Gao Yuexing sent two letters back to the capital, placing them in the same box. The box first entered the Prince’s Manor, where the servants were instructed, as per the courier official’s directions, to deliver one letter to the palace and the other to the Gao Residence.
If someone in the capital wanted to monitor Li Fuxiang’s movements at all times, they would certainly place their spies in her closest surroundings.
In the Prince Xiang’s Manor, the only person who had earned Gao Yuexing’s trust deeply enough to access her personal letters was Fu Yun.
Gao Jing was frugal in his official and personal life. When Gao Yuexing was still at home, she only had two maids serving her and her elder sister simultaneously. Since Gao Yuexing spent most of her time in the palace, she was not close to the household maids. The only two maids she trusted since childhood were taken away by her elder sister, Gao Yuemin, upon her marriage.
When Gao Yuexing married into the Prince’s Manor, the dowry maids accompanying her were personally selected by Madam Gao. For Gao Yuexing, they were essentially two complete strangers.
Thus, she had very few people she could rely on by her side.
Fu Yun…
Gao Yuexing closed her eyes.
Fu Yun had a problem.
That would explain her death in her previous life.
The day before Gao Yuexing returned to the capital, she received a letter from her father at home. The letter was sealed in a Korean paper envelope and contained only a few words of concern, nothing unusual. However, Gao Yuexing felt the texture of wax in the lower left corner of the envelope. After heating it over a flame, her father’s hidden message appeared: “Discuss in detail upon your return to the capital.”
Gao Yuexing initially thought she would need to wait until her return to investigate the underlying oddities.
She hadn’t expected that her father had already seen through her schemes and understood the situation to some extent.
Receiving her father’s reply brought Gao Yuexing an inexplicable sense of calm.
However, she had no intention of acting against Fu Yun just yet.
The bait was set. Whether it was taken or destroyed, Fu Yun was merely the bait.
Fu Yun was not someone who could act independently.
Gao Yuexing speculated that there must be someone behind her.
When they saw the court ministers’ sedan chairs stopped on the road outside the imperial city, they realized the morning court session was still ongoing.
Following the ministers’ protocol, they parked their carriage outside the palace gates. After disembarking, Gao Yuexing noticed a small pastry shop further ahead selling butter glutinous rice balls.
Remembering they had yet to eat breakfast that morning, Gao Yuexing suddenly felt a hollow sensation in her stomach and gazed at the shop a few moments longer.
For such snacks, Gao Yuexing didn’t even need to say a word; Li Fuxiang understood immediately.
He told Gao Yuexing to wait where she was while he jogged off toward the butter glutinous rice balls.
As Gao Yuexing idly waited, her gaze wandered ahead. Near the gates of the imperial city, she spotted the carriage of the Prince Xin’s Manor.
It was just a casual glance, but as the curtain of the carriage shifted in the breeze, the silhouette of a woman holding a child inside caught Gao Yuexing’s attention.
The Prince of Xiang and the Prince of Xin were brothers.
Thus, the women of their households would naturally be sisters-in-law.
Gao Yuexing recognized the face of the Princess Xin Consort.
However, the woman inside the carriage looked unfamiliar to her.
Then she thought of the child in the woman’s arms.
Gao Yuexing understood. That must be the concubine who had borne the Prince Xin his illegitimate royal son.
As she approached the carriage, she heard the faint sound of a woman softly humming a nursery rhyme from inside.
—”Greetings to the Princess Xiang Consort!”
The guards surrounding the Prince Xin’s carriage saluted respectfully upon seeing Gao Yuexing.
The woman inside heard the commotion, cradling the child with one arm while using the other to lift the bamboo curtain. She alighted gracefully and bowed deeply. “This concubine, Jiang Qi, greets the Princess Xiang Consort.”
She soothed the child well and adhered to the formalities with precision.
It was said she had come from the palace, and indeed, she lacked nothing in decorum.
Gao Yuexing casually asked, “Are you waiting for His Highness the Prince Xin?”
