted was rumors floating about how she had seduced the emperor.
A cool summer breeze wafted over them, carrying the sweet, floral scent of peonies and chrysanthemums. Daiyu noticed a small, spotted bird perched on one of the railings of the pergola and wondered briefly if there were eyes and ears everywhere. The emperor was known to have a plethora of mages under him—were even the birds listening in on her conversation? And were these women also the ears of the emperor?
She shivered, but not from the cold, and smiled stiffly at Jia, who was nearly bouncing on her seat with excitement.
“He must have fallen in love at first sight!” Jia said with a small squeal, while the other two girls tittered like chirping birds.
Daiyu momentarily touched the soft gauze on her neck and suppressed a shudder. She remembered Muyang’s dark eyes and the pure enjoyment on his face as he drew her blood. There was no way a man like him could ever fall in love. And certainly not with her.
“I don’t think it was love at first sight,” she said with another nervous laugh. “I think he decided on a whim to choose me. I haven’t the slightest idea why.”
“There must be a reason.” Jia smoothed down her soft pink dress with embroidered vines and flowers running along the sleeves and skirts. “From what I know of His Majesty, he isn’t one to do something so random, and besides, he’s had women in the palace for this selection for years, and he hasn’t chosen anyone until now. There must be something you did to invoke his interest.”
The last part came out as more of a question than a statement, and Jia watched her expectantly, but Daiyu didn’t have an answer for her. She instead studied her silk shoes and pressed her lips together. Why did the emperor choose her? She truly didn’t have an idea. Other than blubbering at him with flimsy lies in his bathing chambers, she hadn’t done anything warranting a marriage between them.
“I wonder if this means the emperor will choose more women to be his concubines?” Chun mused. “If he’s already chosen you, then he must be thinking of choosing others? I think it’s about time. People were wondering why no one was good enough for him.”
“I’m just surprised he chose you.” Ying gave her an apologetic look while Chun chuckled. “I mean no offense, but you’re a commoner, aren’t you? I can tell—” She gestured to Daiyu’s hands, which were still tan from her work in the rice paddies, so unlike her face, which appeared pale due to all the white powders the maidservants had forced on her.
“I mean, we all thought Lady Yanlin would be chosen—” Chun began.
“Hush now, no need to talk about her,” Jia said with a frown.
“But, my lady, it’s true. Yanlin is beautiful, comes from a powerful and wealthy family, so of course it makes one wonder …” Chun lifted her shoulders and stared at Daiyu strangely as if she truly did believe she had done something strange to entrap the emperor. “Not to mention all the other noble women who’ve come to the palace and have been either turned down or kept here for months and months. It’s just so strange.”
A blush of embarrassment warmed her cheeks and Daiyu clasped her hands together on her lap. “I … I truly didn’t do anything special.”
Jia crossed her arms over her chest. “Well, I think you’re just as beautiful as the rest, noble woman or not, so there really is no need to bring others into this.” She frowned at Chun, who lowered her gaze. “None of us here know what the emperor is thinking, so we’ll just have to chalk it up to love at first sight. At least that’s what I believe. There’s no other explanation.”
An awkward silence filled the space between them, and Daiyu could only stare at the birds and colorful fish whirling in the pond. She didn’t even know what to ask without sounding too suspicious. She doubted she could ask these three on how to leave this place, and with how much the two servants had been giggling, they seemed to be the gossiping type. She had to be careful with what she said.
“Have any of you interacted with the mages in the palace?” she asked, keeping her eyes wide, innocent, and simply curious. “I’ve heard they’re highly dangerous. Is this true?”
Jia blinked rapidly as if not expecting that question. “Truthfully, I’ve never conversed with any of them, but they’re mages. So naturally, they’re powerful and mysterious.”
“I try to avoid them.” Ying shifted in her seat. “You never know what they know, and what they can do.”
“I’ve seen a masked mage recently in the palace. Do you know anything about him?” Daiyu asked. It wasn’t that she didn’t trust Feiyu, but she wasn’t completely sold on him and what he wanted from her. “He wears different masks from time to time?—”
“Oh, you mean Feiyu?” Jia asked. “He’s the head mage of the palace. I think he wears the mask to keep his identity a secret? Though I don’t know why he needs to keep it a secret. He’s powerful enough to end his enemies, right? Since he’s a mage?” Jia seemed to be asking them, and yet she seemed lost in thought, her lower lip jutting out. “My husband doesn’t really talk about him, even though they both serve directly under His Majesty.”
“Why do you ask?” Chun tilted her head to watch her.
“No reason, just curiosity.” Daiyu smiled. She hadn’t gotten anything useful out of this conversation, other than confirming her suspicions that Feiyu was strange and that the emperor was even stranger. “Since I’ll be in the palace more often, I thought it would be appropriate to familiarize myself with the people here.”
“You’re likely only going to remain in the inner palace, though,” Chun continued with a frown. “In the Lotus wing, most likely, since that’s where all the emperor’s women are kept. And I’m sure His Majesty will now start choosing more women. It’ll become more crowded in the coming weeks, I’m sure.”
“That would be for the best,” she muttered. She would rather Muyang’s attention be on other women than her.
“Really? You don’t feel jealous?” Ying asked. “I know I certainly would feel that way?—”
“That’s enough.” Jia gave the two servants a stern look. “I really don’t think you both need to be making her uneasy like that.”
“Oh, I’m fine,” Daiyu answered, raising her hands. “It’s only natural the emperor will choose more women to become his concubines or his wives. I certainly won’t be the last.”
Or the first, she hoped.
Their conversation drifted to another topic, and soon, Daiyu found herself nodding and forcing a laugh at mundane things like the weather and court gossip about people she didn’t know. And by the end of their chat, she was thoroughly exhausted and no closer to an escape plan than she had been an hour earlier.