Princess Jinse sat for a while longer, drank three cups of tea, ate half a piece of osmanthus cake, and discussed seven or eight poems from The Book of Songs with Shi Youlan. She spoke fewer than five words to Shi Huai.
She rose and straightened her collar, then smiled at Shi Huai. “Young Master Shi, I’ll be heading back now. I’ll come ask you about poetry again another day.”
Shi Huai set down the bowl in his hands and stood, bowing properly.
“Take care, Your Highness. I’ll see you out.”
Princess Jinse waved a hand, saying there was no need, but Shi Huai still escorted her to the entrance of Shou’an Hall.
Moonlight poured down from above, falling across his face. Bathed in its silvery glow, he was so beautiful that he looked like an unreal dream.
Princess Jinse stood at the doorway and looked up at him. “Young Master Shi, I’ll treasure the poem you wrote.”
With that, she turned and walked away quickly. Her goose-yellow beizi flashed beneath the moonlight before vanishing from sight.
The palace maid hurried after her.
Shi Huai stood at the entrance of Shou’an Hall, watching Princess Jinse’s figure disappear beyond the moon gate. When he turned around, he saw that Shi Youlan was still standing in the main room.
She held a cup of tea that had already gone cold, her thoughts apparently elsewhere.
“Second Sister, aren’t you going back? It’s getting late.”
Shi Huai returned to the main room and sat down in a chair. He reached over to scoop the orange cat from the windowsill and set it on his lap, gently scratching beneath its chin.
Shi Youlan came back to herself, placed the teacup on the table, and stood up. She smoothed the hem of her skirt before nodding at Shi Huai.
“I’m going back now. You should get some rest too, Little Brother.”
When she reached the doorway, she suddenly stopped and looked back at Shi Huai. Moonlight streamed in from outside and fell across her face, lending her eyes an earnestness that was difficult to describe.
“Little Brother, what do you think of the princess?”
The question caught Shi Huai off guard. He lifted his eyes to look at Shi Youlan, a faint smile curving his lips.
“She’s very nice—cheerful and sincere. Didn’t you and Her Highness have a pleasant conversation?”
Shi Youlan nodded. “That’s good. Go to sleep early.”
She turned and walked out of Shou’an Hall, her steps much quicker than when she had arrived.
Her pale pink beizi was like a fallen flower petal beneath the moonlight. It flashed once at the end of the corridor and disappeared.
Madam Liu had already left ahead of her.
She had sat in Shou’an Hall for nearly half an hour, a proper smile fixed on her face the entire time. Every word she spoke had been more polite than the last, and she had held herself far more humbly than usual.
But the moment she stepped out of Shou’an Hall, the smile vanished from her face, replaced by a shadowy, inscrutable gloom.
She hurried back to Qingzhi Court without speaking to anyone along the way. Her fingers clenched inside her sleeves until her knuckles turned white, and her nails dug into her palms, leaving streaks of blood.
Madam Liu sat down on the couch, picked up the tea that had gone cold, and swallowed a large mouthful. The bitter tea flowed from her throat into her stomach, and her brows furrowed so deeply they could have crushed a fly.
She set down the teacup and lifted her head to stare at the moonlight outside the window. A chilling coldness churned in her eyes.
“Mother, what’s wrong?”
Shi Youlan had returned from Shou’an Hall. When she entered Qingzhi Court and saw her mother sitting on the couch with an unusual expression on her face, she approached cautiously and sat beside her, reaching out to take her hand.
Madam Liu came back to herself. She clasped her daughter’s hand and pulled her close, looking her up and down before reaching out to smooth the loose strands of hair at her temple.
“Youlan, what do you think the princess’s impression of you was?”
Shi Youlan thought for a moment and answered honestly, “It should be fairly good. We talked for quite a while, and she even said the handkerchief I embroidered was pretty.”
Madam Liu nodded, a smile appearing on her face, though it did not reach her eyes.
“That’s good. You must spend more time with the princess. Remember to send her something you made yourself during the holidays. It’s the thought that counts. What matters to the princess is your sincerity, not how expensive the gift is.”
