Though he had no idea what "rock sugar" was and could only vaguely guess it was something similar to white sugar, divine rewards were never anything less than excellent. Thus, he accepted it with delight. The swift completion of this mission was largely due to the Gu family deliberately spreading rumors in the capital, along with the auspicious signs they fabricated. The common folk were easily swayed by gossip and deeply believed in divine omens, so the Gu family's claims effortlessly convinced many.
Of course, the Gu family wasn’t the only force behind this. Certain concubines of Pei Lingyue also secretly lent a hand, though their methods were far more discreet, leaving no trace. The Gu family alone couldn’t have stirred up such a storm.
Perhaps they thought he would show leniency toward the Gu family out of respect for the Empress Dowager?
Pei Lingyue sneered inwardly. The Great Qi dynasty bore the surname Pei, not Gu. Consort Gu had no sons, so no matter how much the Gu family schemed, they were merely paving the way for others—utterly foolish. No wonder his mother rarely smiled when speaking of his uncles.
In contrast, Yu Miaohua appeared refreshingly indifferent to fame and fortune, her greatest daily dilemma being what dishes to order for her meals.
Gazing at Yu Miaohua’s face, his expression softened to the point of tenderness. "Miaohua, you truly are wonderful."
He remembered this was Lady Yu’s given name, didn’t he?
Since entering the palace, Yu Miaohua had always been addressed by her rank, and even her system usually called her "Host." Hearing someone suddenly call her by name left her momentarily stunned, her delicate face blank with surprise.
[So the Emperor knows my name…]
[That means he pays special attention to you!] The system eagerly played matchmaker.
[No, it just means the Emperor has a good memory.]
Yu Miaohua believed her half-year in the cold palace had its benefits—it gave her a deeper understanding of imperial power. As the Emperor, Pei Lingyue could overturn the world with a wave of his hand, effortlessly dictating her fate. Precisely because of this, she couldn’t take his sweet words to heart. There was no need to explain this to the system; it was far too rigid.
Though she thought this way, Yu Miaohua still wore an expression of flattered surprise, her eyes glistening with touched tears. "I never imagined Your Majesty would know this humble consort’s given name."
Pei Lingyue: "…"
Had he not overheard her conversation with the divine, he might have truly believed her devotion. But so be it—she merely wanted a comfortable life. Many women in the harem loved him; one who didn’t was hardly a loss. As long as she remembered him when reaping benefits, it was enough.
Thus, he too adopted a tender expression. "This emperor has never held someone so close to his heart."
Yu Miaohua nearly responded with sweet nothings, but the mere thought of uttering such words made her cringe so hard she could dig out an entire palace with her toes. Instead, she lowered her head, feigning shyness.
Lunch arrived just in time, sparing her from further acting.
Though being in the Emperor’s presence was exhausting, requiring her to perform at her best, the moment the exquisite food touched her lips, Yu Miaohua reconciled with it all.
It was truly delicious—especially the shrimp and trotter jelly, its fresh sweetness lingering on her palate, leaving an unforgettable aftertaste.
After the meal, Pei Lingyue took the book and white sugar before departing, leaving behind an edict: henceforth, Consort Yu would enjoy the privileges of a Noble Consort and be permitted a private kitchen.
For Yu Miaohua, this was an unexpected delight. As for receiving benefits without a promotion, she understood—after all, she had already been promoted twice this month. Three promotions in a month would be excessive. Securing tangible perks first was more than enough.
Most importantly, she could now have her own kitchen and order whatever she pleased.
She couldn’t help but marvel inwardly: The Emperor was truly the ideal superior, showering her with generous benefits.
[System, your pen name must make a comeback! Let’s head to the library again!]
Once news spread that she had found the white sugar recipe in the library, the place would likely be overrun.
Yu Miaohua wasn’t worried about suspicion. The library had been established by the Great Ancestor when founding the Great Qi dynasty, amassing over 400,000 ancient texts from across the land in the past century. Even the most learned scholars couldn’t claim to have read even one percent.
She had nothing to fear!
The system was equally thrilled—its cleverly named alter ego, "Brilliant Decision System," might also go down in history.
……
"Has it truly spread everywhere outside?"
In Qingyi Palace, Consort Gu was currently enjoying a chilled lychee jelly delivered by the imperial kitchen. Fresh lychees were a luxury beyond her station, requiring immense resources to transport. The so-called lychee jelly was actually made from plum paste mixed with shaved ice. Though Consort Gu loved this dessert, too much ice risked stomach troubles, so she dared not indulge.
