This is the Royal Medical Office?! Really?!
I stood there gazing up at the large sign with my mouth hanging open in astonishment. I couldn’t believe that I was standing in front of the Royal Medical Office. This is the place that I’ve always wanted to visit. The skill and practice of the royal doctors of the Flame Dragon empire was famous throughout the land. Even in my small village, medical traders who visited would often speak about the advancement of medical knowledge and practices from the capital.
There was no way that a small town like mine would have the same advanced equipment or knowledge like the capital of such a large empire. I turned to Ren and cried out in joy as I clapped my hands together.
“You look so excited…” Ren teased.
“I’ve always wanted to come here!” I exclaimed excitedly. I couldn’t stop smiling from ear to ear.
It was like my dream land w
“I thought…royal doctors only treated royalty…” I mumbled.“You’re right, that was surely the case up until recently. Royal doctors were reserved for treating members of the royal family only. Exceptions were made for their favorite concubines and such. Recently, I was able to convince my father to extend the work of our royal doctors to other people, although more work can definitely be done there…” Ren said as he flashed me a small smile.“Thank you, Ren…” I thanked him with all my heart.“Why are you thanking me?” Ren asked, he seemed genuinely confused.“I don’t know…I guess…for helping other people…” I replied a little hesitantly, unsure of how to put my feelings into words.“There’s a long way to go, Rin. Even now not all medical herbs are accessible to the commoners even if they ar
“Umm…today is a little bit busy because many representatives from the provinces and towns are here to collect their monthly medicine rations as per the policy. The lines you see are representatives queuing up to receive the medicine so that they can bring it back to their hometown…” the doctor explained in simple terms.“I see,” Ren said curtly.We walked along to various counters that were busy preparing and distributing medicine. Well wrapped parcels were passed over the counter from the doctors and herbalists in charge to the representatives.There were many questions that I wanted to ask such as what medicines and herbs were being given out. If there were diseases spreading in the provinces? However, I knew that asking questions now would seem out of place and I had to heed Ren’s warning.The doctor already looked puzzled enough that I was with Ren on his surprise visit to the Royal Medical
The following morning marked the start of my official journey to becoming a successful concubine, whatever that meant. It started off with Auntie waking me up super early in the morning and the maids helping me get dressed and ready for the day.I watched as a very serious-looking Auntie marched back and forth in my sitting room as she began lecturing me on the importance of being a successful woman in the inner court.“It is my pride and honor to have served the royal family for generations in grooming successful concubines who would produce heirs to the throne and continue the royal family tree. It is of the highest honor for women in this empire to be chosen to serve members of the royal family…” Auntie lectured in her authoritative voice.I sat there as I watched her pace around while she continued to lecture me. I couldn’t help but wonder how many women she had lectured this way and how many were convinced of her t
“Please just call me Rin and…would it be alright if I called you Jeely?” I asked.“That would be a pleasure…Rin,” Jeely replied with a shy smile, a touch of light pink touching her cheeks.“I’ll leave you two to it then. I’ll be checking in regularly. Oh, before I forget. There will be regular tests to ensure that you’ve made progress. So, please do your best, Lady White Lotus,” Auntie said, and I could sense a tinge of warning in her voice.“Sure…” I replied vaguely.With a slight bow in my direction, Auntie began her retreat from the sitting room. As the door closed behind her softly, I found myself left alone with Jeely.“Well then, shall we start?” Jeely said enthusiastically.Jeely spent the entire morning working with me on my stance and posture. She made me show her how I did everything naturally befor
I sighed loudly as I pulled the hair ornament from my hair. What the hell am I even doing? Lady White Lotus…what a joke? Why am I bothering with all this training when I know deep down that I would never be able to match Jeely.The question that nagged me at the back of my mind all day was…if Jeely was here then why would they need me to act as Lady White Lotus? No matter how I looked at it, subjectively or objectively, there was no way that Ren wouldn’t enjoy Jeely’s company…or the company of the other women like her. I haven’t met them, but I was sure that there was more than one high-ranking concubine in this inner court.Two and then three days went by where I studied with Jeely. I was getting used to spending the entire day devoted to lessons now. Jeely helped me work on my posture in the morning and then we continued studying watercolor painting in the afternoon until sunset. Ren never visit me since that day we
I folded the paper and put it back into the envelop after I was done reading its content. As far as I was aware, there was nothing unusual about the message. However, I wasn’t sure I was comfortable enough to meet Prince Kin for tea or dinner. Perhaps, that could be avoided for now.I took out paper, a brush, and an ink tablet before starting to write back a message to Prince Kin. Unfortunately, I did not have any gift that would be worthy of offering to a prince so a thankful message from my heart would have to do.I wrote down a simple thank you message and wished him good health and happiness before folding the paper neatly and putting it in an envelope. I called for a maid and instructed her to deliver the letter to Prince Kin’s palace tomorrow. Now that that was all done and out of the way, I stretched and let the maids prepare me for bed.…When the following day arrived, I had completely forgotten about the gift
