Samaya was not prepared for the amount of pampering she was about to get the very next day.

She slept in far more than usual and only awoke when the sun was already halfway up to the middle of the sky. And then she was taken to the bath, her maids refusing to leave even when told to. Lian gently washed her hair and massaged her scalp, while Su and Yu took care of her arms, legs, and shoulders. Min had already been sent to prepare her favorite dishes.

And that was not even the highlight of the day.

No, that came sometime toward the end of her breakfast when Eunuch Li arrived, with an entourage of at least half a dozen other, younger eunuchs behind him, each holding either a tray or a small chest in their hands. Two were logging in a single chest between them.

"His Majesty has sent presents for Lady Qing."

"For me?"

Her surprise must have been visible on her face, because Yu muffled a giggle and Lian pursed her lips.

Eunuch Li bowed. "The Emperor has tasked this one with delivering these presents to you, along with a message."

Samaya tilted her head, raising an eyebrow in askance.

Eunuch Li bowed again, a thin smile curling on his lips. "His Majesty says: 'These are merely trinkets. We know you are not one to yearn for luxury, but some of these might take your fancy. Do take them as a sign of Our affection.'"

Samaya snorted, crossing one leg over the other as she leaned back against her cushioned seat, as she took the very last bites of her food. "How generous of His Majesty. Is this payment for sleeping with him?"

Eunuch Li did not speak. None of her maids seemed surprised. Well, something as big as this would not have stayed hidden, she supposed.

Lian shot her a look - part warning, part helpless exasperation- while the other maids inhaled sharply. Part of Samaya was angry at the thought that she was being paid for sleeping with the man, but from the awed reactions of her maids, it seemed that this was how an Emperor expressed his affection and, more importantly, favor.

"Very well," Samaya said, eyes glinting. "Let's see what passes for trinkets in the Emperor's vocabulary."

At her command, Eunuch Li gestured. The younger eunuchs stepped forward, presenting their burdens one by one, taking off the silken covers or opening their chests.

The first was a custom hanfu, pale lilac fading to indigo, with silver-embroidered peonies blooming across the skirts and sleeves. The silk shimmered like the morning mist, and the stitching alone was enough to rival the robes of empresses. The golden stitching was only visible when it caught the light.

Samaya's brow lifted. "Peonies, huh?" She trailed a finger down the embroidered sleeve. "The flower of beauty and fragile innocence. Is His Majesty trying to be ironic?"

Yu nearly choked on her laughter. Lian cleared her throat, not quite suppressing a smile. Eunuch Li was expressionless, but the younger eunuchs were not so. Perhaps, they were not used to seeing a concubine being so nonchalant about extravagant gifts from the Emperor.

The next garment was an entirely different beast, a deep crimson hanfu, its fabric darker than wine and shimmering faintly like blood in candlelight. Black lotuses were embroidered in obsidian thread along the hem and the cuffs. The overall effect was dangerous and magnetic.

"Blood-silk?" Samaya murmured, recognizing the rare texture. A fabric made from a rare silkworm that absorbed blood and dyed its silk with it. This was the kind of thing thugs in the underworld would kill for, so that they could trade it off for a fortune. She'd never really seen one. Who would have known she would get one for sleeping with the Emperor?

"Where did he even get this?" Her fingers paused on one of the black lotus petals. "Beautiful," she whispered.

And deadly.

She chuckled. "Well. At least he's honest."

The third item was a hair ornament - a delicate web of silver, set with spirit crystals that glimmered with an ethereal light, their colors shifting like a dream. These crystals could only be mined in qi dense areas by cultivators. Hence, extremely expensive. The hairpiece was shaped like intertwining vines, and no two crystals were the same.

"A crown for his favorite beast?" she mused aloud. "It's gorgeous."

"You will look like a fairy from the legends in that," Min said softly.

Samaya's grin was wicked. "A fairy? Oh, Min, I am anything but."

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Next, Eunuch Li held out a smaller box from one of the eunuchs. Inside was a small black porcelain vial, etched with plum blossoms and sealed with wax. Beside the vial was a small scroll.

"His Majesty had this brewed by the Imperial Apothecary," Eunuch Li intoned solemnly.

Samaya reached forward and took the scroll, opening it.

This is Sleeping Seed Brew reduced into a potion form. It is potent. You need to add merely a few drops to a cup of water or wine. We hope you use it well, Ya'er.

There was a long moment of silence before she threw her head back and laughed. He had gone through all that trouble to ensure she wouldn't get pregnant.

Samaya tilted her head thoughtfully. "I suppose this means someone's planning on testing its effectiveness soon, hmm?"

The thought sent a thrill down her spine, and her loins throbbed at the memory of their lovemaking

The others were confused, but Lian seemed to have gotten some sort of idea of what it was. Or perhaps, what it was related to. "My lady—"

But Samaya only smirked and looked up at the Eunuch. "Tell His Majesty I accept his… foresight."

The next gift was more dangerous.