She still hoped to regain her health and one day bear a son for her cousin, the Emperor.
At the thought of a son, her eyes darkened with bitterness. If not for the Empress, her child would have survived. She had already confirmed that a lowly maid from the Empress’s palace had been near the pavilion that day. The Empress must have feared her unborn child would threaten the Crown Prince’s position, hence the attack. Yet the Emperor, blinded by the Empress’s facade, still believed her to be kind and magnanimous.
Compared to the currently favored Consort Yu, Consort Gu loathed the Empress far more. If Consort Yu and the Empress could tear each other apart, she wouldn’t mind fanning the flames.
Her confidante nodded. "The streets are abuzz with talk. This servant also heard that during the morning court, the Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices publicly congratulated His Majesty."
Consort Gu frowned. The Vice Minister? She wasn’t aware of any ties between him and the Gu family. Perhaps he was merely currying favor with the Emperor?
Her maid, Shuiming, voiced her confusion. "Your Highness, why help Consort Yu? If this continues, the foolish masses might truly start worshiping her as a divine maiden."
Wasn’t this just handing her undeserved advantages?
Given the tension between Her Highness and Consort Yu during morning greetings, it was clear Consort Gu despised her.
A smug smile curled Consort Gu’s lips as she savored the feeling of being the only one who saw the truth. "The higher her reputation climbs, the more the Empress will resent her. Once she’s diagnosed with pregnancy, the Empress will surely act. Then, the Emperor will finally see the Empress’s true nature. As for Consort Yu—falsehoods remain false. The higher she’s lifted now, the harder she’ll fall later."
What she didn’t say was that she had already prepared the fake pregnancy medicine. The Gu family had planted someone in Consort Yu’s palace, and the drug would soon be administered.
Shuiming opened her mouth, then closed it again. She felt her mistress was being a bit too naive. It was the Emperor who had elevated Consort Yu by claiming a dream from the late Emperor—for the sake of his own dignity, he wouldn’t contradict himself now. Over the past two years, Consort Gu had grown increasingly reckless in her pursuit of vengeance. Shuiming had even tried to reason with her before: just because the palace maid involved was from the Empress’s quarters didn’t necessarily mean the Empress was behind it. The Crown Prince’s position was unshakable; why would the Empress dirty her hands targeting an unborn child? But Consort Gu refused to listen, even suspecting Shuiming of harboring ulterior motives. Eventually, Shuiming stopped voicing her doubts and simply echoed her mistress’s words with flattery. "How clever you are, my lady. I could never grasp such things."
Consort Gu shook her head. "You still have much to learn."
Shuiming replied, "Intelligence is innate. Even if I tried, I could never match you. If I could learn even a tenth of your wisdom, it would be a blessing from the Buddha."
Pleased by her maid’s praise, Consort Gu’s eyes crinkled with smug satisfaction.
But her good mood didn’t last long.
Soon, she received word that the Emperor had opened the imperial treasury, lavishing Consort Yu with a grand display of gifts—yet again.
How many times had this happened now?
Exquisite silks, chests of jewels and gemstones, rare medicinal herbs… even the prized Chongming pillow from last year’s tribute from the Kingdom of Fan and a beaded curtain woven from the vibrant feathers of kingfishers.
In all her years in the palace, the sum of Consort Gu’s rewards couldn’t compare to what Consort Yu had received in a single afternoon.
Though Consort Gu had intended to elevate Consort Yu to pit her against the Empress—the more favored Consort Yu became, the smoother her plans would unfold—knowing this didn’t make the reality any easier to stomach.
The Emperor’s blatant favoritism was unbearable. Did he adore Consort Yu so much that he couldn’t even pretend to be impartial?
His partiality wasn’t limited to material gifts. Consort Gu soon learned that Consort Yu had been granted a private kitchen and was even receiving privileges befitting a Noble Consort.
"What kind of fox-spell has Consort Yu cast to make the Emperor disregard propriety like this?" Consort Gu’s face twisted with fury, her beauty marred by the venom in her expression.
Shuiming hurriedly relayed the rumors she’d gathered. "I heard it’s because Consort Yu presented a method for producing white sugar. The Emperor was so delighted that he rewarded her generously."
Consort Gu froze. "Where did she get such a recipe?"
If she’d had it all along, why hadn’t she used it when she was banished to the cold palace?
Shuiming explained, "They say she found it in a book from the imperial library yesterday."
Consort Yu had only visited the library once—yesterday—and casually borrowed a few books to pass the time. Yet somehow, she’d stumbled upon the white sugar recipe. If this spread among the common folk, the gullible masses would surely believe Consort Yu was truly blessed by divine favor.
