His family circumstances were poor. To supplement the household income, his parents had sent him into the palace to become a eunuch when he was young.

There were quite a few people like him in the palace.

Sometimes, he would wonder why it had to be him, and not his elder brother, or someone else.

But whenever he thought this way, another voice would always sound in his heart: if not driven by livelihood concerns, how could parents who love their own flesh and blood send their own son into the palace to become a castrated man?

If he hadn’t entered the palace, he might have already starved to death or died of illness.

Thus, those spreading resentments would gradually diminish.

Because of this, Zheng Bao became a rarely peaceful person in the palace.

There were too many scheming hearts and intrigues here, most stemming from hearts filled with injustice and unwillingness, wanting to get ahead, wanting to become someone above others.

But he didn’t want that.

In the palace, he neither competed nor fought, peacefully doing his own work well, and never getting involved in any scheming or betrayal. He only waited for the years to pass so he could be released from the palace, return home to see his family’s smiling faces as they warmed porridge and brewed tea for him.

However, yesterday…

The Jian teacup that Her Majesty the Empress treasured hadn’t been broken by him. Rather, when he followed a female official’s instructions to take the box down from the high shelf and open it, it was already shattered inside.

This item had been brought by Her Majesty the Empress from her maternal home, and she often used it to reminisce about loved ones. It had been within his scope of responsibility.

When it was taken out to be viewed, it turned out to be broken.

That Her Majesty the Empress would punish him in great anger was only too natural.

Zheng Bao willingly accepted the punishment.

It was just that when kneeling before the palace gates of Kunning Palace, being watched by all passing palace servants and eunuchs with strange looks, he couldn’t help but wonder: that Jian teacup had been sitting perfectly well in the box—how could it have easily broken?

And among the eunuchs who had been on good terms with him in the past, not a single person stood out to speak for him.

Even though he had already grown accustomed to the cold self-preservation of people in the palace, he still couldn’t help feeling somewhat chilled to the bone, could he?

It was at this moment that Jiang Xuening appeared.

A delicate, soft voice that sounded somewhat deliberate, much like those concubines in the inner palace who feigned weakness—a bit timid, a bit cowering.

At the time, Zheng Bao thought she was probably some pampered young miss.

But who would have expected that it was this very “pampered young miss” whose simple sentence spared him from the harsh punishment of Kunning Palace.

Naturally, on the surface it was Grand Princess Leyang who saved him.

But anyone who had spent two years in the palace could see that the one who truly saved him was Jiang Xuening.

Grand Princess Leyang’s kindness should certainly be remembered in his heart, but the one who deserved more thanks was this Miss Jiang Er.

They clearly didn’t know each other at all—she was merely passing by. Even friends he’d known in the past didn’t dare plead for him at such a time, yet there was this stranger met by chance who spoke up to save him.

Zheng Bao felt it was like a ray of light penetrating through a crack in the darkness.

Although the warmth was only a sliver, for a traveler wandering through the harsh winter, he was willing to rely on this sliver of warmth to believe in the good and kindness of the world, to believe that the bright and sunny spring would arrive before long.

He had truly come with a kind of inexplicable joy.

But this Miss Jiang Er who had saved him that day actually told him—

When I saved you, my motives were not pure.

Zheng Bao was dazed for a moment, almost failing to react. When he truly realized what Jiang Xuening had said, it felt as if something was gently falling in his heart.

He stared blankly at Jiang Xuening, unable to speak.

But Jiang Xuening asked him: “Are you disappointed?”

Disappointed?

Perhaps not quite.

But there was certainly some undeniable sense of loss, after all, he had thought this young lady was different from everyone else in the palace.

Zheng Bao slowly said: “You’ve left me somewhat confused.”

Jiang Xuening couldn’t quite explain why those words had slipped out in that instant. Perhaps she still felt she didn’t deserve it?

She smiled gently: “So you came to repay a debt of gratitude?”

Zheng Bao said: “That was my original intention.”

