The beaded curtain at the side of the palace rustled, and Lu'e entered, carried by two eunuchs. Her hair was disheveled, and her face was marked by the imprint of a palm. She saw the gilded and kingfisher-inlaid sash that Concubine Shu usually wore fall to the ground, and she suddenly collapsed. "Your Majesty, spare me! Empress Dowager, spare me! It was...it was Concubine Shu who ordered me to do this! She said that if she spread rumors, Madam Su would fall from favor..."

When Concubine Shu was summoned in, her goose-yellow palace dress dragged on the ground, stained with mud. Seeing Lu'e and the hairpin, her pupils suddenly constricted, but she forced herself to remain calm: "Your Majesty, Empress Dowager, I don't know what they are talking about..."

"Don't know?" The Queen Mother threw a confession in her face. "This is the signed confession of three eunuchs in your palace! You bribed them to say that Su Jinli had an affair with the Emperor, and you also promised to reward them with jobs in the Southern Study after the conspiracy was completed!"

Concubine Shu's face turned pale as paper, and she barely managed to stand steady by holding onto a pillar: "Your Majesty... Your Majesty was wronged! It was Su Jinli who framed you!"

"Enough!" The emperor yanked the jade belt from his waist, the jade buckles clashing with a crisp sound. "Last time you framed the princess, and this time you're slandering the ladies of the court! I think your time as a concubine is over!"

The Queen Mother closed her eyes, and when she opened them again, her expression was cold: "Your Majesty, in my opinion, you should be demoted to a commoner and sent to the laundry department."

"No!" Concubine Shu suddenly screamed, covering her belly with both hands. "I am pregnant! Your Majesty, for the sake of the Dragonborn, please spare me!"

The hall fell silent for a moment, the only sound being the soft rustle of camphor incense from the bronze crane incense burner. The emperor gazed at her slightly swollen belly, a flicker of hesitation in his eyes. Su Jinli suddenly stepped forward, her dark blue palace gown sweeping across the floor, her confession: "Your Majesty, Empress Dowager, committing such a heinous act while pregnant requires severe punishment to serve as a warning to others."

Jiang Yan then bowed and said, "I second the motion."

The emperor finally waved his hand and said in a cold voice: "Considering that you are pregnant, you will be spared from being demoted to a commoner. You will be confined to the Yanx Palace immediately, and no one is allowed to visit without my order! If any more rumors are spread, I will kill you and the fetus in your belly..." He didn't finish his words, but Concubine Shu collapsed to the ground.

As they left the Palace of Heavenly Purity, the setting sun was piercing the clouds, casting a golden glow on the glazed tiles of the Hall of Supreme Harmony. Su Jinli held Jiang Yan's arm, watching her shadow lengthen on the palace wall. Suddenly, she remembered a similar dusk in Yangzhou many years ago, when she'd squatted in front of a dilapidated temple, painting sugar paintings, and Jiang Yan had crouched beside her, pressing his own phoenix into her hand.

"What are you thinking about?" Jiang Yan smoothed her hair that was messed up by the wind.

"I'm thinking," Su Jinli looked up at him, her eyes reflecting the rosy glow, "I'm lucky to have you."

When he returned to the Prime Minister's residence, Prime Minister Su and his entire family were waiting at the door. Young Marquis Su ran over, holding a lantern, the flames reflecting the anxiety on his face: "Sister! What happened? Was that evil woman beheaded?"

Su Qingyao handed over the hand warmer and said softly, "Come into the house first. Father has made some red date and lotus seed soup."

Su Jinli looked at her family's concerned faces and suddenly felt the baby in her belly move again, as if it was acting coquettishly. She smiled and stroked her belly, saying to Jiang Yan, "Listen, the baby is saying hello to us."

Jiang Yan held her hand, the warmth of his palm radiating through her skin. "Yes, he said that he will be the one to protect us from now on."

That night, the candles in Lanyue Pavilion burned until three in the morning. Su Jinli leaned against Jiang Yan's chest, listening to him flip through the pages of "Child-Raising Manual." Suddenly, she remembered the resentful look Shu Fei had given her during the day. She sighed softly.

"What's wrong?" Jiang Yan put down the book and tucked the quilt for her.

"I'm wondering," Su Jinli said, looking at the lotus pattern on the ceiling, "when will this turmoil in the palace end?"

Jiang Yan was silent for a moment, then held her tighter. "As long as we're together, we can overcome any storm." He bent down and kissed her forehead. "Look, today the Emperor and the Queen Mother both trust you, your father and your brothers and sisters are all protecting you, and so is our baby..."

Su Jinli smiled, her fingertips tracing the calloused skin on the back of his hand. Moonlight streamed through the window lattice, casting a dappled shadow on the ground. She knew that the storms of this life might never cease, but with someone to rely on and a home to return to, the past grievances would eventually be transformed by time into honey, sweetening the long years to come. And the new life that was to come would be their warmest light, shielding them from all darkness.