“Without a doubt, it is the Nineteenth Young Lady of the Chen Family.”
Ban Qin and Su Xin stood outside the door, listening to the voices coming from the main hall. The blush on their faces had long faded, replaced by a deathly pallor.
Chen Dan–niang! To become the Crown Princess!
Becoming the Crown Princess should be a momentous joy – but the current Crown Prince is a fool. This…
Marrying a fool is anything but a joyous occasion.
How could it be Dan–niang?
“Did Dan0niang visit the palace today?” asked Cheng Jiao-niang.
Eunuch Jing acknowledged it was so.
“She went this morning,” he replied.
Cheng Jiao-niang looked toward the door, gazing through the curtain at the courtyard now bathed in the glow of twilight.
“Not even waiting through the night – they truly are in a hurry,” she said.
…
“Of course they have to act quickly. When it comes to getting things done, one truly cannot afford to wait. The longer the night lasts, the more dreams – and complications – may arise.”
Meanwhile, Gao Lingjun stood beneath the corridor, watching several beautiful maids teasing a cat and sighing with emotion.
If it weren’t for having waited – even for a moment – the circumstances today might have turned out entirely different.
“With the shrewdness of Chen Shao and his father, they would certainly have noticed something amiss about the Chen family’s young lady entering the palace. And if they were to find out that the Empress Dowager’s gifts were given because she had been keeping the Crown Prince company in his games, they would undoubtedly have taken countermeasures.”
Now it was perfect. Before they could even react, the matter was laid out in the open – a preemptive strike, leaving those who follow in a passive position.
It was also high time for Chen Shao to taste a dose of his own medicine. Ever since the lunar eclipse, he had been holding back this resentment for far too long.
For someone as petty-natured as he, this taste must indeed be hard to swallow.
“The imperial edict was already drafted, just waiting for the right moment – and today turned out to be the day,” one of the advisors remarked with a smile. “Who would have thought it would be put to use so soon.”
Gao Lingjun chuckled.
“Like father, like daughter,” he said, stroking his beard. “The Eighteenth Young Lady of the Chen family truly acts with decisive resolve.”
“What’s most remarkable is that the Empress Dowager has taken a liking to her as well,” the advisor added with a grin.
“But in some matters, the Empress Dowager’s favor alone is not enough,” Gao Lingjun replied, waving his hand dismissively.
A maid promptly stepped forward to support him as he settled into the armchair.
“After all, who is Chen Shao?”
An evening breeze stirred in the late summer courtyard. Leaning back in his chair, Gao Lingjun let out a slow breath, his tone tinged with contentment.
“In governance, one must weigh gains and losses – how can decisions be swayed merely by personal likes or dislikes? There are many things one might enjoy, but does that mean all of them should be pursued? In the past, the Emperor himself was often reprimanded by Chen Shao for indulging in frivolous distractions. Conversely, there are matters Chen Shao would not avoid simply because he dislikes them.”
“Everything ultimately depends on whether it serves the greater good of the state and its governance.”
“Minister Chen is a loyal and righteous official. Though I am at odds with him, I do not deny this,” Gao Lingjun acknowledged.
The advisors smiled in agreement.
“Your Excellency is indeed magnanimous,” they praised.
“Still, Minister Chen must be deeply taken aback by this turn of events,” one of them remarked.
“Taken aback?” Gao Lingjun laughed softly, swinging his leg slightly in a gesture of inner satisfaction. “More than that – he is likely both shocked and outraged. And he will undoubtedly oppose it.”
“But in this world, how can everything go as one wishes? If even a daughter can grasp the situation and make a decisive choice, surely her father can do the same.”
…
“How could it be Dan-niang?” Ban Qin could not help murmuring under her breath.
Su Xin’s expression was no better. She pressed a finger to her lips in a hushing motion, then leaned in again to listen closely to the conversation inside the room.
“These past few days, the Empress Dowager has summoned many ladies from noble households into the palace, along with their children,” Eunuch Jing explained.
Now that the Crown Prince had been established, the matter of his grand wedding had been placed on the agenda. Everyone understood the purpose behind these frequent summons to the palace ladies of the capital.
Only, most of these ladies came from imperial relatives, powerful families, or highly ranked officials – not from the reserved and distinguished families of pure repute.
The Chen Shao household, in particular, had not been among them.
No one expected that although Madam Chen had not entered the palace, Chen Dan-niang had – and had even received gifts from the Empress Dowager.
