The wilderness echoed with the cheerful laughter of the siblings.
Both felt this was a perfect plan. Rather than confronting the Queen with open warfare from the start, cunning was better. If it failed anyway, only that poison-filled prisoner would die—they would suffer no losses themselves.
It was precisely because of this plan’s implementation that the Crown Princess persuaded Wu Weiyan not to touch Ji Wen anymore. They’d use her as a hostage first, to prevent the other party from performing poorly or defecting at the crucial moment.
Wu Weiyan also found this reasonable. He suppressed his lust and secretly decided that once that business was finished, regardless of success or failure, he would have his way with this elegantly tempered “little village girl.”
For Ji Wen, this was indeed good news. Her chastity was preserved, Yelu Qi could maintain his life, she didn’t need to struggle to find the Queen, and they even had a large army escort.
However, Wu Weiyan had her strictly guarded. The Crown Princess kept her tightly confined nearby. She could only see through the dense forest of spear shadows in the formation to the large cart in the center, where Yelu Qi lay receiving treatment from physicians in the Floating Water army.
Sometimes Ji Wen found excuses to approach that cart, catching whiffs of various strange medicinal odors emanating from within. These scents were all quite peculiar, which gave her a glimmer of hope. Along their journey, she had sought many physicians for Yelu Qi, but everywhere they went, the doctors were helpless. Perhaps these royal court-supported unconventional shamanic healers might have some solutions.
The Floating Water prince’s wedding procession entered Luoyun’s interior. This matter would naturally be reported to the royal court. But the Luoyun court had no particular reason to discourage this, especially with the Crown Princess’s personal escort.
A considerable portion of court ministers who were at odds with the Zuoqiu family, or who had kicked them while they were down during this incident, secretly anticipated this development. If Zuoqiu Mo truly received the Queen’s protection and left Luoyun, she would definitely return for revenge someday. Naturally, they didn’t want to see such a situation occur. But constrained by the Queen’s status and authority, everyone was still seeking more moderate solutions. Now that the violent Floating Water tribe was the first to challenge the Queen’s military might, they were naturally pleased to see it happen.
Including King Ge Shen, everyone turned a blind eye to the Floating Water army’s entry. Wu Weiyan’s three thousand guard troops quickly approached the royal city and joined with the two thousand Eastern Palace guards, faintly confronting the Halberd Army guards stationed outside the city, though no actual conflicts occurred.
That night, two carriages secretly entered the city, directly heading to the Crown Prince’s Eastern Palace near the royal palace.
That night, the Ge sisters visited the “ill and recuperating” Crown Prince.
The two sisters didn’t come together this time, but one after the other. Ge Shao entered first, presenting gifts and bringing various medicines. After chatting with the Crown Princess for a while and expressing sympathy for the Crown Prince and angry condemnation of the Queen and Zuoqiu Mo, Ge Shao vaguely hinted that she seemed to have heard her sister Ge Lian mention the type of drug the Crown Prince had been poisoned with before.
Half an hour after she left, Ge Lian also entered the Eastern Palace gates, similarly bringing gifts and medicines. She visited the Crown Prince and Crown Princess, recommending famous physicians who could repair teeth and restore appearance to the Crown Princess. After expressing sympathy for the Crown Prince and angry condemnation of the Queen and Zuoqiu Mo, Ge Lian vaguely hinted that originally, Ge Shao’s elder brother—the legitimate heir of the prince’s mansion, usually a cautious and prudent person—had also mysteriously become lustfully crazed and died from night-long debauchery. Afterward, the princely title fell to Ge Shao’s younger brother from the same mother.
After both left one after the other, the Crown Princess sat upright on the couch, accepting tea offered by Ji Wen. Watching the wispy white steam rising, she suddenly laughed coldly, “What exactly are those two up to?”
Ji Wen was confined under the Crown Princess’s supervision. Initially, everyone was naturally wary, but seeing her refined, elegant, obedient, and gentle manner—speaking and acting very properly and honestly, expressing gratitude to the Crown Princess who had saved her both publicly and privately—gradually everyone felt uncomfortable having an idle person just standing there watching. They arranged for her to serve instead. The Crown Princess had always been a proud person. Hearing so much gratitude, she felt this “village girl’s” chastity and life were her doing, so the woman’s heartfelt submission was natural. There were many such stories in novels, and she was quite pleased with herself, feeling that being a “benefactor” was indeed nice.
