TFRLTOP Chapter 54 Part 1

Chapter 54 – The Tyrant’s Beloved

◎ One Lan Concubine is more than enough ◎

After killing the officials, Emperor Wanqian felt utterly refreshed. He ordered that the corpses of those reckless censors who dared to remonstrate with him be hung at the palace gates, so the ministers passing by for tomorrow’s morning court could get a good look.

The attendants, trembling, hurried off to see it done.

“Whose daughters were brought into the palace today?” Wanqian casually asked while wiping the blood from his hands.

“Your Majesty, they’re the daughters of Lord Jiang Wenyuan, Minister of the Imperial Sacrifices,” replied his chief eunuch, Gao Fu, bowing low.

“All three?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Wanqian let out a cold laugh. “Look at that—every last official in court scrambling to be my father-in-law. One daughter isn’t enough; he has to send in three.”

Gao Fu forced a chuckle, but dared not add a word.

For three centuries, the emperors of the Great Li Dynasty had prided themselves on benevolence and compassion. Even when ministers pointed at their noses and scolded them in open court, they could still laugh it off. Some called it true kindness, others false mercy—everyone had their own view.

But with Emperor Wanqian Li He, ministers who dared to lecture him were met not with tolerance, but with swift executions.

Now, no one argued anymore over whether his cruelty was real.

“The Jiang family’s ambition is no small thing,” Wanqian said as he wiped his hands clean and headed back to the palace. On the way, he asked Gao Fu, “What do you think of the Jiang sisters?”

Gao Fu carefully gauged the emperor’s mood before answering. “In this slave’s humble opinion, the three young ladies of the Jiang family are all refined and virtuous, paragons of womanhood. To serve Your Majesty would be their greatest honor.”

Wanqian gave a low chuckle. “Jiang Wenyuan… how should I judge that man? He never steps forward himself, always hiding in the shadows, fanning the flames while letting hotheaded censors charge into the fire for him. Their heads roll, and what does he do? At the same time, he sends his daughters into the palace. I wonder, in the dead of night, do those dead men’s vengeful souls ever stand by his bedside?”

“Does he realize that by scattering his bets so widely, he may well end up with nothing at all?”

Leaning back against the palanquin, Wanqian brooded for a while, then whispered a few instructions to Gao Fu.

“I’ll see for myself what schemes his daughters bring with them.”

The Jiang sisters were assigned to different palaces. Mingming was led by a young eunuch past countless splendid halls, watching as her two elder sisters were shown to their residences first. Only after walking for another stick of incense’s time did she finally arrive at her own quarters.

The place was called Snowfall Pavilion. Compared to the grand residences of Jiang Ruotian and Jiang Fuling, it was far humbler. Yet while other palaces housed multiple consorts, Snowfall Pavilion seemed to be reserved for Mingming alone.

…Rather secluded.

Hey, she’s an illegitimate daughter, but that doesn’t mean they can toss her straight into the Cold Palace, right?

A supporting character not staying close to the heroine to advance the plot? That’s not a supporting character, that’s a background extra!

Though small, the pavilion had no shortage of eunuchs and maids. The moment Mingming entered, they all dropped to their knees in unison.

She quickly embraced her role as “background extra,” dismissed them, and went straight into the bedchamber to search for a mirror.

“What do you need a mirror for?”

“To see just how ugly this Jiang Zelan is supposed to be,” Mingming muttered. “It’s not like it has anything to do with me, but I’m really curious. Even if we don’t share the same mother, there’s no reason for my sisters to be dazzling beauties while I’m hideous beyond words…”

She lifted a bronze mirror, tilting it to reflect her face.

Even if it wasn’t as flawless as modern glass, it was more than enough to see oneself clearly.

At that instant, Mingming froze.

One second ago, she’d been insisting Jiang Zelan’s looks had nothing to do with her; the next, she realized—

This face looked familiar.

No, more than familiar.

The face of Jiang Zelan was exactly the face Mingming had in real life.

“…”

Mingming nearly exploded.

She slammed the bronze mirror onto the floor with a loud clang and cursed, “Is Jiang Fuling blind or just sick in the head? Ugly? Where’s the ugly? Where?? This face is gorgeous! She says I’m hideous? She’s the ugly one! The ugliest of all!”

The system tried to calm her. “Stay calm…”

“Calm down? I can’t calm down!” Mingming roared. “On what basis does she call me ugly? My nose is perfect, my eyes are huge—every feature is in exactly the right place. Her nose isn’t as straight as mine, her eyes aren’t as big. The dean once said my natural double eyelids were flawless, impossible to replicate with surgery. She doesn’t even have double eyelids! When she squints, she looks like a crook—and she dares call me ugly??”

“That’s called phoenix eyes…”

“I don’t care! Tell me! Am I ugly?” Mingming demanded, panting with fury.

“…Not ugly, not ugly at all.”

Hands on her hips, Mingming stomped about the room, still seething.

She’d never liked judging people by their looks, but in this moment, she viciously tore Jiang Fuling apart from head to toe. Finally, she poured herself a cup of water, downed it in one gulp, wiped her mouth, and still muttered angrily, “No taste!”

“Right, right. She has no taste.”

“With such terrible judgment, she can’t be the heroine!”

“Right, right. Not the heroine.”

Mingming narrowed her eyes. “Wait—you just admitted she’s not the heroine, didn’t you?”

“Absolutely not. I was only humoring you. Don’t push it.”

“Bah!”

Her anger flared and faded quickly, though she made a mental note to settle accounts with Jiang Fuling later. She wandered around the pavilion, admiring the furnishings.

“Antiques everywhere… oh, and bronze ware too.”

After a while, the maids returned with palace attire to help her change. Once dressed, Mingming dismissed them all again, shut the door, and returned to the mirror to admire herself.

Not bad… this face really suits ancient costumes. When I get back, I’m definitely booking a full Hanfu photoshoot.

On a whim, Emperor Wanqian decided to change course and see what the third Jiang daughter, the one placed alone in Snowfall Pavilion, was up to. He gave orders for silence, dismissed his entourage, and quietly pushed open the chamber door.

Gao Fu silently prayed for the girl. If His Majesty caught her doing anything suspicious, the palace servants would spend all night scrubbing blood off the flagstones again.

But what they saw was Jiang Zelan gazing dreamily into her mirror, caressing her face, and sighing.

“I’m just too beautiful. How could I be this beautiful? People really failed to appreciate me before. Maybe I should compliment myself more often. Yes… I’m stunning!”

“This dress makes me look even more gorgeous. Who says sparrows can’t turn into phoenixes? Change the outfit, and voilà, a phoenix! Anyone who calls me ugly clearly has no eyes. Even if I were a sparrow, I’d be the prettiest little sparrow around.”

“Oh! I’m really, truly too beautiful… even without this dress!”

Wanqian: “…”

He silently stepped behind her, angling himself so that half his figure appeared in the mirror.

The bronze’s reflection wasn’t very sharp. Mingming, lost in admiration, suddenly glimpsed the shadow behind her. Startled, she thought a ghost had wandered out of the Cold Palace.

She gasped, whirled around—only to find not a ghost, but the bloodthirsty tyrant himself.

Good news: a person.

Bad news: the emperor.

Her hand shook, the mirror clattered to the ground, echoing loudly in the still palace.