A jade hairpin, cool and pale, carved into the twisting form of a white viper with tiny ruby eyes and a silver tongue.

"A subtle weapon," she murmured, the blade concealed within the hairpin's tip sliding out with a satisfying click. "Poison optional, I assume."

Soft gasps echoed across the room. The fact that the Emperor was gifting a concubine a weapon, one so subtle that it might be used to assassinate someone, was something that no one expected.

She raised her eyes to meet Eunuch Li's. "I presume they know to keep their silence?"

Eunuch Li bowed in acquiescence. She had expected no less. Eunuch Li was one of the most trusted aides of the Emperor. He knew all sorts of sensitive information. He would not select Eunuchs with loose tongues to deliver gifts that might be controversial in the harem.

Samaya nodded in satisfaction and turned her attention back to the gifts. After the hairpin, came a veil, a transparent silk veil that shimmered like mist at dawn. It was dyed in shades of moonlight grey and silver-blue, light as breath. She never knew a mere veil could feel so luxurious.

Samaya held it up to the light, watching it shimmer. "For those days I feel like being mysterious," she said, though she did not think a day would come when she would use this for a disguise. "Or maybe for those nights when he wants to imagine more than see."

Lian looked scandalized. "My lady, please!"

Samaya only grinned.

The next gift drew a low whistle from her. If the jade hairpin was problematic, then these were downright disasters.

A pair of pearl-handled daggers, small enough to conceal in her sleeves, their blades wickedly curved. One dagger had a white pearl, the other, black.

Samaya lifted both, testing their weight, spinning them in her hands with ease. "Balanced. Sharp. Custom made."

And then came something truly extravagant.

A cloak, full-length and trimmed with gold, made entirely from crimson fur. It shimmered in the light like flame and draped like molten velvet. The interior lining was silk patterned with foxes.

"It is fox fur."

Samaya touched it reverently. The fox. A cunning and dangerous creature, one that could never be tamed. It seemed the Emperor was sending her many messages through his gifts.

Next, one of the eunuchs stepped forward, carrying three silk fans on a tray, each painted with a different poisonous flower: aconite, belladonna, and datura. The fans were rimmed in gold, their silk nearly translucent, the art so delicate it looked alive.

Samaya opened the aconite one with a flick.

"This makes me wish I'd trained in war fans," she murmured. It seemed slightly heavier than a normal fan. Something glinted in the light. Upon closer inspection, she found that the fan was lined with a thin, hairlike blade. Another set of weapons, unnoticed by anyone but the holder. She chuckled. "He really knows what I like."

A smaller box revealed a delicate pendant—a single tear-shaped sapphire set in a dragon-claw of gold, hanging from a chain so fine it was nearly invisible.

"A Dragon's Tear," she whispered. There was a legend regarding this pendant. An ancient dragon, who'd lost the love of his life, wept day and night, until he turned into stone and his tears crystallized. Samaya did not know how much of that legend was true - this was somewhat of a magical world, after all; anything could happen - but she did not know that there were only 8 of these in the entire world.

"He yearns for you, Lady Qing," Su whispered reverently, voice almost wistful. Samaya turned her head slightly to look at the girl, only to find her gazing into nothing. Her chest tightened. No doubt she was remembering Rin.

Samaya exhaled softly and turned her eyes to the last present.

Finally, a tall, covered object was unveiled.

A silk screen, six panels wide.

She stepped forward.

At first glance, it looked like a typical landscape, mountains overlooking a cloudy sky, a river flowing across the screen. But as she walked along the panels, the shape of a woman emerged from the shadows of a mountain, the curve of her back in the flowing river, the fall of her hair in the ink-strokes of a willow tree.

Samaya's breath caught.

It was her. You would not see it unless you were looking for it. But it was unmistakably her. She could see it in the twists of the rivers and the curled vines and leaves of the willow tree.

When did the man even have the time to get this made? They had arrived only yesterday. It had been barely over 12 hours.

Silence hung in the air for a long time.

When she finally turned, Eunuch Li stood ready, waiting.

"Shall I tell His Majesty that Lady Qing has accepted the gifts?"

Samaya's lips curved into a dangerous smile. "Oh, Eunuch Li," she purred. "You may tell His Majesty that I am thoroughly amused. Does he expect anything else in return? Or does my… ah, service… suffice?"

The eunuch bowed. "That is a question Lady Qing must ask His Majesty."

Samaya gave a small nod and waved her hand, dismissing him.

As he left, Su whispered, "He must like you very, very much."

Samaya didn't reply.

She only turned back to the screen. Her fingers brushed the edge of the panel.

These … these extravagant gifts were not just about liking. Custom-made gifts within one night. They were not mere gifts. They were a statement. A declaration of the Emperor's favor for the commoner concubine. This was sure to bring more attention to her. Not that the attention was not already there… but the Emperor declaring that he'd had a tumble in the bed with her and was satisfied with it… It would bring more. Some annoying, some unsavory, almost none positive.

She did not know what kind of plan the man had behind this grand gesture.

But she could not find it in herself to mind.

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