I stared in shock for a very long time, finally clapping my hands together: “So it was him!”

Han Fei could barely keep his eyes open, twitching his lips: “What kind of reaction is this from the Princess?”

I placed my palm over my forehead, blinked hard, and laughed: “You don’t know—ever since returning to court, I’ve been worried all along. My Crown Prince brother looks so loyal and kind-hearted, how could he shoulder great responsibilities in the future? Would he be eliminated the moment I turned my back? Now I can finally breathe a sigh of relief. Turns out he’s quite strategic and capable of grand planning after all. He even managed to scheme against me—truly teachable.”

Han Fei: “…Princess, could you please stay away from me? I’m afraid I might not be able to resist committing treason…”

I tactfully stepped back two paces: “Alright, you know I’m just comforting myself, trying hard to view developments from another angle. Don’t you think this is a positive, optimistic attitude toward life?”

Han Fei: “This isn’t called optimism—it’s called being oblivious…”

Truly oblivious indeed.

The Crown Prince.

Though this answer was unexpected, it was also reasonable.

Two years ago in winter, when Father Emperor fell ill, amid the opposition and impeachment from all civil and military officials, he—only fourteen years old—walked into the center of political storms.

Before this, there was a Crown Prince named Xiao Jinglan who enjoyed the Emperor’s favor and officials’ respect. In court, he eliminated corruption and promoted virtue; among the people, he was elegant and magnanimous. He could be said to be the most dazzling prince in Bianjing.

From then on, Xiao Qitang, who had been inseparable from Xiao Jinglan and was Qing Kingdom’s most imperious princess, became his regent assistant. Whether it was the Chief Minister, Vice Minister, the four great families, or princes and nobles—all looked to the Princess’s face.

I think I had always forgotten that the Crown Prince was almost seventeen now. And I had taken hold of this regency seal precisely at seventeen.

Han Fei interrupted my thoughts: “What is the Princess thinking?”

I closed my eyes, then opened them again: “Many things suddenly flashed through my mind. It seems I need more stimulation to recover sooner. Han Fei, how did you learn about the Crown Prince poisoning me? Do you have solid evidence?”

Han Fei placed his hands on his chest: “Does the Princess remember anything about you and the Consort?”

I shook my head.

“I only know that during the half year after your marriage to the Consort, you barely spoke to me. Then one day you suddenly came to me and gave me a pill, asking me to investigate its origins.”

I thought for a moment: “Soul-Forgetting Powder?”

Han Fei nodded: “I investigated that pill’s source and general effects. It would cause amnesia for two years, then either death or recovery—that pill was non-lethal.”

I was dumbfounded: “Was it… Song Langsheng’s medicine? So I knew at the time?”

Han Fei smiled: “Princess Highness, you’ve always been exceptionally clever with few equals. Though the Consort seems cold and aloof, he’s straightforward. When doing something against his conscience, he leaves obvious traces—how could you not notice? However, at that time the Consort hadn’t yet poisoned you. He seemed to still be hesitating, and the Princess deliberately gave him several chances. Finally, the Consort seemed determined to give up, so the Princess was quite happy then, bustling about preparing for his birthday celebration. The reason I asserted the poison you took wasn’t administered by him is because his pill had long been switched by you. The real poison was always hidden by the Princess yourself.”

I breathed a sigh of relief, then took another breath: “But how do you say it was the Crown Prince?”

“At that time, I discovered that the shopkeeper Kang Lin’s mansion suddenly had several boxes of gold, an amount roughly matching what the Consort paid. Most likely someone else had him make Soul-Forgetting Powder, so I investigated along this line—after all, the Princess has a poor reputation and many enemies. Perhaps it was one of your formidable opponents who spent heavily? Though the gold surface was polished and its origin couldn’t be confirmed, the locks on the boxes containing the gold looked familiar in craftsmanship. Following this lead, I found this was specifically made by carpenters working for the palace. Later, hidden scouts reported that the person with closest dealings with these carpenters was Eunuch Cheng beside the Crown Prince. So the Crown Prince is the prime suspect.”

