Chapter 23: The Legend of Zhen Huan – Summer, Winter, and Spring (Conclusion)

The girl dancing in the air wore a dress of white gauze, while the one singing on the boat was dressed in a rich maroon flag costume. Their voices were enchanting, their movements graceful, and together they performed flawlessly.

The Princess of Ziyun’s face darkened immediately.

Yinzhen first glanced at his young lady.

Yet, he saw her eyes shining brightly, sparkling with keen interest. He felt a sudden frustration, then let out a small smile.

This one.

Yinzhen leaned close to her ear. “Do you like it?”

Xia Dongchun nodded vigorously. “I love it.”

“Don’t talk while eating,” Yinzhen said, handing her a cup of fruit wine.

“If you like it, have them perform for you every day, alright?” Recently, Nuobao had been restless, and he felt anxious as well.

After all, these were singing and dancing maids; having them perform for her wouldn’t be impossible.

Singing attendant Chun Chang: ···

Dancing attendant Zhen Huan: ···

Soon, the dance and song ceased. But it was clear that Xia Dongchun was the only one who listened and watched with such earnest attention.

The Princess of Ziyun was now seething with anger. Having grown up in the palace, she had seen all sorts of things, but using her daughter’s birthday banquet as a mere raft!

She glanced at Xia Wei, who only knew how to eat and drink, and slapped her sharply. “Eat, eat, eat, all you know is eating.”

Xia Wei: ···

Shen Meizhuang was equally upset. The emperor hadn’t even glanced her way, his heart and eyes fixed solely on the Imperial Noble Consort Chen.

On the other side, Zhen Huan and Chun Chang on the boat found themselves in a dilemma—neither staying nor leaving seemed right.

Yinzhen hadn’t even noticed they were still there. Usually, singing and dancing attendants finished their performances and left on their own. Why were they waiting for his invitation?

Duan Pin, who had come along with a medic to check on Xia Dongchun, spoke up unwillingly, “Your Majesty, the two on the boat seem to be Chun Chang and the attendant Zhen.”

Yinzhen, who was massaging Xia Dongchun’s small hand, was puzzled.

After thinking for a long time and receiving a reminder from Su Peisheng, he recalled.

“Isn’t the attendant Zhen under house arrest? Who let her out?”

“And Chun Chang is supposed to be in the palace. Who brought her here?”

Duan Pin fell silent instantly. She had only helped behind the scenes and subtly stirred things up; officially, it wasn’t her doing.

Shen Meizhuang stood up with dignity, holding her belly. “Your Majesty, Chun Chang was brought here by me. During my pregnancy, I was distressed, and Chun Chang and I have a very close relationship…”

She couldn’t finish her sentence before Yinzhen interrupted, “Imperial Noble Consort Hua, what is the meaning of this?”

Imperial Noble Consort Hua: ?

What’s it to her? “Your Majesty, I know nothing of this matter. The Concubine didn’t inform me beforehand.”

Shen Meizhuang immediately backtracked. “Your Majesty! I was only distressed because of my pregnancy, I just wanted to—” Then, glancing at Imperial Noble Consort Chen’s indifferent expression, she blurted out, “Hasn’t Imperial Noble Consort Chen also repeatedly violated palace rules?”

That statement stunned everyone. Even An Lingrong admired her for reaching a new level of foolishness.

One could only say that Shen Meizhuang had never truly suffered since entering the palace. Her greatest hardship was probably kneeling a bit too long during the court assembly. Had she seen how Zhen Huan was crushed and didn’t care about anything?

The room fell silent. Shen Meizhuang immediately regretted her words but, touching her belly, felt justified. Such a treacherous consort deserved punishment.

The more she thought about it, the more convinced she was of her righteousness. Shen Meizhuang straightened her back, utterly disregarding whether her family would suffer for her arrogance.

Yinzhen held the furious Xia Dongchun in his arms. “The Concubine acted on her own, violated palace rules, slandered a superior, hereby stripped of her title, demoted to answer, and sentenced to lifelong confinement in the Idle Moon Pavilion.”

Shen Meizhuang: “Your Majes—… uh…”

Before she could finish, she was taken away.

Yinzhen embraced Xia Dongchun. He still had birthday gifts to give Nuonuo. As he left, he said, “The rest will be dealt with by Imperial Noble Consort Hua.”

Imperial Noble Consort Hua immediately perked up. If not favored, at least having power was acceptable. She looked disdainfully at Zhen Huan and Chun Chang, still on the boat.

“Chun Chang will be sent back to the palace, confined for three months, and must copy palace rules ten times. The attendant Zhen will also be sent back and confined.” As for the duration, apologies, there was none.

Neither of them could hear the voices from the center. They only saw the emperor leaving with Imperial Noble Consort Chen, and Zhen Huan witnessed her sister being dragged away.

