Chapter 5
Edward Quan ·
15
Seven days later, the Crown Prince’s half-month house arrest was lifted.
The system’s reminder sounded right on cue.
“You unlucky transmigrator, you’re the most hopeless person I’ve ever had to guide.”
“Since I feel sorry for you, here’s a little tip: the imperial garden. Noble Consort Yu.”
I had no idea what it was talking about.
Still, I went there, half believing it.
Noble Consort Yu was the most favored consort in the palace, arrogant and overbearing.
She didn’t even take the Empress seriously.
In the imperial garden,
I secretly hid to one side and watched.
Noble Consort Yu was surrounded by eunuchs and maids.
She stood in the sunshine admiring the flowers. Nothing seemed unusual.
Not far away, the Crown Prince was also looking out over the lake, in a rather good mood.
Was the system hinting that the two of them had some connection?
Time ticked by.
I still hadn’t noticed anything suspicious.
With no time to think, I pretended to look for something and walked straight into them.
The guard beside him shouted:
“How dare you! Watch where you’re going. His Highness the Crown Prince is here!”
“Please forgive me, Your Highness. I dropped a jade bracelet that’s been in my family for generations. I was anxious and walking too quickly.”
“You’re one of the ladies awaiting selection?”
“Yes.”
I looked up. The Crown Prince looked me over, then seemed pleased.
Zhen Niang had told me about the Crown Prince’s preferences.
So I had carefully chosen my clothes and makeup for the day.
“Whose daughter are you?”
“Lin Qiao, of the General’s household.”
The Crown Prince offered to help me search for the bracelet.
I casually made up a description of its color and design.
As we were talking, a fierce dog suddenly burst out of the bushes.
It lunged toward us.
I was about to dodge when a force from behind shoved me hard.
My foot slipped, and I fell to my knees. The dog’s claws raked across my arm, leaving several bloody scratches.
The Crown Prince was horrified.
“Send for the imperial physician at once!”
16
After examining me, the imperial physician said
that in addition to the scratches on my arm,
I had sprained my ankle when I fell. I couldn’t put weight on it and needed to rest.
An unexpected shove
had somehow turned me into the Crown Prince’s savior.
The Empress and the Crown Prince took turns visiting me.
They gave me plenty of scar ointment and tonics.
“How is your wound, little sister?”
Qiu Yun pushed the door open. Among the candidates, she was the least noticeable.
We hardly ever spoke before.
But ever since I was injured, she had become unusually close to me.
“I’ll wash my hands and change your dressing.”
She sent Qingzhu to fetch hot water, then helped apply medicine to my arm herself.
A long while later,
Qiu Yun came over holding the white jade hairpin Gu Xing had given me.
“Little sister, your jewelry is so exquisite. It looks familiar somehow. Even Noble Consort Yu’s gold hairpin can’t compare.”
I remembered putting the jewelry box away carefully.
I called Qingzhu loudly, snatched back the hairpin, and drove the shameless woman out.
System: “You couldn’t seize such a good opportunity? You really are in danger.”
17
Night fell.
Gu Xing’s face was dark, but he still carefully applied ointment to the wound on my arm.
“Qiao Qiao, is becoming Crown Princess really that important? Was it worth putting yourself through this?”
I used the flimsy excuse I’d made up earlier.
Gu Xing didn’t believe me.
“Greedy for wealth and status? If that were the kind of person you were, why weren’t you happy when I gave you a jade hairpin worth a thousand gold?”
“Worth a thousand gold?”
Gu Xing gently pinched my nose.
“I went to so much trouble begging my mother for her precious pearl, then had a craftsman set it in a hairpin. I gave it to the woman I love as a token of our promise. You ungrateful little thing—you even sent me away.”
Only then did I understand.
No wonder Qiu Yun had said the hairpin looked familiar.
The white jade hairpin had been made from the earring the Grand Princess wore at the peach-blossom banquet.
It was part of Gu Xing’s mother’s dowry, and incredibly precious.
I’d misunderstood and thought he had someone else.
I was completely exhausted. The more anxious I got, the more mistakes I made; the more I tried, the more tangled everything became. The system’s deadline was drawing near, but I had no idea where to turn.
I had never regretted flirting with Gu Xing.
I only regretted that I couldn’t give him a proper answer.
When we parted,
Gu Xing said he had to leave the capital for a few days.
I asked how long he’d be gone.
He said he’d be back soon.
I wrapped my arms around his waist and asked how soon was “soon.”
He laughed heartily.
“Why is Qiao Qiao so clingy today?”
I had a feeling
that I didn’t have much time left.
18
I had a strange dream.
The Emperor moved against the powerful relatives of the imperial family.
I saw Chancellor Gu and the Grand Princess beheaded at the same time,
their heads hung high outside the city gate for public display.
Gu Xing, his hair disheveled, looked like a madman wandering the streets.
He kept muttering “Qiao Qiao.”
Was that how it would end?
In the middle of the night,
I jolted awake from the dream, cold sweat dampening my hairline.
I put on an extra layer and stepped out of my room.
The night was pitch-black.
I ran into Qiu Yun returning from outside, her cheeks flushed.
Her hairpin was askew, too.
When she saw me standing there, she came over first.
“Little sister, you should be resting and recovering. Why are you out in the cold night air?”
“Were you meeting your lover?”
Qiu Yun wasn’t flustered at all. She calmly waited for me to finish.
“You were the one who pushed me that day, weren’t you? You disguised yourself as a young eunuch. Aren’t you afraid I’ll expose you and the Crown Prince for breaking the rules of propriety?”
“You didn’t say anything in front of Noble Consort Yu that day. If you report me now, who will believe you?”