Chapter 41: Chapter 40 Princess Wenjun_1

The Green Lotus Festival in Shengjing is livelier than the spring festival New Year, not just attracting the attention of commoners but also frequently visited by the Marquis Mansion and governmental families for prayer offerings.

Prince Wen’s Mansion in the southern part of the city was also brightly lit tonight.

Mu Sheng, the current Commandery Prince Wen, inherited his father’s title. The Old Prince was as close as brothers with the former Emperor. Seeing the Old Prince’s back, the Emperor showed compassion for his former ministers and favored the Prince’s Mansion with utmost honor and glory.

The courtyard was utterly silent, illuminated only by the luminous glow of glass wind lanterns. A servant in blue attire was carrying a wooden tray across the courtyard, walking past curtains of pearls and embroidered screens into the inner room.

Seated upon a moon palace wooden couch surrounded by a seven-panel screen, and atop soft cushions, was a beautiful woman with a casually arranged hair bun. She was dressed in a honey-pink, silver-threaded Wan Fu silk long dress, with light pink pearls dangling beside her ears, making her complexion rosy and radiant, her gaze shining brightly.

This was none other than Lord Zhao Ning’s legitimate eldest daughter, the present Princess Wenjun Pei Yunshu.

Pei Yunshu was Lord Zhao Ning’s legitimate eldest daughter, and with her brother, the Princely Heir Pei Yunmeng, she shared the same mother, being two years older than him.

The servant placed the tray on the table, carrying a white porcelain bowl filled with a brown medicinal soup. Before even approaching, a pungent bitter scent was detectable.

Pei Yunshu couldn’t help but wrinkle her nose.

The servant chuckled and said, "Princess Consort, this is the pregnancy-stabilizing medicine that has been prepared."

Princess Wenjun touched her flat belly and said with a frown, "Just put it here, I will drink it later."

The servant picked up the medicine bowl as if she hadn’t heard Pei Yunshu’s words, scooped a spoonful, and brought it to her lips with a beaming smile, "Milady, don’t mind the bitterness of the medicine. Commandery Prince has ordered this to be prepared; it’s more beneficial to drink it while it’s hot."

Pei Yunshu’s eyes went cold, and just as the maidservant by her side was about to speak, someone outside reported, "Princess Consort, Lord Zhao Ning’s Heir has arrived!"

Pei Yunshu’s face lit up with joy, and she grabbed the medicine bowl from the servant’s hand to place it on the table before rising to her feet, with the maidservant Fangzi quickly supporting her. After only a couple of steps, she saw someone approaching through the deep night.

A courtyard under a bright moon with dim lights, the figure’s presence was intermittently hidden and revealed in the night. As he approached, the wind lanterns beneath the eaves brightened a bit, casting a clearer light on the young man.

He was a handsome youth in regal attire, wearing a black robe embroidered with golden floral patterns and a tall, gold crown holding up his long hair, his stunning looks captivating in the chilly spring night, creating a scene of beauty shining like a bright pearl.

Assisted by Fangzi, Pei Yunshu walked forward a few steps as the young man caught sight of her, giving her a smile and taking her arm to escort her inside.

After Pei Yunshu was seated inside again, Pei Yunmeng helplessly said, "Didn’t I say? Sister, with your condition, you shouldn’t come outside to meet me."

"I have just become pregnant; it’s not even showing. How could I be so delicate that walking a few steps would be an issue?" Pei Yunshu retorted.

Pei Yunmeng glanced around the room, then suddenly let out a light laugh, his voice carrying a faint note of mockery, "As a Commandery Princess, you discover you’re pregnant, yet besides Fangzi, there are few to serve you in the room – indeed, not quite ’delicate’."

"Even a common mistress would have additional attendants during pregnancy. I am truly surprised to see the state of the Prince’s Mansion fall so low," he continued, though his smile held a chill.

The attending servant couldn’t help but stiffen her face.

Although Princess Wenjun was born beautiful and the legitimate daughter of Lord Zhao Ning, neither her background nor her looks were lacking; unfortunately, her temperament was not gentle and obliging, and she did not enjoy the Commandery Prince’s favor. It was also several years since the Princess Consort had conceived, and in this mansion, Pei Yunshu was nothing more than a figurehead bearing the title of Princess Consort, often overshadowed by another.

Now the Princess Consort happened to be pregnant, but the Commandery Prince didn’t seem to care much, leading to inevitable neglect by the servants. Usually, the Princess Consort herself would cover it up so that others would not notice, but today she had been caught red-handed by Lord Zhao Ning’s Heir.

It was well known that Lord Pei of the Palace Front Office, though gentle and handsome, was in fact skilled and formidable, with even the Commandery Prince fearing him. In truth, were it not for Lord Pei’s protection, the status of the Princess Consort might have been even lower.

As the servant pondered, Lord Pei had walked into the room and, without glancing at her, made it subtly clear that he was deliberately putting her in a difficult position. She dared not anger him and could only smile respectfully.

Pei Yunmeng didn’t even look at her directly, his gaze sweeping over the tray on the table and landing on the brown medicinal soup.

The servant hurriedly explained, "This is the pregnancy-stabilizing medicine that the Commandery Prince ordered the kitchen to make for the Princess Consort."

"Pregnancy-stabilizing medicine, huh..." he murmured, walking to the table, picking up the bowl, and bringing it under his nose with a slight curl of his lips.

Pei Yunshu looked towards him.

The servant felt an inexplicable tension.

The young man smiled, his arm raising slightly, and poured the entire bowl of medicine into the potted narcissus at the table’s edge.

"Not good," he said coolly, "Too bitter. Brew another bowl."

The servant, relieved, managed a smile and said, "Lord Heir, which medicine isn’t bitter? A good medicine is bitter to the taste..."

