Da Fu stole glance after glance at Pei Lin, unable to discern his joy or anger for a time, so he simply gathered his courage and said, “Your Majesty, should we summon that Candidate Shen to serve in your bedchamber?”
Truth be told, that Candidate Shen was quite remarkable; by pulling off such a move, she had truly caught His Majesty’s attention.
Pei Lin swept a glance like a cold dagger over to him and said in a chilly tone, “What, did you take benefits from the Shen family? Are the rewards I gave you not enough for you to spend?”
Da Fu hurriedly offered a flattering smile and said, “Your Majesty, is this old servant that kind of person? I only thought that since those candidates have entered the palace for more than two months, should they just be left sitting there indefinitely? Besides, that Candidate Shen must surely possess some unique quality, which is why the Crown Prince regards her with special favor. Wouldn’t Your Majesty like to meet her?”
Pei Lin seemed to give a soft hmph, the sound so faint that Da Fu thought he had misheard.
Da Fu felt anxious in his heart, though because of the young crown prince’s presence, he wasn’t overly frantic.
He merely thought that it would naturally be wonderful if His Majesty could extend his royal lineage. Yet, in all these years since ascending the throne, he had never taken a concubine. Thinking back to the former Crown Princess’s “illustrious deeds,” Da Fu kept wondering in his heart whether His Majesty had developed a trauma from the late Crown Princess, which was why he resisted female company so fiercely.
Wait!
Da Fu froze for a moment.
He remembered that His Majesty’s original spouse back when he held the status of Crown Prince—that late Crown Princess—seemed to have been surnamed Shen as well.
After His Majesty ascended the throne, besides conferring the title of Crown Prince on his son, he had posthumously honored that Crown Princess as Empress.
Da Fu could not remember the Crown Princess’s given name; even regarding records about her, there were only the words “Empress Chunzhao of the Shen clan.”
A mere few strokes, unwilling to spend even a few extra words—one could see just how deeply His Majesty detested this Crown Princess. Had it not been for the young crown prince, she likely wouldn’t have even received a posthumous title.
Could it be that because of his dislike for Empress Chunzhao, His Majesty disliked all women surnamed Shen by extension?
Da Fu was filled with doubt in his heart, yet he knew he had no way to ask. He couldn’t possibly go and interrogate His Majesty about his inner thoughts, could he?
Looking at Da Fu, whose eyes were darting around, Pei Lin suddenly spoke up, “Do you still remember the Crown Princess’s appearance?”
Da Fu paused for a moment and hastily said, “Of course I remember.”
Although the Crown Princess had a bad temper and an insignificant background, she had truly been a rare beauty.
“Then do you still remember…”
Da Fu pricked up his ears to listen, but as for what else he remembered, Pei Lin did not continue.
Only after a good while did Pei Lin speak, “Why did you all think she was bad? When clearly, she was a…”
Da Fu felt an insatiable itch in his heart, wishing he could grab Pei Lin’s shoulders and shake him. *What was she? Your Majesty, please finish speaking! Who stops mid-sentence like this and leaves people hanging?*
Of course, that was only a thought; he could not actually do such a thing.
Pei Lin did not know how to bring it up. After she left, everyone around him had changed. It seemed that except for him, no one knew what kind of person she truly was.
All she had left behind were some very bad incidents.
Yet she was clearly not that kind of person.
So what if she was spoiled and unreasonable? In the end, she was only like that toward him alone, not toward others.
So what if she knew nothing of the qin, chess, calligraphy, or painting? In the end, he didn’t need her to do any of those things anyway.
Speaking of needlework, Pei Lin’s hand fumbled inside his sleeve for a moment and found a sachet. Even without looking, he knew which part of the sachet his hand was pressing against.
He could almost hear her voice beside his ears.
—*”I embroidered this. Don’t you dare look down on it for being ugly! The one with the bigger head is you, and the one with the smaller head is me.”*
His eyes felt a bit sour. Pei Lin closed his eyes, forcing back the sensation that was about to well up from his eyes.
To this day, he still hadn’t figured out why things had turned out that way on that day.
—*”Pei Lin, if you don’t want this child, I’ll take him away! That way, when you marry someone else in the future, you won’t have to find him an eyesore.”*
“No! Don’t!” Pei Lin reached out his hand to grab, but caught only empty air.
In just an instant, he felt as though his head were being pierced by needles. A sea of crimson appeared before his eyes, as if he saw someone lying in a pool of blood.
—*”Promise me, no matter what, you must keep him alive. Otherwise, I will not rest in peace.”*
“Your Majesty! Your Majesty!” Sensing that something was wrong, Da Fu immediately grabbed Pei Lin’s arm.
However, the moment he touched him, Da Fu was pushed by Pei Lin and tumbled over.
By the time he scrambled back up, Pei Lin had opened his eyes and was looking at him. Da Fu saw only those blood-red eyes of Pei Lin.
He was terrified in his heart, yet he still crawled forward and tightly clutched the hem of Pei Lin’s robe. “Your Majesty, Your Majesty, stay clear-headed! You must not let anything happen to you; you still have the young Crown Prince! His Highness the Crown Prince is still small and has already lost his mother. If anything happens to you, what will become of the little Highness?”
Pei Lin’s expression froze, as if trying to recall something. Only after a long while did he speak, “Yun’er?”
Seeing that the situation was controllable, Da Fu hastily said, “Yes, yes, yes, His Highness the Crown Prince! Please think more of His Highness the Crown Prince.”
Pei Lin fell silent once again, though the blood-red color in his eyes had not faded. He looked around somewhat blankly, his gaze finally landing on Da Fu once more.
