Chapter 10 Dim Light (Part 1) "Instead of worrying about fate, it's better to..."

Yongning Palace is located in the Western Six Palaces, which is a bit far from the Eastern Palace.

Yan Chao went over around 5 PM and heard a lively atmosphere inside as he stepped into the palace. He was puzzled, as Consort Ning never liked crowds and only had one concubine, Jieyu, living with her, who was usually quiet.

Upon entering, she discovered that the concubine sharing the same residence was pregnant, and the other concubines from the detached palace had all come to offer their congratulations and gifts. Hearing that Yan Chao was coming, Consort Ning simply found an excuse to send everyone away.

Consort Ning was naturally overjoyed to see her arrive and had already instructed the palace servants to serve her usual Emei Snow Bud tea, as well as several kinds of pastries she used to enjoy when she was in Yongning Palace. The tea was served slowly, but the pastries were served quickly, as if they were prepared on a regular basis.

All the palace servants in the hall were dismissed, not even her personal maids were left behind. Consort Ning looked at her for a long time before sighing, "The Crown Prince has been working hard these days. I see that you have become much thinner, and your face is full of worry."

Yan Chao reached up and smoothed her brow, her expression calm. She was actually in a pretty good mood today. Her gaze inadvertently fell on the embroidery frame on the shelf beside her. It was obviously put there in a hurry, and she didn't know what it was embroidering, only that she could vaguely see gold threads shimmering.

I remember Consort Ning was very skilled at embroidery; she could embroider anything with remarkable lifelikeness. It was this skill that earned her the Empress Dowager's favor. Later, before the Empress Dowager passed away, she recommended Consort Ning to the Emperor, which is how she rose from being an unknown figure in the harem to become Consort Ning.

She didn't respond to Consort Ning's words, shifting her gaze from the embroidery to her own: "I remember a few days ago a royal physician said that Your Highness's eyesight wasn't very good, so why are you embroidering again now..."

Consort Ning shook her head: "The imperial physician said there's nothing to worry about. Consort Lin is pregnant, and I'm on good terms with her. All I can do for her is this needlework. I only embroider for a little over an hour each day, so it's fine."

She paused, then said, "This morning, Prince Xin also came to Yongning Palace. He said that Consort Xian was attending to the Emperor and couldn't leave, so he came on her behalf to congratulate Consort Lin. He also prepared the gifts. He seemed more composed than before, and his fierce aura was gone."

Upon hearing the name of Prince Xin, Yan Chao frowned, immediately becoming wary: "Have you inspected everything Prince Xin brought?"

"Don't worry about that. With Consort Lin in my palace, I have to be extremely careful. I've had the imperial physician examine everything that's entered Yongning Palace, and there's nothing wrong with it. I know you're wary of Prince Xin, and so am I."

She smiled, pushed the pastries in front of her, pondered for a moment, and then said, "Although I don't understand the politics of your previous dynasty, I have some influence in the harem. Since the beginning of winter, His Majesty has summoned the concubines very few times, and each palace has received a share, basically treating everyone equally. But these days, I've noticed that Consort Xian seems to be the only one standing out, and even Prince Xin is often mentioned... Chao'er, are you in some kind of trouble?"

Yan Chao knew that Consort Ning was meticulous, but he did not expect that she would think of this aspect.

Indeed, it is quite similar. In the previous dynasty, she was at odds with Prince Xin, but Prince Xin knew his place and did not openly compete or fight for anything, so the two kept to themselves. In the harem, Consort Xian always regarded Consort Ning as a thorn in her side, but Consort Ning also did not compete or fight for anything and was so well-behaved that it was impossible to find any fault with her.

If the balance on either side is disrupted, it's not difficult to see the key to understanding the situation.

She thought about it and realized that the emperor had indeed started to neglect her ever since the incident with Meng Huai.

The situation in the court was not particularly obvious at the time, but no one expected that turmoil would break out in the inner palace.

Yan Chao shook his head and smiled: "It's not a big problem, things are relatively calm for now."