Jiang Qi shook her head and replied, “No, I am waiting for our Princess Consort. It is the fifteenth today, so the Princess Consort has gone to the palace to pay her respects as per custom.”
The Princess Consort went to the palace for her formal greetings, while the concubine stayed outside the palace gates with the child?
If the Princess Consort and the concubine had a strained relationship, it seemed odd for them to share the same carriage.
If they got along well, this situation was still peculiar.
The birth of the Prince Xin’s illegitimate eldest son had been nothing short of a slap in the face to the legitimate Princess Consort, delivered jointly by the Prince Xin and his concubine.
As for how the Princess Xin Consort handled it, outsiders could not say.
However, Gao Yuexing thought to herself that if she were in such a situation, she would certainly not take it lying down.
Li Fuxiang returned with the butter glutinous rice balls and came to fetch her. “Let’s go.”
He glanced at the woman standing opposite Gao Yuexing, whom he didn’t recognize.
But upon seeing the Prince Xin’s carriage and the child in the woman’s arms, he figured it out. Nevertheless, he maintained his disdain for children and made no effort to approach, focusing only on pulling Gao Yuexing away.
Gao Yuexing had no choice but to bid Jiang Qi farewell.
On the way, she continued pondering. “Why was Jiang Qi standing outside the palace gates with the child?”
Li Fuxiang replied, “You don’t know? The Emperor himself said that woman should stay peacefully in the Prince Xin’s Manor and not come running to the palace without reason. He finds her presence a headache.”
Gao Yuexing found it unbelievable. “The Emperor doesn’t even care for his own grandson?”
Though illegitimate, the child was still a direct blood relative, carrying the bloodline of the Li family.
Li Fuxiang said, “When have you ever seen the Emperor eager to have grandchildren?”
Gao Yuexing thought carefully and realized it was true.
The Emperor’s temperament defied conventional understanding. He had few children and devoted all his paternal affection to the son of Noble Consort Zheng. It seemed that as long as Li Fuxiang was safe and sound, all worldly joys and concerns were of no consequence to him.
Since it wasn’t yet time for the court session to end, Li Fuxiang and Gao Yuexing, feeling bored, decided to visit Chunhe Palace. There, they paid their respects to Consort Xian and took the opportunity to check in on the princess, whom they hadn’t seen for some time.
When they arrived at Chunhe Palace, they unexpectedly encountered the Princess Xin Consort, Lu Weixiao, who was paying her respects to Consort Xian.
Since they were sisters-in-law, they were not considered outsiders. Thus, Consort Xian did not separate the meetings but invited everyone to sit together for tea and casual conversation.
Lu Weixiao’s elder brother was the second-place laureate in the imperial examination and currently held a position as an editor at the Hanlin Academy. Though Lu Weixiao came from a humble family, under her brother’s guidance, she had become a rare and exceptionally talented woman.
Gao Yuexing had only met her twice before.
Once was on the eve of the Prince Xin’s wedding.
The other was on the night of the Prince Xiang’s wedding.
Both times were fleeting encounters, leaving no chance for meaningful conversation.
Yet, just a glance at Lu Weixiao’s appearance and demeanor left one feeling at ease.
Gao Yuexing sat across from her. When she looked up, their eyes met, and they exchanged a warm smile.
Li Fuxiang, upon seeing the room filled with women, perhaps found nothing of interest. After briefly paying his respects to Consort Xian, he sat for a moment, drank a cup of tea, and promptly left.
Gao Yuexing watched through the window as he departed, noting the direction he took, but she didn’t follow.
She had no interest in playing around right now—she wanted to get some proper work done.
The Prince Xiang and the Prince Xin, having not grown up together, lacked the close bond of brothers. One was a scholar, the other a warrior, and they had little to discuss.
The relationship between the two brothers was distant, making it even rarer for Gao Yuexing to have a proper chance to meet with Lu Weixiao.
The Princess Xin Consort, who had become a laughingstock and topic of gossip among the women of the capital, seemed entirely unbothered. Her expression showed no trace of worry or fatigue, and her serene demeanor was evident even in the way she meticulously prepared tea.
