The Empress Dowager mourns the passing of her husband.
Upon hearing this, Jiang Qin's expression turned serious, and he immediately bowed and cupped his hands, saying, "Your Majesty is joking."
“Miss Yan is a living, breathing person, not an object or plaything. How can she be given away so casually? Moreover, matters of marriage require mutual affection.”
Jiang Qin answered correctly, his face showing no sign of favor or disgrace, leaving nothing to criticize. Zhu Liji chuckled, his fingertips tracing the warm rim of the cup.
"You do know how to respect people." He turned his gaze back to the window, where a splash of red in the snow had begun to build a snowman, still free and vibrant.
"You really don't like it?" Zhu Liji persisted.
Jiang Qin sighed: "It's just that I feel this palace is so cold and lonely, and when I encounter something warm, I always want to hold on to it."
Zhu Liji lowered his eyes and said no more. For a moment, only the crackling of the stove fire could be heard in the pavilion.
Zhiwei played until her nose was red before going back. As soon as she entered the door, Pinghai was already waiting for her, handing her a bowl of piping hot ginger soup. Behind her followed a little eunuch carrying a basket of charcoal.
“Miss Yan,” Pinghai handed over the ginger soup, “It’s cold, His Majesty told me to have a bowl of ginger soup to warm you up.”
“And this charcoal,” Pinghai said, turning away, “is top-quality gold thread charcoal. It doesn’t choke when burned. His Majesty ordered me to deliver it.”
Zhiwei took the ginger soup and sipped it slowly. The sweet and spicy soup gradually warmed her chilled limbs and body.
Her hands were still a little stiff, so she sat by the stove to warm herself. Outside the window, the snow fell silently, and inside the room, it was warm and cozy. Feeling tired, she leaned against the pillow, and her eyelids gradually became heavy.
In a hazy dream, a faint smile unconsciously appeared on her lips.
Outside the window, the snow fell harder and harder, turning the world into pure white. Suddenly, in the depths of this tranquil whiteness, a strange, ever-brightening crimson blazed through the heavy snow, burning ever more fiercely.
.
"Fire! The Kunning Palace is on fire!"
A piercing scream shattered the snowy night, jolting Zhiwei awake from her light sleep. Without even putting on a thick coat, she hastily threw on a light jacket over her undergarments, slipped on her shoes, and rushed out the door.
The cold wind, carrying snowflakes, rushed towards us, but it couldn't suppress the towering flames and billowing smoke in the distance.
The night sky above Kunning Palace was dyed a terrifying orange-red.
When Zhiwei arrived, the scene was already in chaos. Palace servants rushed around, carrying buckets or copper basins, and poured water into the fire in waves, but the fire was so intense that the water only stirred up a cloud of white mist before being swallowed up by the flames in an instant.
Zhu Liji was already standing in front of the fire, wearing only his sleeping clothes, completely unaware that his outer robe had slipped to the ground.
He stared intently at the raging fire that was engulfing the palace, his eyes wide open, his facial muscles twitching slightly. For the first time, a hint of ferocious urgency was clearly etched onto his usually cold and inscrutable face.
"Mother! Mother is still inside! Let me go!" Zhiwei turned her eyes. Zhu Sheng was standing to the side, his face pale, tears and sweat mixed together, looking like a madman.
"Let me in! I need to save my mother! Get out of here, you dogs!" Zhu Sheng struggled to rush into the sea of fire, but several eunuchs held him tightly from behind, urging him to prioritize the greater good.
Flames licked at the beams and pillars, crackling and popping. Zhiwei watched the chaotic scene, her ears ringing intermittently.
Zhiwei subconsciously walked towards Zhu Liji. Beside her, a little eunuch, in his panic, slipped and smashed the basin of water in his hand on the ground with a "bang," splashing water all over Zhu Liji.
Zhu Liji suddenly turned around, his eyes filled with a terrifying crimson. He kicked the eunuch hard in the chest, shouting, "Useless thing! You can't even hold a basin of water!" His roar shook the palace servants around him, and even Pinghai was startled.
