Everyone crowded around her, calling out. Tao Chuyi stared blankly for a long moment, puffing out first one cheek and then the other, before finally spitting out a pearl.
The pearl dropped into Liuzi’s palm. It appeared to be a genuine pearl.
Nangong Yunshang instructed Liuzi to take it and clean it. She stayed by Tao Chuyi’s side, gently patting and soothing the prince consort.
“There are wicked commoners trying to harm me!”
Tao Chuyi burst into tears, her mouth gaping wide. Before long, she rolled right into Nangong Yunshang’s arms, thrashing about on her lap.
Nangong Yunshang did not stop her. This little fool knew exactly how to seize the moment.
Once Tao Chuyi had rolled to her heart’s content, she scrambled upright on hands and knees, then threw her arms around Nangong Yunshang from behind, hanging off her like a sloth.
“Have you had enough fun?”
Nangong Yunshang asked, her tone all but indulgent.
By this time, Liuzi had returned. The pearl in his hand gleamed in its original luster, showing no sign of anything amiss.
Who would hide a pearl inside a steamed bun?
Nangong Yunshang took the pearl and held it up to the light, peering at it closely by candle flame, but detected nothing unusual.
Exposure to fire and water yielded no reaction. It could hardly be some folk trick.
As the group stood stymied, Tao Chuyi suddenly snatched the pearl. She stared at it fixedly, as if intent on swallowing it whole.
Nangong Yunshang cried out in alarm. “You can’t eat that!”
Tao Chuyi paid no heed to anyone else. Her gaze remained locked on the pearl as her fingers caressed its surface, rolling it gently. A strange gleam entered her eyes.
With abrupt suddenness, she flung the pearl into the Third Princess’s rouge box.
Liuzi nearly fainted from shock. “Ancestor preserve us! Do you have any idea how costly that rouge is?”
He stole a glance at Nangong Yunshang’s expression but, to his surprise, saw no trace of anger.
Nangong Yunshang was baffled at first. Then the pearl tumbled through the rouge, coating itself in powder and revealing a faint red trace.
“Quickly—pry it open along the red mark.”
Liuzi sprang to the task. With Herculean effort, he finally cracked the pearl apart. No one had imagined such a tiny orb could open, exposing a white fragment no larger than a thumbnail inside.
Nangong Yunshang glanced at the stunned Tao Chuyi beside her. Tentatively, she asked, “What next?”
For reasons unknown, Tao Chuyi had lost all her former liveliness. She stood there in a daze, utterly unlike herself.
Then, abruptly, Tao Chuyi seized a teacup and splashed its contents onto the white block. Upon meeting the water, it expanded into a mutton fat leather scroll.
Nangong Yunshang’s eyes widened faintly. Unfurling the scroll revealed this year’s imperial exam questions.
No wonder it had proven so elusive—the target was minuscule.
“Send this to Dali Temple at once. Seal the bun shop and interrogate everyone there rigorously.”
Her subordinates dispersed to obey. Yet Nangong Yunshang’s face betrayed no delight. She turned back to the figure still lost in a daze, her gaze laced with complexity.
“Chuyi? Chuyi?”
At her soft calls, Tao Chuyi slowly regained awareness.
“Sister!”
Questioned afterward, she recalled nothing of the incident and knew nothing of rouge revealing hidden marks.
By rights, Tao Chuyi should never have known such a technique. Nor could she have drawn that erotic scene from the Peach Blossom Grove last time.
After coaxing Tao Chuyi to sleep, Nangong Yunshang summoned Yinghong and inquired about the investigation into the Tao family home.
Yinghong inclined her head. “Nothing conclusive yet, Your Highness. The servants who once attended the young master of the Tao Family seem to have vanished into thin air—no one knows anything about him. In this servant’s view, there’s far more to the story.”
Nangong Yunshang bowed her head at that, contemplating Tao Chuyi’s sleeping face. A thread of unease stirred within her.
