Having said that, Zhu Wangbei hurried home with Madam Shen. The two of them made their way mysteriously to the study. Zhu Wangbei pushed open the cabinet built into the wall, revealing the large chest hidden inside.
He impatiently opened it, only to find it completely empty and in disarray, with nothing but a few scraps of wastepaper inside.
Forget treasures—even a single ounce of silver was nowhere to be found!
Staring at the empty chest, Zhu Wangbei’s eyes flew wide and his pupils contracted. He abruptly staggered backward.
“Wanglang!” Madam Shen cried.
…
Night had fallen, and the bright moon hung high in the sky.
At the Palace, in the Moon-Gazing Pavilion.
This was the residence of Consort Cui, whom the emperor had just elevated in rank. Since there were not many consorts in the palace, even a jieyu was permitted to occupy an entire palace on her own.
Whenever a newcomer entered the palace, she would naturally receive the emperor’s favor.
When it was time to retire for the night, the emperor did indeed head toward the Moon-Gazing Pavilion. Eunuch Wang Zhong followed at his side, occasionally glancing up at the emperor’s expression. Seeing that His Majesty seemed to be in a fairly good mood, he relaxed as well.
It seemed that Consort Cui would surely receive the emperor’s favor tonight. From now on, there would be yet another consort favored by His Majesty. After all, this Consort Cui had been personally chosen by the emperor.
They had walked for quite some time before the gates of the Moon-Gazing Pavilion finally came into view. Eunuch Wang Zhong stepped forward, intending to enter the pavilion and announce the emperor’s arrival, when suddenly someone blocked their path and dropped to their knees.
“Your Majesty! Something terrible has happened! The Eldest Princess suddenly fainted and developed a high fever. The Imperial Physicians say it is an acute illness. Consort Chen is extremely anxious and has ordered us to ask Your Majesty to go and see the Eldest Princess.”
Tantai Ji stopped in his tracks, his brows drawing tightly together. Without the slightest hesitation, he headed toward Consort Chen’s palace, saying as he walked, “Order the Chief Imperial Physician to go and examine the Eldest Princess!”
Eunuch Wang Zhong, who had been about to enter the Moon-Gazing Pavilion, quickly pulled back his foot and answered, “This servant will do so at once.”
Before leaving, Wang Zhong could not help glancing at the brightly lit Moon-Gazing Pavilion. He let out a soft sigh.
Consort Cui was truly unlucky. She would not be receiving His Majesty’s favor tonight, and with the emperor occupied by so many matters, who knew when he would next enter the palace? After tonight, life would surely become difficult for her.
Inside the Moon-Gazing Pavilion.
After bathing, Consort Cui sat quietly before the bed. Then Chenxiang, who had accompanied her to the palace, came hurrying over, her eyes red-rimmed.
“My lady, something terrible has happened. His Majesty was just heading this way and was almost inside the Moon-Gazing Pavilion when someone suddenly intercepted him, saying that the Eldest Princess had fainted. His Majesty has gone to see her.”
“The Eldest Princess? The daughter of Consort Chen?”
Chenxiang nearly burst into tears. “That is correct. His Majesty has already left. What are we to do?”
Consort Cui rose to her feet and slowly walked toward the door. She glanced at the darkened sky. Black clouds had veiled half the moon, while scattered stars glittered here and there.
“It does not matter,” Consort Cui said softly. “If I cannot see His Majesty today, there will always be another day.”
With that, Consort Cui turned and returned inside. After giving Chenxiang a few instructions, she closed the door.
Once she was alone, she took out the sachet her daughter had given her the night before. Her daughter had handed it over in great secrecy and told her that after entering the palace, she must examine it carefully.
Consort Cui looked at the sachet in her hand. It was one of her daughter’s favorites, embroidered with a black cat. She gently opened it and found a piece of paper inside.
The handwriting was unmistakably her daughter’s—messy and hurried.
Although her daughter was exceptionally intelligent and had been able to recognize written characters at the age of three, she was also a keen learner. She found every book fascinating, reading whatever she could get her hands on. She remembered things faster and more thoroughly than anyone else, and in recent days, she had become even more engrossed in books.
Her father had once said that if Yaoyao had been born a boy, she would certainly have brought the family a top scholar’s honors. Unfortunately, she was a girl. No matter how many books she read, she could only put that knowledge to private use.
Yaoyao was still young. Though she had read many books, she had not yet practiced her handwriting properly, and her characters were crooked and awkward. But no one knew her daughter’s handwriting better than she did.
With a smile, Consort Cui unfolded the paper and began to read.
Yet the farther she read, the more unnatural her expression became. Her face turned by turns ashen and livid.
She recognized every character on the page, but when they were put together, some of the meaning was so strange that she almost could not understand it.
Her daughter said that in her dream, the Consort Chen in the palace was Chen Yunxiang, the girl who had grown up alongside her.
Her daughter said that in her dream, Concubine Liu had poisoned the mother and daughter at Chen Yunxiang’s instigation.
Her daughter also wrote: “In the dream, Consort Chen herself said that Yaoyao’s father is the emperor.”
“Mother, you must be careful and guard against Consort Chen. If Consort Chen does not look like Chen Yunxiang, do not immediately conclude that they are different people. Yaoyao read in a book that bones and flesh can be reshaped to alter one’s appearance. This is called disguise. Mother, you must distinguish carefully. If Consort Chen really is the Chen Yunxiang you knew, did you perhaps offend her in some way? Why would she want to harm the Cui family… Yaoyao is not with you, so Mother must protect yourself in the palace…”
Consort Cui slowly lowered the letter. Her body felt as cold as though it had been covered in frost. By the time she came to her senses, she was drenched in cold sweat.
How could Consort Chen possibly have anything to do with Chen Yunxiang?
Yunxiang had died long ago, hadn’t she? Seven years earlier, while helping her search for Yaoyao’s father, she had fallen from a cliff and never returned.
Yunxiang had been like a sister to her. They had grown up together from childhood. Although Yunxiang had been purchased as a servant by her parents, Consort Cui had never treated her as one. Once Yunxiang had grown into a young woman and found a man she loved, Consort Cui had returned her contract of servitude and prepared a dowry for her.
Had that incident not occurred, Yunxiang would have married the man she had chosen in half a month.
Yaoyao said that she had seen in her dream that Consort Chen was Chen Yunxiang. How had she recognized her?
But every dream Yaoyao had experienced had come true!
If it was true—if Yunxiang had really survived—why had she never come looking for her? And how had she become the emperor’s consort?
A thought began to grow wildly in her mind, impossible to suppress. If Consort Chen truly was Chen Yunxiang, then the emperor might really be that man—the true father of Yaoyao.
Consort Cui rose and held her daughter’s letter up to the candlelight, reading it over and over until she could remember every single character. Only then did she suddenly come to her senses. She hurriedly leaned toward the flame and burned the sheet of paper to ashes.
Uneasy and restless, she lay down on the bed and closed her eyes, forcing herself to calm down—to calm down no matter what.
Tomorrow. Tomorrow she would pay her respects to the empress and to all the consorts, including Consort Chen.
As long as she saw Consort Chen, everything would become clear.
It was not until the second half of the night that Consort Cui finally drifted into a fitful sleep.
In her dream, she returned to that endless rainy night seven years ago—to the tall man who had seized her and used every means at his disposal to torment and violate her…
“I have something urgent to attend to, so I must leave first. I remember what you look like, and I will surely find you. When that time comes, I will keep my promise and marry you…”
