The Princess Royal

"Yоu mеаn," Li Rong loоkеd аt Shаngguаn Yue, unable tо hоld back а laugh, disbeliеf in hеr vоiсе, "hе's dead?"

"Yеs," Shangguan Yue replied соldly, "thаt's eхасtlу what I саmе tо tеll yоu. You should reflесt on this."

Аfter speаking, Shangguan Yuе turned to lеаvе, but Li Rоng stоррed her, hеr tоne саlm. "Wаs it yоur doing?"

Shаngguаn Yue pаusеd, and аfter a long whilе, she said slowlу, "If wе didn’t аct, оthers would."

"Was it уоu?"

Li Rоng pеrsistеd, аsking оnlу this. Shаngguan Yuе fеll silent fоr a mоment befоre finаllу аnswering, "Nо."

"Rоng'еr," Shаngguan Yue seеmed unable to hold hеrself togethеr, her voiсe wеаry, "уour mother is not as... as you think..."

"Mother," Li Rong picked up a cup, poured tea, and said slowly, "I understand your position. From the moment you married into the palace, you represented the Shangguan Clan. If anything happens to the Shangguan Clan, it means something happens to you. Your ties to the Shangguan Clan are far closer than mine or Chuan'er's."

"This is your stance. You can never stand against the Shangguan Clan."

"Aren’t you the same?"

Shangguan Yue suddenly turned around, her gaze fixed on Li Rong. Standing before the tall gate, the wind rustled the golden hairpin on her head, swaying gently along with her wide sleeves, while copper bells chimed softly nearby. She stared at Li Rong, lowering her voice. "Do you think I don’t know what you and Chuan'er are planning? But are you worthy?! Suppressing powerful families, dividing court officials—these are matters for a ruler! What are you and Chuan'er now? You’re not the emperor; you’re part of the powerful families! You can only reach the emperor’s position by relying on them, and that position belongs only to Chuan'er. What are you doing?"

Shangguan Yue stepped closer, her presence oppressive as she looked at Li Rong. "You, a princess—today, to Li Ming, you are part of the powerful families. Tomorrow, to Li Chuan, you will also be part of the powerful families. Can you stand against the Shangguan Clan?"

"You’re just like me—you can’t. If the Shangguan Clan falls, you’ll have nothing."

Li Rong said nothing, sipping her tea.

After a long while, she suddenly remarked, "This Northern Yan Tower was built for you by Father back then."

Shangguan Yue was taken aback. Li Rong poured herself more tea and continued slowly, "You were once very close, but later, you became solely focused on the Shangguan Clan, while Father was consumed by his own power. You drifted further apart, even forgetting the origin of this tower."

"I used to think the same way as you, Mother," Li Rong gestured for Shangguan Yue to sit, pouring tea for her. Her demeanor was so composed that it made Shangguan Yue seem more like the younger one. Shangguan Yue watched her daughter as Li Rong spoke calmly. "Tying ourselves to the powerful families, stabilizing the situation, steadily assisting Chuan'er to become emperor, and then, together with the families, supporting Chuan'er."

"With me here, if Aya also marries Chuan'er, both his sister and his wife would be from the Shangguan Clan. No matter what, Chuan'er would never turn against his maternal family. In the future, united, Chuan'er would become a great emperor."

"Isn’t that good?" Shangguan Yue frowned, a hint of anger in her voice. "The Shangguan Clan is your maternal family. Do you even doubt your own kin?"

Li Rong replied calmly, "But that’s what we think.""In our imagination, everyone in a family would be like us—knowing propriety and understanding when to advance or retreat. But in reality, when a family grows too large, there will be many unexpected branches and offshoots you never anticipated. The more prosperous the Shangguan family becomes and the more stable its foundation, the more wildly those branches will grow in places you know nothing about."

"They won’t tell you, but when trouble arises, if you don’t help, that won’t do either. Just like this time—do you know what truly happened behind the Qin family case? Does Uncle know? And now that things have reached this point, can you handle the people involved at this moment? If you deal with any of those who support you now, no matter the reason, both you and Uncle will be devoured by them."

Shangguan Yue remained silent, momentarily too afraid to respond.

Li Rong did not press her. She shifted her gaze away and spoke softly, "Today, the emperor is Father. In the future, the emperor will be Chuan'er. If we continue down the path Mother described, in the future, Aya and I will be in Mother’s position, and Chuan'er will be in Father’s position today. Such a future," Li Rong smiled bitterly, "isn’t it pitiful?"

