Upon hearing that Princess Changping had arrived, the Crown Princess Consort’s brow furrowed ever so slightly, then smoothed back at once to its usual composure. She smiled and said: “What are you waiting for — quickly invite the Princess in.”

The palace maid acknowledged the order and retreated immediately.

Sun Shi and the others had been preparing to take their leave, but now it was no longer convenient to go. They would at least have to pay their respects to the Princess before departing.

A moment later, a magnificently robed beauty glided in with effortless grace.

The robed beauty appeared to be around twenty years of age, tall and well-proportioned with a striking, healthy figure. She wore an exquisite and elaborate red palace gown, against which her fair skin gleamed like snow, rendering her appearance extraordinarily alluring.

Beneath her slender, willow-leaf brows sat a pair of slightly elongated phoenix eyes.

Those eyes bore a strong resemblance to Prince Yan’s. As her gaze swept about the room, it carried boundless charm that stirred the heart and set the soul adrift.

Truthfully speaking, Princess Changping was not especially beautiful in the conventional sense. In terms of looks alone, she was only on a par with that Princess Fumin.

Yet in her every movement, she radiated the distinctive allure of a mature woman, mingled with the singular pride that was the birthright of an imperial princess — a captivating and altogether distinctive quality.

So this was Princess Changping!

The one who, in her previous life, had stolen her husband, and then reduced her to ruin!

The wretched end she had come to — most of it could be traced to the Lu family’s unbridled ambition. Yet the root cause lay with Princess Changping.

Ling Jingshu pressed her lips firmly together. She cast one swift glance at Princess Changping, then lowered her eyes.

“Changping, you have finally come.” The Crown Princess Consort broke into a smile, her tone warm and intimate: “I have been waiting for you the entire morning.”

Princess Changping’s gaze flitted across the room, landing briefly on the Ling family members. A smile played at the corners of her lips, neither fully formed nor absent: “Is it that Imperial Sister-in-Law specifically waited for me? Did she not also receive other guests?”

A hint of displeasure had crept into her tone.

Sun Shi’s expression went a little rigid. She stood in trembling silence, not daring to utter a word.

The reigning Emperor had four sons and two daughters. Princess Changping was the eldest daughter, and also the most beloved by the Emperor. With Empress Xu supporting her besides, she was thoroughly spoiled and willful. To call her the foremost noble lady of all of Dazhou would not be an overstatement.

To encounter such a figure — even if one were subjected to cold looks and cutting remarks, one could only endure them.

As expected, there was not the slightest room for error in this estimation. With Changping’s overbearing and willful temperament, spotting the Ling family still present was naturally enough to put her in a poor mood.

The Crown Princess Consort had her own methods for managing Princess Changping. She smiled and replied: “And you have the nerve to say that. Today I have not dared to do a single thing — I have been sitting here with my eyes fixed on the door, waiting for you. I waited for more than an hour and still you did not come. Only then did I take the opportunity to briefly receive the family members of Official Ling. Otherwise, what would I have done with all that time — simply wasted it?”

She paused, then asked: “By the way, what delayed you today? Why have you only arrived now? Could it be that the Prince Consort came?”

At the mention of the Prince Consort, a shade of impatience crossed Princess Changping’s expression. She replied offhandedly: “No.”

The Crown Princess Consort understood at once, and a smile of indeterminate meaning passed over her face.

No one glimpsed the contempt and cold amusement that flickered through Ling Jingshu’s downcast eyes.

Indeed. Princess Changping did have a Prince Consort.

Princess Changping had married at the age of sixteen. Her Prince Consort, Xu Yuan, was the legitimate son of the Xu family — Empress Xu’s own nephew and Princess Changping’s maternal cousin.

The Xu family had originally ranked only as a second-tier household among the great families of the capital. Once their daughter became Empress of Dazhou, the family’s fortunes rose instantly. When Princess Changping then wed into the Xu family, the Xu family’s influence at court and beyond grew even more formidable.

It was a pity, however, that Princess Changping and the Prince Consort had a troubled marriage. Less than a year after their wedding, Princess Changping had moved back to her own princess residence.

The Prince Consort did not dare take concubines openly, and so he frequently visited pleasure houses, staying overnight with the courtesans there.

