The main hall of Biquan Palace had a natural hot spring pool where mist rose day and night like a fairyland. Behind the spring pool stood a tall statue of the Lamp-Lighting Buddha, holding a bright lamp that glittered with golden light. This lamp was a gift brought by the Liuli Kingdom envoys.
The consorts walked from the verdant greenery outside into the hall, feeling the solemn atmosphere, and lowered their voices one after another: “Should we go forward to light the lamps?”
Many butter lamps already surrounded the spring pool. The three Liuli Kingdom envoys had also changed into snow-white kasayas today: “Please, sage, light the butter lamps to celebrate the Buddha’s birthday.”
Emperor Chenming went to light the lamp near the Buddha.
However, Empress Ma was somewhat puzzled—she saw Princess Bao’an, whom she had confined, conspicuously among them. The palace maid serving clothing beside her said: “Your Majesty, Princess Bao’an speaks Sanskrit and is skilled at pleasing the envoys. The crown prince’s side released her.”
In any case, Han Wanyi hadn’t come due to physical reasons, so there would be no offense. The empress felt some anger in her heart, but it wasn’t the first or second day she’d been disregarded.
Seeing Qun Qing beside the crown prince’s good lady already kneeling to light lamps across the spring pool, the empress felt her son was disappointing: “The crown prince is quite considerate of his father emperor—thinking of everything in advance. Unlike San’lang, who not only doesn’t believe in these things himself but constantly opposes his father emperor. How can the sage like him? In such a vast Prince Yan’s mansion, is there no one to light lamps?”
A moment later, Lu Huating was summoned into the hall. Qun Qing felt a cool breeze brush past her cheek, extinguishing the lamp she had just lit. She looked up—Lu Huating had just knelt beside her, arranging his robe. Seeing the lamp extinguished, his expression held some innocence: “My apologies.”
She didn’t speak, reaching for the flint on the ground, but a hand with slender knuckles seized the flint first, pressing it under his palm. This hand, when spread open, appeared fair and elegant, but who knew that when it closed, it would display overwhelming aggression.
Lu Huating picked up the flint, gazing at the lamp. Thinking of something, he didn’t light it immediately.
“Why doesn’t the chief administrator light the lamp? Is it because Prince Yan has killed too heavily and you dare not?” Qun Qing glanced at his actions, speaking softly.
Hearing this, Lu Huating raised his lashes to stare at her, his dark eyes seemingly containing emotion, and smiled: “The Chu’s wastrel emperor preyed upon the people, causing rivers of blood to flow in the country, yet still claimed piety. Even he dared—how would I not dare?”
He then tossed the flint and lit the butter lamp.
The anger in Qun Qing’s heart also leaped up with the lamplight. The wind from her sleeve extinguished the lamp Lu Huating had just lit, her tone calm as water: “Did the chief administrator smell the narcissus fragrance in the hall? It was specially prepared for you, knowing you get no rest, fearing you’d collapse in the hall.”
Lu Huating’s smile froze. As he watched her, his gaze became bright as a blade edge in the drifting narcissus fragrance. Qun Qing said: “Today’s Lamp-Lighting Buddha’s birthday doesn’t permit outside officials to enter. It seems you cannot light this lamp. The crown prince has arrived—leave.”
From the corner of her eye, she glimpsed Qun Qing relight the crown prince’s lamp, then picked it up and tilted it, as if bestowing charity, to ignite Prince Yan’s lamp. Lu Huating silently rose and withdrew from the hall.
He saw Li Xuan standing by the incense burner wearing prayer robes, greeting the passing consorts, and revealed a cold smile.
This narcissus fragrance was probably lit for Li Xuan—Qun Qing had deliberately provoked him. Lu Huating brushed past Li Xuan and walked straight out the door.
After everyone lit their lamps, they knelt on cushions by the poolside to listen to the oldest Liuli Kingdom envoy chant scriptures. Emperor Chenming and Li Xuan offered incense to pray for the country’s prosperity.
Atiniye curled his lips, bowed, and said: “Liuli Kingdom’s sacred flower, the udumbara, has another name: ‘water flower lamp.’ Every Lamp-Lighting Buddha’s birthday, women with Buddhist affinity must light water flower lamps. We have already presented the flower seeds in advance. Please ask the crown prince’s good lady to offer the flower into the hall.”
