At this point, they had to treat a dead horse as if it were alive—every method had to be tried. Though it was shameless and utterly depraved, at least it was still a method, wasn’t it? Even Prince Gong—Elder Du thought it over. A great man doesn’t fuss over small details. So many years had passed; even if there were still feelings involved, what could they amount to? Things you couldn’t see or touch might as well be put to use when needed.
He knew that Prince Gong probably still harbored some feelings for the Crown Princess née Lu. This was only human nature—after all, what you can’t have is always the best, isn’t it? Otherwise, why would he go to such lengths to kill even the son the Crown Princess née Lu bore with the Crown Prince, and then plan to frame the Crown Prince for it? How deep must his hatred run?
Thinking of this scheme, he coached Madam Du: “Make your words sound pleasant, just say that His Highness did everything for her sake.”
Women are always soft-hearted. Prince Gong’s obsession all these years had been with the Crown Princess née Lu after all. He wasn’t really lying—the Crown Princess née Lu should remember their past affection and speak up to help, that would be proper.
As a woman herself, Madam Du naturally understood this reasoning. On one hand, she felt it was difficult for the Crown Princess née Lu—on one side was her son, on the other her childhood sweetheart. Which side should she favor? On the other hand, she worried for her own husband. There really was no other way in this matter; they could only try this approach.
After finishing this discussion, she remembered to ask once more: “Her Majesty the Empress has mentioned several times that she wants me to bring Fang Xi into the palace. What exactly does she mean? The Empress has never been this fond of her before.”
Elder Du had just been preoccupied with Prince Gong’s matter and hadn’t really paid attention. Now hearing Madam Du say this, after thinking it over carefully, his eyes suddenly brightened—of course! The Grand Prince was one thing, being her own grandson who had suffered grievances, there was absolutely no reason for him to be implicated. But who was Song Chuyi? She was ultimately an outsider, yet so forceful. Having suffered some grievances, she refused to let it go and made such a huge fuss about it. Even if Emperor Jianzhang didn’t blame her, no matter how virtuous Empress Lu was, she was still a woman. What woman wouldn’t care about such things?
He stroked his beard. The oppressive feeling in his heart lessened by a third, and finally a trace of a smile appeared on his face. Looking at Madam Du, he shook his head mysteriously: “Since Her Majesty the Empress values Miss Fang, it’s her good fortune. Just take her there often.”
Having been married to him for many years, Madam Du knew from his expression that this matter had only benefits and no drawbacks. She nodded: “I understand.” After helping Elder Du retire for the night and mentally rehearsing her words once more, she finally fell asleep.
The next day, she first made a trip to see First Madam Lu, asking when she would be entering the palace. Since the Crown Prince had met with trouble, the Crown Princess would naturally need to attend to his illness by his side. First Madam Lu often entered the palace to keep her company and chat to relieve her boredom.
Ever since the Crown Prince had provoked him, First Master Lu had completely given up his thoughts of relying on his daughter. He packed up his things and returned to his hometown. After being thoroughly scolded by Old Master Lu, he finally settled down and began studying and compiling books peacefully at home. Once a person devoted themselves wholeheartedly to scholarship, those former thoughts seemed vulgar and unbearable. The more he picked up his old learning, the more ashamed he felt—he had no face to see anyone, had let down his sister and his daughter. Too embarrassed to speak of it face to face, and having been unable to make conversation with his sister all these years as she wouldn’t even look at him properly, he could only write a letter to First Madam Lu, asking her to look after the Crown Princess more.
First Madam Lu didn’t need him to tell her this. She was upright by nature and had only good intentions and no ill will toward this sister-in-law. Moreover, with the Crown Prince meeting with trouble and the Grand Prince being injured, she visited the Eastern Palace even more frequently. Hearing Madam Du come to inquire about the Crown Princess’s preferences and interesting stories from before she was married, she assumed it was to please the Crown Princess and did tell her a few things.
Madam Du now had a good idea of what to do. The next day when she entered the palace, she first went to see Empress Lu, then went to the Eastern Palace to request an audience with the Crown Princess née Lu. Although the Crown Princess née Lu was not favored by the Crown Prince, she was nevertheless the legitimate Crown Princess. Following Empress Lu’s example, she was accustomed to receiving the morning audiences of these inner and outer court ladies. Hearing that Madam Du requested an audience, she was somewhat puzzled.
When they met and Madam Du repeatedly steered the conversation toward her youth, the faint smile that had been on her face gradually cooled. She looked at Madam Du expressionlessly and laughed once.
Observing her expression, Madam Du no longer dared to keep the Crown Princess guessing. She employed the bitter flesh stratagem: “This old woman knows that bringing up these matters must be painful for Your Highness, but His Highness hasn’t had an easy life all these years either. He harbored such thoughts toward His Highness the Crown Prince, but when you get down to it, wasn’t it all for Your Highness’s sake?”
As she spoke, she watched the Crown Princess’s expression. Seeing the Crown Princess’s brows knit together, she spoke even faster: “Though there is a princess consort, where does she have a place in the prince’s heart? What fills his thoughts is still—” She didn’t dare speak too explicitly and stopped at this point, changing her words: “This time, His Highness heard that you suffered greatly at the hands of Consort Fan, and his heart grew more troubled, more anxious for you…”
The Crown Princess’s cold laugh rang out at this moment. She raised her eyes to look at Madam Du.
That single glance was ice-cold, her gaze utterly indifferent—looking at her as if looking at a clump of grass or a stone, so cold it made Madam Du feel chilled to the bone, and all her remaining words were swallowed back into her stomach.
“So, to get revenge on the Crown Prince, he kills my son?” The Crown Princess née Lu laughed mockingly, storm clouds gathering on her beautiful face. “He’s not unaware that my son is not favored by the Crown Prince. Killing him, the Crown Prince wouldn’t feel the slightest pain.”
“To peddle such ghostly lies to deceive me—in order to extricate himself, isn’t this a bit too shameless?” The Crown Princess née Lu examined the half-embroidered lotus on her skirt hem, her tone calm: “If not, I’ll go tell my aunt about this in detail and see if my aunt can speak a word or two on his behalf.”
Madam Du was truly frightened out of her wits. Her legs went weak and she nearly slid off her seat onto the floor. Her lips trembling, she called out in a shaking voice: “Your Highness…”
She had thought that every word she spoke struck at people’s weak points. The Crown Prince treated the Crown Princess poorly after all, and she had portrayed Prince Gong as so deeply devoted. If the Crown Princess still had even a shred of affection for Prince Gong, she shouldn’t be this heartless.
The Crown Princess née Lu slowly raised her face to look at her. Though her words remained soft and gentle, they made Madam Du’s blood run cold.
Unable to help herself, Madam Du turned her head away. Only then did the Crown Princess laugh mockingly: “I wondered why Madam Du’s request for an audience was so strange—so this is the crux of it. But it’s truly unfortunate. Those matters you speak of have absolutely nothing to do with me. I only know that you reap what you sow, and I only know that if you dare to do something, you must pay the price.”