"Grand principles are spoken of often in court—serving the nation and the people—everyone understands them in their hearts. In the end, a person lives their life first wanting to live well themselves and wanting their family to be safe and sound. After that, some sense of righteousness and principles are enough."

"But Mother," Li Rong looked up at Shangguan Yue, "are you living well?"

Shangguan Yue said nothing. She tried to remain composed, to maintain her usual pride and aloofness, but when she met Li Rong’s gentle yet calm gaze, she froze. Li Rong sighed softly and said, "Mother, the Shangguan family needs a scabbard. Otherwise, one day, it will either harm Chuan'er or be broken by him."

"What I have done today is not to oppose the noble families, nor is it to stand on Father’s side and hurt you and Uncle." Li Rong’s voice was gentle yet earnest. "On the contrary, I only hope that my family can all live well."

"I hope Chuan'er can choose the person he loves and the life he wants. As long as he fulfills his responsibilities as the Crown Prince and ruler, he can live like a human being."

"I hope Uncle, Aya, and the other clan members can live peacefully to old age in the years I see, untouched by storms."

"I hope the people of Great Xia can live stable lives, and I hope the country I belong to can prosper steadily."

"I even hope that one day, you and Father can return to this Northern Yan Tower together, look at the stars, and speak your hearts."

As she spoke, Li Rong couldn’t help but smile. "I know my hopes are extravagant, but these are the things I want to accomplish in my lifetime. And the first step to achieving these things," Li Rong looked seriously at Shangguan Yue, "is that the power of the Shangguan family must not become a blade that harms me or Chuan'er. You said it is our maternal clan, our support. The Shangguan family needs the power brought by Chuan'er. Since we grant it this power, we must control it.""Is this the reason why Chuan'er refuses to marry Aya?" Shangguan Yue frowned, seeming to understand. Li Rong said calmly, "This is a touchstone. Marriage may not be considered a major matter in the court, but if Chuan'er cannot even control this, then it becomes a significant issue."

"Moreover, if Chuan'er marries Aya, he will absolutely be disqualified from inheriting the throne in His Majesty's eyes."

"Mother," Li Rong said, feeling somewhat weary by now. She looked up at Shangguan Yue, "You don't need to concern yourself with the matters between my uncle and me. Just understand that in my heart—" Li Rong reached out, somewhat awkwardly grasping Shangguan Yue's hand.

Since reaching adulthood, she had rarely made such childlike, almost coquettish gestures. Shangguan Yue trembled slightly as she heard Li Rong say, "Mother and family have always been very important to me, that's all."

Shangguan Yue remained silent, her head bowed. After a long while, she looked up with a bitter smile and said, "You and your father are truly too alike."

Li Rong looked up in confusion. Shangguan Yue said hoarsely, "You always mix emotions and power together. Often, I cannot tell whether what you say is true or false."

"You said in court that you acted for the sake of Great Xia's empire. Now you tell me it's for your family. With your words shifting between truth and falsehood, I hardly dare believe any of it."

Li Rong said nothing. Shangguan Yue stood up and said in a low, hoarse voice, "I won't say more. I'll return now. Don't grieve too much over Pei Wenxuan's death. We will arrange another marriage for you in the future."

Li Rong lowered her eyes without further comment. Shangguan Yue seemed to want to say something more but ultimately remained silent. She turned and walked straight out the door.

Li Rong sat alone in place. Jing Lan approached hesitantly and said, "Your Highness, since something has happened to the Imperial Son-in-Law, should we..."

"Find mourning clothes," Li Rong said calmly. "Change into them."

"But the body hasn't been found yet," Jing Lan urged anxiously. "We should search for him first. Your Highness, please don't be too overcome with grief..."

"He won't die."

Li Rong spoke with certainty. Jing Lan was taken aback, seeing the absolute conviction in Li Rong's expression. "You don't know what kind of person he is. How could he possibly die?"

Hearing this, Jing Mei grew somewhat flustered. Not daring to speak, she glanced at Jing Lan. Jing Lan hesitated for a moment before finally saying, "Your Highness, he hasn't returned yet. Let's go look for him."

Li Rong acknowledged with a sound but said no more. After a moment, she said, "You may leave. I need some time alone."

The others assumed she was overwhelmed with sorrow and withdrew.

After everyone had left, Li Rong sat quietly for a long time before finally rising and moving to sit at the desk.

She took out paper, wanting to write something, though she wasn't sure what. She began writing aimlessly. Much later, when she came back to herself, she saw that the page was densely covered with Pei Wenxuan's name.

