The first to react was Seventh Prince Ning Yi.
“So Sixth Brother has already seized the advantage.” He looked up and laughed. “We were still waiting miserably in the front hall while you’ve already entered the inner sanctum.”
Second Prince Ning Sheng’s suspicious gaze turned over, glancing at Feng Zhiwei.
Feng Zhiwei smiled bitterly. Good—this was truly pulling the firewood from under the cauldron. Brother Ning Yi sitting so comfortably and casually in her pavilion—if the princes didn’t suspect she had been secretly communicating with him, that would be strange indeed.
Thinking of the phrase “secretly communicating,” vague images of a dim chamber suddenly flashed through Feng Zhiwei’s mind—breath scattering like falling petals… Her face reddened, fortunately hidden by the human skin mask.
“So Sixth Prince has also come.” Feng Zhiwei smiled and blamed her own steward. “This ‘Pingjiang Spring’ was placed in the front hall for entertaining ordinary outside guests. Since Sixth Prince took it by mistake, why didn’t you know to change it?”
Several princes all showed expressions of relief—so Sixth Brother and Wei Zhi’s friendship wasn’t as good as imagined.
“Sixth Brother, that’s not right of you.” Second Prince Ning Sheng laughed heartily, intimately clapping Feng Zhiwei’s shoulder. “If you want to drink Brother Wei’s wine, you should first figure out where the fine wine in his mansion is stored. Why be so impatient?”
Feng Zhiwei’s shoulder went numb from the clapping. Supporting a stiff smile, she cursed silently—Brother Wei, my foot!
“Ever since I offended Young Master Wei last time,” Ning Yi’s gaze fell on Ning Sheng’s hand clapping Feng Zhiwei’s shoulder, congealed slightly then turned away, smiling, “he’s hidden all the good things.”
Young Master Wei, my foot!
Too lazy to engage in verbal sparring with them, Feng Zhiwei hurriedly invited the princes to ascend the pavilion and ordered wine to be changed. Actually, the good wine in her mansion truly was just “Pingjiang Spring.” In the midst of such busyness, where could she find fine wine? Fortunately, there was the clever and resourceful Yan Huaishi who had already gone down to arrange this matter for her. After a while, what was brought up was the supreme quality brew “Thousand Valleys Mellow.” The princes looked at Ning Yi, their smiles growing even more meaningful. Ning Yi remained impassive, held up his wine cup toward Feng Zhiwei to show her, and said, “Actually ‘Pearl in a Bushel’ is also quite good. Next time, Brother Wei might try this one.”
“Your Highness has precise judgment and meticulous thinking. Your recommendations are never wrong.” Feng Zhiwei replied with a smile.
The two exchanged glances and both laughed heartily.
The Qiu Mansion indeed had Prince Chu’s informant, and one of no low status. While greeting everyone, Feng Zhiwei pondered—Lady Qiu’s inner courtyard was not a place just any servant woman could enter. Now Ning Yi did not hesitate to expose his informant in the Qiu Mansion, clearly telling her that all her actions were under his control—don’t think of stirring up any trouble.
Feng Zhiwei had never expected to hide things from Ning Yi anyway. The two held leverage over each other and were mutually wary. Comparatively speaking, she was still the weaker one and would not be foolish.
She was an honest person, truly.
“Tenth Brother came with me earlier.” Ning Yi smiled. “He can’t hold his liquor and is known as ‘falls with one cup.’ I had him find a place to rest—I’m not disturbing you, am I?”
“Please, please feel free.” Feng Zhiwei smiled warmly, just like a hospitable host.
“We have wine and everyone’s here. Why not play a round of floating wine cups on the winding stream?” Seventh Prince Ning Yi smiled and changed the subject.
“Let’s use cold and hot things as the theme—four lines in rotation. The first three lines must include one cold and one hot element, and the last line must end with three characters. Those who compose poorly will be penalized three cups of wine.” Fifth Prince Ning Yan smiled.
“Fifth Brother is in high spirits.” Second Prince glanced at him sideways. “Is all the canal work finished?”
“I returned to the capital to celebrate Mother Consort’s birthday.” Fifth Prince’s expression was calm, his manner as always simple and direct.
The Empress had died long ago. Fifth Prince’s mother, Noble Consort Chang, was the Empress’s cousin and the actual person in charge of the palace. The Chang clan family was extremely illustrious, which was also why Fifth Prince, despite being implicated in the case of falsely accused founding meritorious officials, could completely extricate himself. Emperor Tiansheng liked to play the art of balance and restraint. The Chang clan family occupied the Southern Heavenly Circuit with formidable power. The Tiansheng Dynasty’s only external vassal, Prince Yongning, was enfeoffed in the neighboring Western Pacification Circuit. Grand Academicians Yao Ying and Hu Shengshan were used by Ning Yi, so Emperor Tiansheng immediately promoted several young cabinet ministers. Among the Six Ministries’ Ministers, more than half the positions were controlled by the Seventh Prince.