Jiang Xuening raised her eyebrows slightly: “And now?”

Perhaps because her expression was too relaxed, unconsciously putting people at ease with her, Zheng Bao felt his heavy mood inexplicably lighten considerably. As he gazed at Jiang Xuening, he discovered she was watching him with a very serious look in her eyes.

It was a look he had seen before.

Exactly the same as the day she saved him—beneath a delicate exterior, thorns lay hidden.

For an instant he felt dazed: how were they the same? Everyone in the palace couldn’t wait to paste thick masks on their faces layer after layer, so others couldn’t see their true selves. But this young lady before him was truly genuine, so frankly saying that she had other motives for saving him.

If everyone in the palace were this straightforward, where would all that filth and corruption come from?

He suddenly couldn’t help but laugh, his eyes curving like two crescent moons, only saying: “After you saved me, if you hadn’t said anything, your motives would indeed have been impure. But since you’ve declared it openly, your motives are actually very pure.”

Jiang Xuening nodded: “That’s also true. I want to bestow favor upon you so you’ll be useful to me.”

Zheng Bao was startled and said: “You’re very frank.”

Jiang Xuening only muttered: “That’s because you haven’t seen me when I’m being hypocritical.”

But she kept her voice low for this.

She continued: “After all, I’ve heard that Manager Zheng is an honest, good person. If you have a heart of loyalty, it should be given to someone worthy. As for me, even if I saved you and deceived you by saying I saved you out of kindness, if you later discover I’m not such a good person, wouldn’t that be like lifting a rock only to drop it on my own foot? Rest assured, I’m only staying in the palace for half a year, and I’ll behave myself and not do anything bad or harm others. I’m just afraid that one day I’ll find myself in difficult circumstances, isolated and helpless, so I want to find someone to look after me in advance. That way if something happens, I won’t be caught completely off guard. I wonder if Manager Zheng would be willing to help?”

Zheng Bao was accustomed to people in the palace speaking in halves, hiding the other half, constantly maintaining an attitude of “can only be understood, cannot be expressed in words.” It had been a long time since he’d heard such straightforward language. So much so that after hearing these words, he couldn’t help but look left and right to see if there were any other people nearby.

But after looking, he felt a strange sadness.

In all these years since entering the palace, he too had ultimately been tamed by this imperial palace, such that even though he had no intention to harm others, he still feared that walls had ears.

This Miss Jiang Er before him might be able to speak before Grand Princess Leyang and be greatly favored by Her Highness, but in the palace, cases of being honored one day and humiliated the next were hardly rare.

What was wrong with planning ahead for rainy days?

Moreover, regardless of what motives she had, she had saved him. Zheng Bao discovered he found it difficult to refuse, or perhaps his heart was telling him that he didn’t want to refuse.

The remaining glow of the setting sun poured out from between the gloomy clouds, shining on the vermilion palace walls, then reflecting a tinge of red that spread across his delicate face, which still bore traces of injury. Even his eyes and brows seemed to be tinged with warmth, as if melted.

Jiang Xuening suddenly discovered that this young eunuch was also extremely good-looking.

After thinking for a moment, Zheng Bao replied: “You are my benefactor. If you truly don’t intend to harm others, what matter could Zheng Bao not help you with?”

“You actually agreed.” Although this was within her expectations, she hadn’t thought it would be so easy. The corners of her eyes and brows were tinged with several points of delight. Then at the end she reacted: “When I saved you, my motives weren’t pure, and I’m not any kind of good person—can I still be considered your benefactor?”

But Zheng Bao watched her and smiled: “Some matters should be judged by actions, not intentions. If we judge by intentions, where would there be any good people in the world?”

If we judge by intentions, where would there be any good people in the world?

Upon hearing this, Jiang Xuening was slowly stunned into stillness.

