Chapter 56
**Chapter 56: The Art of Language**
After the princess left, Shen Wei forced herself to keep up appearances while dining with the Yan Wang. Today’s misfortune had left her mentally and physically drained, and she fell asleep early that night, without even practicing her calligraphy.
The Yan Wang lifted the deep blue bed curtain to find Shen Wei lying on the bed, lightly dozing. Her small face was pale, and even in sleep, she seemed restless, like a frightened little kitten.
In his mind, the Yan Wang couldn’t help but recall the words of the Crown Prince:
“Yuan Jing, never underestimate the malice of the women in the inner court.”
“Knowing a person’s face doesn’t mean knowing their heart.”
A shadow crossed the Yan Wang’s handsome features.
He stepped out of the sleeping chamber and made his way to the Liuli Pavilion’s study, where he dealt with several documents that had been submitted for his review.
As he finished reading, Fu Gui arrived, stepping into the dim light of the evening. He bowed respectfully and said, “Your Highness, the matter from today has been clarified.”
“Shen Zhuzi went to the Baihu Temple this morning to seek a talisman for your safety and also brought some summer clothes for her brother studying at the Wen Miao. The princess, misled by Zhang Yue from the Qiangwei Courtyard, mistakenly believed that Shen Zhuzi was having an affair with a man. She sent people to bind them tightly and threw them into the wood shed of the Wangfu.”
“Shen Zhuzi’s brother was beaten badly, and only after Shen Zhuzi revealed the truth to the princess did she release them. You know the rest, Your Highness.”
The Yan Wang slammed the documents down.
Shen Wei had merely stepped out, yet she had drawn the attention of the princess and Zhang Yue. Coming from a humble background, Shen Wei posed no threat to the princess. The princess showed no grace befitting a matriarch, deliberately targeting a mere concubine.
When the truth came to light, the princess shifted all the blame onto a small servant girl, trying to wash her hands of the matter completely.
The Yan Wang felt increasingly disappointed in the princess. As for Shen Wei, she bore the weight of immense injustice but dared not speak a word, silently enduring it all.
A slight ache tugged at the Yan Wang’s heart; his Wei Wei always evoked such pity.
Leaving the study, he returned to the sleeping chamber.
The candlelight flickered back to life, and the once-sleeping Shen Wei had awakened, sitting on the bed with her long hair cascading over her shoulders. Her bright eyes looked at the Yan Wang, “It’s so late, Your Highness, why aren’t you asleep?”
“I just finished some official business.” The Yan Wang stopped her from getting up to serve him, as he took off his robe himself.
They lay down together.
Shen Wei couldn’t sleep. Nestled in the Yan Wang’s embrace, her voice was timid, “Your Highness... I want a child.”
The Yan Wang’s heart stirred. He took her hand, his dark eyes revealing a hint of shadow, “Why do you feel this way?”
Shen Wei lowered her gaze, speaking softly, “If I’m not here in the future, at least a child could keep you company. When you see the child, you won’t forget me…”
Shen Wei wanted a child to secure her position in the Wangfu. A child, wealth, affection, power—she intended to fight for them bit by bit.
But she certainly couldn’t tell the Yan Wang directly that she wanted a promotion and stability. So she framed it differently.
She wanted a child because it would be the fruit of their love. After being wronged by the princess today, the timid and pitiful Shen Wei was genuinely afraid, feeling that her life might be short-lived, so she wished for a child to accompany the Yan Wang.
Look at her, how pitiful she was.
Listen to her, how humble she sounded.
This was the art of language.
The Yan Wang sighed deeply, pulling Shen Wei closer, “Don’t be afraid. With me here, no one can harm you.”
His Wei Wei was frightened by today’s events; she even pessimistically thought she wouldn’t live long in the Wangfu...
His beloved woman was walking on thin ice in the Wangfu, and the Yan Wang felt a pang of heartache. A man who couldn’t even protect his own woman—what kind of man was that?
He spoke gently, “From now on, when you visit your family, you don’t need to ask the princess for permission. Just inform Fu Gui. I’ll send two Hu Wei guards to protect you at the Liuli Pavilion.”
Shen Wei’s heart stirred.
This was wonderful! She wouldn’t have to report to the princess when leaving the Wangfu anymore! And the Liuli Pavilion would have two skilled guards!
“Your Highness,” Shen Wei said, touched as she wrapped her arms around his neck, “Meeting you is a blessing I earned in my past life.”
She leaned in and placed a kiss at the corner of the Yan Wang’s lips.
In the coolness of the sleeping chamber, the faint scents of mint and mugwort wafted through the air, and with the warm jade-like softness in his arms, the Yan Wang’s gaze deepened.
He tightened his hold on Shen Wei’s waist, “One child isn’t enough; let’s have a few more.”
Shen Wei shyly smiled, a hint of bashfulness showing.
The fragrant sweat dampened the silk sheets, and the bed curtains swayed gently; the night was still long...
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In the late hours at the Kunyu Courtyard, dim candlelight spilled across the room as the princess stayed up late, copying Buddhist scriptures.
Her two children, Cheng Ke and Cheng Zhen, were forced to study at the desk nearby.
The two children struggled to keep their eyes open, fighting off sleep.
“Mother... I’m so tired,” the eldest, Li Cheng Ke, pleaded with the princess. “My brother and I want to go back to our room to sleep.”
The younger one, Cheng Zhen, was so sleepy he had his head resting on the desk.
The princess slammed down her brush, her tone filled with frustration, “If I can stay up late to write scriptures, why can’t you memorize your lessons? If you don’t excel in the upcoming imperial examination, how can you repay my efforts?”
The usually gentle princess rarely showed anger.
The two children trembled in fear.
With a sigh, the princess approached her sons, “Listen to your mother; I won’t harm you. Others can excel, and so can you. My children are not inferior to anyone.”
“If it weren’t for raising you, how would your father have come to despise me? All this hardship is for you.”
Cheng Ke and Cheng Zhen lowered their heads, feeling wronged.
But they were really so tired...
As the night wore on, the princess finally finished copying the scriptures, and the children were taken back to rest by the nurse.
The princess, forcing herself to stay awake, went to the Buddhist hall to kneel and pray, clutching a white jade prayer bead in her hands, sincerely burning incense.
Liu Mama brought her a cup of calming tea, “Your Highness, it’s late. You should return to your room and rest.”
The princess asked, “What about Zhang?”
Liu Mama’s eyes flickered with a hint of fear as she replied awkwardly, “They didn’t survive the night; both lost their lives. It’s said that before Zhang passed, she kept murmuring the word ‘regret.’”
Zhang Yue was dead, filled with regret at the end.
She thought Shen Wei’s favor was merely luck, but she realized too late that a woman’s survival in the inner court was never based on luck.
What others gain is not my loss.
Driven by jealousy of Shen Wei, she made one wrong step after another, plunging into an abyss from which there was no return.
The princess placed a stick of incense in the altar, saying lightly, “If they die, they die; there will be new ones to take their place.”
Liu Mama nodded, “Miss Ye from Jiangnan will arrive in two days. She’s talented and beautiful, skilled in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting. For the sake of her family, she will surely compete fiercely with Shen.”
The princess twirled the prayer beads in her hand, “Let them fight; I will no longer interfere.”
This punishment of copying scriptures by the Yan Wang served as a wake-up call for the princess.
She understood she had made a mistake. As a woman of stable status, she had no need to involve herself in the struggles of a concubine.
From now on, she must not take risks again.
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