No matter how they thought about it, their fates were sealed.

Watching Yinzhen’s departing figure, Duan Pin’s face turned pale, and in an instant, she lost her vitality. With great difficulty, under the support of Jixiang, she returned to the palace but never opened her eyes again.

All that remained were Jixiang’s sorrowful cries.

~

Meanwhile, Xia Dongchun, carried by Yinzhen, was whisked around—by boat, sedan chair, and finally carriage—feeling dizzy all along.

Half asleep, she sensed they had arrived. Struggling, she opened her eyes to find herself lying on a soft cushion in the middle of a lawn.

“Yinzhen?”

“Yinzhen, where are you?”

“Yin…”

The blooming flower lanterns around stilled her voice. Following the lights, she found the air filled with the fragrance of wintersweet blossoms. The paper walls of the lanterns were decorated with scenes of her daily gestures and movements.

Xia Dongchun couldn’t describe the feelings flooding her heart—both bittersweet and sweet.

At this moment, she thought, Ye Yun was wrong.

Even if love has an expiration date, she didn’t ask for forever, only that when he loved her… he would love only her.

She longed to see Yinzhen and softly called his name, her voice unknowingly tinged with tears.

“Yinzhen~”

“Yinzhen, where are you?”

As she walked, someone gently embraced her from behind. Breathing in a familiar scent, Xia Dongchun whispered softly.

“Yinzhen, if one day you grow tired, please tell me in advance. I don’t want to hear it from others.”

Yinzhen said nothing but tightened his arms, wrapping her completely in his embrace.

His Nuonuo seemed simple and easy to understand, but after being with her, he knew she was sensitive and fragile, especially regarding emotions—closed off tightly. He had investigated her from childhood to adulthood but never found the reason.

But it didn’t matter. He would give her enough security.

~

At the banquet, the royal clans wore various expressions, though more were in agreement. They had long resented the Ulanara family’s dominance over the empress position, as the family had made no real contributions yet had produced three empresses—a bunch of men relying on women.

After returning home, the Princess of Ziyun couldn’t wait half a moment before dispatching people to investigate.

Within half a month, the Qi, Zhen, and Shen families were all impeached. The Zhen family faced the Ningguta purge; the Qi family’s foundation was questioned, but their descendants were severely dealt with by the Fourteenth Prince; the Shen family was demoted repeatedly.

By mid-August, the imperial carriage returned.

After that day, when Xia Dongchun and Yinzhen exchanged their hearts, she was fiercely possessed by him. All palace maids in the Hall of Mental Cultivation were replaced by eunuchs, and no concubine was allowed to see him.

Yinzhen was delighted by this, rushing back to the Hall of Mental Cultivation to hold her as soon as court ended.

The harem’s situation gradually clarified. Before going to Yuanmingyuan, and even during their visit there, the emperor occasionally found time to visit consorts who had children or elderly ones, even if he didn’t summon them officially, he would at least pay a visit.

But since returning to the palace, until Imperial Noble Consort Chen gave birth, the emperor went nowhere else. His daily path was a straight line between court and the Hall of Mental Cultivation. Even when he met one or two concubines in the imperial garden, he would call them over briefly then leave quickly, as if strictly adhering to a code of male virtue.

Notably, during this period, without Yinzhen’s protection, Shen Meizhuang could not escape fate. She gave birth prematurely to twins—a dragon and phoenix—and then passed away. For the sake of the prince and princess, the emperor granted her burial as a concubine. The Sixth Prince named the boy Honghao and recorded him under the Fucha clan; the princess was named Longyue and recorded under Imperial Noble Consort Hua.

Meanwhile, the empress, who wished to keep her child at the cost of her own life, was demoted to concubine, stripped of her golden seal and imperial certificate, and imprisoned for life in Jingren Palace.

~

On New Year’s Eve, chaos reigned in Zhaohua Palace.

Yinzhen stood by Xia Dongchun’s bedside, holding her hand tightly.

Even the Princess of Ziyun, despite doting on her daughter, had to admit that the emperor had done exceptionally well.

At dawn on the first day of the new year, Xia Dongchun gave birth to a pair of young princes. The Ninth Prince resembled his mother, and the Tenth Prince took after his father—a highly auspicious omen.

When the two young princes turned one, Imperial Noble Consort Chen was elevated to empress, becoming Empress Yuanchen.

Fifteen years later, in the imperial garden.

Imperial Noble Consort Nian of Zhaohua, Consort An, Consort Jin of the Fucha clan, Consort Xiang Cao, and Consort Li gathered to view the new batch of palace maids.

“Your Highness, will the Empress come today?”

“No, she won’t.”

Imperial Noble Consort Nian gazed toward the direction of the Kunning Palace, murmuring softly, “She’s sleeping. She seems never to get enough sleep.”

Protected by someone, she would not be awakened by thunder.