Chapter 16: Ah Qi

The He family was merely the catalyst; everything that followed was the true objective.

Back in the dense forest, He and Zhang had used their superior numbers to corner them, driving all twenty-three of them—young and old alike—to the brink of death.

Her child, who was only a hundred days old; her personal Chief Administrator; two female officials in charge; three personal maids; and three young handmaidens—all had perished! Furthermore, of the twelve guards the late Emperor had specifically selected for her, only Wei Zhang and Huo Xuan, the father of Huo Yun, remained.

After pulling back He Xu's face veil and recognizing Zhang Shaode, who had arrived just in time, Yue Tang knew then that she would not escape that night.

She signaled Wei Zhang and the others to move toward the edge of the cliff; jumping down was their only remaining sliver of hope!

But Wei Zhang and Huo Xuan exchanged a hand gesture with her from across the distance, telling her to wait.

Having served one another for many years, they shared an unspoken understanding. Thus, she stood at the cliff's edge, using her last strength to remain upright, pointing at He Jianzhong and his men and cursing them to buy time.

Except for members of the imperial family—no, in truth, the current Emperor had never even met Yue Tang.

Her cousin, who had succeeded the late Emperor to rule the world, had been sent to the residence of the Duke of Jiangling since childhood.

Though Yue Tang was born on the same month and day as him, and both carried the mark of a "Heavenly Calamity," they had no connection to one another.

Even the Emperor could not recognize her; the only things that could confirm her identity were the imperial seal and the fingerprint impressions left by the Imperial Clan Court for every member of the royal lineage.

The corpse beneath the cliff was A-Xiu; the real Lin Xiuying was the maid by her side.

After her death, her identity was usurped and she was taken back to the Marquis's manor by He Jianzhong; the Princess's seal she carried must have inevitably fallen into Du Minghuan's hands.

To confirm that she was indeed dead, the Du family would certainly need to see that seal, and the person behind him would surely rely on it to confirm the success of the mission.

During this month of returning to the capital, Wei Zhang had already scouted Du Minghuan's study twice. He had discovered that the perimeter was constantly patrolled by hidden sentries, leading him to deduce that there must be something significant within Du Minghuan's study.

Yue Tang did not dare say for certain that the seal was in the Du family's hands, but it had to be investigated.

Zhang Shaode was indeed more cunning than He Jianzhong.

Every member of He Jianzhong's large family had their own selfish motives. The Zhang family was different; aside from the Zhang women who had married out, Zhang Shaode had lived in his old three-entry courtyard even after receiving a large sum of reward money. He had not taken any concubines, choosing instead to live with his legal wife and second daughter, alongside his eldest son and daughter-in-law.

With fewer people, there were naturally fewer leaks and fewer openings to exploit.

This was due to Zhang Shaode's caution.

Being cautious could be a good thing, or a bad thing.

What Yue Tang intended to seize this time was his bad side.

As they spoke, the carriage entered an alley in the northern part of the city. Hua Lin and the others had to part ways here to avoid being followed.

Lan Qin stepped down first to assist Yue Tang out of the carriage, then walked toward the opposite alley.

Passing through this alley would lead them to their residence in the capital.

Since the Yongjia Princess was considered dead by the world, Yue Tang's imperial manors and her estate in Bieye had all been reclaimed according to the law.

Even the attendants she had originally left in Bieye had been taken back according to regulation.

Both Wei Zhang and Lan Qin were on the official rolls, so logically, they should have returned to the Prince's manor.

However, Wei Zhang had decided to follow Yue Tang personally. After settling her, he had managed to quickly bring Lan Qin and Huo Yun out before the officials from the Ministry of Rites arrived in Bieye.

Of course, he had also managed to bring out the private assets Yue Tang had packed in advance.

Compared to the Princess's vast holdings, these assets were a mere drop in the ocean—mostly easily portable items like banknotes and jewelry. At the time, they hadn't thought much of it, but later they were extremely grateful they had prepared this bundle, as it was enough to sustain them for many years.

Years ago, for security reasons, Prince Duan had arranged a fake household registration for her to use when she traveled incognito, to satisfy any inquiries from the authorities.

And this false identity had later served her well for moving about in public.

Yue Tang had taken all the conspicuous jewelry to a private merchant to have it redesigned, then pawned it all for silver, which she gave to Lan Qin to buy several prosperous shops to generate wealth.

Three years had passed, and they had amassed a considerable sum.

While crossing the road, Lan Qin whispered a reminder: "That shop diagonally across, the busiest one, is Baoshantang. You used to love their pastries the most."

It seemed everyone had, quite coincidentally, thought of the past.

Yue Tang was unwilling to indulge in nostalgia. She gave a soft hum and withdrew her gaze, but halfway through, she paused, her eyes fixing on a tall, slender figure in the crowd.

The capital belonged to the Jiangbei region, so most people here were not short, yet this man still stood out like a crane among chickens.

His back was turned to them as he selected hand drums at a small stall.

"What is it?" Lan Qin also stopped.

Yue Tang said, "I think I saw A-Qi."

Lan Qin froze. "The Master?"

It happened to be the time when fresh pastries were being taken out of the oven at Baoshantang, and the surging crowd instantly blocked the view of the hand drum stall.

Yue Tang withdrew her gaze. "Perhaps I was mistaken."

...

A-Qi was Yue Tang's husband by marriage.

He was the candidate found through a twist of fate to resolve the succession crisis of the Prince's manor.

Prince Duan had two side consorts, but neither had borne children.

Counting them all, he had only three children born of the same mother as Yue Tang: the Prince's heir, Yue Rong, who was two years older than Yue Tang; Yue Tang herself; and her second brother, who had died in the womb due to a lack of breath before he could even be born.

The Princess Consort of Duan passed away when Yue Tang was six, after which Yue Tang went to live in the imperial manor in Bieye.

Yue Rong was healthy and intelligent, the pride of Prince Duan. At sixteen, he married Lady Chu from a prestigious family. The two had known each other since childhood and had studied together, making them childhood sweethearts. They were harmonious and deeply in love after marriage.

However, only six months after the wedding, before Lady Chu could even conceive, Yue Rong was struck by a sudden, severe illness. The young man, once skilled in both civil and military arts, grew thinner by the day and passed away from his illness in less than two months.

In the vast Prince's manor, suddenly only Prince Duan and Yue Tang remained.

On the night her brother passed, Yue Tang stayed by his bedside all night, watching him, who could no longer speak and could only shed tears.

She was only fourteen then. Looking at the towering yet empty royal court, she always felt it shouldn't be this way.

Previously, there had been an elder brother to help their father support the manor. Once the brother was gone, their father was left isolated and alone; within a few months, he had aged several years.

On the day of Yue Rong's forty-ninth day after death, Yue Tang accompanied Prince Duan to the mausoleum to offer sacrifices and burn paper. She said, "Father, I want to take in a son-in-law."

Yue Tang still remembered that her father's immense grief had instantly turned into shock.

It took a long time before he spoke. "Girl, have you lost your mind? What talented and dignified man would come to be a live-in husband for imperial relatives?"

Usually, a son-in-law from an official family might find a way to rise through the support of the wife's clan and enter officialdom without issue.

But a princess taking a live-in husband was not guaranteed a good outcome; a man marrying into a Prince's manor would either be unwanted or be a failure.

Why bother?

But Yue Tang threw the paper into the brazier with unwavering determination: "I only seek a child, not a lifetime together. I don't believe I won't find one."