Once someone believes they have shown favor to another, they relax their guard. So today, Ji Wen, who originally could only sweep the corridors, could now stand by the door and listen to the Crown Princess’s “teachings.”
At this moment, important maidservants chattered and laughed about the two princesses’ attentiveness while flattering the Crown Princess’s status. But the Crown Princess found it tiresome, her enameled golden nails tapping the delicate porcelain teacup with tinkling sounds, a cold smile at her lips.
The royal family could naturally investigate what those dancers were really about. Ultimately, the Crown Prince was indirectly harmed by the two princesses. But before she could decide how to pursue this, the two had already flexibly come to the door—nominally to visit, actually to apologize and clear themselves while conveniently pushing all responsibility onto each other.
The Crown Princess thought of how these two usually appeared so close they’d wear the same pants, and couldn’t help curling her lip and quietly cursing, “What life-and-death good sisters—bah!”
Suddenly seeing Ji Wen with her head lowered, saying nothing but seeming somewhat disapproving, she couldn’t help asking loudly, “Ah Wen, what do you think?”
Ji Wen called herself Wang Wen, with her husband named Ye Qi. Everyone called her Ah Wen.
Ji Wen didn’t demur, bowing and smiling, “Your Majesty, this servant just feels the two princesses are still very kind.”
Meeting the Crown Princess’s surprised gaze, she smiled with innocent expression, “Since arriving at this Eastern Palace, this servant has found it magnificent and spacious, incomparably majestic. It truly opened my eyes. But perhaps because it’s too majestic and noble, I haven’t seen many visitors, making it seem somewhat cold. You’ve been back two days, and only these two princesses have come. Fortunately, we had guests—this servant finds it quite heartwarming.”
The Crown Princess was stunned, her expression changing instantly.
Full of hatred and anger, she only now realized that in recent days, the Eastern Palace had too few visitors!
The Crown Prince was “seriously ill and bedridden.” In the past, this would have brought clouds of visitors, but now, as Ah Wen said correctly, she’d been back for two days and had only seen this pair of princesses.
Where was everyone else?
The Crown Princess’s heart suddenly pounded.
She thought of her husband’s “illness.” The royal family all knew—the Crown Prince was ruined, and she had yet to bear him a son or daughter. Though concubines had children, she had driven them all to shabby quarters where they lived worse than pigs and dogs. The illegitimate children were raised stupid and ignorant, completely unpresentable. That meant the Crown Prince had no proper heirs, and from now on, would be permanently childless!
So the royal succession would become an issue the royal family and court had to consider. Passing the throne to such a Crown Prince again—how would the royal lineage continue after one generation?
The Crown Prince’s position was in peril!
And the court, royal family, and even the King must have had this thought, which was why the Eastern Palace was now cold and deserted. Because everyone knew the Eastern Palace would be abolished and a new Crown Prince established soon!
Just as the Crown Princess was thinking herself into a cold sweat with her heart racing, Ji Wen had already continued unhurriedly, “Look at the two princesses, especially Princess Ge Lian—they’re very familiar with and concerned about all matters in the Eastern Palace, even knowing when you return and when you should retire. And they’re so amiable too. This servant just escorted Princess Lian to the second gate and saw her smiling and greeting several gate-keeping women—truly the bearing of a great family.”
These words seemed ordinary, but to the Crown Princess at this moment, they caused another palm’s worth of sweat.
Only now did she remember that the two princesses had always been frequent visitors to the Eastern Palace. Though the Crown Prince was indifferent to them, she herself enjoyed being flattered and often entertained them together for garden parties and amusements. She had also helped strategize the plan against Zuoqiu Mo, with promises of sharing the spoils afterward. She wasn’t interested in the Zuoqiu family’s military power but hoped to withdraw one of their border armies to facilitate the Floating Water tribe’s occupation of a secret treasure marsh there.
