Corruption, indeed.

Lu Zigao glanced at her, a hint of dissatisfaction flickering in his eyes, but he answered properly, "Last night, His Highness carried you back. There are no maids serving in the Hall of Serene Restraint, and it wouldn't be fitting for you to sleep in the eunuch's quarters. So His Highness left you here. This morning, after attending court, he ordered that you be assigned to the Hall of Serene Restraint. You need not return to Spring Marsh anymore; I’ve already sent word to the Third and Seventh Ladies."

Could it really be such a stroke of luck?

Lingran blinked, probing, "But you said there are no maids. Why am I here, then? What am I supposed to do?"

Zigao shot her a look and said, "Follow me!"

Lingran secretly laughed at his budding eunuch airs despite his young age, but dared not say more, hastily following him out along the long corridor of the main hall.

Only when they stepped outside did she realize that the staircase to the second floor of the Hall of Serene Restraint was situated outdoors. Lu Zigao led her up, pulled out a massive ring of keys, and unlocked the grand central door with a series of jingling sounds.

Lingran had no idea what he meant, but followed him inside—and instantly felt as though she were Granny Liu entering the Grand View Garden, nearly crying out in amazement.

The second floor turned out to be nothing more than His Highness’s dressing room.

Lu Zigao took her from room to room, introducing, "This is the ceremonial attire: crown, jade scepter, imperial robe, inner garments, knee covers, jade pendants, ribbons, four-color ornaments, broad belts, socks—each must be perfectly matched."

Lingran observed the entire chamber filled with ceremonial robes for all four seasons, not merely one set per season, but multiples. Even the crowns numbered four, each adorned with seven strings of jade beads front and back, interspersed with red, white, blue, yellow, and black beads. Beside the crowns lay jade balances, golden hairpins, green and white jade ornaments, and in a large red velvet box were hundreds of jade pendants in varying colors and shapes, filling the room with dazzling brilliance.

Lingran was completely overwhelmed by the intricate garments and accessories, unable to distinguish how they should be paired.

Lu Zigao, unconcerned whether she understood or not, led her to the next room, saying, "This is the belt and accessory vault. His Highness can take whichever he pleases."

Lingran saw the room full of belts—dozens of styles of jade belts alone, plus countless gold and silver-threaded belts, embroidered belts, woven sashes… She’d already been stunned by the jade pendants, but here she truly understood what 'a house of gold and jade' meant. On the central long table were golden and jade hairpins, hair ornaments, strings of coral and pearls, thumb rings, bracelets, gold hoops, jade clasps—even sets of golden and silver ear picks—enough to make anyone dizzy.

Such extravagance! Such corruption! The Chu household could rival Heshen himself!

Lingran sighed inwardly as she looked around, thinking, if only she could possess a few of these, she’d be rich indeed.

Afterward, she viewed Chu Yu’s fur cloak vault, the four-season python robe wardrobe, ceremonial crown vault, spring and autumn casual attire vault, summer wardrobe, shoe and hat vault, and so on, finally concluding that no one in the world could possibly own more clothing and jewelry than that young man!

It was enough to make one green with envy.

Dizzy from the tour, Lingran was ushered out of the second-floor wardrobe by Zigao, who promptly pressed the keys into her hands.

"What’s this for?" Lingran asked, bewildered.

Zigao replied impatiently, "His Highness said you’re now responsible for his dressing, sleeping, and meals. In the palace, that’s akin to the roles of Wardrobe Supervisor, Chamberlain, and Steward. The storeroom keys are yours."

"What?" Lingran exclaimed, "All these tasks for one person? What are you doing then?"

Zigao said, "You think I want this? The chief eunuch would love to snatch these duties! What’s there to complain about? Aside from dressing His Highness and serving tea, the rest is mostly giving orders. There are over thirty attendants from the Gathering Hall to the Grand Study, and here in the Hall of Serene Restraint. Why are you so anxious?"

