After Yuanchun had completed every last one of the Heavenly Court's exceedingly cumbersome rituals for her homecoming visit, it was already late in the Xu hour—the beginning of night.
At that moment, the garden that had only been named "Grand View Garden" that very day, the villa prepared for her homecoming visit, was bright as day with lanterns. Whether intentionally or not, it seemed to shine even brighter than the Ning and Rong Mansions on either side, outshining them both.
But none of that mattered!
What mattered now was this: in the main hall of the villa, Consort Yuan was receiving her family and friends. The commotion of the daytime reception had gradually faded, leaving only the brilliant lights and the solemnly standing celestial maidens.
Because it was night and the hall was so brightly lit, those outside could not make out the details. They saw only the moon hanging high and clouds drifting slowly. Inside, sandalwood incense curled through the air, pearl curtains hung half drawn, and shimmering light filled the room, making everything indistinct.
But those inside the hall could see clearly: Consort Yuan—Yuanchun—sat upright on a jade throne at the center of the inner chamber. Though worn by the day's exertions, she remained perfectly poised, showing not the slightest trace of fatigue.
Whether she was simply forcing herself to appear that way was impossible to know.
In any case!
She was dressed in resplendent finery, her hair arranged in a golden, five-phoenix bun beneath the rising sun. At its center were two luminous pearls from the Northern Sea, each the size of a baby's fist. Their cool blue light flowed softly, making it seem as though moonlight lingered among her cloudlike tresses, every strand bathed in their gentle glow.
A nine-phoenix pearl hairpin slanted behind her bun.