Under the tight escort of black-armored guards, the carriage journeyed day and night, finally reaching the imperial capital after more than ten days. The towering city walls loomed like a dormant beast, revealing their silent, imposing silhouette in the dawn light. Passing through the bustling outer city and entering the orderly inner city, the air itself seemed to grow thick and heavy.
Gu Liang pressed her face against the carriage window, timidly observing the utterly different scenery outside, her small hand unconsciously tightening its grip on Emma's sleeve. Emma sat perfectly upright, her gaze calmly sweeping over the orderly streets, the rows of government offices, and the vast complex of buildings glistening with golden glazed tiles in the morning sun—the Imperial Palace.
The carriage did not linger long at the palace gates. Eunuch Shen presented the token, and the heavy doors creaked open slowly, swallowing them into a completely different world.
Vermilion walls sealed out all external clamor. Before them stretched an endless palace avenue flanked by palaces and pavilions arranged like a chessboard—ornate eaves, bracket sets, carved beams, and painted rafters, all epitomizing opulence and majesty. Eunuchs and palace maids in colorful court attire walked with heads bowed and eyes lowered, their steps light and silent. Like well-trained worker ants, they moved through this vast, meticulously functioning machine. The air was thick with the scent of sandalwood, flowers, and a cold, distinct aura of power and order.
Gu Liang was so awestruck by this solemn scene that she held her breath. Emma helped her down from the carriage and into a palanquin used within the palace grounds. As the palanquin wound through the deep palace alleys, the occasional distant, muffled sounds of bells and drums added to the atmosphere of mystery and oppression.
They were temporarily housed in a palace courtyard named Zhilan Pavilion. Its furnishings were exquisite, every item of daily use extraordinary, and the number of palace maids and eunuchs attending them was several times greater than at the Su residence. The rules were so intricate they made one's scalp tingle.
As the legitimate granddaughter of the late emperor, Gu Liang held noble status. Yet, considering her young age and turbulent past, Emperor Minghui spared her from immediate exposure to the full weight of court formalities upon her arrival. He merely instructed that she be well cared for and given time to adjust. For Emma, however, who had accompanied her, the strict protocols were non-negotiable.
The matron in charge of teaching etiquette was a stern-faced matron surnamed Yan, her gaze sharp as a knife. She scrutinized Emma from head to toe, her tone flat yet carrying an authority that brooked no argument: "Once you enter the palace, you must abide by its rules. The princess is kind and remembers old ties, but you must understand your place. Beginning tomorrow, you will study palace etiquette alongside the newly arrived maidservants. Until you pass your assessment, you are forbidden from attending to the Princess."
Gu Liang immediately grew anxious, grabbing Emma's hand. "Matron, Emma doesn't need to study. She can just stay by my side..."
"Princess," Nanny Yan bowed slightly, her tone leaving no room for compromise, "The palace rules are set in stone. No one may transgress them. This is for the Princess's own good, and for Emma's as well. If she does not understand the rules and offends a noble, the consequences would be unimaginable."
Emma gently pulled Gu Liang back as she tried to argue, shaking her head at her. Turning to Nanny Yan, she performed a palace curtsy she had just learned, still a bit awkward: "This servant understands. I shall follow your teachings."
She had anticipated this outcome. The imperial palace was not the Su residence. Hierarchy here was far more rigid, and rules held sway over everything. Gu Liang might gain some leniency through her status, but Emma could not. As an "old retainer," if she wished to remain by Gu Liang's side, she must first refine herself into a "new retainer" who met the palace's standards. Refusing to learn the protocols would not only give others ammunition against her but also cut off her own path forward. She needed this opportunity to systematically understand how the power center of this vast empire operated.
Seeing Emma agree, Gu Liang, though reluctant, could only pout and fall silent.
The next day, before dawn, Emma rose and headed to the Training Department in a corner of the palace. There, dozens of young palace maids of similar age had already gathered. They came from various regions, some conscripted into the palace as punishment for crimes. Dressed uniformly in gray palace robes, their faces bore expressions of fear, curiosity, or numbness.
The etiquette training was rigorous, even harsh. From posture, walking, kneeling, and kowtowing, to the manner of serving tea, handing objects, and the tone of voice when responding—every movement had strict standards. The slightest mistake would earn a merciless strike from the disciplinary ruler on the palm or calf.
"Head up! Chest out! Pull in your stomach!"
"Your stride is too wide! Do it again!"
"Voice too soft! Can't hear you!"
"Keep your eyes fixed straight ahead!"
The harsh reprimands and the sharp crack of the disciplinary ruler filled the air. Many young palace maids were beaten until their eyes welled with tears, yet they dared not cry out.
Among them, Emma stood out like a sore thumb. She learned with astonishing speed, almost as if she could memorize things at a glance. Whether it was the intricate protocols for imperial processions or the complex hierarchy of palace mistresses—their titles, ranks, and preferences—she grasped it all after a single hearing. Her movements might not have been perfect initially, but she adjusted with remarkable swiftness, achieving perfection after just two or three attempts. What astonished Nanny Yan even more was the uncommonly mature composure this seemingly quiet girl possessed. No matter how harsh the training, her gaze remained serene, as if the one being beaten and drilled wasn't her at all.
Emma was not immune to pain or exhaustion, but she regarded these as necessary costs of survival. Like a parched sponge, she frantically absorbed every scrap of knowledge about the palace—the overt rules, the covert taboos, the rough power dynamics among the various palaces. She even analyzed and speculated on the temperaments of the Emperor, the consorts, and the two illegitimate princes from the occasional snippets of conversation she overheard from the teaching matrons.
She knew that here, ignorance was an original sin. Only by mastering the rules could one possibly manipulate them, and even... at some point, transcend them.
Occasionally, during brief respites, she would glimpse Gu Liang in the distance, surrounded by palace attendants as he paid his respects to the Emperor and Empress. Gu Liang spotted her too, wanting to rush over, but was gently yet firmly restrained by the matron beside him. He could only gaze at her across the crowd, his eyes brimming with longing and dependence.
Emma performed a flawlessly standard court bow from afar, then lowered her eyes, refusing to look at her again.
She knew that the chasm between her and Gu Liang, born of their vast difference in status, had been invisibly and rapidly widening and deepening from the moment she stepped through the palace gates. Learning the rules was merely the first lesson this deep palace had taught her.
As night fell, Emma dragged her aching body back to the cramped quarters assigned to lowly palace maids. Her roommate had long since fallen into a deep, exhausted sleep. But by the faint moonlight filtering through the window, Emma replayed the day's lessons in her mind over and over, sketching out a rough map of this vast palace.
The road ahead stretched long and perilous. Yet Emma, from the moment she chose to enter this place, had prepared herself. She would carve out her own foothold within these palace walls. Not to curry favor with the powerful, but for... that freedom, perhaps already beyond reach, and for the promise deep within her heart—a promise to the girl who depended on her, one she herself hesitated to fully examine.