Chapter 64: The Whirlpool (Part 1)

A secret matter concerning the Crown Prince.

This year turned cold earlier than previous years, and with Consort Jin newly pregnant, the Imperial Household Department had begun early preparations for charcoal, fur garments, and other winter supplies.

Since the Empress passed away two years ago, all major and minor affairs of the inner palace had been managed by Consort Shu. However, for some unknown reason, ever since His Majesty’s health improved, he ceased visiting Shu Yun Palace and instead began favoring the previously obscure Consort Jin and Consort Yu.

Both had now been promoted in rank and jointly managed the inner palace affairs.

When His Majesty’s health had been poor, the Crown Prince, being the legitimate eldest son and supported by the Cui family of Donglin—the in-laws of the Eldest Princess—was highly regarded by everyone in the palace as the future heir.

Yet, with Consort Jin’s pregnancy, the situation underwent subtle changes.

After this winter, the Fourth Prince would turn ten years old. Having been separated from his birth mother and raised under Consort Yu’s care, he was exceptionally bright and endearing.

Thus, Consort Jin and Consort Yu, each with their own backing, formed a rival faction in the inner palace.

By the year’s end, the thresholds of their two palaces were nearly worn out by visitors, making the once-bustling Shu Yun Palace appear as desolate as the Cold Palace, utterly neglected.

In the evening, another troublesome matter arose in Qingyu Palace.

Two young noble ladies went to Consort Yu to settle a dispute over some silver charcoal. It should have been a trivial matter, easily resolved with a few words.

But these past few days, His Majesty had not visited the inner palace. Li Yuzhi, feeling concerned and utterly bored, decided to listen to their argument.

Unexpectedly, she stumbled upon an astonishing secret.

It concerned the Crown Prince—a man of peerless elegance, yet as distant and unattainable as the moon and stars.

~

In Shu Yun Palace, Zisu was fetching water to wipe Consort Shu’s face, but the water was actually cold.

Li Youqing stood coldly to the side, arms crossed, watching as the young maid rushed about under Tao Yan’s direction, managing all the palace affairs.

Since Consort Shu lost the emperor’s favor, those around her scattered like monkeys fleeing a tree. Her personal maid, Du Ruo, was sent to the laundry bureau on some pretext.

Only this young maid remained—not very clever, honest and simple, easily manipulated and bullied.

“Princess, the Imperial Household Department is truly too much. They refuse to send charcoal to Her Highness’s palace. We can’t even heat water.”

On the bed, Sima Shu, already delirious from illness, murmured weakly, “Is that Zisu?”

Zisu’s eyes reddened. She immediately knelt by the bed, grasping Consort Shu’s icy hand, and said, “Your Highness, don’t worry. The young princess has returned. From now on, she will take care of you.”

Consort Shu’s fingers twitched slightly. Then she turned to face the wall, her tone stiff as she said, “What is she doing here? She only brings more trouble. Drive her out at once!”

“Your Highness, the young princess has grown up now and is betrothed to Young Master Jin. You need not worry about those matters anymore.” Zisu shuffled forward on her knees, tugging at Li Youqing’s hem as she wiped her tears. “Princess, please understand. Back then, Her Highness went to great lengths to send you to Changxin Palace, all for your future. You are the child she carried for ten months—how could she not care for you?”

Li Youqing’s perpetually indifferent expression softened slightly upon hearing these words. She unconsciously took a step back.

Ten months of pregnancy—

Slap! A crisp sound rang out as Consort Shu mustered all her strength to rise and delivered a stinging blow to Zisu’s face. Pointing toward the jade-beaded curtain dividing the chamber, she spat, “You wretch! Get out of my sight!”

“There’s no need for such anger, Mother Consort,” Li Youqing remarked coolly, her gaze fixed on that familiar yet estranged face.

A year in the northern deserts, a year at Ganhua Temple—in total, mother and daughter had not seen each other for two years.

