Nanny Du immediately led the attending servants out of the room. Only the Grand Dowager, Xu Lingyi, Third Master, Fifth Master, and Eleventh remained.

Eleventh refilled everyone’s tea and stood behind the Grand Dowager.

Xu Lingyi looked at the Grand Dowager. “Mother, tell us what happened during your visit to the palace.”

The Grand Dowager gave a slight nod. Perhaps thinking of her reunion with her daughter, her eyes grew moist. “Her Highness the Empress said that His Majesty has thoroughly investigated the matter. The Fifth Prince had eaten something that disagreed with him, but the Imperial Medical Bureau misdiagnosed it as dysentery. Then, in their desire to play it safe, they dared not administer medicine, which caused the illness to worsen…”

Upon hearing this, Fifth Master could not help but furrow his brows in anger. “These incompetent physicians — they were the ones who caused the death of Lady Cui, the mother of Senior Counselor Wei of Dali Feng. His Majesty should be informed so they can be executed along with their entire families.”

Third Master responded with a soft, deliberate cough.

Fifth Master glanced at Xu Lingyi, whose expression remained impassive, and somewhat deflated, he shut his mouth.

“Since His Majesty has spoken, there is no need for further speculation.” Xu Lingyi spoke slowly. “An incident like this has everyone watching our household. Third Brother,” — his gaze settled on Third Master — “you must keep a firm hand over the household stewards, particularly ensuring that no one says anything that ought not to be said. If you hear any idle gossip, you should know how to respond accordingly.”

Third Master immediately said, “I will summon the stewards tonight and give them my instructions. Especially the stewards at the reception office.”

Xu Lingyi nodded.

Third Master rose to his feet. “There is no time to lose. I will go gather the stewards now.” He added, “By the look of the sky, the party sent to fetch Second Sister-in-law from the Western Hills should be returning soon. I may as well go and meet them.”

“Go then,” Xu Lingyi replied. Third Master stepped forward to pay his respects to the Grand Dowager, then withdrew.

At the doorway, he encountered Third Madam. “Why have you come back?”

“I was worried about you.” Third Madam peered into the inner courtyard. “What was discussed?”

“Standing here draws unwanted eyes.” Third Master took Third Madam by the arm and steered her away. “Let us talk as we walk.”

Third Madam gave a sound of assent and followed her husband out.

“Nothing much,” Third Master said, relaying to Third Madam what Xu Lingyi had instructed. “…Just telling me to give the stewards their orders.”

Third Madam pursed her lips when she heard this. “I simply cannot believe it. A perfectly healthy living person, and they just treated him to death.”

Third Master said nothing.

Third Madam poked him. “Hey, what is Eleventh doing in there?”

Third Master knew his wife’s mind perfectly well, so he feigned ignorance. “All the maids and matrons were sent away, so Fourth Brother asked her to help pour tea.”

“I don’t believe that for a moment.” Even as Third Madam said this, her voice had regained its usual spirited tone. “When will Second Sister-in-law arrive?”

“I am on my way to meet her now!”

“I am coming with you!” A trace of excitement crept into Third Madam’s voice.

Back in the room, seeing that Third Master had gone, Xu Lingyi turned his gaze to Fifth Master. “Tomorrow at Sishamen, you are to stand there properly and behave. If I catch you wandering off, I will have you relieved of your post and confined to this house — from that day forward, you will not be permitted to go anywhere.”

Fifth Master’s eyes went wide. “I have not done anything…”

Xu Lingyi’s gaze turned cold.

Fifth Master deflated at once, muttering under his breath, “Understood,” — though with obvious reluctance.

The Grand Dowager looked on and could not help but sigh. She sent Eleventh away, saying, “Go and brew us a fresh pot of tea.”

Eleventh acknowledged the request and left. Seeing that there was not a single person outside the hall, she stood quietly beyond the partition door and listened for a few moments.

