The banquet, sparked to life by a grand firework display, became livelier than ever. But because of that same spectacle, everything that followed seemed dull in comparison. The guests—pillars of the capital’s elite—were bound by decorum and couldn’t leave early, so they idly drank and chatted to pass the time.
Feng Lezhen had just finished her third cup of alcohol and was about to pour a fourth when Fu Zhixian reached out and took the cup from her hand.
“With such terrible alcohol, Your Highness should drink less,” he said.
Feng Lezhen: “So you think it tastes bad too?”
“It’s awful,” Fu Zhixian replied, frowning deeply.
Feng Lezhen’s eyes lit up with a smile. She was about to say something when a few slightly tipsy young nobles quietly approached the platform. Out of sight of their fathers and elder brothers, they began calling out to “Brother Fu” and, upon catching Feng Lezhen’s gaze, quickly bowed and greeted her respectfully.
Compared to the stiff and proper ones, Feng Lezhen much preferred these carefree scoundrels. Fu Zhixian clearly felt the same, as his usual companions were all this type. Hearing his friends call to him, he looked at Feng Lezhen, both amused and helpless. “Your Highness?”
Feng Lezhen glanced toward the seat of Qing Wangfei and noticed it was now empty.
“Go on,” she said with a smile.
Fu Zhixian immediately left the platform and joined his peers. Feng Lezhen, now alone, felt even more bored. She reached for her alcohol cup, only to grab at empty air.
…That b*stard Fu Zhixian had taken the cup with him. She stared wordlessly at the table for a long while, then came back to herself, both annoyed and amused.
Qing Wangfei soon returned, but this time without Liang Yue’er. Feng Lezhen asked Ah Ye to bring her another cup. She filled it but only toyed with it between her fingers.
A moment later, a startled cry rose from below the platform, drawing Feng Lezhen’s attention.
“This servant deserves death! I dirtied Lord Fu’s robes. Please forgive me, my lord!” cried a maid, who had dropped a dish and splashed soup all over Fu Zhixian.
“You fool! Can’t you watch where you’re going?” one of the young nobles who had called Fu Zhixian over earlier scolded casually. He quickly pulled out a handkerchief to help wipe the stains. “Brother Fu, are you alright?”
“Don’t bother. You’ll just smear it more,” Fu Zhixian sighed.
While they spoke, Qing Wangfei came over. “Someone, drag this clumsy girl out of here.”
“Yes, ma’am!” Several servants immediately hauled the maid away.
“Lord Fu, were you scalded?” Qing Wangfei asked with concern.
“The soup was cold. I’m not burned.” Fu Zhixian smiled. “It wasn’t intentional. Please don’t punish her too harshly.”
“You’re too kind, Lord Fu.” Qing Wangfei frowned slightly. “I must apologize. I’ve been widowed for years, and there are no suitable clothes in the residence for you to change into. Luckily, the Fu residence is not far. If you don’t mind, I’ll have a servant fetch some garments for you. Would you care to wait in a guest room in the meantime?”
Fu Zhixian felt it was unnecessary—he could simply leave. But then Qing Wangfei added, “This incident today is my fault. Please give me the chance to make it right.”
If he left now, it would look like he was making a fuss over a widow. Yet wearing dirty clothes was truly uncomfortable. Helpless, he glanced toward Feng Lezhen.
“I’ll be back soon,” he mouthed to her, then followed the servant away.
After he left, Feng Lezhen looked at Ah Ye beside her. Ah Ye understood immediately and followed.
The banquet continued with singing and dancing. When Qing Wangfei returned to the high platform, she wore a confident smile and even initiated conversation with Feng Lezhen. “Lord Fu must’ve gone to great lengths to please Your Highness today.”
Feng Lezhen toyed with her cup. “He’s my fiancé. Pleasing me is only natural.”
“Your Highness and Lord Fu share a deep bond. It’s quite enviable.” Qing Wangfei’s voice rose slightly, drawing everyone’s attention.
Feng Lezhen shook her head at the comment, finding the woman pitifully foolish.
Qing Wangfei was about to say more when a servant rushed over and whispered something in her ear. Her face immediately changed. “What?!”
The next moment, she left the banquet in haste, abandoning the gathered guests and stirring a wave of speculation.