“Out of all these people, only the young lady of the Chen family received rewards,” Eunuch Jing continued.
“So the choice of the Crown Princess is now perfectly clear,” Duke Jin’an said, his expression somewhat complicated. “In that case, this matter must have been agreed upon in advance…”
Otherwise, why would Chen Dan-niang have entered the palace at precisely this time?
“She even played ball with His Highness the Crown Prince,” Eunuch Jing added.
A look of joyful surprise surfaced on Duke Jin’an’s face.
“She wasn’t afraid of L – of the Crown Prince?” he asked, with a mix of nervousness and hope. “Did she genuinely play with him, or was it just…”
Or was it merely an act?
He knew what the Crown Prince was like. Strangers who had never met him would feel uneasy – even his own blood-related sisters in the palace feared and looked down on him…
No one truly treated him as a person.
The Empress Dowager had neither the time nor the heart to care for him properly, simply leaving him to the eunuchs and palace maids – who, in turn, grew increasingly negligent.
After all, a fool understood nothing and could not speak up.
To avoid accidents, he was shut inside a hall and not allowed out to play. To keep him seated, he was fed indiscriminately at all hours, growing fatter by the day.
Back then, Doctor Li had advised that because of his mental impairment and inability to sense hunger or fullness, the Crown Prince was prone to weight gain – he needed more running, jumping, and play, and his diet had to be controlled.
Yet no one paid it any mind…
Duke Jin’an’s expression dimmed with sorrow.
But if there really was someone who neither feared nor looked down on his Liu Ge’er -someone whose kindness was not an act driven by ulterior motives…
“Not at all.” Eunuch Jing naturally understood his thoughts and quickly replied with earnest seriousness. “I personally inquired and confirmed it repeatedly. When the young lady first saw His Highness the Crown Prince, she was indeed frightened. But later, she actively picked up His Highness’s ball and handed it back to him, coaxing him to play. There was no impatience, nor any forced pretense of not being afraid.”
For anyone, especially a girl of eleven or twelve, it is not easy to conceal one’s true feelings – particularly under the eyes of those in the palace, who are most accustomed to observing subtle expressions.
“She truly is a good child.” Duke Jin’an could not help but sigh with emotion. Then, as if remembering something, he turned to look at Cheng Jiao-niang. “I recall that the Chen family’s young lady has known you for the longest. If not for her, Old Master Chen at that time would not have known where to turn…”
Before he could finish his sentence, Cheng Jiao-niang stood up and walked out.
Duke Jin’an and Eunuch Jing were both left standing in place, first startled, then embarrassed.
Eunuch Jing was furious.
How could this girl be so… so utterly rude!
As Cheng Jiao-niang walked out, Ban Qin and Su Xin – still waiting outside the door -wore uneasy expressions, yet dared neither to stop her nor ask anything. They watched her enter the study.
After a moment’s hesitation, Banqin hurried after her. Suxin, meanwhile, took a deep breath and stepped into the hall.
“Your Highness… my mistress… she… it is time for her to practice calligraphy,” she explained, forcing a strained smile.
Eunuch Jing let out a slow, meaningful chuckle.
“Your mistress,” he drawled.
Su Xin’s smile grew even more awkward.
“I spoke wrongly–” She began to kneel, intending to apologize.
But before she could complete her words or fully kneel, Duke Jin’an cut in.
“I know. There’s no need to explain,” he said.
What he said was know, not understand – the difference in phrasing carried a completely different meaning. And on top of that, he added: There’s no need to explain.
Su Xin felt reassured. She gathered her courage and glanced at Duke Jin’an.
Though there was no smile on Duke Jin’an’s face, his expression remained calm and steady, without any other discernible emotion.
Suddenly, she recalled that young man from years ago – leaning over the wall, talking earnestly with her lady.
“Ah, that’s right,” the youth on the wall had said, his voice tinged with a hint of cheer.
“That’s an official main road. Wolves are clever – they’ve long since learned it’s no place to hunt for food. They rarely linger on such roads… unless instinct overrides acquired habit.”
“I checked later – it turned out to be blood. The bandits used horse blood as a lure behind us. We traveled at night, and the darkness covered it so we wouldn’t notice.”
“I read about it in The Forest Chronicles of Muzhai. Which book did you learn it from?”
Though the young man before her had now shed his boyishness, his features grown sharp and defined, in that moment everything seemed unchanged.
Su Xin knelt down and bowed her head to the ground.
“Yes,” she simply said.
A single word of affirmation, yet accompanied by such a profound gesture of respect.
