My aunt was supported into the inner hall. Palace maids attended to me as I changed my clothing and washed up, while attendants hastily cleaned up the bloodshed and chaos from the hall.

I inspected Yuxiu’s wound. It was in the shoulder — though she had bled a great deal, it was not fatal.

When the palace maids removed my outer robe, they pulled against my arm, and only then did I notice the unbearable pain. The blade I had just barely evaded had still sliced open my left arm, though fortunately the wound was quite shallow.

My aunt’s hair bun had come undone and her face was deathly pale. The gorgeous court robes embroidered with golden seals and hung with purple sashes were spattered with blood, yet she refused to let the palace maids help her change clothing or wash up. She only curled up against the head of the bed and muttered to herself. When a palace maid brought forward a calming medicinal broth, she knocked it away with a slap of her hand: “Get out! All of you, get out! Every one of you servants is trying to harm me — do not think for a moment you will succeed!”

I hurried to have the palace maids wrap my wound and went forward to embrace her, my heart aching without measure. “Aunt, do not be afraid. A’Wu is here. No one can harm you!”

She trembled as she reached up to touch my face, her palm ice-cold. “Is it really you — is it A’Wu? A’Wu would not hate me…”

“Aunt is speaking nonsense again.” Tears nearly flooded my eyes, and I forced myself to smile. “Your clothes are all dirty. Won’t you change them first?”

This time she stopped resisting and let the palace maids help her out of her clothing and clean her face, though she kept her gaze fixed steadily on me, her expression hovering between a smile and desolation. The way she looked at me made me feel as though I could not breathe. I turned my head to the side, suppressing the anguish inside me.

Suddenly I heard her ask, “Do you hate your aunt?”

I turned back in a daze and looked at her haggard face. A thousand and one feelings welled up together in my heart.

She was the aunt who had watched me grow up, who had loved and doted on me as though I were her own child — yet it was also she who had treated me as a chess piece, pushing me forward with her own hands, deceiving me, abandoning me. During those dark days I had once faced alone in the cold, perhaps I had resented her. In those days, I did not know whether to regard her as the Empress, or as my own blood aunt.

Yet at the instant the blade struck toward her, I had stepped in front of her without a moment’s hesitation. Seeing her now, forlorn and haggard, was like a thousand needles pricking my heart — there was not a shred of resentment left in me.

I held her frail, thin shoulders and gently smoothed her disheveled hair, and said softly, “Aunt loves A’Wu best of all. How could A’Wu ever hate you? Elder brother the Crown Prince will soon ascend the throne — you will be the Empress Dowager revered by all the people, the most honored mother under all Heaven. Aunt ought to be happy.”

A pale smile drifted across my aunt’s face. Her confused eyes brightened and focused, and she looked at me with a gentle smile. “That is right. My imperial son is about to ascend the throne. I must see him seated upon the dragon throne, becoming a fine emperor praised throughout ten thousand generations!”

I carefully watched her eyes, uncertain how much she could still clearly see.

“Yet he hates me — they all hate me!” My aunt suddenly shuddered and gripped my hand tightly, the deep wrinkle at the corner of her eye twitching uncontrollably. “He refused to call for me until his dying breath — he refused to see me! And him — he failed me for an entire lifetime, and then dared to depose me as Crown Prince’s mother and send men to kill me! Even my own son despises me! What have I done wrong? I have thought of you all these years, I have yielded to you and endured you — what more do you want from me…”

My aunt suddenly burst out laughing, then sobbed and choked, clinging to me and refusing to let go. Her eyes were full of desperate and piercing anguish, and her fingernails nearly dug into my arm.

The maids on either side of her rushed forward to hold her still. I was frightened into helplessness, unable to make sense of her incoherent ramblings.

