After a spring night of clouds and rain, Song Zhao woke up early the next morning.
Today was the day to go to the Hot Spring Mountain Villa. It was also the first time Song Zhao would meet the Empress Dowager since entering the palace.
The palace servants said that the Empress Dowager was very strict about etiquette, so the first meeting had to be formal.
When the concubines entered the palace, ceremonial outfits were tailored for them according to their ranks.
Song Zhao had only worn her ceremonial outfit three times - the first time when the concubines paid respects to the Empress, the second time the day after spending the night with the Emperor, and the third time at Xiao Jingheng’s birthday banquet.
In order to make a good impression on the Empress Dowager, after Song Zhao learned that she would be attending the Hot Spring Mountain Villa, she asked the palace servants to send her ceremonial outfit to be cleaned ahead of time.
This morning while Song Zhao was washing up and putting on make-up, Zhi Hua came back from the laundry with the ceremonial outfit.
When she entered the bedroom, her expression did not look very good. Yun Shan couldn’t help but scold her,
“Why did it take you so long? I was about to go look for you. Any later and it would delay the schedule.”
As she complained, she took the ceremonial outfit from Zhi Hua’s hands.
But as soon as she touched it, Yun Shan noticed something was wrong. “Oh my, why is it wet?”
She touched the dark brown satin outer layer of the outfit. There was obvious dampness seeping through the surface, as if it had not been completely dried after washing.
Zhi Hua quickly explained, “When I went to get the outfit, I noticed it was not completely dry. I asked the laundry servants too. They said that because of the cold weather these past two days, the outfits were hard to dry after washing, that’s why it turned out like this.”
Song Zhao had put her in charge of this errand, so she was naturally panicking that something had gone wrong.
Seeing that everyone was quiet and not saying anything, she quickly tried to remedy the situation. “But only the outer layer is wet. I touched it. The inner lining is completely dry.”
She turned the inner lining of the outfit inside out. After Yun Shan touched it and confirmed the lining was dry, she said,
“The lining is dry. At least it won’t get damp and cold. Why don’t you try it on first, my lady? We have to go to Ninghua Gate and meet up with the convoy at noon. The Empress Dowager will be there today too, you can’t be late.”
She leaned over, wanting to help Song Zhao change. But Song Zhao waved to stop her actions. “No rush.”
She pondered slightly, then looked up at the guilty and self-blaming Zhi Hua. Gently she asked,
“Tell me carefully. What exactly did the laundry servants say to you?”
Zhi Hua timidly replied, “They said...because of the cold weather these days, and it snowed heavily, the outfits were hard to dry...”
“They were negligent in their duties and just making up excuses to gloss things over!” Yun Shan said angrily. “Back when we were still in the manor, I personally took care of all these things for my lady. Although the winters are cold here in the capital, it is also dry. Especially after it snows. Even if the outfit wasn’t dried in a warm room, just hanging it in a well-ventilated area would have dried it completely in a day.”
She pouted and muttered under her breath, “They must have forgotten about my lady’s errand for the palace! The outfit was sent two days ago. They probably only remembered to wash it yesterday.”
Although Yun Shan’s tone was unpleasant, what she said was reasonable.
It was the laundry’s responsibility to wash clothes for the masters and mistresses of the palace. They would not mess up such a simple job.
Furthermore, although Song Zhao was only a low-ranked concubine, Emperor Xiao’s favoritism towards her was well known in the palace. The servants always tried to curry favor with the concubines based on the emperor’s preferences. So there should not have been any negligence or oversight from the laundry regarding Song Zhao’s errands.
Song Zhao pondered in silence, methodically eliminating all possibilities. When nothing was left, this matter became strange.
She said, “Even if they only remembered to wash the outfit yesterday, it wouldn’t have been difficult to dry it thoroughly overnight using braziers.”
As she spoke, she glanced at Xiao Fuzi, who immediately understood her intention and brought over a brazier from the heated sitting area.
Song Zhao took the outfit from Yun Shan and started drying the edge of the sleeve over the brazier.
Seeing her solemn expression, Yun Shan did not dare say anything more, only pulled Xiao Fuzi closer and whispered,
“It’s definitely too late for my lady to try drying the outfit now. The ceremonial outfit is dark brown so water stains won’t be obvious anyway. It should be fine to wear even if it’s a little damp. Today is the first time my lady meets the Empress Dowager. It would still be bad to delay things...”
Xiao Fuzi stared intently at the outfit being dried over the brazier, and said quietly to Yun Shan, “Have you forgotten what I taught you? When something out of the ordinary happens, there must be sinister intentions. It is always better for my lady to be more cautious.”
As the two spoke, Song Zhao suddenly sighed coldly.
Everyone’s gaze focused on the edge of the sleeve. To their astonishment, the originally dark brown satin where it had been dried was gradually fading to a light yellow.
Everyone was surprised, except for Song Zhao who seemed to have expected this. She just stared coldly at the fading fabric.
After another moment, the area was completely dried, and the color had permanently changed from light yellow to bright yellow.
The rest of the outfit was dark brown so this patch of bright yellow stood out glaringly.
Yun Shan was stunned speechless for quite awhile before exclaiming, “Someone tampered with the outfit!”
As Zhi Hua was responsible for delivering the outfit, seeing this frightened her silly too. She stammered explanations to Song Zhao,
“My...my lady, I really don’t know why this happened. I followed your orders and sent the outfit to the laundry two days ago. I even specifically told them to be very careful. This morning before dawn, before the laundry opened, I rushed over there to wait so I could bring it back as soon as possible...”
The little maid was so anxious she was nearly in tears. Song Zhao did not suspect her at all.
It was obvious someone had ordered the laundry to do this. Even if Yun Shan was the one to deliver and retrieve the outfit, the result would probably still have been the same.
Song Zhao gently patted Zhi Hua’s shoulder to comfort her. “I know this has nothing to do with you. Don’t blame yourself. I also don’t want to make a big fuss out of this. Just pretend you know nothing. Go take care of your other errands.”
Zhi Hua nodded vigorously, her eyes red, and retreated out.
Xiao Fuzi took the outfit from Song Zhao to examine it closely. Touching the slightly tacky satin, he said solemnly,
“Some kind of special dye must have been applied on the satin, which fades when wet, and shows color when dry.
Fortunately my lady did not wear this outfit to meet the Empress Dowager. Otherwise at the beginning when the outfit was still damp on the surface, nothing would seem amiss. But we would be taking carriages with braziers to the Hot Spring Mountain Villa. Halfway there the outfit would have likely been completely dried. By then, what was originally a dark brown ceremonial outfit would have turned entirely bright yellow, which is a huge taboo!”
Yun Shan also felt lingering fear. “My lady’s luggage was all packed in the rear carriage too. By then even if my lady wanted to change outfits, there would have been no other clothes to change into. The Empress Dowager cares most about propriety and rules. If she saw my lady show up at the Hot Spring Mountain Villa wearing bright yellow from head to toe, she would surely harshly punish my lady!”
Song Zhao said nothing, her eyes cold and gloomy as she stared at the outfit held in Xiao Fuzi’s hands, a shallow crease appearing between her brows.
