Chief Eunuch Qin bowed slightly. “It was the Empress Dowager who summoned you, Your Majesty. You agreed to it last night—have you forgotten?”
The Empress Dowager was anxious beyond reason, and honestly, even Eunuch Qin was getting nervous about the delay. But he also knew—His Majesty was stalling on purpose, refusing to let her see the boy.
Fu Huang curled his lip. “It’s been a while since the Empress Dowager got to put on her little ‘loving mother and dutiful son’ act. Might as well let her have some fun today.”
Eunuch Qin glanced discreetly at the old ministers nearby. Their faces were expressionless, like they hadn’t heard a word.
No wonder they’d all survived to become the Emperor’s top advisors.
This was the first time Fu Ye had seen the inner palace up close.
It wasn’t as grand as the Forbidden City, but the rich, classical atmosphere still left him in awe.
It was also eerily quiet.
There were countless palaces across the harem, but all of them had their doors tightly shut. Not a single consort in sight.
“Xiao Ai？” Fu Ye asked.
“The Emperor is still single,” Xiao Ai replied.
“Gay?” Fu Ye was immediately on high alert.
“No, but even if he were, you have nothing to worry about.”
Fu Ye gave a look. “Have you seen this face?”
“Doesn’t matter. You’re his brother.”
“And you think a tyrant like him cares about that?”
“He’s not like that,” Xiao Ai said.
“Why not?”
“He might do a lot of crazy things, but incest isn’t one of them. I’ll explain later—we’re almost at Ci’en Palace.”
They were still over a hundred meters away. Fu Ye narrowed his eyes. “You’re just trying to dodge the question.”
“I want to file a complaint and request my own personal system assistant!” he added.
“Sorry, you’re already bound to me,” Xiao Ai replied. “Cut me some slack, man. We’ve been partners for years. Just give me a sec—this new host I’m handling keeps calling me like 800 times a day. Total nightmare client.”
And then—radio silence.
He didn’t even get a polite “signing off” message.
Not even a ding!
Honestly, was the system trying to get him killed? The backstory they gave him was way too dangerous. Not just a fake prince—he was a fake fake prince. One wrong move and he’d lose his head.
He tugged at his collar, sighing as he strolled lazily into Ci’en Palace.
Snow-covered glass reflected the crimson palace walls. Inside the walls were frosted trees and rows of female officials, some with swords at their waists.
Chief Palace Lady Sun was already waiting in the courtyard. She looked warm and respectful.
Fu Ye stepped off the sedan and called, “Aunt Sun.”
“Your Highness, this way please,” she replied with a bow.
Heavy drapes lined the entire corridor around Ci’en Palace—thick woolen fabric that even the wind couldn’t move. Must’ve been for insulation.
Now it finally felt like a real imperial palace. Everything inside was lavish and refined. High-ranking palace women filled the room. Their robes were slim and intricately detailed, mostly embroidered with red plum blossoms. Each of them wore stiff white collars fastened tightly around their necks. None wore makeup, and yet their presence was quietly noble. The contrast between their plain appearances and the exquisite embroidery made them seem regal and somber.
Sandalwood incense hung heavy in the air. A tall celadon screen stood in the middle of the room, painted in gold leaf with a scene of the Buddha descending to preach. It was opulent yet dignified. A lotus-shaped bronze incense burner released a curling stream of fragrant smoke. The entire room exuded peace and luxury.
Empress Dowager Zhang was already on her feet.
She didn’t look as young as he’d imagined—definitely not the picture of pampered nobility he expected. People in ancient times married early; she couldn’t be more than fifty, but she looked at least sixty, her hair mostly gray. Still, her eyes were sharp and calculating.
Just one glance told him—this old lady and the Emperor probably butted heads constantly.
Neither of them were pushovers.
But right now, the Empress Dowager’s eyes were brimming with tears.
Fu Ye felt genuinely ashamed. He was a fraud of a fraud, with zero real emotional connection to this old woman. But for the sake of survival, he pushed through the guilt and knelt respectfully.
“Fu Ye greets the Empress Dowager.”
She immediately reached out to help him up. “You should be calling me ‘Mother.’”
“…Mother.”
Fine, he thought. I’ll just be a good little filial son from now on.
