From CEO to Concubine-Chapter 138: An Unexpected Offer

"This subject greets Attendant Zhang."

The autumn tiger heralded a new heat wave, bringing along with it a sweltering heat that made the fabric of Zhang Qian’s clothes paste itself uncomfortably to her damp skin. Once upon a time, her station had afforded her finer, airier silks that allowed a refreshing breeze to pass through whilst maintaining her modesty.

But ever since that incident in the pavilion...it was like no one remembered Lady of Bright Deportment Zhang anymore; not the maids and eunuchs who had become lackadaisical in their servitude towards her, not the other concubines who watched her downfall with poorly disguised gloating in their eyes, and certainly not the Department of Garments, in-charge of tailoring the attire of the harem according to their designation.

His Majesty didn’t remember her either. Her big brother crown prince, who would once regard her with indulgence as she took every opportunity to interject herself into his conversation with her older brother...did he even remember that she existed?

The inner palace was the grandest household in the world and also the coldest. Day by day, she felt her zest for life seeping out of her, trapped within the bars of her gold-gilded cage and feeling like she lived in perpetual winter despite the change of the seasons. Watching those who once pampered her, spoiled her, pandered to her every whim, turned their backs to her, the idolatry in their eyes fading to a frosty indifference, was more than she could bear.

Even her beloved older brother...the look in his gaze now was so foreign to her. The love that she once believed to be unconditional was now occluded by a haze of disappointment and he no longer bothered to conceal the calculative gleam that he regarded her with like she was wares that he was inspecting at the market for its value instead of the little girl he used to dote on. She was his sister, shared both his father and his mother, and yet, beneath the accusatory weight of his judgemental stare she felt her blood turn to ice.

The joy of meeting him again after so many years seeped out of her, leaving behind a cold dread.

"Big brother," she mumbled softly. "Welcome home."

"Attendant Zhang has indeed given this older brother a real welcome back to the capital."

The sarcasm in his words was not missed, the slight inflexion he put on her title stinging like a slap across her face.

Shame washed over her. Despite living like a princess for all her life, Zhang Qian knew that her family held high hopes for her. Her love for her big brother crown prince had trumped everything else when she’d been told that she was to attend the selection of beauties all those years ago, the elation at having a chance to be his concubine making her heady. But even then, she’d known what was expected of her. That at the end of the day, the Zhang family was hoping to be the household in which the future empress had been born.

After all, she had the biggest chance, did she not? Her brother was a trusted confidante of the young emperor, she was renowned for being the most beautiful woman in the city, and her father held a powerful position in court but not so overwhelmingly powerful that her big brother crown prince had to feel threatened.

It was perfect. Or it should have been.

But only after entering the crown prince’s household, had she realised just how naive she had been. She was just one of many women and men, plenty of whom had families just as or more influential than hers. Even her childhood friend, the graceful, unassuming woman she had always regarded as an older sister–she had mistakenly thought that Dou Minying would one day marry her big brother–had betrayed her by climbing the ranks faster than she had, even though Dou Minying knew, she knew how Zhang Qian felt about the emperor.

Not that any of it had mattered since the emperor had chosen not to look twice at any of them.

Still, she’d remained confident. Even after the emperor had ascended to the throne and had a world of beauties laid out at his feet for first picking, Imperial Concubine Hui had reassured her that she was still the fairest of them all. One day, she’d told herself, her big brother crown prince would wake up from his stupor. He would let go of the memory of that dead man and realise that he needed a wife, a real woman who could bear him children and support him in his endeavours.

And when he finally looked, he would see her.

That was how her life was meant to go.

It was the Yan slave who ruined all her plans.

Tears welled up in Zhang Qian’s eyes as she reached out and clutched plaintively at her brother’s arm, trying to appeal to the old affection he once felt for her.

"Big brother, it’s all that shameless whore’s fault!" she cried. "He sabotaged me, goaded me into an argument and then made His Majesty misunderstand me..." she trailed off hesitantly at the steely glint in his eyes.

"Made His Majesty misunderstand you?" her brother said softly. "This older brother might have been absent from the capital for years before but do you think me a fool? Does this older brother not understand what sort of person you are?"

What sort of–

His words were like a knife in her chest. He had never spoken to her like that before and it left her winded, ears ringing like he had delivered a physical blow to her instead of making mere conversation.

"Qian Er has not seized the opportunities given," he continued relentlessly. "You told this older brother you liked your big brother crown prince, so I paved the way for you. I told father to support you financially and politically if necessary so you’ve never wanted for anything. You had a headstart over the rest, His Majesty has always had a soft spot for you. Tell your older brother, Qian Er, how many of these chances did you squander?"

Zhang Qian sobbed, shaking her head. How could she make him understand?

