Yaozhi Courtyard.

The moment Yan Yunning stepped into the courtyard, she spotted Yan Shiyao’s maidservant Chunyi lying draped over a long bench, two manservants standing on either side with long rods that they brought down again and again across her back.

“You accompanied the eldest Miss out of the residence and still let her come to harm — you deserve every bit of this.”

The young girl bit her lip, enduring the blows in silence without daring to cry out.

“Second… Second Miss.” Qiuci shrank back slightly.

Yan Yunning hesitated for a moment, then stepped into the room.

Inside, Yan Shiyao sat on the bed with her arms wrapped around her knees, tears falling one by one onto the brocade coverlet.

Chu Wantang sat at the bedside, speaking to her in a gentle, coaxing voice. “Yaoyao, trust Mother — it won’t scar. It won’t.”

Yan Shiyao sobbed. “Are you sure?”

That seemed about right — the last time she and A’Ci had been wounded by a sword, no scars had been left behind.

Chu Wantang cupped her face tenderly and wiped away her tears. “I’m certain. Mother would never lie to you. Apply the ointment the physician prescribed, and you’ll be just fine.”

“Mother. A’Jie.” Yan Yunning spoke up, breaking through the exchange between the two of them.

“Ningning, come here.” Chu Wantang turned and beckoned to her with a smile.

Yan Yunning raised an eyebrow and moved forward a couple of steps.

“Ningning, your A’Jie was injured last night and is not in good spirits. In a few days, Mother will take you and Yaoyao to visit your cousin for a while — it’ll be good for you both to get out and clear your heads.” Chu Wantang took Yan Yunning’s hand and patted it gently.

Lu Jin’an thought of her and Yaoyao every day. Until she had fully put to rest Father’s notion of adopting them out, it was better to keep some distance. And besides, Yaoyao had been injured for no apparent reason, and they had yet to identify who had been responsible — taking her away for a while to lay low was the sensible thing to do.

Yaoyao had too soft a nature and too kind a heart. Letting her go out more, meet more people, and see more of the world’s true colors could only do her good. And with Yan Yunning by her side, no serious trouble was likely to arise.

This troublesome girl was sharp indeed — and brazen enough to talk back to her.

In just a few short months, she had already gotten the Third Prince to come to Father asking for her hand. She was no ordinary person.

Chu Wantang had been turning something over in her mind. When Yaoyao married in the future, she would have Yan Yunning accompany her as part of the dowager household, to serve as her protector. The one thing she hadn’t yet worked out was how to ensure Yan Yunning would obey without question.

If the girl’s virtue were compromised, she could use that to keep her in line — but Yaoyao was set to marry a prince, and if it came out that Yan Yunning had been dishonored, it would drag the entire Chancellor’s Residence into disgrace.

Unless she arranged for someone to make a show of it, and then contrived to stumble upon the scene herself and intervene at just the right moment — and then had that same man continue to harass the girl from time to time. That way, Yan Yunning would live in fear of it being discovered, and in the end would have no choice but to do whatever Chu Wantang told her.

Otherwise, she would threaten her: disobey, and the whole of the capital would learn that the Chancellor’s second miss had been violated by a manservant.

As long as Yan Yunning had any sense, she would never let it get out — and Chu Wantang only needed her compliance. If it truly did come out, it would tarnish her Yaoyao as well.

Yan Yunning was taken aback. What on earth was she scheming now?

She couldn’t even keep the smile off her face.

Could she be plotting to harm her???

“Ningning, you and your A’Jie are the closest to each other — you must…”

Before Chu Wantang could finish, tears slid from the corners of Yan Yunning’s eyes. “Mother, you have no idea — because A’Jie was hurt, I was so distressed I didn’t sleep all night. I kept praying and praying for A’Jie to wake up.”

The more the girl spoke, the more her tears fell. “Mother, when I get this upset, I don’t want to go anywhere at all. Please send someone else to keep A’Jie company. Even though I can’t bear to leave her side, I just… I… wuu wuu…”

She wasn’t foolish. Inside the residence, she had Father and Lu A’Niang. But once outside — who knew what that look on Chu Wantang’s face just now might mean? Could she be planning to harm her?

Chu Wantang put on a show of dabbing at her tears. “No one said you had to go right now — in a few days, that’s all.”

Once Yaoyao’s wound had healed a little.