In the stillness of midnight, she had revisited their tangled history time and again, believing the wounds had long since healed, that even a reunion would leave her unmoved.

Yet Zisu’s words, whether sincere or part of some staged melodrama between the two, had stirred ripples in her heart she could no longer suppress.

After a moment’s reflection, Li Youqing replied wearily, “Since you’re unwell, you should rest. I will find a way to manage the palace provisions.”

“After your exile to the northern wastes, it was only by the Jin family’s grace, the Emperor’s mercy, and heaven’s pity that you secured such a favorable match. In the days before your wedding, stay out of trouble and… do not come to Shu Yun Palace again!” Consort Shu, seated at the edge of the bed, grew deathly pale after this outburst, her chest heaving uncontrollably.

“Enough. I know my limits,” Li Youqing retorted impatiently, turning to leave without another word.

Stepping out of the desolate hall, she noticed two young noblewomen clad in fox-fur mantles seated in the courtyard, sipping tea by a brazier, each attended by three or five maids—a picture of cultivated elegance.

She recalled they were newly selected consorts from three months prior, assigned to reside in the side halls of Shu Yun Palace.

The main hall felt lifeless and cold; standing there briefly had chilled her to the bone. In contrast, the courtyard seemed warmer.

As she emerged, one of the noblewomen in pure white fox fur cast her a sidelong glance and sneered, “Who would be so absurd as to visit a disgraced consort? Ah, it’s the princess back from the dead.”

The other tittered and added, “Sister, why still call her ‘princess’? The daughter of a condemned consort hardly deserves the title.”

In the past, Li Youqing would have ordered their mouths torn open for such insolence. Now, she merely frowned slightly, committing their faces to memory.

Since her return from the northwest, she had been confined to Ganhua Temple. Though clothed in silks and fed delicacies, she had never been granted an audience with the Emperor or her Imperial Brother.

As time passed, her confidence waned.

This vast palace had never truly held a place for her. Now, with her maternal family fallen from favor, even these minor noblewomen dared mock her openly.

But Li Youqing had weightier matters on her mind. Without a second glance, she departed Shu Yun Palace and entered her palanquin.

Early that morning, Eunuch Pei had arrived with a message: as the year drew to a close, the Emperor missed her dearly and had summoned her to the palace.

Nearly a year had passed since her return to the capital. Did the Emperor truly remember he had such a daughter?

Or had she become a mark of shame…?

Regardless, she longed to see her Father Emperor, to demand the truth: Was she truly his daughter?

She refused to return to Ganhua Temple, to be kept like a pampered pet.

“Eunuch Pei, I wonder if His Majesty is available now? If he is still in council, I can wait outside,” she said, lifting the curtain slightly with one hand to glance at the effeminate-faced man beside the sedan chair.

Pei Ya bowed his head respectfully. “Please be patient, Young Princess. We must first make a stop at Changxin Palace.”

“Changxin Palace?” Li Youqing couldn’t conceal her astonishment.

That was the former residence of the Empress.

Suddenly, a chill ran down her spine.

What exactly was her Imperial Brother scheming by deliberately bringing her back to the palace and exposing her non-imperial lineage?

If, as Jin Cheng had previously informed her, he harbored improper intentions toward her, then why had he ignored her completely throughout this past year?

Ever since Xuan Rui’s great victory over the Li Zhen Tribe and her maternal family’s fall from power, everyone had been avoiding her as if she were a plague.

Though she had returned to the imperial palace, all her past connections had been severed. Only Jin Cheng visited periodically, sharing news about court and political affairs.

Jin Cheng… She considered herself a selfish person, and the only one she felt she had wronged in this world was A Cheng.

“The sky is growing late. His Highness the Crown Prince and Young Master Jin have likely already begun the banquet and are awaiting your presence, Young Princess,” Pei Ya added impassively from the side.

Li Youqing’s entire body stiffened, and she silently clenched her skirt.