Consort Ning opened her mouth, but didn't know how to start speaking.

Yan Chao noticed that her makeup was exceptionally exquisite today, and she even wore several brightly colored gold and jade hairpins that she usually kept hidden under her vanity case. He thought to himself that perhaps it was because there were many guests today, so she was naturally being more dignified.

“I went to the Cui residence yesterday and it hasn’t changed much from a few years ago.”

Consort Ning was somewhat surprised. She lowered her head to look at the red jade ring on her finger and said softly, "You lived in that house for six or seven years, so it's understandable that you have feelings for it. But now that the Cui family has left the capital, that house is empty and useless."

Yan Chao took the tea, lowered his eyes, and casually said, "When I left the palace, I thought I would never come back in this lifetime."

In the third year of Xuan Ning, it was also a season of heavy snowfall.

The Tatars invaded Xuanfu and approached the capital, whereupon the emperor suddenly fell ill. Beset by internal and external troubles, the Imperial Astronomical Bureau reported that a guest star had suddenly appeared in the east and would invade the Ziwei constellation. After astronomical analysis, it was concluded that Empress Wenhui's unborn child was abnormal, with excessive yin energy, endangering the emperor's health and the state.

Empress Wenhui, who had become pregnant at the beginning of the year, was carrying twins. A pregnancy in the empress's palace should have been a joyous occasion. However, rumors began circulating in the palace at this time: twins are considered an unlucky omen, representing yin energy.

Twins are extremely rare, but at that time, there were constant internal and external troubles, and the morale of the people was wavering. It was feared that the so-called nonsense might actually come true.

On the day Empress Wenhui gave birth, everyone's eyes were on Kunning Palace. The Empress Dowager, however, had made preparations well in advance. Under the pretext of prioritizing the country and the emperor's health, she sent palace servants to keep watch in the inner palace and secretly instructed them: only one of the twins could survive.

So the first princess was born, and her mouth and nose were covered by the palace maid as soon as she was born. Before she could even utter her first cry, she suffocated and died. The palace maid, seeing that her task was complete and fearing the Queen's wrath if she lingered any longer, hurriedly withdrew to report back without waiting for the second child to be born.

When Empress Wenhui saw that the second child was also a princess, she feared that outsiders would use the "yin energy" theory to kill her daughter again, so she lied and said that the child was a prince. At that time, only the Empress's confidants remained in the palace, and since they had all received favors from their mistress, they naturally would not betray her.

However, on the day the child was born, Empress Wenhui, fearing it might harm the Emperor's health, requested that the child be sent to the Cui family for temporary care. The Emperor, still ill, had no fondness for the newborn prince and showed no intention of even seeing him, so he immediately granted the request.

Entrusted by the Empress, Lady Ying took her child and left the palace that very night, heading to the Cui family. Six years passed since then.

Rumors circulated throughout the palace that the Empress was heartless, and privately lamented that her son, born into the Empress's family, was neglected by his parents. Only Consort Ning knew the excruciating pain she felt when she decided to separate her from her daughter. The Emperor, therefore, perceived Empress Cui as cold-hearted, and his relationship with her grew increasingly distant.

At that time, the emperor's harem was full, and the Crown Prince Zhaohuai in the Eastern Palace was also highly praised. After the empress gave birth to a son, the emperor's health miraculously recovered, and a great victory was achieved on the border. The Imperial Astronomical Bureau also made repeated suggestions, so the emperor did not mention the matter of sending the prince back to the palace again.

For the next six years, Yan Chao grew up in the back courtyard of the Cui family. Fearing that her true gender would be revealed, she rarely came into contact with strangers.

After she began her education, she was brought back to the palace. The palace servants who were close to her were all carefully selected by Empress Cui, and the eunuchs who taught her were also trusted confidants.

Before her death, Empress Cui entrusted her daughter to Consort Ning, and the following years were relatively peaceful. Until the death of Crown Prince Zhaohuai Yan Hua, she entered the Eastern Palace as the legitimate son of the Empress.

