Zheng Yuande obediently acknowledged the order without letting his lips lag, but inwardly, he was rather astonished.
His Highness had never been particularly interested in women. Naturally, he paid even less attention to the secondary consorts in the inner palace. The affairs of court already kept His Highness busy enough; he truly had little time or inclination to concern himself with women.
Moreover, although His Highness was the Crown Prince and possessed the most exalted status, he was neither extravagant nor wasteful in his daily expenditures. In fact, he was quite frugal. As for the secondary consorts in the inner palace, he had always rewarded them according to the rules, with very few additional gifts.
For instance, when Her Majesty the Empress and the Crown Princess bestowed gifts upon a newcomer according to custom, Lady Shen—having only just attended His Highness—would naturally receive somewhat more than the others, both as a sign of favor and as befitted the Crown Princess’s graciousness.
Yet this time, His Highness had not only given additional gifts but had specifically ordered that some fine fabrics be selected…
Zheng Yuande was rather puzzled. Had His Highness forgotten Lady Shen’s identity, or did he simply not care about it at all?
Naturally, Cui Yu could not possibly have forgotten Shen Yanshui’s identity. It was just that…
To him, Shen Yanshui was merely a woman whose temperament and appearance, at present, were not unpleasant and were even somewhat pleasing to the eye.
If any random woman could make him regard the situation as a grave threat, he might as well hand over the position of Crown Prince to someone else.
*
When Shen Yanshui received the Crown Prince’s gifts, she felt that her eyes had practically turned into sparkling stars from smiling so much that day.
One reward after another—there was so much to delight in that it was almost dazzling!
This time, Zheng Yuande had come in person. Seeing Lady Shen looking radiant, her brilliant smile blooming like a flower, even he could not help but stare for a moment. He then greeted her with a beaming smile. “This servant pays his respects to Your Ladyship.”
Shen Yanshui shifted slightly to the side and stepped forward to return half the courtesy with a sincere smile. Only then did she say, “Eunuch Zheng, you are too polite. What brings you here in person?”
Eunuch Zheng answered cheerfully, “This servant has come especially to convey His Highness’s verbal decree.”
This was the third time Shen Yanshui had knelt that day. However, if kneeling once earned her so many wonderful things, she felt that her knees were actually quite sturdy. She could withstand a few more kneelings without any trouble!
As with the previous two rewards, the formalities began with a few official-sounding words of praise. Only then did Eunuch Zheng recite the list of gifts:
“…one pair of jade-inlaid gold ruyi scepters; one set of hair ornaments adorned with red coral and pearls; one bolt of Floating Light silk; one bolt of Soft Mist gauze; one bolt of cicada-wing gauze; one bolt of snow satin; one bolt of scattered-flower damask; two bolts of plain gauze; and two bolts of blue plain satin.”
As Shen Yanshui listened to that long list of exquisite fabrics, she instinctively lifted her eyes to look at Zheng Yuande in astonishment—only to see his plump, fair, round face beaming with a genial smile.
“These were all specially selected for you by His Highness the Crown Prince. Your Ladyship, please rise,” he said.
His Highness had personally instructed him to choose some fine fabrics, so naturally he had not dared cut corners. He had even deliberately selected lightweight, high-quality materials. As for the last few bolts of plain gauze and satin, even if Lady Shen had no use for them, she could always give them to her servants.
Upon hearing this, Shen Yanshui thanked His Highness for the gifts and slowly rose to her feet. She then exchanged a few more sincere pleasantries with him before seeing him off and returning indoors.
Only then did she begin examining the gifts bestowed by the Crown Prince one by one. The snow satin and scattered-flower damask were one thing, but fabrics such as shimmering brocade, soft mist gauze, and cicada-wing silk were not only scarce but exceedingly expensive.
She had never been particularly demanding when it came to clothing. Among the sisters in her family, she had only ever seen her legitimate elder sister wear such costly and beautiful fabrics.
A short while later, Quanfu returned after seeing Zheng Yuande off. Dongyi and Quanshou stood guard outside the door, while Chunping brought over a cup of warm tea.
“My lady, please rest and have some tea.”
Shen Yanshui sat on the daybed and drank more than half the cup. Lost in thought, she lightly tapped the side table with her fingertips. After a long moment, she suddenly raised her eyes and asked, “What gifts did Her Majesty the Empress, the Crown Princess, and the Crown Prince bestow upon the other residences today?”
