Chapter 14

Page 1/3

Having not been too much disturbed physically, Pei Yun slept quite comfortably, though shortly after the Crown Prince left, she was awakened by Shuyan and Shumo. Today was the first day of the lunar new year. Aside from the civil and military officials attending the grand court ceremony, the imperial consorts, noble ladies, princes, and grandsons all had to participate in the formal greetings.

Pei Yun sat on a chair, allowing Shuyan to dress and groom her. Shuyan glanced at her mistress from time to time and, seeing her in a good mood, could not help but say, “Your Highness, I feel that His Highness the Crown Prince seemed rather displeased this morning…”

Pei Yun merely tugged at the corner of her lips indifferently.

Displeased was only to be expected.

Surely, after last night’s incident, the Crown Prince would have no interest in touching her again.

It was the same in her past life, yet luckily the Crown Prince was a gentleman. He did not seek revenge by neglecting her; he still stayed two or three nights a month in Linlang Hall, though only for rest.

Pei Yun thought that the Crown Prince was a man of decorum; even if he harbored anger towards her, he would not allow rumors of discord between them to spread outside.

After changing and grooming, her eldest son Li Jin arrived, all neat and proper.

Since little Chen’er was still too young to attend such ceremonies, Pei Yun could only take her eldest son to the Noble Consort’s Yong’an Palace.

There was no Empress in the harem, and the Empress Dowager was practicing and praying at the distant Zhaolian Mountain Buddhist Temple. Thus, all matters had to be led and presided over by the Noble Consort. Once Emperor Qingzhen received the officials’ greetings at Taihe Hall, he then moved to Qianqing Palace to participate in the inner court ceremony.

The consorts, noble ladies, princes, and grandsons took turns presenting their salutations, the rituals lengthy and intricate.

It was only by mid-afternoon that Pei Yun found a moment of leisure.

The Crown Prince still needed to accompany Emperor Qingzhen at Chengqian Palace for a banquet with the officials, so Pei Yun dined with her son Li Jin alone.

After finishing, Li Jin played briefly with his younger brother but soon rose to take his leave, saying he had not yet finished copying the calligraphy model for the day and had to return.

It was the second day of the lunar new year; which child would not want to play? Pei Yun urged him to stay, saying the copying could be postponed and there was no need to rush, but Li Jin insisted on going back to Yan Chi Hall.

Pei Yun could only consent.

She could tell that Li Jin’s desire to return was partly for his studies but perhaps also due to worries — fears that one day she would revert to the stern and unfeeling mother she once was, thus he dared not slacken.

Pei Yun’s heart ached deeply. Chen’er was fortunate to have some chance to make up for the past, but Li Jin—she had truly ruined his childhood, the years that should have been carefree and innocent, leaving him cautious and guarded.

She had thought their bond had grown much closer, but it seemed the road ahead was still long.

Page 2/3

On the morning of the second day, just after breakfast, Shumo brought a letter delivered from outside the palace.

Pei Yun opened it and scanned the contents, a smile rising to her lips.

Curious, Shuyan asked, “Is it good news that has made Your Highness so pleased?”

“Of course it is,” Pei Yun replied, folding the letter and rising to her desk. She quickly wrote a few lines, sealed them in an envelope, and handed it to Shumo. “Send this out.”

Shumo nodded and pocketed the letter, then swiftly left Linlang Hall.

Pei Yun then turned to Shuyan. “Go to Chenghua Hall and have Eunuch Shengxi inform His Highness that I will return to the Duke’s residence the day after tomorrow.”

Shuyan hesitated briefly.

Usually, her mistress would deliver such messages personally.

But she did not speak further and simply said, “Yes,” before departing.

Though silent, from Shuyan’s expression Pei Yun could guess her thoughts.

Though Emperor Qingzhen had granted officials several days off, the Crown Prince was never idle; he must be in the study of Chenghua Hall, handling affairs.

There was no need to trouble him over such a trivial matter; besides, he would not refuse.

Perhaps, after last night’s matter, the Crown Prince did not wish to see her. It was better to be discreet and avoid disturbing him.

Meanwhile, in the study of Chenghua Hall, Eunuch Shengxi hurried inside to find the Crown Prince buried in paperwork, reluctant to interrupt.

He glanced toward his master for help. Chang Lu immediately understood, quietly replacing the cold teacup beside the Crown Prince and concernedly advising, “Your Highness, you have been reading for over an hour. You should rest a while; careful you don’t strain your eyes.”

Li Changye lifted his gaze slightly and soon noticed Shengxi waiting nearby.

“What is it?”

Shengxi stepped forward quickly. “Your Highness, the Crown Princess sent word that she will return to the Duke’s residence the day after tomorrow, likely to visit the madam and the old madam.”

Li Changye’s brows furrowed sharply. He glanced toward the adjacent door, wondering why she did not come in person, then recalled they were still at odds.

He was silent for a moment, then said, “When the Crown Princess returns, help her select the best items from the treasury. Tell her not to hold back—headpieces, jewelry, silks, medicines, calligraphy, and paintings—everything must be complete.”

Shengxi was somewhat surprised; His Highness had never given such instructions before.

It seemed he was taking this visit seriously.

But as he pondered, Shengxi sensed a misunderstanding.

He hesitated, then said slowly, “Your Highness, the Crown Princess has never taken anything from the Eastern Palace treasury when returning to the Duke’s residence before…”

Li Changye’s brush froze mid-air; his sharp eyes flashed coldly as he said, “Then where did the gifts she carries come from?”

Knowing Pei’s character, he was certain she would never return empty-handed. A suspicion formed in his heart, confirmed when Shengxi reported the truth.

