After the Dragon Boat Festival, the towering and solemn Forbidden City regained its former tranquility.
Li Wanran didn’t know how others felt, but she breathed a genuine sigh of relief when various flavors of zongzi—sticky rice dumplings—no longer appeared on her dining table.
Finally, she didn’t have to eat zongzi anymore!
No matter how delicious the Imperial Kitchen made them or how many varieties they offered, anyone would grow tired of eating them every single day. Now that she was finally liberated, Li Wanran wished she could set off firecrackers to celebrate.
She felt like gagging at the mere sight of zongzi now. She truly couldn’t understand why the Imperial Kitchen had made nearly a thousand of them; who could possibly finish them all? It was a pure waste of food—it was practically a sin!
As the holiday ended, unlike the peace in other palaces, Yinzhen’s residence welcomed a new round of bustle. It was now the fifth lunar month; by her count, there were only a little over two weeks left until Yinzhen’s grand wedding.
A prince’s wedding was a major event for the Imperial Household Department. They had sent people early to clean the main courtyard where the future Primary Consort would live. Even the interior layout and the placement of furniture had to be cleared with Yinzhen before they made final arrangements.
The main courtyard was three times the size of Li Wanran’s courtyard. Since it had been vacant for a long time, cleaning it required much more effort. Consequently, every time Li Wanran stepped out, she could see palace servants bustling in and out of the main courtyard.
“How lively,” Li Wanran remarked, glancing from her courtyard gate before turning back into her room to attend to her own affairs.
Banxia, who followed by her side, kept a cautious watch over her, looking as if Li Wanran were a fragile doll that might shatter at any second.
“Banxia, can you stop looking at me like that?” Banxia’s worried gaze was so intense that Li Wanran couldn’t even focus on her book. She couldn’t help but press a hand to her forehead and sigh.
Ever since the gates of the main courtyard were opened, not only Banxia, but even Lady Yi had come to comfort her several times. They all assumed she was heartbroken over the Fourth Prince’s impending wedding and urged her to relax and not overthink things, saying that as long as she held the Fourth Prince’s favor, she would be fine.
Li Wanran was touched by their concern, but the problem was…
She really wasn’t overthinking it!
She desperately wanted to ask: What kind of strange scenarios are you all imagining in your heads?
She had known when the Primary Consort would be arriving since her first day in the back palace. Moreover, from the moment she entered the Forbidden City, she knew what kind of life she was destined for. Therefore, this matter didn’t cause even a ripple in her heart.
Well… perhaps there was a tiny bit of feeling. After all, she had invested some genuine emotion during this period, even if it wasn’t much. But she was certainly nowhere near the state of “utterly devastated” they were imagining. At most, it was a tiny bit of melancholy—the kind that would dissipate on its own if left alone.
In comparison, her biggest headache was the fact that another “mountain” was about to be placed over her head, and she had to figure out how to get along with her new direct supervisor. After all, the woman would be her legitimate, immediate superior with the authority to manage her.
Banxia gave a soft “mm-hmm” with an expression that said, You don’t have to say anything, I understand. She brought a plate of pastries from the outer room and set them before Li Wanran.
“Gégé, why don’t you have some sweets?” she said softly. “I specifically brought the crispy sugar candy and flower cakes you love most.”
Banxia thought worriedly that when one was unhappy, eating favorite foods would make one feel much better. Her mistress must be the same, right?
Li Wanran lowered her gaze and sighed. To put the girl’s mind at ease, she resignedly picked up a flower cake to eat. As she ate, she resolved to clear things up with them today; if this continued, she was going to lose her temper.
Before she could finish, however, Xiao Yuzi entered carrying a small woven bamboo flower basket. The basket was filled with vibrant, blooming flowers arranged in an orderly fashion. The various colors were a delight to the eyes, and even the air became filled with a refreshing floral fragrance.
Xiao Yuzi first paid his respects to Li Wanran before placing the basket right before her so she could see it clearly. He looked up at her with the expression of someone presenting a treasure. “I saw that the flowers in the garden were blooming beautifully. Thinking Gégé would surely like them, I took it upon myself to pick some for you.”
Internally, he was thinking that Lady Li was putting on a brave face every day just so they wouldn’t worry. He couldn’t do much, but he could at least do these small things to coax a smile out of her.
If Li Wanran knew what he was thinking, she would have said: Stop overthinking it, your mistress is perfectly fine!
