The Golden Hairpin

After seeing the drowsy Chen Nianniang out of the prince's residence, it was almost noon. Huang Zixiao turned back inside, lost in thought about the case. So absorbed was she that she missed a step on the stairs and nearly fell, barely managing to steady herself by grabbing onto a tree.

The gatekeepers quickly offered her a stool to sit on and poured her a bowl of tea. Nearby, a few idle eunuchs were chatting idly. Feeling genuinely thirsty, she sat down beside them and gulped down the tea, then poured herself another bowl.

Lu Yunzhong, a young eunuch in his twenties responsible for cleaning the Yanxi Hall, loved gossip the most. Seeing her sit down, he nudged her excitedly with his elbow and asked with animated expressions, "Hey, Chonggu, you're the one who interacts most with the Wang family. Don't you think the death of the Wang girl is the biggest loss the family has suffered in recent years?"

Huang Zixiao was taken aback, not quite understanding what he meant. "Huh?"

"Exactly! After the Hou Jing Rebellion, the Langya Wang family has been in decline, especially in recent generations—hardly any outstanding figures left. Their influence in court has waned, and the family's prestige has been maintained solely by two empresses. But now, it's said there aren't any remarkable young women left in the clan. Just when they had one promising girl betrothed to Prince Kui, she died—just like that! Now they can't even rely on the connection to Prince Kui's residence. In the future, they'll have to make do with just Wang Lin, the Minister of Justice, to keep up appearances."

Another person chimed in, "But even so, it's still the Wang family. Having one empress and one minister in court, yet people still say they're in decline."

"True. Since the founding of our dynasty, the Boling Cui family has produced over thirty chancellors. But what about the once-glorious Langya Wang family of the previous dynasty? Even if you add the Taiyuan Wang branch, they still can't compare to the Cui family now, can they?"

Huang Zixiao silently sipped her tea, thinking to herself that Cui Chunzhan's uncle, Cui Yanzhao, was also a prominent figure in court, practically the leader of the officials. Barring any unforeseen circumstances, the Cui family might soon produce another chancellor.

"That's still not bad. Look at the Chenjun Xie family—after the Hou Jing Rebellion, they were practically wiped out," someone else remarked.

Another disagreed, "Not necessarily. If the Wang family were truly in such decline, why would His Highness agree to marry into it? Don't forget, the Wangs still have Wang Yun, the eldest grandson of the main branch. He's truly talented and refined—his looks, his demeanor—though not quite on par with our Prince Kui, he's still an outstanding figure. And His Highness gets along well with him too. They often ride side by side, like the sun and moon shining together, drawing flocks of young women from all over Chang'an just to catch a glimpse of these two perfect husbands."

"That's true. Everyone says Wang Yun has the bearing of a great family, and what's even rarer is that he excels in both civil and military affairs. Just a couple of months ago, didn't he lead the capital defense troops to pursue bandits in the outskirts? He achieved a complete victory and returned with all their heads!"

"Oh, I know about that," Lu Yunzhong said, gesturing for everyone to lean in closer and lowering his voice to create an air of mystery. "It's said those bandits were connected to Pang Xun! They were a group of his die-hard followers who had gathered to infiltrate the capital and assassinate Prince Kui!"

This revelation naturally shocked everyone. "Good heavens... But why did we only hear they were ordinary bandits?""Of course, the court intended to keep it secret! The remnants of Pang Xun's faction, who were executed three years ago, have resurfaced. If this got out, wouldn’t it shake public morale? So, when Wang Yun, the Right Commandant of the Capital Defense Office, heard about it, he immediately led his men to ambush them in the outskirts of the capital. They struck at midnight and wiped them out in an instant. The Ministry of War buried the bodies on the spot, claiming they had eliminated a group of bandits!"

"Oh? Then how did you find out?"

