The moment Ziqing spoke, the entire assembly gasped in shock. Yelu Qianqian spun around abruptly to look at her, then without warning raised a hand and pointed straight at her nose. “You! You, you—”
Ziqing brushed her hand aside and ignored her, her calm, unbowed eyes boldly meeting the Prince of Nanzhao’s gaze.
Everyone at the Nanzhao court knew one thing well — once Consort Qin spoke her mind, the Prince of Nanzhao would never change his decision!
No one had expected that Han Ziqing, who had been staying entirely out of this, would wade into these murky waters herself!
Though Da Zhou and Xijing had never gone to war, there was no shortage of old grudges between them! Even if someone were to intervene, it should have been Chu Feiyan doing the persuading — for Han Ziqing to kick someone while they were down would have been considered perfectly normal.
And yet, her tone was unmistakably one of persuasion!
Xuanyuan Zhaoxi watched from the side, a faint sneer curling at her lips, utter contempt for Ziqing showing plainly on her face. This woman just loved to show off — desperate for the whole world to notice her!
Such an arrogant creature, thinking herself some kind of savior!
If she only knew — this matter absolutely could not be talked down. Why step forward and invite this humiliation upon herself, throwing away her own dignity for nothing? If she angered the Prince of Nanzhao, Han Ziqing herself might not escape unscathed!
What was she trying to prove?
Seeing that the Prince of Nanzhao gave no response, a flicker of complicated emotion crossed Ziqing’s eyes as she spoke again. “Prince of Nanzhao, might Ziqing step forward to speak?”
At that moment, Chu Feiyan, who had just returned from her cleansing and change of clothes, stopped dead in her tracks.
The cleansing had been nothing but a formality to her — she’d been dying to hurry back and watch the show unfold! She’d been looking forward to Yelu Qianqian apologizing to her, begging her to help plead her case.
She never imagined that Han Ziqing would step up to steal the spotlight on Yelu Qianqian’s behalf.
“She doesn’t even know her own place — this is hilarious!”
Chu Feiyan gave a cold snort and settled in to watch, curious to see exactly what Han Ziqing thought she could accomplish — could her words possibly outweigh Consort Qin’s?
Just then, Consort Qin waved her fan lazily, her voice dripping with impatience. “Your Highness, if this drags on any longer, the sun will set. We still need to beg the earth god’s guidance in finding the path to the sacred water!”
At these words, Ziqing had to admit she felt a faint jolt of surprise — to speak to a ruler with such impatience, in front of everyone, in a setting like this, even the reigning Empress herself might not dare!
What kind of favor did this woman command, to be indulged to such a degree?
Consort Qin hadn’t directly targeted Ziqing, nor had she said anything more about Yelu Qianqian’s matter — but this impatient urging was clearly a signal to the Prince of Nanzhao.
Are you going to listen to what I just said and deal with this Yelu Qianqian quickly so we can get back to the chanting, or are you going to listen to Princess Yao’s pleading and waste more time?
Think carefully about your choice!
Of course, this was merely the surface meaning. Everyone present had spent years navigating the intricacies of court life, and each of them instantly grasped the real message behind those words.
The meaning was clear — Your Highness, will you stand with me, or with Princess Yao?
There was even a veiled threat buried in that urging: Your Highness, if you choose Princess Yao, you’d better be prepared for the consequences.
The outcome was obvious now — there was no reason for the Prince of Nanzhao to side with Han Ziqing.
Confident of her victory, Consort Qin sat at ease, composed and elegant, rubbing her wrist while two maidservants carefully fanned her.
She glanced at Ziqing, gave a cold snort, and looked away, uninterested in sparing her another glance.
Aside from herself, she genuinely couldn’t stand the sight of any other woman — especially one more beautiful than herself.
At this, everyone else also began to gather themselves, some sighing helplessly, some stifling laughter at Ziqing’s expense, others simply bored — wouldn’t it be more fun if this dragged on a bit longer? Certainly more entertaining than listening to scripture.
“Han Ziqing, just give it up. Who do you think you are?”
Xuanyuan Zhaoxi truly couldn’t hold back any longer — she had to speak up, and she made sure to raise her voice so Ziqing would hear every word clearly.
Delighted, Chu Feiyan hurried back over. “Consort Qin speaks the truth! Prince of Nanzhao, the hour grows late — if we miss the auspicious time for worship, it would be most unfortunate.”
But to everyone’s surprise, Consort Qin looked her over coldly. “And who might this be?”
At these words, Chu Feiyan’s warm enthusiasm instantly froze solid. What did Consort Qin mean by that — did she not even know who she was?
The Prince of Nanzhao spoke up instead. “My dear consort, how am I to deal with such a poor memory of yours? We only just introduced her at yesterday’s audience — this is the Grand Princess of Xichu, the sole rose ever to ride upon the plains of the Longyuan Continent!”
