Chapter 43: Memories

She had fallen out of the Emperor’s favor for quite some time back then. All those stolen concubines and maidservants had followed her into the palace, while she remained locked away in a small courtyard of the Prince's Manor. Even many of the blind and ignorant servants in the manor, who loved to judge others by their status, never gave her a pleasant look. Consequently, even after those concubines and maidservants had entered the palace and attained official ranks, she was still kept locked up in the manor and had not been released.

She was confined in the small courtyard for three days and three nights, during which she was fed nothing but spoiled and cold leftovers.

Later, after the Empress’s enthronement ceremony concluded, the Emperor finally had the leisure to deal with her.

Following the layers of clues she presented, the ultimate finger pointed toward the Empress. Yet unexpectedly, the Empress resorted to all sorts of evasions. Even though the Empress’s words were riddled with loopholes, for reasons unknown, the Emperor merely placed the Empress under house arrest for a month, without imposing any severe or substantive punishment upon her.

At the time, although Imperial Noble Consort Cheng felt a deep sense of injustice in her heart, she truly had nothing to say. Could she possibly question the Emperor's decision and defy an imperial decree merely to seek justice? That would result not only in punishment for herself alone, but would even implicate the entire Cheng family. How could she ever bring herself to do such a thing?

To compensate her, the Emperor bestowed upon her the title of Imperial Noble Consort, a rank second only to that of the Empress.

The rank of Imperial Noble Consort is equivalent to a co-ruler of the harem. Unless something extraordinary befell the Empress, no dynasty in history had ever conferred the title of Imperial Noble Consort while a legal Empress was still alive. After all, this was already considered having one foot across the threshold of the Middle Palace, and no Empress would ever allow such a thing to happen.

Naturally, the Emperor had to maintain his proper image in public; he certainly could not disregard the Empress's face, and thus he granted her the title of Imperial Noble Consort.

When all was said and done, both of her missteps had been secretly plotted by that villainous Empress. Had it not been for the Empress, she would not have had to live her life with such cautious trepidation today, and her children would have been legitimate offspring born of the principal wife.

Even if the Empress bore the eldest son, had she ascended to the position of Empress, her fifth prince would have been the legitimate嫡son. Succession by the legitimate son was the rule left down by their ancestors. Even if the legitimate son was not the eldest, only when something went awry with the legitimate son could the eldest son succeed.

Had it not been for the Empress repeatedly using such schemes to harm her, there was simply no way she would have missed out on these crucial matters time and time again.

No matter how dissatisfied she felt in her heart, the wooden boat was already carved into a completed vessel; she had no alternative and could only guard her own small plot of land within the inner court and make the best of her days first.

Fortunately, her child lived up to expectations. Although the Fifth Prince was still young, he already understood the severity of the fight for the succession. She, too, harbored the desire to take part in this struggle. Since things had come to this, she was willing to lock horns with the Empress once more to see who would have the last laugh in the end.

That way, the Empress would not always act so lofty and haughty, occasionally piercing her heart with remarks about children born of concubines.

Whenever the thought of those two words arose—along with her own role in bringing about this state of affairs—her heart ached so intensely that it felt agonizing, and she always felt a deep sense of guilt toward her two children.

Fortunately, the Fifth Prince did not blame her for this matter; instead, he consoled her at every turn. This managed to settle her mind somewhat; otherwise, she feared she would have lived each day swallowed by self-reproach.

"Is that so? Then Consort Mother shall just wait for our little hero Yunshu to protect Consort Mother and your older brother in the future. Oh, how wonderful it is when daughters grow up. As a mother, I can finally set my mind at ease, rather than worrying day in and day out for fear that my daughter might be deceived out in the world."

Imperial Noble Consort Cheng said with a beaming smile. After sharing another round of heart-to-heart sentiments, the mother and daughter whispered some intimate confidences to each other.

At last, Imperial Noble Consort Cheng contentedly instructed the servants to set the table and partook in the evening meal alongside Xiao Yunshu.

Meanwhile, on the other side, Xiao景珩 had spent the past few days cooped up recuperating in a small courtyard of his desolate quarters for imperial princes. Unaware that the palace was abuzz with all sorts of lively gossip, it was only because nanny Zhao saw him brooding inside his room day after day and thought he might be bored that she began sharing some of the rare occurrences from the outside world with him.

Xiao Jingheng listened, sensing a lingering feeling that all the recent happenings in the palace seemed to revolve around a person named Wen Qiao, and a sudden, intense premonition arose within his heart.

Wen Qiao was the young woman who had saved him that very night.

"This Marquis Yongning's Estate is quite interesting, managing to arrange for two young ladies to enter the palace in succession. Might Nanny tell me in detail what kind of person this Wen Qiao really is?"

