Unparalleled Beauty

Chapter C074

"Why aren't you asleep?"

Wushuang had not expected to see Prince Wei reading.

This Yuxiang Pavilion, being a remnant from the previous dynasty, retained the furniture and decor of that era. The seating of the previous dynasty was extremely low, with people sitting on the floor rather than with their feet dangling. Of course, it wasn't truly on the floor; there was usually a low platform beneath.

At this moment, Prince Wei was sitting cross-legged on the wooden low platform, before a low table with upturned ends. Upon it were many scrolls and books. His wide sleeves cascaded to the floor, displaying an air of unrestrained elegance.

"Did this Prince disturb you?"

"No…"

Her face flushed, she shrank back. After a moment's thought, she realized that since he was not asleep, shrinking back like that was inappropriate. She did not pull the bed curtains as tightly closed as before.

She lay back down, but feeling uneasy, she turned over.

Prince Wei did not speak again, his eyes lowered to the scrolls. Wushuang, on the other hand, tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep.

Noticing the movement on the bed, Prince Wei walked over.

"Why, can't you sleep?"

His gaze fell upon the pale, delicate lotus foot that had slipped out from under the covers, forgotten as Wushuang tossed and turned.

Prince Wei sat on the edge of the bed, his large palm casually grasping that foot. By the time Wushuang reacted, it was too late. Her foot was in his hand, and she could only watch as Prince Wei slowly massaged her ankle with his thumb.

"Uh... Your Highness…"

"That time you sprained your foot, I forgot to ask you afterward. Did it leave any lingering injury?" Prince Wei asked.

How could there be any lingering injury? Her sprain had not been serious, and she had applied medicinal wine promptly. It had healed after a couple of days. Besides, that had been a long time ago. Why was he suddenly asking about it?

"There is no lingering injury. It healed after two days."

The honest Wushuang spoke the truth honestly, but Prince Wei did not release her foot, continuing to massage it.

His fingers had thin calluses. Wushuang's skin was delicate, and the slight friction caused a faint tingling, a bit of soreness, a touch of numbness. That trembling sensation climbed up her ankle, past her calf, and continued to ascend.

Wushuang couldn't help but twitch her calf. Seeing this, Prince Wei said, "Why is your calf cramping?"

His hand moved up from her ankle, covering her calf, kneading and rubbing it.

Wushuang's face was flushed crimson, her eyes seemingly about to drip with tears. Yet, her calf was still in his hand. She was in extreme torment, and could not help but plead, "Your Highness..."

He encircled her waist. Though his movements were gentle, Wushuang felt a certain weight when his hand touched her waist.

Wushuang was not ignorant of such matters. On the contrary, she understood a great deal. Naturally, she understood Prince Wei's intentions. For a moment, her heart was in turmoil. She wanted to refuse, yet she feared his words, 'always playing dumb with this Prince.' She wanted to accept, yet she thought of the person who was still in the dark.

Just at that moment, a voice came from outside the door, "Your Highness, His Majesty summons you to the Yuhua Hall."

Prince Wei's movements froze.

After a long pause, he said, "This Prince will go at once."

As he rose, he said in a low voice, "Your leg cramped, I massaged it and it's better now. This Prince must go to the Yuhua Hall. You sleep."

His voice was low and gentle, but as he withdrew his hand, he kneaded her waist once more.

That single touch left Wushuang paralyzed. It took a long while after Prince Wei left for her to regain her senses. After a while, she hurriedly covered herself with the quilt.

Wushuang could not sleep, nor did she wish to anymore. With Prince Wei having been summoned, she feared being called upon for conversation or to attend a banquet. Thus, she rose and had her maidservants redo her toilette.

She kept her adornment simple, so that if she truly needed to go out, she could quickly change her clothes and add jewelry.

Indeed, her actions were correct. Not long after, a palace attendant from Princess Changhe's side came to summon her, saying that Princess Changhe requested her presence for a conversation.

Wushuang hastily changed and dressed, bringing with her Granny Gong, Linglong, and Meifang when she went out, along with four guards following behind. Granny Gong told her that this was a prior instruction from His Highness, who said that the personnel in the detached palace were mixed, and she needed to be careful when going out.

These words also tightened Wushuang's nerves. It seemed that the half-month of winter hunting would likely not be peaceful.

In truth, it was to be expected. People from both inside and outside the palace, from various families and mansions, had all come. With so many people, it was easy for those with ill intentions to take advantage of the chaos. Those who wished to stir up trouble would not let such a good opportunity pass. Wushuang also did not forget the murderous intent lurking beneath the surface, aimed at the Princess Consort Wei.

The Zhilan Pavilion where Princess Changhe resided was not far from the Yuxiang Pavilion. Although Wushuang did not know the way, she arrived quickly.