Li Rong gazed quietly at Pei Wenxuan's name for a long time.

Suddenly, she realized she had so much she wanted to say to him.

She wanted to talk to him about her mother, and also about her father.

She had many words kept in her heart. The only person in this world to whom she could speak them was Pei Wenxuan.

Because others wouldn't understand, and she couldn't bring herself to say them.

Only with Pei Wenxuan did she feel that if she just spoke, if she told him, he would understand.

He would surely know that every word she said was true.

It's a pity he isn't here.Li Rong thought, lifting her head to gaze at the bronze bell hanging from the eaves outside the window.

It chimed crisply in the wind, as if beckoning wandering souls to return.

"Pei Wenxuan..."

She murmured softly.

That night, rain fell once more in Huajing.

A fine drizzle lingered, and in that moment, a figure clad in blue robes, wearing a bamboo hat, raced through the muddy path in the rain. Before dawn broke, he knocked on the gates of the first city between Huajing and Huangping County.

Soldiers peered out from above, only to hear the man produce a token and declare loudly beneath the city gate, "Supervisory Censor Pei Wenxuan, dispatched by the Crown Prince to investigate the grain reserves!"

Upon hearing this, the guards hurriedly opened the gates. After verifying Pei Wenxuan's identity documents, they promptly escorted him to the county magistrate's office.

The magistrate, upon learning of the envoy's arrival, hastily rose to his feet. After Pei Wenxuan explained the purpose of his audit, the magistrate hesitated for a moment before whispering, "Lord Pei, it is not that I distrust you, but since you claim to be here on the Crown Prince's orders, may I ask if you have any proof?"

The magistrate, a scion of a noble family supporting the Crown Prince, would not have refused if it truly were Li Chuan's command. Pei Wenxuan lowered his voice, "This matter is being handled privately by the Crown Prince. As a member of the Censorate, I need to accomplish something."

Pei Wenxuan hinted to the other party that, as a member of the Censorate working for the Crown Prince, he naturally required some evidence to bring down others.

"This matter should not be publicized. I cannot carry the Crown Prince's token, but as for the Princess's token..." Pei Wenxuan said, producing Li Rong's token and showing it to the magistrate, "Surely you recognize this, Your Excellency?"

The magistrate hesitated slightly. Pei Wenxuan smiled, "Princess Pingle is the Crown Prince's elder sister. Surely you do not think Her Highness would harm the Crown Prince?"

"I dare not," the magistrate replied. After a moment of thought, he reasoned that Pei Wenxuan, as Li Rong's Imperial Son-in-Law, was the Crown Prince's brother-in-law. Sorting out the relationship, he bowed his head and said, "Please follow me, Imperial Son-in-Law."

Pei Wenxuan spent no more than half an hour reviewing and transcribing the records of grain and fodder transported to and from Huangping County that year. He then swiftly departed for the next location.

By then, the sky had already brightened. Shangguan Ya, seated in a carriage, swaying a round fan, stepped gracefully into the Juxian Teahouse with a smile. As she pushed open the door to the private room, she saw a masked young man sitting inside. He sat behind a small table, lifting his gaze to meet Shangguan Ya's.

Shangguan Ya chuckled softly, holding her fan as she closed the door behind her. In a gentle voice, she said, "I knew Her Highness would send you to find me."

With that, she walked to the table and sat down gracefully, looking up. "Speak, what do you need me to do?"

"This list was written by Qin Lang. The defeat at Huangping County that year was due to insufficient grain and fodder at the front lines. These are the officials involved at the time. Her Highness wants their testimonies."

Shangguan Ya twirled her fan, scanning the names on the list one by one. Slowly, she said, "We cannot touch the high-ranking officials on this list. We can only pick a few."

As she spoke, she raised her finger and pointed to several names. "Just these few."

"Her Highness instructed me to follow your arrangements."

Xun Chuan spoke calmly. Shangguan Ya chuckled lightly, "She truly knows how to take it easy."

Shangguan Ya thought for a moment before continuing, "Let's start with this Tian Zhong. He is only a minor seventh-rank official, in charge of guarding accounts in the Ministry of War, and is timid by nature."Shangguan Ya spoke, then laughed: "Find a time, capture him, knock him out and tie him up, then find some random girl, dress her up as if she's been killed and place her on the bed."

"You want to frame him?"

Xun Chuan frowned. Shangguan Ya chuckled softly: "Just joking, just to scare him. When the time comes, I'll go with you, take his confession on the spot, then promise to help cover up the murder. With this as leverage, things will be much easier in the future."

