Dowager Consort Yun hailed from Jiangnan and was a genuine southern beauty—delicate, slender, and gentle, speaking soft and affectionate Jiangnan-accented Wu Mandarin. Originally, she had enjoyed the imperial favor most deeply, but unfortunately, her constitution was frail, and she suffered from continuous illness and bitter pain. Giving birth to Prince Jing had taken an even heavier toll, draining more than half of her vital energy.
It was also for this reason that after Prince Jing established his own estate, he petitioned his elder imperial brother—who had already ascended the throne—requesting permission for his birth mother to accompany him to his estate for the convenience of taking care of her, rather than remaining in the deep inner palace.
Prince Jing was blind and Dowager Consort Yun was sickly. This establishment of a separate residence and retreat from court was intended to thoroughly step out of the power struggle, a move the Emperor was naturally pleased to grant.
In Kurong Lane, located near the western gate of Yujing, His Majesty happily used his jade brush to mark out a grand residence and designated it as the Prince Jing Estate.
To show generous treatment, this mansion was magnificent, spacious, and grand both inside and out. From the Xunchun Pavilion where the bridal chamber was located to the Wangjiang Courtyard where Dowager Consort Yun resided, Shen Lizhuang walked for a full half-incense-stick’s time before barely arriving.
Today, Dowager Consort Yun felt comfortable and refreshed, sitting upright in the main hall attired in festive colors. Because her sickly body was emaciated and exhausted, she was forced to lean against a python-patterned jacquard bolster placed behind her lower back. As if forcing herself to summon her spirits, her features were gentle and compassionate as she gazed at the new bride entering the hall, beckoning her closer. “New bride, come closer, let me take a look at you.”
Shen Lizhuang steeled herself and walked forward. Along the way, facing the scrutinizing gazes of everyone, those eyes seemed as sharp as scrapers, as if capable of scraping away the cosmetic powder on her face and peeling off her skin. Now that she saw the Dowager Consort, panic involuntarily surged within her.
The most terrifying part of this mess left behind by her older sister was that she had no idea to what extent Shen Meizhuang had interacted with people in the Prince’s estate. For such a blatant scheme of escaping like a cicada sloughing its skin, if even a single person in the estate had seen Shen Meizhuang or had an impression of her, it was extremely likely to be exposed.
Yet having walked all this way, not a single person had stepped forward to point out anything wrong. Shen Lizhuang speculated that ever since her older sister had married into the Prince’s estate, because the grand ceremony had not been performed, she had always stayed quietly in the bridal chamber, keeping to herself without interacting with anyone in the estate. Coupled with the red veil covering her face, there was currently no one who had seen her true countenance. Neither had Dowager Consort Yun, and as for the blind Prince Jing, there was naturally no need to worry—he definitely had not.
To save her small life, Shen Lizhuang could only steel herself and keep acting at this moment. Having met her mother-in-law and fulfilled the proper etiquette, she walked closer toward Dowager Consort Yun following the sound.
Dowager Consort Yun sat straight and upright. Once she drew near, a pure white, slender wrist emerged from her sleeve. Her frail, emaciated wrist trembled slightly due to having just recovered from a severe illness, yet Dowager Consort Yun still firmly and insistently held Shen Lizhuang’s hand, drawing her closer.
The voice she spoke with was gentle and embedded with a sweet Jiangnan accent, extraordinarily elegant and pleasing to the ear: “Vice Minister Shen has always had a reputation for noble purity and elegance; the daughter he raised is naturally excellent. I, too, admired your honorable father’s reputation, which was why I sought this marriage for Heqing. It’s just that Heqing suffers an ailment in his eyes and is unlike ordinary men. Do you blame me?”
Heqing was likely Prince Jing’s milk name or courtesy name.
Shen Lizhuang secretly stole a glance at Dowager Consort Yun. She originally felt that staring at her “mother-in-law” like this was against propriety, but she truly could not hold back and stole another glance.