Because Xiao Jingheng had never secured favorable resources over the years, and the meals he ate were leftovers that others cast aside, he had grown frail and thin, and his voice was gentle and soft.

Hearing that Xiao Jingheng had the inclination to care about outside affairs, Nanny Zhao cast aside any lingering thoughts and hurriedly told Xiao Jingheng everything she had managed to inquire about.

"Ah. This old servant hears that this Sixth Miss Wen is the biological daughter of the late Eldest Princess Changles. For the past few years, she had been wandering outside, and it was only recently that people tracked her down and brought her back from the countryside. No sooner had she returned than she attended the Grand Empress Dowager's birthday banquet, after which the Grand Empress Dowager kept her to stay overnight in the palace. Strange to say, although this Sixth Miss Wen spent her life living in the countryside, she has somehow acquired medical mastery. At the Grand Empress Dowager's birthday banquet, she directly alleviated the Grand Empress Dowager's chronic headaches. Your Highness also knows that Her Ladyship the Grand Empress Dowager suffers from numerous old ailments; whenever she fails to rest properly, the headaches strike. Thus, both the Emperor and the Grand Empress Dowager are aware that Sixth Miss Wen understands medicine. Because Her Ladyship's health has been poor lately, requiring her to remain bedridden and recuperate, Sixth Miss Wen has continued residing within the palace. I hear that the Marquis Yongning's Estate also sent a Seventh Miss into the palace to study, though this old servant is not very clear on her affairs—after all, the talk of the palace centers mostly around Sixth Miss Wen. As for Seventh Miss Wen, she likely managed to enter for studies solely on account of Sixth Miss."

When Nanny Zhao finished, Xiao Jingheng lowered his head and carefully pondered the events of the Grand Empress Dowager's birthday banquet.

Indeed, his toxic relapse on that day happened because it was the night of the full moon. He had originally intended to attend the Grand Empress Dowager's birthday banquet as well. Although, growing up, no one in the palace had ever paid attention to him—not even his own father had ever dispatched anyone to inquire after him—deep down, he still yearned to feel a closer bond with his family.

Moreover, it was not as though the Grand Empress Dowager had never cared about Xiao Jingheng's affairs; she merely paid him less attention on ordinary days.

After all, the Grand Empress Dowager and the Emperor shared a deep maternal-filial bond, and she could not completely disregard the Emperor's face. It was precisely because of the Grand Empress Dowager's frequent admonitions on the side that the Emperor merely chose to selectively ignore Xiao Jingheng without subjecting him to humiliation; at worst, he simply let him fend for himself.

On occasion, the Grand Empress Dowager would send things to him, such as thick garments or small snacks. As long as it was not done too overtly, the Emperor generally turned a blind eye and let it pass. Therefore, deep in his heart, Xiao Jingheng felt willing to draw closer to the Grand Empress Dowager.

He only wondered if someone was constantly watching him on the Emperor's side.

Every time he wished to go to the Palace of Compassion and Tranquility or encounter the Grand Empress Dowager in the Imperial Garden by chance, he could never follow his own wishes.

He could not enter the Palace of Compassion and Tranquility, and whenever he went to the Imperial Garden, his timing invariably missed that of the Grand Empress Dowager. Thus, growing up, even though the Grand Empress Dowager sent him numerous emergency supplies, the number of times he actually met her was pitifully few—so few they could be counted on one hand—let alone his chances of seeing the Emperor.

Many happenings within the palace were things Nanny Zhao had to go out and listen to before returning to recount to him.

He harbored no grand ambitions and had no desire to ascend the dragon throne; he merely wished to live like a normal prince or princess and no longer endure the kind of life he was living now. Did he truly do something wrong?

After listening to Nanny Zhao's words, Xiao Jingheng lowered his head and pondered these matters deeply.

Nanny Zhao assumed that he was once again recalling his toxic relapse on the day of the Grand Empress Dowager's birthday banquet—which prevented him from attending—and was grieving alone over it. In a flurry of panic, she lightly slapped her own mouth and spoke:

"It is all this old servant's loose tongue, talking about such matters to His Highness for no reason. Your Highness need not take it to heart. The Grand Empress Dowager's birthday banquet comes once a year; by next year, this old servant will surely prepare the antidote well in advance. This time it was this old servant's oversight that caused Your Highness to suffer a relapse. Your Highness should stop dwelling on these things. Let this old servant go out and bring Your Highness's meal; Your Highness should eat first."

No one waited upon Xiao Jingheng here save for Nanny Zhao. He did not even possess the standard complement of palace maids and eunuchs assigned to ordinary princes.

Over the years, Nanny Zhao alone had tended to his daily life.