Balanced power, mutual restraint, absolutely preventing any one faction from dominating—this had been Emperor Tiansheng’s governing principle for many years.
Precisely because of this, the princes were each unwilling to concede and fought vigorously with their respective factions.
“Allow this subject to presume—this subject will cast a brick to attract jade and start first.” Feng Zhiwei did not want to see them quarrel in her mansion. She hurriedly first filled the wine cup with wine, which flowed leisurely down the prepared channel in the pavilion. “In the jade cup, newly warmed wine.”
The cup flowed before Second Prince.
“Below the drinking horse bridge, river lanterns glow red.” Second Prince hurriedly took the cup.
The jade cup flowed to Fifth Prince’s feet. He raised his eyebrows, sipped the wine. “Before the snow-covered courtyard, sitting by the brazier.” He laughed again. “This makes it easy for the one after me.”
The jade cup flowed down with the water, stopping precisely before Ning Yi.
Ning Yi smiled, his long eyebrows flying at an angle. He drained the cup in one gulp and continued, “I’m frozen!”
The entire hall erupted in laughter. Feng Zhiwei almost spat out the wine in her mouth. She raised her head to stare at Ning Yi in disbelief—this scoundrel had this kind of humor?
“What kind of line is Sixth Brother completing!” Second Prince laughed heartily and pushed Ning Yi. “No good, no good—penalty of three cups!”
Ning Yi did not argue and very readily drained three cups. When the cup bottoms were shown, the princes cheered. Feng Zhiwei was also laughing, but a trace of suspicion arose in her heart.
Him drinking so readily in her mansion—no matter how she looked at it, something seemed off.
The drinking games continued round after round with various victories and defeats. Several princes had become somewhat drunk. The few seemed to have excellent tacit understanding—they did not discuss court affairs at all, as if they had simply come to the Wei Mansion to drink and have fun.
Ning Yi drank especially heavily, somewhat unable to hold his liquor. His chin rested lazily on his folded hands. His jade-white cheeks flushed with the wine’s red glow. His black hair cascaded like flowing water. Against those intoxicated, hazy eyes, he looked like datura flowers wreathed in mist, blooming in the faintly foggy night.
That languid expression, different from his usual noble and elegant bearing, made hearts pound yet dare not look directly.
Just then the wine cup flowed with the water to before him. He did not get up but hooked his fingers. The wine cup, dripping with water, fell into his palm, yet his strength seemed unsteady. Just as it was about to fly into the air, it tilted before Feng Zhiwei.
Feng Zhiwei instinctively reached out to steady it. The wine cup fell into her palm. Before she could hand it to Ning Yi, he suddenly leaned his head over and, using her palm as support, buried his head to drink the wine.
His smooth-as-silk black hair fell down along with his moist, soft lips, lightly brushing across her palm together—like spring rain instantly wetting the Jiangnan shores, heaven and earth one color, lushly verdant.
In that instant, Feng Zhiwei stiffened.
He bowed his head over her palm. His gorgeously cool breath mingled with the wine’s mellow sweet fragrance, rising together and interweaving into an ambiguous, enchanting mood. He drank that cup of wine very slowly, very lingeringly. His breath sprayed between her palms, tickling gently. Her palm was damp—she didn’t know if it was wine he had spilled or sweat that had suddenly seeped from her own palm…
Feng Zhiwei restrained herself, striving not to let her gaze show even the slightest fluctuation. She smiled, “Your Highness has drunk deeply…” Reaching out to support the cup, trying to push him away.
Ning Yi’s hand brushed, and the wine cup clattered to the ground. In the clear, crisp sound of the metal cup striking, he murmured intimately, “It’s my turn to continue… In the dark chamber, snow-white neck, cherry red…”
With a thunderous sound, Feng Zhiwei caught fire.
“Oh my, truly drunk…” After Ning Yi finished reciting that line, his body tilted and he fell against her shoulder, laughing. “The Wei Mansion has a place for this drunkard to sleep, right? Come, come, sleep with me together…”
He held her, his entire body leaning on her. His fingers, quite coincidentally, landed precisely at her collar. Looking at the gesture of his hand, if his fingers just explored and hooked, she would truly have a “daylight snow-white neck, cherry red” situation.
Feng Zhiwei was helpless. She looked up at the pavilion roof—Young Master Gu, who loved drinking, was still up there imbibing heavily. Even if he rushed down now, it would be too late.
She gritted her teeth, supported Ning Yi’s heavy body, excused herself to everyone, and personally went to arrange for the drunken Prince Chu to rest.
That person collapsed in her arms, resolutely refusing to exert any effort himself. She supported him with her arms, half-embracing, half-dragging him to “go sleep together.” After dragging him quite far, she could still faintly hear Second Prince shouting from afar, “Sixth Brother’s last line didn’t match well—where are the cold and hot elements? Penalty drinks, penalty drinks!”