Special release for New Year’s Eve!
“Gu guniang, niangniang summons you.”
“Many thanks, jiejie.”
Gu Jiu drew in a deep breath and stepped into the bedchamber.
Inside, the lighting was dim. The palace maids all kept to the shadows, their faces indistinguishable.
By the bed stood a court eunuch. At the sound of her footsteps, he lifted his head and looked straight at her.
Gu Jiu looked back. Pale-faced, beardless, around thirty-something, anyone allowed into the Empress’s bedchamber at a time like this had to be someone she trusted implicitly.
Running through the names in her mind, Gu Jiu guessed at once: this must be Fang shaojian, the Supervising Eunuch of Weiyang Palace, its most powerful attendant.
On the bed lay the Empress, her breath faint as gossamer, eyes closed, as though already lifeless.
Gu Jiu stepped forward, bowed deeply, and offered the formal greeting: “Chennü pays respects to niangniang. May niangniang enjoy the blessings of health and long life.”
The Empress suddenly opened her eyes. They blazed like torches, locking onto Gu Jiu with piercing force.
Gu Jiu lowered her gaze at once, avoiding that look.
“You’ve come.”
Gu Jiu bowed again. “I await niangniang’s instruction.”
The Empress raised a hand. Fang shaojian instantly extended the back of his hand to support hers. She rested her frail fingers upon it, then pointed straight at Gu Jiu.
“Living in the palace, are you accustomed yet?”
Gu Jiu had braced herself for battle.
Yet the Empress’s gentle tone caught her off guard, leaving her strangely ill at ease.
She dared not relax, every nerve taut, and answered cautiously: “Each day I learn the rules under the matrons’ instruction. In these past days, I have benefited greatly.”
The Empress smiled, her withered cheeks lined deep with wrinkles.
Once the great beauty of the realm, now her face had withered, life nearing its end. Yet her eyes, her eyes still gleamed like stars in the night, impossible for anyone to ignore.
In those eyes flickered the light of wisdom.
This was a woman destined to leave her mark on history.
From the bottom of her heart, Gu Jiu admired her. The Empress was formidable.
But formidable or not, they were opponents.
Not that the Empress herself would ever consider Gu Jiu qualified to be called her opponent.
“Come closer. Bengong wishes to look at you properly.”
Gu Jiu’s heart skipped a beat. She moved forward step by step, stopping one pace short of the bed.
Suddenly, the Empress seized her hand. “Since Gongzi Zhao has chosen you, you must have some special quality. I hear you can recite books quickly?”
With downcast eyes, Gu Jiu answered meekly: “Niangniang, chennü am only skilled in memorisation.”
“Then your memory must be excellent?”
Gu Jiu replied softly: “Not especially so. I merely apply diligence.”
The Empress chuckled and said to Fang shaojian: “See how modest the children of today are.”
Fang shaojian laughed. “Indeed, niangniang. Gu guniang is upright in conduct, of pure family background, and though a young woman, she applies herself to study. No wonder Gongzi Zhao has kept her in mind.”
The Empress nodded, her gaze fixed on Gu Jiu with a trace of a smile. “Since your memory is so good, why have you forgotten something from only half a year ago?”
Gu Jiu’s heart gave a sudden thump. Yet she kept her face composed. “I beg niangniang’s clarification. Chennü do not know of which matter niangniang speaks.”
The Empress laughed. “Girls these days are all adept at feigning ignorance. Unlike bengong in my youth, whenever asked a question, bengong answered plainly, never knowing how to play dumb. Even His Majesty once said bengong’s greatest virtue was honesty.”
“Today’s girls certainly can’t compare with niangniang as you once were,” Fang shaojian said, giving Gu Jiu a half-smiling look.
“Gu guniang, you still dare to play tricks even before the Empress niangniang. Are you truly not afraid… of death?”
That last word he drew out deliberately, heavy with menace.