Jeely looked at me with eyes so wide that for a second she lost her composure. I didn’t expect that my question would come across as this shocking to her.“Of course not. I may come from a small town, but I am still the princess of that small town. It is my responsibility to represent my town and my people. If I leave, then the relationship between our cities would fall to ruin. I would never leave this place…” Jeely said with determination.“I see…” I whispered.“What about you? Do you want to go home?” Jeely asked.“I…I guess I do…” I replied hesitantly; however, I wanted to be honest to my new friend.Jeely seemed to consider my honest response for a while before smiling brightly at me.“Don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone. Let’s just both do our best for now…” Jeely said as we smiled at e
“I did not…expect to meet you here, Prince Kin,” I said as I tried to keep my voice steady and a friendly smile on my lips.I bowed politely to him. It doesn’t matter whether or not I wanted him here. He’s still the second prince which meant that I had to show respect.“I did not get a reply to my latest letter, so I was just a little bit worried about you…” Prince Kin said.His overly sweet smile was starting to creep me out. He was right, I did not reply to his latest message because I did not see the need to. Was that too rude?“I apologized, Prince Kin, for my delayed response. I was planning to send you a reply later today after my lessons are over,” I said, trying to sound pleasant. Obviously, I lied.“Then I guess I’ll be patient and wait for your favorable response. I truly wish to spend more time with you and a dinner would be a good start. Af
“Really? I think you’re as young and as pretty as before…if not more pretty…” Ren said reassuringly before he bent down to kiss my cheek tenderly.Although I knew that he was probably just saying it to please me, I couldn’t help but feel my heart flutter at his words. The truth was that I have aged, and I definitely don’t look as fresh or young as I did all those years ago. Even I wasn’t foolish enough to believe that I haven’t aged. “Thank you, Ren…but that’s not really the point…” I replied with a small laugh. “Can’t we try for one more? Please…just one more…” Ren pleaded sweetly. “But we already have three children…” I pointed out. “But we don’t have a daughter yet…” Ren said with a sigh as he looked depressed and deflated. I wanted to roll my eyes at fate. Most women had problem pleasing their husband and his family because they couldn’t produce a son. In my case, I had no problem producing sons, but my husband was adamant in wanting a daughter so that he could spoil her like
My political influence changed again when I became pregnant with my second child and soon gave birth to another very healthy son. Having two sons for the emperor gave the entire empire confidence that the line of succession is secure. Despite Prince Kin’s women giving birth to a few sons as well at that point, it was clear that the line of succession will continue in Ren’s branch of the family, much to the dowager empress’s joy. Strangely, I have developed an amicable relationship with the dowager empress over the years as she had taken much interest in her great grandchildren. Naturally, I was favored without needing to do anything much. Unfortunately, the dowager empress passed away from old age before she got to see the face of our third child. To my utmost surprise and to many others’ jealousy, she had chosen to leave all her treasures to me so that I could distribute it to my children’s wives when they got married. I cried so much at her funeral that Ren had to step in and lead
Lately Ren has found his work as the emperor boring and repetitive. As a result, he has been spending more time with me and our children. That was a great thing for me and our family, but I wasn’t sure if it was best for the empire. “Shin can take care of most things. He’s unmarried, has no kids, and loves the empire. He’s perfect for the job,” Ren said before laughing loudly. That was his response when I asked him about skipping out on some of his royal duties. It’s been around 7 years now since Ren and I got married but Shin was still as single and free as a bird. Despite our efforts to get him to settle down, Shin had some how successfully evaded the topic of marriage all together. Even an arrangement by the previous emperor couldn’t tie him down. Shin now considers my children as his own and acts as their loving godfather. …When we arrived back at the main palace, I was greeted by my second son, Rem. Rem is more of a carefree spirit compared to Rou. He doesn’t seem super devot
“It sounds very complicated. In my town, weddings are something that you celebrate with your close friends and family in a simple way…” I mumbled. “I’m sure that doesn’t apply if you marry a prince or if you’re becoming the next empress,” Ren said with a laugh. “I guess you’re right…” I said with a nod of my head. “Don’t worry too much. We’ll both have it easy until the day itself. If you’re not too picky, you can leave the preparation to the officials and the staff. They’ll get everything done and if you have any special requests, just let them know and they’ll figure it out,” Ren said before he patted my head. I guess planning my own wedding was out of the question. I was sure that whatever the officials in charge had in mind would be very different to what I wanted. Recalling the minimal version of the wedding dress that Ren once made me wear to appear in court, I shuddered at the thought of the real wedding dress itself and the ceremony involved. “I’ll leave it to them then.