"Chao'er, what will you do in the future?" Consort Ning always kept a low profile in the harem, and her worries were always about Yan Chao.

As Yan Chao reached for a pastry, he said softly, "You don't need to worry too much. The road ahead is long. Besides, I am now the Crown Prince, so nothing bad will easily happen to me."

"That's what you say, but I know..." The rest of the words were gradually swallowed by his lips, leaving only a silent sigh.

Yan Chao paused, knowing what Consort Ning was worried about, and said only, "In any case, His Majesty has not mentioned changing the heir. Rather than worrying about fate, we should hold our own umbrella. Besides, since I am already the heir apparent, I might as well follow this path to heaven, as it is the only way."

Consort Ning lowered her eyelashes and remained silent for a long time.

They had no other choice.

Consort Ning was rather timid; she wanted to offer words of encouragement, but no matter what she did, she couldn't bring herself to speak.

That road is harder than climbing to heaven.

Seeing that she was lost in thought, Yan Chao changed the subject to draw her attention. The two talked about some other unimportant things, and the atmosphere finally eased.

She had dinner at Yongning Palace before taking her leave. Even as she left, she remained somewhat uneasy, repeatedly reminding Consort Ning to be extra cautious about anything involving Consort Lin.

It was already dark when they left the palace gates. The sedan chair traveled south for about a quarter of an hour, and just as it was about to turn east, a series of noisy sounds suddenly came from ahead, growing closer and closer.

Liang Lu frowned and had no choice but to stop and send a eunuch to inquire.

The eunuch bowed and hurried away, but just as he reached the corner, he was suddenly bumped into by a small figure. He quickly got up, intending to scold the child, but found it was a six or seven-year-old boy, panting heavily, his face flushed, yet dressed in extraordinary clothes. The eunuch knew the boy was of high status, but in a moment of panic, he couldn't remember how to address him.

The child ignored him, desperately trying to break free from his restraints and squeeze into Yan Chao's sedan chair behind him. Not far away, palace servants also appeared, shouting without regard for etiquette.

"Your Highness, even if you can't recite 'Frugality keeps people from toiling, tranquility keeps servants from disturbing them' today, you still have to come back with me first, otherwise Her Majesty will worry!"

A young palace maid ran over with light steps, her face still showing a hint of anger and reproach, her voice crisp and clear, sounding out of place in the solemn and silent palace.

Upon seeing the massive formation opposite her, she panicked instantly, her face inexplicably turning red, and her dark, round eyes lowered deeply.

The child, still arguing with the eunuch, couldn't help but shout, "Mother isn't worried about me! If I can't recite it today, I'll get a beating!"

Having said that, seeing that the palace maid had already caught up, he gritted his teeth and knelt down in front of the sedan chair: "Sixth Uncle, save me!"

At the same time, Liang Lu also rebuked the palace maid: "How dare you make such a ruckus in front of the Crown Prince!"

The palace maid's shoulders trembled instantly, and her knees buckled as she knelt on the ground.

Yan Chao happened to lift the curtain and was stunned when he saw the child in front of him. He immediately ordered the eunuch who was restraining him, "Release him. This is the little grandson of the emperor from Zhaoyang Palace."

Then she turned to look at him: "Fei'er actually recognized my carriage?" It was pitch black, it's amazing how good his eyesight is.

Yan Fei, the eldest grandson of the emperor, was the only son of Crown Prince Zhaohuai and his wife, Lady Sun. After Crown Prince Zhaohuai's death, Lady Sun moved out of Qingning Palace and lived with her son in Zhaoyang Palace, which was far away from the Eastern Palace.

Yan Chao rarely saw Yan Fei, only knowing that the Sun family had kept him confined in the palace and carefully instructing him, and that he hadn't seen him for some time.

Liang Lu helped him up and brushed the dust off his clothes. Yan Fei, finally recovering, took a deep breath and said, "Fei'er recognizes Eunuch Liang!"

A note from the author: