Chapter 102: Feigning Illness

The red lacquered gate of Jingren Palace stood half‑ajar in the Fēng xuě, and Wan Tang lifted her hand to push the gate open, the warm air that rushed in mingled with a strong sandalwood fragrance.

Inside the hall, Wang Jingyi sat upright on the main seat, her fingertips leisurely twirling a string of jade Buddha beads, presenting the demeanor of a female master.

"Be extra careful!" Her voice was not loud, yet it carried undeniable authority. "My daughter carries a dragon lineage in her womb; if there is even a hint of a slip, you ten lives couldn't even pay for it!"

The palace maids knelt trembling all over the floor, responding in unison.

The moment Wan Tang stepped into the inner hall, Wang Jingyi's gaze swept over her like a blade.

She curled a cold smile at the corner of her mouth, rose to block the doorway: "Hey, isn't this Consort Wan, my lady? Jingren Palace is not receiving guests today; Lady, please return."

Her tone was respectful, but her eyes were cold as bone: "Human hearts are treacherous; Shei knows what thoughts some people have settled?"

Xu Luoyan lounged lazily on the soft couch, her flat lower abdomen deliberately stroked, appearing as if she were too weak to withstand the wind, her eyes full of sarcasm.

Li Pin's face turned blue with anger, stepping forward: "Madam Wang, what audacity! Consort Wan co‑administers the Six Palaces; how could you be so reckless here?"

Wang Jingyi let out a light laugh, the jade Buddha beads turning once on her fingertip: "I, as a subject's wife, dare not disrespect the Emperor's woman."

Her eyes chilled: "This palace still has the Empress Dowager and the Empress. Some people, don't take yourselves too seriously."

Her gaze swept over Li Pin, mocking: "As for Lady Li, if you have time to flaunt your power here, perhaps you should think about how to tend your body?"

She deliberately paused, "A hen that doesn't lay eggs will sooner or later end up as soup."

Li Pin, furious, trembled all over, her fingernails digging deep into her palm.

She almost wanted to go up on the spot and give Wang Jingyi a few big slaps first.

Wan Tang stood beside them, calmly watching it all.

Wang Jingyi, on the surface she wore a Bodhisattva's visage, yet she harbored a belly full of malice.

She was most adept at disguise.

And at this moment, her brazen arrogance seemed deliberately intentional.

The Emperor summoned her to the Imperial Palace and had someone take Xu Yanchuan away, perhaps Wang Jingyi did it on purpose.

The purpose was to drive everyone mad, so she could find a flaw and escape the hostage situation.

The more this happened, the more Wan Tang needed to stay calm.

Wang Jingyi looked at Wan Tang again, meaningfully saying: "Consort Wan, at this moment you still have idle thoughts meddling with others; perhaps think about what some people should do?"

She chuckled lightly, "In the end, one has to die, right?"

【5】 She was referring to Xu Yanchuan, intending to strike at Wan Tang's weakest point.

She meant Xu Yanchuan, i. e., she wanted to strike at Wan Tang's weakest point.

Wan Tang's eyes darkened, but a cold smile curled at her lips: "Yes, there will always be one person who must die."

"It's just a matter of time."

Wang Jingyi's complexion changed slightly, her voice gaining a sharper edge: "What do you mean?"

"Wang Jingyi, this kind of pain from losing a close relative, you will eventually taste as well, won't you?" Wan Tang replied calmly.

Wang Jingyi trembled with anger.

Xu Luoyan's face changed, she roared: "Wan Tang, what do you mean?"

"How dare you speak to my mother like that?"

Wan Tang gave a glance, and Xu Luoyan couldn't help but shrink her neck.

Wan Tang's gaze was too sharp, making Xu Luoyan terribly frightened. The wound on her face had not yet healed; it hurt so much…

"I, the palace, still advise both of you: since the Emperor lets you stay here, you should stay obediently."

"To be honest, I actually hope you find more trouble."

Wan Tang's smile was beautiful, with two shallow dimples and a speck of red at her brow: "I'm waiting for you to show your flaws."

Wang Jingyi and Xu Luoyan immediately shut their mouths.

Xu Luoyan stared at Wang Jingyi with a pleading look.

Wang Jingyi stared at Wan Tang, taking a deep breath; the woman before her was no longer the waste that had once been at their mercy.

