This marriage involves many considerations and cannot be chosen lightly…
When she woke again, the sky was already bright. Her fever had subsided, but her body still felt weak and fatigued.
Suddenly remembering something, she sat up abruptly and looked around. Apart from herself, there was no one else in the room.
Feng Xiu entered carrying two bowls. Seeing her mistress sitting up, she hurried over and said, “Miss, you’re awake. Are you still feeling unwell anywhere?”
“It’s nothing. Was it Wu Yi’s medicine?”
“Yes. But there wasn’t time to brew it last night, so we used the prepared medicine Prince Duan sent. Wu Yi checked it and said it was safe to take.”
“Now I owe him a favor for nothing.”
As Mei Yao spoke, she recalled the chaos of the previous night and asked, “Was there anything unusual in this room last night?”
Feng Xiu suddenly knelt, full of remorse. “It was my carelessness. It was cold outside, and the back window in the room must have been blown open by the wind during the night. I failed to notice it, which caused you to catch a chill. Please punish me, Miss!”
If she said so, it meant she hadn’t seen anyone in the room.
Mei Yao looked up at the high window. It was now tightly shut and bolted.
She lowered her gaze and said, “Get up. If it was the wind, it wasn’t your fault.”
Feng Xiu thanked her mistress and brought over the porridge. “Miss, have some porridge before taking the medicine.”
After taking a few bites, Mei Yao asked again, “Did Prince Duan catch the assassin he was trying to capture last night?”
Feng Xiu had been anxiously tending to her mistress all night and had no mind to pay attention to whether someone else’s assassin had been caught. But since her mistress asked, she replied, “Early this morning, I heard Feng Wu say the soldiers outside the courtyard have withdrawn. I don’t know if they caught him. I can send someone to inquire.”
“No need.”
After drinking the medicine and lying back down, she wasn’t sleepy. Her gaze fell on the lantern by the bedside, and she suddenly said, “Feng Xiu, that peach blossom lantern…”
Feng Xiu looked over and also found the lantern a bit odd. After a moment, she said, “The tassel at the bottom is missing.”
“Was it there when I brought it back?”
“I remember there was one—a soft pink tassel tied with an auspicious knot.”
Mei Yao fell silent.
Feng Xiu couldn’t gauge her mistress’s thoughts. “Miss, this lantern…”
“Take it and throw it away.” After a pause, she added, “Throw it somewhere conspicuous outside the Tingfeng Pavilion.”
She thought this assassin was truly bold—risking his life for his mission, yet still finding the leisure to pluck the tassel from someone’s lantern!
She also remembered that the assassin’s eyes looked exactly like Xiao Yu’s. Thinking about it now, it felt absurd. It was likely that the fever had muddled her mind, and coupled with a dream that made her blush and her heart race, she had been bewitched and developed inappropriate feelings for an assassin. She even seemed to have kissed him with sorrow and longing. Truly, when people are weak, they become foolish and infatuated.
That scoundrel must have laughed himself to death, escaping so easily and even enjoying such a stroke of luck!
The more she thought about it, the angrier she became, wishing she could capture him and have him executed!
But angry as she was, she truly missed Xiao Yu.
She took out a bone whistle hanging around her neck. It was what Xiao Yu had used to train animals when he was alive—two inches in size, smooth and lustrous from long use. With trembling hands, she had picked it up from his unrecognizable, mutilated corpse.
Holding the bone whistle, she finally couldn’t help but gently kiss it.
Perhaps because this illness had weakened her body, or perhaps because the unexpected intruder had unsettled her mind, Mei Yao stayed in the inn for two days without going out. During this time, Prince Duan visited twice to check on her condition. Before departing, he even invited her to return to the capital together, but she politely declined.
She had been summoned to the capital this time, as the Emperor intended to select a husband for her. The imperial family had thick skin, turning the act of keeping a hostage into a grand gesture of favor.
But bearing this title made it inappropriate for her to travel with a prince who had not yet been betrothed. Moreover, her impression of this prince was far from favorable. When her eldest brother, Mei Chi, was alive, his assessment of this prince was summed up in just two words: lustful and ruthless. Thus, the more considerate he appeared, the more she disliked him.
It took over ten days to reach the capital.
The Mei residence in the capital was a mansion bestowed by His Majesty upon her father, Mei An. In previous years, her eldest brother Mei Chi had lived there, but after he tragically perished while fighting pirates in the east with the army, the residence had been left vacant. Now that she had arrived, it had naturally been tidied up in advance. To show their care, His Majesty and the Empress Dowager not only gifted decorative rocks and ornaments to adorn the facade but also sent servants—both maids and attendants—all of whom were exceptionally clever and capable.
Fortunately, the steward, Mei Chang, was one of her own people—loyal and capable—so she didn’t have to worry too much.
