The lotus leaf chicken never came to be; instead, they made soup with some added ingredients, and Xunqi drank two big bowls by herself.
The next day, the Right Prime Minister recovered and returned to court.
Yan Zhi’an stood among the crowd, glancing lazily at Shangguan Li. With mock concern, she said, “You spat blood yesterday, yet you’re rushing around today. Don’t you value your life?”
“The Left Prime Minister doesn’t even value her own reputation, so why should I care about your concern for my life?” Shangguan Li gazed ahead. “You don’t want face, I don’t want my life—Her Majesty is most pleased.”
This left Yan Zhi’an speechless. She let the matter drop.
Princess Zhaohui had nearly thrown the court into chaos. The involved party, Prince Ji, had been punished by Her Majesty—a month of self-reflection and a month’s salary forfeited.
Unexpectedly, the Female Emperor granted Xunqi the title of County Princess along with a fief as a reward. That night, Xunqi had risked her own life to save her mother—a sentiment worth commending. The court bestowed this honor to set an example for the world.
Yan Zhi’an accepted the gratitude on Xunqi’s behalf. After receiving the Imperial Edict, her brows furrowed slightly. Shangguan Li, standing nearby, spoke coolly. “Your daughter is too prominent. Better to let her lie low for a while.”
From the Selection of Worthies banquet where one phrase shocked Jinling, to presenting the mine to the court, to saving her mother at the banquet—what among these wasn’t a grand, attention-grabbing feat?
Yan Zhi’an didn’t answer. Shangguan Li continued, “Keep her confined to the mansion for a year.”
Xunqi no longer sought fame, and she was still young—better for her to learn more within the mansion.
“Right Prime Minister, how about you tutor her on your rest days?” Yan Zhi’an smiled faintly, her gaze lingering on the woman’s gentle, composed face. “She was raised by someone from your Shangguan family. I’ve only raised her for five months, while your twin sister raised her for thirteen years.”
At the mention of the Madwoman, a complex emotion flickered across Shangguan Li’s gentle features. Her lashes lowered. To outsiders, she seemed to have suffered some grievance, and those around them couldn’t help but look over.
“Very well. On every rest day, have her come to my residence.” Shangguan Li agreed. As she raised her eyes, her expression was compassionate yet dignified.
Yan Zhi’an clasped her hands in thanks. Shangguan Li didn’t wish to receive her salute and sidestepped. “I’m doing this for her.”
“What does she call herself?” Yan Zhi’an asked. After all, she couldn’t call her “Madwoman” in front of her own sister.
Shangguan Li closed her eyes, pain on her face. “Does Xunqi not know her name?”
“She says she calls herself Madwoman.”
“Madwoman?” Shangguan Li was greatly shaken. A breath caught in her chest, and her figure swayed. She murmured to herself, “Madwoman, madwoman—so she called herself a madwoman. Actually, she was the real Shangguan Li.”
For an instant, it was as if her soul had been seized. Yan Zhi’an watched her and felt she understood something. Wuqing’s guess was right—the woman before her was the younger sister. And the Madwoman was the Shangguan Li who had been raised at Old Master Shangguan’s side.
With that, Shangguan Li turned and walked away, her figure swaying. After two steps, she quickly steadied herself and resumed her normal pace.
“What exactly drove that woman mad?” Yan Zhi’an sighed. She couldn’t imagine it. Shangguan Li was gentle and dignified in public, warm in her dealings, never minding small faults. And yet, a person like that had ended up nameless and unknown.
This world truly crushed people to death.
The Shangguan family had only Shangguan Li. If the Madwoman was Shangguan Li, then the current Right Prime Minister had no name at all.
What had happened in the Shangguan family back then?
But since the Right Prime Minister had agreed to tutor Xunqi on rest days, she needed to inform Her Majesty.
After reporting to Her Majesty, she didn’t rush off. Instead, she asked casually, “Your Majesty, did anything untold happen in the Shangguan family thirty years ago?”
