"What is going on here?"
A pair of hands held onto Zi Hua's, helping her stand. "Ti—"
"Answering your Majesty, the three of us were just having a little chat at the pavilion over there," Noble Concubine Gong spoke up. "Would you like to join us?"
Li Zhen Tian subtly let go of Zi Hua and stepped away. He looked genuinely interested in Noble Concubine Gong's reply. "Oh? What was the topic?"
"It's—"
"About the importance of palace rules, naturally," Concubine Lin interrupted, giggling sharply. "Noble Beauty Yang seems to have a warped comprehension of them. I was giving her a few pointers as her senior, but she..."
She trailed off with an exaggerated sigh, and Noble Concubine Gong hastily covered her.
"It was a misunderstanding, Your Majesty. Sister Yang definitely isn't the type who cannot differentiate between right and wrong," she said. "Right, Sister Yang?"
Noble Concubine Gong's long stare wasn't threatening. On the contrary, it was so sincere that Zi Hua had goosebumps.
Who would believe this was the same woman who had picked on her with Concubine Lin earlier? She, for one, couldn't.
"Noble Beauty Yang, is that true?" Li Zhen Tian asked dubiously.
Zi Hua saw a deeper meaning reflected within his phoenix eyes: If she so much as protested, he would take her side on the spot.
But she didn't want conflict. Instead of offending Noble Concubine Gong alongside Concubine Lin, it was smarter to take what she was given and leave while maintaining a semblance of courtesy.
Thus, she chose to play along.
"Noble Concubine Gong is right, it was a misunderstanding. I apologise for worrying you, Your Majesty," she said.
"As if you're important enough to worry His Majesty," Concubine Lin muttered under her breath.
The next second, Li Zhen Tian's words slapped her in the face.
"Indeed, I was worried for nothing."
Her expression turned into an interesting watercolour palette, but nobody noticed or cared.
Noble Concubine Gong reached out and twined her arm around the emperor's, an inviting smile in bloom. "Your Majesty, come. The tea in the pavilion is getting cold."
She took a fluid step forward... Or rather, tried to.
Li Zhen Tian remained rooted to the spot, and his next actions made her falter.
He removed her hand from his arm.
"Rather than tea, I am in the mood for certain company," he said. "Noble Beauty Yang?"
Noble Concubine Gong's hope completely shattered. Zi Hua pointed at herself in surprise. "Me?"
When Noble Concubine Gong and Concubine Lin started vying for Tian's attention, she'd realised she had no right to speak up. In the presence of high-ranking consorts, low-ranking ones couldn't speak over them, let alone stand out more.
"Noble Beauty Yang, the weather is perfect today. Walk with me."
But Tian disregarded this rule. Right here, in front of everyone, he chose her over Noble Concubine Gong.
A warm sensation burst in Zi Hua's heart, like the molten custard centre in egg yolk buns. She couldn't control the grin that spread like honey, couldn't resist getting closer to him.
"I'd be delighted!"
Two figures, one tall and majestic, the other a head shorter but exuding pure bliss, strolled away side by side. The consorts left behind glared at their backs, wishing they were the one leaving with the emperor. Alone.
Concubine Lin turned on Noble Concubine Gong. "Hah! You couldn't even compete with a new consort!" she ridiculed.
"Hmph. Like you could do better with that stroppy act of yours."
"If you hadn't stuck your nose in, His Majesty would have taken my side."
"If I hadn't 'stuck my nose in', you would've made us tomorrow's laughingstock," Noble Concubine Gong retorted. "At least now, His Majesty won't perceive you as a jealous woman!"
"You—" Suddenly, Concubine Lin hissed in pain and doubled over. "F-forget it! Have it your way! Qian'er, let's go!"
Her lady-in-waiting immediately gave her a hand. "Calm down, mistress. Anger might hurt the baby."
Concubine Lin turned to leave, clutching her showing stomach. Noble Concubine's gaze darkened.
***
Oblivious to the dispute they had left behind, Zi Hua finally found peace in silence. The emperor's servants clearing out the area in advance for them also helped.
When she was a courtier, she had been too paranoid about getting in trouble to properly explore the imperial gardens, whereas the past few days were simply too hectic. Now, she could admire the appeal of the place which held the praise of half the nation's poets.
It was as if they had stepped into a deity's realm: not a single grass looked out of place, not a single architecture discordant, and every flower had a mission to out-bloom one another. Reds, yellows, purples, blues... There were too many colours to focus on, too many sights to admire. But somehow, combined together, the dancing butterflies and chirping birds; running water and natural fragrances... They all came together to form a harmonious scene.
"It's beautiful..." Zi Hua said in awe.
"As beautiful as the sunflower hills in Xiping?" Li Zhen Tian teased.
"Of course!" she answered without hesitation.
He chuckled. No other consort—or noble, for the matter—would dare to compare with the imperial family. They would always suck up to him while belittling themselves, however ridiculous.
'Hypocrites.'
Zi Hua wasn't like them. Her honesty never ceased to amaze him.
"Do you miss them that much?" he asked.
"They remind me of home, and as the saying goes, 'there's no place like home'," Zi Hua said, nostalgia creeping in. She quickly shook her head and thought of happy memories.
"Right! Did I ever tell you the story of how sunflowers started growing in Xiping, even though they aren't native flora?"
"Not that I recall."
Her eyes lit up. "It all started when a merchant from the Western Continent first stepped foot on Li Empire soil. He was the sole survivor of a shipwreck, and had nothing left to his name except a bag of sunflower seeds..."
As the tale unfolded, Li Zhen Tian listened and nodded along intently. In truth, he already knew everything there was to know about Xiping's history, but she glowed with pride when talking about her hometown, and he couldn't bring himself to cut her off. He didn't want her to stop smiling.
When she finished, face flushed a softer shade of pink than the plum blossoms above them, she sighed wistfully, "I wish I'd thought to dry press some before coming here."
"You do not need to." He held her hand, relishing in the way it fit perfectly in his. "One day, you will see sunflowers blooming in the palace, too."
Whoosh...
In that moment, the wind blew, and petals surrounded them in a romantic flurry. One landed atop her head, and he reached out to brush it away.
Ba-bump. Ba-bump. Ba-bump!
Heartbeats thundered in his ears. He was not sure if it belonged to her, or himself.
Poets sang the praises of the imperial gardens, one of the the most beautiful places in the empire, but he had long since grown accustomed of its scenery—and nothing here compared to her smile.
"Thanks, Tian. I look forward to that day!"
He would never tire of her smile. Never.