“It’s alright, it’s peaceful here. You’ll get used to living here. I really can’t find any connections in the capital, so I’ll visit The Collins Family again tomorrow to ask for a job. You don’t need to worry about me, just go back and rest early.”

The guards all breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this, and immediately dismounted to help Henry Blake tidy up...

-----

Under the same night sky, within the imperial city.

Night had fallen, lanterns were just being lit, palace lamps swayed gently under the flying eaves, their light filtering through the lush branches of tall trees, casting fan-shaped leaf shadows on the white stone tiles.

Several palace maids in colorful dresses stood quietly in the corridors, heads bowed, holding lanterns.

Beneath a ginkgo tree that had stood for a thousand years, a swing hung.

A young woman in a golden-red phoenix robe gripped the swing’s ropes, swaying back and forth in the night, swinging high, her splendid skirt and red embroidered shoes tracing a crescent arc beneath the tree.

Whoosh...

Whoosh...

The night was serene, the beauty picturesque, yet not a sound could be heard, making the originally beautiful scene seem all the more lonely, like a deep courtyard shrouded in endless solitude.

The broad and elegant courtyard looked just like a carefully woven birdcage.

And the woman swinging alone was like a caged canary, trying to use the swing to leap over the red walls and golden tiles, to catch a glimpse of the world outside.

Tap tap...

After who knows how many swings, footsteps sounded from the corridor, followed by the respectful greeting of a palace maid:

“Greetings, King William.”

The swing beneath the ginkgo tree gradually came to a stop. The woman in the phoenix robe turned her head, revealing a face of extraordinary beauty.

Red lips, almond-shaped eyes, features like a painting, yet tinged with the melancholy of long years spent in the inner palace.

Seeing King William approach, the woman in the phoenix robe did not get down to greet him, but continued to swing, asking softly:

“Walker, how do you have time to come here today?”

“I came to pay my respects to the Empress Dowager.”

John Walker, dressed in a silver-threaded python robe, looked every bit the elegant and handsome prince. He came up behind the swing, gently placed his hands on the Empress Dowager’s shoulders, and softly pushed:

“I was just discussing state affairs with His Majesty, and he asked me to come check on you. It’s so late and you’re not resting—do you find the palace too lonely? Should I arrange for someone to escort you to Yutan Villa for a short stay?”

“It’s the same—alone in the palace, alone outside. What difference does it make?”

“It’s the same for me and His Majesty.”

“It’s not the same. You and His Majesty have important matters to attend to. If you wish, you can go anywhere in the world, and even choose a man you like~”

The Empress Dowager turned her head to look at John Walker:

“What can I do? I’ve been in the palace for ten years, with no concubines in the harem for me to manage. The only thing I can look forward to is counting the days until I’m buried in the imperial mausoleum…”

“Once you enter the deep palace, you never see spring again.”

John Walker pushed the swing, gently comforting her:

“Such is the fate of the imperial family, always has been. Though your days are lonely, at least you are respected by His Majesty…”

The Empress Dowager looked displeased: “I’d rather not have His Majesty’s favor. The other consorts of the late emperor, those with sons could leave with them to their fiefs, those without sons had it even better—after three years of guarding the tomb, they could leave the palace. Only I have it the worst: no son, can’t leave, and can’t remarry…”

John Walker looked helpless: “You are the Empress Dowager! ‘Empress’ is wife, concubines are mistresses. Since ancient times, except in cases of national ruin, when has an Empress Dowager ever remarried?”

The Empress Dowager fell silent for a moment: “There may be no Empress Dowagers who remarried in history, but those who kept ‘male companions’ without observing chastity are too many to count…”

?!

John Walker felt this was her hinting for a ‘male companion’ for her, and, rather boldly, patted the Empress Dowager’s shoulder:

“Empress Dowager, what are you saying?”

The Empress Dowager snorted softly: “I’m about to go mad from being cooped up in the palace, can’t I just say whatever I want? I never said I wanted a male companion… Fortunately, I’m not your real mother, just a decoration in the palace. If I were the emperor’s birth mother and kept a male companion against propriety, you’d have no choice but to turn a blind eye…”

John Walker sighed: “Enough, I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that.”

The Empress Dowager thought for a moment and asked again:

“You and His Majesty both have no one by your side. Have you found anyone lately? Any portraits or anything? Let your mother take a look for you?”

John Walker had just drawn a ‘handsome man’ portrait, but seeing how eager the Empress Dowager was for romance, he didn’t feel it was appropriate to show it.

“His Majesty is busy with state affairs, and I’m overwhelmed by the troubles with the Green Bandits. How could I have time to think about marriage…”

“You’re not young anymore. If you get the chance, you should start thinking about it…”

...

After chatting for a while, a few cool raindrops fell through the gaps in the ginkgo tree.

Rustle, rustle...

The Empress Dowager lifted her gaze to the lush canopy of the ginkgo tree, a hint of resentment in her eyes:

“They say this tree has a spirit. I come to visit it every day, but in ten years in the palace, not a single good thing has happened to me. If it’s just my own misfortune, fine, but even swinging to relax gets ruined by rain. In a few days, I’ll have you chopped down!”

“The heavens bring rain, but the tree shelters the Empress Dowager from wind and rain. If you cut it down, won’t you be even more exposed to the elements?”

“That’s true…”

------------

Thank you all for your support~

After four months, on the very first day of launching this book, so many brothers and sisters have shown their support. Edward is truly overwhelmed and grateful.