"Are you ready?" Zhirou asks beside me.

Her eyes are glossy, and fear swirls in the blacks of her eyes.

Am I ready? No... I don't think I'll ever be. But I'm here now, I can't go back. "I suppose."

We both look out the window and watch the sea of girls swiftly walk to the entrance where a woman dressed in beautiful silk with dainty gold hair ornaments stood. Some of the girls were graceful with their steps, equal distance between each step, backs straight, and chin up. However some, were stumbling, they were the ones who looked like me, nervousness and fear etched onto their faces. My eyes shift to the woman with the gold ornaments. Her face held no emotion, however her eyes moved from each girl, studying every one of them. Her eyes were as red as a dragon. She had a commanding and regal essence to her. She was a woman of high status, I realized.

"Do you know who that is?" I ask Zhirou.

"Zhirou?" I turn to look at her when there's no response.

She's staring at a another women dressed in magenta silk, with intricate blue embroidery winding around the fabric. The gold ornaments in her hair are simpler than the dragon lady's, but beautiful nonetheless.

"hm?" she replies, turning towards me.

"The women standing next to the entrance, do you know who that is?"

She looks towards the entrance, then looks back at me, puzzled. "There's no one there, Xiulan."

"What?" I ask, before turning towards the entrance. She was right; there was no one there. "I could've sworn she was just there."

Zhirou chuckles, "Maybe your just imagining things jie, c'mon, some girls are already walking inside."

'Maybe...'

Taking a deep breath, I step out of the carriage with Zhirou behind me. Compared to many of the other girls, our clothes are plain and simple. I wore my best dress, an orchid blue cotton dress with simple gold embroidery along the bodice. It wasn't silk, and of course, it wasn't real gold, but my mother had made it for me, and that was enough to make me happy. I also wore a simple but beautiful gold hairpin with a white orchid flower-shaped pendant on the end. Two small blue jade crystals hung from it. It was the only thing of value I have. My father had brought it home from a business trip, and it was costly, as he had used much of his earnings to buy it. It was my most precious possession.

Taking another breath I look up at the looming palace ahead of us.

"Are you ready?" Zhirou asks, repeating her question from minute ago.

This time I reply, "yes".

We walk side by side towards the entrance. I could feel the judging eyes of the other girls as we passed by, we were of low class, and most of them were from noble households. I could hear some of their whispers, "They really let anyone in these days." Nevertheless, I tried to not let it bother me and I kept my head help high. Their perception of us shouldn't matter, they are, after all, just people. Status is determined by wealth. However, the character of a person is not.

There was a long line of girls out of the entrance, waiting for whatever was inside those palace walls. I sighed, and got in line. I was walking blind into this, I had no idea what awaited me, what dangers I would face.

"Did you know the Empress Dowager is personally selecting the Emperor's concubines?" The girl in front of me asks her friend.

"His mother?" her friend replies.

"Yes. Apparently, the Emperor is not only searching for a concubine but a possible Empress as well." she says, before both of them start giggling.

It made sense, as the previous Empress, the Empress Dowager should be the one to choose who to pass her crown to.

"Wait doesn't that mean they are searching for the Phoenix?" her friend asks again.

"Possibly, but who knows? Maybe there's no such thing as the Phoenix" she replies.

As the other girls chat away, Zhirou and I remain silent. We were both deep in thought; we were in our last few minutes of freedom; we will soon be trapped in the palace walls.

As we reach the front of the line, I see the dragon lady. She sits on a throne in the center of a stage, surrounded by guards, while girls go up one by one to introduce themselves. Her blood-red eyes are piercing through each one. However, her face remains expressionless. She's the Empress Dowager I realized.

"Next!" the announcer calls.

It's my turn.

It was my turn to greet the Empress Dowager. I watched how the other girls did it; they kept their heads low as they curtsied, then introduced themselves, before walking off the stage.

Taking a deep breath, I stepped onto the platform while keeping my gaze on the ground. Pinching my dress with my thumb, pointer, and middle finger, I curtsied as gracefully as I could manage.

"Zhao Xiulan greets the Empress Dowager," I say, as orotund as I could manage, which wasn't very regal as I was incredibly nervous. However, I did successfully manage to keep my voice from shaking.

With that, I begin to walk off the stage, relieved that that was over.

"Halt" a silvery voice commands.

And suddenly, my heart is beating out of my chest.

I turn around, keeping my eyes trained in the ground.

"Look up," the Empress Dowager says, with less force than before.

I slowly raise my gaze until I'm eye level with her, stiffening when her blood-red eyes pierce into mine.

I watch as her eyes shift to my hair.

"That hairpin, where did you get it?"

"My father got it for me from a trip to Chenqi," I reply rather softly.

"And who exactly is your father?" she questions.

"My father is a politician from the Xiehai province, Zhao Lei An" I reply, slightly louder this time.

Her eyebrow raises as she studies me.

"Zhao Lei An... ah, I remember. Your father made quite a scene three years ago, advocating for a change in currency. The palace officials were taken aback when they heard that someone suggested replacing gold with paper. It was astonishing, really, but respectable."

I was surprised; my father was not a very famous politician. No one ever supported his economic views, which in turn made him rather unpopular.

"My father is an... ambitious man," I reply.

"And you? What is your view on the matter?"

I hesitate for a second before saying, "I agree with my father's views." I know it was controversial, but she asked, and I had to be honest.

"Oh?"

Hesitantly, I continue, "The cost of production of paper money is much cheaper than gold. It takes heavy machinery and extensive labor to mine gold, and with all the money going towards its production, the government is gaining less money then if we used paper. Plus, we wouldn't run out of resources as quickly, as there wouldnt be such a high demand for gold. Paper money is also more elastic, it's easily controlled, if there was a high demand the government could easily print more, and vise versa. It also has more price stability; I believe that with paper money, the general price level in the economy would not change much over time."

I wasn't sure what her reaction would be, an educated woman is frowned upon. I can already hear the other girls whispering about me.

I watch as her lips slightly curve up at both ends. It wasn't very noticeable as it was a very minor movement.

"Ive heard that Zhao Lei An's daughters are very educated, I'm glad I caught a glimpse of it today," she says before waving her fingers slightly, signaling that I was dismissed.

I curtsy again, "chén qiè bài jiàn húang tài hòu."

As I walked off the stage, I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding. I've gotten through a significant part of the selection; there's a chance I can make it out of this.

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chén qiè bài jiàn húang tài hòu

I, your subject, pay respect to Empress Dowager.

chén qiè means I. It is used by someone of a lower rank than the person their talking to, usually a female. It is polite to use this phrase in place of 我 ("I" informal) when talking to a superior such as the Empress or Emperor.

bài jiàn means to pay a formal visit, to pay ones respects, or to meet ones superior or senior. In this case, Xiulan is paying respects to her superior.

húang tài hòu means the Empress Dowager