Chapter 59: Royal Pass at last
The reception area of Empress Lihua’s residence was empty and quiet. Ru Yi sat there but made no attempt to drink the tea she’d been served while she waited for the Empress.
Not when the possibility that she could be poisoned again was constantly at the back of her mind. She would be a fool to trust anything the Empress gave her.
She heard footsteps and immediately stood up.
Empress Lihua entered, but she was alone. Usually she had her maids following her around. Should Ru Yi be worried?
"Did I keep you waiting for a long time?" Empress Lihua asked.
Even though there was a smile on her face, Ru Yi could see through the lines of exhaution. "No, your highness," she answered with a bow, only sitting down when the Empress gestured for her to.
"I was attending to his majesty, his symptoms seems to be getting worse." She saw the untouched tea. "You can drink it, it’s not poisoned."
As if Ru Yi would believe anything the woman said. The Emperor’s symptoms that she was so worried about was her doing.
"Thank you," Ru Yi said regardless, picking up the cup but not drinking from it.
"The royal pass is ready," Empress Lihua continued, "I’ll have Han Shuying deliver it to you tomorrow morning."
Ru Yi nodded. "Thank you, your majesty."
Empress Lihua’s lips stretched into what should be a smile but ended up as a grimace. "I believe you know not to discuss anything that has transpired between us to anybody. Not like anyone would believe you."
Ru Yi had no plans to do that anyway.
"You’re also aware that once you leave, there’s no coming?"
"I’m fine with that," Ru Yi replied. It wasn’t even her plans to come back, not with everything going on in the palace.
She knew it wouldn’t be a long time before the Emperor’s body will totally give in to the poison he’s being constantly fed.
The crown prince would then ascend the throne. At least that was Ru Yi’s speculation. It was the sole reason the Empress wanted the triplets gone. Everyone knew they’d always been a threat to the crown prince.
"That’s not surprising, you’ve gone through so much within these walls," the Empress continued. "Most people in your position would beg to remain under imperial protection."
Ru Yi almost laughed.
Instead, she said quietly, "I do not belong here."
Something flickered in the Empress’s gaze—approval, perhaps. Or recognition.
"No," she finally agreed. "You do not. There’s no ambition in you, or the urge to rise higher than the low status you were born into. Only the strong minded can survive in a place like this."
Ru Yi lowered her eyes. If plotting against every single person while risking her own life meant that she wasn’t ambitious...then so be it.
"Do you have any intention to attend the late princess’s funeral?"
Ru Yi gulped at the casual tone the Empress spoke in, like she didn’t have a hand in the princess’s death.
"I don’t think think I’m allowed to. A mere maid like me wouldn’t be allowed to pay my last respects." Even though Ru Yi really wished she could.
She didn’t push it though, because deep down she knew she hadn’t fully come to terms with the fact Princess Lin Yuexin was gone.
And her life so far had been so uneventful she hadn’t been able to catch her breath. The night before was the only time she’d managed to laugh and be happy without worrying if she was going to be killed or accused of another crime she had no hand in.
Empress Lihua nodded. "At least you know your place. Infact... I’ve changed my mind. You can have the royal pass now."
Ru Yi blinked severally. "Why?"
Empress Lihua didn’t answer, instead she lifted her hand and a servant stepped forward immediately with a small lacquaered box.
It was opened with careful reverence, revealing a thin, gold-etched tablet resting inside.
"With this, no guard, no official, no lord may ever detain you." Empress kept her eyes on Ru Yi. "See it as a protection instead of a mere pass to leave the palace. You can leave whenever you want with it."
The words felt like freedom, landing softly in her ears.
Slowly, she stepped forward. Each movement felt unreal, as though she was walking through someone else’s lide.
Ru Yi knelt in front of the Empress and accepted the pass with both hands. The object was warm against her palm. Like it had been waiting all this while for her.
"Ru Yi," the Empress spoke, her voice suddenly stern. "The world beyond these walls is not kinder. But it is yours."
Ru Yi bowed her head. "Thank you, your majesty."
For a moment—just a moment, silence settled between them. Then the Empress spoke again, quieter this time.
"Do not come back."
Ru Yi’s response was immediate. "I won’t."
-
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Han Shuying entered the Empress’s chamber later that day, sword in hand. She found her majesty by the small window that overlooked the courtyard.
"Your majesty." She performed a deep bow.
"Have you handled what I asked?"
Han Shuying nodded. "They’re currently in the village, my men are keeping their eyes on them. So far, they’ve not caused any troubles."
"Good." She finally looked up at her companion. "You seem tired."
Han Shuying shook her head. "You don’t have to worry about me."
Empress Lihua tilted her head to the side. "Why can’t I worry? I care deeply about you. Surely you know that."
Han Shuying gulped and looked away, unable to meet the Empress’s intense gaze. "I know you do," she whispered back.
"I’m doing this for us." Empress Lihua stood up and walked over to Han Shuying. "I can’t protect what we share if I don’t have any power. I must do this for you."
Han Shuying said nothing. She’d heard this more times than she bothered to count.
"Very soon the great tree will fall, and there’ll be nothing else standing in my way. As for my son, you’ll help me handle him. He’s the only stone left in our path."
Han Shuying searched the eyes of the woman before her.
To everyone she was the perfect Empress, the perfect wife, the wife mother. But beneath all that, only Han Shuying knew who she really was. Someone that would always herself first before others.
Was that not why she’d been drawn to her in the fast place?
There was something weirdly intimate about being the only one who could see deep into a person’s true nature.
When stripped of the title and the mask she always wore in front of people, there was nothing but rot and filth under all of it.
Which was what made it all more fulfilling to Han Shuying. That such a woman could look at her with genuine kindness and care. It meant that she wasn’t totally unworthy.
"What do you want me to do?" she asked the woman who she would go to war for in the blink of an eye.
"The only thing that silly son of mine cares about is that stupid maid."
Han Shuying’s entire body went still. "But she’s already leaving."
"That’s not enough. We can’t have Zhao Chen going after her." The Empress held Han Shuying’s shoulders. "He’s too stubborn for his own good."
"What will you have me do?" Han Shuying asked, even though she knew the unpleasant answer like the back of her palm.