"What about the others?"

"Everyone has their weaknesses," Shangguan Ya traced over those names, a cold glint in her eyes. "There are still nineteen days. We'll arrange them one by one."

While storms were brewing in Huajing, Li Rong found rare peace within the Northern Yan Tower.

Rumors were rampant outside that something had happened to Pei Wenxuan, but she did not respond. She merely inquired about Pei Wenxuan's whereabouts, then had someone request leave on Pei Wenxuan's behalf, sent people to search the area where Pei Wenxuan had fallen off the cliff, and put on plain mourning clothes.

Everyone thought she was traumatized by Pei Wenxuan's death. Li Chuan specially came to comfort her, but she had him stopped outside. She shut herself in her room, ignoring everything except the messages from Shangguan Ya and Xun Chuan, quietly copying scriptures all day.

She rarely had such leisurely time in her life, where she didn't need to do anything but copy scriptures over and over. As she copied, she heard Jing Mei say in surprise: "Your Highness, why does your handwriting look so much like the Imperial Son-in-Law's?"

Li Rong paused. Jing Mei hurriedly knelt down, quickly saying: "This servant has spoken out of turn. Please punish me, Your Highness."

"What did you say wrong?"

Li Rong laughed gently: "Step back."

Jing Mei knelt on the ground. After a long while, she hesitantly said: "Your Highness, the Imperial Son-in-Law is gone, you don't have to..."

"He's not dead."

Li Rong cut her off. Jing Mei gathered her courage: "Your Highness, it's already been ten days."

"I said," Li Rong stated firmly, "he's not dead."

"If you dare say he's dead again," Li Rong looked up at the person kneeling on the ground, her expression calm, "go receive your punishment yourself."

Jing Mei bit her lip, finally kowtowing: "Yes."

After saying this, Jing Mei withdrew.

Li Rong sat alone by the table. After a long time, she pulled out another sheet of paper, dipped her brush, and wrote Pei Wenxuan's name.

Then she began writing a letter.

This was a habit she had recently developed.

She was used to chatting with Pei Wenxuan every day. Now that Pei Wenxuan wasn't by her side, she suddenly lost someone to talk to, so she started writing letters to Pei Wenxuan.

This was the ninth letter today, and she still had much to say.

"Pei Wenxuan, I hope this letter finds you well.

Today they told me again that you're dead.

I know this is absolutely impossible. With your intelligence, you must have started preparing as soon as you left the city. I suspect this was all your plan, after all, a dead person is the safest.

But it's strange—every time they tell me this, my heart tightens.

I can't help but think, it's a good thing we walked together before.

If I had walked behind you, it probably wouldn't have been good days either.

As long as you're alive, it's never that lonely."

She had copied the Buddhist sutras one hundred and seven times.

By the nineteenth letter, it was finally the night before the Qin family's execution. On this night, Qin Lin and Qin Feng from the border were finally escorted into the capital. As soon as they arrived in Huajing, Xun Chuan went to receive them and brought them to the Princess's Manor.Before Qin Lin was locked in the room, he suddenly asked Xun Chuan, "May I ask, Your Excellency, do you know how my younger sister Qin Zhenzhen is doing now?"

Xun Chuan paused for a moment, then replied slowly, "She is well. You need not worry."

Hearing this, Qin Lin finally felt at ease.

No one could sleep that night. The mansions of the great families in Huajing remained brightly lit until midnight. At the Northern Yan Tower, Li Rong also kept vigil alone until dawn.

Everyone was waiting for an outcome.

Waiting for the fate of the Qin family, and also waiting for Li Rong's end.

At daybreak the next morning, the Ministry of Justice led people to the Princess's Manor, while Su Rongqing also arrived at the Northern Yan Tower.

His arrival surprised everyone. He straightened his sleeves and bowed respectfully, saying, "Your humble servant, Su Rongqing, requests an audience with Your Highness."

No one responded. After a long while, the door slowly opened. Jing Lan stood behind it, bowed, and said, "Please come in, sir."

Su Rongqing followed Jing Lan up the stairs. When they reached the top of the tower, he saw Li Rong inside, copying scriptures.

She wore a long robe of white gauze with blue borders and painted white plum blossoms, her long hair loose behind her. It was a rare, plain appearance, looking somewhat austere yet carrying an otherworldly, ethereal air.

Su Rongqing stood at the doorway, gazing at her for a moment, then raised his hands and bowed. "Your Highness."

