Chapter 1 — The night before the Crown Prince paid the royal concubine, the Ministry of Ceremonies mistakenly gave me my Queen's Order

When the Eastern palace official brought the tea cup to Ta palace, it was coincidentally one hour before the hour of the Rat. The white jade cup was held on a red silk ribbon, looking like a cold bone. The inner servant stood in the hallway, speaking in a high-pitched voice:

"His Royal Highness the Crown Prince said that tomorrow is the ceremony to receive the royal concubine. Miss Ta, as the person chosen to be the main concubine, according to the ceremony, should respectfully tea with the concubine first to show her kindness."

The Buddha necklace in my mother's hand suddenly broke. Pearls rolled all over the ground. The maid lowered her eyes as if she hadn't heard, and just continued to finish her sentence:

“Your Highness also said, Miss Ta should understand.”

I raised my hand to touch the old jade in my sleeve. That pearl was hand-stitched for me before my father went to war. The four corners were polished smooth by me.

“Does the official carry the official orders of the Eastern Palace?”

The maid paused.

“Your highness's edict, isn't it enough?”

"The appointment of the concubine must go through the Ministry of Rites, must enter the sect book, and must determine the main concubine division first."

I look at that tea cup.

“Currently, I have not yet exported or imported books, so how can I rely on tea glasses?”…

The maid's face turned cold: "Thank you, Miss, Your Highness has given you dignity. Don't take it lightly, Miss." Mother quickly took a step forward, pulled my sleeve, her voice trembling: "Minh Duong." The Ta family cannot be tough right now. Both parents and elders died in battle in the North, and military awards were held back for three years. Although the signboard of Ta Phu is still there, only the female family and a few old servants remain inside. During these years, the Crown Prince has always "taken care of" the Ta family. Outsiders say that the East Palace is kind and still remembers the orphanage of the former minister. But only I know, that consideration is like a string. Tightly grabbed Ta Phu's neck. The prince wants me to marry him, I can't back out. If the Crown Prince wants to pay his concubine, I have to smile. Now he still wants me to give tea to his concubine. When the ceremony comes tomorrow, the whole capital will know that Ta Minh Duong has not even entered the Eastern Palace yet, but he has already bowed his head to a concubine. I raised my eyes to look at the maid: "Go back to your Highness, I don't want tea." The room was immediately dead silent. The maid seemed to think he heard wrongly: "What did Miss Ta say?"

“I said, no respect.” I pushed the white jade blanket back onto the red silk strip. “There is no such thing as formality.”

The corner of the inner servant's face twitched:

"His Royal Highness also said that if the young lady doesn't go, I'm afraid that the old reward from the Ta family's parents will have to be examined more carefully by the Ministry of Rites."

My mother's hand suddenly squeezed me tightly. I see the fear in the bottom of her eyes. The military reward that the Ta family had been waiting for for three years was due to their parents using their lives to get it, and it was also a little bit of attachment that kept their mother alive until today. If it is forced down again by the Eastern Palace, I don't know how many more years it will last. My throat feels like it's holding a block of iron. The insider burst out laughing:

"Thank you, Miss, Your Highness knows that you have a strong character, but a woman must eventually marry into her husband's family."

"Whether or not the backyard of the East Palace will be spacious in the future depends on whether the lady understands today or not."

Before I could open my mouth, there was suddenly a loud knocking on the door outside the hospital. Each time it gets heavier. The gatekeeper put on his coat and ran in, his face whiter than paper: "Madam, lady, someone from the Ministry of Rites is here." Mother was stunned: "Politeness?" The housekeeper frowned: "At this hour, why are the Ministry of Rites coming to Ta Palace?" The rain outside the door has gotten heavier since I don't know when. A young man wearing a blue robe was led into the main hall, his whole body was soaked, but in his arms he was clutching a bright-hued brocade. The corner of the box was covered with cinnabar and dragon patterns on the maple tree under the blindingly bright light. As soon as he entered the door, he knelt down.

"Go to the Che Cao room of the Ministry of Rites named Lam Chieu, and obey Ty Sach Bao's order to deliver the royal decree to the noble house, respectfully inviting your majesty to accept it."

In the main hall, everyone stiffened. My mother thought she heard wrong: "Who are you calling?" Tieu raised her head again, looked at me, then looked at the list of books in her hand, bowed her head and said:

“Ta Thi Minh Duong, daughter of the late Trung Vo general Ta Tranh.”

“The letter written on the edict is Miss Ta.”

The inner lady's voice was high-pitched:

"Ho Yan! How can the decree be sent to Ta Palace?"

Tieu was also panicked:

“I don't dare say nonsense.”

"Tonight in the palace, the room changed. Ty Sach Bao urgently urged the young man to bring it according to the order and list. On the box, it was clearly written Ta Phu, Ta Thi Minh Duong."

He lifted the marble with both hands. On the bright red envelope, a line of Chu Phe is neatly written:

"Phung Thien inherited the fortune and appointed Ta Thi Minh Duong as empress."

I heard my mother take a deep breath of cold air. The maid's face immediately turned pale, then quickly turned red:

"Brave! Faking a fake passport is a serious crime!"

He rushed forward to grab the brocade. I was one step faster than him, pressing the lid of the box tightly. The fingertips touched the seal layer, cold but hard. I slowly asked the boy again: "Who sent you there?"

“Ty Sach Bao of the Ministry of Rites.”

“Who signed the order to hand over the books?”