Feng Lezhen calmly set her cup down, picked up a pastry, and began eating. By the time she reached her second piece, Ah Ye had quietly returned.
“Your Highness, the servant led Lord Fu to a guest room in the side wing. But it turns out Miss Liang was inside, changing her clothes. Now the two of them are trapped in the room together, and Qing Wangfei has already rushed over,” she whispered.
Feng Lezhen’s gaze flickered. “Did they see you?”
“No. Your Highness only told this servant to follow, not to intervene. So I didn’t show myself,” Ah Ye paused, uncertain. “Did I do wrong?”
“You did very well.” Feng Lezhen smiled faintly—until she caught a faint scent on Ah Ye.
Having spent over a decade in the palace, she had seen all manner of schemes used by consorts to win favor. Many of them relied on underhanded tricks. The moment she smelled the faint perfume on Ah Ye, the smile vanished from her face.
“Your Highness?” Ah Ye looked puzzled. “What’s wrong?”
“That guest room—did you go inside?” Feng Lezhen asked.
Ah Ye replied, “I only squatted beneath the window for about fifteen minutes.”
Feng Lezhen nodded, but her expression grew colder.
Ah Ye frowned anxiously. “What should we do now?”
“Naturally,” Feng Lezhen said with a blank expression, “we watch the show.”
In the side-wing guest room, incense still burned at the window, its pale smoke curling upward, circling the beams, and fading.
Liang Yue’er’s clothes were now tidy. She hid behind a screen, red-eyed. Qing Wangfei burst in, and upon seeing Fu Zhixian, immediately snapped, “Why didn’t you return to your own guest room, Lord Fu? What are you doing in my niece’s chambers?”
“It was a servant from the residence who led me here,” Fu Zhixian answered calmly.
Qing Wangfei sneered. “Impossible! My servants may lack refinement, but they would never lead a man into a woman’s chambers. Lord Fu, your excuse is laughable.”
Fu Zhixian stared at her, his gaze thoughtful. After a brief moment of eye contact, he realized he had walked into a trap.
“And what does Qing Wangfei intend to do now?” he asked, adjusting his robes as he sat down at the table. His expression remained composed and noble, completely unfazed by the circle of guards surrounding him.
Qing Wangfei’s face was expressionless. “My niece is still unmarried. Since Lord Fu has done such a thing, he should marry her, shouldn’t he?”
“Aunt!” A chair crashed behind the screen, followed by Liang Yue’er’s panicked voice. “Lord Fu is already betrothed to Her Highness the Eldest Princess. How could he possibly marry me?”
“So we just let this go?” Qing Wangfei said unhappily.
Liang Yue’er fell silent for a moment before speaking with difficulty. “Lord Fu is an upright man. He surely did not come here intentionally. As long as we don’t speak of it, no one will…”
“Impossible,” Qing Wangfei interrupted. “This happened in my residence. If we swallow the humiliation silently, how can I continue to live with dignity in this world?”
Liang Yue’er was stunned. She suddenly realized her aunt was deeply involved in the current situation. Her face instantly turned pale.
“How about this,” Qing Wangfei softened her tone. “I won’t make things difficult for Lord Fu. I know you’re devoted to Her Highness and could never bring yourself to break the engagement and marry another. So why don’t you simply take Yue’er as a wife of equal status…”
“Impossible,” Fu Zhixian interrupted coldly.
Qing Wangfei’s eyes turned frosty. “Then don’t blame me for being harsh.”
“And how, exactly, would you be harsh?” Fu Zhixian countered.
There was still a trace of a smile in his eyes, but his words were like ice. Qing Wangfei, used to his mild and gentle demeanor, was momentarily stunned and at a loss for words.
After a pause, she forced out, “Then I’ll report this to the court and go down with you.”
“Setting aside that the matter concerns the Liang family and should be decided by them—does Qing Wangfei even have proof to make such accusations?” Fu Zhixian asked unhurriedly.
“You think I’d slander you using my own niece’s reputation?” Qing Wangfei said coldly.