Nothing I said could calm her — on the contrary, she grew more frenzied. The imperial physicians had not yet arrived, and I was on edge with anxiety when a small palace maid came timidly forward, holding a small bottle and saying hurriedly, “Princess Consort, this servant has seen Senior Attendant Liao give medicine to the Empress. Every time the Empress is like this, she must take this medicine from the jade bottle.”

This small palace maid was no more than fourteen or fifteen years old, with delicate and lovely features that still carried a hint of childlike innocence. I took the medicine bottle with a furrowed brow, tipped out a few jade-colored pills, and breathed in a clear, fragrant scent.

My aunt had already become agitated and was beginning to shout and curse, seemingly not even recognizing me.

I handed one of the pills to the small palace maid, who knelt forward and swallowed it without hesitation.

A palace maid rushed in hurriedly. “Your servant informs the Princess Consort — Prince Yuzhang and the Left Chancellor have arrived at the hall entrance.”

“Tell them to wait outside!” My aunt’s speech was full of incoherence; I could not go out and face anyone. I hesitated no further and placed the medicinal pill into my aunt’s mouth.

She struggled for a moment, but truly did gradually calm down, her expression wilting as she sank into drowsy sleep.

I gazed at her haggard, sleeping face, and felt a hollow ache in the depths of my heart.

Just as I was about to rise, I suddenly noticed a corner of a silk handkerchief peeking out from under her pillow. I looked again at her forehead, where faint, fine beads of cold sweat were just visible. I sighed and pulled out the handkerchief to wipe away her sweat, but something felt strange to the touch. The handkerchief was creased and yellowed, quite worn, with faint traces of ink barely visible. I unfolded it and saw eight small characters written in pale ink: “Like the zither and the se played in harmony — all is quiet and good.”

My heart gave a sudden lurch. I fixed my eyes on the calligraphy. The brushstrokes had a bold and noble character, imbued with a refined and soaring grace. In all the world, there was no second person capable of writing like this.

There was only one person — whose calligraphy was peerless under Heaven, his fame celebrated throughout court and beyond. From nobles of high rank to scholars of modest station, all were swept up in admiration and imitation of the script style he had himself created, known as the “Wen style.”

That name nearly escaped my lips — Wen Zongshen, who had been convicted of treason and personally condemned by my aunt, drinking poisoned wine in prison and dying.

When I stepped out into the outer hall and saw my father and Xiao Qi in a single glance, all my composure instantly softened, and I felt as though I had not even half a shred of strength left to hold myself up.

“A’Wu!” Both spoke at the same time. Xiao Qi moved faster than my father and stepped quickly forward, gripping my shoulders. “Were you hurt?”

My father froze where he stood, and his outstretched hand slowly fell back to his side.

I saw it, and my heart ached. Without another thought for anything else, I pulled away and ran to my father. My father let out a quiet sigh and drew me into his arms. This embrace was so warm and familiar, like a memory that had been with me since birth.

“As long as you are safe.” My father gently patted my back. I bit my lip and held back my tears, but felt that my father’s shoulders had grown noticeably thin — they were no longer the broad shoulders of my childhood.

“If you keep being this spoiled, your husband will laugh at you.” My father smiled and gently pushed me away.

Xiao Qi also smiled. “She has always been prone to tears — she was probably spoiled rotten by her father-in-law.”

My father let out a hearty laugh, offered no defense, and lightly tapped my forehead. “Look at that — dragging the old man’s reputation down with you.”

The two of them talked and laughed together, as if they truly were father and son. Yet in my heart I understood clearly — this was nothing more than a shared understanding between two men, performing for my sake.

I was the Left Chancellor’s daughter and Prince Yuzhang’s wife — the person both of them tacitly, with smiles, stood guard over. Even if this understanding lasted only a brief moment, I was still the most fortunate woman in the world.

They had already heard a rough account of the attendant’s assassination attempt. As I recounted the events in full detail, my father’s and Xiao Qi’s gazes met, and both their expressions became grave and serious.

The bloodstains before the hall had already been cleaned up, but a cold and deathly air still lingered.

