In the main hall, Jun Beiyue sat composed in the seat of honor on the left, his commanding presence far surpassing even that of the household’s own patriarch, while the Second Prince Consort sat in the seat of honor on the right.
In Da Zhou, the left position held precedence, and men were regarded above women. Though Ouyang Jingqin was Jun Beiyue’s own sister-in-law by marriage, given Jun Beiyue’s illustrious military achievements and his status as a man, even the Second Prince Consort had to show him a measure of deference—let alone any wariness toward him!
Ziqing sat below Jun Beiyue, followed by Prime Minister Han, Madam Han, and Han Xi’er in sequence, while Ouyang Jingshi sat below her own sister, Ouyang Jingqin.
Seating arrangements—the clearest possible symbol of status and standing.
Jun Beiyue’s expression remained cold, Ziqing kept her head lowered in silence, while Ouyang Jingqin and Ouyang Jingshi both studied Ziqing carefully, quietly puzzled—shouldn’t this woman have been bedridden and dying by now? How was she sitting here so composed and well?
“Shi’er, perhaps you should go ask Aunt about this?” Ouyang Jingqin whispered anxiously.
“What is there to fear? Even if she has the antidote, taking it yesterday would have been too late already. I’d wager this is nothing more than a final burst of vitality before the end—Eunuch Yin probably won’t even arrive before she’s already gone!”
Ouyang Jingshi said coldly, her gaze drifting unconsciously toward Jun Beiyue once more—this man she’d adored since childhood. Even now, seeing him, she still couldn’t tear her eyes away. If he didn’t want her, so be it—but for him to choose this ruined woman instead? How could she possibly accept that?
What she herself couldn’t have, no one else should be allowed to have either!
Hearing her sister’s words, Ouyang Jingqin felt somewhat reassured. She knew a fair amount about Huajin’s poison herself—without an antidote taken immediately, there would truly be no hope of recovery.
The room fell into an awkward, tense silence. She smiled, attempting some light banter. “No wonder I couldn’t find anyone at Prince Yao’s residence when I visited—turns out Beiyue personally escorted her here himself. Consort Yi mentioned that our Fourth Prince had finally met his match this time, and I didn’t quite believe it. Today, I truly do.”
Such familiar address, such an intimate tone—as if they were practically family.
Yet Jun Beiyue’s expression remained cold, his gaze fixed on the entrance as if waiting for something, offering no response for quite some time. Ziqing secretly found this amusing—was this man simply naturally cold and taciturn by nature, or did he simply dislike engaging in verbal sparring with women? Either way, with him present, no matter how lively or grand the occasion, things were bound to grow rather awkward.
“What a pity, though, that Ziqing has no fortune to enjoy any of this—looking so ill. Are you feeling any better today?”
Ouyang Jingshi quickly offered her sister a way out of the awkward silence. In front of Jun Beiyue, she had no choice but to rein in her usual arrogance—yet even so, the remark carried a subtle barb.
Ziqing might have preferred to stay silent just as Jun Beiyue did, but the act still had to be maintained. She replied politely, “Many thanks for Miss Ouyang’s concern. The physician says Ziqing has improved considerably.”
With that, she coughed lightly for effect, her fine brows knitting together, appearing so frail that a gust of wind might knock her over.
“As long as you’re improving, that’s good. Consumption isn’t something that heals so easily, after all!” Ouyang Jingqin remarked.
“Indeed. If it were to worsen even slightly further, it could become contagious. I recall a consort in the palace years ago who contracted the same illness, and the Emperor had her put to death immediately,” Ouyang Jingshi added at once, her tone sharp and pointed, each word like a barb.
“Then Ziqing is fortunate indeed. This morning, before coming here, I had the physician examine me again, and he said there are already signs of improvement—so long as I avoid becoming agitated, a few more days of proper care should see me fully recovered.”
Ziqing’s small face remained calm and meek, yet her words unmistakably reminded Ouyang Jingshi of her apology and admission of fault from the day before. There was no need to spell it out further—it was more than enough to leave both sisters chastened, unwilling to press the matter further.
Yet it was precisely at this moment that Jun Beiyue finally spoke. “Qing’er, who upset you yesterday?”
Qing’er?
Ziqing was mildly startled—when had such an intimate form of address suddenly come about?
Both Ouyang sisters immediately paled. Was this woman about to tell tales on them?
Before Ziqing could even respond, Ouyang Jingqin hastily jumped in to explain. “Beiyue, you’ve misunderstood. Yesterday, Shi’er and I visited the residence and chatted with Ziqing for a while. Shi’er has always been rather blunt in her speech, and she inadvertently offended little sister Ziqing, upsetting her—it was entirely unintentional. Beiyue, you know Shi’er’s temperament better than anyone—her bluntness has offended people plenty of times before, even His Majesty himself has been annoyed by her more than once.”
Ziqing looked at Ouyang Jingshi with an entirely innocent expression, offering no explanation of her own, not even bothering to think through how best to respond—she knew that once Jun Beiyue spoke up, she wouldn’t need to concern herself with any of it further.
She merely sneered inwardly. Jun Beiyue had said only a single sentence, and already Ouyang Jingqin was invoking the Emperor himself out of sheer apprehension—was that really necessary?
They said a mother’s status rose through her son, but now, it seemed, her own status rose through her husband. With Prince Yao’s protection behind her, who would dare offend her now?
Jun Beiyue paid no attention to Ouyang Jingqin’s explanation at all, turning a cold gaze directly onto Ouyang Jingshi instead, and even Ouyang Jingshi, who had long yearned for his attention, found herself unconsciously lowering her head under that gaze.
“Did she apologize?” he asked coldly.
Ouyang Jingshi kept her head down, torn between fear and resentment, taking a long moment before answering. Ouyang Jingqin quickly jumped in instead. “She apologized, she apologized, and admitted her fault too—Ziqing’s two maidservants were both present, Beiyue, you can ask them yourself.”
“Second Prince Consort, this Prince wasn’t asking you,” Jun Beiyue said coldly.
At these words, even Ouyang Jingqin didn’t dare say another word. If they hadn’t been in the wrong to begin with, the pointed use of “Second Prince Consort” alongside “this Prince” made it unmistakably clear—”Beiyue” was not a name she had any right to use so casually.
She quietly tugged urgently at her sister’s sleeve, prompting her to answer. “Shi’er, just bear with it. However pleased with herself she seems now, she won’t live past today anyway—don’t go making trouble for yourself.”
Ouyang Jingshi’s fingernails dug so deep into her own palms within her sleeves they nearly drew blood. Never in her entire life had she felt so utterly humiliated, never had she known what it meant to actually have to say the word “apology.”
“I apologized. I admitted my fault,” she said through gritted teeth.
Only then did Jun Beiyue nod, satisfied. Prime Minister Han, who had been sidelined this entire time, finally saw his chance to speak up—but just as he opened his mouth, another loud announcement rang out from beyond the door: “The Second Prince has arrived!”
Ziqing suppressed a smile to herself. Today, the Prime Minister’s residence was truly graced with distinguished company indeed…