Dowager Consort Yun had a slender frame and a narrow face. Upon her pale, fair skin rested two faint, smokey eyebrows like light ink strokes, and her eyes were like the spring waters of Jiangnan in March—clear yet laced with a trace of lingering sadness and affection. She was truly breathtaking to this Yujing local, who had never before experienced the charm of the southern lands.
Exquisitely, exquisitely beautiful. Dowager Consort Yun’s face showed no trace of age, nor the weathering of years of illness; there was only a fragile beauty, like a night-blooming cereus shining brightly in the dark before abruptly fading.
With such a beautiful mother, could her son, Prince Jing, really be so ugly that even Shen Meizhuang could not accept him?
As the saying goes, everyone possesses a heart that appreciates beauty. Shen Lizhuang suppressed the fluttering in her chest, put away her disrespectful secret glances, lowered her eyes, and coyly shook her head.
Dowager Consort Yun merely felt that the new bride seemed to speak very little and was quiet and gentle, which was not a bit different from the rumors.
At this time, a servant girl brought up the tea. Shen Lizhuang reached out to receive the teacup, bowed her waist while holding it level, and invited Dowager Consort Yun to take tea.
Dowager Consort Yun took a symbolic small sip, then lowered her eyes and removed a jade bracelet from her porcelain-white wrist. She then held Shen Lizhuang’s hand, intending to slide the jade bracelet onto Shen Lizhuang’s wrist bone.
One could tell this item was precious at a single glance. Shen Lizhuang thought to herself: if her older sister knew that her mother-in-law was so beautiful, gentle, generous, and loving, she wondered whether she would regret her actions now.
Judging by the present situation, Dowager Consort Yun’s son, her older sister’s husband, her brother-in-law, Prince Jing—aside from being blind and unable to see—his appearance should not be too terrible. Moreover, his overwhelmingly immense wealth and status were more than enough to cover the defect of his eye disease.
The smooth, warm jade came into contact with her skin, feeling gentle and generating warmth. Looking at its quality, one could tell it was top-grade mutton-fat jade—pure white, translucent, free of impurities, and smooth as congealed fat.
Dowager Consort Yun smiled and said, “It fits just right. Meizhuang’s skin is smooth and fair, matching this jade perfectly. Wearing it on my wrist was a waste of a precious item.”
Shen Lizhuang thought to herself that Dowager Consort Yun was far too humble. Facing such praise from such a beauty, her heart felt a small spark of joy as well.
Finally, using her eyes, she stole another glance at Dowager Consort Yun.
A beauty like porcelain, translucent and clear, could not help but make one’s heart yearn.
Dowager Consort Yun held her hand and asked about some matters regarding her family.
Shen Lizhuang secretly let out a sigh of relief. Fortunately, she was also considered a member of the Shen family, so answering these questions required no forced memorization to explain a bit or two. Only to mask the natural timber of her voice, she kept her head down and pretended to cough.
Dowager Consort Yun thought she had caught a cold. After a few moments, Nanny Zhou bowed her back, stepped forward, and reported: “The Dowager Consort has already been in the draft for several cups of tea. The imperial physician instructed that the Dowager Consort should not be exposed to the wind. This servant sees that the Princess Consort is also unwell today. Now that the tea ceremony is over, the Dowager Consort should return to her bedchamber to rest.”
Dowager Consort Yun had always felt Nanny Zhou was a nagging housekeeper, but since it was for her own good, Dowager Consort Yun had always been willing to listen to her. What was more, her daughter-in-law indeed kept coughing, so she could not force her to stay either. From her bosom, she drew out a red-wrapped packet of personal allowance money and earnestly placed it in Shen Lizhuang’s hands.
“This is a meeting gift; you must accept it.”
Shen Lizhuang had no choice but to accept it, expressing her thanks in a soft voice.
At this moment, Dowager Consort Yun raised her eyes to look at Shen Lizhuang, whose cheeks were flushed with a faint trace of red. “Have you seen Heqing yet?”