“Lingkuan, you are a good child.” The Grand Dowager’s voice was several tones lower than usual, as though she feared being overheard. “Your nature is candid and your sincerity toward others is genuine. Others see you as an upright and honorable man, and they cannot resist taking advantage of that straightforwardness. Say nothing of other matters — take Wang Lang alone. He grew up alongside you, and you treated him as your own brother; I regarded him as a nephew. Yet when he killed a man, he lured you into his scheme and tried to pin the blame on you, hoping to make you take the punishment in his place. If your Fourth Brother had not reacted quickly, tell me — how would that matter have ended?”

No wonder she had been sent away — it involved Wang Lang.

If what the Grand Dowager said was true, it would explain why the Xu and Wang families had become estranged…

“Mother,” Fifth Master’s voice was heavy with remorse, “I know I was wrong. I will never do such a thing again.”

“When someone with schemes preys upon someone without them, it is natural to be deceived.” There was no reproach in the Grand Dowager’s voice — only worry. “Your mother is growing old and can no longer endure these ordeals. Live your life in peace. Stop listening to gossip and meddling in matters that are none of your concern, and your mother will be able to spend her remaining days in comfort. Your Fourth Brother worries about you too — he is afraid you will get entangled with those people again.”

“Mother,” Fifth Master promised repeatedly, “I will stay properly at my office and stop wandering about.”

“Stay close to your Fourth Brother. Wherever he rests, you rest there too…”

Having heard what she needed to hear, Eleventh turned to brew the tea, but then she saw Third Master and Third Madam escorting a tall young woman in a white fox cape.

“Fourth Sister-in-law, look who has come back!” Third Madam’s voice carried an undisguised note of glee.

Eleventh looked carefully — it was Second Madam.

“Second Sister-in-law, you have returned!” Eleventh greeted her politely, then announced to the Grand Dowager, “Mother, Second Sister-in-law is back!”

“Come in, come in!” The Grand Dowager’s voice held a note of delighted surprise. Fifth Master was already pulling back the curtain, sweeping forward like a gust of wind. “Second Sister-in-law!”

Second Madam unfastened her cape, revealing a graceful, refined face.

“Fifth Brother, how is Danyang?” she greeted him with a smile.

Fifth Master flushed. “Danyang was far too willful…”

“Nonsense.” Second Madam’s manner was gentle. “Is Mother well?” She shifted the subject and moved toward the inner room.

Fifth Master hurried to lift the curtain for her. “Mother is well!”

Everyone clustered around her as they walked in.

Eleventh went to brew the tea and carried it in. Second Madam and the others had already taken their seats according to rank and were discussing the Fifth Prince’s funeral arrangements. Seeing Eleventh enter, Third Madam rose to help distribute the tea, and the conversation was momentarily interrupted.

Once the tea was served, Third Master took a sip and set down his cup. “We will take our leave — I still have matters to attend to.” He caught Third Madam’s eye with a meaningful glance.

Third Madam was reluctant to leave, but seeing the firm resolve on her husband’s face, she rose with some displeasure and followed Third Master out.

“You as well — go and rest.” The Grand Dowager turned to Fifth Master. “Danyang is alone in the rear garden, and I worry about her.”

Fifth Master rose, acknowledged the instruction, bowed to everyone in the room, and returned to the rear garden.

Xu Lingyi gestured to the grand armchair where Fifth Master had been sitting and said to Eleventh, “Sit down.”

Second Madam raised her eyes and cast a quick, sweeping glance at Eleventh, then just as quickly lowered her gaze and sipped her tea in silence.

Eleventh was quite surprised.

She had not expected to earn a seat at the Xu family’s most important discussions so soon.

She answered with a respectful acknowledgement and, adopting the modest manner of a newcomer, perched on the edge of the grand armchair.

“Yizhen is back as well.” The Grand Dowager looked at Xu Lingyi with a grave expression. “Speak — what exactly happened?”