I glanced at my father’s expression and said uneasily, “Though my aunt was not injured, she was so badly frightened that her condition is quite alarming.”

My father said nothing, his brow deeply furrowed, the worry in his eyes deepening. Xiao Qi also frowned and asked, “How alarming?”

“My aunt’s mind is not entirely clear…” I hesitated for a moment, then turned my eyes toward my father. “She spoke some incoherent words. After taking her medicine, she has already fallen asleep.”

“She spoke incoherent words — were there any others who heard?” My father pressed the question with a solemn expression.

He did not ask what my aunt had said — only whether anyone else had heard it. In that instant I understood: my father was already aware of the matter.

The silk handkerchief was tucked in my sleeve. I lowered my eyes, revealing nothing. “There were no others — only I was present. My aunt’s speech was confused, and I did not understand it clearly.”

My father let out a long sigh, as though a weight had lifted. “The Empress has been exhausted from constant labors. In the aftermath of such a shock, some moments of confused speech are only natural — it should be nothing to worry about.”

I nodded in silence, and for a moment felt my throat tighten and my chest go cold and hollow.

Xiao Qi frowned and said, “You say the assassin was an old palace servant in the Empress’s service?”

I was just about to speak when my father said coldly, “That scoundrel Xue Dao’an was demoted to the Palace of Good Works several months ago.”

“How did this happen?” I was startled. The Palace of Good Works was a place specifically for holding servants who had committed offenses and been expelled by their masters, assigned to perform the most menial and degrading labor. Yet this Xue Dao’an had served my aunt for no fewer than ten years and had always been a favored figure in the imperial presence. When I had last returned to the palace, he was still serving in the Zhaoyang Palace.

“This scoundrel had once disobeyed the Empress’s order and entered the Qianyuan Palace without permission. At the time it was assumed he had grown arrogant through being favored, and he ought properly to have been beaten to death.” My father’s brow was deeply furrowed. “But the Empress was soft-hearted and could not bring herself to do it. In view of his ten years of service, she only punished him by sending him to the Palace of Good Works. I never imagined this scoundrel was the Emperor’s man — concealing himself for ten years, with vicious intentions to the extreme.”

I asked with alarm and suspicion, “How could someone confined to the Palace of Good Works escape on his own and come to deliver a forged decree from the Empress to me?”

My father’s expression was iron gray. “The Zhaoyang Palace is normally under tight security, and this scoundrel could find no opportunity to act. He must have been biding his time with a calculated plan, seizing the perfect moment when you returned to the palace — when you would have no way of knowing and could serve as his cover — to walk openly into the inner hall.”

Xiao Qi said thoughtfully, “For him to escape alone from the Palace of Good Works, change his clothing, and conceal a blade while slipping past the inspections of the inner palace guards — without accomplices secretly helping him, I doubt it could have been managed.”

“Precisely. I have already ordered the Eastern Palace guard to be reinforced to prevent the assassin’s accomplices from threatening the Crown Prince.” I looked at my father with worry. “The palace is full of people of all kinds. I am afraid there may still be many old palace servants who are loyal to the imperial house — those lurking nearby will surely cause trouble in the future.”

“Better to err on the side of overreach than to miss even one. If a single person slips through, the trouble is endless.” Xiao Qi’s expression was cold and stern as he addressed my father. “This son-in-law believes this matter has wide-ranging implications. From the palace guards to the palace maids, a thorough investigation must be conducted, one by one, to search out all accomplices with full effort.”

My heart tightened. I understood at once what Xiao Qi intended — he was always skilled at seizing any opportunity.

My gaze met his, and without a word having been exchanged, we both looked toward my father.

My father’s expression remained impassive, but his gaze was deep and unfathomable. He said only mildly, “That may not necessarily be the case. The palace guards are all brave and loyal soldiers selected through the most rigorous process. Even if an occasional stray fish slips through the net, it need not be cause for alarm.”

