Chapter 57
**Chapter 57: Life is Like a Ephemeral Flower, Fleeting in an Instant**
...
On the same night, the lights of Qixue Pavilion remained aglow.
Liu Ruyan held a lantern in her hand, weaving through the lush flowers and grasses, making her way to a secluded corner of the courtyard.
Her maid, Xue Mei, followed silently behind her, her expression blank, as if she had grown numb to everything around her.
“Look, the flowers have bloomed,” Liu Ruyan said, gazing at two night-blooming cereus in the corner. The moonlight spilled down, illuminating the two flowers as they slowly unfurled, pure and flawless.
Liu Ruyan stared at the cereus, a wave of sorrow washing over her: “Life is just like this cereus, blooming for a moment, mourning for a lifetime... Look at Zhang Yue, her life was nothing but a fleeting flower, wasn’t it?”
The news of Zhang Yue framing Shen Wei had already reached Liu Ruyan’s ears. She felt a pang of sympathy for Zhang Yue.
Xue Mei mechanically replied, “Yes, yes.”
Xue Mei was so tired!
In winter, when the plum blossoms bloomed, Liu Ruyan would go under the plum tree to admire the flowers on snowy nights.
In summer, when the cereus bloomed, she would venture to the corner to appreciate the flowers amidst the buzzing mosquitoes.
“I remember a long time ago, the prince accompanied me to admire the cereus at night,” Liu Ruyan said, a hint of bitterness crossing her lips.
Xue Mei nodded numbly, “Yes.”
During the days when the Yan Wang and Liu Ruyan were close, they had shared those moments of admiration together.
Liu Ruyan cherished the pure white beauty of the cereus, and the Yan Wang had casually remarked, “After the cereus withers, we can pick it and send it to the kitchen to make a bowl of cereus and pork rib soup.”
That had made Liu Ruyan cry in anger, and she had ignored him for half a month.
After that, the Yan Wang never admired the cereus with her again.
“Master, news has come from the East Palace that the little mistress Nan Zhi misses you,” Xue Mei reported, swatting a mosquito on her arm.
In the Yan Wang’s residence, the princess had two sons and a daughter, while Concubine Liu had a pair of twins. Liu Ruyan had a sickly daughter named Li Nan Zhi, who was already six years old this year.
Liu Ruyan had raised Li Nan Zhi for four years.
She loved to hold her daughter and take her to enjoy the snow and the plum blossoms, but the cold winter weather often left her daughter sick with fevers.
Thus, the Yan Wang had entrusted Li Nan Zhi to the princess, but the princess was negligent in her care, and the child’s situation did not improve. Eventually, the Yan Wang sent Li Nan Zhi to the Crown Prince’s residence, where she would be cared for by the Crown Princess, who adored children.
Though young, Li Nan Zhi had not forgotten her birth mother and often longed to see Liu Ruyan again.
Liu Ruyan gazed at the two pure white cereus flowers, her eyes calm. “The Crown Princess is raising Nan Zhi well; she will forget me, her birth mother, sooner or later.”
Xue Mei tried to explain, “...The little mistress has truly never forgotten you.”
Liu Ruyan shook her head lightly, “A six-year-old child doesn’t understand what longing means.”
Xue Mei had no words to counter that!
Though young, Li Nan Zhi had always relied on Liu Ruyan. On the day she was sent away from the palace, the four-year-old girl had cried heart-wrenchingly, clutching Liu Ruyan’s clothing and refusing to let go.
But at that time, Liu Ruyan was in a cold war with the Yan Wang. She could only watch as her daughter was taken away, without any protest.
In the two years that followed, Liu Ruyan had not visited the East Palace even once.
Looking at the wilting cereus, a sense of melancholy washed over her: “Flowers bloom and wither in due time; mother-daughter and husband-wife relationships are no different... Xue Mei, the cereus has withered; let’s go back.”
Xue Mei scratched her mosquito-bitten arm, “...Yes.”
Another day of wanting to change masters.
...
...
The next day, the Yan Wang left Liuli Pavilion in high spirits to attend court. Shen Wei, nursing her sore back, slowly got up and jogged around the courtyard a couple of times.
