Chapter Thirty-Nine
The pavilion fell silent at once; no one dared to make a sound.
He stepped in front of the two of them and said, “Princess Yonghui is still young. If she gets caught in the rain and falls ill, how am I to explain that to Prince Heng’an? The Wus’ daughter is a princess, a consort of Prince Linzi—she cannot be treated like some street urchin for you to boss around. If this reaches the Empress Grandmother’s ears, even I won’t be able to protect you, let alone the Cui clan of Qinghe!” The Cui sisters went deathly pale, not daring to utter a word of protest.
He scolded them a few more low words, then glanced at Li Longji and said, “Carry Yonghui back.” Li Longji inclined his head, handed Yonghui to Xia Zhi, signaled a eunuch to give him an umbrella, and called to me.
I stepped to his side and bowed to Li Chengqi, “Your Highness, I take my leave.” He nodded and said, “Sorry.” My heart tightened; when I looked up at him, our gazes had already crossed.
He lowered his eyes and stared at the Cui sisters. I didn’t dare linger any longer, hurried out of the pavilion, and stepped into the rain. At that moment Li Longji had already held a green umbrella over my head and walked ahead of me; several eunuchs flanked Xia Zhi, keeping a measured distance of five or six paces—neither too close nor too far.
Rain hammered the umbrella chaotically, fast and fierce, yet he and I were utterly quiet.
We’d gone quite a distance before Li Longji finally murmured, “Sorry.” I smiled faintly and didn’t look at him. After a moment he added in a strained voice, “I said I’d protect you, and ended up causing you harm—are you not even willing to hear an apology?” I stopped walking, glanced at him for a moment, then asked with a smile, “The Erhai wood carving the Grand Empress Dowager bestowed on Lady Wang—why did you bring it to my palace?”
The attendants trailing behind us also halted, waiting in silence.
Li Longji was silent for a while, then said, “This was my oversight.” I shook my head and replied, “Favoring me doesn’t just make Wang Huan wary or make the concubines who come later behave modestly; most importantly, it pleases the Grand Empress Dowager, doesn’t it?”
The Grand Empress Dowager favored marriages between the Li and Wu families most of all, precisely so their bloodlines would be linked and not wiped out. Even though my title was stripped, I remain a member of the Wu family; Li Longji’s special favor toward me naturally fulfilled the Grand Empress Dowager’s intent.
Moreover, at the crucial moment of imperial succession, every subtle advantage at each step could determine the final outcome.
He stared at me without answering, so I continued: “The Grand Empress Dowager has seen your favoritism. Visit Lady Wang’s palace more these days—sleeping on a proper bed is better than on a pallet.” He suddenly grabbed my sleeve and whispered, “Yong’an, you’re right about everything, but I never imagined today would happen. If it were Lady Wang, or any woman in my palace, they would never dare treat you like this.”
I pushed his hand aside and said, “I’m not angry with you.” He fell silent; the warmth in his eyes slowly faded. After a moment he released my sleeve and said, “I know.” He said nothing more.
When Lai Juncheng was beheaded in the busy market, I heard the scene was extremely bloody — onlookers tore at the corpse, gouged out eyes, flayed the skin, and even ate the flesh raw.
Dongyang hovered by my side as I sat, narrating the scene in vivid detail. Just as I was listening in horror, I saw a film of moisture gather in Xia Zhi’s eyes. My heart stirred and I gave Dongyang a look, saying, “Go change the pot and bring some clove tea.” Dongyang answered and carried the tea out of the room.
I didn’t know Xia Zhi’s background before she entered the palace, but seeing her like this I guessed with nine in ten certainty it had something to do with Lai Juncheng. I couldn’t help but sigh inwardly and said to Xia Zhi in a low voice, “Between the palace and the court, who knows how many people Lai Juncheng has ruined. Now that he has received his retribution, if you want to cry, cry your heart out.”
Sure enough, just as I finished speaking she stiffened, then immediately burst into tears and collapsed weakly to the ground. Seeing her cry like that made me think back to that day years ago in the prison. Lost in thought, I saw Dongyang hurry in; she was startled when she saw Xia Zhi, then regained her composure and said to me, “The prince is here.” After saying that, she quickly moved forward to help Xia Zhi up and wiped her face.
I stood up, wondering why Li Longji had come, and walked toward the folding screen. Suddenly a smell of alcohol hit me; a figure staggered two steps and crashed against the screen with a thud. I hastily reached out to steady him, but two eunuchs behind him had already braced the screen, and they exchanged a startled glance.
“Yongan,” Li Longji squinted, staring at me steadily. “I’m very happy.” I knew he meant the death of Lai Junchen. I covered my nose and nodded with a smile. “I know. Go on inside first.” He clutched my wrist tightly and leaned against me, letting me support him into the room. I took him straight to the bed, helped him pull off his boots and cover him with the blanket. When I finished I told Xia Zhi to prepare some hot soup; Dong Yang had already brought hot water.
I took a warm, damp cloth and wiped his face and hands. He stayed propped on the edge of the bed, smiling without smiling as he watched me, saying nothing and not closing his eyes, which made me feel oddly unsettled.
I handed the cloth to Dong Yang, took the hot soup from Xia Zhi, scooped up a spoonful and held it to his lips. “Drink quickly, finish this and get some sleep.” He took a small sip, sighed heavily, and teased, “Been married for half a year, and only today did I get a taste of your soup.”
I scooped another spoonful, cast him a sidelong glance, and said, “If you don’t watch your tongue again, I’ll send you off to the primary consort’s quarters.” He shook his head with a smile, dared not say another word, drank a few more mouthfuls of soup, and then drifted off to sleep.