“Others wouldn’t, but Qing Wangfei? I wouldn’t be so sure,” Fu Zhixian said as he slowly stood. “Everyone knows that when the new emperor ascended the throne, Qing Wang harbored treasonous intent. Her Highness personally executed him to stabilize the court. Though the rest of the Qing household was spared, Qing Wangfei has hated her ever since. Now that the Qing Wang estate is in decline and Her Highness’s power remains undiminished, it’s only natural for Qing Wangfei to want to create trouble.”
With just a few words, he exposed Qing Wangfei’s motives. She immediately flew into a rage. “Nonsense! You came here of your own accord! The guests at the banquet can testify that I only asked the servant to take you to—”
“You think those guests will actually speak for you?” Fu Zhixian interrupted again.
Qing Wangfei faltered.
“Wangfei, Qing Wang is dead. This household is no longer what it once was,” Fu Zhixian said calmly.
Qing Wangfei’s eyes burned with anger. She was about to retort when Liang Yue’er’s ashamed voice came from behind the screen: “Aunt! Please, for my sake—and for the Liang family’s—leave us a shred of dignity!”
“Miss Liang, don’t worry. What happened today won’t be made public and won’t affect your reputation,” Fu Zhixian replied. “Once you return home, tell your parents everything. Lord Liang will know what to do.”
With that, he turned to leave. After a few steps, he suddenly heard someone collapse behind the screen. He turned reflexively, and in the next moment, a wave of dizziness hit him.
“What’s the matter, Lord Fu?” Qing Wangfei asked slowly.
Fu Zhixian grasped the window drapes to steady himself. “You drugged me?”
“I went through the trouble of bringing you here—I can’t just let you walk out now,” Qing Wangfei’s face was already blurred in his vision. “Didn’t you want evidence? I wonder—would consummation count as evidence?”
“You… do you understand the consequences?” Fu Zhixian let out a cold laugh, his eyes laced with defiance.
Qing Wangfei was briefly stunned by his expression. “Disgraced by the Liang family? Targeted by the Fus? I’ve lost my husband and will rot in this estate for the rest of my life. Do you think I’m afraid?”
“Why should Feng Lezhen get to live gloriously after all the terrible things she’s done, while I’m left to mourn in seclusion, in ruin?” Her face twisted with rage. “She’s always so proud of her magnanimity, isn’t she? Then let’s see—when her man lies in bed with another woman, how magnanimous can she still be?! Guards! Help Lord Fu to bed!”
“Yes, ma’am!”
The house servants closed in. Fu Zhixian staggered back a few steps, feeling a burning heat surge inside him.
“This drug is strong. Without the antidote, you won’t last much longer. My niece is gentle and virtuous, far better than Feng Lezhen. You wouldn’t be disgraced marrying her.”
Qing Wangfei’s voice buzzed in his ears. Fu Zhixian forced his breathing to slow, then drew a dagger from his waist.
Qing Wangfei thought he was going to resist and sneered, about to stop him—until he suddenly turned the dagger and stabbed it half an inch into his own chest.
“What are you doing?!” she cried out in shock.
Fu Zhixian chuckled, his eyes glazed from the drug. “Wangfei, you now have two options. One, you let me leave and we pretend this never happened. Two, you persist—and tomorrow morning, you can take my corpse to explain to His Majesty and the Fu family.”
“I suggest Wangfei choose the first. Otherwise, not only will all hundred-plus members of your household be buried with you, but you yourself will be stripped of all titles for coercing a court official—unfit even to be buried in the Qing family tomb.”
His eyes were icy cold. Blood gushed from his wound, soaking his robes, but he seemed unfazed, staring Qing Wangfei down.
She hadn’t expected he’d go this far. For a moment, her rage turned to dread. She stood frozen, her face livid. Fu Zhixian let out a heavy breath and, gripping the dagger, staggered out of the room and vanished into the night.
The servants looked at each other, no one daring to speak as they stared at the blood on the floor.
After a long while, Qing Wangfei suddenly flipped the table and roared, “Get out! All of you!”
Everyone scrambled away. She, eyes bloodshot with fury, grabbed a vase to smash—only to freeze when she saw who stood at the door.
“Did all your scheming tonight get you what you wanted, Wangfei?” Feng Lezhen asked with a pleasant smile, her expression like a deadly bloom in the moonlight.
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