Shi Youlan nodded and said she understood. Her finger absently traced circles on her knee. After several circles, she stopped and raised her head to look at her mother.
Madam Liu did not notice her daughter’s gaze. She was already planning her next move.
They could not let go of this connection to the princess. They had to strike while the iron was hot and draw Youlan even closer to her—ideally, until the two became confidantes who shared everything.
Shi Youlan watched her mother lost in thought. Her lips moved as though she wanted to say something, but in the end she merely lowered her head and stared at the tips of her shoes, her voice muffled.
“Mother, I’m going back to sleep.”
Madam Liu came back to herself, nodded, and patted the back of her daughter’s hand.
“Go on. Get some rest. You have to learn your etiquette tomorrow.”
Shi Youlan stood and walked out of Qingzhi Court. The night wind rushed in from the far end of the corridor, whipping the hem of her skirt.
She hunched her shoulders and quickened her pace, like a little bird eager to return to its nest.
The night deepened. Moonlight emerged from behind the clouds and spilled across the eaves, courtyards, and flagstone paths of the Yongning Marquis’s Residence, dyeing everything a silvery white.
Only the old women making their rounds at night moved along the corridors, carrying lanterns whose orange-yellow light swayed back and forth in the darkness like fireflies flying through the night.
Early the next morning, as soon as Shi Huai stepped out of Shou’an Hall, he saw Madam Liu and Shi Youlan standing in the courtyard. Two food boxes and a pot of chrysanthemums in full bloom had been placed before them.
Madam Liu wore a sapphire-blue beizi and a red-gold hairpin adorned with dangling pearls. She looked far more energetic than usual, and the smile on her face also seemed several shades more sincere.
“You’re up, Shi Huai? Perfect timing. I had some pastries prepared. Take them to the princess and tell her they were made by Youlan herself—she made them herself.” Madam Liu pushed the larger food box toward him.
Shi Huai lowered his eyes to look at the box, then glanced up at Madam Liu’s calculating face. The corner of his mouth twitched.
“Madam, the princess is in the palace. I can’t get in.”
The smile on Madam Liu’s face froze for an instant, but she quickly resumed her warm expression.
“Aren’t you studying at the Imperial College? The Third Prince studies there too, doesn’t he? Have him deliver them to the princess for you.”
Shi Huai looked at the air of utter reasonableness on Madam Liu’s face. His lips moved as though he wanted to say something, but in the end he merely nodded and reached out to take the food box.
Standing behind Madam Liu, Shi Youlan wore an extremely conflicted expression.
She knew her mother was using Shi Huai, but she did not dare say anything, because she knew that everything her mother did was for her sake.
“Madam, Second Sister, is there anything else? If not, I’m going to the Imperial College. I’ll be late if I don’t leave now.” Shi Huai handed the food box to Qinghe and straightened his collar.
Madam Liu shook her head and took Shi Youlan’s hand, nudging her half a step forward.
“That’s all, that’s all. Go on, and don’t be late. Your teacher will scold you.”
Shi Huai nodded and left Shou’an Hall with Qinghe. They crossed the garden toward the main gate, his moon-white robe lifting gently in the morning breeze.
Shi Youlan remained standing in the courtyard, watching Shi Huai’s figure disappear beyond the moon gate. Her eyes reddened slightly.
She lowered her head and stared at the tips of her shoes, twisting her fingers inside her sleeves until her knuckles turned white.
Madam Liu reached out and patted her daughter on the shoulder. Her voice held an unquestionable certainty. “Your mother is doing this for your own good. You’ll understand someday.”
Shi Youlan nodded without saying a word. She knew her mother meant well, but she didn’t like this.
She didn’t like using Shi Huai, scheming against the princess, or getting caught up in all this intrigue and manipulation...
But she had no way to refuse.
Because she was the marquis’s second daughter, Madam Liu’s child. From the day she was born, she had been trapped in this marquis’s estate—in these rules and schemes—with no way out.
