In the long night, Feng Xiyang had a lengthy dream. It was filled with joys settled in past events, now shrouded in a veil of sadness and confusion, as distant as flowers seen through the mist. Looking back, it seemed like eons had passed.
Such karma must mean she had committed great evil in her past life to suffer so in this one. She never imagined that after half a lifetime of glory, she would end up like this.
She should feel resentful. The tenderness he once showed was like a knife, constantly cutting her heart, leaving bleeding wounds. If she truly had confidence in winning this battle of love, why would there be so much hatred? But if she couldn’t move past it…
If she couldn’t move on, life would be but a dream. Love would be wasted, devotion is wasted, life helpless, and death helpless. The mortal realm was nothing but love, hate, life, and death. The word “love” was written with strokes of pain, and everything was just an obsession that couldn’t be severed in this mortal realm, yet it had reached its end too soon.
In her dream, Xia Jingshi’s handsome face remained, yet so refined she could find no trace of him. She only remembered the frozen melancholy in his eyes and the remnants of tender innocence revealed inadvertently between his brows from that first fleeting glance years ago. But now all she could see were those startled eyes, incomparably cold.
The wind suddenly rose, and cicada wing-like petals danced in it, stirring up a sky full of light red gauze.
In his memory, there must also be such a wisp of deep red. They gently brushed past his black hair with the wind, falling petal by petal-like clouds and smoke. There was a faint fragrance in the fleeting moment, dispersing before he could smell it closely. But she knew it was mandrake, deep red, like a gorgeous fire, blooming silently for him.
Those deep red petals were also scattered all over the ground in her dream. She bent down to scoop up a handful of remaining red, but in the blink of an eye, it fell into a grave, leaving only desolate melancholy. It meandered into fresh blood carrying obsession, resentment, and hatred, wrapping around her as she flowed towards the netherworld, each step splashing up a spray of blood.
This was a very long night, and also a very long dream, full of layers upon layers of sorrowful red, with no other shore.
Feng Xiyang woke from her dream, still weary. The air was filled with the fragrance brought by the night wind. She murmured hazily, “Mandrake…” As soon as the words left her mouth, she was fully awake. Carefully discerning, she realized it was the sweet milky scent of lotus incense burning in the silver-carved censer, and she finally relaxed.
Her gaze moved to the writing desk and stopped. On the desk was scattered a pile of rainbow-hued, gold-flecked dragon and phoenix-patterned paper, with a gauze-like soft texture…
This time, Steward Huang had brought a secret letter from her father. In the letter, her father asked about her recent situation and specifically instructed her to take good care of her health and strive to bear children for Xia Jingshi soon, to secure her position in Jin Xiu. Xiyang smiled bitterly. Given Xia Jingshi’s distance and coldness towards her, it was already difficult to get close to him, let alone have the chance to bear children. How should she reply to this letter?
Suddenly, she thought of the letter her royal brother had written to Xia Jingshi. What would her brother say to him? Perhaps he would instruct Xia Jingshi to take good care of her, or perhaps… about Yi Xiao.
Then she thought of the five-character dragon-entwined pink wax paper on Xia Jingshi’s desk.
Though it was midsummer, she shivered.
Wearing a peach-red and bright purple phoenix-tail skirt, carefully concealing the dullness of a sleepless night with peach blossom powder, Feng Xiyang, carrying a few half-opened lotus flowers, walked towards Xia Jingshi’s study.
Feng Xiyang’s arrival was abrupt, and her steps were quick. Just as the guards outside the study raised their voices to announce her, she had already pushed open the door with a smile. Xia Jingshi’s expression remained unchanged, seemingly casually picking up a book and opening it, covering the documents on his desk.
“Is my husband busy?” She cheerfully put down the lotus flowers, took a large porcelain vase that looked relatively matching from a nearby curio shelf, and inserted the lotus flowers one by one. “This morning, I took a walk by the lotus pond and saw the new lotuses blooming beautifully. I couldn’t resist picking a few and thought to bring some to you.”
Xia Jingshi quietly watched her every move, as if waiting for her to state her purpose. It wasn’t until she slightly struggled to lift the vase that he stood up, came forward to take the vase from her hands, and placed it on a nearby redwood table. Feng Xiyang stepped back a few paces to examine it from different angles, then nodded with satisfaction, “This will make the whole room much more lively.”
Seeing Xia Jingshi return to his seat without a word, Feng Xiyang reluctantly asked, “Can you help me with something, husband?” Xia Jingshi hesitated for a moment before asking, “What is it?”
Feng Xiyang took out Feng Qishan’s secret letter from her sleeve and placed it in front of Xia Jingshi. “Father had Steward Huang bring me a letter…” Xia Jingshi glanced at the envelope but showed no intention of taking it. Xiyang had to say, “Don’t you want to read it first?”
“If the Princess Consort has any requests, please speak directly,” Xia Jingshi said flatly. “It’s like this,” Feng Xiyang smiled radiantly, “I was hoping you could write the reply. This way, Father would be more at ease…”
Xia Jingshi frowned slightly, “It wouldn’t be appropriate for me to read a letter the King wrote to you.” “How could that be? You’re my husband. We’re family, there’s nothing inappropriate,” Feng Xiyang said. Suddenly, she caught a glimpse of something pale blue on his desk—she picked it up without thinking. It was an exquisitely crafted glass hairpin. But why was it here?
Xia Jingshi’s face showed no abnormality. Seeing her curiosity, he smiled slightly and said, “This is a top-quality glass from the imperial kiln in the capital. The color is pure and the quality is firm. If we happen to be there when the kiln opens during our visit to the capital, we could purchase more in different colors.” Feng Xiyang’s heart stirred, and she smiled, “Actually, this one is very nice…” “This one won’t do,” Xia Jingshi rejected without hesitation, “Someone left it here, and I need to return it in a few days.”
“Then never mind—” Feng Xiyang’s smile didn’t fade as she handed the hairpin back to him. “By the way, didn’t my royal brother bring you a letter? Did he mention my jade pillow? I left in such a hurry that I forgot to bring it…”
A barely noticeable mockery flashed in Xia Jingshi’s eyes, but he didn’t say much. He put the hairpin away in his robe and pulled out the already opened envelope from among the books on his desk, handing it to Feng Xiyang. “He probably didn’t mention it, but I read it in a hurry and might have missed something. Why don’t you read it again, Princess Consort?”
Under his cold gaze, Feng Xiyang almost looked embarrassed. She quickly waved her hand, “If you didn’t see it, then it’s not there. That thing isn’t necessary. But Father’s letter—” She waved the letter in her hand as she spoke.
“If the Princess Consort has something to say, please speak directly,” Xia Jingshi’s fingertips tapped lightly on the desk, making a faint tapping sound. His tone began to show impatience, “I have many things to attend to.”