To master and control Zuoqiu Mo’s valiant family retainers, she had even secretly met with the two sisters and the Eastern Palace’s family retainers and followers, introducing them to each other. It could be said that the two sisters knew the entire Eastern Palace layout and even its important forces. If they were willing, they presumably could now be quite familiar with those important subordinates.
Thinking of the two sisters’ usual methods and scheming in social interactions, the more she thought, the more likely this seemed. She broke out in cold sweat but couldn’t speak of it, only irritably waving her hand to dismiss everyone so she could quickly find advisors to discuss.
Ji Wen said no more, bowing and properly following the maidservant guarding her back to the servants’ quarters. She kept her head down, the smile at her lips faint and cold.
Along the journey, she had heard about the Queen’s various affairs in the Luoyun tribe. With her royal daughter’s intuition, these two princesses were the most difficult and sinister characters to deal with. When they eventually stirred up trouble, they would surely play a part.
Now she had quietly planted seeds of suspicion. Given these two’s personalities in the Eastern Palace, they were bound to do foolish things. But were those two sisters easy to bully? Not to mention their thoughts were probably already heading in this direction anyway.
Internal strife in the Luoyun royal family was imminent.
She was quite pleased to see it.
…
Jing Hengbo’s days had been quite peaceful recently.
She still lived in the royal palace—the most dangerous place was the safest. Whatever happened in the palace, Ge Shen had to take responsibility. But it was indeed calm and peaceful. Ge Shen showed no intention of demanding accountability. Ge Lian and Ge Shao hadn’t appeared before her. Even the reportedly most tyrannical Eastern Palace couple hadn’t come demanding any explanation. The Crown Princess’s brother had brought three thousand troops but stopped outside the city, making no further moves until now. Jing Hengbo was beginning to find this strange.
She naturally didn’t know that because of Ji Wen’s few words, the violent and suspicious Crown Princess had temporarily shifted targets, beginning to consider how to preserve the Crown Prince’s position and how to guard against or even retaliate against Ge Lian and Ge Shao’s infiltration.
As for Wu Weiyan, he had recently encountered a new beauty who had bewitched him completely, leaving him with no mind for worldly affairs. In his view, sending one poison man Yelu Qi into action was enough to give the Queen trouble. Extra thoughts were better spent on the beauty.
As for why that beauty was so coincidentally discovered by him, he believed it was fate. But whether it truly was—heaven knows, earth knows, and Ge Lian knows.
After several peaceful days, the Zuoqiu family had safely left Luoyun territory. Jing Hengbo only waited for the so-called husband selection conference to end before immediately leaving Luoyun with Zuoqiu Mo.
However, she vaguely felt things weren’t so simple. Luoyun probably wouldn’t be so easy to leave smoothly.
This day was bright and sunny. Early morning sunlight warmed the pillows and covers, filling the room with bright light. Zuoqiu Mo, who had come to escort the Queen to observe the husband selection conference, stood at the threshold watching the Queen slowly turn after finishing her grooming. For a moment, she couldn’t tell which was more dazzling—the sunlight or her—or perhaps they complemented each other. The sunlight became more crystalline because of her, and she became more brilliant because of the sunlight. All earthly beauty was concentrated and bloomed in her vision. Under floating clouds, there was a heart-stopping radiance called luminous beauty.
Seeing her undisguised admiring expression, Jing Hengbo smiled with satisfaction. She was now in business, and she herself was the best model. She wouldn’t miss any opportunity to astound the world. Her makeup and jewelry were newly developed products from the women’s marketplace. Today was clear and slightly warm, so she chose a set of white crystal with emerald jewelry—exquisitely cut with refreshing colors, using novel gradient effects. The huge phoenix-tail earrings and collar had emerald fragments embedded at the bottom, with colors growing lighter—from green to light green to pale blue to pure white, each piece translucent. Her dress was also an improved gradient light green and pure white gown that still outlined her naturally blessed figure while incorporating some details from the white robes commonly worn by the Luoyun tribe, making her appear more approachable to Luoyun people.
The makeup was natural tones—a touch of light green eyeshadow, dark coffee-colored brows, rouge in light red with a slight yellowish tint, and similar-toned lipstick. Quite refreshing makeup for summer.
