The morning of the following day had arrived. In the White Jade Courtyard, Miyojin was slowly slipping away from his dreamless sleep. As his senses awakened, he heard a voice nearby. This confused him. But realization hit him as his eyes snapped open. He rose from his bed and peered through the hanging blinds.
“Oh? You’re awake. That’s good.” Xia Yu said as she saw the supposedly sleeping prince wide awake.
She, along with a couple of her maids, was setting up his table. Miyojin could not understand why he was seeing her in his room after what happened yesterday. Even more, he couldn’t believe that she was personally setting his table for breakfast.
“The bathwater has already been prepared. But before you bathe…” Xia Yu said as she signaled a maid. The maid went closer to Miyojin with a tray of freshly brewed tea.
“It’s best to drink tea first to add heat to your body.” She continued to say as the maid set down the tea before him.
Miyojin could not express a word. He couldn’t get over the fact that Xia Yu was in his room serving tea to him. Since he couldn’t utter a word, he, instead, bowed to show his thanks. He proceeded to drink the tea.
After he had finished drinking, his eunuch came forward. He told him that it was time for his bath. Miyojin got out of his bed as his eunuch directed him to the bathroom. But before disappearing towards the bathroom, he spared another glance at Xia Yu. She was busy setting the dishes on the table. Even with a hundred thoughts in his mind, he decided against asking her in the meantime.
Upon reaching the bathroom, everything was already prepared. He dismissed the servants who were assigned to help him in his bath. When he was left alone, he began to bathe himself. Because of the silence, he was able to ponder what just happened.
Why is Xia Yu doing all of these for him?
He had servants for all these tasks after all.
Could it be?
Miyojin lingered on the possibility of his newfound idea. Connecting the dots in his head, he came to a conclusion on what could be the reason behind Xia Yu’s gestures.
Could she have done this because she finally realized why he was mad at her?
Miyojin figured that Xia Yu was a proud woman and would not directly apologize to him. She did seem like the type that would express her apologies through silent actions.
This idea puts a smile on Miyojin’s face. He finished his bath as quickly as he could. He even called back his servants to help him dry off and get dressed. With much enthusiasm, he walked his way back to his room where his wife awaited.
When he reached his room, he was amazed by the magnificent feast served on his table. His breakfast meal looked like four people would be dining. Xia Yu was already seated waiting for him.
“Come, sit, and eat.” Xia Yu said, inviting the prince to sit across from her.
It was still a bit early before the imperial council so Miyojin still had a lot of time to spend. He sat at the seat across from Xia Yu and looked at the meals served before him.
“What a feast this is! I wonder why the Imperial cooks made so much for us.” Miyojin pondered as he prepared his chopsticks.
“Oh! These aren’t from the Imperial Kitchen.” Xia Yu corrected as she picked a sauced vegetable and popped it in her mouth.
“Really? Then, did you cook all of these?” Miyojin wondered.
“Not all of them. I brought two of my household cooks with me here. They helped with cooking most of them.”
Miyojin looked surprised as he took a bite of the sauteed meat. It tasted so good. It was as good as the ones served at their wedding banquet.
“By the way, I already informed the Imperial Kitchen that the White Jade Courtyard will no longer receive meals from them. From now on, my cooks and their aides will cook our meals including those who work here.”
“Oh! I understand.”
If that means he will get these delicious meals every day, there’s no point in objecting. They ate silently. Miyojin was very pleased with everything. The tea, the meal, and Xia Yu’s calm presence brought bliss to his morning. Yet he wasn’t satisfied.
At this point, Miyojin had already forgotten what had happened yesterday. He had already forgiven her. After all, what kind of person would still hold a grudge with these nice gestures of hers? But, he still wanted to hear it. He wanted to hear her apology. Thus, he decided to incite her.
“To be honest with you, Xia Yu… I’m surprised to see you doing this. Why?”
Xia Yu looked up at him with one eyebrow raised.
“Are you asking me why I served you breakfast?”
“Yes. Why do all of these? My servants have been doing this for me ever since.”
“Isn’t this my job as a princess consort?” she began.
“The empress herself told me that my responsibility, for now, will be taking care of you. I am tasked to make sure you’re ready for court every day.”
Miyojin wanted to slap himself for even thinking that this proud woman was apologizing. Of course, she isn’t apologetic. She did it out of obligation.
“Oh! Right… that slipped my mind.” He replied to end the topic.
Xia Yu only eyed him for a bit before she brought her attention back to her meal. Though Miyojin continued eating, the disappointment, however, took the enthusiasm he had earlier. After they both declared that they were full, the maids came in to clear the table.
