The next day when Ye An woke up, there was an unspoken heaviness in the air. She took a deep breath as she stared at the ceiling, wishing that she was somewhere else but here, wishing that time would stop or even turn back. However, life didn't work that way. She let go of the breath that she was holding and got up.

Servants were already on standby at the foot of her bed. They tended to Ye An immediately when they noticed that she was awake and started dressing her in white mourning clothes. A humble off-white inner robe made of rough cotton was draped over Ye An, followed by a seamless coarse hemp outer robe which was cut to fit exactly to her body. A cloth crown made of the same hemp material was secured over Ye An's head with an equally brusque rope. Ye An suddenly remembered one of the many etiquette lessons she was required to take as a child. There was one lesson that was on funerals and the etiquette tutor who was assigned to Ye An at the time had explained how the coarseness and the rough cuts of the mourning clothes symbolized the wearer's grief. Ye An let out a bitter laugh. She couldn't believe that she remembered such a minute detail at this time.

Once she was fully dressed, Ye An stepped out into the courtyard and was greeted by Xi Chen who also had mourning clothes on. "Your Imperial Majesty."

Ye An only nodded before heading to the prayer hall with Xi Chen and a few other servants trailing behind her. The monks had already been offering prayers since their arrival the night before. Ye An could hear the solemn hum of prayers even before stepping into the hall.

She strode towards one of the cushions before the altar and kneeled to give her respects. Xi Chen followed suit on another cushion a few steps behind her.

Ye An had been avoiding from looking at the altar directly since she entered the prayer hall. When she finally lifted her eyes to look at it, her heart stopped as her eyes landed on the polished mahogany name plate. The name plate was placed behind the candles and incense burner, and had the Empress Mother's name carved on it.

Xi Chen could see the spasm in Ye An's cheek from behind as she gritted her teeth in a bid to rein in her emotions, knowing that the Empress Mother's body lay just inches behind the altar.

Ye An steeled her eyes so that no tears would fall. She knew that it would greatly displease the late Empress Mother if she ever cried in public. Ye An was now the only living symbol of the main imperial family and she could already see the late Empress Mother's disapproving frown if she were to ever show any sign of weakness in public.

Ye An blinked once. Then, twice. And proceeded to swallow the lump that was already at the top of her throat. She bowed three times, each time touching her forehead to the ground as the monks continued their chants.

Ye An then stood back up and left the hall without a second glance.

Outside the hall, servants were busy preparing palanquins for the Empress Mother's funeral procession. Members of the imperial family who passed away were buried amongst a cluster of hills and mountains towards the west of the Imperial Palace for generations. It would be a long five-day procession where servants would take turns carrying the palanquins as they travel to the imperial burial site on foot.

One palanquin that stood out from the rest was an exquisite palanquin that would be carrying the coffin of the late Empress Mother to her final resting place. Other palanquins were prepared to carry items to be buried alongside the late Empress Mother. The items they carried ranged from the items that one would use on a daily basis such as a washbasin and cutleries to paper servants and guards besides also not forgetting the late Empress Mother's favorite jewelry and makeup.

Ye An took a moment to scan the palanquins before heading back to the East Palace in silence. Xi Chen shared the same silence as he followed behind her dutifully.

*******

The somber air wasn't just limited to the Imperial Palace, but also permeated through the palace walls and dispersed among the commoners. There were already people lining up the sides of the streets where the funeral procession would pass by. Some were staring blankly into space while others were crying and bawling.

Finally, it was time for the funeral procession of the late Empress Mother to commence. The gong over the Heavenly Gates was sounded to signify the start of the journey. At the last beat, the heavy Heavenly Gates hummed open. Out came the palanquin that carried the late Empress Mother's coffin.

