Xie Yao had come to return the token. When she returned from the Ming residence the previous night, Xie Yan’s high fever had finally subsided. The physician explained that her coughing up blood was not entirely due to the flogging. She had already been physically weak, had suffered from exposure to the cold, and had been ill on and off for some time. Yesterday, after being frightened by Madam Cao, the shock and terror had caused her to cough up blood and faint.
Xie Yao ordered the finest medicinal supplies from the family storeroom to be brought out for Xie Yan’s recovery. She also went to the Second Branch’s residence to inform Xie Yan’s stepmother that she intended to keep the girl with her for a while. Once she had taken care of everything, she freshened up and sent a calling card to the Eastern Palace.
She had intended to wait until she received a summons before coming, but unexpectedly, as soon as the servants saw her, they warmly escorted her inside.
Seated in the Eastern Palace reception hall, Xie Yao regretted her impulsiveness the moment she saw Gu Changze walk in.
After all, she had only met His Highness twice. Coming to visit him so abruptly, without first waiting for formal notification, was indeed improper.
“This subject’s daughter greets Your Highness.”
Gu Changze walked over from the doorway at an unhurried pace. He wore a dark green robe of cloud-patterned brocade. His handsome features carried a gentle reserve, and a faint smile curved his lips. The embroidered bamboo along his sleeves only further emphasized his elegant bearing, making him seem as refined as pine breezes and moonlit waters, composed and noble.
Before Xie Yao could fully curtsy, Gu Changze had already reached her side. “No need for formalities, Miss Xie.” With a sweep of his sleeve, he took his seat.
“Thank you, Your Highness, for lending me your token last night. I am deeply grateful.”
“After you returned to the capital, Miss Xie, were you troubled by anyone else?”
Gu Changze lightly smoothed his sleeve as he spoke.
Xie Yao shook her head and offered the token in her hand.
“I expected as much,” Gu Changze said.
A faint smile curved Gu Changze’s lips as his long, slender fingers reached out to take the token from Xie Yao’s hand. The early spring morning still carried a lingering chill, yet his fingers were even cooler.
When their fingertips brushed, Xie Yao felt as though a feather had lightly grazed her skin, teasing the very tip of her heart. Her gaze lingered on him. The morning light illuminated that flawless, refined, and strikingly handsome face. For a brief moment, the hand holding out the token faltered, drawing back ever so slightly. It was a rare lapse in her composure.
This Crown Prince possessed the lofty elegance of clear snow among the clouds. Though he held the most exalted position beneath the heavens, he remained approachable and gentle. Even with his frail health, Xie Yao could understand why every noble young lady in the capital admired him.
“Miss Xie?” Only when Gu Changze called her name twice more did she snap back to her senses.
“This subject’s daughter has been presumptuous.” She lowered her head hurriedly, suddenly aware of the warmth spreading along the tips of her ears.
A soft chuckle escaped Gu Changze’s throat.
With Xie Yao keeping her head bowed, his gaze swept over her without restraint, inch by inch. From her brows and eyes, to the flush staining her ears, and finally to the vivid crimson beauty mark at the side of her neck.
It was so eye-catching. So beautiful. A darkness flickered briefly through his eyes.
“What fault has Miss Xie committed?” Gu Changze spoke carelessly as he withdrew his hand and took the token with him. The red tassel hanging from it slipped through his fingers.
Almost instinctively, Xie Yao wanted to take two steps back. Yet before she could move, his other hand reached toward her. Before she could react, the clean, elegant scent that clung to him, as fresh as bamboo, drew near. His tall frame seemed to envelop her as he leaned forward, his hand brushing past her ear.
Xie Yao’s eyes widened. She felt a slight weight settle at the back of her head.
Gu Changze had merely straightened the golden hairpin that had come loose. As he withdrew his hand, his fingers inadvertently grazed her neck.
Suddenly, the little red beauty mark near her ear felt strangely sensitive, almost itching.
“Your hairpin was crooked, Miss Xie.” Gu Changze’s gaze lingered on the side of her neck. The shadow in his eyes was concealed perfectly well.
Biting her lip, Xie Yao retreated two steps, her eyes shimmering like water. “Th-Thank you, Your Highness.”
For the first time, Xie Yao felt that the hairpin atop her head was unbearably heavy. She did not even dare raise her head, afraid Gu Changze might notice the heat coloring her face. All she could do was bite her lip and silently scold herself.