I wiped the cold sweat from my forehead: “How terrifying.”

Han Fei stood with hands behind his back: “Yes, the Crown Prince’s scheming is indeed quite deep.”

I said: “I meant you.”

Han Fei: “…”

“You can discover such trivial matters. I definitely should stay far away from you.”

“Princess,” Han Fei said, “please don’t call the pot black.”

I stopped joking and sighed deeply: “That only proves the Crown Prince bought Soul-Forgetting Powder, not that he was the one who drugged me.”

Han Fei said: “If not the Consort, it could only be him. Of course, there’s a third possibility.”

I asked: “What?”

“Kang Lin.” Han Fei seemed to smile but didn’t: “He could make medicine in any quantity. Perhaps he’s also one of the many men hurt by the Princess. Bearing a grudge, he poisoned you, then to cover his crimes…”

“Hey, hey.” I cut off his words, re-examining him: “I say, Han Fei, I remember the first time—ah, the first time since my amnesia in the main hall—when the Consort said a few words to you, you were speechless. I always thought you were the naturally naive type. How is your tongue also so sharp…”

Upon hearing this, Han Fei’s entire face fell: “Speaking of this makes me angry. To conceal my true reason for being in the mansion and honor my agreement with the Princess, I could only pretend to be powerlessly kidnapped to serve as a male favorite. Who knew the Consort still found me disagreeable, speaking with veiled mockery and pointed implications. Princess, let me tell you—the Consort always likes using those irrelevant and inexplicable words and behaviors to confuse people. When others find themselves speechless, they actually think he’s…” Here Han Fei circled his finger around his temple. “Yet he’s smugly pleased, thinking his words are sharp and unmatched…”

I recalled briefly and felt his words weren’t unreasonable, so I nodded: “So you also suffered a bellyful of anger from the Consort… How about this—this Princess permits you to settle scores with him before leaving. Remember to guard against his actions, not words. You also said he’s irrelevant and unclear in reasoning.”

Han Fei smiled, then again showed a sighing expression: “The Princess knows the truth yet still insists on following the Crown Prince’s wishes to send me as Surveillance Commissioner to Jiangsu-Zhejiang? The Crown Prince clearly wants to remove me from the Princess’s side. And now, how many people the Princess can trust and how much power you can wield—even you don’t know. Perhaps you’ve been sidelined, perhaps there are hidden schemes. The so-called regency is just an empty shell…”

I don’t know why, but seeing Han Fei chattering away, so different from his usual cold demeanor, a warmth rose in my heart.

In this world, there’s finally someone who cares about me regardless of consequences.

“Because you’re a very suitable candidate.” I smiled unnaturally: “Saying this might make me seem hypocritical, but Jiangsu-Zhejiang needs you, and the people need you.”

Something flickered in Han Fei’s eyes.

“As for the Crown Prince… if he truly was the one who poisoned me, then what I took was lethal poison. If I can’t even save my life, what does it matter if the position is hollow?” I relaxed my brow: “But… I still want to believe he didn’t poison me.”

Han Fei frowned: “The Princess doesn’t trust me?”

I said: “I can’t easily trust anyone. To put it harshly, from Song Langsheng to the Crown Prince, Kang Lin, Zhou Wenyu, you, even Eunuch Cheng beside the Crown Prince—as long as any one person lies, there would be different conclusions. Perhaps Song Langsheng is the mastermind, perhaps Kang Lin made more than two pills, perhaps Zhou Wenyu was sent by the Crown Prince to mislead me, perhaps you were sent by Chief Minister Zhao or Prince Kang to sow discord between the Crown Prince and me. Maybe Eunuch Cheng secretly colluded with other powers behind the Crown Prince’s back. Whatever the case, none would benefit me.”

Han Fei considered this and nodded.

I couldn’t help but laugh: “I’m suspecting you, you know.”

Han Fei said: “The Princess speaks reasonably. As long as my conscience is clear, what’s the big deal?”

I said: “It’s because the person questioning you isn’t someone you care most about, right? What if it were Fang Yachen?”

Han Fei’s whole body shook, his face turning pale: “Princess… have you remembered?”