Xiao Qi’s gaze sharpened. “Father-in-law’s words are reasonable, yet the safety of the Empress and the Crown Prince is of paramount importance to the stability of the realm — not a moment’s carelessness can be permitted!”

“My worthy son-in-law also speaks with reason. However, since this concerns the affairs of the palace, it would still be most proper to present the matter to the Empress for her judgment.” My father smiled with benign warmth, and every word he spoke was airtight. Xiao Qi’s relentlessly pressing momentum met with his smooth, practiced handling and found no room to exert itself. The court and the palace were a battlefield without visible bloodshed; in the refinements of that arena, Xiao Qi was still, in the end, one step behind my father.

“Honored Uncle is mistaken!” A voice rang out suddenly from outside the hall.

It was the Crown Prince, surrounded by a large retinue of guards, striding in quickly with an unsheathed sword in his hand.

We were all startled, and hurried to bow to him in respect.

“How could Honored Uncle be so careless? Are you so certain there are no other rebel conspirators? If even the people beside Imperial Mother cannot be trusted, who is left to protect the safety of the Eastern Palace?” He asked my father a rapid stream of questions, holding the sword and looking irritated.

“Your servant acknowledges his fault.” My father was both furious and helpless, and with all the palace guards present could not give vent to his feelings.

The Crown Prince looked around, an air of satisfaction appearing on his face. He was just about to continue speaking when I shot him a cold, sharp look. He was taken aback, then glared back at me. His tone, however, weakened somewhat. “Prince Yuzhang is right — none of these servants can be trusted. I want to question every one of them again from the beginning. I will not allow any treacherous persons to infiltrate the Eastern Palace!”

Xiao Qi smiled faintly. “Your Highness speaks with great wisdom. At this moment, the safety of the Eastern Palace is truly the very foundation of stability for all the realm.”

The Crown Prince nodded repeatedly, exceedingly pleased, and went on and on following Xiao Qi’s line of thinking with great enthusiasm.

Watching my father’s face flush deep purple, I could only sigh inwardly. The Crown Prince had been willful and unruly since childhood. My aunt had always been strict with him, and the Emperor had frequently scolded him. Other than palace maids and eunuchs, there had been very few who praised and supported his ideas. Now, having received Xiao Qi’s approval — even someone as formidable as Prince Yuzhang yielding to him — he had likely already taken Xiao Qi to be a great kindred spirit in his heart.

My father finally broke into open anger. “Your Highness need not trouble himself — the Imperial Guards are perfectly capable of protecting the safety of the Eastern Palace.”

The Crown Prince blurted out, “If the Imperial Guards were of any use, would that sickly little Zidan have managed to escape?”

The moment those words left his mouth, everyone’s expressions changed sharply, and he himself froze in stunned dismay.

Zidan had escaped only after killing my uncle — my uncle’s death was a wound none of us was willing to touch, yet the Crown Prince had flung it out just like that as a casual reproach.

I saw the slight twitch at the corner of my father’s eye — the sign that he was on the verge of furious rage. My father took a step forward. I had no time to intercede. I watched as he raised his hand and struck the Crown Prince across the face.

This slap left everyone stupefied. Xiao Qi froze. The palace guards in the hall were dumbfounded, uncertain what to do — the Crown Prince had been publicly humiliated, and the Left Chancellor had struck above his station. The proper thing to do was to restrain him at once, yet not a single person dared act.

With a clang, the Crown Prince let the sword fall from his grasp and covered his cheek with his hand, his voice trembling: “You — Honored Uncle, you —”

My father glared at the Crown Prince with seething fury, his beard and hair quivering.

“Your Highness, please calm yourself!”

“Father, please calm yourself!”

Xiao Qi and I spoke at the same moment. He stepped forward and placed himself in front of the Crown Prince, while I quickly took hold of my father. Xiao Qi waved the palace guards out of the hall, and in an instant only the four of us remained.