Gu Jiu bowed her head low, speaking in haste: “Chennü truly doesn’t not know which matter you refer to. Chennü begs niangniang’s instruction. Whatever chennü knows, I will speak without concealment.”
“Oh? Rare indeed, that you would speak honestly before bengong.” The Empress smiled faintly and finally released her hand.
Gu Jiu let out a secret sigh of relief.
Fang shaojian stepped forward. “Gu guniang, last time niangniang asked whether, while in the Northwest, you had seen Gongzi Zhao. Have you considered how to answer?”
Gu Jiu put on a look of confusion and helplessness. “Chennü does not understand. Last time, when niangniang asked, chennü already said: I never once encountered Gongzi Zhao in the Northwest. At that time, chennü was sickly, confined to my room, not even crossing the second gate. Besides, chennü had never even heard the name of Gongzi Zhao then.”
Fang shaojian snorted coldly. “Gu guniang, niangniang has given you a chance, yet you refuse to cherish it. You claim you never left your room, but someone knows you were gone for several days, gone with your elder brother to Tianmen Temple, to burn incense for your late mother’s soul. Has Gu guniang truly forgotten this?”
Gu Jiu showed a look of shock and panic, which delighted Fang shaojian, convinced he had seized her weakness.
While outwardly flustered, inwardly she thought: So the leak came from the Xie family after all.
She spoke in a voice trembling with helpless grievance: “Niangniang, at that time chennü had only just escaped the gates of death. I was terrified in my heart. It happened to be my late mother’s death anniversary, so I went to Tianmen Temple to burn incense for her. Then, chennü had not even heard the name of Gongzi Zhao, how could I possibly have met him?”
“Niangniang never said you knew him,” Fang shaojian said coldly. “She only asked whether you saw him at Tianmen Temple in the Northwest.”
His gaze bore into her, sharp and ruthless.
Gu Jiu shook her head. “During those days at Tianmen Temple, chennü was too frail. Each day, I either burned incense in the main hall or rested in the side chamber, always with my maid at my side. In those days, I never encountered any young master, only some ladies.”
Fang shaojian gave a cold snort. “It seems Gu guniang refuses to shed tears until she sees her coffin. Bring the witness in.”
Witness? What witness?
Gu Jiu’s heart jolted in panic. Could it be Xie Xian?
Impossible!
Hearing footsteps, she snapped her gaze toward the door, only to be stunned by the sight.
It was not Xie Xian who entered, but Xie shi’s trusted maid, Ping mama.
How could it be Ping mama?
Why was she here? Did it mean Xie shi had…
No, something wasn’t right.
There had to be something wrong here.
“Nubi pays respects to the Empress.”
Without sparing Gu Jiu a glance, Ping mama walked in and knelt before the Empress.
The Empress looked down at her. “Do you know Gu Jiu?”
Only then did Ping mama glance at Gu Jiu, and she nodded. “In reply to niangniang, I do.”
“Good. Then tell bengong, back in the northwest, during the days when Gu Jiu was at Tianmen Temple, what happened?”
“As niangniang commands.”
Ping mama lowered her head and cast Gu Jiu a smile full of malice before speaking. “At that time, taitai wished to betroth er guniang to Xie Xian, the fourth young master of the Xie family. Gu daren wavered on the match, so taitai sought to take advantage of Gu Jiu’s absence at Tianmen Temple, planning to let Xie Xian force the matter to completion.
“Everything went smoothly at first. That night, after drugging her, it was at the critical moment that someone appeared and rescued Gu Jiu. Xie Xian, however, was struck and gravely injured, his life hanging by a thread. I heard it took half a year before his wounds fully healed.”
The Empress listened, then looked at Gu Jiu with a half-smile, and asked Ping mama, “Who saved Gu Jiu?”
Ping mama said, “According to Xie Xian, it was a tall, imposing guard. The guard wore an official waist knife, so he could not have been from an ordinary household.”
The Empress fixed her gaze on Gu Jiu and barked sharply, “Tell bengong! Who exactly was this guard who saved you?”
