Chapter 54: Wanxi, Regret

Wan Tang suddenly rose, her steps light as a lotus, and moved beside Consort Shun, speaking gently, "Let me hold you."

She took off the jade bracelet on her wrist and the ring on her finger one by one, handing them to Li Ping'er, then extended her arms and gently took Mingzhu.

The child wriggled twice in her arms, and gradually stopped crying, its tear‑filled eyes curiously studying her.

"Good girl." Wan Tang lightly tapped the princess's nose with her fingertip, imitating the way her mother used to coax her, and hummed a little tune.

Mingzhu's tears turned to laughter, and the little hand grasped a strand of her falling hair.

Wan Tang, cradling the child, walked up to Chu Yunzheng and said softly, "Your Majesty, the child's mind is pure; perhaps it was frightened, or simply dislikes certain scents."

She glanced pointedly at the heavy perfume on Xu Qinghuan, and continued, "Look, isn't the princess smiling now?"

At that moment Mingzhu giggled aloud, revealing two tiny dimples.

Chu Yunzheng couldn't help but lean forward to look, meeting the child's clear laughing eyes.

His stern brows relaxed slightly, and his gaze toward Wan Tang softened: "Still, Tangtang is kind‑hearted; even the child is close to you."*

He turned his head and flicked his sleeve at Xu Qinghuan: "Your perfume is too strong; stay away."

He leaned close to Wan Tang's hair and inhaled lightly, "I like the pear‑flower scent on Tangtang; the child likes it too."

Seizing the chance, Wan Tang placed the child into Chu Yunzheng's arm and said, "Your Majesty, could you hold the princess?"

Chu Yunzheng instinctively stepped back half a pace, his brows knitting again.

Yet looking at Wan Tang's hopeful eyes and then at the delicately carved child in his arms, he finally reached out and supported Mingzhu's small body.

"Look," Wan Tang lightly tapped the princess's brows and eyes, "these eyes, this mouth, so much like the Emperor's."

Chu Yunzheng stared for a moment, then coldly said, "Mingzhu? Who gave that name? It's tacky."

Consort Shun fell to her knees, her forehead pounding the golden slab: "I deserve death! I… I dared to name her."

She stammered incoherently, her whole body trembling like a sieve.

Mingzhu, frightened by the commotion, began to cry again; Wan Tang quickly took the child back, patting gently to soothe.

Chu Yunzheng looked at the mother‑and‑daughter pair, then as if recalling something, turned to Wan Tang and asked, "When you were a child, did your mother soothe you the same way?"

Wan Tang's mother had long since turned to a mound of yellow earth.

Chu Yunzheng's expression grew grim, a layer of cold frost gathering on his brows; his cold gaze swept over the kneeling Consort Shun and then settled on the innocent Mingzhu princess in her arms.

The hall's atmosphere suddenly froze; everyone held their breath, even Xu Luoyan restrained her mocking smile, fearing Chu Yunzheng's wrath.

At that moment Wan Tang gently tugged Chu Yunzheng's sleeve, her voice soft as water: "Pity all mothers in the world; in her eyes, isn't this child a treasured pearl in the palm?"

She lifted her face, a striking vermilion dot between her brows, almond eyes full of affection, with a hint of coquettishness: "Just as I, though my father never gave me a name, was given the surname 'Wan' by my mother."

Her tone was gentle, yet every word pierced the heart.

She was pleading for a name for the child.

She was also seeking a lifeline for Consort Shun.

Consort Shun jerked her head up, looking at Wan Tang in disbelief, tears flashing in her eyes.

Xu Luoyan let out a snort, about to launch a sarcastic remark, but was halted by Zhang Jingyi's gaze.

The Empress furrowed her brow slightly, her fingertips absentmindedly rubbing the prayer beads on her wrist, a hint of doubt flashing in her eyes.

Lady Qi pursed her lips and said softly, "Putting on a show."

Chu Yunzheng was silent for a moment, then suddenly raised his hand, his fingertip lightly brushing Wan Tang's cheek, his voice low: "Wanxi."

"Chu Wanxi."

Wanxi.

— same as "Regret."

Wan Tang's pupils narrowed slightly, and her heart jolted sharply.

She had been scheming, but the moment the name was spoken, it brutally shattered all her composure.

