The night was deep, and the rear palace lay in silence.
Li Chengzhen lay on his bed, eyes open, staring fixedly at the dark canopy above. He feared the dark, so the crystal palace lanterns in his room kept their candles burning through the night.
He couldn’t sleep.
That evening, Li Yao and Li Chengyou had crawled through the dog hole again to play with him for a long while. Li Yao had even handed him a fishing rod, promising they would go fishing in the pond the next day.
Li Chengyou had grinned boastfully, declaring himself an expert at fishing.
“What’s so fun about fishing?” Li Chengzhen murmured to himself in the quiet of his bedchamber, the small fishing rod left by his sister resting beside his pillow.
Fishing—he hadn’t done it in years.
Back when his elder brother Li Chengke was still alive, he had secretly taken him to the palace garden to catch fish. They had managed to grab a tiny red carp, but before they could even cheer, the old nanny had scolded them back to their studies.
Now, Li Yao was sneaking him out to fish again...
Li Chengzhen suddenly found himself eager for dawn to come quickly, eager to see his sister again.
His heart was split in two. One half was dark and rotten, cruel and merciless toward the palace servants. The other half struggled to escape the shadows, yearning to bask in the sunlight.
Li Yao and Li Chengyou, crawling through the dog hole, were like two slivers of light piercing through the suffocating gloom of Li Chengzhen’s life.
Not enough to warm him, but precious all the same.
Clutching the small fishing rod by his pillow—short, made of slender bamboo, carrying a faint woody scent—Li Chengzhen slowly allowed a rare smile to surface.
Holding the rod close, he resolved to sleep early. Perhaps when he opened his eyes again, the sun would already be up.
He couldn’t match Li Chengtai in studies or Li Chengyou in archery, but when it came to fishing, he was certain he could outdo them both.
Clang—
The wooden door of his bedchamber swung open, letting in a frigid gust of wind. Startled awake, Li Chengzhen pushed aside the canopy, assuming a careless maid had forgotten to shut the door.
Outside was pitch black.
A ghostly pale light drifted in, revealing a figure shrouded in darkness. As it drew closer, the Empress’s gaunt, bone-white face emerged—her skin stretched tight over sharp cheekbones, her sunken eyes stark against her pallor. She held a palace lantern, her cold gaze fixed on her son.
Li Chengzhen froze, stammering, “M-Mother...”
He hadn’t expected the Empress to appear here.
Li Chengzhen feared her. Every time he went to Kunning Palace to pay his respects, he had to steel himself for ages. Just hearing her voice filled him with irritation, suffocation, and the urge to lash out.
An instinctive revulsion.
“You fool!” The Empress set down the lantern, her voice a venomous hiss. “Torturing servants is one thing, but failing to cover your tracks? Letting your father find out?”
Li Chengzhen’s mouth opened, but his throat felt strangled by invisible hands. No words came out.
He had mustered the courage to step out of the darkness, to seek the sun—but with just a few words, the Empress dragged him back into the abyss, drowning him in agony and helplessness.
She stepped closer, glaring down at her disappointment of a son. “Your studies are worse than a four-year-old’s. Utterly useless.”
Li Chengzhen swallowed. “Mother... Eighth Brother is more talented than I am.”
Li Chengtai had talent—and diligence.
Li Chengzhen couldn’t compare.
The Empress’s temper flared. “I bore you, raised you, and this is how you repay me? A four-year-old has no talent—only your laziness. Stop making excuses and reflect on your own failures.”
Li Chengzhen lowered his head, his heart twisting in pain.
Misreading his silence as submission, the Empress softened her tone, gripping his hand. “I only want what’s best for you. Obey me, stop angering your father, study harder. When you’re older, our family will ensure you ascend the throne.”
She went on and on.
Li Chengzhen listened numbly.
Then—snap.
A crisp, brittle sound.
His gaze snapped to the bamboo fishing rod by his pillow—now snapped in two by the Empress’s hand.
In that instant, agony lanced through his chest, spreading like wildfire, searing him to ashes.
Outside, guards’ voices rang out. The patrol had noticed the Empress’s intrusion and coldly ordered her back to Kunning Palace.
Before being led away, she turned, lantern in hand, and reminded him: “Focus on your studies. No more foolish toys. Don’t disappoint me. Our family is counting on you.”
The door shut.
The room was bright with lantern light. Li Chengzhen threw off the covers, stepped onto the rug, and picked up the broken rod.
The little fishing rod—split in half.
He tried to piece it back together, but the bamboo wouldn’t mend. His nose stung, tears flooding down as he clutched the fragments and returned to bed.
Dazed, he barely noticed the palace lantern tipping over from the desk.
The crystal lantern shattered. The candle within toppled, its crimson flames licking at the curtains, devouring half-read classics, engulfing the old bow hanging on the wall.
Li Chengzhen sat motionless on the bed, staring at the broken rod, murmuring, “Why did it break...?”
He had been so looking forward to fishing with his sister tomorrow.
He would have caught a big one, shown Li Chengyou up.
But the rod was broken. No more fishing.
Lifting his head, he watched the flames rise. In the fire’s glow, a faint figure emerged—his elder brother Li Chengke, standing amid the blaze, smiling gently at him.
Tears streamed down Li Chengzhen’s face. “Brother... I’m so tired...”
...
...
Shen Wei was half-asleep when Cai Lian’s urgent voice roused her.
The Second Prince’s palace was on fire.
Shen Wei bolted upright, hastily throwing on an outer robe. Cai Lian draped a cloak over her, words tumbling out: “The Empress visited the Second Prince’s quarters tonight, stayed for half an hour before the guards escorted her back to Kunning Palace. Shortly after she left, the fire broke out—it’s spreading fast. The servants are trying to contain it.”
“At Cining Palace, the Empress Dowager has been informed and is on her way. The Second Prince was rescued unharmed.”
“His Majesty is at the royal estate outside the palace. My lady, should we send word?”
Li Yuanjing had been at the estate these past two days, convening trusted officials to discuss dam construction, tax reforms, and corruption crackdowns—swamped with state affairs.
After a moment’s thought, Shen Wei tied her cloak. “No casualties? Then there’s no need to disturb His Majesty.”
Li Yuanjing had enough on his plate. Shen Wei wouldn’t trouble him with inner-palace matters.
Each had their own duties.
The night sky was thick with clouds, not a sliver of moonlight in sight. By the time Shen Wei arrived at the burning palace, the flames still raged skyward.
Li Chengzhen’s quarters had been packed with books—perfect kindling. The fire had swallowed the wooden structures whole.
“Consort Chen,” a servant reported, “we’ve cut down the tall trees outside to halt the spread.”
“The Second Prince’s residence is beyond saving. The fire brigade says we must let it burn out on its own.”
"The imperial physician is already on his way."
"The master of the adjacent palace has been relocated."
The eunuch in charge of handling the fire reported to Shen Wei in an orderly manner.
In the dead of night, flames lit up the sky, their scorching heat spreading relentlessly. Shen Wei walked to the palace entrance and saw Li Chengzhen standing there, utterly distraught.