“Mother!” Yan Yunning’s voice broke with emotion, her sobs coming in ragged waves. “When I’m upset… it takes me a whole month… a whole month to get better…”

Yan Yunning squeezed her eyes shut, calling to mind whatever sad thoughts she could muster — but she was running out of material, and she felt a laugh beginning to bubble up inside her.

“Mother, just forget about going — please don’t make Ningning cry anymore.” Yan Shiyao couldn’t stand to watch any longer. Ningning’s fair little face was covered in tear tracks; she looked utterly pitiable.

Chu Wantang bit down hard. Her Yaoyao was so guileless and pure — what was to become of her in the future? If Yan Yunning didn’t go, how was she supposed to carry out her plan?

“We’ll speak of it in a few days. You two sisters have a chat — Mother must be getting back.” Chu Wantang stroked Yan Shiyao’s little face with an expression of deep tenderness, and Nanny Liu helped her out of the room.

She had barely stepped out of Yaozhi Courtyard when Chu Wantang stumbled with a thud to the ground, her knees scraping painfully against the small stones. Nanny Liu, pulled down along with her, struck the hard stone path.

“Madam… Madam, are you all right?” Nanny Liu pointed urgently at Chu Wantang’s knees.

Chu Wantang clenched both fists and swept her gaze over the surroundings — there was no one there but her and Nanny Liu.

Nanny Liu endured the pain in her own elbow and helped the kneeling Chu Wantang to her feet.

A sharp pain radiated from her knees. Chu Wantang pressed her lips tightly shut. What rotten luck — surely this fall had been caused by all of Yan Yunning’s crying. How utterly infuriating.

Up on the rooftop, Ye Chen poked his head out. Seeing Chu Wantang and Nanny Liu walking away into the distance, he patted Ye Jian on the shoulder. “They’re gone. Let’s go report to His Highness.”

……

Xuan Yanyu’s guest room.

Ye Chen was going on at length with his report.

“Your Highness, you can’t imagine how sorrowfully the second Miss Yan cried — she said that when she gets upset, it takes her a whole month and more to recover.”

Xuan Yanyu, hearing the second half of that, curved the corner of his mouth.

Nine chances out of ten, it was an act.

“And she also said she hadn’t slept a wink all night out of distress. All the maidservants and manservants who really did go without sleep looked haggard and bleary, but the second Miss Yan looked perfectly fine and sharp.” Ye Chen scratched his head.

Likely just something to say for the occasion.

Xuan Yanyu’s eyes warmed with amusement. His fingertip hooked around the jade pendant on the round table and tossed it to Ye Chen. “Get rid of it.”

Ye Chen stared at the jade pendant in his hands, his tongue beginning to stammer. “Your High… Highness, isn’t this the one the Prince of Xuan bestowed upon you and the eldest Miss Yan? How can you simply get rid of it?”

The Prince of Xuan had bestowed this pendant upon him — how could it be disposed of so casually?

Wasn’t that practically asking to die??

“This palace no longer wants it.” Xuan Yanyu leaned back in his chair, lifting an eyelid to look sideways at him.

Ye Chen swallowed hard and tossed the jade pendant to Ye Jian. “Go deal with it quickly. I still have things to report to His Highness.”

Ye Jian bit down on his back teeth. He was afraid of dying too — so why wasn’t Ye Chen?

Ye Chen gave him a nod, as if to say: Relax, His Highness will bear the consequences.

Ye Jian felt a strong urge to put his fist through his face. If His Highness was going to bear it, then why didn’t Ye Chen go himself?!

“Didn’t you say you had things to report? What is it?” Ye Jian smiled in a way that was not quite pleasant.

He was actually curious to see what he had to say!

Ye Chen clicked his tongue, turned to face Xuan Yanyu, and said, “Your Highness, Noble Lady Lin has given birth.”

He had learned while escorting the Fifth Princess back to Xuanzhao — it was all anyone in the entire Xuan royal palace was talking about.

“Mm.” Xuan Yanyu responded with a lazy murmur.

Ye Chen blinked. “Your Highness, aren’t you curious whether it’s a princess or a prince?”

If it had been him, he would have been beside himself with anxiety.

Xuan Yanyu shifted his posture with languid ease and very graciously asked, “Is it an imperial brother or an imperial sister?”

Ye Jian’s ears perked up. He was curious too.

Was His Highness still one of a kind?

If it was a prince, and His Highness was this willful, wouldn’t he lose favor with the Prince of Xuan immediately?