The Zhilan Pavilion was slightly larger than the Yuxiang Pavilion. Like the Yuxiang Pavilion, it had been completely taken over by the servants of the Princess's mansion.

When Wushuang arrived, there were already people inside.

Besides Princess Changhe, there were also seven or eight other women dressed in elaborate attire.

This room full of women, judging by their clothing and adornments, were no ordinary people. It had the air of a Hongmen Banquet*. But as things had come to this, Wushuang could only proceed with caution.

TN: think the red wedding from GOT 

Seeing that Wushuang was about to step forward to perform a curtsy, Princess Changhe said, "There is no need for such formality. This is neither the Princess's mansion nor the palace. There is no need to be so particular."

Despite her words, Wushuang still performed the curtsy.

After she straightened up, Princess Changhe said with a smile, "You probably have not met this Majesty before. You just married in, and the palace has been busy recently. There have been no family banquets. This is our first meeting."

Wushuang saw that she was adorned with pearls and jade, her appearance bright and beautiful yet not lacking in heroic spirit, her bearing dignified and generous. She was indeed worthy of being the renowned Princess Changhe.

Someone beside her laughed and said, "It's just that Prince Wei has kept his newlywed Princess Consort so well-hidden that even you, Aunt, have not been able to see her. Not to mention you, Aunt, even we, her sisters-in-law, have not seen her."

The woman who spoke was seated below Princess Changhe. She appeared to be in her early twenties, with an oval face and phoenix eyes. She wore a pomegranate-red, gold-sprinkled, cross-collared long jacket, and a gold hairpin with a phoenix holding a pearl in its beak. She was truly radiant.

Besides her, several other women in elaborate attire were seated on chairs on both sides.

Some were bright and beautiful, some were dignified, and some were gentle and quiet. None of them were lacking in beauty. Even those with more ordinary appearances were made to look wealthy and imposing by their full array of jewelry. They were not ordinary people.

"You always have such a sharp tongue!" Princess Changhe said, pointing at the woman with a smile. "Princess Consort Wei, do not mind her. She has always been a fiery character, and no one can afford to offend her. She is Princess Consort Fan, the primary consort of Prince Jin. This is Princess Consort Fang, the primary consort of Prince Qin…"

Princess Changhe then introduced Princess Consort Zhao and Princess Consort Han to Wushuang, before continuing, "This Fan shi is someone who cannot stay idle. She came to pester this Majesty as soon as she arrived. This Majesty could not bear her nagging, so I called you over as well, to help me fend off the annoyance."

As the saying goes, one must listen to the underlying meaning of words. Princess Changhe's words, while seemingly intimate with Princess Consort Jin, actually revealed several pieces of information. The summoning of Wushuang was not Princess Changhe's original intention, but rather Princess Consort Jin who had initiated it. Princess Changhe, out of consideration for her reputation, could only invite her over.

Wushuang said respectfully, "Actually, it was this concubine who should have come to pay respects to you first, Aunt. However, having just arrived here, there were simply too many matters at hand, which resulted in Aunt having to invite this junior. This concubine is truly ashamed."

When Princess Changhe introduced Princess Consort Jin and the others to Wushuang, they had exchanged greetings. Only then did Wushuang sit down. The remaining women were all secondary consorts from various mansions. They had been mentioned by their respective Princess Consorts earlier, and in such a place, secondary consorts had no right to speak.

"Actually, it is not surprising that Third Brother kept his newlywed sister-in-law so well-hidden. Look at how beautiful our Third Sister-in-law is, and so young. Third Brother must want to hide her away and cherish her carefully," Princess Consort Zhao said with a smile.

She appeared to be in her early twenties, also a bright and delicate woman. She wore a plain satin long jacket with gold-embroidered butterflies, and a crimson-gold silver fox fur skirt. She spoke with a smile on her face.

Wushuang did not know how to respond to such words, so she could only lower her eyes and feign shyness. After all, she was a new bride, and it was normal for her to be bashful.

"Indeed, I had long heard that Prince Wei had married a fairy-like consort. Seeing her today, she is indeed worthy of the name. Look at that small face, so pitifully lovely. No wonder Prince Wei hides her away and does not want others to see her," Princess Consort Jin said.

Princess Changhe interrupted, "Alright, alright. Princess Consort Wei is a new bride. You sisters-in-law who have been married in for a long time, stop bullying her."

Princess Consort Jin said with a smile, "Aunt, you are truly wronging us. How can this be considered bullying? It is clearly envy. Look at us, whenever we go out, we always have to bring people in front and behind us. Look at how peaceful Prince Wei's mansion is, with only Third Sister-in-law alone. We are just envious."