Having spoken, Wan Tang turned and left.

Li Pin hurried after her, and at a palace corridor corner suddenly called out: "Consort Wan!"

Her gaze was Yin Zhi, and she lowered her voice: "I, your servant, know many secrets about Xu Luoyan; my lady, are you interested?"

Wan Tang's steps did not stop; she lightly replied: "No need to trouble yourself."

In the Fēng xuě, her silhouette receded farther, leaving only Li Pin standing in place, a hint of resentment flashing in her eyes.

【Wang Jingyi, that old hen, is threatening Tangtang again. Watching it makes me sick; Xu Yanchuan is so filial to her, does she have no heart at all? And she says that about him!】

【Villains have no heart, only ten thousand scheming eyes. Unfortunately, no matter how shrewd she is, she cannot escape the law of evil reaping evil.】

【Yes, yes, the daughter is a fool, the son is a big blockhead. Who knows what trouble they've stirred outside. They each envy Xu Yanchuan's moves; is it really just jealousy? Or is it because Xu Yanchuan knows the Xu Family's unspeakable secrets?】

【Exactly, if Xu Yanchuan didn't know so much, how could Xu Chengyuan indulge that useless son in harming someone who could bring glory to the Xu Family?】

What does Yanchuan actually know?

Wang Jingyi's sole aim was to put him to death, and even Xu Chengyuan also wanted to kill him.

A stray snowflake landed on Wan Tang's neck, and the icy Wan Tang shivered.

At the end of the deep palace alley, the Fēng xuě was blocked by high walls, leaving only a few drops of melted snowwater from the eaves, striking hollow echoes on the blue‑gray stone slabs.

A slender figure hid beneath a cloak, the wide brim of the hat covering the face, revealing only a sharply defined jaw.

He leaned against the mottled palace wall, his bony fingers turning a thin booklet, the parchment copy glimmering coldly in the moonlight.

"Is this really her writing?"

The voice was deep and icy, like the icicle hanging from the eave.

Li Ping'er bowed her head and stood, answering respectfully: "Yes, Master, though she is pregnant, she worries day and night over disaster‑relief matters."

She paused, her voice lightening a bit: "She even goes so far as to lower herself, taking money whenever she sees it, just to raise silver."

"And because of that she was framed, but thanks to the Emperor's deep favor, she avoided disaster."

The fingers under the cloak paused slightly.

His already cold voice was even laced with sarcasm: "For the common folk, or for her path to promotion?"

"Aren't these women all fighting to the point of bloodied heads just for that empress's throne?"

Li Ping'er hurriedly said, "I see that she does have the common folk in her heart."

She has combed through years of disaster records, staying awake for several nights, just to find a better relief method.

Li Ping'er looked up, eyes earnest, "I have seen with my own eyes that the Consort's discarded drafts also pile up like a mountain."

"She is still carrying a child, and her body is so frail. If it were merely a bid for favor, she could just put on an act; surely she would prioritize preserving the dragon lineage."

"The Master said, this is… this is, having been rained on oneself, so one wants to hold an umbrella for others."

A cold wind swept through the alley, lifting a corner of the cloak, vaguely revealing a man's lean waist and long legs.

He was silent for a moment, then let out a light laugh: "Chu Yunzheng truly has good fortune."

The laugh carried a hint of amusement and a touch of coldness.

Li Ping'er clenched the hem of her robe, speaking cautiously, "Master, the matter of Consort Wan…"

"Enough," the man said, raising his hand. His pale fingers rubbed the top of her hair, a gesture intimate yet distant, "Since she saved you, return the favor to her."

He tossed a jade token from his sleeve, and Li Ping'er hurriedly caught it.

"Tomorrow a newly appointed Censor will enter the capital," he said, the corner of his lips under the cloak curling slightly, "If you wish to help her, just arrange for them to meet."

Li Ping'er fell to her knees, her forehead pressed against the cold stone slab: "I thank the Master for the grace!"

Just as she was about to step back, the man suddenly added, "Li Defu, have you seen him?"

Li Ping'er's whole body tensed, hatred surging in her eyes like a tide, then she quickly suppressed it: "I have seen him."

"Heh," the man said with a meaning‑laden smile, "A castrated man has no heirs; when he grows old, he inevitably thinks thoughts he shouldn't."

Before the words finished, his figure had already vanished into the darkness.