As for Princess Changping’s residence — from time to time, a handsome-looking “inner attendant” would quietly appear within it. After a period of time, this “attendant” would inexplicably vanish without a trace, only to be replaced by another.

No one dared speak of it openly. Yet at private banquets and casual gatherings, it inevitably came up as idle conversation. And so Princess Changping’s reputation for being fickle and amorous spread far and wide without any need of proclamation.

Later on, Lu Hong — that young man of distinguished achievement and remarkable good looks, the newly minted top scholar — appeared before Princess Changping’s eyes. Princess Changping’s status was exalted, her beauty and allure undeniable, and she had made the first move in drawing him in. Lu Hong had been unable to resist, and the two of them secretly became “involved.”

The capricious Princess Changping, who had never before shown true feeling, developed a genuine attachment to Lu Hong. Unsatisfied with a fleeting dalliance, she wished to take Lu Hong as her new Prince Consort.

As if by “coincidence,” while the Prince Consort was out riding during a spring outing, the horse beneath him suddenly broke into a wild, uncontrollable gallop. The Prince Consort, whose riding skills were far from excellent, was thrown from the horse and died in the fall. Princess Changping was now a young widow, and she would have to observe three years of mourning for the Prince Consort before she could remarry.

By the time Princess Changping’s mourning period was complete — the secret imperial edict decreeing death had already arrived at the Lu family’s door.

She, unwilling to die in vain, had been strangled to death by the Ling clan — dying full of hatred and resentment, her eyes refusing to close in peace.

In her previous life, after her death, Princess Changping must surely have gotten everything she desired.

With the Lu family’s vanity and ambition, whether or not Lu Hong was willing, they would always find a way to make him bow his head and comply — to obediently become the Prince Consort.

Sun Shi led the others forward to pay their respects: “This concubine, Sun Shi, pays her respects to Princess Changping’s Highness.”

Princess Changping was clearly not the least bit interested in Sun Shi. She acknowledged with a casual sound and let her gaze fall upon Ling Xiao. A flash of dazzled admiration lit up her eyes at once.

What a handsome and striking young lad!

Ling Jingshu’s heart gave a sharp lurch.

Princess Changping was by nature dissolute and was known to take a fancy to handsome young men. A’Xiao had such a remarkably good-looking and luminous appearance — if he were to catch Princess Changping’s eye, it would be disastrous.

Princess Changping did indeed open her mouth to ask: “This young man — is he also a young master of the Ling family?”

Sun Shi smiled in reply: “To answer Your Highness the Princess — he is the second son of the Ling family’s Fifth Branch, by the name of Ling Xiao.”

Before the words were even fully out, Ling Jingshu swiftly took over the conversation: “This humble girl begs to inform Your Highness the Princess — A’Xiao has suffered from an eye ailment for many years and is unable to see. Should there be any shortcoming in his observance of propriety, I beg Your Highness the Princess to be magnanimous in your forgiveness.”

An eye ailment?

Princess Changping was taken aback. She studied him more carefully, and only then did she notice the unusual quality about Ling Xiao.

Those lovely eyes of his were dim and unfocused — without any fixation. He was indeed unable to see.

What a waste, for such a fair and handsome face!

Princess Changping felt a private pang of regret, but quickly dismissed the fleeting impulse that had passed through her mind. As the most beloved legitimate eldest princess of all of Dazhou, she lived a life of luxury beyond ordinary imagining. Even the young men who stayed by her side to “keep her company” were all possessed of both talent and fine appearance. A boy who was blind in the eyes — no matter how good-looking he might be — could never capture her attention.

Ling Jingshu noticed the shift in Princess Changping’s expression, and quietly exhaled in relief.

Ling Xiao, thoroughly bewildered, had no idea that he had just narrowly escaped a catastrophe.

It was only at this point that Princess Changping at last took notice of Ling Jingshu’s breathtaking beauty, and she found herself looking a second time: “You and he bear a very strong resemblance — could it be that you are twins?”

Her gaze carried a veiled unfriendliness, and her tone held a faint, undeniable note of hostility.

This was hardly surprising.

A woman who prided herself on her looks — when she encountered a young girl whose beauty and bearing surpassed her own, there would always be a certain unhappiness stirring in her heart. Let alone the fact that this particular young girl was so much younger than herself.