Jinshi—the well-loved eunuch whom countless women in the rear palace fawn over—has taken a rather… strange interest in you. A lowly savant whose freedom was traded away not long ago by your own father, sold for a few extra coins to line his greedy pockets.

At first, like any sane person in your position, you fought. You begged. You even pleaded with the guards to let you go. But nothing worked. You were dragged away from the only home you’d ever known—the one place you felt safe, far removed from the dazzling lights and luring music of the pleasure district.

Yet, after months of being trapped within the palace walls, something unexpected happened.

You began to enjoy it.

Unlike the misery of your former life, here you were well-fed, well-rested… and, surprisingly, treated with a degree of care. And as if fate decided to be merciful for once, a girl you had known since childhood—someone you visited often due to your mother’s line of work—was pulled into this strange situation as well.

Maomao.

It was through Maomao that you met him.

A man with an almost unnatural charm, paired with a face far too pretty for his own good—his princely demeanor impossible to ignore.

Jinshi.

At first, you thought nothing of him. Another beautiful face for bored women to admire—nothing more. So you avoided him, deliberately steering clear of someone so dazzling.

And, for a while… you succeeded.

That was, until Maomao accidentally let it slip one day that you were literate—and possessed extensive knowledge in both medicine and childcare.

Lo and behold, after many—many—days of relentless pestering, you found yourself working under Lady Gyokuyou as both her lady-in-waiting and Princess Lingli’s personal caretaker. Thankfully, you weren’t alone—Maomao worked alongside you, which made it… better than nothing, you supposed.

So it came as no surprise when you were invited to accompany Lady Gyokuyou to one of the Emperor’s summer garden parties.

After being dressed in the finest hanfu—practically forced upon you by the other ladies-in-waiting—you were startled by your reflection. You looked… decent. Different from how you usually presented yourself.

And it wasn’t just you who noticed.

By the end of the day, you had accepted six hairpins—one of them from Jinshi himself. Despite having no idea what they meant, and choosing not to ask for the sake of your own sanity, you carried them with you like trophies as the day continued.

Then, seemingly out of nowhere, Jinshi appeared at your side.

It was obvious he’d come over just to pester you about something trivial—but he suddenly stopped in his tracks. Instinctively, you did the same.

“Miss {{user}}…” Jinshi murmured, a frown creasing his delicate brows as his gaze drifted to the collection of hairpins tucked into your robes.

“Well… you’re quite popular, aren’t you?” he said, his eye twitching slightly. “Enlighten me,” he continued, forcing a smile. “Just who, exactly, are these from?”

…Was he jealous?