“Cai Lian, tell the Ministry of Internal Affairs to get a sturdier bed,” Shen Wei said, finishing her run while having breakfast.
Last night had been quite the uproar.
The bed was broken, and the bed curtains had been torn by the Yan Wang.
Cai Lian stifled a giggle, “I’ll take care of it right away. This time, we’ll definitely get the sturdiest bed.”
Cai Lian went to the Ministry of Internal Affairs while Shen Wei savored her breakfast.
She was currently in the process of preparing for pregnancy, so her breakfast table was filled with spinach, shrimp, beef, kelp, and other foods to replenish her body with folic acid and calcium.
As Shen Wei ate to prepare for pregnancy, she naturally had to secretly arrange for the Yan Wang as well.
She instructed Cai Ping, “The prince will be having dinner at Liuli Pavilion tonight. Go to the kitchen and have them prepare some delicious dishes with oysters, yellow croaker, goji berries, shrimp, pumpkin, lamb, and leeks.”
These foods would enhance the Yan Wang’s constitution. Especially the oysters, rich in nutrients, could improve the quality and vitality of the little Yan Wang.
By secretly feeding the Yan Wang, she hoped that the child she would bear in the future would be healthier.
“Got it, I’ll take care of it right away,” Cai Ping said, not fully understanding the purpose of these ingredients, but she would remember every command Shen Wei gave and execute them perfectly.
After finishing breakfast, Shen Wei took a stroll in the courtyard to aid digestion.
At the entrance of Liuli Pavilion, two cold-faced black-clad guards had appeared. They were the Yan Wang’s elite guards, and from now on, they would serve as the security for Liuli Pavilion.
A smile crept onto Shen Wei’s lips.
Though she had suffered a bit from Zhang Yue’s false accusations, she had gained so much in return.
With Zhang Yue gone, the princess dared not act against Shen Wei anymore; Shen Xiuming was re-energized and working hard; the Yan Wang’s feelings for her had deepened; Shen Wei no longer needed to report to the princess when leaving the palace, making it easier for her to conduct business; and Liuli Pavilion had gained two skilled guards.
A bountiful harvest!
She had laid a solid foundation for a safe pregnancy.
“Did the princess go to the palace today?” Shen Wei asked, sitting by the waterside, inquiring about Mama Rong.
Mama Rong nodded, “The prince has punished the princess to copy three volumes of Buddhist scriptures, which she is delivering to the Empress’s palace today. By now, she should have arrived at the palace.”
Shen Wei pondered; the Empress—mother of both the Yan Wang and the Crown Prince, the most esteemed woman in the Da Qing Kingdom, her nominal mother-in-law.
If Shen Wei wanted to establish herself firmly in the Wang residence, besides the Yan Wang’s affection, the assurance of children, and family support, the relationship with her mother-in-law was also a crucial factor.
Building a good relationship with her mother-in-law was a necessary course for a favored concubine. If one day the Yan Wang sought a new love, with a powerful mother-in-law’s support, she could still stand firm in the Wang residence.
Shen Wei said, “Mama Rong, tell me about the Empress. How is her relationship with the princess?”
Mama Rong, being an elder in the Wang residence, had a wealth of experience. She replied calmly, “The Empress hails from the prestigious Xie family and shares a loving bond with the Emperor. She manages the inner palace with strictness, keeping everything in order.
In the past few years, the Empress was relatively lenient towards the princess. However, in recent years, the princess has often faced reprimands from the Empress.”
Shen Wei asked, “Why does the Empress reprimand the princess?”
Mama Rong thought for a moment, “Though the princess is the prince’s legitimate wife, she has been negligent in managing the household these past two years, failing to fulfill her duties as the mistress.”
Shen Wei fell into deep thought, her intuition telling her that there might be more to the story.
...
...
In the Da Qing Palace, in Kun Ning Palace.
The princess respectfully presented the three volumes of Buddhist scriptures, placing them on the Empress’s desk. The Empress, nearing fifty, had strands of white hair at her temples. Her once stunning face had been weathered by time, with fine lines now visible at the corners of her eyes.
The Empress rubbed her temples, fatigue evident on her face.
She did not open the scriptures but took a sip of tea, her sharp gaze cutting through the air as she commanded the princess, “Kneel.”
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