At the eunuch’s summons, Zheng Zhiyi entered from outside, holding a pure white blooming flower in both hands.
“Please ask the good lady to approach the Buddha statue.” Atiniye narrowed his eyes.
Having heard she was a bandit’s daughter, he had expected her to be dark and burly like the barbarian women of Bei Rong. Unexpectedly, she was a fair, delicate young woman. She wore snow-white, heavily embroidered prayer robes with her hair in a high bun, walking gracefully forward—not ugly at all, even rather delicate.
Seeing her heaving chest and slightly nervous expression, Atiniye’s smile deepened: “It’s called a water flower lamp because fresh udumbara can be lit at the flower’s heart like a lamp wick and can float on water like a river lantern. Dewu, help the crown prince’s good lady light the lamp.”
A young monk stepped forward. As he prepared to light it, he touched the udumbara and paused. Zheng Zhiyi glanced at him. Though this young monk’s complexion was somewhat dark, his eyes were pure as glass. He said nothing and lit the flower’s heart.
Everyone watched from afar, seeing the flower’s heart truly light like a candle, unable to look away.
Then Zheng Zhiyi gently placed the udumbara on the water and released her hand. Atiniye’s expression changed as he saw it truly float steadily on the water’s surface like a sacred river lantern!
This was so novel that the consorts watching the lamp praised it in chorus. Only Qun Qing’s expression remained calm, observing everything. Atiniye’s expression grew slightly tense. He looked at the udumbara floating in the water with its bright lamplight, then at Zheng Zhiyi, who had already smiled proudly at Qun Qing and stood to one side.
“There is another woman with Buddhist affinity in the palace who has grown an udumbara. Please ask Princess Bao’an to offer her flower into the hall.” Atiniye said.
Outside the door, Yang Fu heard the waves of cheers from inside. Different from what Atiniye had said, she felt somewhat uneasy.
She tilted the enchantingly beautiful udumbara in her hand toward Dewu. The flower’s heart was lit, also emitting a line of firelight.
She placed the lit udumbara on the water. The moment she released her hand, the pure white, large flower tilted and sank into the water.
The entire assembly fell silent. Yang Fu also widened her eyes, unable to believe what she saw. Water stains from the petals still remained on her hands, but her lamp was already gone from the hot spring pool.
Instinctively, she looked toward Atiniye. His face was obscured behind the white mist rising from the spring pool, unclear: “The water flower lamp sank—this is rare. What does it signify?”
“There’s only one reason for sinking—this is not a fresh udumbara.” A faint female voice came from below.
Atiniye paused and looked toward that person. The slender woman stood up from the water’s edge, her face like water, her eyes bright. Qun Qing bowed to Emperor Chenming and Empress Ma, then said: “This servant once consulted the Records of the Four Seas, which records that only udumbara within five days of blooming have a layer of fine hair on their surface, allowing them to float on water. Once they bloom more fully, they become heavy and absorb water.”
“The udumbara Princess Bao’an just offered appears to have bloomed for quite some time.” Qun Qing said. “His Highness said the envoy presented the seeds approximately eighteen days ago, so the udumbara Princess Bao’an offered certainly wasn’t grown by herself.”
The sinking of a water flower lamp was inauspicious. Just as the envoy was about to make an issue of it, Empress Ma had been quite relieved someone interrupted. But hearing Qun Qing redirect the blame toward Yang Fu, she grew somewhat anxious.
Why take advantage of this moment to suppress Princess Bao’an again? Was this celebration prepared for her?
Emperor Chenming’s expression also wasn’t pleasant, but he placed his hand on his knee and merely listened quietly.
“What are you saying? Slandering me?” Yang Fu’s ears buzzed, feeling alternately cold and hot inside. “If I didn’t grow it myself, where did it come from?”
“If the princess truly grew the udumbara, she should have cultivated and tended it carefully. Why constantly send people to climb Qingxuan Pavilion’s walls, anxiously checking the good lady’s flower garden’s progress?” Qun Qing said. “Last night at midnight, a carriage stopped at Luanyi Pavilion’s entrance—most likely udumbara transported from beyond the passes, only the long journey meant the flower had already bloomed past five days.”
Atiniye let out a low laugh: “I never expected a princess of a great nation would also be such a dishonest person. Unable to make the udumbara bloom, she resorted to such substitution tactics.”
