Inside Feishuang Palace, Lady Rong was in a towering rage.
The wound on her face throbbed with a dull ache. The imperial physician had come to apply medicine and perform a diagnosis, saying that if she tended to it carefully, it wouldn't leave a scar. However, her heart was still filled with a poisonous hatred for Consort Chen.
A woman's appearance was her very foundation for survival in the inner palace.
She reached out to touch the scar, a flash of ruthlessness crossing her eyes.
Just wait; the day would come when it was that woman's turn to cry.
Her chest full of grief and indignation transformed into fury, all of which she vented onto Rong Chan, who stood nearby.
Splashing the hot tea from her cup onto the girl, she shed her previously gentle and kind facade, speaking with sharp vitriol, "Put away those lowly thoughts of yours. The Third Prince is an Imperial Scion; do you really think you're worthy of pining for him?"
"Don't think that just because your father went through all that trouble to send you to my side, you can fly up a branch and become a phoenix. He is uninspired and only wants to rely on nepotism to climb the ranks. It's nothing but a dream!"
The Rong family had originally been a noble clan of meritorious service. Later, they had committed a grave error and were stripped of everything by the Late Emperor, then exiled to the remote frontiers.
When Emperor Liang ascended the throne, he declared a general amnesty, and only then was her Elder Brother pardoned and later allowed to re-enter officialdom. Yet, after all these years, he was still only a minor official of the seventh rank.
She both resented her Elder Brother for being useless and unable to restore the Rong family's glory, and lamented the trickery of fate—why was it her Rong family that had to fall?
Otherwise, the position of Emperor Liang's legal wife back then would never have fallen to the short-lived Qu Liansu.
She turned her head and saw that although Rong Chan’s face was soaked with tea and she looked in a wretched state, her beauty was hard to hide.
For a moment, she felt even more stifled.
While dressing yesterday, the fine lines at the corners of her eyes had filled her with unease, and today, she had nearly been disfigured by Ye Chenfei.
It was true she was a childhood sweetheart to His Majesty.
But if her beauty faded, how many days could that childhood sentiment alone sustain them?
She was getting older, while the palace was full of young women.
"Tomorrow, I will send you out of the palace. Do not enter the palace again in the future. You are no longer young; return to Lingnan and find someone to marry early on."
Lady Rong was incredibly irritable, deciding Rong Chan’s future with a single sentence.
"Aunt," Rong Chan suppressed the emotions in her eyes, stepping forward to kneel. She grabbed Lady Rong's sleeve, "Please don't send me out of the palace, I beg of you."
Her father was merely a seventh-rank county magistrate of a middle-tier county, not even a capital official. She did not want to go home; she did not want to return to that desolate and treacherous place.
"Humph," Lady Rong yanked her sleeve back, her words biting. "If you stay in the palace, you'll only cause trouble. Today, His Majesty only spared you for my sake. Do you think anyone would believe the words you said?"
"You buffoon!"
Rong Chan’s face turned pale from the scolding, yet she didn't dare talk back. Even though waves of monstrous hatred surged in her heart, she still pleaded bitterly, "Chan'er is doing this for Aunt’s sake."
"Chan'er hasn't been in the palace for long, but I've seen how arrogant and overbearing Ye Chenfei is. If Chan'er can become the Third Prince's consort, I will certainly help Aunt deal with Ye Chenfei in the future."
Lady Rong laughed, her voice rising several decibels. "Deal with Ye Chenfei?"
"Who knows how many noble daughters from prominent families are in the inner palace, and which one of them has ever gained the upper hand against her!"
That woman would punish imperial concubines to sweep the Imperial Garden over the slightest disagreement.
It was simply… simply uncouth…
Yet, she held the highest rank, and the Empress Dowager protected her.
"Aunt, you saw the Third Prince's attitude today. He is easy to coax. Chan'er will hold him firmly in my hands and let him—"
Slap!
A slap delivered with full force struck Rong Chan’s face, causing her fair cheek to swell instantly.
"Aunt?"
Lady Rong looked down at Rong Chan from above, saying word for word, "If you dare to approach the Third Prince by even half a step again, I will kill you with my own hands."
