Zhuang Shuran had no idea how she made it back to the Prince Ning’s residence.
Her elder sister Consort Zhuang’s bone-chilling gaze, the gold filigree scent ball pressed into her hand emitting that faint yet eerie fragrance and those calculating words all coiled around her like a nightmare.
She wandered in a daze through the familiar corridors, completely oblivious even to the servants’ greetings, until a gentle, worried voice sounded beside her.
“Ranran?”
She snapped back to herself and realized she was already standing beneath the eaves of the main courtyard. Prince Ning, Li Qianfan, had appeared before her at some point, frowning slightly as he looked at her. Those eyes that usually carried a light, easy smile were now filled with concern.
“My lord…” Zhuang Shuran parted her lips, her voice dry and hoarse.
Li Qianfan reached out and gently took her icy fingers. At the touch, he felt a sheen of cold sweat, and his brows knit even tighter. He led her into the warm inner room, helped her sit on the couch cushioned with soft mats, then personally poured a cup of hot tea and placed it in her hands.
“Why are your hands so cold? And your complexion is so poor.” His voice was low and tender, filled with unmistakable concern. She had gone to the palace today she must have been reminded of Sheng’er.
“Is it… that you’ve thought of Sheng’er again?” When he mentioned their young son, Li Wensheng, who had died prematurely, his voice also sank involuntarily, carrying a wound that would never fully heal.
At the sound of her son’s name, the tears Zhuang Shuran had been forcing back finally burst forth. She did not answer. She simply set the teacup aside and suddenly threw herself into Li Qianfan’s arms. Her shoulders shook violently; her soundless sobbing was even more heartbreaking than loud wailing.
Li Qianfan gently patted her back, soothing her like a frightened child. His own heart ached beyond words the pain of losing a child was like having a piece of flesh carved from his chest, still bleeding to this day.
After crying for a long time, Zhuang Shuran finally lifted her tear-blurred face. She clutched at Li Qianfan’s sleeve as if grasping her last lifeline, her voice trembling with sobs and a trace of resentment she could not quite hide.
“My lord… why? Why hasn’t His Majesty severely punished Consort Su yet? Our Sheng’er… did he really die for nothing? Does His Majesty… does His Majesty simply not care about our child’s life at all?”
Her questioning pierced Li Qianfan’s heart like needles. He fell silent for a moment, a flicker of complicated emotion passing over his face. It was not that he felt no grievance, but as a subject and a member of the imperial clan, he thought more deeply and understood that young emperor better than his wife did.
“Ranran,” he chose his words carefully, trying to comfort her. “His Majesty… should not be someone who disregards blood ties so lightly. This matter… there may be something amiss.”
“Something amiss?” Zhuang Shuran lifted her head sharply, hatred flashing in her eyes. “What could be amiss? Elder Sister said that Lady Song was nothing more than a scapegoat His Majesty found just to absolve Consort Su! If there were no guilt, then why was Fuqu, the old servant who once attended Consort Su, assassinated the moment she left the palace? Isn’t that silencing a witness? It must have been Consort Su, afraid Fuqu would reveal secrets, who ordered her killed!”
She poured out all the ideas Consort Zhuang had instilled in her in one breath, her emotions surging.
Looking at her eyes clouded by hatred and grief, Li Qianfan sighed inwardly. He held her by the shoulders, making her meet his gaze, his tone steady and calm.
“Ranran, calm down and think carefully. First, if it truly was Consort Su silencing a witness, why choose the exact moment Fuqu had just left the palace and when Consort Su herself was about to leave as well? At that time, she had already requested to leave the palace and was on the verge of escaping this quagmire of trouble. Why add another move that would only arouse suspicion? It makes no sense.”
He paused, then continued his analysis. “Second, that Fuqu, as far as I know, had not yet reached the age to be released from palace service. And at the time, Consort Su had already been demoted to a mere attendant. How could she have had the power or authority to arrange the early release of a palace maid who was not yet eligible? That alone doesn’t add up. If you think she went to the Empress Dowager yes, the Empress Dowager is her aunt but matters of palace regulations, especially when she had just been demoted for suspected involvement in harming an imperial heir, would the Empress Dowager have readily approved such an improper request? The Empress Dowager has always placed the imperial bloodline above all else.”
Zhuang Shuran was stunned by his questions. She had never thought so deeply about these details. Still, her elder sister would not deceive her… would she?
“But… Elder Sister said”
“Princess,” Li Qianfan interrupted her, his tone unusually firm. “We should trust His Majesty’s judgment. Since he has already dealt with Lady Song, who led the matter, it shows he has not abandoned the investigation. This affair may involve much more than we see, and there may be hidden truths behind it. Let us… give His Majesty a little more time, all right?”
Seeing his wife’s pale, haggard face, he felt a surge of pity. His voice softened as he drew her back into his arms, resting his chin lightly atop her head, his tone resolute and full of promise.
“I swear to you if His Majesty ultimately… truly bends the law for personal reasons and ignores the injustice done to our child, then I, Li Qianfan, will give up this princely title if need be, but I will surely seek justice for our Sheng’er!”
His words rang with conviction, carrying the determination of both a father and a husband. Nestled against his chest, feeling that familiar, steady heartbeat, Zhuang Shuran’s turbulent emotions seemed to calm a little.