At this moment, Zheng Bao felt the expression on her face held some loneliness, as if she had fallen into some inescapable memory. At the end, a smile actually spread across her lips, and so at the far end of that loneliness, several traces of brightness emerged, even carrying a bit of pride as if she shared in the glory.

She said to him with certainty: “There are.”

Zheng Bao was stunned: “Who?”

Jiang Xuening became inexplicably happy, clasping her hands behind her back as she walked forward two steps before stopping again. When she turned around, her face bore a brilliant smile as she only said: “If there’s a chance in the future, I’ll let you meet them.”

The light of day had already darkened, pressing down on the heavy Forbidden City.

But the steps of the young lady walking along the palace path appeared light and cheerful.

Zheng Bao watched her gradually receding back and didn’t know why he too smiled, suddenly thinking: this manner of a young maiden must be because of her beloved, right?

Having unexpectedly and easily secured Zheng Bao’s cooperation, Jiang Xuening was in quite a good mood when she returned to Yangzhi Study.

The room had also been completely redecorated.

Walking in and taking a look, she saw nothing but soft fragrance and brocade embroidery everywhere. The vases had been replaced with Ru kiln white porcelain, the round table changed to purple sandalwood with carved lacquer, and even the ordinary Xuan paper on the writing desk had been replaced with a stack of the finest White Deer paper. It truly could be said that every single thing was exquisite.

It was even better than her boudoir back at the manor.

“If only Her Highness the Grand Princess were a man,” Jiang Xuening threw herself onto the soft bed, pillowing her head on the silk-embroidered soft cushion and sighing comfortably. “I could assist her in becoming Emperor, and I could be Empress—that would be wonderful too…”

Of course, this was just idle thinking.

With Zhang Zhe around, she didn’t like anyone else.

In the evening, after everyone at Yangzhi Study finished their meal, they gathered at Liushui Pavilion to review together the lessons they’d learned that day, and also to look ahead at the books the teacher would teach tomorrow.

Although Jiang Xuening didn’t get along with most people, she had to be present on these occasions.

Because people like Xiao Shu and Chen Shuyi had excellent learning, and occasionally would answer questions and resolve doubts for others. Even though she had some minor conflicts with them, learning had nothing to do with grudges—the more she could hear, the more she gained. Why wouldn’t she?

So when the time came, she too arrived early with her books.

However, at this time there were still a few people who hadn’t arrived, so everyone wasn’t chatting about reading or learning, but instead laughing and joking with each other.

Yao Xi once again became the focus of everyone’s attention.

Zhou Baoying was the most lively and daring among them all. She went forward and grabbed Yao Xi’s hand, shaking it vigorously: “Sister Yao Xi, just tell us! We all saw this morning that you gave a letter to a palace servant. You were fine at first, but when you discovered we’d seen you, your face turned all red. Quick, tell us—is there news about your ideal match?”

Jiang Xuening’s fingers, which had just opened her book, suddenly froze.

Yao Xi was flustered by their teasing and stamped her foot: “How annoying, you’re all ganging up to tease me!”

But You Yue covered her lips and laughed, teasing: “That Zhang Zhe has already sensibly taken the initiative to break off the engagement. Sister Yao Xi went with the flow and even saved herself some effort. What good marriage prospects couldn’t you find in the future? How could there be any reason for it not to work out?”

Everyone nodded along.

But unexpectedly, Yao Xi glanced at You Yue and shook her head: “That’s not it.”

You Yue didn’t catch on: “Not it?”

Everyone suddenly quieted down, all looking at Yao Xi with some surprise.

On Yao Xi’s fair and tender cheeks, a faint blush gradually deepened into crimson. She bit her lip slightly, and when she lowered her eyes, she was filled with infinite shyness as she said: “I’ve changed my mind. Just because he wants to break it off doesn’t mean it’s that easy. If we’re engaged and then break it off, who knows how people will criticize me. It doesn’t matter that his birth isn’t good, it doesn’t matter that he has a widowed mother at home. After all, I have everything, and I don’t need him to worry too much.”