Pei Yunmeng looked at her, his handsome face wearing a gentle smile, but his tone was bone-chillingly cold, "Then keep brewing until it’s not bitter."

The servant was at a loss for words.

Pei Yunshu fell silent for a moment before she said, "Nanny, please leave us first. I have something to discuss with the Princely Heir."

The nanny, already rendered speechless by Pei Yunmeng’s intimidation, welcomed this pardon and immediately left with the empty bowl.

With her departure, the atmosphere in the room relaxed somewhat. Pei Yunshu glared at the person opposite her, "What was that for, frightening her like that?"

"Frighten? That was nothing," Pei Yunmeng replied with an unconcerned smile, "It would be frightening if, today, in front of everyone at Prince’s Mansion, I had cut her down with a single stroke."

You’re talking nonsense again," said Pei Yunshu, steering the conversation away from this point, "Speaking of which, what brought you here today? Didn’t you say you were too busy with official duties to get away?"

Pei Yunmeng smiled, "They picked some fresh lychees at the manor, and I specially brought them for you. However, you mustn’t be too gluttonous, considering your condition."

Pei Yunshu was astonished, "I’ve only just finished the plums you sent previously, and now you bring lychees. Do you really take me for a pig?" she laughed at her own comment, "But the plums you sent were indeed good. I was vomiting so much I could hardly leave my couch. After taking your plums, I felt much better, and my stomach isn’t as queasy as before."

"Those were freshly picked plums, naturally they’re good," Pei Yunmeng said with a raised eyebrow, "I’m glad you liked them."

"Of course, I liked them. Even things I didn’t like before, I now find pleasant," Pei Yunshu spoke, then suddenly remembered something, "Right, the Qinglian Festival is coming up soon. I won’t be able to go with you this year since I’m pregnant."

Ever since the Lady of Zhao Ning passed away, Pei Yunshu had accompanied Pei Yunmeng to Wan’en Temple to light lotus lanterns and pray for blessings at the annual Qinglian Festival. But this year, her pregnancy made things difficult, so she could only have incense and candles prepared for Pei Yunmeng to take up to the temple.

Pei Yunmeng sighed, "I suspected as much." He glanced at Pei Yunshu and said calmly, "Don’t worry, I’ll say everything that needs to be said for you. I’ll pray to the Bodhisattva to bless the child in your belly to be lively and healthy, to be safely born, wishing for mother and child, mother and daughter, to all be safe every year."

Pei Yunshu pinched his arm and said annoyed, "Nonsense! What I asked for was for my good-for-nothing brother to soon meet a girl he fancies, to settle down and start a career. Otherwise, when everyone else has their own family, and he ends up alone, wouldn’t that be lonely and miserable?"

"Hey," Pei Yunmeng chuckled, pointing to himself, "Look at this face. Do you really think I need the Bodhisattva’s blessings? Every time I visit your Prince’s Mansion, the handkerchiefs I pick up on the way could pile up into a mountain."

At his words, Pei Yunshu burst into laughter.

Indeed, every time Pei Yunmeng visited the Prince’s Mansion, the maids would be especially diligent, each dressing up glamorously to flock to his courtyard. Hence, when Pei Yunmeng visited later on, he stopped letting the gatekeeper announce his arrival loudly.

Pei Yunshu looked at the man opposite her and felt a wave of emotion. Setting other things aside, her younger brother’s appearance and physique were truly appealing. Since her marriage to the Prince’s Mansion, everyone knew that she wasn’t favored, and during the ladies’ gatherings, she couldn’t quite fit in with the other noblewomen. Only Pei Yunmeng... those ladies were constantly finding ways to inquire about the marital affairs of the Heir of Lord Zhao Ning.

Unfortunately, though the flowers yearned, the stream was indifferent. With his exceedingly high standards, he had not taken a liking to anyone throughout his life, wasting his good looks.

After talking with Pei Yunmeng for a bit longer, she grew tired. Fangzi helped Pei Yunshu to rest on the couch, and then saw Pei Yunmeng out to the courtyard.

In the night breeze, the glass lamps flickered gently, the smile on the young man’s face faded, and his pair of eyes grew deeper than the night itself.

Fangzi followed behind him, reporting in a low voice, "...over these past days, all the other maids in the courtyard have been dismissed by the Consort’s people, leaving only me. The Princess Consort was concerned about trouble and has not brought in any newcomers, but it likely can’t last much longer. None of the tea and medicinal soups were dared to be touched, the Princess Consort secretly disposed of them..."

Fangzi was someone Pei Yunmeng had arranged to be inside the mansion.

Pei Yunshu, being the legitimate daughter of Lord Zhao Ning, even if she wasn’t favored by the Commandery Prince, those at the Prince’s Mansion wouldn’t dare to plot against her life.

But it was different for a pregnant Princess Consort.

If the Princess Consort bore a son, he would become the Princely Heir. In this world, people take risks for riches and honor; there’s nothing people wouldn’t do if the profits were substantial enough.

Therefore, Pei Yunmeng instructed Fangzi to enter the Wangfu to secretly protect Pei Yunshu’s safety.

He stopped under a lit area and said, "In a few days, I will send two more people in."

Fangzi respectfully answered, "Yes."

"This mansion is teeming with people; someone may discover your identity. If someone grasps this weakness and forces you, give me up."

"Yes."

"If someone means harm to the Princess Consort, ensure her protection is paramount. Just make sure not to kill Mu Sheng in the process."

"Yes."

He paused for a moment before continuing, "Though if it happens, it wouldn’t matter either."

In the thick of the inscrutable night, amidst the lush and bustling flora, shadowy figures seemed to loom.

He glanced back, smiling with an air of carefree cruelty.

"If it happens, I’ll take responsibility."

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by Aunomay Read