Almost all of the imperial offspring were already dead, courtesy of Fu Huang. Only the two of them were left. Fu Huang—well, he was the infamous tyrant. And he wasn’t even her biological son. She clearly couldn’t count on him.
Even if Fu Ye was a fake, at least he could be someone to dote on.
He knew how to win over elders. You’d think royalty would be cold and distant, but at the end of the day, old people were still old people. Even in a palace, family squabbles were still family squabbles.
He chatted with the Empress Dowager for a while, mostly about his “life abroad” and how close his late birth mother, Lady Zhaoyang, had been with her.
Since this was their first meeting, and he hadn’t yet secured a foothold, Fu Ye was especially cautious. The Empress Dowager asked a lot of questions—maybe out of concern, maybe to test him—so he made sure every answer was carefully measured.
It was clear that the Empress Dowager and the Emperor had a very strained relationship. Every time the Emperor was mentioned, two out of every three sentences from the Empress Dowager were laced with discontent.
“How have you been living with the Emperor? How does he treat you?”
“He has his fits two days out of every three. If you’re fine, don’t pay him any attention.”
It was actually Lady Sun who gently tried to steer the conversation away from this topic.
The Empress Dowager muttered, “He’s got the guts to kill off this old woman too! Let’s see if he dares!”
Fu Ye could see it now—the Empress Dowager was no pushover.
She wasn’t afraid to face a tyrant.
This was someone who could kill royal relatives and high-ranking officials without batting an eye! Judging by his usual manner, Fu Huang probably didn’t treat the Empress Dowager with much respect either.
He had to admit—the Empress Dowager had the courage befitting of someone who’d once been the mother of the nation.
After a polite conversation, the Empress Dowager finally let him leave, but not before giving a parting word: “Don’t worry, I won’t let you stay too long in Qingyuan Palace.”
Fu Ye was a little slow on the uptake and only realized afterward that, unlike what he’d seen in dramas where the Empress Dowager referred to herself as “this palace” or “this widow,” she had just referred to herself as “I” the entire time.
“Xiao Ai,” Fu Ye muttered, “why does the Empress Dowager keep calling herself ‘I’? Isn’t that supposed to be reserved for more formal occasions?”
Suddenly, Xiao Ai chimed in with a bit of trivia: “Oh, ‘I,’ ‘this palace,’ ‘this widow’—those aren’t everyday terms. The Emperor and the Empress Dowager usually just say ‘I’ when they’re not in formal settings like issuing edicts or reviewing petitions. They reserve the more formal titles for official matters.”
Fu Ye let out a long sigh as he collapsed back into his sedan chair. “Can you tone down the ‘sickly’ buff a bit? This is getting ridiculous.”
Xiao Ai responded with a hint of humor: “I wouldn’t recommend it. Honestly, looking weaker might just help keep you alive. You and your murderous tyrant of an older brother? Not exactly the best relationship.”
Because the Empress Dowager had assigned Lady Sun to escort him, Fu Ye couldn’t do much else but pay attention as he prepared to head back to Qingyuan Palace. He intended to recheck the original plotline and assess his situation further, but just as they were about to exit Ci’en Palace, a palace maid approached Lady Sun and whispered, “His Majesty has summoned Minister Xie and others for a discussion. They’ve already circled the palace twice.”
Lady Sun’s smile faded at once. She addressed the group, “Wait a moment.”
She quickly returned inside, and when she came back, she announced, “I’ll escort you back now.”
Fu Ye was confused, but as they passed Xuande Gate, he saw the Emperor, flanked by a group of officials, walking leisurely down the corridor. Their two groups collided right at the gate.
Lady Sun and the other palace women immediately straightened up, their expressions turning solemn.
Fu Ye put on a show, as if he were about to step down from his sedan chair, waiting for Fu Huang to tell him not to.
But Fu Huang merely watched him silently.
With no other choice, Fu Ye awkwardly got off the chair, struggling in his heavy robes. Chief Eunuch Qin quickly stepped forward to assist him.
The palace ladies had already bowed deeply.
Over the past few days, Fu Ye had picked up some court etiquette and now knew not to kneel at every opportunity. Instead, he gave a deep, formal bow.
He was dressed up today, and it made him look much more lively, with his appearance matching the snowy surroundings. He glowed, and even Qin, who had seen many beautiful people in the palace, couldn’t help but be transfixed.