However, seeing his expression now, she could guess what was going on. Of course, she still graciously praised the basket of delicate flowers and Xiao Yuzi for his thoughtfulness. She pulled a single flower from the basket and sniffed it; a light fragrance instantly filled her senses.
She couldn’t help but wonder to herself: Has my persona of being “deeply in love” become this deeply rooted in people’s minds? Everyone was inventing dramas for her, and even a proper explanation wouldn’t…
In a flash of realization, Li Wanran’s pupils contracted. She suddenly noticed that her current behavior didn’t match her persona.
She had to remember that the persona she had built, both internally and externally, was that of a minor mistress who was deeply and unswervingly in love with the Fourth Prince. Imagine if the man she loved was about to marry a wife, and she, as his devoted admirer, wasn’t sad or heartbroken at all.
Was that logical? Not at all!
At this thought, Li Wanran quickly took a few deep breaths of the floral scent to calm her nerves. That was close—she almost broke character. Since she had identified the problem, she had to solve it.
Now, Li Wanran didn’t want to explain anything at all. In fact, she wished they would misunderstand even more deeply to add more layers to her persona.
Thus, Li Wanran began to look visibly distressed. She would sigh while painting; she would sigh halfway through a book; she would even let out a sigh while eating perfectly good food. When asked what was wrong, she would look toward the main courtyard with a sad expression, lower her head, and claim nothing was wrong, telling them not to worry.
Banxia: How could we not worry? We’re worried to death!
In the eyes of Banxia and the others, she was clearly so heartbroken over the Prince’s wedding that she didn’t even know how to speak of it. But as servants, they were powerless. They could only try to find ways to distract her so she wouldn’t dwell on it.
While Li Wanran was faking her sorrow, someone else was truly grieving.
Lady Song’s courtyard was not far from the main courtyard; one could see the gates of the main courtyard with just a minute or two of walking. Consequently, in her small Buddhist prayer room, she could faintly hear the idle chatter of the servants cleaning the main courtyard.
It was precisely these faint, drifting sounds that made it impossible for Lady Song to find the peace of mind needed to copy Buddhist scriptures. With a snap, she slapped her brush onto the table. Her brow furrowed, and with a face full of irritation, she called for Chaolu and ordered, “Go tell those servants cleaning the main courtyard to be quieter. They are disturbing my peace!”
“Huh?”
Chaolu was stunned by the order. She looked around the room with hesitation. “Gégé, did you perhaps hear wrong? There is no sound.”
Chaolu listened very carefully for a moment before she heard a tiny, pitifully faint noise. This sound, which couldn’t be heard unless one listened intently, was nowhere near the level of “disturbing her peace” that Lady Song claimed.
At this moment, Lady Song, who had a fire of resentment burning in her heart, didn’t care about logic. She looked up and stared coldly at Chaolu, like a venomous snake in the shadows flicking its tongue. “I told you to go, so go. Or is it that you have an opinion on my orders?”
Damn servant, she thought. The Primary Consort hasn’t even entered the house yet, and you already dare to hesitate and disobey me.
“I wouldn’t dare. I will go tell them to be quieter right away.” Seeing Lady Song’s dissatisfied gaze, Chaolu didn’t dare say more. She nodded hurriedly and turned to leave.
She had just stepped over the threshold when Lady Song’s sharp voice stopped her from behind. “Wait. No need to go. You may leave as well.”
Chaolu quickly turned back, answered in the affirmative, and retreated. Regardless of why Lady Song had suddenly changed her mind, it was a good thing she didn’t have to carry out such an awkward task. Chaolu thought with a lingering fear in her heart.
The small prayer room returned to silence. Lady Song sat blankly for a while before suddenly rising and walking slowly to the window, gazing toward the main courtyard from afar.
“If only it were just me, how wonderful that would be,” a murmur drifted through the air, quickly dissipating as if it had never existed.
Lady Song couldn’t help but recall the past. Back then, she was the only one by the Prince’s side. Later, although Lady Zhang and Lady Yi were added, the Prince never took them seriously. That period was undoubtedly her happiest time. When the Prince read, she would stay by his side, serving tea and water, or massaging his shoulders and back. Even just sitting quietly and watching him made her feel perfectly content.