How was this fair?
Why her?
Consort Gu couldn’t hold back her outrage. "What have those scholars and academicians been doing all these years? They’ve studied those books for decades—how could they have missed it?"
And now, Consort Yu had reaped the rewards for nothing.
Shuiming ventured, "My lady, should we visit the library too?"
Consort Gu shot her a glare. "And what? Copy Consort Yu? I have my dignity!"
Shuiming hesitated. "Many of the other consorts have already obtained the Emperor’s permission to borrow books from the library."
Only the lower-ranking concubines had gone, though. Those of higher status had too much pride to appear so desperate.
Consort Gu sneered. "Fools, the lot of them. Do they really think they can become the next Consort Yu? Even she only stumbled upon one such book by sheer luck—there won’t be a second time!"
"If she finds another one, I’ll eat this plate!" she declared, jabbing a finger at the porcelain dish on the table.
She refused to believe fortune would smile on Consort Yu twice. Was she the heavens’ favorite daughter or something?
For days, Consort Gu watched with disdain as a handful of concubines practically moved into the library, mocking their pitiful desperation to her confidantes.
Eventually, she redirected her bitterness toward the Empress and Consort Yu.
"Ever since Consort Yu left the cold palace, the harem has been in chaos. A blessed star? More like a cursed one."
"And the Empress, clinging to her reputation for virtue, indulges them—dragging the rest of us down with her."
Consort Gu lamented her misfortune. Had she been born ten years earlier, she would have entered the palace sooner. With her beauty, intellect, and noble lineage, the position of Empress would have been hers—never Yang Zhaopei’s. Her parents had consulted fortune-tellers about her birth chart; all agreed she bore the phoenix’s destiny.
Mid-rant, a eunuch from the Qianqing Palace arrived with an imperial gift.
Consort Gu immediately fell silent. She knew better than to let such words be overheard—she only ever voiced them to Shuiming.
With practiced grace, she stepped forward to receive the eunuch, her face alight with anticipation. It had been three months since the Emperor last sent her anything.
But when she saw the gift, her smile faltered. No silks, no jewels—just two red pouches.
The eunuch opened the first, revealing white sugar.
"This is from the first batch produced. His Majesty ordered it distributed to all the consorts."
Consort Gu’s joy evaporated. The sight of the sugar only reminded her of Consort Yu—how vile. Such a paltry gift was beneath her station.
Resentment bubbled up inside her: Had the Emperor sent even a single hairpin, she could have convinced herself he still cared.
This had to be Consort Yu’s doing. She must have whispered poison in the Emperor’s ear, urging him to send this insult.
Then the eunuch opened the second pouch.
Consort Gu blinked at the crystalline contents. "Is this… ice?"
The eunuch bowed. "This is rock sugar."
Rock sugar?
Upon closer inspection, she saw it wasn’t quite ice—more translucent, glittering like frozen crystal.
A slow smile spread across her face. "Is this a new tribute item?"
If the Emperor had sent such a novel treasure her way, he must still hold her in some regard. "Please convey my deepest gratitude to His Majesty. This sugar is as pure as his regard for me."
The eunuch cleared his throat. "This was made using a recipe presented by Consort Yu."
Consort Yu?
Her smile shattered. "You must be mistaken. Consort Yu only offered the white sugar recipe."
The eunuch shook his head. "Consort Yu found another book in the library—this one contained the method for rock sugar."
Internally, the eunuch marveled: No wonder the late Emperor had appeared in the Emperor’s dream. Such luck was unheard of. Half the harem had practically moved into the library, yet none had found anything of value.
Consort Gu stood frozen, her mind blank with shock.
By the time she regained her senses, the eunuch had long since departed.
Consort Gu stared blankly at the table, where the very plate from that day still sat. The sight of the familiar object brought the memories flooding back.
["If she manages to get her hands on the second book, I’ll eat this plate!"]
Her face instantly burned crimson, as if she had been slapped hard across the cheek.
"Crash—"
With a furious sweep of her arm, she sent the plate crashing to the floor, shattering it into pieces.
Consort Gu turned on her heel and strode toward the door.
Shuiming hurried after her, motioning for the other palace maids to clean up the mess. "Your Highness, where are you going?"
Gritting her teeth, Consort Gu snapped, "The Imperial Library!"
She refused to accept defeat. She would go to the library herself—she was certain she could find a recipe far better than any nonsense about rock sugar or white sugar!