"Today is the Qin family's execution. Instead of observing it, why have you come here?"

"I heard that Your Highness is preparing to leave the capital today," Su Rongqing said calmly. "I came specifically to see you."

Li Rong paused in her movements. She looked up at Su Rongqing, who stood at the doorway with his usual calm expression. After watching him for a moment, she set down her brush and instructed, "Since you're here, bring the chess table and have some tea."

Jing Lan acknowledged the order. Li Rong stood up and led Su Rongqing to the chess table.

After they both sat down, Li Rong said slowly, "I didn't expect Minister Su to come so early to bid me farewell. I wonder where Minister Su got the news," she looked up at Su Rongqing and smiled, "that you are so certain I will lose?"

"That person is already dead."

Su Rongqing spoke evenly. "The evidence collected by Your Highness's people cannot be presented."

"Why can't it be?"

Li Rong chuckled lightly. Su Rongqing took the lead, placing a piece on the board, and said slowly, "Because Your Highness does not dare. There are too many people on that list. If Your Highness truly presents it, I'm afraid you won't even be able to leave Huajing."

Li Rong's expression remained calm. After a long while, she said slowly, "You know who is on it."

"I do."

"I thought," Li Rong pondered and smiled, "that Minister Su would not tolerate such a thing."

"Embezzling military funds—this matter, whether it is I, my father, or Minister Shangguan, none of us can tolerate it."

Su Rongqing spoke slowly. Li Rong lowered her gaze to watch his moves, listening as he said in an emotionless voice, "But this matter should not be handled by Your Highness. It should be dealt with internally. If Your Highness handles it, it would be like placing another blade against our own necks. Therefore, we cannot hand this authority over to Your Highness."

"You tell me this so clearly," Li Rong placed a piece on the board, somewhat puzzled, "aren't you afraid I will be angry?"

"If I don't say it, would Your Highness not know?"

Su Rongqing replied swiftly. Li Rong thought for a moment and laughed softly. "True.""So then," Li Rong looked at the other party with a faint, ambiguous smile, "has Minister Su come today to boast to this princess? This princess has lost to you, the Supervisory Department cannot be established, and in the future, His Majesty will have no reason to establish a second Supervisory Department. Is Minister Su satisfied?"

Su Rongqing paused in his movements. After a long while, he slowly raised his eyes to look at the woman opposite him, her ink-black hair loosely draped over her shoulders, her brows filled with mockery.

He gazed at her, his eyes seeming to churn with countless emotions, which eventually settled into a calm stillness.

"This humble official has a question and would like to ask Your Highness for an answer."

"Speak."

"Your Highness opposes the noble families," Su Rongqing lowered his voice, "is it for Lord Pei?"

Upon hearing this, Li Rong was momentarily taken aback.

At this moment, the Qin family members were pushed one by one onto the execution ground, forced to kneel under pressure.

Outside the execution ground, Xun Chuan blended into the crowd, holding a long sword, quietly watching the scene unfold.

A young man dressed in blue robes rode through the city gates, galloping down the long street and charging straight into the palace.

"Why does Minister Su ask such a question?"

Li Rong paused for a moment before reacting, finding it rather strange. Su Rongqing looked at her and said plainly, "Because I wish to discuss something with Your Highness."

"Minister Su, speak frankly."

"Currently, the noble families in the court are furious with Your Highness and seek to expel you from Huajing. I have a good strategy to spare Your Highness from this hardship."

"Oh?"

Li Rong was somewhat puzzled. Su Rongqing lowered his gaze and calmly stated, "I am willing to ask for Your Highness’s hand in marriage."

Li Rong froze in place. Su Rongqing looked up and asked, "I wonder if Your Highness would consent?"

Su Rongqing’s expression was calm, but the moment he spoke, Li Rong clearly sensed from him an indescribable, restrained, and intensely surging emotion.

Li Rong could not put into words what it was. She simply stared at him blankly. Su Rongqing fixed his gaze on her eyes, and neither spoke. Then, hurried footsteps sounded from outside.

"Your Highness," Jing Lan, rarely losing composure, rushed in breathlessly, "The Imperial Son-in-Law, the Imperial Son-in-Law has returned to the capital!"

Author's Note:

Su Rongqing: "I am willing to ask for Your Highness’s hand in marriage."

Li Rong: "I am already married."

Su Rongqing: "He is already dead."

Pei Wenxuan: "I won’t die even if you’re dead. Get lost! Get out of here!"