This isn't a name for the princess.

It's for that… child who never existed.

Consort Shun, unaware of the deeper meaning, thought the Emperor had finally acknowledged this daughter, and burst into tears of joy, repeatedly bowing: "Thank you, Your Majesty, for the name! Thank you, Your Majesty, for your grace!"

Her forehead pressed against the cold golden slab, tears falling in large drops onto the floor, her voice choked to the point of being inaudible.

Chu Yunzheng said lightly, "It is this child who is fated to be connected with Tangtang."

Consort Shun was surprised and immediately thanked Wan Tang.

【To be honest, I'm a bit delighted. Wanxi's regret is just compensation for Wan Tang, isn't it?】

【Knowing full well Wan Tang was deliberately courting Consort Shun, the scummy dragon still directly bestowed this favor on her, giving her this name.】

【At least for this moment, I think the scummy dragon truly dotes on Wan Tang.】

【You should know, Princess Mingzhu is a taboo in the harem; even the Empress and Empress Dowager dare not ask for this favor, to have the Emperor grant a name!】

Wan Tang stood where she was, her fingertips trembling slightly.

She gazed at Chu Yunzheng's deep brows and eyes, at the barely perceptible hint of pain in his gaze, and suddenly understood.

He had never forgotten that "lost" child.

The surrounding concubines were all shocked; even the Empress could not obtain that thing, yet Wan Tang secured it with just a few words.

Xu Qinghuan suddenly stepped forward from the crowd, her pink cheeks shy, almond eyes watery, her voice so soft it seemed to drip honey: "Sister, look, the Emperor dotes on you so much; I'm truly happy for you."

As she spoke, she reached to grasp Wan Tang's wrist, her fingertips tinted with a light pink rouge just about to touch Wan Tang's sleeve.

Wan Tang suddenly stepped back half a pace, the breeze from her wide sleeves brushing Xu Qinghuan's fingertips.

"Ah—!"

Xu Qinghuan suddenly staggered and fell to the ground, her lotus‑colored skirt fanning out like a wilted lotus, revealing shocking bluish‑purple bruises on her snow‑white arms.

Tears instantly filled her eyes: "Sister, don't hit me… I, the concubine, admit my fault…."

Her tear‑tinged voice echoed clearly through the hall, her slender shoulders trembling continuously, like pear blossoms battered by a storm.

Wang Jingyi immediately lunged over and embraced the adopted daughter: "Qinghuan, the wound on your hand…."

She suddenly lifted her daughter's collar, and the back of her neck plainly showed several scabbed scratch marks.

Amidst the murmurs of the entire assembly, Xu Luoyan stroked her gilded armor and sneered: "Yesterday when I returned from He Feng Yu Jing Palace I kept crying nonstop; I even thought I had fallen…."

A cold glint suddenly flashed in Chu Yunzheng's eyes: "Songbai Palace and He Feng Yu Jing Palace are far apart; I, the Emperor, do not know when you have ever met face to face?"

Xu Luoyan hurriedly defended: "Emperor, you see clearly, Qinghuan indeed yesterday…."

"Did I ask you?" Chu Yunzheng swept a glance, and Xu Luoyan instantly fell silent like a cold cicada.

Xu Qinghuan struggled in the eunuch's grasp, crying out: "It's not sister's fault… it's the Concubine herself…."

Tears wash away the rouge, carving a disheveled groove across her face.

"It's truly not blaming Sister Wan."

She repeatedly says she doesn't blame, but every word is still an accusation.

Everyone stared at Wan Tang with odd gazes.

Xiao Mingshu also looked at Wan Tang, sorrowfully asking, "Wan Tang, did you really bully her?"

Wang Jingyi also mimicked wiping tears, stared at Wan Tang with blazing anger, and exclaimed, "Lady Wan, we're already in this state, what more do you want?"

"Qinghuan has even given up her name, what more do you want from her?"

The concubines in the hall either covered their lips or glanced sideways, and even Chu Yunzheng tightened his brows.

Yet Wan Tang suddenly stepped forward.

She held her back perfectly straight, the vermilion between her brows blazing like blood: "Emperor."

Her clear, sharp voice sliced through the noisy room as she stared directly at the Emperor's eyes: "Do you believe it?"