Shen Lizhuang was slightly taken aback and shook her head. Over these past few days, Shen Meizhuang had continuously covered her face with a red veil, so indicating this was not considered a lie. Whether it counted as having met or not, at any rate, Prince Jing had not seen Shen Meizhuang’s face.
Dowager Consort Yun nodded, smiling gently: “I had servants redecorate the bridal chamber for you two. When he returns in the evening, you two must complete the grand ceremony. I promise I will definitely hold out tonight and not make a fuss.”
The beauty was sick to the point of being skin and bones; when an illness flared up, how could anyone stop it?
For a moment, Shen Lizhuang even felt that as long as the beauty’s body remained peaceful, it wouldn’t matter if she paid a small price.
Yet, turning her mind to think about what Dowager Consort Yun expected to happen tonight, Shen Lizhuang felt an indescribable emotion in her heart.
After walking around the Prince’s estate for an afternoon, she returned to Xunchun Pavilion. Upon closing the room doors, Shen Lizhuang still had not settled the chaotic, roaring thumping of her heartbeat.
Zhuji and Yingluo surrounded her on the left and right, chiming in to persuade her. One moment they advised her to “focus on the bigger picture,” and the next moment they told her that “the future was bright and glorious.”
Feeling completely bewildered, Shen Lizhuang finally could not hold back and asked out loud, “Such a good thing—how could Shen Meizhuang abandon it and let it fall upon my head?”
Zhuji and Yingluo both fell silent together.
Shen Lizhuang had walked back and forth along the way, especially on the return journey, constantly pondering how such a good thing was something Shen Meizhuang could throw away and forcibly place onto her head.
Amidst these thousands of tangled threads, she actually managed to sort out a possibility. Her gaze locked onto the two maids: “During the Lantern Festival, that zither player named Liu who came to the Shen Estate…”
The moment these words were uttered, the expressions of the two maids instantly changed slightly. Zhuji was less sharp, and blood drained from her cheeks right then, revealing a faint look of panic.
Shen Lizhuang was instantly struck by a sudden revelation, finally understanding Shen Meizhuang’s abnormality.
There was no one in the room, and no one outside. She lowered her voice, leaning down to stare into Zhuji’s eyes that were ill-suited for lying: “My older sister… could she have eloped with that zither player named Liu? If you don’t speak the truth, I will have you beaten to death today.”
Zhuji was timid and poor at handling threats; she was about to speak the truth on the spot. Yingluo held her back, took a deep breath, and said, “The Princess Consort is currently surrounded by dangers in this noble, deep mansion. Servant and Zhuji are the only two people the Princess Consort can trust. If you beat Zhuji to death right now, the Princess Consort will definitely be left standing alone without support in the future.”
Yingluo indeed possessed some skill, even knowing how to explain the pros and cons to her.
However, she did not need to ask further, because the answer was already plain for all to see.
She had simply not expected that Shen Meizhuang had indeed eloped with someone, rejecting a Prince for an actor. To prevent the incident from being exposed and drawing the Shen family into trouble, she had devised this scheme of substitution, making Shen Lizhuang—who had delivered herself to the door—her stand-in.
Although the two of them were not born of the same mother, their figures and features indeed shared a sixty percent resemblance. If Shen Meizhuang had consistently used the red veil to conceal herself without revealing her true face, then letting her cross the sea under false pretenses and pass off the fake as real was not entirely impossible.
These past few days, everyone in the Prince’s estate, including Prince Jing’s entire mind, had been focused on Wangjiang Courtyard. No one cared about this desolate bridal chamber at all. Furthermore, the new Princess Consort kept to herself, her every gesture exuding cold detachment, so the people in the Prince’s estate naturally would not try to curry favor.