My father shook his sleeve in fierce frustration and sighed. “When will you ever conduct yourself like the Crown Prince?”

Xiao Qi picked up the sword from the ground and returned it to its sheath. “Father-in-law, please hear this son-in-law out. Even the sharpest edge on a new blade needs the tempering of battle to become truly keen. Though His Highness is young, there will one day come a time when he rules all under Heaven. Now that His Majesty is bedridden, the Crown Prince serves as regent — this is precisely the time for His Highness to develop through experience. It is this son-in-law’s humble view that His Highness’s concerns are not without merit. I hope that father-in-law will give the matter further consideration.” These words, on the surface, were advice to my father, but in truth were spoken for the Crown Prince’s benefit, and were irrefutable both in terms of feeling and in terms of reason.

The Crown Prince looked up at him with evident gratitude.

My father, however, let out a cold sniff. His expression shifted, and he fixed a penetrating, direct gaze on Xiao Qi. Xiao Qi met it with unruffled composure, the keenness in his eyes growing sharper. Between the two of them, the tension had already reached a knife’s edge.

My heart clenched, and I noticed that at some point my palms had grown damp with sweat.

At this critical moment, the Crown Prince looked back and forth between the two of them and seemed at last to understand something of what was happening — yet his uncertain gaze turned toward Xiao Qi.

My father’s expression darkened abruptly, and the icy glare he fixed on the Crown Prince left the young man even more flustered and helpless.

He had always been in awe of my father. Yet today — whether shaken by the assassin’s attempt or overcome with elation at having assumed the role of regent — he had, quite out of character, provoked my father into a furious outburst and stripped him of his dignity as Crown Prince in front of all present.

Unable to bear watching the Crown Prince’s humiliation, I spoke up to rescue him from the situation: “The Empress has had a terrible fright. Your Highness, why not go in and see her?”

To my surprise, my father snapped at him again sharply from above: “The Empress is still resting and recovering — do not talk nonsense and disturb her with your racket. Get back to the Eastern Palace!”

The Crown Prince’s head shot up sharply. His face flushed crimson. He burst out at my father: “How have I been talking nonsense? Is everything I say wrong in Honored Uncle’s eyes — am I even beneath A’Wu, a mere woman? Today Imperial Mother barely escaped being killed. At this rate, the next one will be me! I want Prince Yuzhang to bring soldiers into the palace to protect us — what is wrong with that? If I cannot even keep my life as the Crown Prince, what is the point of becoming Emperor at all?”

“Hold your tongue!” My father erupted in fury.

I opened my mouth to reason with the Crown Prince, but met Xiao Qi’s gaze, which pressed me back into silence without a word or gesture.

“I will say what I please!” The Crown Prince’s face flushed deep red, and he raised his voice in defiance: “Prince Yuzhang, I command — in the name of the regent Crown Prince — that you bring your troops into the palace immediately, root out the rebel conspirators, and protect the imperial family!”

“This subject obeys.” Xiao Qi knelt on one knee.

From the inner hall came the sound of my aunt coughing — she seemed to have been disturbed and wakened.

My father stared at the Crown Prince, then looked at Xiao Qi, and finally turned to look at me. The color drained from his face. The full fury and shock in his eyes transformed into disappointment and bitter regret.

All three people in this hall had already placed themselves against him. Even the most stable piece he held — the Crown Prince, whom he had always dismissed as useless — had turned away from him and gone over to Xiao Qi’s side.

My father stood there for a moment in a daze, then let out a low laugh, again and again: “Good, good, good — Your Highness speaks with great wisdom. With such a fine and capable subject to assist you, this old official hereby takes his leave!”

