The bitter wind accompanied a dense curtain of rain, the candlelight flickering weakly in the deep night like fireflies on a summer evening. Darkness descended overwhelmingly, pressing on the heart like a mountain.
“Your Highness, your health is what matters most. Allow this servant to help you change into dry clothes first,” Xu Momo approached with fresh garments, urging with deep concern.
Having returned from Wende Hall to Chong Hua Palace through wind-swept corridors that splattered her robes with rain, Lin Guifei had first checked on Xiao Yunrui before sitting at her desk to swiftly write on spread-out paper.
Xiuyun stood nearby grinding ink, secretly signaling to Xu Momo with her eyes to remain silent.
Both Xu Momo and Xiuyun had been waiting outside Wende Hall and remained unaware of what had transpired within. Since emerging without a word, Xu Momo couldn’t set her mind at ease, her thoughts lingering on the situation at Lan Yue Hall.
When Lin Guifei focused on tasks, she would immerse herself completely, typically remaining oblivious to any external disturbances.
Xu Momo could only suppress her anxiety, standing restlessly nearby. The brocade garment in her hands had been unconsciously crumpled into a tight, wrinkled ball.
Lin Guifei set down her brush, waiting for the ink on the paper to dry, then glanced at Xu Momo. “Momo, give me the clothes.”
Xu Momo hurried forward, only then noticing the wrinkled state of the garment. She immediately blamed herself: “This servant deserves death! I’ll go fetch another set right away.”
“Never mind, just give it to me.” Lin Guifei’s expression remained calm as she reached for the clothing and draped it casually over herself.
The ordeal of bearing Xiao Yunrui had taken its toll, severely weakening her constitution. Over the years, there had been no signs of another pregnancy. Now, even at the beginning of early winter while wearing thick robes, her hands and feet remained icy cold.
Once the ink dried, Lin Guifei picked up the paper and began folding it. “Don’t mention death anymore,” she said mildly. “Whether deserved or not, never speak of it. Just watch others die.”
“Yes. This servant deserves…” Xu Momo bowed in apology, the word “death” instinctively reaching her lips before she caught herself and hastily swallowed it back.
Lin Guifei’s gaze turned icy as it swept over Xu Momo’s face. She instructed Xiuyun, “Melt the wax.”
Xiuyun fetched beeswax and placed it in a dish to melt over the flame, the honeyed fragrance blending with the scent of cypress.
This was Lin Guifei’s own specially prepared beeswax – she favored cypress aroma and had infused it into the wax.
As the beeswax gradually liquefied into candle tears, Lin Guifei inserted the paper into an envelope, dipped a silver spoon into the wax to seal it, and handed it to Xiuyun with instructions: “Take this and deliver it personally into my father’s hands.”
Xiuyun accepted the letter. “This servant will go immediately.”
“Wait until the palace gates open tomorrow morning,” Lin Guifei corrected.
Xiuyun paused with the letter in hand, her expression hesitant. Xu Momo, who was cleaning the remaining wax from the dish, froze at these words and couldn’t help asking, “Your Highness, has something major occurred?”
Yuan Mingdi hadn’t said much at the time, merely dismissing everyone. Lin Guifei suspected he wouldn’t let matters rest and would investigate thoroughly. Since the Lin family had already surrendered the lamp oil, he likely wouldn’t cast too wide a net.
Lin Guifei hesitated briefly before responding, “It doesn’t quite qualify as major. Just you scheming against me, me scheming against you – all that’s needed is to strike back fiercely.”
“Your Highness, is it… from that direction?” Xu Momo ventured uncertainly, pointing toward Fuqing Palace.
Imperial Concubine Lin gently shook her head, “It’s not her. The Zhao family was impoverished, sending both sisters into the palace to elevate their status. The Zhao family’s gate has indeed changed, with two stone lions added in front. But a destitute household remains destitute—outwardly vermilion gates, inwardly a pile of rotten cotton. Desperate to maintain appearances, they bleed from their eyes for lack of silver. In a year, the palace’s lamp oil expenses amount to no more than forty to fifty thousand taels at most. By handing over the Bureau of Candles, her aim isn’t the candles—she’s eyeing the Lin family’s cloth trade.”
Shu Prefecture produced silkworms and mulberries, its silks and brocades renowned throughout the land. Aside from candles, most of the palace’s silks and brocades came from the Shu Prefecture Lin family.
In Da Yin, aside from Shu Prefecture, several other prefectures also cultivated silkworms and mulberries, especially Pingjiang Prefecture, whose silks and brocades were no inferior to Shu Prefecture’s. Yet due to the Lin family, the palace consistently sourced the most silks and brocades from Shu Prefecture.
