The palace gradually returned to silence after the strange crying voices disappeared.

One by one, servants returned to their quarters.

Lanterns dimmed.

Doors closed.

Yet despite the calm appearance—

Very few people were actually asleep.

The night’s events had unsettled everyone.

—

Inside her residence, the Dowager Empress sat quietly beside a brazier.

The fire crackled softly.

Her expression was thoughtful.

Serious.

—

The strange cries bothered her.

Not because she believed in every superstition.

But because she understood people.

And people feared what they could not explain.

—

A maid entered.

"Your Majesty."

—

The Dowager looked up.

"Summon His Majesty and Prince Liang."

—

"Yes, Your Majesty."

—

Not long afterward—

The Emperor arrived first.

Prince Liang followed shortly behind.

—

Both men entered the chamber.

—

"Mother."

"Imperial Mother."

—

The Dowager motioned for them to sit.

—

For several moments—

No one spoke.

—

Then the Dowager finally broke the silence.

—

"Tonight’s incident is troublesome."

—

The Emperor nodded.

"It caused panic."

—

Prince Liang sighed.

"The servants are already spreading rumors."

—

The Dowager’s expression darkened.

—

"Of course they are."

—

"First the kidnapping attempt."

—

"Then the Empress nearly dying."

—

"Now strange cries in the middle of the night."

—

Her voice grew heavier.

—

"The palace atmosphere is becoming worse."

—

Silence settled over the room.

—

The Emperor understood immediately.

—

This wasn’t only about ghosts or strange sounds.

—

It was about stability.

—

The Dowager continued.

—

"When people become frightened..."

—

"They begin creating stories."

—

"When they create stories..."

—

"They begin believing them."

—

"And once they believe them..."

—

"Control becomes difficult."

—

Prince Liang nodded slowly.

—

"The servants are already saying someone important will die."

—

The Dowager frowned.

—

"Exactly."

—

She looked directly at the Emperor.

—

"The throne cannot allow such rumors."

—

The Emperor’s expression became serious.

—

The Dowager leaned back slightly.

—

"Think carefully."

—

"The Empress’s incident shocked the capital."

—

"The kidnapping attempt caused concern."

—

"If strange omens continue appearing..."

—

"The people will start believing Heaven is displeased."

—

The chamber became quiet.

—

The Emperor tapped the table lightly.

Thinking.

—

The Dowager continued calmly.

—

"Whether the cries were supernatural or not doesn’t matter."

—

"What matters is perception."

—

Prince Liang nodded immediately.

—

"The people only care about what they believe."

—

The Dowager looked pleased.

—

"Exactly."

—

Then she spoke firmly.

—

"So we must distract them."

—

The Emperor looked up.

—

"Distract them?"

—

The Dowager nodded.

—

"Give them something joyful."

—

"Something positive."

—

"Something bigger than fear."

—

Prince Liang’s eyes brightened slightly.

—

"The marriage banquet."

—

The Dowager smiled.

—

"Good."

—

"At least one of my sons is thinking."

—

Prince Liang coughed awkwardly.

The Emperor simply ignored the comment.

—

The Dowager continued.

—

"The engagement announcement is approaching."

—

"The capital already knows about it."

—

"If handled properly..."

—

"The people’s attention will shift."

—

"From omens."

—

"To celebration."

—

The Emperor considered her words.

Then nodded slowly.

—

"It makes sense."

—

The Dowager continued.

—

"We need music."

—

"Festivities."

—

"Charity."

—

"Public celebrations."

—

"Something that reminds people life continues."

—

Prince Liang nodded.

—

"Fear grows in silence."

—

The Dowager pointed at him.

—

"Exactly."

—

Then she turned toward the Emperor.

—

"You are the ruler."

—

"The people watch your reactions."

—

"If you appear unconcerned..."

—

"They will calm down."

—

"If you appear worried..."

—

"They will panic."

—

The Emperor remained silent.

But he understood.

—

Leadership often meant projecting confidence even when answers were unclear.

—

The Dowager sighed softly.

—

"I don’t like tonight’s incident."

—

Her gaze drifted toward the window.

—

"Not at all."

—

The Emperor noticed.

—

For all her calm words—

The Dowager herself seemed uneasy.

—

Prince Liang spoke quietly.

—

"Do you think it truly means something?"

—

The room became still.

—

The Dowager looked toward the fire.

Watching the flames dance.

—

Then she answered.

—

"I don’t know."

—

That honest answer surprised both men.

—

The Dowager rarely admitted uncertainty.

—

She slowly stood.

—

"But until we know the truth..."

—

"We proceed normally."

—

"No panic."

—

"No fear."

—

"No rumors."

—

The Emperor rose as well.

—

"It will be handled."

—

The Dowager nodded.

Satisfied.

—

Prince Liang also stood.

—

The meeting had ended.

—

As both men left the chamber—

The Dowager remained behind.

Standing near the window.

Watching the dark palace grounds.

—

Her expression slowly changed.

—

Becoming more troubled.

More thoughtful.

—

Because there was one thing she hadn’t told them.

—

When the cries echoed through the palace earlier—

For a brief moment—

She thought she heard words hidden inside the sobbing.

—

Words she couldn’t fully understand.

—

And somehow—

That frightened her more than the cries themselves.

—

Outside—

The moon disappeared behind thick clouds.

—

The palace returned to silence.

But beneath that silence—

An uneasy feeling continued to spread.

Like a storm gathering beyond the horizon.

Waiting.

Watching.

Preparing to arrive.

The fire inside the Dowager Empress’s chamber crackled softly.