The Shangguan and Sima families were both Capital City clans with roots in the capital. The Yan family’s ancestral home was in Jinling. Thirty years ago, Yan Zhi’an hadn’t been born, and she’d been far away in Jinling, so she knew nothing of those old affairs.
“The Shangguan family?” The Female Emperor was puzzled. “Why do you ask?”
Yan Zhi’an stood in the hall. “Just curious. Would Your Majesty care to share?”
“The Shangguan family’s ancestors weren’t Han Chinese.” The Female Emperor recalled something. “When the founding emperor took the throne, the Shangguan family followed all the way and were later enfeoffed as Dukes. Over the years, the world forgot that their ancestors weren’t Han Chinese. The Shangguan family has an unwritten rule—twins are inauspicious. If twins are a boy and a girl, it’s a great blessing. But if twins are both male or both female, it’s ill omen.”
Yan Zhi’an’s breath caught. No wonder the sisters shared one name—the Shangguan family only acknowledged one person. So while the Madwoman was in the Capital City, where was the Right Prime Minister?
She was puzzled. The Female Emperor’s expression turned grave. “The one born first lives. The one born after is buried on the spot.”
“Does this rule still exist?” Yan Zhi’an was curious. “This Subject has never heard of it.”
“I believe it still does. But this is the Shangguan family’s private affair. Why are you asking?” The Female Emperor was puzzled.
Yan Zhi’an felt pity in her heart and had to say, “That Madwoman is Shangguan Li.”
The Female Emperor’s thoughts raced. She asked on instinct, “The Madwoman is from the Shangguan family? If she’s Shangguan Li, then who is the Right Prime Minister?”
“Your Majesty just said it—’buried on the spot.’ Naturally, she has no name.” Yan Zhi’an sneered. “A great clan, believing such baseless superstition. Truly laughable.”
The Female Emperor fell silent, then took a deep breath. “Zhen is a bit confused. You mean the Madwoman who raised Xunqi is the elder sister, and the one who survived is the younger sister?”
“Yes. Your Majesty is perceptive.” Yan Zhi’an complimented the Female Emperor with a deadpan expression.
The Female Emperor paid it no mind and pressed on. “It is strange. The one who should have grown up in the Shangguan family was Shangguan Li—the Madwoman. So how did the Right Prime Minister come back?”
“Your Majesty, the Madwoman called herself a madwoman—there must be unknown reasons. Xunqi once mentioned they didn’t live in one place permanently but moved often, staying on nearly every nearby mountain. This Subject suspects the Madwoman was hiding from someone. Now it seems she was hiding from the Shangguan family, or from the Right Prime Minister.”
“The Shangguan family!” The Female Emperor sighed, unsure how to judge them. But the Shangguan family was deeply rooted in the Capital City, and she was powerless to act. She could hardly issue an edict abolishing such a rule—it would only invite the Shangguan family’s displeasure.
Yan Zhi’an said, “Whoever marries into the Shangguan family is cursed! And yet there are no rumors in the Capital City—it seems the Shangguan family acts in secret. Even the children’s mother doesn’t know. This Subject heard that the Right Prime Minister’s mother is still alive today.”
“Why are you meddling in the Shangguan family’s affairs?” The Female Emperor didn’t understand. With Prince Ji in front and the Crown Prince behind, Xunqi’s position was awkward. She wasn’t tending to Xunqi—she was worrying about the Shangguan family instead.
Yan Zhi’an clasped her hands. “This Subject finds this rule inhuman and against the way of heaven. I beg Your Majesty to abolish it.”
“No! That’s their family rule.” The Female Emperor refused flatly. “Yan Zhi’an, don’t interfere in others’ family matters.”
Yan Zhi’an was unmoved. “This Subject wants to interfere.”
The Female Emperor’s head ached. “If you want to interfere, then interfere. Withdraw!”
Yan Zhi’an saluted unhurriedly, then lazily withdrew from the hall.
Another rest day arrived. Yan Zhi’an went to Ling’an Temple, the most efficacious temple in the Capital City, with a little tail following behind, chattering endlessly the whole way.