I answered truthfully: “Not really. I mainly feel you two are a bit strange. You want me to keep him safe, he won’t let me mention you. I thought… you two aren’t… you know… cut-sleeves, are you?”

Han Fei was shocked, his face completely red: “Princess… what are you saying… we’re not, he and I are just ordinary…”

I interrupted: “Alright, I understand from your reaction.”

“No, we really are just…”

“From now on, you’re no longer part of the Princess mansion. I’m officially throwing you out.” I sighed and shook my head: “What a family disgrace…”

“…”

I turned to leave, waving high behind me: “Remember to explain clearly to your father when you pack up. He’s truly heartbroken. I just don’t know if knowing the truth would make him even more devastated…”

…

After leaving the South Garden, I went straight back to my bedroom, barred the door, passed through the curtains, and stopped beside the bed in the inner chamber.

On both sides of the bed were tables and cabinets, while the headboard rested against a stone wall. The wall wasn’t painted but made of natural blue jade stone bricks, extremely gorgeous and luxurious.

I had always thought this was because the former Princess Xiangyi was too extravagant.

I looked at this jade wall with its hundred-odd stone bricks, taking them all in from top to bottom. I closed my eyes, recalling how the former me had also stood here, then…

I reached out and gently pushed at a certain stone brick—the brick with the mechanism slowly moved out in response, exactly as in my memory. This was a hollow stone hiding precious objects.

A gold token and a bronze tiger tally.

In that instant, what flashed through my mind weren’t just memories related to the Crown Prince, but also Father Emperor’s words.

The cause and effect weren’t clear yet, but I remembered Father Emperor dismissing the inner attendants in the imperial study and showing me these two items.

He said: “This token belongs to the Mingjian Bureau.”

“Mingjian Bureau?”

“As Emperor, I sit in the palace daily reviewing memorials. Most of the time, I only see what ministers are willing to show me—whether monopolizing power or… whitewashing peace. I naturally have trustworthy loyal subjects, but state instruments cannot be given to others, and factional struggles must be balanced.”

I said: “Father Emperor means the Mingjian Bureau is a secret organization directly under Father Emperor, specially carrying out Father Emperor’s secret orders, investigating various court and civilian matters?”

Father Emperor said: “When necessary, it can act secretly without following legal procedures.”

My whole body shook, yet I didn’t know how to respond. He said: “Xiangyi, serving as Princess Regent is truly difficult. Officials will certainly obstruct you, and you’ll encounter more unpredictable conspiracies. Father Emperor knows you dislike such underhanded affairs, but you must keep this. For Father Emperor, for the Crown Prince—preserve this peaceful, prosperous age.”

After I accepted it, he brought out the tiger tally and imperial decree, saying seriously: “The capital’s 200,000 troops can be deployed at will with this tally.”

I said sternly: “Father Emperor, what you’ve given me isn’t a token and tiger tally—this is clearly making me a target. If the Crown Prince learns of this…”

Father Emperor said: “Jingyan is still young. Today I grant you the regency instead of him—he must feel… Xiangyi, you should understand, this isn’t just a tiger tally but your protective talisman and Daqing’s lifeline. Used well, it benefits country and people; used poorly, it brings disaster to country and people.”

Father Emperor seemed to say much more that day, but I couldn’t remember everything at once. I caressed the token and tiger tally, thinking much with lowered eyes, then returned them to their place.

It wasn’t yet time to use them.

I casually picked up a brush and wrote several names on paper at the desk, from Song Langsheng to the Crown Prince… Wait, did I miss someone just now?

Xu Fang. No, I should say Nie Ran.

If Kang Lin and Zhou Wenyu spoke truly—that there’s no medicine in the world that causes temporary amnesia—then Nie Ran was lying. But if Xu Fang truly existed, then the two divine physicians were lying, perhaps knowing the truth and deliberately misleading me…

I threw the brush back on the desk, feeling increasingly frustrated.

Who should I believe?