I hung the bed curtains for him and sat outside the canopy, guessing that once he fell asleep it would be morning before he woke, so I sent a eunuch to prepare his clothes for the next day. Just as I picked up a book to calm my mind and read, Xia Zhi rushed in, her face pale and fixed on me.
My heart jumped; I put the book down and beckoned her closer, asking in a low voice, “What is it now?” She glanced at the canopy and replied softly, “Something happened to the Princess Consort.”
If anything were wrong with Wang Huan’s side, nine times out of ten it would be about the child in her belly. I hurried, “Go on.” She tightened her voice and said, “Earlier today the Princess Consort and the Prince had a huge fight. The Prince stormed off, and in a fit of anger the Princess Consort threw things and disturbed her pregnancy. Dr. Shen has already come — he says the fetus can’t be saved. He told the Prince to hurry back and see for himself.”
I frowned and glanced at the bed, cursing him inwardly for being unable to contain himself. I stepped over and called his name several times, but he was so drunk he was unconscious. If he were to go now, it would be impossible.
But if he never shows his face, Wang Huan will surely hold a grudge, and the Taiyuan Wang clan will never let it drop—they will pin the whole debt on Li Longji… As I was thinking of a strategy, faint sounds of an argument came from outside: Dongyang was quarrelling with someone.
I knew I couldn’t delay any longer, so I hurriedly told Xia Zhi, “Go fetch Dongyang and bring him in. Close the palace gates tight and say the prince has gone to bed.” I thought for a moment longer, then set the scroll aside, stood up and said, “Come with me and see.”
I rose, straightened my clothes, and stepped out of the palace with Xia Zhi. We stood on the stone steps and looked at the few palace maids in the princess’s chamber. Because Li Longji had deliberately returned to protect us, I had kept away from anyone in Wang Huan’s household; now when I swept my eyes across their faces I saw obvious fear and a barely concealed hatred—no longer something I could avoid.
I sighed inwardly and said coldly, “The prince has already gone to bed. If there’s something, speak of it tomorrow.” Xifeng bowed respectfully and said in a low voice, “The main consort is already showing signs of a miscarriage. If the prince doesn’t go now, it may be too late.”
I watched her in silence, saying nothing. Only when she lowered her head from my stare did I turn away and return in silence, ordering the palace gates to be closed tightly.
Back in the hall, I sat down on the couch, picked up the book I had half read, and tried to continue, but my mind was in turmoil. After quite a while I hadn’t managed to read ten more words.
Xiazhi stared at me, bafflement all over her face. Dongyang, however, couldn’t contain himself and murmured, “This matter has nothing to do with Madam, but now that it’s come to light and the palace gates are shut tight, if word gets out it will truly be blamed on Madam.” I kept my eyes on the book and said casually, “You two can quietly spread the word that I’m a jealous woman by nature, that the prince was momentarily infatuated and so tonight’s events were a mistake.”
The two of them exchanged a startled look, puzzled by me. I lowered my voice, “You’ve both been with the prince since childhood, so I might as well be frank: if this happened because of my jealousy, at worst I’ll be punished for envy. But if the prince has offended the Taiyuan Wang family over this, it won’t be fixed with just a few words.”
Dongyang was about to speak again but Xiazhi caught his sleeve. Xiazhi looked at me intently, bowed, and said, “Your handmaiden takes her leave. Madam, please rest early.” I nodded, watching them leave before I clutched the book harder; a sharp pain pulsed through my head.
A woman’s jealousy springs from a man’s fickleness, yet in the end the hatred falls on the woman who displaced her. How I wished I could avoid this disaster. But even avoiding it would bring consequences; it’s better to take the blame upon myself. If he wakes and soothes things with kind words, at least our status as husband and wife remains, and over time it will all be resolved.
The room was silent inside and out. I rose several times to wake Li Longji, but to no avail. It wasn’t until dawn that he groaned once and, in a low voice, called for Shui.
I poured a cup of cool tea, helped him sit up, fed it to him, and then sat quietly by the bed for half an hour. Only then did he barely open his eyes, stare at me for a long while, push himself up and lean against the bedside, his voice hoarse: “I took your bed all night and you glare at me like this the whole time?”
I bit my lip and looked at him. After a moment I said, “Madam Wang’s child is gone.” He stared at me in shock. “When?” I said softly, “Last night.” He sat in silence for a while; a flash of pain crossed his eyes. “Why didn’t you wake me?” he asked. I replied, “I called several times—you couldn’t hear a thing.” I hesitated, then added, “By the time you came to my place, she had already miscarried.”
He sat quietly for a moment, then rose and left. His steps were still unsteady, but grew more urgent, and in a short while he had gone beyond the palace gates.
I sighed inwardly, a hidden ache in my chest. My hands and feet were already numb from the exertion; after resting a while I finally stood, walked to the palace gate, and watched his receding figure, my mind completely blank until someone cleared their throat, at which I turned my head.
Shen Qiu carried a medicine box on his back, his robe lightly lifted by the morning breeze, trembling slightly. He stood a few steps away, looking at me intently; his narrow eyes were dark and unreadable.
I glanced at him wearily, said nothing, and turned back to the palace. He walked slowly behind me, and only sighed softly after we entered the room. “It seems Madam Wang may no longer be able to bear children.” My hand paused as I poured tea; I didn’t reply. Thinking of that woman with expressive eyes, my heart ached as well.
He leaned against the side of the desk, took the tea from me, and said quietly, “Do you know what it meant to have driven away Wang Huan’s maid last night?”