The beauty had been ravished, soft as jade and fragile as a flower, with one or two starry tears clinging to the corners of her eyes, lying limply in Pei You’an’s embrace, motionless.

“Did I hurt you just now?”

Pei You’an asked in a low voice.

Jiafu kept her eyes tightly closed, sniffled resentfully, but shook her head.

Pei You’an kissed her sweaty forehead with some remorse and held her close.

A moment later, Jiafu slowly opened her eyes. The blush had not yet faded from her face, but she burrowed her head deeper into his embrace and held his arm, speaking softly: “Cousin, what are you thinking about?”

“How did the Crown Princess suddenly go mad, what happened—tell me everything you saw in detail, don’t leave out the slightest thing.”

Jiafu tilted her face up slightly and saw him looking at her. She bit her lip and said softly: “I was at the same table with her. She was fine at first, had a couple of cups of wine, then suddenly went mad. First, she scolded the opera performers for talking nonsense, then she started speaking nonsense herself, and no one could stop her…”

Pei You’an frowned slightly: “How did you end up at her table?”

“She insisted that I sit with her. I tried to decline…”

“Why? What did she say at the time?”

Jiafu became a bit uneasy and lowered her eyes.

Pei You’an lifted her chin with one hand, making her look at him: “Don’t hide things from me.”

“Cousin, if I did something wrong, would you get angry and scold me like before?” Jiafu finally asked.

Pei You’an was startled, perhaps reminded of past events by her question. He smiled, his expression softening.

“I won’t get angry, and I certainly won’t scold you. If it was truly wrong, I will teach you not to do it again in the future.”

Jiafu finally felt somewhat relieved and said: “Then I’ll tell you, but you must keep your word. The Crown Princess went mad… because she drank drugged wine…”

She watched his face and, seeing his surprised expression, quickly added: “She put the drug in the wine herself! It had nothing to do with me!”

Pei You’an sat up from the pillow.

“What exactly happened?”

His expression became extremely serious.

Having said this much, Jiafu didn’t dare conceal anything further. She sat up as well and recounted the entire incident from beginning to end, though she altered the part about the palace attendant pouring wine for her slightly.

“…As the palace attendant poured wine into my cup, I happened to notice something unusual about her hand gesture. Her thumb pressed down on the handle of the wine pot, and the part beneath her finger moved, dropping slightly. I then recalled that I had offended the Crown Princess in Wuding, yet she had been so warm and insistent on having me sit with her. So I was cautious and secretly poured out that cup of wine. When she saw that nothing happened to me, she tried to make me drink again, but I managed to refuse. Later, when His Majesty’s edict arrived, I… I…”

Jiafu hesitated.

“You switched the wine with hers?”

Pei You’an raised his eyebrows, with an extremely surprised expression.

“Cousin, you promised not to get angry—she was being too overbearing, wanting to humiliate me in public. If I were humiliated, wouldn’t that also humiliate you? I couldn’t stand it at the moment, and when no one was looking, I simply switched the cups…”

Jiafu was a bit panicked. As she spoke, she hugged him without hesitation and pressed herself firmly against him.

Pei You’an’s Adam’s apple moved slightly as he held her shoulders and waist, preventing her from burrowing into his embrace.

“I’m not angry. Don’t move around. Let’s talk properly.”

Only then did Jiafu feel somewhat relieved. She responded with an “Oh” and released him.

“She didn’t know I switched the wine. She drank it, and then… she began raving like a madwoman…”

“Cousin, I truly regret it. If I had known she would say those things, no matter how wronged I felt, I would have endured it. Now that I’ve disgraced you, I feel terrible…”

Jiafu lowered her head, motionless.

For a long while, he remained silent.

Jiafu gradually began to feel sad and wanted to cry, but she forcibly held back her tears.

“Come here.”

Suddenly, she heard him say in a gentle voice.

Jiafu raised her eyes and saw him opening his arms to her, seeming to want to embrace her. Finally, she relaxed completely.

He truly wasn’t blaming her.

“Cousin!”

She immediately threw herself at him. Pei You’an was unprepared and was pushed backward, falling onto the pillow, with Jiafu lying on his chest.

“Cousin, you’re so good.” Jiafu kissed him once, her eyes sparkling, her voice soft and sweet.

For a moment, Pei You’an’s heart completely melted.

This girl, from the moment she had run to him without hesitation at the Wuding post station and clung tightly to his waist, he had felt her complete trust in him. It was as if he were her sky.

Pei You’an himself wasn’t quite clear why she trusted him so much. At that time, all the interactions between them had been just a few encounters in childhood and their meeting at Grandmother’s birthday celebration last year, which hadn’t even been very pleasant.

But she had followed him like this, and he couldn’t drive her away or let her go.

Tonight, he had gone to pick her up but unexpectedly learned about what had happened in the birthday hall. He was indeed angry at the time. After bringing her home, Lady Xin’s words to him added another layer to his anger.

But it wasn’t for himself at all; it was for her.

He had always known about the Crown Prince’s desire for her. She had emphasized this point to him more than once before when seeking his protection. But he had still been negligent, allowing her to be shamed today because of a woman’s jealousy.

People would only label her as a femme fatale without knowing that she was simply guilty of possessing precious jade.

This girl, who depended on him with all her heart, thought that by marrying him, she would be free from all worries. But tonight, if not for her alertness in avoiding this disaster, he couldn’t imagine what harm she would have suffered had she mistakenly drunk that drugged wine!