By the time we emerged from the palace, the sky was already growing dark. Xiao Qi rode ahead on horseback while I traveled alone in the luan carriage. After our wedding, this was my first return to the Prince’s residence, yet the whole way we said nothing. As the luan carriage gradually drew farther from the palace gate, I collapsed back limply and closed my eyes, feeling only exhaustion. My arm wound had begun to throb with pain. The turbulent scenes of the day kept flashing before my eyes in a flurry, and somewhere inside me was a dull ache — yet I could no longer tell whether it was sorrow or something else.

The carriage came to a stop. We had arrived at the imperially commissioned residence of Prince Yuzhang. Since I had stormed out the morning after our wedding, I had not once set foot in this place.

The carriage curtain was lifted, and there stood Xiao Qi before the carriage, extending his hand to me with a faint smile. “We are home.”

I was momentarily struck speechless, pierced by those three simple words.

Yes. This was home — our home.

Looking up at the vermilion gate and gold plaque, the six gilt characters reading “Imperially Commissioned Residence of Prince Yuzhang” were dimly visible, and the lantern light inside blazed brilliantly. The household servants and maids had already long been kneeling in formation at the entrance to welcome us.

Xiao Qi personally helped me down from the luan carriage. As he did so, he inadvertently grazed my arm wound. I flinched, but made no sound.

He stopped and looked at me, his brow slightly creased, just about to speak — when a row of beautifully dressed maids in plain white robes came gliding out from within the gate in a line, walking gracefully toward us.

Xiao Qi and I stared at each other, momentarily bewildered — and then we saw that among the last two who stepped out from the group, one wore red and one wore green. They came forward and bowed elegantly before us, then arranged themselves on either side among the others. In the bright glow of the lights, elder brother strolled out with unhurried ease, tall and upright in a white robe with wide sleeves, a crowd of lovely figures attending at his sides, while the newly risen moon above his back cast a pure, silver radiance down upon him.

He gave us a faint smile and came toward us with his sleeves drifting on the air, like an immortal descended from the moon.

Xiao Qi suddenly burst out laughing. I also came to my senses and cried out before I could stop myself, “Elder brother! What are you doing here?”

Elder brother exchanged a proper greeting with Xiao Qi first, then turned to me with a teasing smile. “I have come especially to welcome my younger sister and brother-in-law home.”

I looked at the magnificent assembly of beautiful figures behind him. I had originally thought that seeing elder brother would bring a flood of mingled grief and joy — yet the scene before me was so absurd it made me both want to cry and laugh at the same time. “You needn’t have gone to such lengths just to welcome us…”

Such an elaborate and theatrical display — in the past, I would have said so directly. But with Xiao Qi present, I could not humiliate elder brother, and could only smile ruefully and say, “Now this is a grand reception.”

Xiao Qi also laughed. “So much trouble on our behalf.”

Elder brother took no notice of my teasing, and with a smile to Xiao Qi said, “A’Wu was pampered from childhood and has a rather discerning nature. I was worried the household staff here wouldn’t know her tastes and preferences, so I brought my own maids over to help set things in order. Everything inside the residence has been arranged according to your usual habits — please take a look and see if it meets with your approval.” His tone toward Xiao Qi was cool and unhurried, but the final words were spoken with a smile and directed at me, his eyes warm and carrying a tinge of tender indulgence. For a moment I stood there in a daze, a rush of bittersweet feelings lodging in my chest, and gradually my eyes began to grow warm.

Xiao Qi thanked elder brother without any outward sign of reaction, and invited him inside to sit and talk. Elder brother declined with a light air of indifference.

“Never mind then. Today has been full of business. Let us set another day for a family banquet and gather then — it is not too late.” Xiao Qi bowed slightly, appearing completely unperturbed by elder brother’s manner.

I knew that elder brother still harbored some wariness toward Xiao Qi in his heart, but there was nothing I could do. I could only smile at Xiao Qi. “Let me see elder brother off.”

His carriage was stopped not far away. We walked side by side at a measured pace, the rest of the attendants following at a distance behind.

I kept my head down, not knowing where to begin amid so many things I wanted to say. Then I heard elder brother breathe a low sigh: “Is he your good man?”