The last royal funeral was twenty-two years ago after the infamous rebellion that happened in the inner court. But the palanquins then could not even compete in grandeur. This palanquin was probably the grandest palanquin that the commoners would ever see in their lives. Even the palanquins that were carrying the items to accompany the late Empress Mother into the afterlife had excellent craftsmanship. The entire convoy was at least a kilometer-long, not including the extra servants who were trailing behind and the other wooden carts that were carrying supplies for the servants during the five-day journey.

Above the Heavenly Gates, a figure disguised in military clothes watched over the convoy until it couldn't be seen anymore. A couple of guards surrounded her, all of them had their backs towards her to allow her some privacy. Except for one. Much like how she only had her eyes on the disappearing convoy, the man beside her only had his concerned eyes on her. Ye An put her head down to compose herself and wiped the tear that had formed at the corner of her eyes before they had a chance to fall. Then, she turned her back on the convoy to face Xi Chen.

"It's time to go, Lieutenant Yun." Contrary to the redness in her eyes, Ye An's voice was firm and clear.

*******

A week had passed since the funeral procession and life returned to some sense of normalcy. As per tradition, Ye An was still wearing her mourning clothes as she flipped through the documents at the Mental Cultivation Hall. Even though she had never voiced it out, she always thought that the mundane task of sifting through endless documents was a hassle and always dreaded going through them. But not right now, not when they were giving her a much-needed distraction.

Ye An couldn't help but notice that the grand eunuch was fidgeting a little too much today. He had gotten sick since learning about the death of the Empress Mother and today was the first day he was back to work and it appeared that he was still not in the condition to be working.

"Grand eunuch, do you need more time to rest? You seem a bit agitated today."

Xi Chen who was quietly reading one of the many famous pieces of literature on military tactics lifted his head up when he heard Ye An's voice.

The grand eunuch stuttered. "N-no, Your Imperial Majesty."

Ye An cocked her head to one side suspiciously but decided not to ask any further questions and continued reading her documents. However, Xi Chen's sharp eyes flicked over to the grand eunuch and he was immediately intrigued by what he saw.

"Grand eunuch, do you know of something?" Xi Chen asked which piqued Ye An's interest as well.

"Wh-whatever do you mean, Lieutenant Yun?" The grand eunuch didn't know what to do at the sudden ambush of a question.

"I think you know what I mean." Xi Chen replied calmly as he put the bamboo scroll down.

The grand eunuch swallowed and looked down. He hesitated then took a deep breath as if he was making the most difficult decision in his life.

"I was there when the Empress Mother was murdered."

Ye An strained her eyes as she stared at the grand eunuch and tried to process what she had heard. Ye An lowered her voice dangerously, "What do you mean 'murdered'? I thought she passed away from her ailment? You better explain yourself before I throw you into a tiger's den."

"Y-your Imperial Majesty, you misunderstood me!" The grand eunuch hastily exclaimed.

"Then explain." Ye An ordered coldly. Xi Chen's eyes glided over to Ye An. He had never seen her so cold before.

"As you know, I've served the two previous emperors. When the late Emperor Lee Hwi passed away, I started serving you when you were a child. The late Empress Mother wanted to keep tabs on you so she had me spy for her and report your comings and goings to her."

"So every single time when she just seemed to just know what I was doing and who I was meeting, it was all you?" Ye An hissed.

The grand eunuch nodded apologetically.

"Nevermind that. What do you mean about the Empress Mother being murdered? You have thirty seconds to explain." Ye An warned.

The grand eunuch fidgeted nervously. "That night I was on my way to deliver another report to her. I always use a secret door by Her Majesty's dressing table that no one knew of but us two. Before I could see her though, General Shao entered her chambers. It was suspicious to me. I knew of their.." The grand eunuch gave out an embarrassed dry cough before continuing. "..Relations. But considering the Empress Mother's recent health condition, I thought that it wasn't likely for her to summon the general. Especially so late at night. So, I stayed for a while just to make sure everything was alright and that's when I heard everything."

-THE NIGHT EMPEROR: 夜安王 【The Night Emperor Book 1】END-

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