Quanfu immediately broke into a smile. “In reply to my lady, this servant paid close attention today. Her Majesty the Empress’s gifts to the various ladies of the Eastern Palace were mostly distributed according to their rank and established palace custom. However... the gifts the Crown Princess gave you were two degrees more lavish than those sent to Lady Zhang and Lady Wu. By now, the other courtyards have most likely heard of it as well.”
“But the Crown Prince’s gifts were sent only to our courtyard.”
As soon as Quanfu finished speaking, the expressions of master and servants alike changed.
A flicker of surprise appeared in Shen Yanshui’s eyes. As for the Crown Princess’s gifts, she had already understood the situation from the two remarks Matron Zhou had deliberately made when delivering them.
The Crown Princess wanted to set her up as a target for everyone else—and even expected her to feel grateful for it.
At first, however, the Crown Princess had probably intended to use Lady Wu as that target.
As for the Crown Prince’s gifts, though they suddenly made her look even more like the conspicuous one, what was she supposed to do now that they had arrived? Throw them out?
Of course she would accept them happily!
Qiuru gazed at the room full of exquisite, costly fabrics, gold, silver, and jewels, her face beaming. “His Highness the Crown Prince treats you so well, my lady. He bestowed gifts on you alone. It is clear that His Highness holds you in his heart.”
Shen Yanshui looked at the lavish gifts filling the room and smiled faintly, not taking Qiuru’s words to heart.
Rather than believing that the Crown Prince held her in his heart, she would sooner guess that their nightly activities over the past two evenings had become increasingly harmonious, and that the Crown Prince had been quite pleased—hence these rewards.
“All right, put everything away.”
“Yes, my lady.”
Quanfu led the others in sorting the gifts and placing them in the storeroom. Chunping, however, said with a smile, “This is wonderful. With so much fabric, we can make several more outfits for you, my lady.”
Now that there was more than enough material, Shen Yanshui naturally did not mind having a few more clothes made. “Then make two sets of spring clothes first, and four sets for summer. It is indeed time to prepare summer garments.”
Chunping agreed with a broad smile.
*
The Crown Princess was the first to learn that the Crown Prince had bestowed gifts upon Lady Shen alone, and her expression immediately darkened.
“What does the Crown Prince mean by this?”
Matron Zhou also furrowed her brow. In the past, the matter of distributing gifts among the various courtyards had always been decided by the Crown Princess. The Crown Prince had never intervened before.
“Your Highness, please do not be anxious. Lady Shen’s status is plain for all to see. His Highness the Crown Prince is wise and discerning; he must have his own considerations. Perhaps there is some deeper meaning behind his deliberate bestowal of gifts.”
The Crown Princess’s brows remained faintly furrowed, showing no sign of relaxing. It was all because of Lady Shen’s face—far too striking, far too threatening for her to ignore.
Matron Zhou smiled and soothed her. “Though Lady Shen was blessed with a fine appearance, she is shallow-minded, greedy for food and money. And look at how, after receiving the Crown Prince’s favor for the first time yesterday, she quarreled with Lady Wu and made such a spectacle of her. Even if she has caught His Highness’s eye, it will only be a passing novelty. It cannot last.”
After thinking it over, the Crown Princess’s expression eased somewhat. “By now, I imagine the others have all heard as well. I would like to see whether she can bear the consequences.”
*
The moment Eunuch Zheng, the Crown Prince’s chief personal attendant, entered the rear chambers with the rewards, the rest of the household learned of it before long.
Still, no one was truly foolish. Today, Her Majesty the Empress, the Crown Prince, and the Crown Princess had all bestowed gifts upon them. Whatever they might think in private, they could not make a move now—would that not amount to displaying dissatisfaction with their superiors?
As a result, Shen Yanshui spent several peaceful days without incident. During that time, the Crown Prince did not return to Lotus Heart Court.
Every day, she slept until she woke naturally. After rising and having breakfast, she would practice a set of the Eight Brocades indoors to loosen her body, then stroll through the garden—the place within the entire Eastern Palace with the most flowers and greenery.
At the moment, she sat on a swing in the garden, casually plucking a red apricot blossom bud. In the space of a single breath, as her wrist turned, the bud in her palm had fully bloomed into a pink-white apricot flower. Its petals unfurled, carrying a faint fragrance.
Dongyi smiled in surprise. “Mistress, your eyesight is truly excellent. This servant thought that seemed to be the only apricot blossom in bloom.”
Shen Yanshui looked at the pink-white flower resting quietly in her palm and smiled in excellent spirits. “My luck is rather good. Later, order a few more dishes from the kitchen.”
