Everyone Wants To Harm Me - Chapter 94

Time flew so quickly. It felt like we had just exchanged a few words when Deng Zishe knocked on the window outside and said, “Are you two done arguing? I can cover for you if you leave for a while, but everyone else is leaving. It’ll be unreasonable if you don’t show up, right? Hurry up!”

I sat up from Yu Chongrui’s arms and glanced at the clock on the table by the window. “Hey, it’s been almost half an hour…”

I looked at Yu Chongrui with a pout, and he sighed. “Let Lord Nie think I’m rude and inhospitable.”

I got up from the couch and put on my shoes. “I have to go back with Zhenniang and the others.”

Yu Chongrui asked, “Where are you going back to?”

I thought for a moment. “Either stay at Yanning Palace or go back to my own home.”

He hesitated and said, “Don’t stay in the palace.”

But going back to the Duke’s Mansion wasn’t a great option either. There wasn’t much difference between the two—just a bigger cage and a smaller cage.

I looked up at him, understanding his concerns. “What did Prince Xin promise you?”

“He said… after he ascends the throne, he’ll cancel your engagement with the Third Prince.”

Prince Xin and the Third Prince were both currently of equal rank as royal dukes—brothers of the same generation. Without special justification, he indeed didn’t have the authority to overturn a marriage arranged by the emperor. But he also promised me to restore my freedom. In fact, he was making the same promise to both of us about the same thing.

“Zishe’s trying to figure something out too. He learned Gu techniques from the Miao People and is studying the habits of the insects. Maybe he’ll find a way to break the effects of the ‘Mojin’.”

I teased, “Then he’d better hurry up. Otherwise, even if I marry you, we’ll just be a couple in name only—and that’s not acceptable!”

Yu Chongrui’s ears turned red again. “What’s going through your head all day long?”

“I miss you,” I tilted my head and nestled it under his face. “Don’t you miss me?”

I had noticed—every time his ears flushed, he immediately looked down and avoided my gaze, staring at his nose, then at his heart like a meditating monk. Turns out he wasn’t so calm after all—he just had to restrain himself so I wouldn’t see the naughty thoughts in his head.

One day, I would see them all.

Yu Chongrui went out first, and Deng Zishe came over to take me to the front hall, even putting on a show as he instructed me, “When the County Princess gets back, continue the footbaths just like today, using the herbal recipe I gave you. Soak for at least two quarters of an hour each time.”

So, he had told the others that I’d been soaking my feet all this time…

Zhenniang covered her mouth, secretly laughing. Nie Xun didn’t doubt it, but as we said our goodbyes at Rui Garden, I saw him muttering to himself: “Prime Minister Yu is so young. How could he have such a problem? No wonder he’s still not married… what a pity.”

Deng Zishe! What were you making up in front of the guests?

Yan Shaoqing returned to the city with us.

He stayed in Guiren Ward. After we reached the Luoshui River, he went west, and we went east. He bid Nie Xun farewell, saying, “Brother Nie, please inform me in time if there’s any progress.”

Nie Xun bowed and replied, “Same to you, good brother.”

I spoke to Yan Shaoqing in the carriage: “If you find any clues about Ningning, please inform me. After she was born, I… I only saw her once.”

It had been right after her birth. I had snatched her from the midwife’s arms. She was so small, wrapped in swaddling clothes—I hadn’t even gotten a good look at her.

Yan Shaoqing asked, “The County Princess lives in the deep courtyard and high walls of the Duke’s Mansion. How can we get in touch with you?”

That was a tricky problem. Once I went back, I wouldn’t be able to leave for a while, and there was no one at home I trusted to carry messages. If my second uncle’s family found out that I was helping Zhenniang and her siblings reopen Ningning’s old case, they might destroy the evidence in advance.

Nie Xun said, “Hasn’t the County Princess always lived in the palace? Although outsiders can’t easily ask for an audience, if there’s urgent news, it can still be conveyed.”

So Prince Xin hadn’t told him that I had been temporarily summoned into the palace from the Duke’s manor? My grandfather had taken me home quietly. In theory, I should have been in mourning for my aunt in Yanning Palace.

I said to Yan Shaoqing, “Shaoqing, just contact Brother Zhongcheng. I’ll come out to find you when I can.”

Yan Shaoqing and I parted ways and returned to the posthouse.

It was more than a quarter past Youzhong. Zhenniang took me into the guesthouse, and I noticed their luggage was very simple—only two carts and five or six servants.

I asked Zhenniang, “Why don’t I see other family members of Lord Nie? Have they not entered the capital yet?”

Zhenniang sighed. “A few years ago, my brother reported a corruption case in Suzhou Prefecture. My sister-in-law was afraid of being implicated, so she divorced him and returned to her family. My brother hasn’t remarried and has been single since then. He only has one daughter back home, raised by his mother.”

Even though Nie Xun was upright and fearless, he had had a rough time with marriage. Thankfully, the hardest years were behind him. Now that he was in charge of the Imperial Censorate, many prominent families in Luoyang would likely be willing to marry their daughters to him. Zhenniang would likely find a good marriage for her brother, now that he was in charge.

