Chapter 46: Saving the Exiled Crown Princess Consort (18)

Luo Xu gracefully stepped into the rear courtyard of the Commandery Prince’s Mansion. There, she saw Nalan Xue lying on a chaise lounge. Her face was pale, her expression haggard and withered, like an elder on the verge of death.

“You actually came to see me?” The surprise on Nalan Xue’s face was exaggerated to the point of theatricality.

Luo Xu surveyed the slightly dilapidated courtyard and rooms around them and nodded. “You have fallen to such straits; of course, I had to come and take a look.”

Nalan Xue’s surprise twisted into a somewhat psychotic fury. “What did you say? I’ll kill you.” The moment she attempted any movement, however, the guard behind Luo Xu drew his blade, the faintly trembling tip stopping just inches from her.

“You summoned me here, not to watch a show, I presume.” Luo Xu flicked at non-existent dust on her clothes, gently waving the Xiangfei Bamboo Fan in her hand. “When you are weak and I am strong, if I were you, I would honestly accept reality.”

Just as she finished speaking, Tang Qi strode over, followed by a respectful Zhao Chengfeng. Tang Qi walked to Luo Xu’s side and waved a hand at Zhao Chengfeng.

Zhao Chengfeng glanced at Nalan Xue, but could only cup his fist in a salute and leave.

Nalan Xue watched Zhao Chengfeng behave as obediently as a grandson and suddenly raised her voice. “I sought you out because I want to make a deal.”

“My life, plus three secrets, in exchange for permission for my Nalan Family to return to the Capital.” As she spoke, tears welled up in Nalan Xue’s eyes. “There are a few juniors in my family who are very good scholars. They shouldn’t have their lives wasted away like this.”

Luo Xu was silent. Nalan Xue suddenly laughed again. “Did you think I poisoned you because I wanted to be Crown Princess Consort? Wrong… It was Zhao Chengfeng. He came to me daily, saying he didn’t want to marry you. Otherwise, how would I have dared to act? You were his beloved, hahaha, his beloved…”

Tang Qi raised an eyebrow. She hadn’t expected the truth hidden within the Book of the World to be this.

“I can tell you the other two secrets at once. Do you know who paid off the jailer to break your leg?” Nalan Xue’s expression suddenly changed; her brows and eyes relaxed as if immensely pleased. “It was your dear little sister! She gave the jailer fifty taels of silver. Hee hee!”

Luo Xu’s heart clenched. Tang Qi held Luo Xu’s hand. Luo Xu shook her head to indicate she was fine. “And the next?”

“The next is that the person who stabbed and wounded me that day was also Luo Ping. I saw her use a hidden weapon.” Nalan Xue’s face darkened. “She is truly a character. If a person who mutilates their own siblings existed in my Nalan Family, they would be hacked to pieces. The Nalan Family, where is the Nalan Family now? Ah… destroyed, destroyed!”

She suddenly grew manic. Ignoring her injuries, she stood up and tried to snatch the guard’s blade. “Come on! Come on! Kill me, kill me!”

Luo Xu looked at the crazed woman before her, a surge of mixed emotions flooding her heart.

She truly hated Nalan Xue, even if Nalan Xue hadn’t been the main culprit. Luo Xu stood up and slowly began to walk away. Tang Qi looked down at Nalan Xue, who was slumped on the ground. “His Majesty never issued an edict for you to divorce. You are still the Consort of a Commandery Prince.”

As Tang Qi finished speaking, Nalan Xue’s body trembled violently. She raised her head only to see the two figures leaving, hand in hand.

After this day, everyone in the Capital knew the Consort of the Commandery Prince of Leisure’s health had recovered, but her mental state was poor. Day after day, she turned the Commandery Prince’s Mansion upside down, occasionally having manic fits and hitting people. In the dead of night, she would climb onto the mansion’s walls and cackle madly, cursing Zhao Chengfeng for his treachery and ingratitude while laughing.

Some even claimed to have witnessed Zhao Chengfeng being chased and beaten by Nalan Xue.

Yet Zhao Chengfeng could do nothing to her. He could only endure it, unable to strike back.