"Heh, I have connections in the Ministry of War~" Lu Yunzhong said smugly. "Don’t forget, my fourth aunt’s brother-in-law’s neighbor, Qian Da, works there. He was reportedly in charge of burying the bodies that time!"

"Who knows if that’s true!" Everyone laughed at him.

"Speaking of which, if Wang Yun is really that formidable, why did the Huang family’s daughter, who was betrothed to him since childhood, refuse to marry him?"

"Uh... well..."

"Yeah, I heard that to avoid marrying Wang Yun, the Huang girl even poisoned her entire family! How terrifying must he be?"

"Then... maybe the Huang girl was just insane!"

"Insane or not, one thing’s for sure—Wang Yun will have a hard time finding a wife from now on."

"What’s there to fear? At worst, he can marry someone from a lesser family. But what about you? You’re so tall and imposing—have you managed to get a wife yet?"

Amid the crowd’s laughter, Huang Ziguang forced a smile along with them. When the group moved on to the next piece of gossip, she remained still, clutching her teacup and staring at the black glaze patterns for a long time.

The things she had suppressed deep in her heart were stirred up again by their careless remarks, like stagnant water churned by a sudden current, clouded with murky shadows.

Her parents had been dead for over half a year. The longer the case dragged on, the harder it became to solve, and the slimmer the hope of overturning the verdict.

The only thing she could do now was to solve the mystery before her. Only then would she be worthy of Li Shubai’s help—only then could she clear her name and seek justice for herself and her family.

Noticing her silence, Lu Yunzhong leaned in to ask, "Chonggu, you were there when the Wang family’s girl disappeared, weren’t you?"

Huang Ziguang nodded.

He pressed further, "I heard that the Wang girl, who was supposed to become Prince Kui’s consort, suddenly emitted a puff of green smoke in front of eighteen hundred soldiers watching her and turned to ashes. Is that true?"

Huang Ziguang broke out in a cold sweat. This rumor was getting way too fantastical.

"That’s utter nonsense," she could only reply.

"Exactly, I knew it couldn’t be true," another person chimed in. "I heard her body was already found, covered in black fumes. Anyone who got within ten feet of it would drop dead! How could she have turned to ashes?"

Huang Ziguang was even more speechless. She said, "The Ministry of Justice and the Dali Temple are thoroughly investigating the case. Until the authorities conclude it, all speculation is wrong. Please don’t believe or spread rumors."

The group brushed it off, laughing as they continued, "After the Wang girl’s death, it’s said that Grand Dowager Consort Zhao plans to betroth Princess Qile to Prince Kui. Is that true?"Huang Zixiang could bear it no longer and had no choice but to clasp her hands in apology to the crowd. "My apologies, everyone. This case is still under investigation, and the truth must come to light before anything can be made public." She then invoked the authority of the Ministry of Justice and the laws of the Prince's household, stating that until the matter was fully resolved, idle speculation was strictly forbidden to prevent rumors from spreading and disturbing innocent parties. Moreover, those within the Prince's household should exercise self-restraint, especially in matters of gossip. Since this case involved both the Wang family and the Prince, everyone should be cautious with their words.

Though most of the people present had arrived before her and held higher positions, Huang Zixiang was both a favorite of the Prince and assigned to assist in the case investigation. Thus, they all deferred to her with respectful murmurs, not daring to slight her.

Huang Zixiang poured tea for everyone in thanks, praising its refreshing fragrance before hastily excusing herself on the pretext of other duties.

Stepping out of the Prince's residence, she paused at the entrance and gazed up at the sky, lost in thought over the intricate and vexing case before her. Just then, the faint chime of golden bells reached her ears as a carriage approached leisurely from the far end of the street, coming to a halt before her.

She turned to look—the person inside stepped down and greeted her, "Eunuch Yang."

Her eyes widened. Truly, enemies were bound to meet. Rarely did she stand idly at the Prince's gate, yet the visitor arriving at the residence was none other than Wang Yun.

