After Rebirth, I Married my Archenemy - Chapter 81

Lu Huating lowered his eyes. In the moonlight, Qun Qing’s hands appeared slender and fair, each finger elegantly long. Looking further up, her cold and innocent expression made it impossible to imagine that these hands had just moved away from Li Pan’s throat, capable of taking a life.

At this thought, a faintly mocking smile curved his lips. He pulled out a plain handkerchief from his sleeve and placed it over her hands. 

“Wipe them?”

Qun Qing said nothing and wiped her hands clean. Lu Huating turned his head. 

“Wen Su.”

Wensu hesitated. 

“It’s too dark to see clearly, and besides, we don’t have any ink. Shall I go fetch some—”

“No need.” Lu Huating cut her off. He stepped aside to part the bushes, and plucked a few bellflowers. He turned back to Qun Qing with a smile. 

“Lady Qing, open your hands.”

She felt the cool touch of the bellflowers placed between her fingers before Lu Huating pressed down on her knuckles. 

“Don’t move.”

As his fingertips slowly applied pressure, pain crept in. Qun Qing realized he was exacting personal revenge, so she deliberately showed no reaction and just stared at him.

Lu Huating met her gaze, his eyes locking onto hers.

She was good at enduring.

Only when the petals had been crushed into juice between their fingers did he finally release her. Qun Qing exhaled slightly and brushed off the flower remnants. Lu Huating glanced at his own fingers, now stained with a faint purple hue.

He was someone who valued cleanliness, immediately tucking his jade-like hands into his sleeves.

Qun Qing caught this and deliberately asked, “Do you need a handkerchief?”

“Keep it for yourself. The Emperor will be coming out soon—I should go.” Lu Huating gave her a glance before leaving with Wensu.

Qun Qing called after him in a low voice. “At the investiture ceremony, tell Prince Yan to be careful.”

Lu Huating paused briefly but soon disappeared into the night.

As for Li Pan, after returning to his sleeping quarters, he poured the jade-green tea from his cup into a flowerpot and said coldly, 

“Send word to Chancellor Meng. The Emperor has dragged Consort Chen De into this. Looks like Prince Yan’s estate wants to dig into the events of that year. Lu Huating refuses to take the easy way—he’ll have to learn the hard way. Figure out how to deal with him.”

A shadow guard received the order and left.

Li Pan massaged his temples, wincing at the sharp pain. The lingering ache in his body served as a bitter reminder that he’d likely suffered an injury at the hands of a mysterious Taoist nun. Yet, no matter how he tried, he couldn’t recall the details—what a bizarre thing.

Annoyed, he smacked his forehead twice. Even his usual favored concubine, who came to console him, was scolded and sent away. If he had harbored any lingering interest in female Taoists before, from now on, they would be his greatest aversion.

He picked up a razor and headed for the stables. Before long, bl00d-curdling screams echoed.

A few captives from the bandit purge were being held there.

Normally, the prisoners should have been taken by the Ministry of Justice. But since Li Pan had caught them himself, he decided to keep a few for his own entertainment. Li Xuan turned a blind eye to it. Li Pan had some unusual habits – whenever he was in a bad mood, the entire Prince Zhao’s mansion would trembled in fear, and no one dared to stop him

That night, the prince’s guards wrapped two lifeless bodies in straw mats and secretly took them outside the palace to get rid of them.

It took Jian Su and Kuang Su until dawn to dig them back up.

By the Emperor’s decree, Consort Chen De was relocated to Changqing Palace the very next day and assigned a new batch of attendants.

Concubine Lü no longer dared to slight her upon hearing the news.

Qun Qing said, “Your Highness, I would like to deliver a congratulatory gift and invitation for the investiture ceremony to Changqing Palace on your behalf, along with some tonics. If the Emperor visits Consort Chen De, he will see Your Highness’s thoughtfulness.”

Concubine Lü was previously preoccupied with worries but when she heard Qun Qing’s suggestion, she brightened up. She immediately handed her silver, instructing her to deliver the gifts.

One of the greatest privileges of being a female official was no longer having to carry wooden trays by hand.

In the bitter cold, where even water had frozen solid, Qun Qing wrapped herself tightly in a thick cloak, keeping her hands tucked into her sleeves for warmth. Outside Liangyi Hall, young eunuchs swept the palace gates while palace maids bustled about, carrying trays as they gathered winter clothing for the noble families from the Shangfu Bureau.

When they saw Qun Qing, they curtsied in greeting. She nodded in return.

While the entire palace bustled with preparations for the investiture ceremony, Changqing Palace remained eerily silent.  