That jest from long ago — elder brother still remembered it, and so did I. The Red Phoenix Star is stirring — you will soon encounter your destined one.

“It seems you read it correctly.” I was quiet for a moment, then forced a lighthearted laugh.

Elder brother stopped walking and looked at me steadily. “Truly?”

The moonlight rendered his face brilliant and pure as white jade, and his gleaming eyes reflected my image within them. The roguish smile that always lingered lightly at the corner of his lips dissolved into a trace of gravity.

“Truly.” I met his gaze without wavering and answered, softly and with finality.

Elder brother gazed at me for a long, long time, and at last broke into a relieved smile. “Then that is very good.”

I could no longer hold back, and flung my arms around his neck. “Elder brother!”

He held me without a second thought and laughed softly: “Little wretch, you have grown thin again.”

As a child, I had always liked to stand on tiptoe and hang from elder brother’s neck, forever puzzled by how he could possibly be so tall. Now I was fully grown, yet I still had to stand on tiptoe to reach him. It seemed it was still the same as in childhood — as if nothing had changed.

“Is mother well?” I lifted my face to ask him. “Does she know I have returned to the capital? First thing tomorrow morning I will come home to see her. No — tonight. I will go with you tonight!”

The moment I thought of mother, nothing else mattered. The urge to go home was more powerful than it had ever been — I wanted to fly straight to her side at once.

Elder brother turned his face away. I could not read his expression. He was quiet for a moment before answering: “Mother is not at home.”

I froze. Then I saw elder brother smile. “Mother found the residence too noisy and has moved into the Ci’an Temple to quiet her mind. It is late now. Tomorrow I will accompany you to see her.”

“Very well…” I managed an awkward smile, and a coldness settled into my heart. Elder brother spoke of it lightly, as though it were nothing — but I already understood. For mother to have retreated to the Ci’an Temple at a time like this… I was afraid her heart had already turned to ash.

Xiao Qi’s brow was deeply knit. Carefully, he lifted my left arm to inspect the wound, and a quiet anger was concealed in the furrow between his brows.

Not daring to make a sound, I extended my arm in silence and let him personally apply medicine and bind the wound. Though his movements were practiced and sure, his hands were not as gentle as they ought to have been — from time to time I hissed in a sharp intake of breath from the pain.

“Now you feel it hurting?” He kept a straight face. “Was playing the hero so enjoyable?”

I fell silent and endured his continued scolding in silence. Prince Yuzhang went on and on until I did not dare lift my head, and showed no sign of relenting.

“All right — you can scold me more tomorrow.” I slumped lazily against the headboard, looked at him sideways with a smile, and said, “Right now I am sleepy.”

He glared at me, helpless, and turned away in cold silence.

Even after the candles were snuffed out and the bed curtain let down, he still refused to speak to me.

I lay staring upward at the bed canopy, layer upon layer in the darkness, dimly embroidered with a pattern of phoenixes entwined in joy. The sweetly thick incense scent drifted and spread through the air like water. This scene before me was so strangely familiar — dimly as though I had been transported back to our wedding night, when I lay alone wrapped in a great red bridal gown on the festively embroidered wedding bed and slept through to daybreak fully clothed. The very next morning I had stormed off home and never set foot in this place again — had not even taken a proper look at it. This grand and luxurious prince’s residence had been built on imperial decree when Xiao Qi was first granted his feudal title. Since he had spent years guarding the frontier, he had not resided here for any length of time. From the day the residence was completed, the lacquer on its pillars remained bright and new, and its carved ornaments as fresh as when they were made. From here on, this was the place where he and I would pass our lives together.

“Xiao Qi…” I suddenly let out a sigh and softly called his name. He gave a sound of acknowledgment, but then I found I did not know what to say. I was quiet for a moment, then turned away. “Never mind.”