As she spoke, she also smiled, making it difficult to feel any ill will towards her. However, a woman seated below paled slightly. Wushuang observed her; if she remembered correctly, this woman was a secondary consort of Prince Jin, surnamed Bai, it seemed.

Could it be that Princess Consort Jin was using her words to indirectly target this secondary consort?

Princess Changhe shook her head, smiling as she pointed at her, saying, "You, ah, you, truly are a mischievous one!"

Princess Consort Jin feigned grievance, standing up but not leaving, "Very well, very well, I know I've annoyed my aunt today. I shall return to reflect in seclusion. I wonder, if I come again tomorrow, will my aunt have someone chase me out with a stick?"

Princess Changhe laughed and scolded, "If you come again tomorrow, I will certainly have someone chase you away with a big stick. You're nothing but a nuisance."

Princess Consort Jin, acting spoiled, sat back down, "Even if my aunt beats me with a stick, I will still come."

Afterward, the group chatted idly for a while longer. Princess Changhe showed signs of fatigue and said, "Alright, this Majesty is also tired today. You may come again another day, and this Majesty will treat you to wine."

Everyone stood up, bowed, and took their leave. Wushuang followed behind, also departing.

Princess Consort Jin, with her flamboyant personality, left with the two secondary consorts of Prince Jin's mansion, who seemed like they had been wronged.

Wushuang deliberately walked behind, not wanting to engage in conversation with anyone. Who knew that Princess Consort Zhao was actually waiting for her?

"Third Sister-in-law, Princess Consort Jin's words just now were not directed at you. It's likely that Prince Jin's mansion recently received a new secondary consort, and she's feeling unhappy, so she dragged you into it."

Wushuang blinked, not knowing what else to say, and could only reply, "Princess Consort Jin is indeed a straightforward person."

"That person, having been spoiled since childhood, developed a pampered and arrogant nature. After marrying Prince Jin, they were indeed loving for two years. It's just a pity that men all like to have their arms around multiple women. She is domineering and cannot tolerate it, so she only creates unnecessary anger."

It was Princess Consort Qin who spoke. She was of similar age to Princess Consort Jin. Wushuang noticed that she was dressed plainly and had spoken very little earlier. She had not expected her to say such words.

After Princess Consort Qin left, Princess Consort Zhao then said to Wushuang, "Princess Consort Jin and Second Sister-in-law have some conflicts."

Her face held a hint of hesitation, this hesitation like bait for fishing, just waiting for Wushuang to ask what the conflict was.

Wushuang then followed her wishes and asked. Only then did Princess Consort Zhao tell her what was going on.

It turned out that Prince Qin had always been a philanderer. Not long after marrying Princess Consort Qin, he had taken two more secondary consorts into his household, and later even more concubines.

At that time, Princess Consort Qin had just married Prince Qin and was still young, so she inevitably lost her composure and went to the Empress Dowager to complain. She did complain, but it was not very effective. Even if the Empress Dowager was her grandmother, she could not interfere in Prince Qin's chambers, especially since she was not her biological grandmother. In any case, Princess Consort Qin became a laughingstock.

As a result, for many years afterward, Princess Consort Jin had never forgotten this matter and would occasionally bring it up to mock Princess Consort Qin for not being able to control her husband.

It is worth mentioning that Princess Consort Jin and Princess Consort Qin married into the royal family almost one after the other. The situation of Princess Consort Jin in the first few years after she married was completely opposite to that of Princess Consort Qin. She and Prince Jin were very loving, and Prince Jin had always been self-disciplined. It was only in recent years that he had taken two secondary consorts, and that was because he had no children, and Emperor Taihe had spoken.

That secondary consort Bai had only entered the household last month, bestowed by Emperor Taihe.

Because of the matter of the bestowed secondary consort, Princess Consort Jin had argued with Prince Jin quite a bit, thus creating many jokes. So, the tables had turned, and now it was Princess Consort Qin's turn to watch Princess Consort Jin's jokes.

Wushuang had not expected that there were so many stories in between.

But Princess Consort Zhao had pulled her aside to gossip about others, and her purpose was clearly not simple. Wushuang, having just come into contact with these people, could not grasp their attitudes. Apart from appropriately showing some surprise and sighing a few times, she did not say anything else.

Seeing that the two were about to part ways, Princess Consort Zhao smiled and said, "It seems that I and Third Sister-in-law are quite compatible. Today, the time was not opportune. Another day, I will come find Third Sister-in-law to talk."

Wushuang smiled and watched her leave. After she had gone, Granny Gong came to Wushuang's side.

"This Princess Consort Zhao is known for being exceptionally shrewd. Her seeking out the Princess Consort is likely not for a simple reason."

Wushuang naturally knew, but it was too early to say anything now. What the other party's purpose was would have to be seen later.