The Golden Hairpin

She lowered her thick, long lashes, curving her lips slightly more. Her gaze fell upon two hastily scrawled, feeble words squeezed between the pages: "Save me."

Even in such chaotic strokes, the original elegance of the handwriting couldn't be concealed.

It was the familiar script of Wang Fu, which she had grown accustomed to over the past few months.

Without changing her expression, she leaned against Prince Yun's shoulder and carefully placed the poppy petal back in its original position, perfectly covering those two small characters.

Late autumn had arrived, with leaves scattering in disarray. She casually picked up a nearby maple leaf, slowly flipped through the book once more, and tucked it inside somewhere.

Prince Yun wrapped his arm around her shoulder and whispered, "You're so delicate—you should return to your room to avoid getting a headache from the wind."

She nodded in agreement and rose from the corridor, holding his hand, but suddenly a wave of dizziness overcame her, and she slumped weakly against him.

Prince Yun quickly steadied her and asked, "What's wrong? Did the wind really give you a headache?"

Before she could answer, she covered her mouth and began retching dryly.

The child in her womb was just over a month old—a time when careful nurturing was essential.

Guo Wan was the first to visit her, accompanied by a nursemaid carrying her daughter, Ling Hui. She placed Ling Hui on the bed beside her and said with a smile, "When I gave birth to Ling Hui, everything went smoothly. That’s why I brought her today—so the child in your belly might be just as well-behaved and spare you any suffering."

Wang Shao smiled and reached out to embrace Ling Hui, saying, "Thank you for your kind words, sister." Her hands pressed firmly against the child's knees and shoulders, ensuring she couldn’t accidentally touch her stomach.

Ling Hui seemed to sense the discomfort. She stared at Wang Shao with wide eyes for a long moment before silently crawling back to Guo Wan and burying her face in her mother’s embrace. At four years old, she still hadn’t spoken a word—a cause for concern.

The other three concubines of the prince’s household arrived one after another, bringing various gifts for the child. For a while, the atmosphere was warm with sisterly affection.

Aside from the primary consort, princes of the realm were permitted two secondary consorts and ten concubines. Now that the only secondary consort, Wang Fu, had passed away, the remaining concubines lived separate lives, rarely interacting and maintaining polite distance. But with Wang Shao’s pregnancy and her backing from the illustrious Langya Wang family, the smiles on their faces were markedly different from before.

After they left, Wang Shao examined each of their gifts—nothing more than gold bracelets, silver locks, and the like. Nothing out of the ordinary.

It seemed that, in this Prince Yun’s residence, the boldest person so far was still herself.

That night, she retired early but was awakened by faint sobbing in the dead of night. She called for Yong Ling, but there was no response. The incessant weeping outside her window grated on her nerves, and with a mix of irritation and resignation, she rose from her low bed, took up a silk lantern, and pushed open the window to look outside.

Extra: Sunlight in Zhaoyang (2)

The winter night’s wind blew dry and cold through the corridor. Across the pond opposite her window, a pale figure drifted hazily over the dark rippling water.

Wang Shao removed the silk shade from the lantern and calmly blew out the candle inside.

In the darkness, the pale figure became even clearer. The shimmering reflections on the water swayed, indistinct and dreamlike, revealing the silhouette of a woman in white.

From a distance, with only the faintest glimmer of light in the darkness, she could see the figure floating slowly, turning in a gradual circle upon the water.

Her face was indistinguishable, but her skin was as ghastly white as her robes.In the silent room, she stood alone, enveloped by darkness, surrounded by a deathly stillness.

She took a deep breath, forcing her voice out from her chest in a ghastly, terrifying manner: "Someone! Anyone!"

No one responded. She hurled the lamp in her hand into the corner and looked up to see, in the dim light ahead, the white silhouette of a woman slowly rotating, bobbing up and down in the water, dancing eerily before finally sinking beneath the surface after a long while.

Yong Ling and several maids finally rushed in from the adjacent room, asking repeatedly, "Madam, what's wrong? Did you have a nightmare?"

Wang Shao pointed toward the pond ahead, unable to speak, her body trembling uncontrollably.

Yong Ling turned to look and saw the white figure slowly sinking into the water, her legs nearly giving way from fright.

Wang Shao said in a quivering voice, "You... go and take a look..."

The group shook their heads in terror, too afraid to approach. Only one maid, named Fang Fei, trembling with fear, leaned against the railing and walked to the edge of the pond, reaching out to grab the phantom.

The white figure had completely vanished. Her hand grasped at empty air, her palm slapping the water's surface and splashing droplets everywhere.

She flailed a few more times, not daring to linger in the water, and quickly scrambled back onto the veranda, curling up on the ground.

The eunuchs on night watch outside had already arrived with lanterns in hand. Under the lantern light, everyone peered down—the rippling water was clear to the bottom, revealing only a few startled koi fish scattering in panic under the glow. There was nothing else.

Wang Shao turned to examine Fang Fei, noting her sleeves soaked from the water, then slowly looked back at Yong Ling, who was leaning against the wall.

Her face was deathly pale, her lips murmuring something.

Wang Shao listened carefully, but the words repeated over and over were just: "It's happening again..."

(3) Jade Beauty Outshone by the Cold Crow's Hue

Prince Yun rushed over overnight to comfort her.

"I'm fine..." she whispered, yet she clung to his hand, unconsciously pulling it to rest protectively over her belly.

Prince Yun felt an overwhelming surge of tenderness in his chest. He held her tightly, letting her lean against him as he murmured, "Don't worry, I will protect you. Let’s see which ghost in this mansion dares to cause trouble!"

She exhaled deeply, nestling against him with an uneasy smile. "With Your Highness's imposing presence guarding the mansion, how could there be ghosts? It must be my constant worrying that led to such illusions..."

He chuckled softly, stroking her smooth, cascading hair as he whispered, "A Shao, you will never end up like A Fu... never!"

Wang Shao closed her eyes and held him tighter.

After seeing Prince Yun off, Wang Shao idly flipped through a few books in the adjacent study, unrolling scrolls and folding sutras, but she found nothing of what she sought.