She wished to shield Chuyi—if the prince consort was truly just a harmless little simpleton. But should there prove some hidden origin, some lurking scheme behind it all, she feared she could not protect her.
Once Dali Temple sealed the bun shop, the owner and all his staff fell into custody. Within two days, they had confessed their backer. This was not the first exam leak, but Minister Cao had cleared too broad a path for his nephew this time, drawing undue scrutiny.
The momentum had shifted decisively. The minister’s household was raided, the entire Cao Clan imprisoned awaiting judgment. No amount of pleading from Consort Cao could sway the outcome.
The Emperor’s fondness for her was but a passing fancy—he would never jeopardize his reputation on her account. Thus, even before the Cao Clan’s full reckoning, he decreed Consort Cao’s confinement to the Cold Palace, washing his hands of them.
Minister Cao refused to yield tamely. From his cell, he named numerous accomplices and imperial kin involved—including the Emperor’s youngest son, the Third Prince.
Royal involvement in exam fraud sent chills through scholars nationwide and ignited public fury. For three consecutive days, merchants shuttered shops and farmers abandoned fields, taking to the streets to demand that princes answer to the same laws as the common folk.
The Capital City teetered on the brink of anarchy, the Forbidden Army powerless to restore order.
“Xichan, I want to go play in the streets.”
Tao Chuyi flung aside the grasshopper, bored out of her mind.
Xichan hastily retrieved it and pressed it back into her hand.
“Ancestor, the streets are far too chaotic right now—you absolutely cannot go. If boredom is the issue, shall Liuzi play cuju with you? Or fly a kite?”
Tao Chuyi scowled in displeasure. “No, I’m sick of those.”
Her rescuer arrived just in time. Nangong Yunshang stood at the corridor’s end, beckoning them over.
Tao Chuyi forgot all about venturing out in an instant and dashed to the princess’s side.
“Sister! Chuyi didn’t go out—Chuyi was good, wasn’t she?”
“Chuyi was very good.”
Nangong Yunshang caressed her cheek tenderly, her voice soft as silk.
Yinghong gazed out the door with a sigh. “Heaven knows when calm will return.”
Nangong Yunshang took Tao Chuyi’s hand, leading her toward the rear garden. “Once the one above renders his verdict, peace will follow.”
Seven days of strikes wore on before the Emperor at last decreed the Third Prince’s banishment from the Capital City to the savage frontier, forbidden return absent a summons. Minister Cao and his confederates faced execution, exile, or confiscation.
Satisfied with the justice, the people resumed their labors and trades. Before long, the Capital City regained its former bustle.
The exam scandal faded into the past, yet the Second Princess refused to relent. She even brought her grievances to the door.
As the Second Princess’s guards encircled the Third Princess Mansion, Nangong Yunshang was immersed in a game of counting ducks with Tao Chuyi.
“Your Highness, the Second Princess has arrived.”
Nangong Yunshang glanced at the messenger guard. “Let her enter.”
The Second Princess barreled in with her retinue, scouring the rear garden the moment she arrived.
“Third Imperial Sister, hand over that wretch Qiuyue!”
Nangong Yunshang calmly set aside the little wooden duck before lifting her gaze.
“Ah, Second Imperial Sister. Forgive the lack of welcome—I truly didn’t notice you. Qiuyue is not in my mansion. Perhaps you have the wrong household?”
At the sound of their voices, Tao Chuyi leapt up and jabbed a finger at the Second Princess. “Second Bad Egg, you can’t bully Princess Highness!”
The Second Princess dismissed the fool entirely, addressing only Nangong Yunshang. “I know that wench isn’t here—she’s in Dali Temple, which falls under your authority. Have them release her to me.”
Nangong Yunshang let out a light laugh. “And if I refuse?”
“You—!”
The Second Princess sputtered in rage, her ire bottled up and seeking an outlet.
