Kang Yanxin screamed and struggled with all his might, but he was no use against the trained Imperial Guards. Especially not in this state. Every other twist in the guards' grip made him squeal in pain, and Samaya was once again having a hard time keeping the grin off her face. It was unlike her to be unable to control her emotions. She quickly looked the other way, away from everyone, to compose herself. She dramatically put a hand over her mouth, covering the lower half of her face.

It only took a moment, and she was back to staring at the waste of human flesh being dragged away, her face still covered. She allowed her lips to curl up just the tiniest bit behind the large sleeve as she looked into his eyes, allowing him to see a glimpse of the person who had tortured him that night. His eyes widened in recognition, and Samaya knew that until now, this idiot had been dancing to his father's tunes. Instead of actually trying to find the culprit, they tried to use this opportunity to come after her.

The fact that they probably suspected it at least and their suspicion was true was irrelevant. They probably did not even try to launch a proper investigation before bringing the matter to the Emperor, probably wanting to strike while the iron was still hot. Unfortunately for them, it backfired. Badly.

She glanced at the maids still kneeling on the ground, ignoring the loud screams of Kang Yanxin and the angry rant of Minister Kang as he tried to defend his son. She had given up hope for Kang Yanxin to be officially punished. She also had not thought that this accusation against her would be dealt with so easily. Now, both were happening at the same time. And that was thanks to these maids. She did not know where they found the courage now after hiding themselves so well that not even Ah-Liu found out about them. But she was grateful for it.

Now, it was time to repay them.

She stepped forward. "Your Majesty," she called, cutting of Minister Kang who was spiralling into yet another spiel about how his son was innocent and was being framed.

"The matter of Kang Yanxin may be dealt with later," she started, "there is a more urgent matter."

"Oh?" The man asked, raising an eyebrow. "And what exaction would that be?"

She jerked her head towards the maids. "Them."

The maids visibly tensed. She wanted to reassure them, but now was not the time. She was trying to do them some good, and she could not afford to make some mistake in front of these vultures that called themselves Ministers.

"What about them?" He asked.

Samaya sighed softly. Was the man truly so dense? She did not believe so. But perhaps these things could slip one's mind when dealing with a screaming Minister.

"Your Majesty," she started slowly. "These women - your palace maids - have just confessed to being molested, to having their chastity taken by a monster. Unwilling as it was, now they will be seen as tainted, undesirable. This will spread throughout the harem within a day. They will be isolated and ostracized. Even if you set them free and compensate them, they have no prospects. No one will take them as wife or concubine. At best, they will be taken in as maids and slaves. At worst? They will have to sell themselves to brothels."

She paused, letting her words sink in, before continuing.

"They are your maids, Your Majesty. Under your protection. They are women of the harem, and they were molested while supposedly protected by you. They have hidden the fact in fear of facing this very situation. They will be either be scorned in the harem or thrown out onto the streets. Either way, they will lead a miserable life worse than death. Some of them might even take their own lives. Unless you do something about it."

"And what exactly," one of the Ministers - she could not bother to remember their names, honestly - asked, "do you want His Majesty to do about a bunch of used women?"

She turned her head, staring him down. "Used women?" She asked, her tone razor sharp. "Are you implying that women are commodities that are to be used and discarded as one pleases?"

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That was exactly what he was implying, and all of them knew it. But having it spelled out was jarring.

She did not give him the time to answer as she turned to the Emperor. "This is exactly what I am afraid of, Your Majesty. When women like us enter the Palace, we rely upon you and the Imperial Institution to protect us. However - and forgive me for saying this, Your Majesty - you have failed them. The Imperial Institution has failed them. They have been wronged, and now they will be punished for being violated against their will. I, therefore, beg you, Your Majesty, protect them."

There was a tense silence for a long moment. Minister Kang seemed as if he had a lot to say, his face going red with anger. He began to shake his fist at Samaya.

"You wish for them to be protected by His Majesty after they lied and sent my sons to the dungeons?!"