“The palace’s annual cloth consumption, just in silks and brocades alone, amounts to roughly three hundred thousand taels. Old Madam Gao’s maternal nephew recently arranged a marriage—the bride, surnamed Sun, came from a lowly background, with her ancestral family in Pingjiang Prefecture engaged in the cloth trade. I suspect she plans to use the Sun family to secure the title of imperial merchant, aiming to monopolize the entire cloth trade in Pingjiang Prefecture. The palace’s share is but a small portion; the bulk lies in the border trade markets, dealing with foreign tribes.”
Xu Momo listened in stunned silence, while Xiuyun pondered and said, “Your Highness, could it be that the other side was unprepared and caught off guard as well?”
Imperial Concubine Lin replied, “In just these few days, with the candle incident occurring, how could it be blamed on Fanying Pavilion? Lady Jiang of Fanying Pavilion is timid and dull-witted—any clear-eyed person can see she’s not cut out for this. She wouldn’t dare shift blame onto the Lin family at this time. If investigated, during her tenure overseeing the candles, barely any places in the vast rear palace used beeswax.”
“Your Highness, then who is behind this mischief?” Xu Momo asked, perplexed.
“I don’t know either.” Imperial Concubine Lin fell silent for a moment, answering truthfully, “In this rear palace, whether bearing grudges or not, many envy Chong Hua Palace. The winter nights are long and cold—some can’t endure it and go mad.”
Consort Zhao wore a smile on her face, but her eyes were icy cold, fixed unblinkingly on Consort Zhao Pin. “Mother entered the palace a few days ago and chatted with me for a long while. What Mother fears most are the New Year and festivals, with endless banquets in Jing City, constant hosting and sending off guests. Just the wine alone gives her a headache, let alone the social obligations. The great families of Jing City value face and pomp—if a gift from one family is regifted to another, once discovered, it would bring ridicule for years.”
Old Madam Gao said these words to vent her troubles. Although the palace occasionally bestowed gifts, and imperial gifts were all precious, they dared not casually sell them off. The Zhao brothers held low-ranking official posts with meager salaries. The family’s few shops did mediocre business, and the estate’s farmland yielded limited returns. All combined, it was hard to sustain such lavish expenditures.
“Sister, honored as Consort De, who would dare ridicule the Zhao family?” Consort Zhao Pin’s hands clenched tightly beneath her sleeves as she replied indifferently.
Consort Zhao chuckled, her expression faintly sinister. “Elder Sister, I truly think you’ve gone mad. Elder Sister, Zhao Wanying, you bear the Zhao surname too!”
“Your Highness’s words are truly strange!” Consort Zhao Pin’s eyes also flashed with anger as she retorted sarcastically, “I do bear the Zhao surname, and I am not mad. Your Highness also bears the Zhao surname—could it be that Your Highness has gone mad as well?”
Zhao Defei’s chest heaved as she stared fixedly at Zhao Pin, saying, “Sister must remember: if the Zhao clan prospers, you shall prosper with it. If the Zhao clan falls, you cannot escape either—don’t think you can remain unscathed alone!”
“If the Zhao clan prospers, it reflects Consort De’s prestige. If the Zhao clan falls, as a mere Pin, I truly cannot remain untouched.”
Zhao Pin’s tone was mocking. She smiled faintly and said, “Your Highness has always calculated without error. How is it you cannot see this clearly now? How can your calculations fail you?”
Zhao Defei remained silent, her gaze sharp as a blade, staring straight at Zhao Pin.
The two sisters stood close enough to feel each other’s breath. From a distance, they appeared to be intimately sharing private whispers like young maidens in their chambers.
After a while, Zhao Defei spoke as if nothing had happened, “It’s getting late. Sister should return early to rest.”
Zhao Pin pressed her lips together, rose without a word, curtseyed gracefully, and walked out calmly.
Granny Huang frowned deeply as she stepped forward to tidy the teacups, whispering, “Your Highness, it wasn’t Zhao Pin.”
“Not her. Though she harbors hatred, she hasn’t truly lost her mind.”
Zhao Defei’s anger remained unsettled. She closed her eyes briefly before reopening them, forcing herself to regain clarity. Sharply, she declared, “The day will come when the truth emerges! I will never let her go!”
The weather was bitterly cold. After returning to Fanying Pavilion, Jiang Ling’s skirt was mostly soaked. She paid no mind to anything else, hurriedly changing clothes and washing up.
Wrapped in the warm, soft bedding, Jiang Ling yawned comfortably. Exhausted from the day, her eyelids felt too heavy to keep open, while scenes from the day’s events flashed repeatedly through her mind.
Yuan Mingdi had summoned them, asked a few questions, but ultimately gave no resolution.
Yet she suspected this matter was far from over.
The bedchamber was quiet, allowing her to hear the rustling rain on the eaves tiles.
Jiang Ling listened distractedly, wondering how many people found it hard to sleep on this winter night.
Come tomorrow, how much bloodshed and turmoil would be unleashed!