"Fire! Everyone, go put out the fire!" Zhu Liji shouted. "Everyone you can muster, go in and rescue the Empress! I will reward you handsomely!"
At the emperor's command, more people rushed into the inferno, but the scorching flames and intense heat prevented them from getting close.
The roar of collapsing beams and pillars mingled with the crackling of flames, creating an apocalyptic scene.
Zhiwei stood there stunned for a long time before picking up the outer robe that Zhu Liji had dropped from the ground, quickly stepping forward to drape it over him.
Her voice trembled uncontrollably: "Your Majesty, your health is of utmost importance..."
Zhiwei wanted to tell Zhu Liji that it was windy outside and that he should be careful not to catch a cold, but Zhu Liji turned his head and his gaze was like a sharp blade, cutting into her face and interrupting her.
"You, didn't you go to see her every day? Aren't you the best at reading people's hearts? Why didn't you see that she had suicidal intentions?! Why didn't you stop her!"
Before she could finish speaking, a resounding slap landed hard on Zhiwei's face. The force was so great that her vision went black, and she staggered, almost falling over.
Her cheeks instantly swelled up with a burning sensation. One side of her face was in pain, and the other side was numb. She felt the wind carrying scalding hot ash into her eyes, stinging painfully.
“This servant…” Zhiwei murmured.
"Get out!" Zhu Liji spat out the word through gritted teeth. "I don't want to see you!"
Seeing this, Pinghai pulled Zhiwei aside and said, "Miss, you should leave first."
Zhiwei stood frozen in place, her gaze vacant. Shao Yang hurriedly squeezed through the crowd, supporting the swaying Zhiwei, half-supporting and half-dragging her, and Zhiwei turned to leave this hellish inferno.
Snowflakes mixed with ashes fell coldly onto Zhiwei's shoulders and hair. Her steps were unsteady, her feet sinking deep into the cold snow. She stumbled, but Shao Yang grabbed her hand tightly to keep her from falling.
Behind them, flames roared into the sky.
The enormous plaque of Kunning Palace groaned under the weight of the flames, finally crashing to the ground with a loud bang and shattering in two.
Zhiwei dared not turn back.
Back in the side hall, Zhiwei's clothes were already soaked through with snow water, clinging to her body and chilling her to the bone.
Shao Yang quickly prepared the hot water, and Zhi Wei took off her wet clothes and slowly sat down in the bathtub.
The warm water enveloped her body, yet Zhiwei still felt a chill creeping into her bones, no matter how much she soaked. She hugged her knees, burying her face in her arms. After what seemed like an eternity, liquid slid down her cheek into the water. She instinctively licked it; it was salty—tears.
Why? Why didn't she notice Cheng Yuzhi's unusual behavior? Those memories, those instructions, were clearly words of farewell! Why did she only routinely send her meals and calming incense, without ever truly sitting down to listen to her heart, worn down by the deep palace?
No, she did notice it, but she chose to deliberately ignore it...
Because she felt it was unimportant, because she thought Cheng Yuzhi's sorrow was just a common occurrence in the deep palace, she didn't take the sorrow of the deep palace to heart at all.
She saw herself as an outsider.
A surge of immense sorrow and self-reproach overwhelmed her, instantly breaching the dam. Zhiwei buried her face deep in the water, her shoulders trembling violently, suppressed sobs mingling with the splashing water, until the water cooled completely. Only then did Zhiwei slowly raise her head, her hair clinging wetly to her face.
——
The fire was finally extinguished the following morning, leaving only the charred remains standing silently under the gray sky.
Cheng Yuzhi's body was pulled from the ruins and covered with a white sheet.
Zhu Sheng only glanced at it before letting out a scream of "Mother!" and fainting. He was then hurriedly carried away by the palace servants.
Zhu Liji suspended court for a day. Throughout the palace, white banners quickly replaced all bright colors, and a deathly silence descended.