Though the Prince was always a man of few words, everything then had made her feel incredibly blessed. But now…
The newly renovated main courtyard forced the reality she had been unwilling to face right into her path. First, it was Lady Li, then it would be the Primary Consort… in the future, even more young and beautiful women would arrive. They would all try to snatch the Prince away from her.
Lady Song was truly unwilling to accept this; she wished they would all just die. As she thought this, Lady Song’s thin hand suddenly covered her abdomen, and a strange light flashed in her eyes.
Meanwhile, having finished his duties, Yinzhen asked about Li Wanran’s situation. Hearing Su Peisheng say that she was becoming increasingly melancholic and spent her days in a daze, he couldn’t help but sigh. He ordered people to prepare her favorite foods and beautiful jewelry, then headed to Li Wanran’s courtyard.
Since Yinzhen hadn’t allowed anyone to announce his arrival, he entered to find Li Wanran with a furrowed brow, sitting motionlessly by the window with her chin resting on her hands, lost in thought. Her eyes, which were usually spirited and beautiful, had lost their former luster and were completely dimmed. Her body seemed to have thinned as well; she was no longer as lively and vibrant as before. She didn’t even notice him entering, looking as if her soul had drifted away.
Yinzhen lowered his gaze for a moment, then intentionally made some noise to bring her back to her senses.
Li Wanran was currently criticizing the plot of a novel she had been secretly reading. The male lead was ungrateful and had caused the death of the female lead’s family. Despite a blood feud between them, they somehow ended up with a happy reunion. Li Wanran felt that this was disrespectful, incomprehensible, and utterly unsupportable!
Having finished the book, Li Wanran felt like she had been force-fed something disgusting. She was in the middle of a passionate internal rant when a familiar voice suddenly sounded in front of her.
She followed the sound and saw that Yinzhen had arrived at some unknown time. Her dim eyes instantly brightened, and the sorrow on her face vanished without a trace.
“When did you arrive? Why did no one announce you?”
Li Wanran stood up and went to Yinzhen’s side, hugging his arm coquettishly, then told Banxia to bring some milk tea.
Yinzhen sat where Li Wanran had just been sitting. He glanced out the window, taking in the beautiful scenery, and said softly, “I forbade them from announcing me.”
With that, he clapped his hands. The people waiting outside immediately filed in, carrying trays and food boxes. Those with the food boxes neatly arranged the dishes on the kang table before retreating. Those with trays lined up in an orderly fashion, bending low and lifting the trays above their heads to make it easy for the masters to inspect.
Li Wanran stepped forward to take a look; it was all her favorite foods and bright, shimmering jewelry. No one could resist the temptation of so much beautiful jewelry—at least she couldn’t.
Li Wanran looked through them one by one in surprise, finding that she loved every single piece. She turned and skipped back to Yinzhen’s side, happy as a carefree little bird. She batted her eyes at Yinzhen, her brows arched beautifully, and asked knowingly, “Is all of this for me?”
Yinzhen leaned back against the chair and tilted his chin forward noncommittally. “I am not a stingy man. Since I brought them here, they are naturally all yours.”
Li Wanran cheered and immediately returned to the trays. She picked up a kingfisher-feather and gold-wire butterfly hairpin that had caught her eye at first glance. She turned sideways to face Yinzhen, holding it up to her head to show him.
“Fourth Prince, do you think I look good wearing this?”
Yinzhen stared at her for a few seconds before rising and coming to stand before her. He took the hairpin from her hand and tucked it directly into her jet-black hair. His tall frame cast a shadow over Li Wanran, and the calm, profound scent of sandalwood on him enveloped her.
She was momentarily dazed when Yinzhen hooked his finger under her chin to lift her face. As Li Wanran looked up slightly, her long, curled eyelashes trembled. A satisfied smile appeared on Yinzhen’s handsome face, and then he said, “It’s alright.”
Li Wanran didn’t like the sound of that. What did he mean by “alright”? Even by the standards of the modern entertainment industry, her beauty was a total knockout—and she only got an “alright”?
Li Wanran turned her head and told Banxia to take the servants and the gifts away and put everything in order. Once everyone had left and only she and Yinzhen remained, she clung to him and pestered him until he changed his words.
Yinzhen, who had thought she was moping over the Primary Consort, saw how energetic she was now. After thinking about it, he ultimately chose not to reprimand her for being undisciplined. Sensing Yinzhen’s current indulgence, Li Wanran became even more bold.
