Chapter 1

In the third month of the ninth year of Jiajing in the Great Ming Dynasty, the imperial edict stated: "Promote Qin Fu to the position of Grand Eunuch of the Imperial Horse Supervision and the Manager of the Qianqing Palace, and bestow upon him the flying fish robe."

The Qianqing Palace is the emperor's sleeping quarters. Although the Manager of the Qianqing Palace is not as honored as the eunuchs of the Office of Ceremonial, he is still a high-ranking eunuch close to the emperor and holds a significant position in the palace, especially since Qin Fu is only in his early thirties!

Under normal circumstances, the Manager of the Qianqing Palace would eventually be promoted to the position of eunuch in the Office of Ceremonial, and even become the Chief of the Office of Ceremonial, which would make him a powerful figure capable of rivaling the Grand Secretariat and the Chief Grand Secretary!

The place where eunuchs reside in the palace is called the duty room. The new Manager of the Qianqing Palace, Qin Fu, has his duty room inside the Yangxin Hall, alongside the various chief eunuchs of the Office of Ceremonial.

At this moment, Qin Fu, dressed in the grand red flying fish robe bestowed by the emperor, sat solemnly in his duty room, with attendants standing respectfully on both sides. The room was bustling with a steady stream of people coming to offer congratulations and greetings.

Wave after wave of young eunuchs came to kowtow to Grand Eunuch Qin, and many other prominent eunuchs also came to pay their respects. Even the Chief of the Office of Ceremonial and the Chief of the Eastern Depot sent gifts to congratulate him.

Amidst the festive and joyous atmosphere, the promising Grand Eunuch Qin Fu let out a light sigh, his eyes distant, as if he was reminiscing about something.

Ten years ago, he abandoned his wife and son, severed his ties with the world, and became a physically incomplete man, all to enter the palace and achieve his current status. But was it really worth it?

The palace was isolated from the outside world, and he had no way of knowing how his wife and son in Nanjing were faring.

His former wife had probably remarried long ago, but he wondered if his son still bore the surname Qin.