Chapter 2: To Be His Bedchamber Attendant

At this moment, Nan Xueyin stood outside the door; behind her, the wind and snow raged, the chill biting, while the room before her was as warm as spring, with red waves rolling. Although the door was already tightly shut, she could still faintly hear the heavy panting and delicate moans from within.

At the dead of night, as Hua Lianying's weeping ceased, the movement in the room finally stopped completely.

Xiao Mingyu called for water.

Wu Zhui passed by Nan Xueyin, carrying water into the room. Perhaps unable to bear the sight, he pursed his lips and, gathering his courage, said, "Prince, Miss Nan is still standing outside, and the snow is getting heavier..."

Xiao Mingyu was silent for a moment, then ordered in a deep voice, "Let her in."

Wu Zhui came out and gave Nan Xueyin a sympathetic look. "Miss, go on in."

Nan Xueyin had maintained one posture for too long in the wind and snow; her legs and limbs felt as if they had been frozen, cold and stiff, almost impossible to feel, and even the bowl of medicine she held in her hand had a layer of ice floating on it.

It took a great deal of effort for her to regain control of her body; she placed the medicine bowl outside the door, slowly moved her feet, and walked into the room.

Inside, charcoal fire was burning, warm and cozy. The doors and windows were well sealed, and not a wisp of cold wind could blow in; it was a world of difference from the outside.

Nan Xueyin walked straight to the bedside.

Clothes were scattered all over the floor, and Xiao Mingyu, wearing moon-white sleeping robes, was sitting on the edge of the bed.

Behind him, Hua Lianying lay asleep on the bed; she was completely bare, and from her neck, shoulders, and back, all the way down to her lower back, were covered in deep and shallow hickeys and pinch marks.

As Nan Xueyin approached, perhaps disturbed by the cold air on her body, Hua Lianying frowned ever so slightly.

Xiao Mingyu immediately pulled over the brocade quilt, covering her body.

Nan Xueyin acted as if she saw nothing and knelt down. "Subordinate Nan Xueyin pays respects to the Prince."

Xiao Mingyu's expression was cold and indifferent as he asked, "The person I ordered you to kill—is he dead?"

Nan Xueyin stated plainly, "Just as the Prince ordered, no survivors were left. He tried to escape in the chaos, so I chased him down and cut off his head. Um... I brought the head back; if the Prince wishes to see it, you may do so at any time."

Even though the task had been accomplished perfectly, Xiao Mingyu did not seem very pleased. He paused and said, "There is another mission here that I must entrust to you."

"Please speak, Prince."

Xiao Mingyu's gaze fell upon her. "You are to go to Fengdu, to the side of the Crown Prince, and act as my spy. Your identity has already been arranged; next year, the Emperor will send five beauties to the Crown Prince, and you will be one of them. Whether by your face or your body, you must find a way to stay by his side and become his bedchamber attendant."

Nan Xueyin looked up in astonishment.

Become the Crown Prince's... bedchamber attendant?

In the past, Xiao Mingyu had also had bedchamber attendants; he knew better than anyone what a bedchamber attendant was supposed to do.

She was stunned and bewildered, and Xiao Mingyu, seeing this, felt an inexplicable irritation. "What, you are unwilling? Do not forget, your life, everything you have, was given by me! You said that no matter what I wanted, you would certainly do it."

Nan Xueyin looked at him, and a smile suddenly bloomed; her black-and-white peach blossom eyes curved into an arc, stunningly beautiful.

Xiao Mingyu found himself unable to look away.

Nan Xueyin, however, quickly bowed her head, offering a respectful salute. "This subordinate will certainly not fail the mission."

In the fourth month of the tenth year of Yongzheng, Fengdu was bright and beautiful with spring.

The Emperor sent Cui Mama, who was by his side, to lead five carefully selected palace maids into the Eastern Palace.

Nan Xueyin was mixed among them, now named Doukou. The original owner's mother had died early, and she had been sold into the palace by her father. She was born beautiful and was lucky; not long after entering the palace, she happened to be chosen by the Emperor.

Nan Xueyin was similar to her in height and build, so she had chosen her, made a Human Skin Mask modeled after her appearance, and learned her tone and manner of speaking, achieving a ninety-nine percent resemblance.

Even if Doukou's own father came, it would be difficult to spot any flaws.

Inside the Eastern Palace, the pavilions and towers were painted in vermilion and magnificent colors, towering and grand. Cui Mama walked in front, her voice slow and naturally imposing: "This is the Eastern Palace. Countless people outside would break their heads just to get in. You few have had great luck to be chosen by the Emperor to serve the Crown Prince; otherwise, you probably wouldn't even see an inch of the Eastern Palace's walls!"

The Crown Prince, Xiao Youlan, was three years younger than Xiao Mingyu. He was the only son of the current Emperor and Empress Rouyi, a precious jade and gold branch, of legitimate bloodline, and had been named Crown Prince very early on.