"Big brother thinks I’ve had an edge over the rest but in reality, all of us, the entirety of His Majesty’s harem, we’re nothing more than ornaments in the inner palace," she tried earnestly to explain. "The way the emperor looks at Imperial Concubine Yue, how could I even hope to compete? His Majesty came back from the summer palace just to arrange a coming-of-age ceremony for him, there’s even talk that the ceremony will stretch on to the evening, that His Majesty has commissioned wedding robes...it’s like–it’s like–" She took a deep, shuddering breath and swallowed down the mounting despair. "It feels like I’m competing with Big Brother Yun again, like he’s come back to life–"

She cut herself off with a gasp as pain blossomed across her arm, her brother’s fingers digging into her flesh in warning, hard enough to turn his knuckles white.

"L-let go, you’re hurting–"

"Don’t you dare compare them to each other," her brother hissed, the fury on his face contorting his features terrifyingly. "A mere pet who knows little else but how to please a man in bed is as far apart as the heavens and the oceans (1) to Ziyu. If this big brother hears you insult his memory again, I will not be so forgiving."

As if you’ve forgiven me now, she thought with a bitter laugh. But she didn’t dare to retort. In a muted voice, she asked, "What would big brother have me do?"

The grip on her arm slackened. Her brother paced around the small pavilion they were meeting in. Later, she would have to sternly remind her maids and eunuchs not to wag their tongues about the violence he’d displayed towards her. For now, she listened intently for his next instructions.

"Leave Imperial Concubine Yue to me," he muttered at last. "His Majesty has had the wool pulled over his eyes by a brazen fox spirit but there must be a way to show him its true nature." He shot Zhang Qian a glare. "As for you, you’ve embarrassed our family enough, make sure you control yourself from now on." As though bestowing favour upon her, he added, "If you promise to behave, this older brother will try to help you once more. The autumn hunt will be in a couple of weeks and, as you should be aware of, it is customary for an entourage from the harem to accompany His Majesty. Don’t disappoint me this time."

There was a metallic taste in Zhang Qian’s mouth. She’d bitten down hard on her tongue to try and contain the flood of resentment that threatened to pour out of her. Whether Zhang Xiu would be able to reveal the Yue slave’s ’true nature’ to the emperor, she didn’t know, but he had definitely revealed his to her today.

——————————

Supervisor Qi had been largely redundant in giving Cui An any form of valuable information about this so-called ’three-panel interview’ and Cui An had asked around the other guards to see if anyone had received the same request from the Ministry of Personnel but to no avail. His concerns were unwarranted though; midway through a very uneasy morning shift, he was informed by a eunuch that he didn’t recognise that he was to be escorted to the Imperial City.

This was the first time in ten years of working in the inner palace that Cui An finally stepped into the part of the imperial palace where the ministers worked. There was no denying the anticipation that buzzed beneath his skin; although he had always understood the importance of accepting his position in life, at the end of the day, who did not wish for more? In the distance, he could see the grand and formidable Weiyang Hall, where His Majesty held court most mornings, the physical representation of the hopes of young men across the kingdom.

If Cui An had been fortunate enough to have the chance to enter the schoolyard, he might have shared those bright dreams too.

"Guard Cui, this way please."

The politeness of the eunuch surprised him and made him a little uncomfortable. He was used to being dismissed by all but the new guards he guided through the ways of their job, forgotten about until trouble happened with a prisoner and someone had to take the blame for Supervisor Qi’s negligence.

"Thank you," he muttered, stepping through the doors of a courtyard leading to a series of unassuming buildings. He had no idea where he was; this was just a small corner of the imperial city, comprised of a maze of bureaucratic divisions that formed the different ministries and it was all completely foreign to Cui An. He surmised that he was probably somewhere deep in the belly of the Ministry of Personnel but had no way of confirming anything without asking questions.

Asking questions could be a very dangerous thing to do. Cui An chose to play it by ear instead.

Finally, he was led into a room that was decorated in a manner that was perplexing to him. Simple but elegant ornaments sat on shelves against the wall but there was little else cluttering up the space apart from an elaborate folding screen that sat at the far end of the room. In front of that and situated in the centre was a long desk, behind which sat three gentlemen, two of whom were wearing the robes of officials. Cui An had never had to memorise the animal motifs on the buzi that were embroidered on the court attire. His job was confined solely to the inner palace so he didn’t have to worry about offending anyone for not knowing their correct designation, but he guessed that the distinguished older gentleman sitting between the other two was the highest ranked...

...or perhaps not. Cui An’s gaze swept briefly over the young man on the right. He was tall and broad, with features that would make heads turn if he walked down the streets of the marketplace, and Cui An had invested enough years into his physical training to recognise the build of a man whose body was conditioned to be strong. With his straight posture and the air of severity he carried himself with, it was possible that he had a militant background but there was also an undeniable genteel air about him that made it hard for Cui An to be certain. He was dressed in a set of unassuming dark robes, that gave away no indication of his status. Unlike the other two, who were regarding Cui An with a stern consideration that belied an innate sense of superiority, he was completely impassive and Cui An could not tell what he was thinking.

