As she spoke, her anger flared up again. She stood and descended the steps, looking as if she wanted to personally whip someone to vent her fury. Wei Shufen quickly reached out to stop her, laughing, "The Empress is famously neither devout to Buddhism nor superstitious about Taoism. If you, Sister Ying, bring elixirs to her, you might just end up being scolded—putting in effort without gaining favor. Rest and calm down, and we can think of a better plan later."
After much persuasion, Chai Yingluo finally waved her hand to stop the whipping. Jing Xuan helped the young maid out with others, while Wei Shufen stayed with the Master of the Purple Void Monastery, sitting under the corridor to chat and ease the tension. Wei Shufen guessed that Chai Yingluo’s outburst was closely related to the visit of Li Chengqian and his brother, so she cut to the chase and asked directly:
"Sister Ying, why do the Crown Prince and his brother keep coming to talk to you? What urgent matter do they have?" And why are you avoiding them?—She didn’t dare voice the last question.
Chai Yingluo let out a long sigh. Seeing no outsiders around, she answered gloomily:
"A Fen, can’t you guess? In that Cihe Nunnery, my fourth uncle’s wife, Consort Yang..."
"Consort Yang..." Wei Shufen paused. "The child she’s carrying—is it really the Crown Prince’s?"
Chai Yingluo didn’t answer directly. Instead, she said, "For the past nine years, Consort Yang has been confined in the Temple of Common Vocation, where no outside men were allowed. Her only... opportunity was last autumn and winter when she stayed at my Purple Void Monastery for a while to care for her daughter, the Sixth Lady, who was recovering from illness. At that time, the monastery was crowded with visitors, and I was busy with external affairs. I had to seclude myself for alchemy and couldn’t keep an eye on them all the time. After discovering that my fourth uncle’s wife was pregnant, I returned and had Jing Xuan investigate thoroughly—which man had been with Consort Yang during that period..."
At this point, she gave a bitter smile and fell silent. Wei Shufen pressed on, "Did you find out that the Crown Prince had committed adultery with his aunt, resulting in the pregnancy of the Princess of Hailing? And then secretly ordered Yang Shidao to bring Consort Yang and her daughter out of the Temple of Common Vocation to avoid exposing the scandal?"
Chai Yingluo’s brows furrowed deeply, her fingers tapping restlessly on her skirt without answering. Wei Shufen could understand her dilemma. If this scandal were to spread, regardless of the involved parties, the Purple Void Monastery would be seen as the place of their illicit affair, and as its master, Chai Yingluo would inevitably face blame. Her standing with Empress Zhangsun would plummet. They had uncovered Consort Yang’s pregnancy some time ago, but Chai Yingluo had never dared to tell the Empress, "Your sister-in-law is carrying your grandson," precisely for this reason.
Were the Crown Prince and Prince Yue brothers persistently seeking her out because of this? Li Chengqian probably wanted to threaten Chai Yingluo into silence, while Li Tai... had he somehow learned of this and was trying to persuade her to report it to his parents, hoping to deepen the Son of Heaven’s disappointment in his eldest son and secure his own chance to take over the Crown Prince’s Palace?
"Sister Ying... you can’t agree to deceive the Empress for the Crown Prince, but you also can’t openly refuse him?" Wei Shufen sighed. Chai Yingluo herself might manage, but her father and brother still had to serve in court. Offending the Crown Prince would spell disaster for their future. Yet if she blindly catered to the Crown Prince’s Palace and conspired with Li Chengqian to deceive his parents—how shrewd and formidable were the Son of Heaven and his consort? And with Li Tai stirring trouble on the side, once the plot was exposed, the Crown Prince, as the foundation of the state, might remain untouched, but Chai Yingluo, an insignificant Taoist priestess, would be the perfect scapegoat.“You saw it yourself that day—the Empress’s health… sigh.” Chai Yingluo shook her head. “From the second to the seventh year of Zhenguan, she bore four children in six years. Her vitality was severely depleted, and she never fully recovered. On top of that, she worries too much, tormented inside and out. News like this, which shocks the heart and wounds the soul, is something I simply lack the courage to deliver to the Empress directly. These past few days, I’ve been trying to find a way, someone in the Hall of Established Governance, to gently and quietly hint at it first, so she can brace herself. No matter what, this isn’t something that can be hidden forever. Once the ten months are up and the child is born…”
A thought suddenly flashed through Wei Shufen’s mind—too dark and cruel—and she quickly suppressed it, refusing to dwell on it. But the idea seemed to have a life of its own, relentlessly jumping and clamoring in the depths of her heart, steering her thoughts beyond her control, drifting again and again in that direction.
“Sister Ying,” Wei Shufen murmured slowly, “the men of your old Guanlong families… have never been particularly concerned with… women and children…”
Li Chengqian was neither a lovesick fool who disregarded life and death nor a soft-hearted, indecisive coward. Though Consort Yang was a peerless beauty, this absurd affair had caused trouble, threatening his position as Crown Prince. Wouldn’t he… cut the Gordian knot?