Leaning against a soft cushion in the carriage, Yan Zhi’an listened to Xunqi prattle about what she’d studied these past days.
She’d learned archery, horseback riding, and classical texts. Having just learned to ride, she was eager to try it out and pestered her mother the whole way, yet never got Yan Zhi’an to agree.
She was sulking when her eyes brightened at the sight of a gentle face. She immediately called out, “Right Prime Minister, Right Prime Minister!”
Yan Zhi’an raised an eyebrow. Little Pervert—she smiled like a blooming flower whenever she saw someone pretty. Who knew what went on in that head? She walked over and pressed Xunqi’s head back down. “Show some restraint.”
“Why should I?” Xunqi didn’t understand, her eyes wide. “Doesn’t the saying go that one should greet elders with a bow?”
“Then go ahead.” Yan Zhi’an understood her meaning. Xunqi’s bonds of kinship were thin; she wanted to draw closer to her elders.
The carriage stopped. Xunqi got out, walked to the Shangguan family’s carriage, and bowed respectfully. “Xunqi greets the Right Prime Minister!”
The girl wore a plain robe of pale green that merged with the sky and earth. Her fair skin made her dark eyes seem even darker. Young and spirited, with features like a painting.
Shangguan Li’s expression was troubled, but upon seeing the child her elder sister had raised, her body trembled. She smiled softly. “Young Mistress Yan.”
“Please, Right Prime Minister, call me Xunqi.” Xunqi beamed.
Shangguan Li nodded. “Get in the carriage.”
“Where is the Right Prime Minister headed?” Xunqi was puzzled. Why was she being invited into the carriage? Were they going the same way?
Perplexed, she turned to look at her mother.
Yan Zhi’an received her plea for help and nodded slightly. “The Right Prime Minister is going the same way as us!”
“Great.” Xunqi obediently climbed into the Shangguan family’s carriage. Once inside, Shangguan Li studied her features carefully, deeply moved. Xunqi’s features didn’t resemble Emperor Ming’s; the area around her eyes resembled the Female Emperor’s. But her free-spirited nature was like her elder sister’s.
Shangguan Li reached out, gently tracing the girl’s brow, then smiled. “I’m going to the temple to light an Ever-Burning Lamp for a family member. We’ll travel together. Where are you going?”
“I’m going to light an Ever-Burning Lamp for my foster mother.” Xunqi answered honestly.
“Who is your foster mother?” Shangguan Li asked deliberately, wanting to learn some of her elder sister’s secrets. But she didn’t dare ask directly, so she pretended to be casual.
The smile on Xunqi’s face faded slightly. “I don’t know her name. She never told me. Thinking back, she must have been the daughter of a scholarly family.”
“A scholarly family?” Shangguan Li savored the words. How could her elder sister be the daughter of a scholarly family? Her elder sister had known past and present, her mind full of poetry and prose. And yet such a person had been driven mad by this world.
The carriage stopped at the foot of the mountain. Xunqi got out first, then helped Shangguan Li down, and finally walked to her mother’s side with a smile.
Yan Zhi’an raised a hand to caress her cheek. “Let’s go up the mountain.”
The three walked up together. Shangguan Li, newly recovered from illness, moved very slowly.
After several stops and starts, Yan Zhi’an suggested, “Shall we have a sedan chair brought up?”
“No need. You two go ahead.” Shangguan Li declined her kindness.
Hearing this, Yan Zhi’an didn’t insist. She slowed her pace, but Xunqi sidled up to Shangguan Li. “Are you walking up yourself to show your sincerity?”
“Mhm. What are you trying to say?” Shangguan Li was curious. She stopped to catch her breath.
“My foster mother said all this is fake—nothing but formalism.” Xunqi looked seriously at Shangguan Li. “Do you know what formalism is?”
“I do. My elder sister once mentioned it. But you must never speak of such things to others.” Shangguan Li warned the child. She didn’t want Xunqi to walk her elder sister’s path. Finished, she looked at Yan Zhi’an. “Left Prime Minister.”