His heart, which had just softened, instantly hardened again.

“You were a bit mischievous. But that woman was too vicious. It’s fine that you switched the cups. What matters most is that you’re safe. And this might not be a bad thing; perhaps it’s the beginning of something better.”

Pei You’an said.

Jiafu’s eyes widened.

“Do you mean that the Crown Prince murdered someone, and the Crown Princess made wild accusations in public, so they’re going to face serious trouble?”

“Not necessarily serious trouble—they won’t just sit idle. But they will certainly be more restrained in the future. What about that wine pot? Was it taken away by someone?”

“When the Crown Princess went mad, she swept some dishes and utensils off the table, and the wine pot was smashed.”

Pei You’an pondered.

Suddenly, Jiafu remembered something.

“Oh, that’s right! The first cup of wine that the palace attendant poured for me—I spilled it into my sleeve. I was worried you would scold me for causing trouble, so after bathing and changing tonight, I specifically set it aside instead of letting Tanxiang take it to be washed. I thought it might serve as evidence.”

Pei You’an seemed somewhat surprised, raising his eyebrows and reaching out to pinch her cheek: “Clever little thing! Why haven’t you brought it for me to see?”

…

In the Eastern Palace.

With a splash, a bucket of water mixed with half-melted ice was thrown over Zhang Fengtong, who was lying on the ground.

Zhang Fengtong shuddered, gradually regaining consciousness. She finally managed to open her eyes but didn’t immediately know where she was. She only felt soaking wet all over, with a severe headache, and in extreme discomfort.

Her memory was still fixed on tonight’s birthday banquet.

She vaguely remembered that the Zhen woman had drunk the drugged wine, but apart from dizziness and drunkenness, she hadn’t shown any of the expected reactions.

Having made up her mind, she would never give up easily. It was because of this exceptional determination that she had been pushed step by step to her current position.

If not for this, when she was young, while her sisters were playing with flowers, swinging on swings, laughing, and frolicking, how could she have endured the hardship of studying by the window, doing things that didn’t interest her but would win her reputation?

She didn’t have great beauty, yet she refused to fade into obscurity. By being tough on herself, she had finally reached this point.

Before deciding to take action, she had hesitated repeatedly. But Consort Cao’s manner of death had served as a warning bell for her.

Previously, she had always thought she could ignore Xiao Yintang’s favors to other women.

In this world, women served two functions for men.

The first kind: was to attend to the ancestral temples above, and to continue the lineage below—this was the role of the principal wife.

The remaining second kind: is to serve men and satisfy their desires, nothing more.

She would be the former for Xiao Yintang, while that Zhen woman was just a physical beauty. She thought that after Xiao Yintang had her, he would naturally lose interest over time.

But now, she was gradually becoming impatient.

Xiao Yintang’s level of concern for the Zhen woman far exceeded her initial expectations.

Consort Cao had followed Xiao Yintang for many years and was considered one of his favorites, yet merely for hearing a comment related to the Zhen woman, she had been strangled by him. Afterward, Xiao Yintang showed no regret or pity.

This made Zhang Fengtong somewhat fearful.

People are often like this—the more unobtainable something is, the more they fixate on it.

She had encountered the Zhen woman several times. In their verbal exchanges, she hadn’t gained any advantage, showing that the woman was certainly not as weak as her appearance suggested.

More puzzling was that, according to her knowledge, this Zhen woman had previously been involved with Pei Xiuzhi, and despite her background, she had managed to be married to Pei You’an, the Emperor’s number one favorite, in such a short time.

Zhang Fengtong knew clearly what kind of person Pei You’an was, even from their time in Wuding.

Zhang Fengtong believed that without extraordinary means, this would be an impossible achievement.

She had a profound sense of crisis.

Once Xiao Yintang could do as he pleased in the future, who could guarantee that he wouldn’t try to elevate this scheming woman to please her, and then depose herself?

Elevating a minister’s wife might seem absurd, but as long as the Emperor wished it, there would always be a way.

Rather than waiting helplessly for a future beyond her control, it was better to take action while Xiao Yintang was still restrained, secretly striking first to destroy the Zhen woman.

The secret drug she had put in the wine came from a Tibetan esoteric sect. It was strange and potent. After consuming it, one’s mind would become confused, similar to being drunk, with effects varying from person to person.

Those naturally violent would immediately kill.

Those naturally seductive would publicly display lewdness.

Zhang Fengtong was convinced that this Zhen woman was cunning and seductive. Once she drank the drugged wine, she would expose herself shamefully in front of everyone, completely ruining her reputation. Not only would Pei You’an be disgraced, but she didn’t believe Xiao Yintang would still care so much for her. After destroying the evidence, who could suspect her? People would only think that the Zhen woman got drunk herself, showing her lack of virtue and education, thus revealing her shameful behavior.

But later, things seemed to go wrong…

She remembered gradually feeling hot all over, then her head becoming foggy, hating the noise of the actors on stage.

What exactly had she done?

Zhang Fengtong’s head was splitting with pain. As she struggled to get up from the wet floor, groaning, she felt a sudden sharp pain across her face. With a “slap,” a heavy blow struck her, sending her sprawling sideways onto the ground, her face feeling as if it were dripping blood, burning with pain.

“You slut! How dare you slander me in public like that! Are you tired of living?”

An icy voice sounded in her ear.

She finally fully regained consciousness, opened her eyes, and turned her head to see Xiao Yintang glaring at her with a face full of rage, his gaze filled with loathing and murderous intent.