The hall's atmosphere grew stagnant, and everyone's gazes pierced Wan Tang like blades, as if to nail her to the word "vicious."

Xu Luoyan sneered, lightly brushed her gilded armor with her fingertips, her voice sharp: "Lady Wan, such great prestige—do you dare to move even the people beside the Emperor?"

Wang Jingyi sighed at the appropriate moment, assuming a sorrowful posture: "Qinghuan has always been well‑behaved; if she hadn't endured a tremendous grievance, how could she be crying?"

Before she could finish, Xu Qinghuan, eyes watery, shook her head, and with a delicate, white‑flower‑like frailty defended: "No, it's not that! I fell myself, it has nothing to do with sister…"

The more she says it, the more Wan Tang seems overbearing and cruel.

Chu Yunzheng sat high on the main seat; his fingertips lightly tapped the desk, producing a crisp sound that made the entire hall fall silent in an instant.

"Believe."

The Emperor's voice was deep, yet rang like a startling thunder.

These words were addressed to Wan Tang.

He then addressed the crowd: "Since Qinghuan has said she fell herself, what more are you still suspecting?"

His cold gaze swept over Xu Luoyan and Wang Jingyi, eyes like ice blades that sent a chill down their backs.

Xu Luoyan, unwilling, opened her mouth: "Emperor, Qinghuan clearly …"

Wang Jingyi hurriedly grabbed her daughter's sleeve, forced a smile to smooth things over: "It's just my wife being overly thoughtful, Emperor, you are wise."

Xu Qinghuan opened her eyes in astonishment, clearly not having expected the Emperor to defend Wan Tang in this way.

But she reacted swiftly, instantly turning tears into a smile, her voice sweet to the point of cloying: "See, everyone said it, I don't blame sister…"

Chu Yunzheng suddenly raised his hand, his knuckles striking the Dragon Throne's armrest heavily.

"The palace servants attending Miss Xu are all useless?"

His voice was neither hurried nor slow, yet it made every concubine in the hall shiver. "Even the Master cannot be cared for properly; what use is there in keeping them?"

"Drag them out and beat them to death."

Xu Qinghuan's complexion turned instantly pallid; her nails, painted with rouge, dug deep into her palm, yet she no longer dared to cry out in pain for mercy.

A chilling wail rose from outside the hall, then abruptly ceased.

All the concubines fell silent like cold cicadas, and even Xiao Mingshu gripped the prayer beads in her hand.

Everyone could see that this was a killing meant for the Xu Family to see.

It was even a killing for all who wished to act against Wan Tang.

Shun Pin suddenly mustered courage, her trembling voice breaking the silence: "Emperor, the banquet… the banquet is ready."

Her voice trembled, yet she persisted: "If we don't serve the meal now, the dishes will get cold."

Chu Yunzheng gave a faint "Hmm," and as he rose, he casually helped Wan Tang up, his fingertips lightly grazing her wrist without leaving a mark.

All the concubines bowed their heads, concealing the surging jealousy in their eyes.

Inside the main hall of Millennium Palace, red‑wood desks were arranged in a row, the brocade‑soft pads embroidered with intricate winding‑branch patterns, subtly indicating rank.

At the foremost, a wide rose‑wood dragon‑phoenix table stretched across, with Chu Yunzheng seated at the central position.

At her side sat the Empress.

At the lower left seat, Wan Tang wore a light long dress, simple and elegant.

Beside her sat Lady Qi.

Her peach‑red palace attire was dazzling, the gold‑threaded peony hairpin swayed dizzyingly; she now held a folding fan, cast a sidelong glance at Wan Tang, with a mocking smile at the corner of her lips.

Such an arrangement seemed ordinary, yet was calculated in every detail.

The Empress sat high above, observing with cold eyes.

Lady Qi pressed close to Wan Tang, both to surveil and to provoke.

Xu Luoyan and others were placed opposite, perfectly able to watch every move of Wan Tang.

【Is Wan Tang stupid? She used to be so predictable, we could almost guess what we'd say. Why can't we now?】

【If Lady Qi is pregnant, it's a ticking bomb; keep your distance from her.】

Wan Tang smiled sweetly, Lady Qi finally pregnant—how could that be a bomb?

Since she's pregnant, that's a blessing, a fortunate star!

Wan Tang smiled brightly as she looked across.