Only Li Ping'er remained kneeling in the snow, clutching the jade token tightly, her knuckles white.

Night fell, and the Xitan Courtyard was silent.

The lanterns under the eaves had long been extinguished.

Wan Tang stood quietly by the window, her fingertips gently parting a sliver of curtain.

The courtyard was as black as ink, only the moonlight occasionally pierced the clouds, casting mottled shadows on the ground.

Suddenly, a slender figure slipped in along the base of the wall, footsteps so light they seemed to merge with the wind.

She was wrapped entirely in a night‑traveling cloak, the brim of her hat pulled down low.

She glanced left and right for a moment, and after confirming no one was there, she tiptoed to push open the side chamber's door and slipped inside.

Even though the disguise was good, Wan Tang could tell at a glance that she was Li Ping'er.

Wan Tang's eyes darkened slightly, and her fingertips slowly released the curtain.

She turned back to the bed, the brocade quilt lightly lifted, and her motion of lying down flowed like clouds and water, as if she had never left.

Her breathing steadied, long lashes drooping, and anyone who saw her would only think she was sound asleep.

【Tangtang can still sleep, but now the disaster situation is even worse, with corpses piling up like mountains in many places.】

【This matter is probably impossible to hide. Chu Yunzheng wants to rescue the disaster, and the Xiao Family and the Xu Family have surprisingly aligned on secrecy, only letting local officials implement some relief measures. Yet corruption is rampant everywhere, leaving little stored grain.】

【Even the Emperor is worried to death; now the Xiao Family and the Xu Family are evenly matched, and both families, vying to become disaster‑relief ambassadors, are ignoring the victims.】

【Chu Yunzheng really needs a knife—a knife that can cut people for him. He actually admires Xu Yanchuan, but unfortunately, that's a member of the Xu Family.】

Wan Tang, before sleep, listened to the constant sounds ringing in her ears, finding it hard to fall asleep.

She was just a woman, not understanding why, in the eyes of these politicians, the lives of the common people were worth so little.

For the sake of so‑called power, can they really disregard the common folk?

Wan Tang's eyes, without noticing, had become considerably moist.

She had once only wanted to live alone.

But at this moment, she truly wanted to do something.

The scenes Li Ping'er described kept replaying in her mind.

Wan Tang, after all, still had a sleepless night.

At the first hint of dawn, murmuring gossip drifted from outside Xitan Courtyard.

A few junior palace maids gathered in the corridor, cups of hot tea in hand, yet their mouths kept saying:

"Did you hear? The Emperor spent the night at Consort Hui's place last night!" the green‑clad maid cooed, "The whole night!"

"Isn't that so?" another round‑faced girl lowered her voice, "Consort Hui usually dances with knives and spears, never thought she had this skill, making the Emperor so obsessed."

"Pah!" the older matron spat, "Isn't it because Consort Wan and Consort Jing are both pregnant, so they're anxious!"

Just as they were getting excited, a folding fan slapped against a corridor column with a "pa‑" sound.

Everyone turned back, terrified to the point of their souls fleeing.

Ning Daying was standing there at an unknown moment, her apricot‑colored skirt hem embroidered with butterflies in love, a plush fan still shaking in her hand.

That she could still hold a fan in the dead of winter shows just how obsessed Ning Daying is with fans.

"It's early morning, you don't even want a tongue?" her voice was crisp, yet it scared everyone into dropping to their knees.

Wan Tang happened to push the door open at that moment, and, seeing the scene, laughed, "Sister Ning, long time no see."

Ning Daying's eyes brightened, playfully sticking out her tongue, "Sister Wan!"

"Everyone says you're pregnant; seeing you today, I finally realize your belly is indeed that round." Ning Daying said without meaning to.

The others, upon hearing that, changed their expressions.

It's said a pointed belly means a son, a round belly a daughter. But in the harem, only a prince is wanted.

Chu Yunzheng doesn't like daughters; otherwise, why would the favored Princess Mingzhu be so ill‑treated?

The onlookers furrowed their brows, but Wan Tang was completely indifferent.

Within the Imperial harem, someone like Ning Daying with such candid, sincere nature truly is a treasure.

She smiled with her brows and eyes: "Sister, today, how did you find time to come see me?"

Ning Daying jogged over, "Sister Consort Hui, today you are gracious, permitting me to invite you over to sit!"