He suddenly pulled me into his arms. The warmth of his body came through the thin silk of my garment, and he murmured close to my ear: “I understand.”

I turned and pressed my cheek against his chest, listening to the steady deep beat of his heart.

“Does your wound still hurt?” He carefully encircled my body with his arms, fearful of touching the injury.

I smiled and shook my head. The wound had been treated, and it did not hurt very much — yet somewhere in the depths of my heart, a faint, persistent ache seeped out.

He seemed to want to say something, but in the end only pressed a gentle kiss to my forehead, accompanied by a sigh so low it was barely audible. “Sleep.”

This held-back guilt that went unspoken — I understood it all too well, and yet, having suppressed it again and again, the words finally escaped: “Father is growing old. Aunt is ill. Whatever else may have happened, they are still my family in the end.”

Xiao Qi did not answer for a long time. He only held my hand tightly, our fingers intertwined, and in the spaces between our clasped hands I understood the weight and helplessness he carried as well.

When I woke in the morning, Xiao Qi had already left for court. He always rose very early and never disturbed me.

I went early to look in on Yuxiu. She had been brought back to the Prince’s residence and was still asleep. From Ningshuo to Huizhou, and then to the capital, she had remained at my side without fail. At the moment between life and death, she had given her life to fight for me. If she had not risked herself to hold back Xue Dao’an with everything she had, I might not have been able to avoid that blade myself. I gazed at her gaunt, sleeping face and made a silent vow in my heart: “Yuxiu, I will give you the very best of everything — to repay you for risking your life to protect me.”

If only she could wake up and find Song Huai’an waiting at her side, that would surely bring her more joy than anything. But Song Huai’an had quietly led his troops to the imperial mausoleum some days before and would likely not be back for some time.

I stood at the window, gazing dimly in the direction of the imperial mausoleum. A tangle of feelings knotted in my heart — Zi Tan should be safe for now, at least.

On the day Linliang Pass was broken, Xiao Qi had ordered Song Huai’an to lead troops quickly to the imperial mausoleum to retrieve Zi Tan, who had been held there under the confinement of the Imperial Guards.

Zi Tan was the greatest thorn in my aunt’s side, and I had always feared she would move against him to cut off any future threat. Fortunately, my aunt was burdened with many misgivings and was unwilling to let the Crown Prince bear the infamy of having harmed his own flesh and blood, so she had repeatedly delayed acting. Now that Zi Tan had fallen into Xiao Qi’s hands and become a bargaining piece Xiao Qi held against my aunt, at least for the time being, Xiao Qi would not harm him.

Before Song Huai’an departed, I had asked Yuxiu to pass him a message: “I once planted a sprig of orchid along the roadside at the imperial mausoleum when I was young. If it is convenient on your journey there, General, please water it for me and care for it — do not let it wither.”

Yuxiu told me that after hearing these words, the General said nothing and simply left.

I understood that proud and unyielding man. Silence was his finest answer.

“Your servant reports to the Princess Consort — Madam Xu, the attendant in service to the Grand Princess, requests an audience.” A palace maid came in to report.

It was Aunt Xu who had come. Surprised and overjoyed, I ran out before I could even tidy my appearance.

Aunt Xu, dressed in plain blue with her hair simply arranged, stood in the front hall with refined poise, a smile on her face. Seeing me come running from far away, she bent down low. “This servant pays respects to the Princess Consort.”

I hurried to help her up. For a moment I was too moved to speak, and tears shimmered in her eyes as well. Looking at her closely, I noticed her temples had faintly turned to frost — she too had aged considerably.

Surely it was a mother-daughter bond of the heart — I had only just thought of visiting the Ci’an Temple today, and mother had already sent Aunt Xu to come for me.

At once I gave instructions to have the carriage prepared. Without waiting for elder brother to arrive, I hurried to change and arrange my hair, determined to dress in my finest and look my most radiant when I went to see mother — so she could see that I was well in every way, and only then would her heart be at ease.