His Highness had only come so close to help her. Why, then, had her heartbeat skipped so wildly? It must be because she had not slept well the previous night. She was clearly muddle-headed this morning.
While grumbling inwardly, Xie Yao offered another salute. “My younger sister has only just regained consciousness. I am still worried about her, so I shall take my leave first. As for the prescription, I will have someone deliver it to the Eastern Palace this afternoon.”
Gu Changze lightly rubbed his fingertips together, as if he could still feel the smooth warmth that had lingered beneath his touch. Hearing her words, he asked, “Will Miss Xie be bringing it to the Eastern Palace personally this afternoon?”
The question caught Xie Yao by surprise. She had originally intended to send a servant.
Gu Changze explained calmly, “It is, after all, a medicinal prescription. If someone else delivers it, I cannot be entirely at ease.”
Understanding immediately, Xie Yao nodded. Since she had no pressing matters that afternoon, making the trip herself would not be troublesome.
After receiving her agreement, Gu Changze said, “Then I shall see Miss Xie out.”
The two of them walked together along the covered corridor.
The Eastern Palace was filled with blooming flowers and carefully arranged ornamental plants. Floral fragrances drifted through the air wherever they went.
Xie Yao glanced around and asked, “So Your Highness enjoys flowers and plants as well?”
“I would not say I particularly enjoy them. The servants tend to them.” Gu Changze shook his head before adding, seemingly offhandedly, “Though there are magnolias in the rear garden. Those are flowers I do like.”
“Oh? Your Highness likes magnolias?” Xie Yao looked at him in surprise.
“What is it? Does Miss Xie like them as well?” Gu Changze asked with a faint smile.
Xie Yao did not conceal it. “Magnolias and crabapple blossoms are my favorites.”
Crabapple blossoms? Gu Changze nodded slightly.
Just as the two were about to part ways at the gates of the Eastern Palace, hurried footsteps suddenly approached from the side. “This servant pays her respects to Your Highness.”
A capable-looking elderly matron arrived before them.
“This is Miss Xie of the Xie family,” Gu Changze said.
The matron immediately bowed again. “This servant pays her respects to Miss Xie.”
“What brings you here at this hour, Nanny?” Gu Changze asked.
“The Empress Dowager heard that Your Highness had returned from visiting Physician Immortal Feng and sent this servant to inquire about your condition.”
“Since I am free today, I shall go to Cining Palace and pay my respects to Imperial Grandmother myself.”
The matron quickly bowed. After a moment’s hesitation, she added, “Forgive this servant for speaking out of turn. Ever since the imperial decree was issued, the Empress Dowager has often spoken of her future Crown Princess. Since Miss Xie is present today, would it be possible for her to accompany Your Highness to Cining Palace and pay her respects to Her Majesty?”
Silence fell outside the Eastern Palace gates.
Gu Changze did not answer immediately. Instead, he turned to Xie Yao. “What does Miss Xie think? My imperial grandmother has been asking after you for quite some time.”
Naturally, Gu Changze hoped she would agree. Xie Yao could also hear the implication behind his words.
No secrets existed within the palace. If, after the betrothal decree, she made her first visit to the palace and went directly to see the Empress Dowager without a formal summons, and did so alongside Gu Changze, the news would likely spread throughout the capital by nightfall.
Yet only yesterday, Gu Changze had given her his word. He had said that he was willing to try speaking to the Emperor and see whether the imperial decree could be rescinded.
Weighing the matter carefully, Xie Yao pressed her lips together before replying: “Your Highness and Her Majesty honor me with such kindness, but I would never dare disturb the Empress Dowager so casually.”
“Empress Dowager…” The matron was about to continue persuading her when Gu Changze lightly flicked his sleeve.
“Then I shall go on my own.”
Xie Yao saluted and took her leave, while Gu Changze headed toward Cining Palace.
On a narrow palace pathway elsewhere, two figures had witnessed the entire scene.
“You told me before that when the Xie girl entered the palace, she made it clear she had no desire to marry into the imperial family.”
The Empress immediately replied, “Naturally, she would not dare say so outright. But she showed no interest in any of my sons. As for the Crown Prince…” She paused, “…all the less so.”
A faint trace of mockery flickered across the Empress’s brow. Every one of her sons was outstanding among men, yet Xie Yao had shown no inclination toward any of them. In the end, she had been betrothed to a sickly invalid. It was easy to imagine how little she would welcome that match.