He was intelligent in his youth, upright and honest; everyone who mentioned him had nothing but praise, save for one thing: his asceticism.

Xiao Youlan was not interested in matters between men and women. Now over twenty, he had not taken a Crown Princess, had no concubines or consorts by his side, and even a female sparrow was a rare sight in his courtyard.

The Emperor felt this simply would not do, so he ordered a selection of women from the palace with clean family backgrounds, outstanding looks, and figures. They were taught the arts of the bedchamber and, through layers of selection, the best five were finally chosen to be brought into the Eastern Palace by Cui Mama.

While speaking, they reached the front of the hall. Cui Mama stood still, her gaze sweeping over them. "Although you have entered the Eastern Palace today, you may not necessarily stay. The Emperor has said that the final decision rests entirely on the Prince's wishes. Whether you can stay depends on your own abilities."

The palace maids rolled up their sleeves, eager to try.

Yet, no one came for a long time.

The sun gradually climbed higher, and the frail palace maids were almost unable to stand.

Finally, footsteps were heard outside the courtyard.

Everyone looked over. Within Nan Xueyin's line of sight, Xiao Youlan walked steadily, surrounded by others like stars around the moon. His black, wide-sleeved robe was spotless, his figure tall and slender, like gold and jade.

The current Crown Prince truly possessed an overly handsome and beautiful face: thin lips, a straight nose, and deep eyes.

He was beautiful to such a degree that even if he committed a heinous crime, people would inevitably feel it was a pity for such a face after killing him.

"Your Highness."

Cui Mama greeted him with a smile. "The Emperor is thinking of you. Knowing that while you have many guards and servants, you have few maids, he selected a few and told this slave to bring them over. Would you take a look and see if any catch your eye?"

Xiao Youlan gave a lukewarm "hmm" and looked toward the veranda.

"Crown Prince, this slave is Linglang, sixteen years old this year. This slave can do anything and is not afraid of hardship." The beauty on the left bowed, speaking first, her voice like an oriole, shy and delicate.

Xiao Youlan glanced at her, his expression calm and unruffled.

A light laugh sounded from the right. "Indeed, little sister Linglang is thick-skinned and not afraid of hardship, unlike me, with my delicate skin and tender flesh; no matter what, I cannot compare."

Linglang was annoyed. "You..."

The woman ignored her and spread her hands toward Xiao Youlan. "This slave is Hantao. Your Highness, look at this slave's hands; everyone who has seen them says they are white and tender, but they don't know that this slave's body is even whiter than this."

Xiao Youlan glanced at her hands, his gaze extremely clear and indifferent, no different from looking at a tree or a flower. After only a moment, he withdrew his gaze.

Nan Xueyin was puzzled. He didn't take a fancy to them?

Is he not interested in women?

The Ye Dynasty had an open social climate; from the common folk to the imperial court, there were not a few who had a penchant for the same sex. Perhaps the Crown Prince...

"What is your name?"

Xiao Youlan spoke suddenly, his voice clear and cold like jade.

He was asking Nan Xueyin.

Nan Xueyin looked up and collided with a pair of pitch-black eyes, like an abyss without a bottom.

Being stared at, it felt as if her entire person had been seen through, from the inside out, with nowhere to hide.

Nan Xueyin lowered her eyes, "Doukou."

Xiao Youlan: "Fine, you stay."

Nan Xueyin acknowledged the order.

She knew the Crown Prince would definitely keep someone, because they had been handpicked by the Emperor, and the Crown Prince could not afford to disrespect the Emperor.

But why did he choose her?

Cui Mama was overjoyed and rushed to say, "To be able to stay by the Crown Prince's side to serve is truly Doukou's good fortune!"

Xiao Youlan glanced at her: "Linglang and Hantao will serve Doukou from now on."

Linglang and Hantao were both stunned; although they were smiling on the surface, their hearts were filled with twelve parts of resentment and jealousy—as fellow palace maids, why should they serve her?

Only Cui Mama was beside herself with joy; she had originally thought that being able to keep one was already an unprecedented stroke of luck, but she never expected that three would be kept at once! Truly, the heavens and bodhisattvas have eyes, and the Crown Prince has finally seen the light!

Cui Mama wept with joy, nodding through her tears, "Good! Good! All good! This is naturally as good as it gets!"

With the matters settled, Xiao Youlan turned and left.

Cui Mama happily beckoned the three who had been chosen to go and rest, her tone uncharacteristically kind, "Oh my, look at you all, you've waited so long, you must be exhausted, right? Your faces are covered in sweat."

Linglang and Hantao stood together, arm in arm, deliberately keeping a distance of two arms' length from Nan Xueyin.

Suddenly, Nan Xueyin realized something was wrong.

Just now, they had stood under the sun for a long time, and all of them were more or less flushed and sweating from the heat; Linglang and Hantao were both like this.

Only Nan Xueyin remained exactly as she was.

She suddenly understood why Xiao Youlan had chosen her alone—he was likely suspicious of her, having sensed something unusual.