"Take a seat," the older official said.

There was only one chair in the room, placed in front of the table. Given that Cui An had no idea what was going on, he supposed it was in his best interests to comply. It felt odd to sit in the presence of men who were clearly above him in the hierarchy but he tried his best to remain calm.

Whatever he had been summoned here for, he would deal with one step at a time. At the end of the day, his conscience was clear.

The younger official cleared his throat and squinted down at a sheet of parchment before him.

"Cui An, son of a farmer from the Zhu region, served as a guard since the ninth year of the reign of Emperor Wenchun. Is this correct?"

"Yes, Daren." He was uncertain as to who he was speaking to, but every official generically was a ’Lord’ to the common populace. They asked some innocuous questions about his ability to read and write, whether he had any formal education before, what the training regime he undertook regularly was like.

Then, "Tell us about your strengths and weaknesses."

Cui An’s fingers tightened imperceptibly in the fabric of his tunic. The question caught him unawares. Why were they asking about this? Had Supervisor Qi complained about something? The eunuch’s behaviour from the day before had been uncharacteristic but surely even if he were as petty as Cui An believed him to be, involving the Ministry of Personnel just to get Cui An into trouble was not worth the effort.

It was also entirely possible that Supervisor Qi or some other influential member of the inner palace administration required a scapegoat and Cui An was the lucky animal they had selected for slaughter.

He couldn’t get his guard down.

"This small one would not call it a strength but believes I am capable of performing all tasks I have been assigned to the best of my ability," Cui An said cautiously, trying his hardest to gauge their reactions. "But that is part of my duty and I am just fulfilling it. As for weaknesses..." He didn’t think he’d ever been this careful about his choice of words before. "This small one has on occasion disregarded unreasonable orders."

A flicker of condescension passed over the young official’s face as he skimmed through the information before him. "It would seem so," he said. But before he could move on, a low voice interrupted him.

"What constitutes an unreasonable order to you?"

Cui An lifted his eyes. Despite being out of attire, the young man spoke with effortless authority. Cui An noticed that the young official, who had previously been regarding him with quiet disdain, had fallen into a subservient silence.

A higher-ranked official at such a tender age?

He felt his hackles raise in warning. His gut feeling, which rarely failed him, told him that this was actually the person to tread around most carefully.

"This small one is tasked with the guarding of the prison in the Department of Careful Punishment," he said at last. "Guarding a prison should involve ensuring that no one breaks in or no one breaks out. It should not involve commencing torture without an imperial edict, withholding food without an imperial edict, or taking advantage of the prisoners, which I believe I would never receive an imperial edict for."

The young man raised an amused eyebrow. It cut through the intimidating aura he’d radiated earlier on and was the first emotion Cui An managed to read off him.

"I see. And what if you did receive such an edict? Would you carry it out?"

"I trust that my liege has a heart wide enough to encompass all his subjects. He would not ask an act of senseless cruelty from me."

Cui An hated playing politics. He was no good at it as he just did not have the requisite finesse. But working in the inner palace meant learning to read reactions, which was why he noticed when the faces of the two officials blanched, was not too surprised when the older one confronted him on his audacity and the younger quickly followed up with a hasty, "As suspected, Your M—my lord,"—it didn’t go amiss to Cui An that he skipped over addressing the older official to speak directly to the young man—"this Cui An is not suitable to lead the Yulin Army, that is a task too colossal for a mere prison guard and an illiterate one at that—"

Cui An couldn’t believe his ears. They were considering him for the role of what? Lead what?

The young man turned his unnerving gaze upon the officials. "Is Lord Fu suggesting that a literate man would be a better leader than an upright man?"

"My lord," the older official contributed with a deep furrow on his brow. "Please consider carefully..."

Cui An sat there and watched as they debated him in front of him, his heart drumming against the walls of his chest, each echo reinforcing his disbelief. It wasn’t until a quiet cough was emitted from behind the folding screen that he realised there was someone else in the room.

The young man held a firm hand up and the argument subsided immediately. He rose to his feet and disappeared behind the folding screen, and a moment later, a soft chorus of indiscernible murmurs ensued. Cui An minded his own business but the glances he sneaked now and then towards the officials revealed that their expressions turned uglier and uglier as time passed by and the looks they shot at the folding screen were ominous.

Who was behind it? He didn’t get the chance to find out.

When the young man reappeared, it was with a bright spark in his eyes that hadn’t been there before and he looked at Cui An with a curious contemplation like he was seeing something interesting for the first time.

"Tell me, Guard Cui," he asked. "What are your thoughts on part-time education?"