Jade Waist, Locked Away

Everyone said the current emperor was cold, cruel, and unpredictable, and that he rarely favored anyone in his harem. Then the fourth young lady of the Xi family entered the palace. They say an emperor has three thousand women in his harem, but it would hardly be an exaggeration to say he favored only her. He bestowed the title Chen upon her and gave her Chengqian Palace, the largest residence and the one closest to him. In just six months, she rose from Zhaoyi to the highest rank among the Four Consorts. She loved sweet melons, so he had them brought two thousand li, day after day, just to make his beauty smile. But no one knew how the Chen Consort, who had once reigned supreme over the harem, would later curl up in a corner of the splendid golden hall, tears in her eyes, watching the shadowy man slowly approach. The faint sound of chains drifted through the air. The tall man in imperial yellow knelt on one knee before Xi Rongyan. His long fingers gripped her chin, his voice dangerous yet gentle. “Jiaojiao, are you going to run away again?”