Rong Chan’s heart pounded wildly. The coldness in her aunt's eyes did not seem fake.
Clutching her face, she swallowed with some difficulty.
Why?
Why was her aunt so unwilling for her to be involved with the Third Prince?
"You may leave, I am tired."
Lady Rong spoke coldly.
Only after Rong Chan had left did she collapse into her chair as if all her strength had been drained, covering her face tightly and sobbing uncontrollably.
"Sigh, why put yourself through this?"
The female official Lü Ran stepped forward and comforted her softly. "The Third Prince is Consort Chen's son. No matter how angry she gets, could she truly come to loathe her own son over a mere niece…?"
Lady Rong jerked her head up, her eyes bloodshot. She grabbed Lü Ran with both hands. "Cong'er is my son!"
Lü Ran felt a sharp pain in her wrists and wrenched herself free, her voice carrying a hint of mockery. "I'm afraid you have misremembered, Lady Rong. The Third Prince is naturally Consort Chen's son; he has no need for your concern."
Lady Rong's face contorted with rage. She raised her hand to strike Lü Ran, but the woman dodged the blow with ease.
Unsteady on her feet, Lady Rong stumbled and fell to the floor in a pathetic heap.
"I was personally appointed by His Majesty to attend to your daily life. If you strike me, you are striking His Majesty’s face."
Lady Rong's lowered lashes cast a heavy shadow beneath her eyes. She suddenly began to sob and stood up, heading for the door. "I do not know how the Third Prince is doing. Rong Chan is the cause of all this; I should go and see him to express my apologies."
Hearing this, Lü Ran held her back firmly. "Lady Rong, please calm down!"
Seeing her attitude soften, Lü Ran’s tone returned to that of a proper servant.
"It is already late. For you to go to the princes' palace alone is truly…"
"How about I go and check personally tomorrow?"
"I…" Lady Rong stumbled back several steps, her voice hoarse as she clutched her chest and wailed, "Every time I hear him call that woman 'Imperial Concubine Mother,' my heart feels like it's been hollowed out by a knife."
She cried pitifully, but Lü Ran remained unmoved.
"Lady Rong, forgive me for reminding you: do not ruin His Majesty’s grand plans out of a momentary impulse!"
"If the truth comes out, not only you, but the Third Prince will also lose his life."
This single sentence caused Lady Rong's wailing to stop abruptly.
Seeing her stop crying and stand there in a daze, Lü Ran breathed a sigh of relief.
Applying both the stick and the carrot, she stepped forward to support Lady Rong toward the inner hall, offering soothing words. "With His Majesty around, even if the Third Prince were to poke a hole in the heavens, it wouldn't matter. Just set your mind at ease; your blessings are yet to come."
With that, she summoned the palace maids to attend to her washing.
After Lady Rong retired to bed, Lü Ran remained uneasy and stood watch by the couch for a long time before finally leaving.
Eventually, after she turned and left, Lady Rong—who was supposed to be fast asleep on the couch—opened her eyes.
The winter night was exceptionally cold.
Lady Rong carried a lantern with a light as faint as a firefly and crept out of Feishuang Hall.
Perhaps she had been suppressed for too long, or perhaps she was too shaken; she couldn't stop herself from wanting to catch a single glimpse.
A black cloak hid her in the darkness. Ahead was Taihe Palace, where the princes lived. Suppressing the flutter of excitement in her heart, she quickened her pace.
The servants at Taihe Palace had accepted many bribes from her in private. All the silver she had spent over the years was for this very moment.
Just as she was about to enter, a voice called out from behind her.
"Lady Rong?"
Lady Rong, already on edge, felt her heart leap into her throat. Forced by circumstance, she turned around slowly.
She saw Consort Chen approaching, surrounded by palace servants and looking grim. Beside her was Ye Liujin, clinging to Consort Chen’s arm.
"Lady Rong, it really is you."
Ye Liujin covered her mouth in feigned surprise, though a flicker of mockery flashed in her eyes.
"I thought I had seen wrongly. To come to Taihe Palace so late at night, dressed like this… I hope you aren't up to something shameful."