Fragrance Beauty Chapter 7: Step By Step (1)

Ann Brocade packed up her incense and prepared to leave the Medicine Hall. Before she left, Lady Intellectual Chen took another examination of her knowledge of fragrance. She answered them one by one perfectly.

Lady Intellectual Chen nodded with satisfaction, "You are the most qualified girl I have ever seen in Way of Fragrance. Have you ever studied it at home?"

Ann Brocade replied with her head down, "I only knew a little about fragrance. It's just because my best friend is the daughter of a family with great wealth, and I got the chance to study with her about the knowledge of perfume and fragrance."

Lady Intellectual Chen nodded, "learning Way of Fragrance requires a family with great wealth; otherwise, there is no way to study it deeply. You are the daughter of a magistrate of a county, and you are also born in an official family."

Ann Brocade smiled slightly. Magistrate of a county is a high official rank for common people, but in the eyes of the palace people, it is just an ordinary family.

Seeing her respectful att.i.tude, Lady Intellectual Chen said earnestly, "There are more than two thousand waiting ladies in this palace. His Majesty has given away only a dozen t.i.tles. The rest will be maids. There are only over three hundred first-cla.s.s maids and the rest are either second-cla.s.s maids or rough maids."

"Although you are beautiful, your family background is ordinary compared with others. It is extremely difficult to become a first-cla.s.s maid among the two thousand people, and even if you become a first-cla.s.s maid, if you don't have any official rank, you will remain a servant. However, if you become a Lady Official, you will get a good end no matter how old you are when you go out of the palace. Do you understand? "

Ann Brocade looked up at Lady Intellectual Chen's gray sideburns and bowed again. "Yes, Lady Intellectual Chen, I understand."

Brocade returned to Yuexiu Palace. It was getting dark. She hid what was in her arms and slowly walked in.

Longxiu was leaning against the bed with satisfaction. When she saw Brocade came in, she snorted: "There isn't any food left since you came back so late."

Brocade saw that her share had been eaten. Now the weather is cold, if she didn't eat at night, she would be cold and hungry and couldn't sleep. She asked, "I wonder if Sister Longxiu has left me a steamed bun?"

Longxiu laughed scornfully, "Left you a steamed bun? Why should I leave it to you? "

She jumped up from the bed and pointed to Ann Brocade's nose to scold, "I haven't got even with you for the hairpin thing this morning! Do you still blame me for your missing silver hairpin? Are you trying to challenge me? To tell you the truth, in Yuexiu Palace, you'd better be obedient, or you will not have a good day!"

Ann Brocade's face was nearly sprayed by her spattering saliva. She could not help evading it by leaning aside quietly. She asked softly, "Sister Longxiu, what is to be obedient?"

Longxiu thought she was afraid. She smiled triumphantly, "From today on, if you give me half of your monthly money, I will let you go!"

Ann Brocade couldn't help looking up at Longxiu's face in surprise. Waiting ladies of Yuexiu Palace were newly admitted to the palace, so she has only half a tael of silver per month. The rouge or powder of the palace were not given to them for free. She didn't have enough charcoal or warm clothes, so she had to buy these things from the Internal Affairs Department. She would freeze to death this winter if she only had half of the monthly money.

Seeing her hesitate, Longxiu couldn't help lambasting, "What? You don't want to?"

Ann Brocade forced a smile, "Sister Longxiu, I have just entered the palace and haven't acquired many things. What's more, my family..."

Longxiu jumped up and gave her a slap in the face, "I'll beat you if I don't! How dare you accuse me of stealing your hairpin! How dare you... "

Her fist was big and she was used to doing rough work, so she had great strength. Brocade was beaten to the ground and her cheeks were bloodshot. She tried to protect her head with her hands. Longxiu was vicious; all of a sudden, she kicked her soft abdomen and waist.

The noise of the fight soon caught the attention of other ladies in Yuexiu Palace. They all stepped forward and tried to stop the fight. However, Longxiu had already decided to teach Brocade a lesson, and several of the ladies who came to stop her were also slapped. Before entering the palace, the waiting ladies were also born in official family or wealthy family, so they couldn't bear humiliation like this. They broke into tears and ran away.

Seeing no one dare to stop her, Longxiu beat Brocade more violently. Brocade, who looked delicate and weak, huddled herself up to the ground and let Longxiu beat her without crying or making any noise.

"Isn't Sister Brocade dead!" Someone screamed.

This scream finally aroused the sympathy of the ladies, who rushed to seize Longxiu one after another. Mammy Cheng finally heard the noise.

When Mammy Cheng came, she slapped Longxiu in the face and scolded, "Stop! If you beat someone to death, you will be expelled from the palace! "

She hurriedly checked motionless Brocade. At first glance, she was startled. On the ground, Brocade held her head and did not cry or make any noise. Her black eyes were cold as ice lake, and she seemed to go out of her mind.

Mammy Cheng was so shocked by her facial expression that she hurriedly reached out to pinch her philtrum to make her come to her sense.

All of a sudden, Brocade's eyes moved, and she said faintly, "Mammy Cheng, I'm fine."

She stood up slowly. The ladies came to comfort her. They made good friends with good-tempered Brocade, and naturally hated Longxiu's violent behavior.

Ann Brocade was surrounded by other girls and was in a state of great distress. Some parts of her body still oozed blood. It seemed that Longxiu showed no mercy.

Sister Cheng cleared her throat and asked angrily, "What's going on?"

Longxiu snorted, "Nothing, just some trivial things."

Sister Cheng knew that she was the troublemaker of Yuexiu Palace. She had no choice but to turn to ask Brocade.

"What exactly is the fight for?"

Ann Brocade shook his head, "It's my fault. Mammy Cheng, Now I am fine."

Other ladies were in an uproar and complained for her one after another.

Mammy Cheng looked at the triumphant look on Longxiu's face, saying, "Brocade, I can't help you if you don't tell me what's going on."

When Longxiu heard that Mammy Cheng was going to stand up for Brocade, she immediately cried, "Did Mammy Cheng not hear it? She said it was all her fault! "

"Shut up!" Mammy Cheng's face was livid, "If you say one more word, I'll hand you over to the Imperial Punishment Department!"

Longxiu was immediately silent. Imperial Punishment Department was even more terrible than h.e.l.l. Rumor had it that all the eunuchs in that department enjoyed torturing people, and none of those who were sent there could come out unscathed.

No, it should be said that none of the people who were sent there could come out alive so far.

Seeing that Longxiu was frightened, Sister Cheng looked at Ann Brocade with a gentle face and said earnestly, "I know you have always followed the rules. If you have anything to say, don't be afraid."