A hint of displeasure appeared on the Emperor’s stern face. “Ordinarily, a woman like that, with ambitions as lofty as the heavens, would not be suited for the palace.”
The Empress lowered her head in agreement. The day she had sounded Xie Yao out, she had already realized that the young woman was intelligent. But she was not easily controlled.
“Yet Xie Yao must enter the palace.”
“But Your Majesty saw it yourself. She would not even answer the Empress Dowager’s summons…”
“It is no matter. Her parents have only recently passed away, and she knows little of the Crown Prince. It is only natural that she would be reluctant to enter the palace.”
“Then Your Majesty intends to…”
“In three days, it will be time for the hunt at Shanglin Park. This time, I have specially permitted court officials and their wives to attend and enjoy the festivities as well. Later, send an invitation to the Xie residence and have the Xie girl come too. If, during those five days, she develops feelings for the Crown Prince and willingly marries into the Eastern Palace, then so much the better. But if she tries to stir up trouble, or openly refuses…”
The Emperor closed his eyes lightly. “…then I can only have her killed without anyone noticing.”
With both Prince Xie and his son now dead, all under heaven were watching how he handled the matter. He would never allow one of his imperial favors to be rejected. Xie Yao had to remain where he could keep an eye on her. Only then could he determine whether Prince Xie’s former followers harbored any disloyal intentions toward the court, and whether Xie Yao herself held any thoughts of defying him, the Emperor.
No sooner had Xie Yao returned to the prince’s residence than Qingyu hurried forward, her expression a mixture of shock and alarm.
“Miss, something’s happened outside. Vice Commander He was discovered at dawn hanging from the city gate, his pipa bones pierced through. He’s only barely alive.”
Xie Yao stopped in her tracks. It was Madam Xiao’s nephew, the very man who had made things difficult for her atop the city walls the previous night. How had he ended up like this after only one night? Suspicion and uncertainty filled her eyes.
“What happened?”
First, Madam Xiao, then the vice commander. Had the Xiao family offended someone?
“No one knows. They say he was left with only half a breath remaining. It’s a terrible sight. Madam Xiao’s throat hasn’t even recovered yet, and when she heard the news, she fainted again. The Xiao residence is in complete chaos right now.”
But could all of this really be such a coincidence? Xie Yao didn’t believe it.
Either the Xiao family had offended someone, or there was another reason. Yet if so, why target Madam Xiao’s nephew first?
Keeping her suspicions to herself, she called Qingyu over. “Go investigate. Find out where the vice commander went after his watch ended last night.”
That afternoon, Eastern Palace.
Gu Changze’s slender hand picked up a vermilion brush, his robe’s wide sleeves swaying gently. A painting nearing completion lay spread before him.
The woman in the painting looked sixteen. Dressed in pale blue robes, she stood beside a lotus pond. Amid wind and rain, she lowered her eyes with a faint smile. Long willow branches hung beside her, accentuating her graceful figure. Her delicate forehead, elegant brows, and bright, expressive eyes were rendered with extraordinary care.
The young Crown Prince painted with a smile in his eyes. He added a long hairpin to her coiffure and then, with fluid strokes that flowed like drifting clouds and a wandering dragon, wrote a line of verse beneath the painting.
“Your Highness’s brushwork is truly masterful. Both the painting and the poem are exceptional.” His personal eunuch, Jiang Zhen, hurried forward with praise.
Hearing this, Gu Changze was obviously in excellent spirits. His fingers lightly brushed over the painted woman’s image before he sighed softly.
“Unfortunately, she cannot see it yet.”
Though the Crown Prince’s paintings were exquisite, he had never rendered the woman’s features in exact detail. Jiang Zhen had seen countless paintings like this from him and still had no idea who the woman was.
“Then Your Highness…”
“Store it in the study.”
“With the others?”
Jiang Zhen carefully accepted the rolled-up painting.
Gu Changze nodded lightly. After a pause, he added, “This will most likely be my last painting.”
Jiang Zhen’s eyes widened in shock. What did that mean?
Gu Changze ignored his confusion. After a moment of thought, he said, “Have all the flowers in the front courtyard removed. Replace them with Xi Fu crabapple blossoms.”
“Aren’t Xi Fu crabapples the flowers you dislike most, Your Highness?” Jiang Zhen was even more puzzled.
Gu Changze rose and walked toward the door. “I can like them now.”