The people of the Capital loved a spectacle. If the Consort didn’t appear for a few days, rumors would spread that Zhao Chengfeng had killed Nalan Xue. If she had so much as a scratch, rumors would fly that Zhao Chengfeng couldn’t even tolerate a madwoman.

Zhao Chengfeng practically became a form of after-dinner entertainment for the Capital’s citizens. Even the teahouses had professional storytellers performing ballads dedicated to the “Legend of the Commandery Prince’s Consort.” One rumor even claimed Nalan Xue went mad because Zhao Chengfeng forced her to eat meals with him in the privy.

All sorts of legends flourished. Strangely, they spread far and wide, but tracing their source proved impossible.

Zhao Chengfeng had lost his source of silver income, lost his position as Crown Prince, and was now drowning in scandalous gossip, practically becoming the laughingstock of the Royal Family.

He endured day after day, until news came from the palace: an unremarkable concubine in the Imperial Harem was pregnant. At the same time, Zhao Yi issued an edict, officially naming Tang Qi as Crown Princess.

This caused a huge uproar, yet Zhao Yi suppressed it with an iron hand. Zhao Zhen and her husband, the Marquis of Zhenbei, also supported Tang Qi. With their help, Tang Qi, accompanied by Luo Xu, smoothly moved into the Eastern Palace.

The civil and military officials were deeply hostile towards this Princess who had returned only a few months ago. They couldn’t understand what trickery she had used to bewitch the Emperor. What they didn’t know, however, was that Zhao Yi was filled with guilt towards Tang Qi.

“He’er, I have truly wronged you in this matter.” Zhao Yi sighed. He had initially planned to wait a while longer, but the news of the concubine’s pregnancy had somehow leaked. If a little prince were born, he would inevitably become a target for many.

Left with no choice, he had to agree to Tang Qi’s proposal and push her into the limelight.

“This daughter feels no sense of being wronged,” Tang Qi said with complete sincerity, then advised, “For safety’s sake, Imperial Father should have a few more children. Just in case one fails to live up to expectations.”

The guilt on Zhao Yi’s face morphed into exasperation. He took a deep breath. “Get out. Go find your Luo Xu. Leave my sight. Out!”

Tang Qi cupped her fist in a salute and left without the slightest hesitation. Upon returning to the Eastern Palace, she casually asked a palace maid nearby, “Where is Luoluo?”

“Replying to Her Highness the Crown Princess, Miss Luo is in the garden.”

When Tang Qi arrived at the garden, Luo Xu was napping in the shade of a tree. She wore a lake-green ruqun dress. Dappled green shadows fell across her face and body, making her look like a fairy from the mountains.

Tang Qi slowed her steps, afraid of disturbing Luo Xu’s rest. As she reached her side, Tang Qi suddenly noticed how refreshingly cool it was. Turning her head, she saw two basins of ice placed nearby. A palace maid was gently waving a round fan, wafting the cool air from the ice towards Luo Xu.

Seeing Tang Qi looking at the ice, the maid attending to Luo Xu panicked slightly. She knew Tang Qi was extremely frugal and disliked extravagance. This ice was normally meant for consumption; using it to cool the air, she feared Tang Qi would be angry.

She immediately fell to her knees and spoke in a low voice, “It was This Servant who acted on her own and took…”

“Shh!” Tang Qi made a gesture at her. “Go to the kitchen and see that an iced sour plum soup is prepared for the young miss. The evening dishes should also be light and refreshing.”

It was the hottest time of summer. Sometimes even she couldn’t bear it, let alone Luo Xu.

The palace maid was taken aback. Seeing Tang Qi wave her hand and then fall silent, seemingly afraid of affecting Luo Xu’s rest, she hurriedly scrambled up and ran towards the kitchen. As she jogged away, she glanced back to see Tang Qi seated beside Luo Xu. Tang Qi gestured to an attendant, who gave her a Book to read.

Luo Xu slept for a full hour. Tang Qi read her book at her side, occasionally looking up at Luo Xu. Eventually, she simply gently took Luo Xu’s hand in hers, using her other hand to turn the pages.