Yet Nanny Zhao's eyes were blind, rendering many tasks inconvenient. It was only through long familiarity with living inside the princes' quarters that she could walk about so casually. If she were to go outside—like the day he collapsed outside the hall—had Wen Qiao not come to treat him first, there was no telling how long he would have lain there, and Nanny Zhao would have spent a considerable amount of time simply groping her way from here to there.

"Nanny must not speak thus; I was merely thinking of other matters. Right, does Nanny remember when I told you upon returning from the Imperial Grandmother's birthday banquet that a young woman used acupuncture to save me? Had it not been for her, I do not know how long I would have lain there or when anyone would have come across me. If that young woman had not appeared in time, even if you had gone out to find me and returned to take the antidote, I surely would have suffered terribly."

Xiao Jingheng's soft voice drifted out. Nanny Zhao recollected herself and indeed remembered that such an incident had occurred.

After all, she was advanced in age, and some matters were not retained very clearly in her memory. Managing to care for Xiao Jingheng on ordinary days was already no small feat, so she frequently forgot certain things, though Xiao Jingheng never once uttered a complaint.

Yet she retained a slightly deeper impression of this particular matter, because the only person in this world tied to her was Xiao Jingheng. If any mishap befell Xiao Jingheng, she truly would not know what meaning life held for her.

Therefore, Nanny Zhao felt profoundly grateful toward Xiao Jingheng's savior. Hearing him bring it up now, she assumed Xiao Jingheng must have stumbled upon some clue, which prompted him to mention the affair.

Even though their status in the palace was lowly and insignificant, since this debt of gratitude existed, Nanny Zhao had originally intended to properly thank Wen Qiao. Hearing Xiao Jingheng bring it up now, she immediately perked up her ears, listening closely to see whether he intended to continue the account.

"The young woman who saved me that day wore very plain attire, which matches the detail Nanny heard about the one just welcomed back from the countryside. Coupled with the fact that I had never seen her in the imperial palace before, if one were to say she was the young lady of some noble and illustrious clan, aside from the Marquis Yongning's Estate, there could scarcely be anyone else. For on that day, she was the only maiden who came out to catch her breath, and she appeared flustered and hurried. Afterward, she rushed back in haste, likely because the Imperial Grandmother's side was anxious for her to return swiftly. For some reason, deep in my heart, I simply feel certain that this young woman is none other than the Sixth Miss of the Marquis Yongning's Estate—the very Wen Qiao who has been residing in the palace these past two days. Otherwise, Nanny, think carefully: are there any other young maidsets who understand medicine, wielding that silver needle with such miraculous precision? Even though she performed the acupuncture behind my back and I could not see it, from the speed of her movements I could sense that she is someone well-accustomed to the use of silver needles."

Xiao Jingheng spoke softly, and a flash of inspiration struck Nanny Zhao, as if she suddenly recalled something.

"Yes, yes. This old servant has heard that over these past two days, this Sixth Miss Wen is required to administer needles to the Grand Empress Dowager every single day. Does she not use silver needles for that as well? It might well be that this Sixth Miss is truly Your Highness's savior. It is only that our situation in the palace is somewhat difficult; now that this Sixth Miss Wen is a favored person in the eyes of the Emperor and the Grand Empress Dowager, even if we wished to offer her some assistance, we are powerless to help. I suppose the Emperor and the Grand Empress Dowager will arrange for everything she desires to be fulfilled."

As Nanny Zhao spoke, her mood dropped visibly, and looking at her, Xiao Jingheng inevitably felt a twinge of guilt.

Had it not been for him, Nanny Zhao likely would not have had to endure such hardship today.

Palace maids were permitted to leave the palace upon reaching the age of twenty-five. If they missed that opportunity, they could only wait and see whether the masters they served would show mercy and grant them individual leave to exit the palace. If they remained past twenty-five without leaving, they had no choice but to grow old and wither away as elderly matrons within the palace walls.

Nanny Zhao had remained in the palace all those years solely to tend to him. Had she departed alongside that cohort of exiting maids, she would presumably have been betrothed, married, and raising children by now, with no need to endure the burden of caring for a liability like him in the deep palace.

Although Xiao Jingheng felt guilty toward Nanny Zhao, he was exceptionally intelligent. He was capable of biding his time and enduring in silence; even when others subjected him to bullying and humiliation, he could swallow his anger and store it away in his heart, waiting until the day he achieved a future to exact his revenge.

Yet just as master and servant were conversing, a chaotic commotion of footsteps sounded from outside the residential quarters. The next moment, the dilapidated wooden door of his chamber was violently kicked open from the outside, emitting a creaking, grating sound that made one's skin crawl.

"How has the Third Imperial Brother been faring these past few days? This younger brother heard that the Third Imperial Brother has been bedridden for two days and thought to come pay a visit. Oh? Is this not that blind old nanny? The Third Imperial Brother's life is truly going rather well, still having someone to wait upon him. It seems this younger brother worried needlessly."