BATTLE OF PALACES

HOW DARE YOU!!!!!" ... A voice echoed from an inner chamber and immediately, Ru Lingyi fell to her knees face down, her hands trembling against the marble floors of the room where she found herself. She tried to decipher how she got here and why she was being punished for what she knew nothing about. With her face still on the tiled floor of the room, Ru Lingyí tried examining the whole event, tried recalling,but still nothing rang a bell to her, not until a heavy s***k on her back pulled her back to reality. "Ru Lingyi, can't you hear her highness talking to you?... or are you daft? " A furious lady barked at her. From the manner and tone of the lady's voice, Susan could tell that the woman inside the inner chamber must be 'her highness' that the furious lady is referring to, but who is this highness? "Her highness?... Ru Lingyi?" Susan asked herself, as she tried to make sense of everything." "Hmmm... "I'm sorry ....your highness", she stuttered in an attempt that those words might exonerate her from whatever crime she was accused of. She kept quivering while processing how she got here, what she did , and her way out of this unknown situation but her streams of thoughts were brought to a halt by the furious lady again. "Ungrateful thing!!..it's best you are sent to the Office of Careful Punishment". The lady yelled at her again " I'm sorry, your highness" Ru Lingyi quickly replied again, her forehead almost kissing the floor, not that she knew where or what the Office of Careful Punishment meant. A moment of silence lingered. Lingyi strained her ear, lifting her head a bit to get a glimpse of the situation and why the sudden silence. Lingyi could see her highness stepping out of the inner chamber as the helm of the curtains parted. One could feel the aura she carried, as if she owned half of the world. Língyi rolled up her eyes to get a glance but could only see the flower pot sole of her shoes and the lower end of her garment. "You are sorry?" Her highness asked as she paced left to right in front of Lingyi "What are you sorry for?" She chuckled. It was then Língyi remembered she had no idea of her offense. She rolled up her eyeballs forcefully to see if she could get a glimpse of what this woman before her looked like, but the fear of the punishment that might befall her crushed her courage. "What am I sorry for, what should I say?". Ru Lingyi asked herself as she struggled to figure out a solution, meanwhile her highness kept walking around calmly. But just like the speed of light, Her mood immediately transitioned as she swirled around as if compelled by a wind. "I see you don't want to speak". Her highness blurted out, this time with a harsher tune "Who is there?.. Guards!!" her highness called out. And immediately, two guards ran inside, bowing to her in respect. "Execute her !!" Her highness commanded The word 'execute' was like a wave of air that pulled up Língyi's face unconsciously. But before she could get to see the face of Her Highness or even understand the situation, she was already losing her breath. Lingyí tried speaking as the rope tightened her neck aggressively, her fingers ran over the circular form as she tried pulling them away, but all her struggles for survival were effortless. She opened her mouth wide to let air into her throat, but it never passed through to complete a breath. Life was gradually failing her. The grip of the two guards on the rope increased rapidly, and she could barely hold onto anything. At this point, she needed a miracle, but how could any come to her in this strange world she found herself? "Stop it!!" ...a voice commanded from the entrance and immediately, the guards' grip loosened and Lingyi helplessly fell to the ground, battling to catch a breath. She looked up and saw the woman who wanted her dead, beautiful, young and so innocent. Surprised by her change in demeanor, Ru Lingyí guessed that the one that had commanded her release must be His Majesty—the emperor or someone of a higher rank than her. The footsteps of this unknown person gradually increased as he or she approached. Ru Lingyi turned her neck slowly, to see who had such authority over this chameleon of highness. "Greetings Your highness, Consort Xian" Her highness immediately saluted as she lowered her height while raising her right hand above her head in respect. Her eyes blinked repeatedly, betraying the unease within her. "Concubine Hua, stand up...quickly", Consort Xian gestured with her hand and the mystery highness to lingyi who she came to know as Concubine Hua, stood back straight, wearing a smile that almost got to her ear. "Consort Xi-" "Concubine Hua, what is the problem?" ; Consort Xian swiftly interrupted Concubine Hua, stepping forward. "Concubine Hua....you shouldn't put your precious health at risk because of some lowly servant. Why don't I take her with me? "I need more hands to care for my garden?" Consort Xian said, gently caressing Concubine Hua's shoulder. "Me?, lowly servant!?"