I talked to Zhenniang for a while, and at 5 p.m., Zhang Sanquan came to the posthouse to pick me up. Nie Xun insisted on escorting me to the palace gate. I noticed he seemed to have something to say, so I didn’t refuse.

On the way, Nie Xun rode beside me and asked, “I heard that the County Princess is in the palace performing the mourning ceremony for Imperial Consort He, right?”

I replied, “Yes.”

“Then, please light a stick of incense in front of Concubine He’s spirit on my behalf when you return.”

I couldn’t help but ask, “Does Censor Nie know my aunt?”

“More than 20 years ago, I went to the capital to take the imperial examination, and met Consort He along the way.”

How could he have met my aunt on the way to the capital over 20 years ago?

I thought for a moment, then realized, “Was it twenty-three years ago?”

“Yes,” Nie Xun said. “I was young and inexperienced at that time. It was my first long journey. On the road, we were attacked by bandits. The imperial consort, still young at the time, was kidnapped by the bandits. She used her wisdom to escape and freed dozens of other prisoners.”

I asked, “Was there a girl with her, older than her, who couldn’t speak, and had a beautiful appearance?”

“Yes, I remember her. She was skilled and used a short sword to fend off the bandits. As for her beauty… I don’t quite recall.”

That had been my mother. Grandmother always said her beauty was unforgettable to anyone who saw her. But Nie Xun didn’t remember her—he remembered Aunt instead.

“And then? What happened next?”

“Later… she told me she was heading to Suzhou to find her family. Her father’s surname was He. Our families were old friends, so when she described her family, I recognized it. I drew a map for her and helped her travel by water to Suzhou. I thought… I’d see her again when I passed the imperial examination the next year and returned home. But then, half a year later, the Yongwang Rebellion broke out. The country was in chaos, and news was cut off. The imperial examination was canceled. When the war was over and I returned home, my father told me that the only daughter of the He family had been made a consort for her meritorious service and that the family had moved to Luoyang.”

He spoke lightly, but I could sense the deep regrets behind his words. If it hadn’t been for the Yongwang Rebellion, the lives of many people might have turned out differently.

Nie Xun smiled self-deprecatingly. “So when my grandfather said that he liked He Cheng and wanted to marry Zhenniang to him, and asked me if this marriage was a good idea, I immediately agreed.”

I apologized, “It’s our family… I’m sorry, Zhenniang.”

“I only learned the full story about your family when Zhenniang returned to Piling and shared her experiences. You don’t need to apologize for others. The daughters of the He family are the ones who suffered the most.” Nie Xun whispered, “I’m telling you these old stories so you understand that I did this not only for Zhenniang and Ningning, but also for… Wei Lan.”

I looked up at him. “Me too.”

Nie Xun escorted me to the gate of the imperial city. After watching me get out of the carriage and walk into the palace, he turned around and left.

As I walked, I thought to myself—if my aunt had married Nie Xun instead of the Emperor, she would have been in good hands. Smart, quick-witted, and able to read people’s hearts, she wouldn’t have feared danger or obstacles, and would have pursued the truth relentlessly. The two of them would have made a perfect, complementary pair. Nie Xun didn’t care about family or children, so my aunt’s infertility wouldn’t have mattered.

Unfortunately, they had met too early. She had been only thirteen, and Nie Xun had wanted to wait until she grew up. But fate was fleeting, and no one had control over it.

Zhang Sanquan took me back to Xuanzheng Hall, where Prince Xin was still reviewing memorials.

When he saw us, he said, “You’re still in the front hall so late. Send the county princess back to Yanning Palace to rest.”

I replied, “Your Highness summoned me to the palace to meet Censor Nie. After the meeting, I should return home.”

Prince Xin put down his pen, stood up, walked around the imperial desk, and came to me. “Sister Yao has been at home these days. Is she living comfortably?”

I glanced at him but said nothing.

He continued, “I summoned you for a different reason. You left after only being in the palace for half a day. What will your family think?”

Probably just keep treating me coldly. I didn’t really care.

“I happened to meet Duke Peng this afternoon. I told him about this matter. The Duke also believes that this is the Emperor’s will, and that the county princess should stay in the palace to continue her filial piety.”

Has my grandfather sold me out again?

Maybe I shouldn’t always think the worst of him. This was indeed the Emperor’s will, and my grandfather no longer had any reason to keep me at home. He went with the flow and didn’t refuse.

I said to Prince Xin, “I used to spend all my time with my sister-in-law at home, and we were very close. This time, we only saw each other for half a day before parting in a hurry. It’s too difficult for me to see her again in the palace.”

I had hoped Prince Xin would agree to let me bring Zhenniang to the palace so we could meet and communicate from time to time.

To my surprise, he turned to Zhang Sanquan and said, “Take one of your tokens for entering and leaving the palace and give it to the Princess of Liangxi County.”

Zhang Sanquan immediately removed a gold medal from his waist and handed it to me with both hands. “Please use this one first, Princess.”

I took it and held it in my hand. The gold medal was heavy.

“With this token, Sister Yao can freely pass through Duanmen and Chunming Gate during the day without needing special approval,” Prince Xin leaned close and whispered, “What I promised you—I’ll do it. But right now, there are many things I can’t do freely. For now, let me grant you this half-freedom.”