The grand words spoken by Concubine Li were never put into practice.
Concubine Lan was often summoned to the Imperial Court, enjoying great favor. If it was previously just the Emperor’s fleeting interest, the multiple summonses proved that she had made an impression on the Emperor, no longer just a symbol sent from the Grassland.
Promotions generally based on seniority would be handled during the New Year, a very plain reason—those Servant Consorts promoted to Attendant Lady, and Attendant Ladies promoted to Consorts, would have their ceremonies done together, saving money and effort. Thus, people observed that the concubine position was vacant, Concubine Xi lacked capability; she fell out of favor before the New Year’s banquet, giving way to Concubine Lan. Perhaps in the new year, the palace would have an additional Lady Lan!
This time, it was Concubine Wei who was especially unsettled.
She had a daughter and had been in the palace for a long time; she thought she ought to be the one promoted to concubine, not Concubine Lan.
"She’s like Concubine Xi, favored but barren," Concubine Wei resentfully said in Yikun Palace: "Posing as a favored concubine before me, bah! Concubine Xi is a fool too, just eating and sleeping, and even messing around with the Eldest Prince. Next year, the Emperor should send her off to the gardens, just close to Huaguo Mountain, sending her back to her hometown."
If a Barbarian woman were really to be elevated above her, Concubine Wei would rather hang herself.
Consort Jiang was even more upset.
She had been eyeing the concubine position, but now she was demoted to Consort and still longing to be reinstated. How could she be pleased that Concubine Lan was advancing? Wasn’t Concubine Xi quite adept at winning favor? She should go and impede her in front of the Emperor!
Yun Jiao, whom Concubine Wei and Consort Jiang pinned their hopes on, was figuring out the method of extracting essential oils.
There are various methods for extracting essential oils. The most common distillation method requires a distillation apparatus, but Yun Jiao couldn’t make such a container or even draw the blueprints. At that moment, Yun Jiao recalled something called the "Infinite Monkey Theorem," which suggests that if a monkey were randomly hitting keys on a typewriter for an infinite amount of time, it would eventually type out any given text, such as Shakespeare’s works, by chance.
She had the capacity to experiment.
Just couldn’t bring herself to be that monkey.
Ultimately, Yun Jiao racked her brains and remembered an ancient extraction method she had read about in novels, called the lipid separation method.
"Xue Ya, go fetch me some camellia petals."
Not many flowers bloom in winter, and more of the kinds Yun Jiao wanted to make would have to wait until spring: "Also, go to the Manufacturing Office and buy some glass plates."
The glassmaking technology was now very mature, so a Concubine wanting to buy some was still easy.
Xue Ya, however, became upset and secretly told Gong Mei outside: "If it were before, just for a few pieces of glass, our master wouldn’t have to spend Silver."
"As long as it can be bought with Silver Taels, life isn’t hard. The master is open-minded; you should stop dwelling on it."
"Sigh, you have such a broad heart!"
Not getting Gong Mei’s agreement, Xue Ya walked away, fuming.
After bringing back the glass plates, Yun Jiao coated each layer with oil and placed the camellia petals on top, then stacked them and tied them up under the sun.
This method was complex and time-consuming, but the good thing was that Yun Jiao had the abundance of time. If it didn’t consume time, she wouldn’t even do it!
Furthermore, fortunately, Xianfu Palace was all their own people.
Otherwise, if she were the head of a palace of her own, and an Attendant Lady residing there who took bribes from others accused her of being wasteful, she wouldn’t be so at ease. Concubine Li advocated for a low-oil, low-sugar diet, and the oil in the budget was more than enough for her use. Yun Jiao promised her: "When I succeed in making camellia essential oil, I’ll share a bottle with you. It smells wonderful."
"Alright, I’m waiting for it,"
Concubine Li replied perfunctorily.
Yun Jiao, in fact, was trying it for the first time, unsure if it would succeed.
If it failed, she’d just start over.
The palace maids and eunuchs in Xianfu Palace had no idea what Yun Jiao was doing, but Xue Ya and Gong Mei, with the constant influence from their master, gradually began to look forward to it, imagining using the successfully made "essential oil" for skincare, bathing, and scenting carpets.
She lived her life indifferent to the concubines’ competition for favor.
However, perhaps it was soon time for the New Year’s banquet, and some people felt they were just about to ascend to heaven and thus frequently overstepped boundaries.
Winter fruits were rare, and below the Concubine rank, it was likely they wouldn’t taste any all winter, sorely lacking in vitamin C and suffering from mouth sores. Those above Concubine rank might receive some allocations, but not without limits, and if they went late, they might not get any at all. When Xue Ya went to the fruit room of the Imperial Household to collect muskmelons sent from the Hot Spring Villa, she was forcefully pushed to the back by Die’er from Youlan Garden: "My master will receive the Emperor today, and the Emperor loves muskmelons. Sir, please give me extra."