Xu Lingyi’s expression was solemn. “The moment I heard about the Fifth Prince, I sent men to find his wet nurse, Nanny Shen, and his personal attendant Quande — but I was already too late. Nanny Shen had taken poison and killed herself; Quande had slipped and fallen into the water. Fearing that Her Highness the Empress might, in a moment of anguish, say something resentful that would create a rift between herself and His Majesty, I could only instruct the Imperial Medical Bureau to find a way to delay matters by a few days no matter what. I also advised His Majesty that since the Fifth Prince had fallen ill from something he ate, it would be best to send Her Highness along with the First Prince and the Third Prince out of the palace temporarily to prevent further incidents. His Majesty must have sensed something was wrong with the matter himself — he agreed without a word of hesitation. He even invented a pretext, claiming that the Third Prince was unwell, and sent Her Highness to take him to the Western Hills to soak in the hot springs. He said the Fifth Prince had recently been causing trouble and was being disciplined by his tutor, so there was no need for him to come and bid farewell. The plan was to send the Fifth Prince to the Western Hills in a few days as well. Her Highness did not suspect anything and left for the Western Hills palace with the Third Prince. Two days later, the Fifth Prince passed away. His Majesty kept the news secret while tracing the matter back to its source — which led to Cining Palace…”

Eleventh felt her heart clench.

Her Highness the Empress would certainly not have concealed anything from her own mother. So the “truth” that the Fifth Prince had died due to improper medication — that must have been what His Majesty told her… It appeared His Majesty had no intention of pursuing the matter. Hence the ceremonial honors equal to that of a prince of the first rank…

She suddenly felt a chill.

“That does not add up,” the Grand Dowager said suddenly. “If someone took such a great risk to harm a legitimate son, why pass over the eldest and target the youngest? That makes no sense.”

Eleventh thought the Grand Dowager made a valid point.

Matters within the palace walls were layered with truth and deception, and in shifting between them, a single misstep could cause one to mistake a benefactor for an enemy, or an enemy for a benefactor. She had not experienced it herself, but she had read of it in those historical records.

“The First Prince is fourteen years old this year,” Second Madam mused. “The Third Prince is already eleven. Both of them were born at the prince’s residence and witnessed with their own eyes how their imperial father rose from prince to crown prince to ascending the throne. The Fifth Prince, however, is different — by the time he was old enough to understand the world, his father was already the Emperor and his mother the Empress. He is one of the most exalted persons under heaven… He is, after all, only five years old this year…”

Second Madam was expressing her view with measured restraint — the First and Third Princes were older, and having some understanding of palace affairs, they had developed a certain composure and were not so easily manipulated. The Fifth Prince, at only five years old, still possessed the innocent and guileless nature of a young child, which made him an easier target.

“…Furthermore, even if something were to happen to the First Prince, it would not diminish the standing of the Third Prince and the Fifth Prince. So long as the Emperor and Empress remain devoted to one another, there would still be the chance of bearing more princes…”

Something stirred in Eleventh’s mind.

Xu Lingyi had once said that Her Highness regarded His Majesty with the reverence of a wife for her husband, not the deference of a subject for her emperor. On one hand, this reflected the Empress’s preservation of a girlish, open-hearted simplicity; on the other, it suggested that the Emperor and Empress did not conduct themselves with the rigid formality of sovereign and subject. Could it not mean that they lived as an ordinary couple — warm and loving — yet just as an ordinary couple might, they would also argue and even sulk with each other…?

So the true purpose of the scheme was not to kill a legitimate son, but to drive a wedge between the Emperor and the Empress. Because while an Empress without a legitimate son might face questions about the security of her position, a deposed Empress’s son would be in a far more awkward position than the sons of low-ranking consorts, and would be even less of a threat.

Her thoughts turned to what she had witnessed at Kunning Palace — His Majesty had been on the throne for barely four years, yet aside from Noble Lady Zhang and Beauty Yu, who were former residents of his prince’s residence and had been enfeoffed for bearing sons, he had since added one Imperial Noble Consort, two consorts, one Noble Lady, and one Beauty… Like most men, His Majesty, even as he exercised authority, had begun to indulge his desires for women.

—