In the courtyard sat a colorful phoenix sedan chair—the one used at Turtle Shell, personally escorted by Tian Qi, just delivered last night. Zirui and Tian Qi were staying behind at Turtle Shell. Hearing of her public inspection of various tribes, they felt Her Majesty the Queen lacking a sufficiently status-appropriate imperial carriage was quite undignified. They immediately wrote requesting to send this sedan, with Zirui’s letter expressing her desire to deliver it personally. After consideration, Jing Hengbo had Tian Qi bring it instead. This puzzled Yong Xue and others—the Queen should want to see her close friend Zirui more, so why not give her the opportunity to come out?
Jing Hengbo didn’t explain this. She smiled and greeted Tian Qi before boarding the sedan. The sedan remained magnificently beautiful. To provide shade, Zirui had thoughtfully added a layer of shark silk—the fabric was clean white and soft, shimmering with fine pearl luster. Jing Hengbo stroked the phoenix-wing sides of the sedan, thinking this sedan was probably a gift from Yelu Qi. She wondered how he was doing now.
She hoped he was well.
She hoped she would become stronger, no longer needing them to sacrifice themselves protecting her. Anyone who dared bully those who truly cared for her—she’d beat them until they crawled on the ground looking for their teeth.
After leaving the inner palace, the royal husbands caught up. After leaving the royal palace, Pei Shu, who had been waiting with a dark face in the square with three hundred elite guards, came over and squeezed the three future “royal husbands” aside.
Jing Hengbo ignored him and chatted with Tian Qi. The man-demon hadn’t been seen for a while and looked increasingly fair and delicate. Looking carefully, he was even wearing powder. According to Tian Qi himself, this was because Turtle Shell bore responsibility for developing cosmetics and skincare products for the women’s marketplace. Zirui had poor intuition for such things, so he had been fully responsible. Following the Queen’s formulas, he had become interested in the research and finally couldn’t resist trying a little himself.
Tian Qi gestured with his pinky to show it was truly just “a little,” while powder fell from his face as he gestured. Jing Hengbo suppressed laughter, thinking she needed to specifically research a set for this acne-prone fellow. Finally, Tian Qi said rapturously that the newly developed Deep Marsh Nourishing Pearl Radiance Mask was wonderful—he’d used it for three days and his skin was moist and lustrous, radiating new brilliance daily. He could provide free “advertising model” services for Jing Hengbo in the future. Saying this, he leaned his face over to show Jing Hengbo his “refined pores.” But Jing Hengbo smelled a fishy swamp odor that hadn’t been completely removed. After hearing him boast for a long time, he bashfully asked—since Gong Yin was reportedly also in Luoyun, how was the National Preceptor recently? Had he been in contact with Her Majesty the Queen?
Seeing this fellow with his powder-dusted face, three pounds of hair oil, whole body emanating the ambiguous strange smell of the not-yet-perfected Deep Marsh Nourishing Pearl Radiance Mask, asking about Gong Yin in an even more ambiguously strange tone with ambiguously strange expression in his eyes, Jing Hengbo immediately became furious and slapped him out of the sedan.
She hummed in the sedan, thinking that when they left Di Ge, those inexplicable things—like that inexplicable Tian Qi in Xiang Kingdom—that was Gong Yin in disguise, right? This man-demon had been bought off by Gong Yin long ago, right? What did he use to buy him off? Beauty?
Outside the sedan, Yong Xue heard Her Majesty the Queen apparently grinding her teeth quite loudly.
After a while, Tian Qi climbed back up. Before Jing Hengbo could again exercise her divine skills to slap him out, he handed over a letter, saying Zirui had asked him to bring it to the Queen and requested the Queen pass it to Iron King when possible.
Jing Hengbo accepted it without comment. Outside, Yong Xue and others looked at her strangely again, only seeing the Queen expressionlessly put the letter in her sleeve.
The husband selection conference was still held at the fixed location—a marketplace near the city gate with cleared space forming a small square. Today was the final session, selecting from ten elite contestants. Whether all ten elites would enter the Queen’s harem or only a select few would be chosen from the best was entirely up to the Queen’s personal decision.
That marketplace was called Spring Pavilion Market. When Jing Hengbo arrived, it was already packed with people—half watching the excitement, half waiting to see the Queen.