In mourning for his younger cousin, his attire today was simple—a pristine white silk robe perfectly suited to the season, adorned only with faint turquoise geometric patterns at the cuffs and collar, elegant and understated. A white jade pendant hung from an emerald-green silk cord, and in his hand was a folding fan with a green jade spine, its surface painted with an ink bamboo branch exuding an air of refined grace. The ensemble accentuated the noble bearing cultivated by generations of aristocratic heritage.

Having often been visually assaulted by Zhou Ziqin's garishly bright and flamboyant outfits, Huang Zixiang couldn't help but sigh inwardly at the sight of Wang Yun's impeccable coordination. How could two young masters from prominent families be so different?

Noticing the faint sheen of sweat on her nose, Wang Yun casually offered her his fan. "I was just about to seek an audience with His Highness to discuss my cousin's funeral arrangements. Since I've encountered you, Eunuch Yang, might I trouble you to escort me to Prince Kui?"

Seeing the fan still extended toward her and feeling genuinely warm, Huang Zixiang accepted it, fanning herself as she nodded. "Please, come in."

As they entered, the gatekeepers—who had been gossiping about recent capital scandals—immediately fell silent. The sudden appearance of the very subject of their rumors left them flustered, and they scrambled to their feet to bow in greeting.

Unaware of the reason for their unease, Wang Yun merely glanced at them with a faint smile before following Huang Zixiang toward the Jingyu Hall.

Jing Yu and Jing You were waiting in the front hall, sipping tea and engaging in idle chatter. Upon seeing Wang Yun, Jing You promptly invited him to take a seat while Jing Yu excused himself to cross the courtyard and inform Prince Kui of Wang Yun's arrival.

Before long, Li Shubai personally came out to welcome him inside.

Huang Zixiang hesitated over whether she should follow, but when Li Shubai reached the central courtyard and glanced back at her with a sidelong look, she had no choice but to hurry after them.

The two men settled by the west window while Jing You set up a small brazier in the courtyard to brew tea. Huang Zixiang dutifully arranged clean teacups for them before retreating to the courtyard to help Jing You add pine branches to the fire.Hearing their voices from beneath the window, Wang Yun said, "The weather has turned hot recently, as Your Highness knows. My sister's remains are not particularly presentable either, so after discussions within our clan yesterday, we've decided to seal the coffin three days from now on the seventh-day memorial and transport it to our ancestral home for an early burial. Though it's rather hasty, there's no alternative—this is the only way to handle it now."

Li Shubai pondered briefly before asking, "Has a burial site been arranged?"

Wang Yun sighed. "She was so young—how could she have a prepared grave? For now, we've agreed to use a pre-existing tomb plot her grandaunt had secured years ago in the clan cemetery. As for the headstone, we've already sent someone back to our hometown to have it carved urgently."

Li Shubai said, "Your sister did, after all, receive betrothal gifts from Prince Kui's household. I shall personally attend the memorial ceremony in three days."

"Many thanks, Your Highness," Wang Yun replied gratefully.

The Wang family was busy with funeral preparations, and Wang Yun, burdened with numerous tasks, took only a cup of tea before excusing himself.

Huang Zixiao noticed Wang Yun, dressed in pristine white robes, moving gracefully through the clusters of hosta flowers in the courtyard. She quickly grabbed the fan beside her and hurried after him. "Young Master Wang, your fan."

He turned with a smile and asked, "You didn't use it to fan the stove, did you?"

"No, no," she hastily opened it to show him. "See? I kept it tucked in my robe the whole time to avoid getting ashes on it."

"Brewing tea at this hour—no wonder you're sweating so much." Instead of taking the fan, he gazed down at her and said, "Keep using it for now."

"..." She was still holding the fan out to him when he turned away, merely waving a hand dismissively. "You can hold onto it for now. Just return it to me next time."

Standing amidst the hosta flowers, Huang Zixiao absentmindedly fanned herself with the open fan, only to feel even more unsettled than before.