Feng Qing’s sword-like eyebrows moved slightly, and his eyes filled with vicissitudes closed: “If I did that, Mu Empress would immediately tell the imperial uncle that I’m cold-hearted.” He suddenly laughed coldly, “The imperial uncle dotes on his distant niece.”
The man said nothing and withdrew.
I sat nearby, propping my chin and looking at his now-open, tired eyes.
Qifen emerged from her bath, dressing herself while saying, “Xiaohua, why did you enter the imperial palace?”
I lowered my eyes and answered, “My family is poor. I have an eighty-year-old grandmother and a three-year-old younger brother. I entered the palace to earn more silver to support my family.”
Qifen let out a light laugh, “The imperial palace is dangerous. One wrong step, and you could lose your life.”
I smiled along with her, but felt a sudden tightness in my chest, almost unable to breathe. Qifen continued to smile lightly, looking innocent. Her bright eyes fixed on me as she spoke: “You’ve been poisoned. A poison that will certainly kill you.”
“Qifen is changing maids again.”
“Five have already died.”
“Qifen eats people.”
The words the palace maids had told me before surfaced in my mind, and I suddenly understood: “Were the five maids before me all poisoned by you?”
“Yes.”
I gritted my teeth, “Why would you do this?”
Qifen spoke softly, “I want to die, but that beast Feng Qing never lets me. I’ve survived. If I keep killing people, perhaps Empress Lu wouldn’t sit idly by. Forcing him to kill me might be better.”
My mortal body is so fragile. If I stay in it, I might die with it. But it’s not yet the seventh day, so I’ll keep up the act and persist! I looked up and asked, “Don’t you love the master?”
“The person I loved is already dead, killed by Feng Qing. He brought me to the palace, and all my dreams have turned to dust,” Qifen sat down weakly. “He said he loved me, so I’ll die to make him suffer forever. Rather than letting him die, I’ll make him live in torment. The struggle for imperial power is so difficult that even an outsider like me can see how painfully he lives.”