Her cultivation over the past few days had yielded modest results, but... compared with the effects of “dual cultivation” with the Crown Prince, it still fell far short.
“Yes, Mistress.” Dongyi was delighted at the words. Their mistress had always been generous, especially where food was concerned. Every time, she would order an extra dish, and whatever remained uneaten would be shared among them, allowing them to enjoy meat almost every day.
Not to mention the assorted pastries—her mistress was never stingy with those, either.
The meals provided to palace maids and eunuchs were generally large-pot fare prepared by apprentices. How good could such food possibly be? It was already fortunate if it merely kept them from going hungry.
If they wished to eat better, they had to spend their own silver to have the kitchen prepare something separately. Even then, it was nowhere near as fine as the meals their mistress ate every day.
“It smells so good, so good!” A sudden, somewhat peculiar voice rang out. Dongyi had barely lifted her head when she saw a beautiful little bird, emerald green all over with a touch of orange-red on its forehead, dart past and snatch the pink-white apricot blossom from her mistress’s palm in a flash.
“Ah! That bird—” Dongyi regretted not noticing it sooner and chasing it away. It had nearly startled her mistress.
“It’s nothing.” Shen Yanshui watched the pretty little parrot fly onto an apricot blossom branch and begin pecking eagerly at the petals of the flower she had ripened with her ability. She could not help smiling. Plucking another leaf, she infused it with a trace of her power and laid it in her palm before holding out her hand. “Come here.”
The little parrot had eaten every last petal and even the flower’s center. Hearing her voice, it cocked its head at her. Its tiny, bead-like eyes fixed on the tender leaf in her palm, and it immediately swaggered over on broad little wings. “Like it! I like it!”
Dongyi stared in surprise. “Mistress, this bird can actually speak? Is it... a parrot?”
Shen Yanshui nodded with a smile. “It is.” And clearly one that had been well cared for by someone, though she had no idea who its owner was. “It’s rather adorable.”
“Rather adorable! I’m rather adorable! Greetings to Your Highness, may you enjoy ten thousand blessings and peace! Ten thousand blessings and peace! Food, food! Give me more, give me more!”
Dongyi burst out laughing. “Mistress, this parrot is truly amusing.”
“Amusing, amusing! More, more!”
“You mustn’t eat too much of this.” Smiling, Shen Yanshui stroked the glossy feathers of the little parrot, which was obviously exceptionally well looked after, then gently rubbed its forehead.
The parrot contentedly pressed its forehead against her fingertip. “More, more!”
“Who’s making such a racket up ahead? How utterly lacking in manners.”
“Oh~ Who do we have here? Why, it’s Sister Shen...” Lady Wu approached in a begonia-colored, vine-patterned, fitted three-panel skirt, with a powder-white trimmed short jacket over it. A round fan rested in one hand while the other lay lightly on her maid’s arm, her every step graceful and poised.
Shen Yanshui’s expression remained calm as she bowed. “Greetings, Lady Wu.”
“Sister Shen, you’ve been rather free lately, haven’t you? You come to the garden every day to pass the time. As for me, I’ve been busy attending to His Highness the Crown Prince, and it feels as though I haven’t seen you in ages. Who would have thought we’d happen to meet today? What a very fortunate coincidence.”
She leisurely fanned herself. Only after she had finished speaking did she seem to realize that Shen Yanshui was still bowing. She raised her fan to her lips in exaggerated surprise. “Oh my, Sister, why are you still kneeling there? Get up, get up.”
Shen Yanshui inwardly raised a brow at Lady Wu’s theatrical performance. Such petty attempts to make things difficult for her hardly amounted to anything. So long as no one expected her to put on a performance in return, she could not be bothered to care.
Dongyi’s lips pressed into a tight line, her expression darkening. The moment she rose, she hurried to help her mistress up.
Shen Yanshui said, “Then I shall not disturb you any longer.” She could go back and prepare for dinner now; there was no need to waste time on someone unimportant.
“Wait.” Lady Wu extended her fan to block her path. Chin slightly raised, she looked at Shen Yanshui from the corner of her eye. “Why are you in such a hurry, Sister? You’ll only be going back to an empty room all alone. What fun is that? Why not stay and chat with me?”
Over the past ten days or so, His Highness the Crown Prince had visited the rear quarters only twice in total: once to Lady Zhang’s rooms, and once to hers. Yet two or three days had already passed, and there had been no reward or gift from His Highness, which only made her feel increasingly unsettled.