“If you refuse, I’ll bring my people here every day to raise hell!”
Nangong Yunshang paid her no mind, lifting her teacup for a leisurely sip.
“Qiuyue has committed no crime. I will not hand her over.”
“That’s right—not giving her to you!”
Tao Chuyi piped up in support, pulling a face at the Second Princess in hopes of enraging her further.
The Second Princess duly turned red, then pale, with fury.
“Very well—mark my words. If you side with a mere slut against me, don’t come crying later.”
Her entourage departed as swiftly as they had come. No one present took her threats to heart.
Yinghong spat in disdain. “What a piece of work.”
Tao Chuyi scampered back. She remembered Qiuyue—the girl whose dances were so enchanting.
“Sister, when do we see Qiuyue off?”
Nangong Yunshang ruffled her hair. “The day after tomorrow, General Zhao will retrieve her. We’ll meet them at the West City Gate.”
The Second Princess’s narrow mind would never permit Qiuyue safe passage from the city. Thus, they would slip away quietly.
The carriage hired by Zhao Linglong raced westward, while Tao Chuyi and the others waited beyond the city gate.
Hoofbeats sounded. Tao Chuyi leapt from their own carriage, waving vigorously in the distance.
The vehicle halted. Two figures descended: General Zhao and Qiuyue.
Qiuyue dropped to her knees in gratitude. “This humble girl thanks the Princess and Prince Consort for delivering justice.”
Nangong Yunshang personally helped her rise. “Rise—no need for such ceremony. Justice resides in the people’s hearts; this was only proper.”
Tao Chuyi thrust two large bundles into Qiuyue’s arms.
“Money. Clothes. For you.”
Seeing Qiuyue’s bewilderment, Nangong Yunshang clarified. “The Prince Consort and I prepared traveling funds and garments for you, Miss Qiuyue—they’ll serve you on the road. Someone awaits in the south to arrange a residence. The surplus silver suffices for a modest shop, ensuring you want for nothing.”
Qiuyue hung her head in silence a moment. When she looked up, her eyes brimmed with tears.
“What merits does Qiuyue possess to earn aid from the Princess, the Prince Consort, and General Zhao? This boundless grace I shall cherish eternally.”
“Time presses—we must depart without delay.”
Zhao Linglong had made ready to escort Qiuyue south herself, securing imperial leave under pretext of visiting kin.
Yet before they could set forth, riders from the Second Princess Mansion overtook them. Their numbers suggested half the household’s guards mobilized.
The Second Princess alighted from her carriage, her eyes venomous upon Qiuyue.
“You cost me face, and now imagine you can slip away free?”
“Second Imperial Sister.”
Nangong Yunshang advanced even as her mansion’s guards gripped their sword hilts.
The Second Princess sneered. “How many does your household command? How many mine? And you, General Zhao—’visiting family,’ was it? Is this not deceiving the sovereign?”
Tension crackled like drawn steel between the parties, the standoff unbroken. The Second Princess demanded Qiuyue’s life and would not yield an inch.
“I demand vengeance for my child.”
The Second Princess spat the words in fury.
Zhao Linglong stood firmly in front of Qiuyue, refusing to budge an inch.
“Second Highness, your child miscarried because of your own actions. How can you blame anyone else?”
The Second Princess jabbed a finger toward Qiuyue. “It’s her! If she hadn’t exposed Cao Zihuan in public, how could This Princess have miscarried from the sheer humiliation? If the Cao Clan hadn’t fallen into ruin, how could This Princess have lost the baby? It’s all her fault! Now step aside and let This Princess through!”
Nangong Yunshang met her glare with an icy stare of her own. “We can’t let you pass.”
The two sides stood locked in confrontation. No one noticed Qiuyue—except for Tao Chuyi.
Tao Chuyi saw Qiuyue’s face drained of all color, her body trembling uncontrollably.
“Miss Qiuyue?”