He said, “Da Fu? Why are you here? Where is the Crown Princess? Did she send you to look for me?”
Da Fu immediately replied, “The Crown Princess has already gone to sleep. Seeing that Your… Your Highness had not returned to the Eastern Palace yet, she had me come take a look.”
Pei Lin gave a response, then suddenly murmured to himself, “Gone to sleep? That’s right, she is pregnant and carrying heavily now; she ought to rest more.”
Da Fu was so panicked he didn’t know what to do, only staring fixedly at Pei Lin, deeply afraid he might lose control again.
After taking two steps, Pei Lin’s body suddenly swayed, and he fell straight backward. Da Fu was startled and hastily scrambled up to support him.
Pei Lin was tall and large; falling over like this, even though Da Fu caught him, he was almost crushed to the ground.
Just as he was about to call for people to come help, Pei Lin suddenly opened his eyes, the blood-red color within them already gone.
“Your Highness… Your Majesty?” Da Fu called out tentatively.
Pei Lin closed his eyes. That uncomfortable sensation had vanished, but his head was still somewhat dizzy.
He did not remember what had happened just now, only recalling that he seemed to have suffered an episode again.
When he stood up, his figure swayed again, frightening Da Fu into hurriedly reaching out to support him.
“Your Majesty, should we summon the Imperial Physician?”
The corner of Pei Lin’s mouth pulled into a mocking curve. If the Imperial Physicians could cure it, he wouldn’t still be plagued by this affliction.
His illness could be cured by only one person.
However, that person was long gone.
Forcing himself to stand firm, he waved his hand at Da Fu, then walked toward the main hall to sleep.
Having just brought Xuerong back to Mingxiu Palace, Shen Ying was instantly surrounded by everyone.
Today had truly opened their eyes. The Crown Prince had actually come over on his own initiative to find Shen Ying; this was truly a rarity.
It wasn’t that they hadn’t thought of catching His Majesty’s attention, but realizing that was impossible, they had tried to start with the Crown Prince instead. Having entered the palace, even if not for their families, they had to fight for themselves.
In terms of appearance, family background, and talent, those who could enter the palace were naturally not lacking. What if they could become that unique existence to His Majesty?
Setting aside the notion of being the sole favorite out of three thousand, under His Majesty’s circumstances, as long as one could gain a few bits of favor, it would already be an extraordinary standing.
To enter the palace, their families had naturally inquired carefully. They heard that the late Empress Chunzhao had been domineering during her lifetime, relying on her life-saving favor back when His Majesty was still the Crown Prince to forbid him from taking concubines. Everyone who knew the situation said His Majesty had developed a trauma regarding women because of Empress Chunzhao.
They all had some confidence in themselves, thinking that since His Majesty had relented and agreed to the selection, perhaps he had already overcome that trauma. Yet after two months in the palace, though they could catch sight of His Majesty by using a few tricks, they were blocked by guards before even getting close, and His Majesty had never looked at them properly.
There were those who sang, danced, played the qin, and used endless methods, yet without exception, none yielded results.
They didn’t know what that Emperor actually liked either. It wasn’t that they hadn’t thought of approaching a few personal eunuchs to inquire, but it was completely useless; those people wouldn’t accept their gifts and wouldn’t disclose a single word.
Trying to cater to his tastes was completely useless. Let alone becoming a special existence in His Majesty’s heart, in his eyes, they might not even equal a blade of grass in the Imperial Garden.
Fortunately, everyone was in the same boat. Thinking that no one had succeeded made everyone feel much better in their hearts.
After making a fuss and realizing it was useless, they could now gather together to laugh and chat. They were all daughters of noble families in the capital and had known each other before entering the palace. Through these days of spending time together, even those who hadn’t been familiar before were now close.
Shen Ying looked at the crowd surrounding her, their words inquiring about what she had done to receive such special favor from the Crown Prince.
“If I say I actually did nothing at all, would you believe me?”
They… naturally didn’t believe her.
With the temperaments of His Majesty and the Crown Prince stemming from the exact same line, how could someone receive favor without doing anything?
In particular, a few who had tried were clearest about His Majesty’s coldness. The Crown Prince looked very much like His Majesty, and even his temperament was identical.
Especially since the Crown Prince kept a snake as a pet; although its venom had been removed, few among them were not afraid of snakes.
“If you’re unwilling to say, then forget it. Elder Sister Shen Ying is truly fortunate; presumably, you’ll leave this place soon and become the master of a palace. When we see Sister in the future, we’ll probably all have to pay our respects.”
The other party spoke with a sarcastic tone, yet Shen Ying was not annoyed. She shrugged, spread her hands, and sighed, “I told the truth, yet you don’t believe it. Must I say that it’s because I’m beautiful, loved by everyone and admired by flowers, which is why the Crown Prince regards me with special favor, for you to be happy?”
“You…”
“What about me? You’re unhappy again when I speak the truth?”
With that, regardless of how those people reacted, Shen Ying turned and left. Who didn’t have a few plastic sisters? It wasn’t as if she couldn’t hear their sarcastic remarks.
Conscience as her witness, every word she spoke was true; she really hadn’t done anything. If she had to specify, it was that she had accidentally stepped on the Crown Prince’s pet snake first.
If she had known she would step on a snake, Shen Ying would have run far away long ago, so how could she have walked toward that place?
Entering the room, a wave of cool air hit her. Ice blocks had originally been placed in the room, and now a fresh block seemed to have been added.
Patterns had actually been carved into that ice; they were truly thoughtful.
Faintly, the fresh fragrance of medicinal herbs could also be smelled.
Lying on the daybed, Shen Ying felt a rare sense of comfort.
It was just that Golden Bean was acting a bit strange.