“The maid raised by the Zhang family certainly knows her manners,” Eunuch Jing remarked, unable to hold back as he watched the retreating maid.
He said “the Zhang family,” not “Lady Cheng’s maid.”
Duke Jin’an smiled faintly.
“To consider others well-mannered is merely to have one’s own wishes met,” he said. “Whether someone is well-mannered or not is simply a matter of one’s own perception. In truth, we have no right to judge.”
Eunuch Jing was taken aback for a moment, then felt a dull resentment.
So, he’s still speaking for that girl…
“Ah-Jing, actually, it is I who have been discourteous,” Duke Jin’an said with a sigh. “I was following my own inclinations, but for her, the situation carries a different meaning.”
Eunuch Jing paused briefly before understanding dawned.
For Duke Jin’an, securing a Crown Princess who neither looked down upon nor ill-treated the Crown Prince was a matter of comfort and satisfaction – a joy befitting a relative of the Crown Prince. But for the relatives on the Crown Princess’s side, having a child they cherished and cared for married to a fool – no matter how noble his status – could hardly be a cause for happiness.
And compared to the Crown Prince, Cheng Jiao-niang was surely closer to Chen Dan-niang.
“But this wasn’t something Your Highness decided.”
Eunuch Jing spoke with a hint of grievance. Seeing how deeply His Highness considered her feelings, why couldn’t she do the same for him?
How could she simply turn and walk away like that – and right in front of a servant, too? She truly spared no thought for His Highness’s dignity. It was just too much.
“Besides, shouldn’t Your Highness be allowed to feel joy as well?”
“Of course I am allowed to feel joy,” Duke Jin’an replied. “But how, then, can I demand that she not feel sorrow?”
…
In the study, Cheng Jiao-niang’s expression remained as composed as ever, yet the ink from her brushstrokes flowed slightly darker and heavier than usual.
Beside her, Ban Qin knelt in a daze, lost in thought, when a sudden tear fell. Startled back to herself, she hurriedly wiped it away, as if afraid someone might see.
“If even at home one cannot cry freely, then where can one?” Cheng Jiao-niang said quietly.
Ban Qin’s tears then fell in a steady stream.
“Miss… how could Minister Chen possibly agree to let Dan-niang marry the Crown Prince?” she wept.
Cheng Jiao-niang set down her brush.
“I don’t believe he did agree,” she replied.
Ban Qin stared at her in surprise, then quickly lifted her head.
He didn’t? But earlier, Eunuch Jing said that during the selection of the Crown Princess, the Chen family had sent Dan–niang into the palace – didn’t that mean they were willing?
Could it truly be otherwise?
A flicker of hopeful joy showed on Ban Qin’s face.
“Then… Dan-niang won’t have to marry him, will she?” she asked with rising expectation. “Minister Chen would certainly refuse, wouldn’t he?”
Cheng Jiao-niang did not look at her, but kept her gaze on the characters written on the paper.
“I think he will agree,” she said slowly.
Ban Qin was stunned.
If you said he didn’t agree earlier, how can you now say he will?
How could Minister Chen possibly agree? That’s Dan–niang we’re talking about!
Unconsciously, Ban Qin sat up straighter, her hands clenched tightly, tears once again welling in her eyes.
…
In the courtyard of the Chen residence, the incense altar remained set up, bathed in the lingering glow of the sunset that painted the ground in shades of crimson.
The eunuch holding the imperial decree now had sweat beading on his forehead as he watched Chen Shao, who had been kneeling for a long time.
“Minister Chen, what is the meaning of this?” he said. “You must give a reply. How can we just let things hang like this? It is not appropriate.”
Chen Shao raised his head. The last gleam of sunlight had already vanished from the horizon, yet his eyes still seemed to sting, forcing him to blink briefly.
When he opened them again, his expression had regained its solemn composure, as if he had reached a resolution.
“I beg Her Majesty the Empress Dowager’s forgiveness, but I… cannot accept this edict,” he said, then bowed deeply.
As these words were spoken, Madam Chen, kneeling behind him, could no longer restrain herself. She covered her mouth with a hand to stifle the sob that threatened to escape, and her body seemed to slump as if drained of all strength.
The eunuch who had delivered the decree, however, showed no surprise. It seemed he had already anticipated this reaction.
“Is that so?” he said slowly, raising an eyebrow, his gaze fixed imperiously on Chen Shao. “Minister Chen, I presume you have thought this through before speaking?”