That settled it. Han Ziqing’s chances were completely dashed.
The Prince of Nanzhao wasn’t even paying her any attention at all!
This, without question, marked Consort Qin’s victory. In excellent spirits, she covered her mouth and giggled. “Ah, now I remember — of course, the Grand Princess understands the bigger picture and knows how to speak properly.”
Chu Feiyan’s spirits, which had been crushed just moments before, instantly revived. She hastened to demur modestly, “Consort Qin flatters me too much.”
As she spoke, she cast a seemingly casual glance toward Ziqing, who stood awkwardly to the side, ignored by everyone, her eyes narrowing with smug satisfaction.
“Old frog at the bottom of a well, thinks she’s the whole sky! The rose on horseback has already changed hands — more like a paper flower trampled under hoof!” Yelu Qianqian muttered under her breath. Given the current climate, she didn’t dare speak too loudly, so she simply pouted and watched Ziqing, gently rubbing her belly where she’d been kicked, her eyes darting back and forth as though turning something over in her mind.
What now?
Ziqing had never anticipated Consort Qin would take things this seriously. Caught in an awkward position now with no way to back down gracefully, she hesitated only a moment before, without waiting for permission, speaking directly. “Prince of Nanzhao — this is the opening of a grand celebration, before the eyes of the gods, upon sacred ground. If it were to be stained with blood, that would be a terrible omen! I do not ask for pardon — only that, for the sake of the gods, you grant a stay of execution!”
At last, the Prince of Nanzhao was forced to look her way, while everyone else remained baffled by Han Ziqing’s actions. What could this woman possibly gain by humiliating herself like this? Wasn’t fighting to the bitter end just asking for death?
Ziqing’s audacity clearly stirred fury in the Prince of Nanzhao’s eyes, yet, unexpectedly, he did not explode with rage. Instead, he said coldly, “This king had already planned as much. No need for your reminder.”
Ziqing had guessed as much — even if Lord Zhushou had been dragged down the mountain, the sentence would likely have been stayed regardless. She was overjoyed, and pressed on at once. “Then Your Highness agrees this is not the day to take a life. Your Highness shares the same concern as Princess Qianqian — worried about disrespecting the gods, is that not so?”
The fury on the Prince of Nanzhao’s brow grew ever more frightening, and everyone nearby couldn’t help but shrink back in fear. What exactly was Han Ziqing trying to do?
Yet, to everyone’s astonishment, angry as he was, the Prince of Nanzhao still answered her. “Yes. So what of it?”
“Then, Princess Qianqian, worried for Your Highness and fearing disrespect toward the gods, spoke a bit too loudly in her panic — isn’t that understandable, given the circumstances?” Ziqing pressed, her question leaving the Prince of Nanzhao with nothing to say in return.
The Prince of Nanzhao’s eyes narrowed, a dangerous aura radiating from him. Han Ziqing actually dared to interrogate him like this!
Ziqing stared boldly into the Prince of Nanzhao’s eyes, though her palms were already drenched in cold sweat. How could she not be afraid? This trip to Nanzhao mattered so much to her!
But even though Yelu Qianqian’s behavior had been unreasonable, her crime didn’t warrant this outcome. If not for that furious kick, things wouldn’t have escalated to this point. Besides, Yelu Qianqian’s standing in Xijing was not to be underestimated — Ziqing had no wish to bring this kind of trouble upon Da Zhou at this moment.
For that brief instant, the entire hall fell utterly silent!
Suddenly, the Prince of Nanzhao roared, “Han Ziqing!”
Ziqing flinched, but held her ground.
Yet, unexpectedly, the Prince of Nanzhao sidestepped her question entirely and said angrily instead, “Han Ziqing, out of respect for Prince Yao, this king will not dwell on this matter with you any further today!”
With that, he turned, raising the scripture scroll high once more, and resumed chanting loudly.
For a moment, everyone stood frozen, utterly dumbfounded, trying to process what had just happened.
Even Ziqing stood there in a daze. That was it? Just like that, it was settled?
For Jun Beiyue’s sake… The Prince of Nanzhao valued her husband this much, even though he hadn’t bothered to grace the event with his presence!
The Prince of Nanzhao clearly had no wish to prolong conflict with her, and had resolved the matter swiftly.
Ziqing’s tightly clenched hands slowly relaxed. Though she’d been scolded, though she’d endured a long stretch of awkwardness, she found herself unable to hold back a smile — a foolish, helpless smile.
She slowly turned her head to find that everyone present was staring at her — Consort Qin, Chu Feiyan, all of them — their eyes filled with shock and envy.
It was as though that domineering man were standing right behind her at this very moment. As Ziqing smiled, her eyes unconsciously grew moist.
Jun Beiyue, if only you were here.