Chapter 302
**Chapter 300: Lan Pin's Speculation**
As soon as Zhao Yiniang saw Lan Pin, her eyes instantly turned red. She grasped Xie Fanghua's hand, choking back tears as she greeted her, large droplets rolling down her cheeks.
Lan Pin was filled with confusion and quickly invited the two of them into the room.
She dismissed the servants.
Zhao Yiniang held Lan Pin's hand, looking her up and down, and said with a sob, "Fanglan, look at you, you've lost weight again. Such a good child, suffering in the palace."
Zhao Yiniang's nose tinged with sadness, every word dripping with concern for Lan Pin.
Lan Pin, unable to indulge in nostalgia, anxiously asked, "Aunt, please tell me, why hasn't my mother come?"
With red-rimmed eyes and a voice thick with emotion, Zhao Yiniang replied, "Fanglan, your mother caught a chill two years ago and has been bedridden ever since. Your father has called for the imperial physician to treat her, but nothing has worked... Now, she is too ill to even get out of bed."
Lan Pin's head buzzed.
Her mother was sick?
She exclaimed, "Aunt, why didn’t you and Father tell me sooner?"
Seeing her distress, Xie Fanghua quickly stepped forward, wrapping her arms around Lan Pin, her voice trembling, "Sister, it’s not that Father and Mother wanted to hide it from you. It’s just that the eldest lady was afraid you would worry, so she wouldn’t allow Father to speak up."
Lan Pin's heart sank, and she numbly sank back into her chair, as if she had fallen into an icy abyss.
She had longed to see her mother soon.
Who would have thought that her mother was gravely ill, with no remedy in sight?
Zhao Yiniang sat beside Lan Pin, rambling on, "Your father has been overwhelmed with work lately. You’re not favored in the palace, and you haven’t given birth to an heir. The old elders of the family pressure your father every day... Sigh, he hasn’t had a good night’s sleep in over half a year, and his hair has turned much grayer."
Lan Pin lowered her head, wiping away tears, her heart heavy with sorrow.
She felt utterly useless.
Her father had doted on her since childhood; even if she wanted the moon from the sky, he would find a way to get it for her. Lan Pin hated herself for being so disappointing, unable to win the Emperor's favor. After years in the palace, she was still just a lowly concubine, causing her father to worry himself gray.
"Aunt, which elder in the family wants to send someone into the palace?" Lan Pin wiped her tears and asked curiously.
Zhao Yiniang sighed, "Who else could it be? It can only be Fanghua."
Lan Pin was not surprised by this answer.
She raised her eyes to examine her younger sister, Xie Fanghua, who had not yet come of age when Lan Pin entered the palace. Her beauty had yet to blossom.
Now, nearly four years later, Xie Fanghua resembled a flower ready to bloom in spring, fresh and exquisite.
Xie Fanghua's eyes glistened with unshed tears as she grasped Lan Pin's hand, her voice hoarse, "Sister, I don’t want to enter the palace. I’d rather marry a commoner and live a simple life than step into the depths of the palace... But Father is running out of options."
Xie Fanghua looked so pitiful, as if she truly didn’t want to go to the palace.
Lan Pin's heart ached.
Xie Fanghua was her half-sister, and they had always been very close. Fanghua had relied on Lan Pin since childhood, always following her around and calling her "Sister" with such affection.
Lan Pin couldn’t bear the thought of her sister suffering in the palace. She told Xie Fanghua, "Life in the palace is not easy. You’re eighteen this year. I’ll ask Concubine Chen to help find you a good match."
Tears welled in the corners of Xie Fanghua's eyes.
She had merely mentioned that she "didn’t want to enter the palace," and Lan Pin took her seriously!
Zhao Yiniang rolled her eyes, feigning helplessness, and sighed deeply, "The daughters of the Xie family have been pampered since childhood, bearing the weight of the family’s future. How can one selfishly ruin the entire family for personal desires? Fanglan, Concubine Chen is not on our side; she would do anything to prevent Fanghua from entering the palace."
Lan Pin thought carefully and realized this was indeed true.
Concubine Chen, who enjoyed the Emperor's favor, would never allow a beautiful newcomer to enter the palace and steal his affection.
Lan Pin's brows furrowed, her mind a tangled mess, completely unsure of what to do next.
The atmosphere in the room was heavy.
Lan Pin's personal maid, Tong'er, entered with tea and snacks. She served Zhao Yiniang and Xie Fanghua, her keen eyes discreetly assessing the two before she lowered her gaze.
Time flew by, and the visit to the palace was nearing its end. Zhao Yiniang reluctantly stood up, holding Lan Pin's hand, "Don’t worry, Lan Pin, I will take good care of your mother. The palace is a treacherous place; you must be careful in everything."
Xie Fanghua also put on a reluctant expression.
Lan Pin felt a pang in her heart.
She personally saw Zhao Yiniang and Xie Fanghua to the palace gate. Standing under the eaves of Huayang Palace, she watched their figures grow distant. In a daze, memories of her childhood flooded back—catching butterflies in the garden with her younger sister, while Zhao Yiniang lovingly wiped their sweat, her eyes filled with affection.
Lan Pin also recalled the time she had a high fever as a child, with Zhao Yiniang keeping vigil by her bedside all night, personally preparing and administering medicine.
In Lan Pin's heart, she regarded Zhao Yiniang as a second mother. The entire Xie family knew that the main wife and the concubine got along harmoniously.
The main wife of the Xie family was virtuous and kind, while the concubine was well-behaved, making them the envy of other families.
As the autumn wind began to rise, Lan Pin secretly wiped her tears, overwhelmed with sorrow. She stumbled back into the palace, hating herself for being useless, causing her parents to worry themselves into illness.
"Your Highness," Tong'er whispered as she closed the inner hall door, "please don’t be too sad."
Lan Pin wiped her tears, "What is it?"
Tong'er, who had been with Lan Pin since childhood and was perceptive, lowered her voice, "Your Highness, I feel something is off. Have you noticed the jade bamboo bracelet on Zhao Yiniang's wrist?"
Lan Pin looked puzzled, "I haven’t."
She had been too consumed by her sorrow to pay attention to Zhao Yiniang's attire.
Tong'er patiently explained, "When I was at the Xie residence, I once went to the lady's storeroom to fetch medicinal herbs. I saw a jade bamboo bracelet in a box. The old matron told me it was a wedding gift to the lady, extremely valuable, and she had never been willing to wear it—yet now, it has appeared on Zhao Yiniang's wrist."
Lan Pin was taken aback.
She vaguely remembered that her mother indeed had an expensive jade bamboo bracelet. It was said that her uncle had personally selected a piece of jade in Yuzhou, had it carved into the shape of bamboo, and given it to her mother, Wu Shi, as a wedding gift.
Her mother had also mentioned that the bracelet should be kept for when Lan Pin had a daughter, to be given to her granddaughter to wear.
Lan Pin sensed something was amiss: "Could it be that Mother gave it to Zhao Yiniang?"
Tong'er shook her head, "The lady has treated Zhao Yiniang well, but it hasn’t reached the point of treating her like a sister. This bracelet may have been taken by Zhao Yiniang without permission while the lady was gravely ill—perhaps even the master is complicit."
Lan Pin felt as if she might tear the handkerchief in her grasp to shreds.
Her father had spoiled her endlessly, Zhao Yiniang had been well-behaved for years, and her sister had shown her such care... Lan Pin was reluctant to doubt her family.
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