She scoffed. "I ask you again, what woman would lie about losing their virginity, knowing that they would be abandoned and scorned by society, knowing that there was a real chance that neither the Emperor nor any man would ever accept them."

It left a bitter taste in her mouth to speak like this. But it was indeed a bitter truth that a woman's value and life in this world were dependent upon a man's acceptance of her.

"Your son is responsible for this, but it would be better for them to accept death than to have your monster of a son take responsibility for them." She snorted. "And it's not as if he is capable of taking responsibility anymore."

The man went even redder, if that was even possible.

"How dare you? After what you did… you wench-"

"Minister Kang," the Emperor interrupted the man. "We believe We have already warned you against insulting Our concubine. You may speak your piece, but be careful of where your tongue falls."

The man slammed his mouth shut and looked away, the wrath clean on his face. But he had to shove it down because he could not disobey the Emperor.

The Emperor then turned to Samaya. "You wish for us to take responsibility for them?"

"I am… requesting you, Your Majesty," she said softly. "They belonged to you the moment they entered the Palace. If you abandon them now, they will have nowhere to go."

She held the man's gaze, a silent question echoing in her own eyes.

So? What will you do?

There was a long moment of silence before the Emperor spoke.

"Eunuch Li," he called.

It did not take more than a second or two for the door to open and the middle aged Eunuch to step inside, bowing as he greeted, "Your Majesty."

"Draft an Imperial Decree," The Emperor ordered. "Every woman who has testified against Kang Yanxin here today will be taken into the Harem and granted the title of Noble Lady."

Uproar rippled across the room despite the small number of people. The Ministers were talking over each other, trying to convince the Emperor otherwise. Even the maids were whispering amongst themselves.

"Your Majesty, this is outrageous!"

"I agree, you cannot accept random maids into the harem. It would destabilize -"

"If they're speaking the truth, they are already tainted. They cannot be accepted."

"It is unfortunate. But they will pollute the Imperial-"

"Your Majesty, you must reconsider-"

"Enough!" The man's loud command echoed in the room. Samaya felt a strange sense of deja vu at the scene.

The Emperor's golden eyes swept over the crowd of Ministers and maids, who shrunk under his gaze.

"Does Our authority mean so little to you that you must question every decision We make?" He asked, his voice deadly calm. "We have already issued the decree. It cannot be taken back. The maids will join the harem."

"Your Majesty." The Grand Preceptor, the Empress's father, stepped forward and bowed. "Your benevolence is immeasurable. However, as your loyal subject, I do share the Minsters' worries."

The Emperor raised an eyebrow, waiting for him to speak further.

"It is unfortunate what happened to the maids. However, the Imperial concubines and consorts have a specific duty - to further the Imperial lineage. As such, they must be untouched, and there must be no doubt about the parentage of the children they bear. Right now, we do not know if any of these concubines bear the child of the… alleged molester. Accepting them is not advised as of now. There may be some other way to give protection."

"Accepting them into the Harem is the quickest way to give them protection," Samaya interrupted. "And it is no fault of their own that they are not untouched. It is unnecessarily cruel to punish them for that and, make no mistake, not taking them into protection would be punishment for them."

"And what of any children?" The Grand Preceptor asked, tilting his head towards her.

Samaya frowned. She did not have any answer for that.

Fortunately, she did not need to answer.

The Emperor spoke. "We shall not truly visit them for the next year. If their wombs quicken, they will be hidden away safely until they deliver. The child will unfortunately have to be taken away, but We will ensure a safe and healthy life for them."

His eyes turned to the maids. "Is that acceptable?" He asked, in a tone that said 'it better be acceptable.'

The maids quickly bowed. "We are profusely grateful for Your majesty's favor on us."

The Emperor nodded. "Then that is decided." The man's gaze flipped to the eunuch. "Make the necessary arrangements. The maids shall be moved to Qingrengong by tomorrow."

The Eunuch bowed. "It shall be done."

The Emperor's golden gaze then met Samaya's.

"Are you happy, beloved Concubine?"

A soft, genuine smile curled her lips ever so slightly for the first time.

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