I fell back onto the soft couch and rolled around several times, trying to calm myself. Speaking of which, where did I hide the imperial decree Father Emperor gave me that day? It seemed to be… sewn into bedding. I hurriedly sat up and searched up and down, suddenly remembering… at the Imperial Academy, Song Langsheng had sent over that well-used bedding… So the secret decree was now in my chamber at the Imperial Academy?!

Oh no! I’d been missing for several days—surely that bedding hadn’t been disposed of?

I jumped up in alarm and rushed out to order servants to prepare a carriage. Then I thought better of it—letting people know the Princess had once disguised herself as an Imperial Academy student was one thing, but making a big show of returning for bedding would definitely arouse suspicion. I returned to change into student robes before hurrying to the Imperial Academy.

The Imperial Academy was still that riot of purples and reds.

This refers to the Academy’s pleasant scenery, set against the students’ uniform blue robes fluttering about. I kept my head down, moving at a moderate pace through the crowd, naturally keeping a low profile.

Facts proved my idea too naive and romantic. At the next corner, I heard someone behind me call: “Bai Yujing!”

I slowly turned around, looking up at this high-spirited young man: “You… are?”

“Don’t you recognize me? I’m Su Qiao.”

The one who praised me as handsome as Pan An when I first entered the Imperial Academy? I quickly cupped my hands: “Brother Su from Luzhou! Oh my, forgive me—I’m somewhat face-blind and don’t recognize people well.”

Su Qiao waved dismissively, completely unconcerned, then said: “Brother Bai, where have you been these past few days?”

I said: “That day I learned someone at home… in my family had fallen seriously ill, so I hurried back. Fortunately, it wasn’t serious… I can finally return with peace of mind.” Fearing he wouldn’t believe me, I added: “I naturally reported and received permission from the Chancellor before leaving smoothly.”

Su Qiao sighed: “Sigh, you’re fine, but someone else nearly lost his life because of your disappearance.”

I didn’t react immediately: “Whose life? How does it relate to me?”

Su Qiao said urgently and angrily: “Brother Lu! You two seemed close—how could you leave without telling him?”

Lu Lingjun?

Oh no! At that time, my mind was entirely focused on Nie Ran’s sudden appearance. I was completely bewildered, then fell seriously ill after returning. When I awoke, I was troubled by the Soul-Forgetting Powder matter. How could I have completely forgotten about this guy?

Update divider line

I quickly asked: “What exactly happened to Brother Lu?”

Su Qiao said: “Him? After you left that day, Brother Lu searched for you frantically, nearly turning the entire Imperial Academy upside down. Later he had to go outside to look. He skipped classes, missed dormitory checks, and even failed to appear for the metropolitan examination. Just then we got a new Director of Studies, and new officials always need to make their mark. He caught Lu and severely punished him with thirty rod strikes… Who knew Brother Lu paid no heed, sneaking out again before his wounds healed. He even drew your portrait to file with the authorities. Fortunately… the Chancellor learned of this and stopped it, directly dragging him back for solitary confinement… Two days without food or drink. When they released him, they found he was burning with fever. Any later and who knows what disaster might have occurred…”

The more I listened, the more I felt my sins were grave, yet this was indeed his usual style. I asked again: “How is he now? Are his injuries healed?”

Su Qiao nodded then shook his head: “His injuries are healed, but due to the Chancellor’s orders, several of us take turns watching him to prevent him from running out and causing trouble again. He feels we’re restricting his freedom and spends all day lying around throwing tantrums. Sigh… if not for being fellow students, I would have long ago…” He raised his fist toward the air: “beaten him up.”

I couldn’t help but laugh. With Lu Lingjun’s martial arts skills, others probably couldn’t beat him up. His tantrums were probably just because he found teasing everyone amusing. I said: “How about… you quickly take me to see him.”

Toward Lu Lingjun, I felt somewhat guilty. I treated him like a passing cloud, yet he turned heaven and earth upside down several times for this chance-met brother. I truly couldn’t compare.

Well, that was my mental state before seeing Lu Lingjun. Until I reached his dormitory door and saw him lounging with his legs crossed, domineeringly telling the two people inside: “I’ll never again look for that disloyal, uncultured, narrow-minded, short, and spineless Bai Yujing! Rest your hearts completely—I’ll treat him like a random stranger. Once we turn away, who’ll remember who? Would I hold grudges?”