Gu Jiu’s voice shook with emotion. “Niangniang, Ping mama’s words are sheer nonsense! Though chennü is not taitai’s own daughter, I have always received her careful care and upbringing, and it is only thanks to her that I was able to grow up safely.
“Taitai is kind-hearted; she would never do something so depraved as Ping mama claims, sending Xie Xian to Tianmen Temple to harm me, ruin my reputation, and disgrace the Gu family.
“The truth is very different: Xie Xian was dissolute and irreverent toward the Buddha. He tried to humiliate the monks of Tianmen Temple, sneaking in at midnight with his servant to steal a Buddhist relic. He was discovered by the monks.
“Because he claimed kinship with our Gu family, the monks spared him on our account. My brother and I happened to be present, so the abbot entrusted Xie Xian to us for judgment.
“My brother, enraged by Xie Xian’s shameful conduct, gave him a sound beating before handing him directly over to Xie er laoye. As for Xie Xian’s servant, he was turned over to the magistrate for punishment.
“This matter is recorded in the archives of the Prefect of Jinzhou. Every word I say is true; not a single falsehood.
“But as for this Ping mama, chennü does not know whether she has lost her wits or seeks revenge against my family. To slander taitai with such an atrocious lie, claiming she ordered Xie Xian to ruin me, this is utterly vile. I beg niangniang to see the truth clearly!”
Ping mama stared at Gu Jiu in disbelief, nearly dumbstruck.
The moment Gu Jiu finished speaking, Ping mama cried out, “Nubi did not lie! Niangniang, every word nubi spoke is true! Both Xie Xian and Xie er laoye can testify!”
Gu Jiu pointed at Ping mama’s nose and shouted sternly, “Ping mama, shut your mouth! How has the Gu family wronged you, that you would lose your mind and spew such venomous lies to defame taitai, to defame me, even to defame the Xie family?
“To commit such heartless, inhuman acts, are you even human? Do you think your words hold more weight than official court records?
“Absurd! By doing this, where do you place the dignity of the imperial court? Disloyal to your master, slandering the authorities, ungrateful and inhumane, such a person deserves death!”
Ping mama, cowed by Gu Jiu’s furious rebuke, faltered. “No! Nubi speaks the truth! Niangniang must believe nubi!”
Gu Jiu gave a cold snort. “Niangniang is unmatched in wisdom. How could she be deceived by someone so disloyal and inhumane? Give up, Ping mama.”
Ping mama kept trying to protest.
But the Empress no longer cared to listen. Her eyes closed slightly. Fang shaojian gestured, and at once attendants rushed in, gagged Ping mama, and dragged her away.
Gu Jiu watched as Ping mama was hauled off, watched the light in her eyes fade, watched the tears stream down her face, watched the hatred, the fear, the struggle, the pleading.
Ping mama was damned.
Gu Jiu remained unmoved.
The Empress chuckled.
That laugh chilled Gu Jiu to the bone. Something felt terribly wrong.
The Empress fixed her eyes on her. “So, according to your story, there was no guard who saved you.”
Gu Jiu bowed low. “That is correct. It was all Ping mama’s fabrication.”
The Empress sneered coldly. “Bengong truly underestimated you before. Twisting right and wrong, claiming the dead are alive, you have quite a talent. No wonder Liu Zhao took a liking to you.”
Gu Jiu’s face paled with fear.
The Empress continued with a faint, calculating smile, “Bengong should thank you, actually. Now, bengong can be certain, during his time in the northwest, Liu Zhao stayed at Tianmen Temple. If we send someone to investigate Tianmen Temple, we might even find traces of his presence there.”
Gu Jiu stared at the Empress, bewildered.
Her heart was pounding so fast she felt it might leap out of her throat.
Had she inadvertently made things worse?
No, no, no!
She could not stand by and watch Ping mama slander the Gu family, tarnish her reputation, and drag Liu Zhao into it without taking action.
Striking back at Ping mama, that was something she had to do.
