The "later" never really came.

The palace fell into a state of barely contained chaos, the air buzzing with preparations for the impending arrival of the entourage from the Kingdom of Rayie. Servants hurried along the corridors like ants before a storm, their arms laden with bolts of silk, lacquered boxes, and scrolls of instructions.

A new courtyard was being prepared at Jidegong - the Palace of Accumulated Virtue. Samaya had passed it quite a few times in the past few days, and she had never seen so many workers laboring in unison. Fresh paint gleamed on carved beams, and gardeners worked double-time to prune and shape the ornamental trees into perfection. The concubine from Rayie was to be granted the rank of Virtuous Consort, an honor steep enough to turn heads even in the Inner Palace. There were only two positions for that rank; one was already held by Consort Song Yuhan, mother of the Emperor's eldest daughter, Fang. That alone was enough to make clear how important this woman was going to be in court politics.

It drove home the truth - this was not a mere ceremonial welcome. This concubine was likely one of the keystones of the fragile truce between the two nations. Rumors rippled through the palace that the Emperor himself had personally approved the arrangements: a military parade to showcase strength, three days of celebration in the Palace, and feasts that would put the mid-autumn banquet to shame.

Beyond the palace gates, the city was in a state of restless anticipation. Crowds thronged the main streets, merchants from the farthest provinces arrived with exotic wares, and the designated festival markets were already bursting with stalls selling silk embroidery, rare spices, toys for children, and who knew what else.

Even Hua sent the message that the red light district was far livelier than usual. She sent a message back to her to be careful and asked Ah-Liu to arrange someone from the Underworld to keep watch on her so she did not fall victim to unsavory customers.

She herself had been tempted, briefly, to slip into the city and see the festival atmosphere for herself. It was a childish impulse, one she smothered before it could grow roots. With all these people coming and going, she felt too anxious to leave Manu alone, and she did not want to risk taking him outside. The Shadow Guards were good, but there was no telling what would happen outside, especially in a crowd. Better stay in the Palace, where security was visibly tightened until the air itself felt tight.

Samaya wanted to ask the Emperor to place at least two more Shadow Guard around Manu. However, Samaya had not seen hide or hair of the man for over a week. The man must be incredibly busy. It was … unsettling. Now that she thought about it, she had never gone this long without speaking to the man. Whether it was for Manu or herself, she did not know. But the Emperor had come to dine with her at least once a week, no matter how busy he was. Sometimes, when incidents kept happening left and right, they would talk and plan. Other times, when things were calmer, they would make idle chatter, Manu playing between them. They would sometimes even eat in utter silence, finding the mere presence of the other comfortable. She had gotten used to his presence, had perhaps even come to expect it. It was only now that she realised it. The absence now left a strange emptiness in her days, one she hadn't noticed until it was already there.

Well, on the positive side, her time with Fu Caiyi increased in both length and frequency.

They would visit each other frequently, often without notice. They would chat about anything and everything. They'd dropped much of the veneer of formalities they'd previously held on to, only maintaining those strictly required of them, especially in a crowd.

Like now.

This would probably be the last morning tea for a while. The Empress had a little over a month left before her due date. She was sitting on a raised chaise, and her food was being brought to her by the maids. Not that she ate much except tea and some snacks.

Samaya munched on a biscuit as she absently listened to the Empress speak about when the entourage would arrive, about how there would be a welcoming banquet for the new concubine and her retinue, about how the celebrations would go.

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"The retinue shall arrive on the twenty-first day of this moon. There will be a welcoming banquet that same evening. The following day has been left free for the guests to rest after their long journey. The celebrations shall commence on the second day after their arrival."

So - eight days until arrival, ten until the festivities began.

"As you may have heard, the truce will be celebrated with three days of festivities." So, the rumors were true. "The Emperor has sent a message for the concubines." Samaya felt rather than heard the subtle shift around her as the concubines straightened. Samaya, too, turned her attention toward the Empress as she sipped her tea, washing down the crumbles coating her mouth down her throat. "His Majesty heavily encourages all the Ladies and Unranked Concubines to perform on the last day of the celebrations. If you perform well and please the Emperor, you may get promoted."

Excited murmurs rippled through the concubines as they spoke amongst themselves. It was not often that an opportunity to get promoted in ranks presented itself so blatantly. And of course, all those ranked Lady and below would wish to grab the opportunity.

"You have one week. Prepare well."

Well, nothing she had to worry about.

Or that was what she thought.

"What is this?"

She asked as she looked at the scroll with the Imperial Seal being held out by the Eunuch, head bowed.

"The Emperor has sent a message for Lady Qing."

Samaya sighed softly as she took the scroll from him, ignoring the excited whispering of her maids. The Eunuch straightened but did not move to leave as one usually would.

Samaya raised an eyebrow at him. "Is there something you're waiting for?"

"The Emperor insisted that you read the letter and write him an answer. I am not to leave until I have your reply."

She frowned. That was strange. The Emperor had never before insisted on such things. She felt a strange twisting in her chest that she recognized as the beginnings of anxiety. She quickly opened the scroll, a frown marring her face, which then quickly smoothed out to be replaced by an irritated expression as she read the letter.

Ya'er, as you may know, the concubines have been encouraged to perform in the upcoming celebrations. We would so wish to see you perform. Wouldn't you fulfill this wish of Ours?

Her eyebrow twitched. This man.

"Su, bring me parchment and ink."

With that, she sat down to write a reply to the man. A single word.

No.

She wrote it in such large letters that even the Eunuch standing a few feet away from her saw it. She ignored his uneasy shifting and wrapped up the scroll, tying it before handing it over to the Eunuch.

"There."

"Lady Qing, this…"

"What? You were only told to bring back a reply. Do not worry. The Emperor will not punish the messenger."

The Eunuch hesitated for a moment and then bowed before making his way out. And that was that. Or so she thought.

Only a little over half an hour had passed when the little Eunuch came back with another missive. She groaned softly.

Do you realise that We can very well issue an Imperial Decree ordering you to perform?

And thus began the back and forth.

You can. You will not.

What makes you so certain, Ya'er? What if We do?

Even if you do, it is useless. I cannot perform. Oh, and change your messenger. This one looks on the verge of death from running back and forth.

Why not?

Because I cannot perform anything that would be befitting of a concubine of the Imperial Harem. Anything that I might be able to perform would be utterly scandalous, at best.

So, you can perform.

Your Majesty, if I perform, it would only result in humiliation for you, and in your beloved concubines getting on my case for being unworthy of my place in the Imperial Harem.

We shall tear out the tongue of anyone who dares slander you, Ya'er. You need not worry,

No, you will not. The fact remains, I cannot perform. So, please stop exhausting these poor Eunuchs. Do you not have work to do?

We can take some time to converse with Our concubine, can We not? It does not take long to write a few words on paper.

Well, I would like to end this conversation, Your Majesty.

"What was that about?" Fu Caiyi asked, looking at the young Eunuch scurrying away.

Fu Caiyi had arrived for lunch a while back, and the latest letter had arrived when they were settling in to eat.

"Hm?" She turned her attention to Fu Caiyi. "Oh, the Emperor wants me to perform. I refused."

At her questioning look, Samaya explained everything, irritation coloring her voice.

"I grew up among commoners. How does he expect me to perform?!" She threw her hands up in the air, frustration clear on her face.

"Lady Qing." Fu Caiyi's hesitant voice pulled her attention to the woman, who had a thoughtful look on her face. Samaya waited for her to gather her words. It took a few moments, but she finally looked Samaya in the eye and spoke.

"Would you like to perform with me?"

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