After cleaning up, the eunuch came bringing the prince’s clothes for court. He was about to help Miyojin in getting dressed when Xia Yu stepped in.
“Allow me,” she said to the eunuch who stepped down.
No matter how much he recites to himself that she was only doing her duty, his nerves didn’t calm down. Miyojin held his breath as Xia Yu helped him get dressed.
She was only doing her duty.
He said to himself as she guided his arms in the sleeves of his robe.
She was only doing her duty.
He said to himself as she tightened the belt of his robes leaving only an inch of space between them.
She was only doing her duty.
He said to himself as she fixed his collar leaving light touches on the skin of his neck.
It felt like an eternity when she finally stepped away from him.
“There. You are all set.” She said after checking that everything was in place.
“Thank you,” Miyojin muttered, still in the process of relaxing his nerves.
“If there’s nothing else, I shall take my leave. Have a great day, Your Highness.”
With those words, Xia Yu turned away from the prince and walked her way out of his quarters.
The following weeks saw a new morning routine for Prince Miyojin. Every morning, Xia Yu will go to his quarters to wake him up. She will serve him tea before he takes a bath. After that, they will eat breakfast together. When they’re done, Xia Yu will help him get dressed. Afterward, she will leave him.
However, it didn’t go unnoticed by Miyojin that Xia Yu only interacts with him in the morning. She doesn’t join him for lunch and not even at dinner. They rarely see each other at night. She doesn’t visit him and neither does he for there was no reason for them to meet at night. They would come across each other in the palace. But after making their greetings, they would both walk away to continue their tasks.
After his marriage, the emperor gave Miyojin a heavy responsibility. He was assigned to oversee the appeals of the people of the provinces of their empire. Before his marriage, he was only tasked to assist Zhujin. The Crown Prince was assigned to oversee the empire’s economy. With his new obligation, he became very busy.
But despite having tiresome days, Miyojin would always look forward to the next day to come. To be exact, his mornings with Xia Yu are what he looks forward to the most. She did her duty well. Miyojin felt he had more energy for the day. He feels a lot healthier too. Furthermore, his relationship with Xia Yu is also improving. It was no longer as awkward as the first time. They even make small talk over breakfast.
Everything was going well as Miyojin thought. However, there can’t be peace all the time, right?
During an Imperial Council meeting, the Finance Minister is delivering his reports. However, he was interrupted by an imperial eunuch who barged in. This startled the court to a stop.
“Your Majesty! Urgent news from the Palace Main Gates!” the imperial eunuch said as he bowed before the emperor.
“What is it?” the emperor asked.
All eyes and ears are now on the imperial eunuch. Before delivering his message, the eunuch spared a glance at Miyojin. Miyojin made eye contact with him in confusion. But the eunuch removed his gaze from the prince and set his eyes on the emperor.
“Your Majesty! There’s a commotion at the Palace Main Gates. A large crowd is backing a father and his daughter as they riot before the palace gates. They are begging to see the Second Prince, Prince Miyojin.”
Now all eyes went to Miyojin who was still in confusion.
People are rioting because of me?
“What do these people want? How important is it that they must cause a commotion like this?” The Crown Prince asked with a tone of dismay.
The eunuch swallowed his saliva in nervousness before he spoke again.
“They… they claimed that the Second Prince… got the young maiden pregnant.”
Then it finally hit Miyojin.
Mo Lijuan!
“WHAT!!?!?!?!?!!” the emperor screamed in rage.
“Miyojin! What is the meaning of this!?!?!!!”
Before Miyojin could voice a reply, Zhujin stepped in for him.
“Father! Please quell your anger. We must verify this claim before we jump to conclusions.”
Then a minister stepped forward and spoke, “Your Majesty. The Crown Prince is right. Let us verify this news by interrogating the father and his daughter.”
“I agree, Your Majesty. It is understandable why the citizens are causing a commotion. The Second Prince had recently got married only a month ago. This matter is too scandalous to ignore.” Another minister said.
“Your Majesty, I advocate what the Crown Prince and the ministers suggested. This needs immediate attention. The Xia and Cheng families will not stand idle on this. We must act decisively to not strain the Imperial Family’s relationship with them. Please take this matter in your hands.” the Prime Minister appealed.
“Yes, Your Majesty! Please take this matter into your hands.” the ministers said in chorus.
The emperor looked at the ministers and then looked at his son in question. He let out a sigh and then said.
“Very well. Tell the guards to let the father and daughter in the palace grounds. The Imperial Court will meet them there.”