A day later, Zhiwei changed into plain clothes, and the palace gates were open for her as usual, for another shopping trip every five days. This time, however, Zhiwei was allowed to stay outside for a longer period of time. In addition to shopping, the year-end sacrifice was also approaching, and this time the sacrifice would take place at the imperial palace. Zhu Liji granted her permission to leave the palace to assist in the preparations.
To be honest, Zhiwei had mentally prepared herself for punishment after Zhu Liji treated her that way last night. But that wasn't the case. The slap mark was still on her cheek, but when Zhu Liji summoned her this morning, he gave her such important instructions and didn't mention anything about last night, as if he wasn't the one who had lost control.
So whether it should be a reward or a punishment, Zhiwei couldn't figure it out, so she simply stopped thinking about it.
The carriage crunched over the remaining snow with a dull creak. Few pedestrians were on the street, and snow dripped from the eaves, creating a rare and desolate scene.
As usual, I used the excuse of strolling around. Fuyunlou was also closed, with a sign hanging at the entrance that read "The Empress Dowager is in mourning."
The informant led Zhiwei into the secret room, where Li Tai was already seated.
Seeing her pale face, the swollen redness on her left cheek, and her desolate expression, he swallowed back the pleasantries he was about to say.
He silently poured a cup of hot tea and pushed it in front of Zhiwei. Zhiwei took the tea, said nothing, and just lowered her head to blow on the tea foam.
“Shadow,” Li Tai called out, “show Miss Yan her face.”
The shadow that had been standing in the corner stepped forward in response, as if it were ready at any moment, and quickly went out to fetch the first-aid kit.
Shadow remained silent as always, gesturing for Zhiwei to sit down. He took out the ointment, dipped his fingertip in it, and gently applied it to Zhiwei's swollen cheeks.
His hands were steady, and even through the mask, his long eyelashes were visible. His movements were restrained and gentle, avoiding the wound on Zhiwei's lips.
For some reason, Zhiwei suddenly felt a lump in her throat and tears started falling again.
Seeing this, Shadow paused, glanced at her quickly, and a hint of helplessness flashed in his eyes. He hesitated for a moment, but ultimately did not dare to raise his hand to wipe away her tears. Instead, he silently took out a clean, plain handkerchief from his pocket and handed it to her.
As Shadow knelt down to hand her the handkerchief, Zhiwei's blurry, tearful eyes caught a glimpse of a faint, almost invisible old scar on his forehead at his hairline.
Zhiwei took the handkerchief and dabbed it at the corner of her eye.
Li Tai then spoke in a deep voice, breaking the silence: "The plan... I'm afraid it will have to change."
He frowned deeply: "Dealing with Wang Miaoxiao is no small matter. I originally planned to join forces with the Wan family to set up a scheme for a grander cause. After all, Wan Qi, although a member of the Wan family, has a reputation for integrity and has a life-or-death bond with my adoptive father in Shu County. Now that my adoptive father is about to return from guarding the border, we might be able to secretly join forces to bring peace to the court. But now that the Empress has left, that path has been completely cut off."
Li Tai shook his head: "The position of Empress is currently vacant, and the harem is also short of people. Given the favorable timing and circumstances, Wan family... I'm afraid a successor Empress will emerge soon."
Once the heir is born, the Wan family's power will become even more overwhelming. At that time, if the Wan family gets involved in Li Tai's schemes, the risks will be even greater. The emperor is suspicious, and even if he brings down Wang Miaoxiao, how can he allow the maternal relatives to become too powerful?
Therefore, even if they conspire with Li Tai and succeed, it may not necessarily benefit Wan Jia.
Li Tai looked at Zhiwei with a complicated expression: "This situation has been made even more chaotic by this fire."
"I don't think so." Zhiwei held the slightly damp handkerchief, the snow light outside the window reflecting her faint expression and the dark flame deep in her eyes. "Li Tai, my opinion is the opposite of yours."
"Based on my opinion of our Emperor, I bet he will never appoint another empress in his lifetime."
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