Standing there, he addressed Fu Huang for the first time: “Your Imperial Majesty, my brother.”
Fu Huang glanced at the ornate boxes in the hands of the palace attendants but didn’t speak.
Lady Sun, ever brave, lowered her head and spoke softly, “This servant is fulfilling the Empress Dowager’s orders to escort the Sixth Prince back to Qingyuan Palace.”
The atmosphere grew tense, with the bitter northern winds biting at their faces. Fu Ye looked up and saw Eunuch Qin and several elderly ministers standing near Fu Huang.
Since the Emperor wasn’t going to speak first, Fu Ye decided to break the silence himself. After all, he would need to rely on this tyrant of an older brother for survival.
So, he straightened his posture, wearing a fur cloak that gave him an air of imperial dignity. His broad shoulders and long legs added to the imposing figure, though his exhausted face probably made him look a bit more terrifying than regal.
Just as he was about to speak, Fu Huang took a step forward, walking right past him.
Eunuch Qin and the other ministers immediately followed, with Eunuch Qin gesturing for the others to move along.
Fu Ye watched as Minister Xie and the others struggled to keep up with Fu Huang’s pace.
The Emperor was even more imposing than any portrayal of him in the dramas Fu Ye had seen. These old officials seemed like they were genuinely in awe of him.
Fu Ye coughed a few times and turned to Lady Sun. “Aunt Sun, is the Emperor unwell or something?”
Lady Sun’s fingers relaxed slightly as she performed her bow, seemingly letting out a breath of relief before saying, “Your Highness, please get into the sedan chair.”
After Fu Ye climbed into the sedan chair, she continued, “His Majesty has been suffering from a chronic headache for some time.”
Fu Ye seemed to seize an opportunity.
“I’ve been wandering in foreign lands for many years, often falling ill. At one point, I stayed at a physician’s home, so I do know a bit about medicine.”
Of course, that was a lie.
Before he transmigrated, Fu Ye had been a medical student, and his family had run a traditional Chinese medicine clinic for three generations—so he came from a family of doctors.
However, Lady Sun’s expression became much more serious. “Your Highness, do you still remember the Empress Dowager’s instructions? You’ve been away for many years, so you might not be familiar with His Majesty’s condition. For your own sake, it’s best if you avoid getting too involved with the Emperor. His Majesty’s moods are unpredictable, and he doesn’t like to see people.”
Fu Ye didn’t respond, sitting back in the sedan chair as he looked back. He saw Fu Huang and his entourage walking slowly along the corridor outside Ci’en Palace. Occasionally, an inner eunuch would approach with a memorial, but Fu Huang didn’t even look at it.
At that moment, Fu Ye realized something: the Emperor didn’t look like a tyrant.
He looked more like… a mute.
By the time they returned to the Eastern Courtyard of Qingyuan Palace, Fu Ye immediately called Xiao Ai after Lady Sun and the others left.
“I overheard a palace maid talking to Aunt Sun. Was the Emperor discussing state affairs earlier?”
This was the first time he had encountered such a scenario.
“Fu Huang is different from most emperors,” Xiao Ai explained. “He’s always done things his own way, and his ministers are just there to follow his orders. He often calls them for discussions about state affairs while walking, practicing martial arts, or even when he’s killing someone. They call it ‘asking about state affairs.’”
“Does he really kill people?” Fu Ye asked, unsure.
Looking at Fu Huang’s lifeless face, he couldn’t imagine it.
“He did, especially when he first ascended the throne. The entire court was in turmoil. You’re lucky—he doesn’t kill much anymore, since no one dares to provoke him, and he also doesn’t like meeting people.”
After spending so long talking to the Empress Dowager, Fu Ye was thoroughly exhausted. To indulge in gossip, he made sure to settle into the most comfortable position, much like lying in on a weekend to watch a movie—everything, from snacks to drinks, was prepared.
He stripped off his outer robes, climbed into bed, and then had Qingxi brew a pot of tea. As he sipped it, he said, “Alright, start telling me about Fu Huang.”
Xiao Ai began recounting Fu Huang’s story.
“This character’s backstory is way too complicated. I had to study it for a while. But, to be fair, the royal family’s story is truly extraordinary.”
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