Seeing my expression wasn’t right, Su Qiao quickly coughed forcefully. Lu Lingjun turned impatiently: “Why are you here again to…” He stopped abruptly upon seeing me.

“Bai… Brother Bai, how are you here?” Lu Lingjun strode forward, gripping my shoulders and scanning me up and down: “Are you alright? I thought you…”

“Just family emergencies.” I raised an eyebrow: “Such a disloyal, uncultured, narrow-minded, short, and spineless person still troubles Brother Lu’s concern—truly overwhelming for this younger brother.”

Lu Lingjun first breathed a sigh of relief, then scratched his nose sheepishly: “I didn’t mean that—I just said it to make them lower their guard…”

The two people inside weren’t pleased hearing this. The slightly plump student said: “Fine Lu Lingjun, we treated you sincerely yet you only thought of scheming against us…”

The other tall, thin student chimed in: “Don’t you think about how much trouble you’ve caused us these days…”

I curved my lips: “Exactly. Brother Su even said I wasn’t here caused you such great trouble…”

Lu Lingjun nodded rather pitifully: “Mm!”

The plump student spread his hands: “If Bai Yujing weren’t a man, I’d suspect he was lovesick…”

The thin student shrugged: “Could be cut-sleeves too…”

Lu Lingjun protested with a “hey,” saying: “Your jokes aren’t funny. Brother Bai has no sense of humor and will take it seriously…”

This time I was truly amused by their “humor.” I turned and cupped my hands: “May I know how to address you two?”

The plump student returned the courtesy: “Li Wen.”

The thin student leisurely waved his folding fan: “Du Fei.”

Lu Lingjun glared at them again: “If there were introductions to make, I should have made them… Hehe, Brother Bai, these two guys are my followers. From now on, feel free to order them around—they’ll die ten thousand deaths without regret…”

Li Wen glanced sideways, Du Fei rolled his eyes—clearly expressing full disdain for Lu Lingjun’s words. I punched Lu Lingjun’s shoulder and laughed heartily. Lu Lingjun frowned: “What are you laughing at?”

“Hey, don’t you notice something about our five names?” I pointed them out individually: “Li, Du, Su, Lu, Bai.”

Lu Lingjun’s frown relaxed into understanding, and he jumped, also laughing: “Interesting, interesting.” When he laughed, Li Wen and Du Fei also chuckled, leaving only Su Qiao confused: “What’s the problem?”

Li Wen said: “Li Bai, Du Fu, Su Shi, Lu You, Bai Juyi.” Du Fei said: “We’ve occupied all the surnames of the great literary figures throughout history.”

Lu Lingjun squinted: “Since it’s such a coincidence, why don’t we change how we address each other? All this ‘brother this, brother that’ is too formal. Let’s go Li One, Du Two, Su Three, Lu Four, Bai Five… Hmm, this ranking seems just right for our ages too…”

Li Wen—oh, Li One—complained: “Why does my name sound the strangest…”

Du Two said: “I don’t like the character ‘two.'”

Lu Lingjun said: “I got stuck with the most unlucky number—be satisfied…”

I shrugged: “Five is fine with me.”

After our round of joking, Su Qiao standing aside suddenly burst into laughter: “Hahaha, how is this so perfect? Our surnames match the Immortal Poet and Sage Poet… Hahaha, so interesting…”

The other four present stared at the slow-reacting Su Three: “…”

Of course, at this moment we absolutely couldn’t predict that the Five Young Masters of the Imperial Academy’s Guangwen Hall would create such tremendous waves in the not-distant future, causing earth-shaking disasters. What specifically, I won’t mention yet—let’s continue with the normal narrative sequence.

After I returned… well, I originally only came back to check the bedding. Fortunately, both bedding and decree were there. I secured the decree, then was dragged by Lu Lingjun and the others to drink until I returned to the Imperial Academy completely drunk. Several people sprawled on the ground sleeping loudly until 3 AM, when I remembered I should have returned to the Princess mansion after getting what I needed. What was I still doing here?

