Princess's Manor.
As Chu Ruoyan stepped down from the carriage, her first thought was that this could not possibly be the residence of a princess!
There were no vermilion gates, no gilded plaques—it was as plain as a commoner’s home.
This impression only deepened as she entered the manor.
None of the usual grandeur—no carved beams, painted rafters, or elaborate pavilions—nothing that would mark it as the home of a noble family.
Instead, there were only clusters of white chrysanthemums. Princess An Sheng crouched among them, carefully trimming the leaves of one plant.
A strange feeling rose in Chu Ruoyan’s heart.
The first time they had met at the Cao residence, Princess An Sheng had also been tending to flowers in a corner of the courtyard.
"Your Highness, the honored guest has arrived," Gong Shang curtsied.
An Sheng raised a finger to her lips and softly shushed, "Hush. Don’t speak. You’ll disturb the chrysanthemums—they dislike noise."
Silence fell over the courtyard like death.
She continued pruning with meticulous care, only rising gracefully once the last branch was tended to. "My apologies for the wait, County Princess Changle."
Chu Ruoyan bowed deeply. "Greetings, Your Highness."
"No need for such formalities..." An Sheng accepted a white handkerchief from another maid, wiping her hands as she spoke. "Do you know why I love flowers?"
"I do not."
"Because nurturing flowers is like loving a person. Only with devoted care can you see them flourish." An Sheng smiled. "I adore vitality."
Chu Ruoyan pressed her lips together.
Every word from the princess carried layers of meaning, yet remained frustratingly elusive.
She decided to be direct. "Forgive my dullness, Your Highness. I do not understand your meaning."
An Sheng paused. The maid beside her, Gong Shang, frowned. "County Princess Changle, you—"
An Sheng raised a hand to silence her. "You’re the first to dare ask so plainly. Very well. Yu Hui."
She summoned another maid, who stepped forward with a potted chrysanthemum in her hands.
With a sharp snap—
An Sheng tore the carefully tended flower from its roots and tossed it to the ground.
Chu Ruoyan understood. "So this is what you meant. You love vitality—but you love destroying it even more. This is a warning, isn’t it? A warning for me to stop investigating."
This display of power was far more refined than Consort Xue’s petty punishments.
But An Sheng shook her head. "No. Quite the opposite. I know you’re looking into the past. But with A-Yuan gone and all my servants mute, you lack evidence, don’t you?"
Chu Ruoyan’s brow furrowed—until the princess continued.
"On Cuiping Mountain years ago, I miscarried suddenly. I had no midwife or physician with me. Fortunately, Granny Sun—who had delivered A-Yuan’s child days before—was present. She assisted me."
"!!!"
Chu Ruoyan’s eyes widened. An Sheng seemed to relish her shock, smiling faintly. "Go investigate. Find Granny Sun, and you’ll have your proof."
With that, she turned and walked inside. Gong Shang bowed. "County Princess, this way."
As Chu Ruoyan watched her retreating figure, she recalled her uncle’s words: the late emperor had once called An Sheng "the finest steed of our house."
This was no mere steed—this was a woman who could command storms with a flick of her wrist.
After Chu Ruoyan left, An Sheng reclined in an old wooden chair, lazily stretching. "Let her in."
Yu Hui obeyed. Soon, a woman entered the courtyard—dressed in plain mourning robes.
It was Yan Shu.
"You heard everything just now?"
Yan Shu prostrated herself. "I did!"
"Then you know what must be done?"
Hatred burned in Yan Shu’s eyes. "Your Highness need not worry. This lowly woman will find Granny Sun before Chu Ruoyan does—and silence her forever! But you must swear to help me take revenge. Yan Zheng must die!"
The princess remained silent. Yu Hui snapped, "How dare you make demands of Her Highness?"
Yan Shu bit her lip. "Your Highness, though I am but a woman, I uncovered their dealings with Princess Qingping. Doesn’t that prove my worth? I ask for nothing else—only Yan Zheng’s head!"
An Sheng studied her with disinterest. "And how did you obtain this information?"
Yan Shu trembled, her face twisting with disgust.
How?