Driven to his wits’ end by her pestering, Yinzhen said a few nice words to praise her and then shifted the topic. “Speaking of which, I still don’t know which month your birthday falls in.”
Knowing when to stop, Li Wanran stopped acting up and pulled Yinzhen back to the couch, sitting obediently by his side. Although she didn’t know why he suddenly asked about her birthday, she answered truthfully, “My birthday is on the sixth day of the sixth month.”
June 6th. Li Wanran was very satisfied with this date. It couldn’t be more auspicious.
“Isn’t that coming up soon?” Yinzhen was somewhat surprised; the timing was remarkably coincidental.
Li Wanran joked with a smile, “Exactly. You better think quickly about what birthday gift to give me.”
Yinzhen raised an eyebrow. “I have never seen someone take the initiative to demand a gift.”
Li Wanran curled her lips charmingly, her eyes shimmering like water. She leaned softly into his chest and said in a lingering tone, “Well, you’ve seen one now.”
Yinzhen let out a laugh and idly stroked her smooth black hair. He didn’t respond to that but moved on to other topics. Seeing this, Li Wanran didn’t push further and cooperated with the conversation. Given Yinzhen’s personality, he wouldn’t slight her anyway; she just needed to wait patiently.
The two sat embraced on the couch, sharing interesting stories, until dinner time arrived before they knew it. When the Imperial Kitchen brought the menu, Li Wanran randomly ordered two dishes and sent them away. As the saying goes, since Yinzhen was here with her, would the Imperial Kitchen dare to send over anything subpar?
Just after finishing their meal, Banxia brought over the milk tea from the kitchen for Li Wanran. However, Li Wanran had just finished a bowl of sweet and sour ribs and felt too stuffed for something so rich; she couldn’t drink a single drop of milk tea right now.
Seeing this, Banxia quickly poured her a cup of clear tea to cleanse her palate.
“I haven’t touched this milk tea. If you don’t mind, take it and drink it yourself,” Li Wanran said, gesturing to the milk tea after taking a sip of the clear tea.
Banxia didn’t actually like milk tea that much, but thinking that Xiao Yuzi probably liked it, she nodded, took the tea, and went out. She looked around the courtyard a few times but didn’t see Xiao Yuzi anywhere.
She frowned and considered simply pouring the milk tea away, but then she turned and saw Caiwei watering some potted flowers under the wall. After a thought, Banxia waved and called Caiwei over. “This is milk tea rewarded by Gégé. If you want it, take it and drink it; otherwise, I’ll just pour it out.”
She added as an afterthought, “Gégé hasn’t touched a drop of it.”
Caiwei’s eyes lit up, and she immediately took the milk tea from Banxia, smiling. “Then I’ll trouble you to thank Gégé for me.”
As she spoke, she used the spoon in the bowl to scoop up some of the toppings. When she was at home, Caiwei loved drinking this, but she hadn’t had it much since entering the palace. The reason was simple: the ingredients in the milk tea served to servants couldn’t compare to those served to masters, or even what she had at home. But she knew without thinking that the milk tea given to Li Wanran would be much better than theirs, so Caiwei naturally didn’t refuse.
Banxia didn’t stand around waiting for her to finish; she still had to return to the room to serve her mistress. Seeing that the girl was eating quickly, she told her not to choke and then went back inside.
She hadn’t been back in for long when she saw Xiao Yuzi standing in the outer room looking unwell, waving his hand to call her. Banxia glanced at the Fourth Prince and Li Wanran, who were playing chess, before going over.
“What’s wrong?”
Just as Xiao Yuzi was about to speak, a scream suddenly echoed from outside. At the sound, Banxia’s gaze froze. It was Caiwei’s voice.
She rushed out to investigate and saw Caiwei frantically scratching her own face like she had gone mad, crying out repeatedly, “It’s so itchy!”
At her feet was a shattered small mirror—the one Caiwei always carried with her.
Terrified by her condition, Banxia quickly signaled Xiao Yuzi to help hold her hands to stop her from scratching her face. After finally managing to pin her hands down, they saw that her face was not only covered in red streaks from the scratching, but was also breaking out in numerous red spots.
Banxia’s eyes widened, and she lost her voice for a moment. “How did it become like this?”
“What’s happened?”
She instinctively turned around. The Fourth Prince and Li Wanran, drawn out by the screaming, were standing at the door looking at them with confusion.