I planned to leave, but turning around, I saw Lu Lingjun dead drunk, tightly hugging my foot, mumbling: “Brother Bai, don’t you not drink at all…”

These words struck me unexpectedly.

I looked around at the several people scattered about the room. They were all students from common families who studied hard to enter the Imperial Academy, with grand ideals and aspirations. Perhaps in the future they’d clash in court due to different positions, but at least at this moment, they all truly considered each other friends.

I carefully extricated myself and tiptoed out. The night wind rose, somewhat chilly. I draped my outer robe and wandered aimlessly.

Friend—just an extremely ordinary word, yet why did it leave me inexplicably cold? As He Feng, who were her friends? As Xiao Qitang, what friends did she have?

Without schemes, without probing—just pure friendship. Couldn’t I find even one such person?

Under the pale moonlight, a figure passed by under the trees. I reflexively dodged, then peeked out curiously. Strange—at this hour, where was Fang Yachen hurrying to?

Curiosity killed the cat. But I’m a princess, not a cat, so I could only let curiosity drive me to stealthily follow.

Fang Yachen headed north. After exiting the back gate, he went straight up the mountain beside the Imperial Academy. Following him was quite tiring—I nearly gave up several times. Fortunately, he stopped halfway up the mountain. I looked carefully and saw it was a hot spring pool. Looking again, Fang Yachen began undressing.

…

I quickly covered my eyes. So after all this trouble, he’d just come to bathe in hot springs. The sound of “splash splash” water reached me. Cough Seems he’d stripped completely. Thinking this, my old face heated up. I turned away, then turned back, thinking—since I’d once had male favorites, what harm in looking?

So in my several hesitant turns, I saw Fang Yachen’s body.

I wasn’t mistaken—I used such a subtle word as “body,” because I saw full breasts and beautiful curves.

Yes… no mistake…

No, what was this… Fang Yachen was a woman!

I covered my mouth with one hand and my heart with the other: So Princess Xiangyi was attracted to both men and women…

Alright, no more joking. I resumed a serious expression and sighed into the vast night—so Han Fei wasn’t cut-sleeve. Aside from the mystery of why I’d have a cross-dressing female favorite being too bizarre, basically many things could be explained.

I crouched in the corner until Fang Yachen finished bathing, dried off, dressed, and gracefully departed. Then I moved to the hot spring edge, feeling the steaming hot water, and swallowed.

Since I was here, reeking of alcohol, there was no reason not to take advantage.

This spring seemed to flow down from the mountain and gather here. Steam rose from the surface—not deep. Once my body sank into the water, I felt warm, moist waves washing over me. Soaking in the water felt like thousands of hands gently massaging my body—extremely comfortable.

So the seemingly quiet Fang Yachen was actually quite good at enjoying life.

I watched the crescent moon rippling on the water surface, splashing water with my hands. The sounds of water flowing scattered my fatigue with the flowing light, bringing unusual comfort.

Having drunk fine wine immersed in beautiful scenery, if there were music to enhance the mood, it would be perfect.

Whether from drinking or the late hour, I felt drowsy, leaning hazily against the stone wall, half-dreaming, half-awake. Vaguely, I seemed to hear flute music coming and going.

Until I was suddenly awakened by my head dropping, realizing I’d dozed off, I quickly forced my eyes open. What a joke—if you fall asleep while hot spring bathing, you won’t see tomorrow’s sun.

Wake up, wake up—I warned myself thus. But my body wouldn’t obey, unable to summon strength. In my struggle between heaven and man, I desperately hoped something could thoroughly wake me.

Later, whenever I recalled this period, I concluded one of my inherent traits—thinking bad thoughts comes true.

I heard from behind me, no, very close, almost directly overhead, a man’s warm, gentle voice carried on the breeze: “Which hall student are you? Why are you here so late at night?”

My whole body froze like an ice sculpture. In that instant, this pool of hot water felt colder than ice springs.

This voice was too familiar.

None other than Nie Ran.