When Luo Xu woke, she saw Tang Qi holding a book in one hand, the other lightly clasping her wrist. “Why didn’t you wake me?”

“You were sleeping so soundly.” Tang Qi took out a small flower from her chest. “A gift for you.”

It was a very common roadside flower, with a few thin petals, a bit wilted now from being kept inside her robe. Tang Qi looked a little embarrassed. “I picked it along the way. If you don’t like it, I’ll…”

Luo Xu immediately lunged to rescue it, snatching the flower from Tang Qi’s hand. “Who says I don’t like it? I like it very much.” Her face flushed slightly, and she couldn’t help smiling. “Will you give me one every day from now on?”

Tang Qi nodded. “Alright.”

“By the way, Zhao Chengfeng has requested to leave for his fief,” Tang Qi said, seeing that Luo Xu had put the flower away, and began discussing serious matters.

“He won’t go.” Luo Xu knew Zhao Chengfeng too well. In his eyes, there was only power. He had sacrificed so much for the highest position; now he would let it go?

Impossible!

“I thought the same. But Imperial Father doesn’t see it that way. He has already agreed. He plans to hold a banquet in the palace ten days from now to send him off. Also…” Tang Qi paused for effect. “I have suggested that Luo Ping marry into the Commandery Prince’s Mansion before he departs for his fief.”

“He is, after all, Imperial Father’s son. Imperial Father naturally wishes for him to have someone by his side who cares for his well-being. As soon as I suggested it, Imperial Father agreed. The edict should have reached Luo Mansion by now.”

They didn’t fully believe Nalan Xue’s words. In recent days, they had conducted their own investigation. Comparing the evidence with past clues, they could confirm Nalan Xue’s claims were indeed true.

Seeing the sorrow in Luo Xu’s eyes, Tang Qi embraced her. Luo Xu murmured in a low voice, “Perhaps I am simply fated to have weak familial ties.”

Ten days passed swiftly. All civil and military officials attended the palace banquet. They were not surprised by Zhao Chengfeng’s departure to his fief.

After the blood test for paternity, the Liu Family backing Zhao Chengfeng had collapsed. The scandal between him and his consort had become notorious in the city. If they were Zhao Chengfeng, they would also flee far away.

Once at his fief, he would be a local emperor, free to do as he pleased.

That was what they thought, and that was what Zhao Yi thought. He was very satisfied with Zhao Chengfeng’s departure. His words carried an extra hint of warmth and closeness. When Zhao Chengfeng offered a toast, he didn’t refuse, and even drank several more cups.

Luo Ping, with the status of Secondary Consort, followed at Zhao Chengfeng’s side. This was her first appearance since the witchcraft incident. While Zhao Chengfeng drank with the Emperor, she sat listlessly in her seat, like a beautiful but lifeless doll, pitiable to behold.

Already, quite a few friendly noble ladies had approached to comfort her. One outspoken noble lady remarked, “Being a Commandery Prince’s Secondary Consort is actually quite nice. It’s just being so far from the Capital and your family…”

As she spoke, she cast a meaningful glance at Luo Xu, who was sitting with Tang Qi. “Not everyone is so fortunate, disappearing for a while and going through who knows what, only to return.”

And even become the adopted daughter of the Grand Princess, and the lover of the Crown Princess!

They were no fools; they could naturally see the relationship between the two. Yet these words sounded like nothing but pure jealousy.

Luo Ping smiled. “Elder Sister’s life is blessed; I am very happy for her.” She picked up her wine cup and walked demurely over to Luo Xu. “Sister, in half a month, I will have to leave for the fief with the Commandery Prince. You must take good care of yourself in the Capital. If anything happens, just write me a letter.”

She spoke with heartfelt sincerity. “Sister, I will miss you. I will miss Father and Mother too!”

Luo Xu looked at her little sister, who was half-kneeling before her, putting on an expression of clinging attachment. She never imagined this girl could have done those things to her in the shadows.

Luo Xu opened her mouth. The polite pretense she had originally planned was, ultimately, a step too slow. “I am no longer a member of the Luo Family. I have long since ceased to be your sister. You have mistaken me for someone else.”