What made him even more pleased was that he didn’t even need to expose it—this foolish palace maid had investigated everything clearly herself, letting everyone hear it plainly. Emperor Chenming and that Crown Prince Li sat below, surely furious to the extreme, yet unable to express it.
“Since that’s the case,” Li Xuan’s voice was very cold, “Princess Bao’an has damaged the great nation’s dignity. Continue your confinement and reflect.”
Yang Fu trembled all over as she looked at Atiniye, realizing she had fallen into his trap. Atiniye’s smile deepened—the good show he wanted to see didn’t stop here. He walked several steps to the spring pool’s edge to examine it carefully, his eyes brightening: “The crown prince’s good lady’s udumbara—could it have been grown by herself? Clearly it’s fake!”
Not expecting Atiniye would still create difficulties, Li Xuan’s hands clenched together. What exactly did he want to do?
“I never said it was real.” Zheng Zhiyi’s voice rang out. “Eighteen days ago, Envoy Atiniye presented the seeds to me. No matter how I planted them, they wouldn’t grow.”
“If the good lady couldn’t grow them, then she lacks Buddhist affinity.” Atiniye spoke patiently as if talking to a child. “To curry favor by forcing a fake—this is not the conduct of a great nation.”
“That I couldn’t grow them doesn’t mean I lack Buddhist affinity. The envoy should know the reason in his heart—the seed you gave was a stone seed, deliberately preventing me from growing it.” Zheng Zhiyi smiled, took out the seed cut in half from her sleeve, and presented it before Dewu and the old monk for them to see. “Look—is this the seed you gave? Could this seed also be fake?”
Her voice rang out bright and loud. Dewu and the old monk glanced at it, then frowned at Atiniye: “This seed is indeed a stone seed—it cannot be grown.”
Emperor Chenming suppressed his anger. This Liuli Kingdom envoy was truly too frivolous.
Atiniye’s eyes showed some panic: “I didn’t intentionally give the good lady a stone seed. I brought too many seeds—perhaps I took the wrong one.”
“Not only do I know this was a stone seed, I also know you gave Princess Bao’an a stone seed as well, which is why she had no choice but to transport one from beyond the passes. Whether it was coincidence or deliberate, you know in your heart!” Zheng Zhiyi said. “The three envoys came to Great Chenming, and the sage and crown prince treated you with courtesy. You presented two seeds, yet deliberately selected bad ones—is this Liuli Kingdom’s grace?”
Not expecting this young woman to speak so fiercely, seeing everyone discussing in whispers, Atiniye’s face flushed red. After a long moment he said: “No matter how eloquent the crown prince’s good lady is, it cannot change the fact that you deceived the Lamp-Lighting Buddha statue with a fake flower. If you couldn’t grow it, you should have said you couldn’t grow it. Why fake it? Are all people of Great Chenming like this?”
“Young Lady Qing, come up here and show the envoy this ‘fake flower.'” Zheng Zhiyi beckoned, already speaking until her mouth was parched.
Qun Qing smiled faintly, left her seat and came forward, giving her an encouraging look, then bent down to retrieve the flower lamp from the pool.
“Previously, I heard a story from your Liuli Kingdom, where the king wanted to test his princes’ character, so he gave them fake flower seeds to determine who was most honest.” Zheng Zhiyi’s tone shifted. “But that’s a father’s method of testing his sons. Which father is Liuli Kingdom to dare test me thus, yet dare claim no intention to slight Great Chenming?”
When Zheng Zhiyi cursed at people, she was extremely fierce and loud. Her voice echoed through the great hall, actually making Atiniye tremble and feel somewhat intimidated.
“Since your noble country doesn’t respect Great Chenming, do you intend to wage war with us?” Li Xuan raised his phoenix eyes, borrowing her words: “My second and third brothers are both beyond the passes and can still fight. Our Great Chenming is a kingdom won through battle. We simply consider the people’s suffering—we don’t fear fighting to the death with the eighteen Western Region states.”
The wrinkles on Emperor Chenming’s face trembled, but he didn’t stop them.
Atiniye’s face turned completely pale. He had only wanted to take advantage of the situation to humiliate Great Chenming, never intending to push things this far. If it truly reached the point of war, an envoy would bear great guilt.
Before he could speak, Dewu and the old monk were already shocked, exchanging glances. Not waiting for the Hong Lu Temple translator, Dewu knelt on one knee, hand covering his chest: “The Liuli Kingdom court has no such intention! Since we came as envoys, we intend friendship. This was all the envoy’s error.”
