Thus, when Consort Jing went into labor, the Empress bribed her maid to burn a specific incense in her chamber. The incense contained musk that could cause miscarriage and infertility. Since Consort Jing loved fragrances, this scent blended with the others remained undetectable. As for how the Empress managed to bribe Consort Jing’s maid – it was simply through threats and enticements.
Consort Jing’s servants were as guileless as she was, making them easy for the Empress to manipulate. Two months before Consort Jing’s due date, the Empress went to Mount Wutai, supposedly to pray for the unborn child’s blessing. Since the Empress wasn’t present the night Consort Jing died, there was no evidence against her.
Countless women died in the palace each year, so even though Consort Jing was the Emperor’s most beloved, he only grieved for a while before falling silent. Even if he suspected the Empress’s involvement, he was powerless. The Empress wasn’t just a woman – she represented the political forces the Emperor needed. The Empress, knowing this, had dared to commit such a bold act.
With Consort Jing and the unborn prince dead, Fu Yun Xi and the Crown Prince remained. The Empress raised them under her name, maintaining her reputation for virtue and tolerance. Even Consort Jing had been close to her, and Fu Yun Xi and the Crown Prince had been very attached to her at the time.
The Emperor had no reason to refuse to let the Empress raise Fu Yun Xi and the Crown Prince – it would legitimize the future succession. However, fearing the Empress’s ulterior motives, he repeatedly warned the brothers to be wary of her. But children, being naturally innocent, knew nothing of human treachery or the ambition hidden behind smiling masks. After the Emperor’s death, the Empress became Empress Dowager, the Crown Prince ascended the throne, and soon the Empress Dowager completely won the brothers’ trust and respect.
The Empress Dowager ordered the imperial kitchen to prepare medicinal meals for the brothers daily. That day, the snow lotus from the mountains was too precious, and the Emperor, concerned for his sickly brother, gave his portion to Fu Yun Xi, unknowingly causing his closest kin to consume a double dose of poison. The cold poison thus took root in his body.
Fu Yun Xi was in his teens when, one afternoon, wanting to speak with the Empress Dowager, he accidentally overheard her conversation with her lady-in-waiting and learned the truth about Consort Jing’s death. He was both furious and shocked. For so many years, he had treated his mother’s murderer as his closest family member, making him want to rush in and kill that hypocrite immediately. But he knew he couldn’t – his brother had just ascended the throne and hadn’t consolidated his power. Many court officials were the Empress Dowager’s people, and confronting her would only cause trouble for his brother.
He could only swallow his pain and keep it from his brother, who was more impulsive and might have confronted the Empress Dowager directly. To avenge his mother and help his brother secure the throne, he had to bide his time, cultivate his power, and wait until he no longer needed to fear Empress Dowager’s influence before exposing her crimes and avenging his mother.
The fastest way to build power was to gain military authority. But military authority alone wasn’t enough – he needed to establish his reputation within the army. Still a youth, he went to war against Western Rong against his brother’s wishes, firstly to have time away from the palace to strategize, and secondly to accumulate power for eventually confronting the Empress Dowager.
As for how the Crown Prince had maintained his position for so many years – it was an accident. The Empress Dowager had planned to control both brothers with cold poison, and then install a puppet ruler after their deaths. Unexpectedly, Fu Yun Xi consumed all the medicinal meals, leaving the Emperor unharmed. The Empress Dowager’s plans were thwarted. Watching the Emperor’s growing political achievements and increasing supporters at court made her anxious. Moreover, she hadn’t anticipated that the young Fu Yun Xi would return victorious after a year, establishing his military reputation through brilliant achievements, and becoming too powerful to ignore.
These two had escaped her control, making things difficult for her. As the Empress Dowager’s influence weakened and their power grew stronger, it should have been the perfect opportunity.
But at this critical moment, Fu Yun Xi’s cold poison manifested.
It was hard to say if this was good or bad luck – the double dose of cold poison caused early onset, but fortunately, Master Wu witnessed it. Though he couldn’t cure it, his superior medical skills did suppress some of the toxicity.
Finally, Fu Yun Xi had enough power to maneuver freely in court, and no one dared underestimate him. His brother had become a wise ruler, and the country was stable and prosperous, but before he could punish his enemy, his own life was slipping away.
His tone remained calm as if speaking of someone else’s story. Yet Han Yan could hear in his detached voice the pain of that hatred-filled youth who had maneuvered carefully, protecting himself and his brother in the bloodless battles of the palace, finally becoming this detached, handsome young man.
“Back then… did you ever despair?” Han Yan asked. In truth, Fu Yun Xi’s life closely paralleled Han Yan’s previous life. Both lost their mothers early, faced surrounding treachery alone and mistook enemies for family – except Fu Yun Xi discovered the Empress Dowager’s true nature early on. Han Yan only realized her life had been a lie at the moment of her death. In such circumstances, with no one to help, the suffering must have been intense. Had Fu Yun Xi, like Han Yan before, ever felt helpless and desperate?
“Never,” Fu Yun Xi lowered his eyes. “Despair won’t bring vengeance,” he said.
Despair was meaningless to Fu Yun Xi, who approached everything with a strong purpose. One reason Empress Dowager hadn’t anticipated events developing this way was that she underestimated the youth’s endurance. He could endure more than anyone and showed himself no mercy. He possessed a heart naturally suited for palace survival – too hard and too shrewd. He didn’t despair because despair would offer no help in his revenge. What he needed was to live ambitiously.
He had succeeded. Now he possessed power and status that no one could challenge. Even bedridden, he could arrange everything with composure – including his counterattack against the Empress Dowager.
Han Yan said: “So even now, you haven’t despaired, have you?”
As long as one doesn’t despair, there’s always hope. If Fu Yun Xi hadn’t despaired in such circumstances before, surely he wouldn’t give up hope now. The most frightening thing would be if he did nothing and accepted his fate – that would truly be terrible.
Hearing this, Fu Yun Xi smiled slightly: “That’s right.”
This smile brought warmth back to his cold features. Han Yan reached out and wrapped her arms around his waist, burying her head deep in his embrace. Fu Yun Xi’s body was ice-cold, and even Han Yan felt as if she’d entered a freezing cellar, barely able to endure the cold. If she felt this way just from contact, what torment must Fu Yun Xi endure day and night from the cold poison?