In the eighth year of Jianwu, Yuwen Hong was only six years old, but he was already the Crown Prince.
He had expected to continue learning under the Emperor's guidance until he came of age.
But illness could strike like a mountain collapsing. In just two short years, the once-tall and mighty Emperor Yuwen Zhan was reduced to skin and bones.
Seeing death was near, he used his last breath to appoint four men as regent ministers:
Lin Xiangye (Prime Minister Lin), Prince Zhan, Duke Xu, and the Marquis of the Northwest.
At that time, Prime Minister Lin was also the Crown Prince's tutor, so their relationship was not only ruler and minister, but also teacher and student.
Among those four, Lin Xiangye was closest to Yuwen Hong.
Prince Zhan represented the imperial clan, while the Marquis of the Northwest represented the military; these two factions had long been at odds, so appointing them both was a way to balance power.
As for Duke Xu, he was loyal and upright, giving his life for Great Wei until the very end.
His legitimate granddaughter was designated by imperial decree as the Crown Princess.
In the tenth year of Jianwu, the late Emperor passed away. In June of that same year, Crown Prince Yuwen Hong formally ascended the throne, changing the era name to Yuanhe, known in history as the beginning of the Yuanhe era.
From that day forward, Yuwen Hong no longer knew what a carefree childhood meant.
Every day he rose early to attend court, forced to listen to political matters he barely understood.
After court, he would return to the palace to study without rest.
In front, the regents monitored him, while behind him the Empress Dowager urged and inspected him.
How could he not feel like a fish on a chopping board?
So when Lin Wanyi mentioned her own past in the Prime Minister's household, it struck a chord in him.
Everyone envied him for ascending the throne so young, enjoying endless prosperity.
But how many understood the terror and bone-deep loneliness that came with it?
On the surface he possessed everything under heaven — three thousand beauties, many sons and daughters — but among them, how many truly loved him?
Ever since Empress Xu died, there had been no one he could confide in inside the palace.
Lin Wanyi, by contrast, brought him an unexpected sense of peace.
But her background must still be thoroughly investigated. He could not afford any more risks.
Meanwhile, the Inner Court Office, having received the order to create the plaque for Xianyi Hall, immediately got to work.
They selected the wood, carved the imperial calligraphy, applied the gold paint — every step had to be perfect and fast. The woodworkers were nearly overwhelmed.
In just a day and a night, the plaque was rushed to completion.
When it was delivered to the Left Wing Hall, Chunqi and Lin Wanyi both came out to see it.
The Left Wing Hall had always been just an ordinary side palace. Its name never seemed special.
But once the new plaque was hung up, it felt like a true home.
Lin Wanyi was very fond of it.
To outsiders, it was a symbol of imperial favor. After all, in the entire harem, few halls had plaques personally inscribed by the Emperor.
But to Lin Wanyi, it was the first place that felt like it truly belonged to her.
To speak plainly, back in the Prime Minister's house, even the East Courtyard had only ever been a temporary shelter for her family.
There had never been any true warmth in her family.
During those years at her maternal grandfather's home, she had felt a bit of belonging, but she couldn't stay there forever.
But Xianyi Hall was different.
Whether she wanted it or not, once she had entered the palace, there would be no chance of leaving for the rest of her life.
So this place would be her home from now on — forever.
No matter whether she would be promoted one day or fall out of favor and move elsewhere, this place would always be one of her most precious memories.
"The Emperor must really like you, my lady. Even the name of this hall has a hint of your name in it."
Chunqi softly whispered by Lin Wanyi's ear.
Lin Wanyi didn't quite know how to respond to that.
She'd only been in the palace for a month, yet she already had such interactions with the Emperor.
Whether it could be called liking was hard to say, but it was clearly different from how he treated others.
Standing at the hall's doors, watching for a while, she was just about to go inside when she heard someone approaching outside.
"Sister, I came without being invited — you won't be unhappy with me, will you?"
The newcomer was none other than Mu Daying, whom she hadn't seen for a while. She walked quickly inside, making Qiu Ming and the others frown.
Mu Lanchun moved fast, hurrying right up to Lin Wanyi, and affectionately took her hand with a smile.
"Sister, you truly are blessed. I heard about it even over at the Right Wing Hall."
She glanced at the newly hung plaque, a hint of envy flashing through her eyes.
"I heard you'd been hurt earlier, Sister. I wanted to come visit, but thought you needed quiet to recover, so I delayed until today. You won't blame me, will you?"
Mu Lanchun spoke as if aggrieved, but Lin Wanyi didn't mind.
After all, their friendship was only the level of polite conversation — there was no real disappointment to speak of.
"It's the thought that counts. Even if you had come earlier, I couldn't have seen you — I was sleeping most days because of the medicine, and only these last two days have I been able to get up and walk around."
Hearing that, Mu Lanchun turned around and gestured to her maid, Ying'er.
"This is a traditional family ointment for bruises and injuries. If you don't mind, Sister, you could try it."
"You're very thoughtful."
Lin Wanyi signaled Xia An to accept it.
Seeing this, Mu Lanchun went ahead and took over supporting Lin Wanyi, helping her inside the inner room.
The two of them sat down in the main hall, while Qiu Ming had servants serve tea.
After taking a sip, Mu Lanchun spoke with a look of pleasant surprise,
"No wonder His Majesty likes coming here — even the tea here tastes different from other places."
That was a bit disingenuous, because Qiu Ming had served her perfectly ordinary tea, not any special fruit tea.
So saying it was "different" was clearly just polite flattery.
Lin Wanyi merely smiled without responding.
Mu Daying wouldn't have come here for no reason — she was certain of that.
Still, it wasn't her place to ask directly.
After half a cup of tea, exchanging a few more pleasantries, Mu Daying finally spoke a bit awkwardly,
"Sister, I heard you will be going to watch the dragon boat races during the Dragon Boat Festival. I wonder if you could take me with you?"
In fact, the concubines of the harem could all attend the dragon boat festival, and Mu Daying, being of rank, could naturally go too. So Lin Wanyi found it puzzling that she asked.
"Could it be…"
Mu Lanchun's eyes held disappointment, and a touch of unwillingness that she dared not show too obviously.
"With Sister's great favor, you will surely be close by His Majesty's side. But someone as unremarkable as me — even if I went, I'd only stand at the very back. Never mind seeing the dragon boats, I'd be lucky to even see the water."
"So… Sister, please take pity on me."
Mu Lanchun was quite interesting in her way. Every time she came, she had a purpose.
And she didn't bother to hide it, speaking quite plainly.
She did not want to live out her life in the palace as some forgotten concubine, even if she could never become a favored consort, at least she did not want to vanish into obscurity.
That was why she had come to Lin Wanyi to make this request.
Chunqi, standing to the side, was clearly displeased at this rather presumptuous appeal.