Clearly, the Empress had counted on this, deliberately provoking a conflict between her and Ping mama.
Gu Jiu gritted her teeth. What should I do now?
The Empress regarded her with a half-smile. “Seeing how hard you try to deny the existence of that guard… if bengong couldn’t guess the truth from this, all of bengong’s years as Empress would have been wasted.”
Gu Jiu’s face turned white, but she forced herself to stay composed. “Everything chennü says is true. There are indeed case files at the Jinzhou Prefect’s office.”
“Bengong believes there are files. How about you listen to bengong’s guess of the truth?” the Empress proposed.
Gu Jiu’s heart thumped anxiously.
Fang shaojian smiled. “Let me explain, niangniang. The Gu and Xie families were arranging a marriage. To push it forward, the Xie family sent Xie Xian to Tianmen Temple to ensure the plan succeeded.
“Coincidentally, Liu Zhao secretly left the capital and stayed in the back courtyard of Tianmen Temple. In the middle of the night, he heard cries for help and sent guards to rescue. That was how Gu guniang met Liu Zhao.
“At the same time, to protect her reputation and control gossip, Gu daren deliberately made it appear that Xie Xian had stolen sacred treasures from the temple. When the incident occurred, he was beaten, and eventually a servant took the blame.
“Gu guniang, does this story sound familiar to you?”
Gu Jiu was shocked and fearful. Everyone in the palace was so sharp, not one of them could be fooled.
Still, she managed to maintain her composure on the surface.
“Fang shaojian’s story is coherent and plausible. It sounds true. But it is not what actually happened to me. I ask niangniang to judge accordingly.”
Fang shaojian chuckled lightly. “At this point, Gu guniang still refuses to tell the truth. Truly, you won’t shed tears until you see the coffin. Liu Zhao left the capital without permission and should be demoted to commoner status and placed under house arrest. You, being smart, can imagine how miserable his fate would be.
“We advise Gu guniang that while there is still time, you should cut ties with Liu Zhao immediately. Your efforts will be recognised. The Empress will protect you, annul your engagement to Liu Zhao, and arrange another marriage for you, perhaps to Zhen guogong fu. How does that sound?”
Gu Jiu’s face crumpled with grievances, and tears began to fall.
Fang shaojian frowned. What was happening? She was fine a moment ago. Why was she crying now?
The young lady was irritating, prone to tears at the slightest provocation.
But at least this showed she was intimidated. That was a good sign.
Fang shaojian pressed on. “Gu guniang, it’s time to speak. The Empress’ patience is limited, you don’t want to refuse a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit.”
Gu Jiu wept to buy time, all the while thinking of a strategy.
Just as Liu Zhao said, without concrete evidence, the Empress would not dare to act rashly or declare that Liu Zhao had left the capital without permission.
They were pressing her step by step, racing against time.
They wanted to cement Liu Zhao’s guilt before the Empress died, ensuring he would never recover.
Because of the time constraint, they could not investigate the northwest and could only coerce her for testimony.
Clearly, they believed Liu Zhao had secretly gone to the northwest and that she had met him there.
The Empress’s guess was surprisingly accurate.
But Gu Jiu could not reveal the truth.
Through her tears, she said, “I’m telling the truth. I really didn’t meet Gongzi Zhao. No matter what you do, Fang shaojian, I will not change my words. I cannot invent something that never happened.” She cried bitterly.
Fang shaojian snorted coldly. “It seems the Empress has been too lenient with you, leaving you ungrateful. Guards, bring–”
“I’m telling! I’m telling!”
Gu Jiu interrupted him through her sobs.
She was terribly afraid of pain; no punishment should be used on her.
Fang shaojian smirked. “Speak. Where in the northwest did you see Liu Zhao? When? Tell us exactly how you met him.”
Gu Jiu sobbed twice, then said, “In the northwest, I did not meet Gongzi Zhao.”
“What did you say?”
Fang shaojian exploded with rage. “Gu Jiu, are you playing around with me?”
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