Though Gao Yuexing knew that touching upon someone’s sore spots was not a friendly gesture, she showed no guilt in doing so. After a polite exchange of pleasantries, she went straight to the point: “Just as I was entering the palace earlier, I noticed the Prince Xin’s carriage parked outside. A woman on the carriage even got down holding a child to greet me.”
Consort Xian smiled warmly and interjected, “That must have been Jiang Qi bringing the child again.”
Lu Weixiao also smiled, showing no hint of avoiding the topic of the mother and child. “Yes, she’s been confined in the Prince Xin’s Manor for nearly a year. Now that her restriction has been lifted, everyone thought it would be good for her to get some fresh air. Since it’s easier for me to leave the palace than for her, I thought I’d take care of her in some small ways.”
Consort Xian glanced at Gao Yuexing and said, “The virtue of the Princess Xin Consort—few in this world can compare.”
Gao Yuexing was struck by how virtuous Lu Weixiao truly seemed—if her words were entirely sincere.
She sipped her tea silently, listening as Consort Xian added, “That child, after all, carries our family’s blood. Even if the bones are broken, the tendons are still connected. I’ve always wanted to meet the child, but His Majesty refuses to allow it.”
Gao Yuexing said nothing.
Lu Weixiao, not wanting to leave Consort Xian hanging, replied, “Father is in the prime of his life, a time when decisiveness in governance is paramount. It’s only natural he wouldn’t let himself be easily swayed by familial sentiments.”
Hearing this, Gao Yuexing smiled.
Whether Lu Weixiao’s earlier words were sincere was debatable, but this last statement was undoubtedly a hollow compliment.
The current emperor was well aware that leaving the empress’s position vacant was detrimental to the stability of the nation’s foundation. He also knew that much of the chaos in the imperial harem over the years stemmed from this very issue. Yet, despite the pressure and advice from the previous dynasty and the harem, he steadfastly refused to appoint an empress.
To say the emperor would not let himself be easily swayed by familial sentiments?
Even in her coffin, Noble Consort Zheng in the imperial mausoleum must be laughing at such naivety.
Gao Yuexing felt that continuing this conversation might veer dangerously toward criticism of the Emperor. She quickly redirected the topic with a casual remark, glossing over the matter. Turning to Lu Weixiao, she asked, “Did the Princess Xin Consort meet Lady Meng today?”
Lady Meng was the Prince Xin’s birth mother.
It would be unreasonable for the Princess Xin Consort to visit the palace without paying her respects to her.
Lu Weixiao nodded and replied, “I did. Mother has not been feeling well recently and cannot exert herself too much, so I didn’t stay long. I just greeted her briefly and left.”
Gao Yuexing raised an eyebrow. “Oh? Lady Meng is unwell?”
Her gaze shifted to Consort Xian.
Consort Xian understood her unspoken question and explained, “Lady Meng claims her health has been poor ever since she was angered by the Prince Xin’s foolishness years ago. She’s been unwell for the entire year, with constant relapses. She hasn’t stopped taking medicine and refuses to see the Prince Xin. Even after his house arrest was lifted, he visited her a few times, but she wouldn’t let him in.”
Gao Yuexing pondered this for a moment and asked, “Does Lady Meng not wish to see the Prince Xin’s firstborn son?”
Lu Weixiao sighed and said, “To be honest, I asked Mother the same question. Her response was that there’s nothing worth seeing. After what the Prince Xin did to disgrace himself, she would rather pretend she never gave birth to this son.”
Consort Xian interjected, “That’s a harsh statement. The Prince Xin is still the Emperor’s own flesh and blood. Even though the Emperor was angry, he never disowned him. As a mother, Lady Meng is surprisingly ruthless.”
Lu Weixiao agreed, “Yes, in the end, what fault does the child bear?”
As Gao Yuexing listened to their conversation, her suspicious mind began to whirl once again.
She had once whispered about Lady Meng’s situation with Li Fuxiang in private.
If Lady Meng truly possessed such clear-headed decisiveness, she wouldn’t have endured the Emperor’s neglect for so many years.