Page 103 of Empire's Curse

But eventually, even Muyang intermingled with the crowd to speak to some of the nobles. Likely imperative political things, but it left her utterly alone and even more out of place.

“Lady Daiyu!”

She turned just in time to see Jia bowing politely a few feet below the dais, an ever-cheery grin on her face.

“Lady Jia, a pleasure to see you,” Daiyu said with forced enthusiasm. She still wasn’t used to all the people coming up to her and greeting her, all of them appearing either suspiciously excited to see her or obviously uninterested in her. She wasn’t sure which category Jia fell into—gossipy curiosity, genuine delight, or a mixture of the two.

“You look beautiful. That dress really brings out your colors,” Jia said with a wide-toothed grin. She gestured to the rest of the event. “Would you like to walk around with me? It’ll be a little while until the lantern is lit, and you look like you could use a little adventure around here.”

“Oh? What do you mean?” Nonetheless, Daiyu descended from the dais and allowed Jia to link their arms together as they strolled along the rooftop venue. From the distance, she could make out the scintillating and brightly lit capital all around them. She could imagine all the common folk and city dwellers waiting and watching the sky for the first lantern to emerge from the royal palace, signaling them to release theirs. A lightheaded excitement rushed over her at the thought of it.

“You looked like you want to explore,” Jia answered with a shrug.

It was a more polite way of saying she looked lonely, Daiyu realized with a flush of embarrassment.

They passed by groups of noble women dressed in colorfulsilks with their bejeweled hand fans covering half their faces as they giggled over their conversations. Daiyu could feel their stares boring holes into every inch of her body. Every titter and chuckle seemed to pierce her and she wondered if they were talking about her. Staring at her. Laughing at what they saw.

“Have you made any friends since coming back to the palace?”

Daiyu almost didn’t hear the question past her own roaring thoughts. “Err, no,” she said with an uncertain smile. “Other than when I went to see you and Lady Eu-Meh, I haven’t met anyone else, unfortunately.”

“Oh, really?” Jia steered them toward a table of sticky rice cakes and honeyed sweets. She took one of the small plates and plopped the sugary desserts into her mouth in one go. “I would have been bored out of my mind being in the palace with no social events or meetings to go to. Have you thought of inviting over nobles from within His Majesty’s circle?”

Truthfully, Daiyu didn’t even know that was an option. “I’m sure I can figure that out once I’m officially …” The sentence hung in the air for a second. Until she was what? The empress? She was already married to Muyang, so how long would it take for her to be his empress?

“A part of this court?” Jia finished for her between licking her fingers. “You’re already married to him, so I think that means you can do whatever you want!”

Daiyu chuckled, taking a small plate of a sticky rice cake. “This is all so very new to me, so I’m still figuring it all out.”

“I think it’ll be great for you to break out of your shell and meet lots of noblewomen. Everyone is so curious about you, the woman who charmed the emperor.” She winked. “If you ever need any tips on who to invite and what to do, don’t hesitate to ask me! I’d love to show you the ropes.”

“That’s very kind of you.” Daiyu wasn’t sure whether to feel grateful or suspicious. Although Jia came across as a cheerful and kind person, she couldn’t shake off the feeling that maybe itwas all a ruse to get Daiyu comfortable so she could gossip about her behind her back. And one thing Daiyu had learned over the years was that she couldn’t blindly trust the first person who lent her a helping hand.

She eyed the rest of the nobles, whose voices mingled together with the hum of the music. Among the crowd, she spotted Wang Yanlin, who was dressed just as extravagantly as she had been on Daiyu’s wedding day. With startling vermillion silk and gold, and swathes of rich purple, she looked dazzling and more like the empress than Daiyu did. A surge of bitter rage filled her and she pursed her lips together at the woman.

Jia followed her gaze and made a small noise in the back of her throat. “Ah. Wang Yanlin, huh? She sure likes to be the center of attention.”

“Hm?” Daiyu’s fake smile was back in place, this time a bit more strained than usual.

Jia jerked her chin in Yanlin’s direction before chewing on another rice cake. “You probably feel uncomfortable around her. I’ve heard her talking all about you during her tea parties. It’s obvious what she’s trying to do.”

“And what’s that?” She didn’t want to come off as fishing for answers, but she was desperate for more information on the viper-like woman, especially since she was proving to be a thorn in her side.

“Oh, you know.” Jia clucked her tongue. “She wants to become His Majesty’s concubine. Or his second wife. She’s vying for the empress position. I did some digging, you know, after you visited me a few weeks ago. Apparently, she’s been wanting to become the empress for years now. She really did think she’d marry him before anyone else. But then, well, you showed up.”

Daiyu barely tasted the sweets as she chewed and swallowed. She couldn’t rip her gaze away from Yanlin, who was batting her lashes and speaking to Commander Yao Bohai. Was she purposefully trying to get close to Muyang’s inner circle? Bohai wasprobably one of his closest men—his right-hand man—so that was very much possible.

“Her dreams and ego were crushed, but I’m sure that’s not going to stop her,” Jia said with a sigh. “What do you plan to do with her? With how her personality is, I doubt she’d want to befriend you and become sister-wives.”

“I’m still figuring it out,” she said vaguely.

“I’m sure it’s only a matter of time,” Jia said with another sigh.

Until Muyang marries her too.

The unsaid words sent a razor-sharp stab through her heart and she gripped the small ceramic plate so tightly she was sure it was about to crack. She had accepted the reality that Muyang would marry plenty of women after her, but the thought alone sent a nauseating wave of weakness over her.

She knew the reality. She knew it, had accepted it. But?—

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