Outside, the palace had finally grown quiet.

The strange cries were gone.

The servants had returned to their quarters.

Yet inside the chamber—

Three people remained awake.

The Dowager Empress.

The Emperor.

And Prince Liang.

—

The discussion regarding the strange incident had not ended.

The Dowager Empress sat thoughtfully, her fingers tapping the armrest of her chair.

Then suddenly—

Her eyes brightened.

—

"I have an idea."

—

The Emperor and Prince Liang both looked up.

—

The Dowager straightened.

"If fear is spreading among the people..."

—

"Then we will replace fear with excitement."

—

Prince Liang nodded slowly.

"How?"

—

The Dowager smiled.

A smile filled with decades of experience managing both palace affairs and noble society.

—

"We will hold a festival."

—

The Emperor’s brows rose slightly.

—

"A festival?"

—

The Dowager nodded.

—

"Not an ordinary festival."

—

"A grand market festival."

—

Her eyes gleamed.

—

"The people have suffered enough recently."

—

"Rumors."

—

"Fear."

—

"Uncertainty."

—

"Let us give them something joyful to talk about."

—

The Emperor leaned back slightly.

Listening.

—

The Dowager continued.

—

"Announce that for several days..."

—

"Merchants from across the capital can gather."

—

"Food."

—

"Clothes."

—

"Jewelry."

—

"Decorations."

—

"Games."

—

"Children’s toys."

—

"Everything."

—

Prince Liang’s interest immediately increased.

—

The Dowager continued.

—

"The key point is this."

—

"The prices must be extremely low."

—

The Emperor understood immediately.

—

"A public benefit."

—

The Dowager nodded.

—

"Exactly."

—

"Allow people to buy things for one coin."

—

"Five coins."

—

"Ten coins."

—

"Even twenty coins."

—

"Affordable for ordinary citizens."

—

Prince Liang smiled.

—

"That would certainly attract attention."

—

The Dowager nodded.

—

"People love good bargains more than they love rumors."

—

Even the Emperor couldn’t help smiling slightly.

—

That statement was probably true.

—

The Dowager continued.

—

"The moment people hear about discounted food and goods..."

—

"They will stop discussing ghosts."

—

"They will discuss shopping."

—

Prince Liang laughed.

—

"Imperial Mother is wise."

—

The Dowager rolled her eyes.

—

"Of course I am."

—

Then she became serious again.

—

"The challenge is finding enough merchants."

—

"We need large quantities of goods."

—

"Enough for thousands of people."

—

The Emperor nodded.

—

"That won’t be easy."

—

Most merchants preferred profit.

Selling goods cheaply wasn’t attractive.

—

At that moment—

Prince Liang suddenly remembered something.

—

His eyes brightened.

—

"I know someone."

—

Both the Emperor and Dowager looked toward him.

—

Prince Liang leaned forward.

—

"A merchant."

—

"Very wealthy."

—

"But recently he’s been having trouble."

—

The Dowager gestured for him to continue.

—

Prince Liang nodded.

—

"He has warehouses full of products."

—

"Clothes."

—

"Decorations."

—

"Accessories."

—

"Household goods."

—

The Emperor frowned.

—

"Why hasn’t he sold them?"

—

Prince Liang chuckled.

—

"Because they’re not perfect."

—

The Dowager’s interest increased.

—

"Explain."

—

Prince Liang smiled.

—

"The defects are tiny."

—

"A slightly uneven embroidery."

—

"A small scratch."

—

"A decoration slightly off-center."

—

"A color mismatch."

—

"Nothing major."

—

"But nobles refuse to buy imperfect goods."

—

The Dowager immediately understood.

—

The merchant was stuck.

—

His products were good enough for common people.

But not good enough for wealthy nobles.

—

Meaning—

His warehouses were probably overflowing.

—

Prince Liang continued.

—

"Many items have been sitting there for months."

—

"Some are beginning to deteriorate."

—

"If this continues..."

—

"He’ll lose a fortune."

—

The Dowager smiled slowly.

—

"Interesting."

—

Very interesting.

—

The Emperor nodded as well.

—

If the products were still usable—

This could solve two problems at once.

—

Help the people.

Help the merchant.

—

And distract the capital from recent events.

—

The Dowager’s smile widened.

—

"Good."

—

"Very good."

—

Prince Liang looked pleased with himself.

—

For once—

His idea had received approval.

—

The Dowager rose from her chair.

—

"It is late."

—

"We will continue tomorrow."

—

"The merchant can be summoned."

—

"We’ll discuss locations."

—

"Suppliers."

—

"Security."

—

"And festival arrangements."

—

The Emperor stood.

—

"Agreed."

—

Prince Liang stood as well.

—

The meeting was finally ending.

—

As they prepared to leave—

The Dowager spoke once more.

—

"If this succeeds..."

—

"The entire capital will be celebrating within days."

—

Prince Liang grinned.

—

"And nobody will remember tonight’s rumors."

—

The Dowager looked toward the dark window.

—

"That is the goal."

—

Though deep inside—

She still wasn’t certain the strange cries had been ordinary.

—

But some mysteries could wait.

—

For now—

The Empire needed joy.

—

The Emperor and Prince Liang bowed before leaving.

—

Soon—

The chamber became quiet again.

—

The Dowager stood alone by the window.

Looking out at the sleeping palace.

—

Far away—

Clouds drifted across the moon.

—

And somewhere in the darkness—

Unseen eyes continued watching.

—

While inside the palace—

Plans for a grand festival had begun.

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