Qun Qing had volunteered for this errand to observe Consort Chen De’s condition. If the consort was only pretending to be mad, Qun Qing might finally uncover some clues about her mother.  

Inside, Consort Chen De sat by her bed, dressed in plain taoist robes with her hair in a simple bun. She showed no fear, but she also did not speak, as still and lifeless as a withered tree.  

“Your Highness, I am Qun Qing, a female official from Shangyi Bureau, delivering gifts on Concubine Lü’s behalf.”  

Consort Chen De did not move.  

No matter how many times Qun Qing stepped into her line of sight, placing each item down one by one, the consort’s drooping eyelids never lifted. She gave no sign of recognizing the taoist nun from the night before.  

Was she truly mad? Had Qun Qing been overthinking things?  

Disappointment flickered in her heart, but with Concubine Lü’s attendants nearby, she couldn’t afford to take any risks.  

Her fingers curled slightly inside her sleeves. She had no choice but to leave.

Just as Qun Qing reached the doorway, she nearly collided with a palace maid carrying a bucket of water. A few droplets splashed onto the ground, but the girl didn’t seem to care. Instead, she gasped excitedly,  

“Lady Qing!”  

Qun Qing studied the young face beaming up at her. The maid’s cheeks were flushed, her eyes filled with eagerness and a hint of shyness.  

“I’m Song Chun! Don’t you remember me?”  

Before Qun Qing could respond, the girl continued in a rush,  

“On the day of the Six Bureaus selection, you and I stood in the same line. Back then, you were still a palace maid in charge. You told me not to stand out or ask questions, but I refused to stay quiet. In the end, Gu Shangyi burned my examination token…”  

As Song Chun spoke, a long-buried memory surfaced in Qun Qing’s mind. She remembered glancing back before stepping into the selection hall, catching sight of a lone figure standing in the courtyard. A mix of emotions stirred within her.  

“It was you.” Her gaze flickered to the maid’s uniform. “You serve Consort Chen De now as a clothing maid. Why are you still doing such hard labor?”  

Seeing Song Chun struggle to lift the heavy bucket, Qun Qing stepped forward to help.  

Rubbing her frostbitten fingers, Song Chun smiled bitterly. “After Consort Chen De was moved, I was reassigned to Changqing Palace to watch over an empty hall. In name, I’m a maid in charge of clothing, but in reality, I do nothing but chores. Everyone in the palace looks down on those of us here. I thought I had a talent for embroidery, but in the end, I was foolish and ruined my own future.”  

She glanced at Qun Qing with admiration. “Unlike me, you made it. You’re a palace official now.”  

Song Chun seemed so different from the defiant girl who once dared to speak up. Now, she looked timid, worn down by hardship.  

Qun Qing couldn’t help but ask, “Do you still do needlework? Do you still want to take the palace exam?”  

Without a word, Song Chun pulled a folded piece of embroidery from her sleeve and handed it to Qun Qing. But as Qun Qing traced the delicate stitches, Song Chun shook her head vigorously. 

“I don’t dream anymore. Only people like you—who know when to move forward and when to hold back, who follow the rules—can become palace officials.”  

Qun Qing ran her fingers over the embroidery’s intricate patterns. Song Chun’s hands were rough and chapped from the cold, yet she had crafted something so fine and exquisite.  

For a peony to bloom in the snow—it was no small feat.

Ignoring Song Chun’s protests, Qun Qing slipped the small hand warmer from her sleeve into the girl’s cold hands. She met her gaze and said firmly,  

“Song Chun, you are not foolish, and I am not smarter than you.  

In my heart, following palace rules is nothing to be proud of. I didn’t become a palace official just by obeying them. When I lowered my head, it was to take root. When a person is weak, they must never forget what they truly want. One day, you will have the strength to hold a sword and rewrite the rules as they should be.”  

She paused before adding, “That Gu Shangyi—His Highness has already dismissed her. If you’re willing, take the exam again next year. No one will stand in your way. And if not next year, then the year after that.”  

Song Chun’s eyes widened. The lady before her, with her dark, unwavering gaze, felt different from any woman she had ever met. A surge of emotion welled up inside her. 

“My lady, do you really think my embroidery skills could get me into the Shangfu Bureau?”  

Qun Qing replied without hesitation, 

“If you ever doubt yourself, come to Caiye Palace. I’ll help you.”  

Nearby, Yin Zi stood with her arms crossed, already growing impatient. She failed to notice that behind her, inside the inner hall, Consort Chen De had been listening by the window.  

Her gaze lingered on Qun Qing.