Chai Yingluo watched her quietly, her expression unreadable, only the gleam in her dark eyes flickering as if she understood exactly what Wei Shufen meant. The words were too cruel and unkind to voice aloud, so Wei Shufen held back, and Chai Yingluo didn’t speak them either, merely saying lightly:
“I’m waiting to see if, after some time passes, there might be a better opportunity to handle this matter. Or perhaps… it would be best never to mention it at all.”
The two women sat in silence for a long while. A chill settled over Wei Shufen, but there was nothing else to be done. Chai Yingluo changed the subject:
“Why have you run back home again today?”
Wei Shufen let out an “ah,” nearly forgetting why she had come. She didn’t want to dwell on the matter of Consort Yang any longer, so she briefly recounted her conversation with her father—how the Son of Heaven intended to send Prince Wu to Gaochang for a marriage alliance and diplomatic mission—and begged Chai Yingluo to help ensure it happened.
Hearing that her young uncle was to be exiled to Gaochang as a royal son-in-law, the female Taoist first covered her mouth in laughter, then composed herself and sighed solemnly. “That’s one solution. Given Fourteenth Uncle’s current situation, there really isn’t a better way out. Only… A-Fen, this must be hard for you.”
Touched by her words, Wei Shufen’s heart ached, but she forced a smile. “Sister Ying, you tease me again. Fourteenth Young Master’s life and reputation are what matter. I couldn’t persuade my father, and it’s likely he’ll still advise against sending Prince Wu on this mission. We can only hope the Empress steps in to urge the Son of Heaven to make up his mind.”
Chai Yingluo pondered. “Since this involves the marriage arrangements of the princes in the Great Peace Palace, the Empress’s involvement wouldn’t count as meddling in state affairs. But how to broach the topic requires careful planning… I have it.”
Her idea was this: after the ceremony for the three princes’ marriages and official appointments concluded today or tomorrow, the newly appointed Princess Zhao and others would go to pay respects to the Empress. That would be the time to bring it up—first, while the Empress was in good spirits, and second, to naturally segue into discussing Prince Wu’s marriage without seeming abrupt or awkward. She added that she would handle this herself and Wei Shufen needn’t accompany her, lest the Empress see the young lady and be reminded of youthful romantic entanglements, or Wei Shufen’s elder sister’s stubborn defiance—all those messy thoughts that might distract her. Wei Shufen, knowing she was right, blushed and agreed.On that day, Chai Yingluo indeed changed into court lady attire and entered the palace alone. Wei Shufen composed herself and dutifully stayed at the Purple Void Monastery, copying medical texts and prescriptions. Following Sun Yaowang's instructions, she led the monastery's maids in selecting herbs and brewing medicinal soups. By dusk, Chai Yingluo returned looking exhausted, briefly describing the lively scenes at the Hall of Two Principles and Wanchun Hall that day. When Wei Shufen pressed about "that matter," Chai Yingluo only smiled and replied, "The Empress said she noted it, nothing more."
This meant the Empress had not agreed to intercede with the Son of Heaven, but neither had she angrily refused, leaving Li Yuangui with a sliver of hope. What Wei Shufen didn't expect was that, a few days later, she would hear much about the news regarding the war and peace in Gaochang from an unexpected source.
That morning, while writing prescriptions in her room, the maid A Yuan came to inform her, "The abbess requests Wei Niangzi to come out and greet a guest." Anxiously wondering if her family had come to summon her back to the city, she stepped into the hall and was surprised to see the newly appointed Princess Zhao, Pei Fei.
Pei Fei was dressed in bridal attire, accompanied by two serving girls, and had come to the Purple Void Monastery to express her gratitude, having learned of the significant efforts the two daughters of the Chai and Wei families had made for her marriage. Wei Shufen had met her once at the Pei family estate north of the Wei River, and Chai Yingluo cheerfully called her "Sixth Aunt" in front of everyone, making the three women quite cordial.
After sitting down, they exchanged pleasantries. Chai Yingluo asked about Pei Fei's brother, Pei Lvshi. Pei Fei sighed, "My brother saw me married off, fulfilling his duty. He originally planned to pack up and return to our hometown in Hedong to continue guarding our late father's tomb. But then disaster struck at the estate north of the Wei River, so he can't leave yet and must stay a while longer."
"What disaster happened at the estate north of the Wei River?" Wei Shufen asked, concerned, thinking of the vegetable garden where she and Li Yuangui had stayed for several days.
"Do you know our stubborn and simple-minded estate manager, Old Man Zhang?" Pei Fei asked. Seeing the two women nod, she sighed, "On the very day I left for the capital, the Xianyang County Captain took him away with his men."
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