... Lingyi couldn't help but lift her head in total shock, "Are they referring to me?.... No! "I can't be a servant in this unknown world of fantasy because of all the things I've dreamed of becoming. "Being a servant is not on the list," she thought. "Oh!!.... Y-y-your Highness" Concubine Hua stuttered, "this servant is so slow, just look at her thin stature, she can barely get any work done." Consort Xian lips curved into a smile, her eyes gleaming with satisfaction as she stepped forward. "Sister!.. "Don't worry, I have the perfect job for her, or...." she paused, as though remembering an important detail, "Are you not willing to spare me just one servant?" She said, her lids narrowing suspiciously. Consort Xian has always been the most eloquent in the imperial harem. No one does it like her in an argument or battle of words and this situation was no different and left with no other choice... Concubine Hua obliged. "Hey!!..get up and pay respect to your new mistress" A'rou, Concubine Hua's hand maid, barked at Lingyi. Lingyi kept still like a statue, kneeling down with both hands on the ground—the only position she had been in since she woke up to find herself in this room. Her eyes darted between both ladies, trying to make a meaning of what had just happened, but nothing made any sense, because right before her eyes she had been transferred to another mistress. "This cannot be happening, it must be one of those silly dreams" she tried convincing herself as everyone's gaze bore into her. "Well... it's time to end this whole s**t" Lingyi said, thinking of a silly idea . As she lifted her head up with her hands in the air in acknowledgment of her new mistress, to kowtow, she deliberately let her forehead fall straight to the ground—an attempt to wake up from this weird dream. But instead, she met with a big bang that almost resulted in a shock. "Silly girl, easy with that... I am not even the Empress"... Consort Xian teased "Tell me...what is your name?" Consort Xian asked. It was then Susan remembered no one knew her name. She thought of coming up with a new name, but then decided to stick with the one she was called...upon waking up. "My name is Ru Lingyi" she replied. "What??".. Consort Xian questioned, stopping her fan mid-motion as she shifted her gaze to Concubine Hua. "How darling of you..do you not know how to reply to a superior?".. A'rou question. "I'm sorry Your Highness". Lingyi quickly added, not that she had any idea of what A'rou meant. "Is the f*******n city now accessible to even a sparrow?"... Consort Xian said, hitting the wooden table beside her seat angrily. "Replying to Her Highness Consort Xian... Please may your anger dissipate. She is just a palace maid from the flower department, that's why she is unfamiliar with etiquette ". A'rou replied, lowering her upper body to a bow. "Well...I will make sure she gets it right if you can leave her with me Your highness", Concubine Hua quickly added. Consort Xian was well aware of the game Hua was playing. "Don't bother, leave her to my care!".. Consort Xian arose abruptly, as she turned to Lingyi, waving her hands in a gesture to follow her, as she stormed out. . "Respectfully sending off her highness Consort Xian"... Concubine Hua said, bowing in respect, her gaze cold as ice as she watched the imposing figure of Xian disappear with Lingyi. Concubine Hua's fury simmered beneath the surface; her relationship with Lingyi so far had been one of domination and cruelty. The body owned by a maid, Ru Lingyi, before Susan time traveled, had long endured Hua's whims and harsh punishments. Hua's treatment of Lingyi was driven by a need to assert her power, a power she often felt was under threat from the other consorts and concubines who vied for favor and influence in the emperor's eyes. To Concubine Hua, Lingyi was a vessel for her frustration, a means to feel superior in a world where her status was constantly under attack. When Consort Xian intervened, it was a direct challenge to Hua's authority. Xian had always been known for her compassion and fairness, traits that endeared her to many within the palace but also made her a formidable opponent. She had observed Lingyi's suffering from a distance, her heart aching for the girl who bore her trials with silent endurance and heaven presented this moment for Xian to intervene.