Emperor Chenming said: “To welcome the Buddha’s bone, we have already raised the Star-Plucking Tower from the ground. We have shown sincerity. I wonder if the three envoys truly brought the Buddha’s bone?”
Dewu took out the wooden box containing the Buddha’s bone: “We truly came to present the Buddha’s bone. Please, sage, do not misunderstand.”
Qun Qing retrieved the silk flower, holding it before the red-faced Atiniye: “Please examine closely, envoy. This flower is called silk flower, crafted by the clever hands of Great Chenming’s palace maids, using magnolia silk thread produced in our Zhongzhou. It can be lit because the flower’s heart conceals a candle. It can float because fish bladder is attached beneath the petals. From outside the hall to inside, you detected not the slightest flaw—showing that silk flower craftsmanship can deceive the eye perfectly and can equally serve as water flower lamps!”
As she spoke, she returned the silk flower to float in the spring pool. The udumbara slowly rotated, appearing beautiful and sacred in the candlelight’s reflection. The assembled consorts held their breath, never imagining such exquisitely crafted objects existed.
Zheng Zhiyi said: “Because this envoy obstructed me, I was unable to grow the udumbara, which is truly regrettable. Therefore, I present this silk flower in the form of an udumbara as Great Chenming’s celebratory gift, to celebrate the Lamp-Lighting Buddha’s birthday.”
Atiniye’s face was completely red as he knelt on one knee, bowed his head, and said with utmost trepidation: “This humble one was narrow-minded and momentarily confused, obstructing the diplomatic relations between our two nations. Please forgive me, sage. Please forgive me, good lady.”
Zheng Zhiyi and Qun Qing also bowed: “Father Emperor, your subject took matters into her own hands without informing you in advance. Please punish your subject, Father Emperor.”
After a long while, Emperor Chenming laughed heartily: “Truly a tiger father has no dog daughter. Only such a courageous and wise woman is worthy of being our dynasty’s crown princess consort. What the crown princess consort means is what we mean. Since the envoy has apologized, everyone rise!”
Zheng Zhiyi’s lashes trembled. She looked at Qun Qing in disbelief, then heard the palace maids below in a large wave of admiring voices: “Congratulations to the crown princess consort! Felicitations to the crown princess consort!”
She had truly become crown princess consort—she could actually become crown princess consort! When this day truly arrived, she was much calmer than imagined. Only the continuously rolling heat in her heart, perhaps because of the sage’s words “tiger father has no dog daughter”—that heat transformed into tears in her eyes. It turned out her father was right—part of her was also very good.
“Since today brings double happiness and Liuli Kingdom is willing to present the Buddha’s bone, we shall bestow ten thousand bolts of silk as a return gift.” Emperor Chenming said. “Today is a vegetarian feast. Since the lamp lighting is complete, let us partake of the vegetarian feast.”
Li Xuan slowly raised his eyes. Today, Emperor Chenming’s words had determined the crown princess consort’s selection in one stroke. From now on, the one accompanying him would be Zheng Zhiyi.
His gaze swept past the deathly pale Princess Bao’an, just catching sight of Qun Qing’s dark blue shawl before stopping and withdrawing his gaze.
Zheng Zhiyi walked to Li Xuan’s side. Li Xuan grasped her sleeve. Zheng Zhiyi grew anxious: “These prayer robes are delicate—you can’t pull them!”
Li Xuan grasped her wrist. His hand was ice-cold. Zheng Zhiyi froze for a moment. They hadn’t held hands for a very, very long time, so that both were somewhat unfamiliar.
The hall doors opened, and palace maids filed in to present the vegetarian feast to everyone.
Qun Qing sat far to one side, calmly taking a bite of a sweet bun and sipping tea. That Zheng Zhiyi could gradually stand on her own was a good thing for her. Just then, Qun Qing heard a commotion—Yang Fu had collapsed to the ground, her strength failing her.
Lu Huating waited outside the door, having heard everything. It seemed Qun Qing had taught Zheng Zhiyi to respond this way because she wanted the crown princess consort position—different from her choice in the previous life. But with the crown prince and crown princess consort’s favor, her appetite could be even greater.
But seeing Qun Qing pick up a triangular sweet bun and walk toward Yang Fu, he slowly curved his lips and turned his gaze toward the azure sky.