"So, Little Lu Eunuch, you mean I’ve landed a plum post?" Lingran asked, feeling a bit embarrassed, smiling as she spoke.

"Of course!" Lu Zigao walked a few steps, then suddenly pointed downwards, saying, "You’ll soon realize what a plum post this is. The ladies of every courtyard will be sending you gifts daily!"

Lingran followed his gesture, spotting Lady Chen Mengjie, the Miao wife, accompanied by two maids, pacing the courtyard below, seemingly unsure of what to do.

Lu Zigao said, "You go wash and change. I’ll see Lady Chen. In the future, whenever the ladies come and His Highness isn’t here, you can go ahead and receive them."

Lingran asked curiously, "What if His Highness is present?"

"No one dares enter without his command."

Lingran nodded in understanding and asked, "Where should I wash and change, then? Now that I’m His Highness’s personal maid, my rank is higher… Does that mean I get a room of my own?"

Zigao hadn’t considered this, and was stumped for a moment. He hesitated, "His Highness didn’t say, and I dare not decide. But there are no vacant rooms in the Hall of Serene Restraint. I’ll ask the chief eunuch later."

"Where am I supposed to wash up? Where are my clean clothes? Where have they gone?" Lingran pressed him, chasing him downstairs.

Zigao, growing impatient, replied, "Figure it out yourself. I’m off to entertain Lady Chen." With that, he strode toward the courtyard.

Lingran thought to herself that if Lady Chen or the like caught her here, it would be nothing good—at least she’d be detained for endless questioning. She hurried off toward the rear of the main hall.

Passing through a stand of purple bamboo, Lingran found herself in a different world.

Behind the Hall of Serene Restraint was a tranquil scene of bridges and flowing water, the most striking feature being a glass house nestled amidst the bamboo, draped with gauzy curtains that completely obscured the interior.

Lingran wandered over, seeing a massive bronze water clock at the entrance. The door, framed in frosted glass, was ajar. She pushed it open and couldn’t help but smile.

Inside was a large pool, its walls lined with fine porcelain, evidently a bath. The sluice was open, allowing stream water to flow in, pass through the bath, and exit through a low outlet—ingeniously designed. Beside the pool stood a grand chaise lounge, gilded and carved with dragons, topped with thick rugs. She surmised this was the Prince’s private bath and dared not overstep. She found stacks of silk towels in a wooden cabinet, took one, used the stream water to wash her face and hands, wrung it out, and prepared to find somewhere to dry it.

Leaving the glass house, facing a circle of tall walls, she found nowhere else to go. Hungry, she returned to the front.

Unexpectedly, in that short time, not only Lady Chen Mengjie but also the Third Lady Sun Min, the Side Consort Fang Pin, and the Tenth Lady Wang Yunshu, along with their maids, had arrived, filling the courtyard with a riot of colors.

As soon as Lingran stepped out, they spotted her. Except for Sun Min, whose expression was unreadable, the other three ladies’ faces twisted slightly.

Wang Yunshu, clad in a tangerine-red peony-embroidered gauze robe, was the first to speak, "Ah! So this is the maid? Last night she claimed she was going to the Moon Pavilion, yet ended up here in the Hall of Serene Restraint."

Now that she had been seen, Lingran couldn’t avoid them. She stepped forward and paid her respects, thinking, Wang Yunshu, I haven’t even called you out for tricking me into going to the Snow Fragrance Cottage last night—clearly intending to harm me! Truly, it’s always the guilty who complain first.

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Heartfelt thanks for all the monthly pink tickets from Qiqiao Leaf, Fish Xuanji, and Yi Ling, and for today’s generous rewards from lijinhao131! Also, the editorial office has notified me that the novel will be officially launched on February 1st, at which point chapters will be 3,000 words each, with double updates every other day and occasional bursts. Your support means the world to me, but greedily, I urge you: please remember to subscribe! Love you all.