“They are all from the Crown Princess’s private treasury.”

Shengxi glanced nervously at his master and continued, “Except for one time when she urgently needed a century-old ginseng and it was unavailable in the private treasury, she sent Shumo to ask for it. But it was more of an exchange—she gave the Lingzhi mushroom sent by the Duke in return. I could not refuse, so I accepted the Lingzhi and a pair of ruby earrings…”

Hearing Shengxi’s lowering voice, Li Changye’s face darkened like still water. He gripped his brush tightly and demanded coldly, “Why did you not tell me this?”

Shengxi knew the Crown Prince’s temper well. Though calm and gentle now, his tone and expression clearly betrayed great anger.

He knelt hurriedly, bowing his head. “Your Highness, forgive me. It was my negligence.”

Chang Lu, standing nearby, understood this could not be entirely Shengxi’s fault and defended the younger eunuch. After some thought, he said, “Your Highness, the Crown Princess is always very considerate and does not wish to take treasury items without permission, perhaps to avoid gossip.”

Li Changye put down his brush, thoughtful.

As Chang Lu said, Pei had always been respectful of etiquette, which suited her nature.

Yet that uncomfortable feeling surfaced again in Li Changye’s heart.

Pei seemed almost too respectful, as if deliberately distancing herself from him.

He pondered briefly; his expression softened. To Shengxi, kneeling below, he said, “Rise. Bring me the list of items from the treasury.”

Page 3/3

Back in Linlang Hall, Pei Yun repeatedly examined the list of private treasury items. Her collection was not vast; most were gifts explicitly given by Emperor Qingzhen, the Crown Prince, the late Empress, and various palace ladies.

She had already bestowed the finest deer antlers to her grandmother; this time, there were hardly any good quality medicines left. After much thought, her finger hovered over a somewhat lesser ginseng root when a palace attendant entered to announce Eunuch Shengxi’s arrival.

Pei Yun set aside the list and soon saw Shengxi stride in, bowing respectfully before her.

“I pay my respects to the Crown Princess.”

Pei Yun wondered if the Crown Prince had given instructions and was about to ask when seven or eight young attendants followed, carrying heavy red lacquered wooden boxes and placing them before her, filling the inner hall almost to capacity.

Shumo and Shuyan looked surprised, and Pei Yun frowned slightly. “Eunuch Shengxi, what is this...?”

“Your Highness, His Highness heard that you will return to the Duke’s residence the day after tomorrow and personally selected these gifts from the treasury for you to take with you.” Shengxi opened the lids of the boxes. “His Highness also said you should inspect them carefully, and if anything is missing or insufficient, just tell me, and I will immediately add more.”

Pei Yun stared at the dazzling array of items before her, momentarily stunned, unsure what the Crown Prince’s true intention was.

In the past, whenever she wished to return to the Duke’s residence and informed him, he would simply say ‘very well’ and instruct Chang Lu to send escorts to ensure her safe journey, saying no more. Why was it different this time…?

Her lips pressed lightly together as she glanced quickly over the treasures and smiled, “This is more than enough. Please convey my thanks to His Highness.”

“As you command.”

Before leaving, Shengxi added, “Your Highness, His Highness specifically instructed me to tell you that in the future, if you return to the Duke’s residence, you may freely take items from the treasury without concern.”

Pei Yun was startled for a moment but nodded. After sending Shengxi out, she rose to examine the Crown Prince’s gifts more closely.

Several were familiar and quite valuable.

After much consideration, she could only conclude that, as it was the New Year, the Crown Prince did not want her to lose face at the Eastern Palace and thus bestowed these items for her to bring back in order to maintain appearances and observe proper etiquette.

As for the last remark…

The Crown Prince cared deeply about his reputation. Each time the Crown Princess took her own things back home, it was never a good look.

Regardless of his thoughts, the fine deer antlers solved a major problem for Pei Yun.

Having roughly inspected the items, she picked up a red satin box from one of the chests and fondled the exquisitely carved, lifelike white jade rabbit inside, smiling softly.

Such a charming little trinket would surely delight her beloved Yan Yan.

On the day she was to return to the Duke’s residence, before dawn, Pei Yun rose—not because she could not sleep but because Chen’er had woken early and was fussing for milk. Pei Yun got up and summoned the wet nurse through Shumo to feed him.

She took the opportunity to dress and groom herself. Breakfast was ready, and Chen’er, having been fed, showed no signs of sleepiness but was full of energy, stretching out his hands and humming softly, wanting his mother to hold him.

Pei Yun took the child into her arms and smiled, “Chen’er, you cling to Mother so much, it makes me reluctant to leave you behind.”

Though it was after New Year, the weather outside was still bitterly cold. She could not take the child out, and moreover, today’s visit to the Duke’s residence was no place for Chen’er.

After a light breakfast to settle her stomach and soothing the child back to sleep, Pei Yun left Linlang Hall and entered a small carriage heading out of the palace.

The carriage jolted for a while before coming to a steady stop, signaling they had passed the palace gates and would soon change to a horse-drawn carriage.

Shortly after, the curtain was lifted, and a hand reached inside. Pei Yun naturally placed her hand in it, initially unaware anything was amiss.

Only when the hand closed around hers, enveloping it with a rough, calloused palm, did Pei Yun pause slightly.

Outside, daylight shone fully. Pei Yun squinted and looked up, meeting the man’s eyes—dark and bottomless as an abyss.

His thin lips parted slightly, and a low, rich voice sounded beside her ear.

“I am free today; I will accompany you back.”