Shen Lizhuang dismissively withdrew her gaze and sat up, her eyes scanning the surroundings of the bridal chamber. The re-lit dragon and phoenix candles were as long as a forearm, shining brightly atop gilded crane-neck double-lotus copper lamps. The red silk lampshades held the lit candles up into blooming, noble silver flowers.
The sandalwood wedding bed, the satin quilt bearing the double happiness character, the grand red wedding curtains, the nuptial wine, and the various fruits and copper coins scattered across the bed all swept past her eyes in a hurried, glowing radiance.
In the quiet bedchamber, Shen Lizhuang’s inquiring voice reached their ears: “You have seen Prince Jing, right? What does Prince Jing look like?”
Zhuji dared not reply. It was still Yingluo who squeezed Zhuji’s palm and respectfully answered Shen Lizhuang: “In reply to the Princess Consort, on the night of the grand wedding, His Highness Prince Jing did not enter the room.”
“What about the bridal procession? Was he not seen during the procession either?” Shen Lizhuang was curious, thinking Yingluo was lying to deceive her.
Yingluo replied: “His Highness has an eye disease. On the day of the grand wedding, he did not go to receive the bride in person.”
Shen Lizhuang thought to herself: even if his eyes were diseased, could he not have come in a carriage? Not coming to receive the new bride on the grand wedding day was improper and disrespectful, showing he did not hold the new bride or her maiden family in his eyes. No wonder Shen Meizhuang disliked Prince Jing. Such an arrogant and rude man was certainly not as attentive and sweet as a humble zither player. Shen Meizhuang liked soft things and didn’t like chewing on foul stones, which was somewhat excusable.
After a few moments of silence, Shen Lizhuang said, “Serve dinner. I am hungry.”
She made up her mind: if that Prince Jing was handsome and built powerfully, she would accept consummating the marriage for now and plan slowly later to find Shen Meizhuang and swap back their identities. After all, she was not someone who cared deeply about reputation and chastity.
However, if that Prince Jing was as dark as charcoal, as ugly as an evil demon, or had a fat head with big ears and a face dripping with oil, then she would throw everything to the wind and risk her life to expose this matter.
After finishing dinner, Shen Lizhuang waited on the wedding bed, putting back on the heavy red veil left behind by Shen Meizhuang, sitting quietly and upright.
Beneath her seemingly calm expression, her hands folded in front of her stomach were already soaked with clammy sweat.
After an unknown amount of time, someone outside came to announce that His Highness had returned. At that instant, the cold sweat in her palms seemed to increase even more.
Swallowing her dry throat, her delicate and smooth neck squirmed slightly as she straightened her back as if sitting on pins and needles.
As the announcement died down, the sound of the door pushing open sounded shortly after, followed by a calm set of footsteps stepping into the room.
Shen Lizhuang’s ear drums instantly went empty, leaving only that quiet, probing sound of footsteps being gathered into her pinna—so clear and drawing closer and closer.
She had heard people say that blind people used walking sticks. Why did she not hear the sound of a walking stick?
Shen Lizhuang was astonished for a moment. The footsteps in her ears drew even closer, almost right at hand.
She lowered her eyes. Beneath her field of vision, a hand suddenly reached beneath the red veil.
Beneath the grand red wide sleeve trimmed with jade and silver, the hand’s bones were prominent and long, its skin tone reflecting the candlelight—cold, white as jade, and extraordinarily beautiful.
Fitted on his fingertip was a ring ringed with jade and silver radiance, highlighting his well-defined joints and balanced texture, resembling porcelain lightly covered in a soft glow.
That hand paused for a few moments at the corner of her veil, holding a corner of the red veil and gently swaying it left and right to create a swinging arc, as if confirming something.
Having used several seconds to confirm, he flipped the red veil up. In an instant, a vast expanse of brilliant, dazzling red and silver light, along with the towering, jade-like man before her, barged into Shen Lizhuang’s vision together. In her panic, she raised her snow-white neck, her gaze meeting the person right in front of her.
Her brother-in-law, Prince Jing Ji Mu.