Wang Jing was nothing more than a puppet installed for the victorious faction to control. He was nothing more than the son of a useful idiot used to spark the conflict. He was killed off and now his son was the Emperor. None of the victorious faction were dumb enough to install themselves or their children as the ruler. It was a one way ticket to open rebellion and unlimited threats of assassination- like the last emperor died. Both those of the losing faction as well as the other vipers in the winning faction would try to unseat any member that was not themselves. The only way to appease everyone was to raise a puppet that would be putty in the hands of the victors. That way, they would be seen as enlightened tutors to a novice and unruly monarch and be allowed to essentially rule from the shadows. Analim and I learned this from the older gossips in the capitol. Whether Wang Jing knew he was nothing but a replaceable pawn, was unknown. He was dressed in his favorite periwinkle colored robes. It was certainly the setting for some interesting times.
Calls for the fairest of the Capitol to present themselves came and we answered. Besides the capitol was the Forbidden City. That was where the Imperial Harem lived. It was filled with nubile and beautiful woman for the eyes of the emperor only. The previous harem was sent to nunneries all around the empire. The only ones to stay were one of the younger concubines of the previous emperor, Hua Mei and the previous empress, Mother Empress, Empress Dowager Ai. She was a low born concubine that was clever and caught the eye of the Emperor. That was just one of the grievances they had against her. Ai had a daughter that lived and worked as a mid ranked official in the palace. They had to give Ai face as her position would demand, but she was really only there to mock as she was powerless. No matter happened to them, they would not be able to leave or do anything to stop a horrible fate from befalling them at their enemies' leisure. It was a wretched existence to live in. Wang Jing's mother, the Holy Mother, Empress Dowager Wang Wuying also now lived in the Forbidden City.
As we got there, the officials and the Emperor were already looking over the women assembled. I noticed that the courtyard was filled with noblewomen. There were only a few commoners. We were being held in the back of the courtyard. There was no way anyone would come by and see us. Even though we towered over the other girls, we were just too far from the front. Just as the Emperor was about to pass by, I elbowed Analim and told him to follow my lead. I began to sing Love Song by Selena Gomez. Obviously, no one knew the song, but Analim added his voice to mine and he got the chorus immediately. The Emperor and the others were stunned, but I held eye contact with the young monarch. The guards came to silence us, but the emperor stopped him. He had us brought before him. "Your song was... very good. What are your names?" I smiled at him and said "Your Majesty, name is Yawen. This is my best friend in the world, Wen. We have walked from the north looking for opportunities to sing and serve people with our song. Did you like it?" He nodded openly.
He was even blushing as he had to look up at me and Analim. He looked at the nearest officials and said "I have made my choice on these two. They please me." The other officials looked displeased, but there was no arguing with the emperor. We were set aside and he looked around the back for other beauties. It defeated the purpose of putting them at the back and they glared at us. I just smile back at them. It made them even more furious. The selection took another ten minutes before he got bored. He told us to go with the others that he had chosen and be settled into the Forbidden City. The noblewomen that were chosen were given much higher ranks and larger estates. There could only be a single Empress, one Crown Consort, four Consorts, nine Beauties and nine Ladies. That was 24 women that received their own homes. The Dowagers and those ranked above Consort received a palace of their own. Analim and I were Attendents. That meant there was six of us in a large household. We also had a small staff of three servants. There could be and unlimited number of Attendents and Maids.