“Why didn’t you tell me about the baby?” Ren asked the moment the door to my bedroom closed behind us. “I…I was just waiting for the right moment to tell you,” I said honestly. “When did you find out?” Ren asked. “About a month ago while we were still in the middle of war,” I confessed softly. “You should have told me,” Ren insisted. “But you were so busy, and you were out there fighting every day. I didn’t want to add to your burdens,” I explained. “Regardless, you still should have told me,” Ren repeated his same opinion. “I’m sorry, Ren. It wasn’t like I was trying to keep it from you,” I apologized sadly. “I would have taken care of you better…” Ren muttered. Is that why he was so mad? “You’re so sweet, Ren,” I said before giggling. It was probably the first time that I think I saw Ren blush. I couldn’t stop myself from giggling at the sight. “Thank you, Rin. I can’t wait to raise our baby together,” Ren said as he hugged me close to him. “Me too…” I replied before sm
“But if you go, they might kill you…” Shin said. “Isn’t there someone who can help me?” I asked as a thought struck me. “You can’t be seriously thinking about…” Shin muttered as he probably caught on to what I was thinking. “Please, Shin…please help Ren…please help me…” I begged. “Shit…this is crazy…” Shin said in pure disbelief. I watched as Shin sprinted off. After he was gone, my legs lost all its strength and I eased down onto a nearby chair and concentrated on keeping my breathing calm. I placed a hand on my tummy as I prayed that all three of us would be safe. …**Back to the present**Everyone looked towards the entrance of the hall, where a frail old woman walked in slowly with her most trusted eunuch supporting her arms on both sides. Despite her age and her weakened body, the Dowager Empress walked with a straight back full of pride. In unison as if they had practiced it beforehand, everyone stood up from their seat and bowed. Ren and I did the same. “Mother…” the em
After quite a long while had passed, all five doctors were done with inspecting my body. Ren returned back to my side before he placed a comforting hand on my shoulder as we all waited for the verdict from the doctors. “So, what is your opinion regarding the Lady White Lotus,” the emperor asked impatiently. Each doctor was asked to present his view one by one starting with the least senior and ending with Doctor Pai, who was the most senior of them all. “Your Majesty, I believe that the Lady White Lotus is with child,” the first doctor stated before bowing deeply to the emperor. The whole hall erupted in whispers and gasps of shock. Some members of court who had undoubtedly been eagerly waiting for the next royal heir cheered and clapped their hands. “Silence. Next…” the emperor said firmly as he invited the next doctor to give his opinion. “Your Majesty. The Lady White Lotus is indeed pregnant,” the second doctor said before bowing to show his respect. “Next…” the emperor said
I can do this. I can do this. I can do this! “There is no need to punish the crown prince because I am without a doubt loyal to this empire. I wish for a bright future for this empire because that would mean a bright future for our child…” I said, making sure that my voice rang loud and clear. “Rin…” I heard Ren whisper my name. “What are you saying?” the emperor asked as a frown formed in between his brows. “I am with child. I am pregnant with the crown prince’s child,” I stated firmly. I could feel and hear everyone’s shock. Loud gasp of surprise filled the room followed by whispers. I could feel everyone’s eyes on me, and I placed my hands over my stomach as if to protect the baby that was inside. “What are you saying? Leave with Shin right now,” Ren hissed to me as he came to my side. “No…I am not leaving you…” I said stubbornly. “Is it true, Rin?” Ren asked softly, I could feel his gaze on my stomach. I smiled weakly at him as I nodded. His eyes widened in surprise befor
Ren stood up from his seat and all eyes were on him. He took in a breath to calm himself before facing the emperor and the members of court. “I believe that the punishment decided for the town of Amber Leaves is just and fair. The emperor who also approved it seem to share my beliefs. The people of the town had no knowledge of what was going on and did not benefit from the enemy. Because of this, I believe that they should not be punished. I spent more than three months fighting the war. Compared to someone who had never stepped foot on the battlefield or the town itself, I believe that it should be fair to say that I am more knowledgeable about the situation,” Ren said calmly.“What about the punishment for Lady White Lotus? It is indeed her town that rebelled against the empire,” a senior member of court inquired sternly. “The Lady White Lotus has failed to deliver a royal heir for this empire as well. It has been a very long time and she is not yet with child,” the empress spoke