Once everything was settled, Mei Yao entered the palace to express her gratitude. After presenting her father’s memorial praising the Emperor, the old emperor’s eyes immediately reddened. Mei Yao couldn’t help but marvel inwardly at the imperial family’s acting skills!
The Empress Dowager was devoted to Buddhism, and since Wenshan produced jade, Mei Yao presented her with an exquisite jadeite Buddha statue. The Empress Dowager, who had seen countless rare treasures, was overjoyed and praised it profusely, immediately ordering it to be placed in the Buddhist hall for worship.
After distributing gifts to the various consorts and princesses, nearly all of the two cartloads of items she had brought were gone. Of course, she also received a full load of gifts from the inner palace in return. From this exchange, she could roughly gauge the attitudes of the masters toward her—or rather, toward her father.
Returning from the palace banquet, she was utterly exhausted. Just this one event made her deeply appreciate how difficult it must have been for her eldest brother Mei Chi when he was in the capital.
The following two weeks were no less busy. First, she paid visits to several old acquaintances of Mei An and Mei Chi, offering her respects to the elders. Later, the Seventh Princess, Fu Guang, unexpectedly came to see her, bringing along several noble ladies from prominent families.
This Princess Fu Guang, named Li Youtong, was the proud daughter of heaven who had been deeply infatuated with her eldest brother. Just from the title “Fu Guang,” it was clear she was highly favored, and her temperament was indeed not to be trifled with. However, after being delayed by Mei Chi, she had already reached the age of marriage. Yet she seemed in no hurry, as if determined to spend her life this way.
Following Princess Fu Guang’s lead, noble ladies began visiting one after another to befriend her. Though their intentions varied, the long-deserted Mei residence once again became lively.
Then came the annual Peach Blossom Banquet.
Prince Duan, Li Sheng, and the Empress had intentions of winning over Wenshan. Mei Yao had originally thought Princess Fu Guang was there to play the friendship card, but unexpectedly, the princess first criticized her own elder brother harshly: “You’ve met my Fourth Brother, Li Sheng. His looks are indeed first-rate, but he’s ruthless and cold-hearted, and he lacks restraint in matters of romance. He’s not a suitable match!”
Mei Yao raised an eyebrow. Even her own full-blooded elder brother didn’t meet her standards—how candid.
The candid princess continued, “My Fifth Brother and Ninth Brother are also unbetrothed. But Fifth Brother Li Mao is frail, having grown up immersed in medicine—not someone to marry. Ninth Brother Li Xiang is quite talented, but he’s young and loves to play, which would be exhausting. Besides, if you choose him, you’d be making an enemy of my mother and Fourth Brother!”
“As for the noble families, Prince Yanping’s son Yan Rong, the second son of the Prime Minister’s residence, Wu Zhongyi, and the legitimate son of the General’s Mansion, Li Mu, are all quite talented and of good character. You could consider them. As for the others, it depends on fate.”
Li Youtong counted off the noble scions and sons of prominent families on her fingers one by one. Seeing how earnest and serious she was, Mei Yao rose and performed a proper bow, saying, “Thank you, Princess Fu Guang, for your meticulous guidance. However… no matter whom I marry, it will be by His Majesty’s grace. I will remember your kindness in my heart!”
Li Youtong helped her up, knowing full well that Princess Wenshan’s marriage involved many considerations and likely left little room for personal choice.
She sighed and said, “I have heard that Prince Wenshan loved his wife dearly, keeping only the princess consort by his side for decades. Even after her passing, he has not taken any other woman. I imagine the Prince would not want you to suffer any grievances. I shared all this with you in the hope that you may find a good home.”
Mei Yao bowed again in gratitude, but Li Youtong continued, “In previous years, the Peach Blossom Banquet was arranged by my mother and grandmother for my sake, but I… I met your elder brother Mei Chi when I was fourteen, hoping year after year for Emperor Father to grant the marriage. Yet, what I waited for in the end… It was simply my lack of fortune. Seeing you today, I feel a sense of closeness, and I believe your elder brother would have wished for me to look after you a little.”
Seeing her sorrow, Mei Yao comforted her, saying, “Princess, do not grieve too deeply. It was my elder brother’s misfortune, unable to marry such a wonderful wife as you to become my sister-in-law.”
The words “sister-in-law” brought tears to Li Youtong’s eyes. She composed herself and continued, “Fortunately, this year’s Peach Blossom Banquet is no longer something my mother and grandmother insist upon for me. Eligible young ladies of noble families need not worry about any constraints. The young princes, generals, and noble sons stationed outside the capital have also begun returning one after another. It should be quite lively then. You might as well meet a few—where there’s a will, there’s a way.”
Mei Yao merely smiled and agreed, though inwardly, she held little expectation.
In this world, there was no longer that person as cool and pure as jade. As for human affairs, they were all merely driven by gain and loss.