All conditioned phenomena

  Like a dream, an illusion.

  Like dew and like lightning

  It should be viewed as such.

  The Diamond Sutra, Chapter 32: The Unreal Transformation

  In the spring of Yongjia 12, the weather was very strange. In February, the temperature suddenly changed from cold to hot and back again. The old queen in Fushou Palace couldnt withstand it and passed away. A few days later, the empress fell ill in bed, and the imperial physicians came for consultations every day, but her condition didnt improve. The ladies of the inner and outer courts jointly petitioned, so the empress dowager invited Master Huiming from Guoqin Temple to lecture on the scriptures and pray for blessings.

  On the seventh day, the six palaces had just released their spring clothes. Although no one mentioned it in public, privately, everyone was racking their brains to think of ways to add some subtle embroidery to their light gray dresses, without violating palace rules, yet still showing off their beauty.

  To leap over the dragon gate is the dream of palace women. All the delicate makeup and intricate hairstyles are for the sake of that supreme honor, for a glimpse of surprise during leisure time, occasional stunning beauty, or even temporary favor.

  The legend of Han Zhongli is the most beautiful dream in the hearts of palace women.

  The sun was warm during the day, but unexpectedly, by nightfall, the sky grew dark and it started raining. The spring chill came with the rain, wave after wave, and by midnight, there was a loud rumble of thunder!

  Ronger picked up the towel in one hand, exclaimed "its too hot", and at the same time applied a cold compress to Chenlus forehead. She glanced at Bai Pingcai and the others, saw that they were still curled up in their quilts, and couldnt help but feel resentful.

  She flung the towel down on the table with a loud noise, and Bai Ping let out a humph and turned over to sleep. Cai Er finally couldnt hold it in anymore, got up and hesitantly asked: "Is Chen Lu doing any better?"

  Ronger looked at her, wanting to get angry but restrained herself: "Her forehead is getting hotter and hotter, she was originally weak, after being beaten that time, and now the weather..."

  She remembered when she first entered the palace, Chenluos small and timid smile, and recalled that day when she was beaten, her weak and small figure curled up into a ball.

  "If its anyones fault, its our own for being born into a poor family... If our parents had given us a good family background, even if we couldnt become the mistress of the house, we could at least become a third-rank lady official, with some status and dignity, and wouldnt be beaten so easily!" Caier muttered resentfully, thinking of the imperial concubines personal palace maids, their luxurious and noble bearing, and their haughty demeanor, feeling both admiration and envy.

  They were all four rough maids in the Yunqing Palace, because of their humble birth and lack of silver, they were assigned to the miscellaneous labor class, wiping pillars, mopping floors, even pulling weeds and dusting, were their tasks, busy during the day, at night also four people sharing a large bed.

  All the other palace maids were respectfully addressed as "Miss" or "Auntie", but these people, no one would dare to look at them straight in the eye. On any day when the Empress was in a bad mood, she could find fault with them for no reason and take it out on them.

  Ronger let out a cry of alarm, interrupting Caiers lament: "Its no good, the morning dew is starting to freeze... its as cold as ice!"

  Caier didnt have time to respond, when suddenly the white-haired old man sat up: "Whats all the commotion at midnight, cant you let people sleep!"

  "Youre really heartless, Morning Dew only took your shift and ended up getting paint on the mistresss body."

  "Thats her own clumsiness! If someone dies, they havent even died yet and theyre already calling the undertaker to come and take the body away. If they die here, how can people still live here?"

  "Hey!" Ronger was furious and rushed over to tear, but heard Caier shouting loudly: "You guys come quickly... Chenluo, she, shes not breathing!!"

  Ronger hastily retreated three steps back to the eastern corner of the bed, stretched out her hand for a feel, and suddenly sat down.

  She looked at the stiff, frail body, at the pale small face, at the furrowed brow and closed eyes that seemed to still be enduring pain, and she choked back tears.

  This life is so cheap!

  She got up and hugged Chenlu, finally bursting into tears.

  She wept, thinking of her mother and little sister at home, as if she wanted to pour out a lifetime of sorrow in her tears.

  Caier hesitated for a moment before saying: "Ill go call the people from Shantang!"

  She took an umbrella and ran out.

  Right in front of her was rainwater, she shivered, unsure if it was because of the cold or the mournful crying sound inside the house.

  Inside the house, no one spoke again, Ronger sobbed, and Bai Feng gazed up at the sky.

  Half an hour later, Caier returned, her voice trembling with sobs: "The kind-hearted people from the Shanrendang wont come, saying its a rainy day... Let her lie stiff in the house..."

  Shanrend Hall was set up by the eunuchs and palace ladies with kind hearts in the palace. Some of the palace people who had no relatives died, they would pull them out to bury them, now even they are not willing to come. The three immediately understood that they would have to spend a night with the corpse.

  Ronger burst into tears again. Caier stammered: "I heard that on rainy days, its easy to have a zombie outbreak..."

  Her voice was filled with fear, and as the thunder boomed down, it seemed even more chilling.

  Bai Ping shivered and frowned at the stiff body on the other end, shifted uncomfortably under the covers and said: "Dont spout nonsense..."

  The sharp words stopped abruptly, she stared at the corpse with a fierce gaze, and suddenly let out a shrill scream.