Jing Hengbo keenly noticed that today’s gathering with even more people had fewer Luoyun Military Commission soldiers on guard duty than the previous tournament.
She snorted coldly in her heart.
Jing Hengbo’s uniquely designed, magnificent sedan chair was quite intimidating. When the sedan approached from afar, it truly looked like a proud phoenix slowly descending from sunlight and clouds.
The people had originally been cheering excitedly at the Queen’s imperial carriage arrival, wanting to push forward for a closer look. But seeing this sedan, they were immediately amazed and stunned in place. When they reacted and tried to catch up, the Queen’s carriage had already passed. They only glimpsed a graceful silhouette through the shark silk pearl curtains carried in the flying phoenix’s long beak—the shadowy indistinctness making it even more mysterious and alluring.
When the Queen alighted and stood openly in the bright sunlight, nearby people couldn’t help closing their eyes. But feeling they were missing out, they quickly opened them again through tears. Exclamations rippled like waves from inside to outside, then rolled back from outside to inside. The outer crowds pushed desperately while those inside pressed their bottoms together refusing to yield, causing countless arguments and fights. Fortunately, Pei Shu was experienced. With a dark face, he had several of the worst troublemakers dragged out, ran his sword through their clothes, and hung them on a rack. Everyone could only stop before his sword, watching helplessly as that water-lily-like refreshing yet charming Queen gracefully proceeded to the viewing platform.
The Luoyun royal family had originally arranged backstage seating for Jing Hengbo to avoid the Queen appearing in public, but Jing Hengbo wanted exactly that public appearance. She didn’t care about such concerns. Sitting under the sunshade and turning her gaze, the people on stage immediately froze.
Jing Hengbo scanned the stage and frowned slightly in disappointment. The people on stage had good looks, appropriate ages, and decent martial arts, but these weren’t what she wanted. She hoped to encounter special individuals—those hidden in wilderness and great marshes who possessed one or two peculiar arts. But inevitably, such selection processes produced mostly warriors.
The square was packed with people, and nearby taverns were also full. Only a few of the highest-class taverns didn’t have all their windows open, but this didn’t mean there was no one behind the windows.
The Ge sisters stood outside windows in one such tavern, listening to the clamor below. One maintained her unchanging smile while the other looked gloomy.
After a brief estrangement, the sisters had quickly become intimately shoulder-to-shoulder again.
Because in recent days, they had encountered new attacks. Such attacks easily made comrades in the same trench quickly form alliances.
Many of their palace informants had been sent to the cold palace.
Some trusted nannies and guards they had arranged in the Eastern Palace had mysteriously disappeared.
Some military leaders whose friendship they had just purchased with heavy gold were transferred, reassigned, or simply became unreachable.
Ge Shao’s brother was found at fault and stripped of his heir rights; Ge Lian’s mother, just elevated to Noble Consort, was demoted and moved to a side palace.
Just yesterday, the King had summoned them and severely scolded them. Ostensibly for failing to eliminate the Zuoqiu family, but the underlying meaning was accusing them of harming royal heirs. Without allowing explanations, he immediately revoked their fiefs, penalized their stipends for two years, and demanded they redeem themselves through merit by perfectly resolving the Zuoqiu family matter without leaving future troubles.
Both knew that though the King hadn’t stated consequences for another mistake, one misstep would mean not only losing their final princess titles but their very lives.
Some attacks came from the royal family, others from the Eastern Palace. The usually crude and simple Eastern Palace couple’s swift and sharp response this time puzzled the sisters. After much thought, they naturally blamed the Queen again.
“What’s the plan for today?” Ge Shao coldly stared at Jing Hengbo’s distant figure, her eyes carrying both female jealousy and enemy hatred.
“Don’t you think the Eastern Palace has been too quiet? That’s not their style.” Ge Lian’s smile was truly as gentle as summer water lilies. “You and I are now constrained at every step. Better to watch the show first. If others’ performance fails, we can take over then.”
She smiled, her gaze sweeping over the crowds below and the layers of palace buildings beyond.
How hot the day was, the sunlight like flowing fire—all of Luoyun was boiling.
Luoyun had been peaceful too long, and she had been waiting for that handful of boiling court politics, the kindling fire to restructure the royal family.