Yet the icy touch of the gold filigree scent ball hidden in her sleeve, and that faint, elusive fragrance, still coiled around her heart like a venomous snake.…reminding her of her elder sister’s command one she could not refuse.
She closed her eyes, and tears slid down her cheeks in silence. On one side were her husband’s analysis and promise; on the other were her elder sister’s coercion and the mad obsession born of losing her child. She stood at the edge of a cliff, trapped and unable to move forward or retreat.
At the same time, inside the Imperial Study.
Li Qianche had just finished reviewing a memorial concerning the allocation of military funds in the southwest. He rubbed his aching temples when Ye Ying appeared before the imperial desk like a ghost, soundless, dropping to one knee.
“Speak,” Li Qianche said without lifting his head, his voice tinged with fatigue.
“Your Majesty,” Ye Ying reported in a low voice, “at noon today, the Princess Ning entered the palace and went to Changxiu Palace to converse with Consort Zhuang. They spoke for about an hour. When the Princess Ning left the palace, she appeared dazed, her steps unsteady, as though deeply unsettled.”
The hand holding the brush paused slightly. The Princess Ning and Consort Zhuang… he did not believe the two sisters truly had so much intimate conversation to share.
“Recently, aside from summoning the Princess Ning, has Consort Zhuang shown any other unusual behavior?” Li Qianche asked gravely, his sharp gaze fixed on Ye Ying.
“In reply to Your Majesty, everything in Consort Zhuang’s palace appears normal. However, with the Plum Appreciation Banquet approaching, Changxiu Palace seems especially busy. Consort Zhuang personally oversaw the banquet arrangements and the list of pastries,” Ye Ying paused briefly before continuing. “Additionally, regarding the case of the Prince Ning’s heir, this subordinate has new findings. The extremely faint unusual fragrance lingering in the side hall that day has now been identified, after extensive verification, as something called Rú Mèng Lìng. It is a special incense secretly produced along the southwestern borderlands. Because its ingredients are rare and its preparation complex, it is exceedingly uncommon in the Central Plains, and almost no one recognizes it.”
Li Qianche’s eyes sharpened. “Its source?”
Ye Ying lowered his voice further. “Following the trail, this subordinate discovered that in the past half year, this item has appeared only at the residence of Grand Preceptor Zhuang Shijie. There were extremely discreet records of its circulation. Investigations show that the Zhuang household acquired a small amount of Rú Mèng Lìng through special channels.”
The Imperial Study fell instantly silent, broken only by the crackling of candle flames. Li Qianche’s fingers tapped lightly against the desk, unconsciously, his gaze keen as a hawk’s.
The Zhuang household! Again the Zhuang family! Rú Mèng Lìng… a southwestern secret drug… the murder of the Prince Ning’s son… the silencing of a palace maid… Lady Song leading the way… Consort Zhuang urgently summoning the Princess Ning…
One clue after another, like scattered beads, was suddenly strung together by the thread of the “Zhuang household.”
He recalled the day before, at Qinfang Pavilion, Consort Zhuang’s undisguised hostility toward Su Su, and her seemingly concerned yet subtly probing attitude toward Mu Hanyan. Just yesterday she had “chanced upon” them in the imperial garden; today she urgently summoned the Princess Ning, who had just lost her child and was emotionally unstable. And she was unusually attentive to the Plum Appreciation Banquet.
“Have Changxiu Palace watched closely especially Consort Zhuang and the maid at her side called Yingchun,” Li Qianche ordered, his voice icy and lethal, brooking no doubt.
“Before, during, and after the Plum Appreciation Banquet who they meet, what they pass along, especially anything resembling incense or aromatics, and what they say I want to know everything!”
“This subordinate obeys!” Ye Ying accepted the command. In a flicker, he vanished once more into the shadows.
Silence returned to the Imperial Study. Li Qianche gazed out at the heavy night beyond the window. The Plum Appreciation Banquet… what exactly did Consort Zhuang intend to do with that Rú Mèng Lìng? Was she planning to repeat her old tricks, or attempt something even more poisonous?
A terrifying storm gathered abruptly in Li Qianche’s eyes, his knuckles whitening with force.
What a Zhuang family! What a so-called loyal Grand Preceptor Zhuang, a veteran of two reigns! What a Consort Zhuang, who had operated in the palace for years with ruthless methods!
Did they truly think he, the emperor, was muddle-headed and incompetent someone they could deceive at will? First they framed Su Su, plotted against a member of the imperial clan, and endangered the foundations of the state.
And now, it seemed, they had even set their sights on the consort believed to be carrying an imperial heir! What exactly was the Zhuang family trying to do? Were they trying to turn the Li dynasty’s realm into something to be pocketed by their own clan?!
A cold, metallic rage surged in his chest. Since ascending the throne, he had known the Zhuang family was powerful, and that the Empress Dowager’s faction required balance.
Out of regard for Zhuang Shijie’s status as an elder statesman, and because Consort Zhuang had appeared “well-behaved” within the palace, he had not probed too deeply, seeking only balance between court and harem. Yet he had never imagined that his “leniency” would nurture such treacherous, audacious conspirators!
How dare they! How could they dare!
Li Qianche slowly closed his eyes. When he opened them again, their depths were like a bottomless icy pool. The Plum Appreciation Banquet might not only be the poison trap laid by Consort Zhuang it would also mark the beginning of his tearing off the Zhuang family’s mask and settling the entire score.