With her husband, Earl Changlu, executed and her family stripped of their titles, what else could she rely on?
Nothing but her beauty—and the skills she’d learned to please men.
The memory of Wei Lian’s torment in Princess Qingping’s manor made her stomach churn, but she confessed all the same.
An Sheng waved a hand. "Go, then."
As Yan Shu retreated, Yu Hui smirked. "The fourth daughter of the Yan family truly has no shame. Even the courtesans of brothels can’t endure Wei Lian’s methods..."
Her familiarity with Wei Lian suggested a long acquaintance.
Gong Shang entered. "That criminal’s wife escaped punishment only by the grace of Marquis Anning. Yet she dares plot against him? Little does she know Wei Lian has always been Your Highness’s man. The intelligence she suffered for was already in your hands."
An Sheng glanced at her. "Wei Lian sent word?"
"Nothing escapes you," Gong Shang smiled. "He asks: Princess Qingping betrayed you. Should she die quickly, slowly, or in agony?"
An Sheng scoffed. "My dear cousin copies me in everything—yet fails at everything. She loves Cao Yang but fears losing him, so she holds back. Pathetic. She’s not even worth my attention."
A mute servant hurried in, gesturing urgently.
Gong Shang frowned. "Uncle Cheng is here? And he’s agitated—possibly a threat?"
Yu Hui shrugged. "Shall I kill him?"
To outsiders, the idea would be absurd. Uncle Cheng was no match for top-tier fighters, but in the capital, he was formidable.
Yet this delicate maid spoke of killing him as if it were nothing.
An Sheng shook her head. "No need to dirty our home. Let him in."
Moments later, Uncle Cheng stormed in, his face contorted with fury.
"Your Highness! The Yan family murdered Imperial Son-in-law Cao! Yet instead of avenging him, you entertain Yan Shu? Have you no loyalty to his spirit?!"
An Sheng adjusted her finger guards leisurely. "What nonsense are you spouting? My husband took his own life. How is that the Yan family’s doing? And what concern is it of mine?"
Uncle Cheng roared, "You told him the child in your womb was General Yan’s—conceived when he was drunk! You claimed Madam Xie was so jealous, she trapped Third Young Master Yan during the flood, forcing you to choose between saving him and losing your child! That’s why Imperial Son-in-law Cao destroyed the Yan family! And now you dare say it has nothing to do with you?!"
An Sheng smiled faintly. "Did I? I merely told him the child was the general’s. Everything after that... was his own doing."
Uncle Cheng’s eyes blazed with fury. “You lost your child, and it just so happened to be while saving Madam Xie’s son. With all these coincidences, how could the Imperial Son-in-law not suspect you?” Suddenly, realization dawned on him. “It was you! You orchestrated everything, deceived the Imperial Son-in-law, and made him willingly become a weapon in your hands, didn’t you?”
An Sheng replied slowly, “If it was willingly, how can it be called deception?”
Uncle Cheng staggered back two steps, as if seeing through the princess’s honeyed words and venomous heart for the first time. “Fine, fine. Since that’s the case, this old man will act in the Imperial Son-in-law’s stead and send you down to meet him!”
With that, he drew a sword from his sleeve.
Yu Hui moved to block, but An Sheng pushed him aside.
Uncle Cheng lunged forward with his blade, but after just one step, a sharp pain pierced his chest, forcing him to his knees.
“You… you poisoned me?”
Gong Shang smiled. “Not the princess. It was Imperial Son-in-law Cao.”
“Uncle Cheng, you served the Imperial Son-in-law faithfully your entire life. Did you ever imagine he would be the one to poison you?”
Uncle Cheng’s face twisted in disbelief. “No… impossible…” He had watched Imperial Son-in-law Cao grow up; their bond was deeper than that of father and son.
Yet Gong Shang continued leisurely, “On the day the Imperial Son-in-law attended the Cao family banquet, he confided in the princess. He said that since your affection for him surpassed that of a father’s, you might blame the princess if anything happened to him. So before leaving, he slipped you a slow-acting poison. Out of gratitude for your efforts in the Yan family affair, the princess allowed you the mercy of knowing the truth before your death.”