  A flash of lightning illuminated the entire room, and the sound of rain filled the air. The corpse was covered with a sheet, quiet and still, when suddenly its eyes opened.

  Her eyes were piercing and her gaze was flowing, making people dare not look at her straight. Her pupils moved around, sizing up the simple environment and the three women who were shocked and frightened.

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  Thunder rumbled, shaking the lamps and candles in the Qianqing Palace. On the left side was a cloud-patterned ceramic stove, shaped like Da Yu controlling the flood, with sandalwood incense wafting gently. The Emperor held a black fan, looking very hesitant.

  He watched the thunderstorm and didnt want to sleep, so he ordered someone to invite Hui Ming Chan Shi, who was lecturing scriptures for Empress Dowager, to play a game of Weiqi with him in Qianqing Palace.

  The way of Go is just two words: calm and tranquil. In the past, it often took several days to complete one game; these two players played until midnight, but only half of the board was filled.

  The white son has become a dominant force, with a tendency to rise and break through the air, while the black son is ineffective and lacks cohesion.

  The situation is extremely dangerous, but the emperor is indifferent, takes a sip of tea from the cup and smiles: "Good tea."

  "Your Majesty, lets slow down and have some tea, but I need to take this one first." Huiming made a crucial move.

  "Oh, Im going to lose." The emperor remained calm and smiled lightly: "The Zen master is indeed a good chess player."

  Looking at his gentle and upright demeanor, Hui Ming thought to herself that it was always said that this immortal had a warm and thick temperament, rarely getting angry, and indeed it was true.

  "Unfortunately, the Zen masters vision is a bit too shallow." The emperors voice, amidst the thunder, was unusually calm and menacing.

  Hui Ming suddenly raised her head and looked into the emperors eyes.

  Under that warm and peaceful smile, the smile did not reach the bottom of his eyes. The emperors eyes were unfathomably deep, like an endless abyss that seemed to devour people.

  With a "ding", Huimings chess piece fell to the ground.

  The emperor stretched out his hand, those five fingers were slender but firm, and he put down a son.

  It was as if in an instant, those scattered places immediately supported each other and responded to each other.

  The chess situation has been set, and the dragon is suddenly trapped in a dead end.

  The Emperor smiled and looked at Hui Ming: "You only need to respond within five steps, but I never count the moves one by one. What I seek is the final success."

  Huì Míng was already startled and flustered by that one glance, having suffered a great defeat, he could only nod submissively.

  The emperor stopped the palace attendant and personally took care of it. He still said casually: "Is the Buddha statue in the Empress Dowagers palace okay?"

  "This is Guanyin Bodhisattva, made of seven parts gold —"

  The emperor cut him off with a wave of his hand: "Does the Zen master think that suddenly embracing Buddhas feet is useful?"

  These were words of ruthless and sinister intent, causing Hui Mings heart to tremble with fear. He vaguely knew that he had fallen into a great trap.

  The Emperor laughed freely: "The Empress Dowager has asked for a Buddha statue from you, while the Jade Void Daoist of the Taoist sect is about to become the Protector of the Country."

  Huiming was shocked and angry: "The Empress Dowager... she..."

  The Emperor laughed heartily: "Its rare to have such a delightful mood today. The chess game is over, please return, Master."

  Hui Ming gritted her teeth, made up her mind, and knelt down to pay respects: "I obey Your Majestys decree."

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  In the early morning, the low-ranking maidservants came to the dining hall to collect their own breakfast portions. As for the high-ranking palace ladies, they had to wait until after serving their masters before having their own little maids fetch theirs; some of them even had their own small kitchens.

  The palace has a strict hierarchy, with each level above the previous one having more people who cater to the whims of those above them.

  Bai Fengcai still had lingering fears, far away from the morning dew, only Ronger lovingly brought porridge and buns, and magically pulled out a paper package, inside which were round and cute boiled eggs.

  "Hurry up and eat, you didnt listen to me when I told you to rest, or else youll faint again. How can that be good?" Ronger scolded like an older sister, but her eyes were full of joy. Last night, Chenluo had fainted from exhaustion, and they thought she was gone for sure. But unexpectedly, after a loud clap of thunder, she opened her eyes again! And this morning, she could even get out of bed!"

  She glared fiercely at Bai Meng Caier and cursed in a low voice, "Two dead girls, what nonsense are you spouting about corpse transformation with your red lips and white teeth?"

  Chenlu quietly looked at her and suddenly smiled: "Rong Jie, you are really good to me!"

  Her appearance was just delicate and pretty, but this smile was exceptionally bright and beautiful. In the blink of an eye, there was a kind of noble and dignified air about her.

  Ronger was stunned and didnt come back to her senses until a while later. By then, Chenlu had already lowered his head and started eating.

  She ate quickly, but without any coarseness, and in a short while, she finished the porridge, bun, and then the egg.

  Ronger licked her lips in satisfaction, then suddenly remembered that she hadnt eaten for several days and hastily said: "Eat slowly, you havent had anything to eat for several days, now youre eating like this, can your stomach take it?"

  "Never mind, Ill drink the porridge first and then eat the other things." She continued to eat sweetly, almost burying her face in the bowl: "Im so hungry, its been a long time since Ive eaten."

  No one heard the sigh in her heart——

  Yes, I havent eaten for a long time.

  Twenty-six years have passed.