The Vicious Woman and the White Moonlight are both me - Chapter 26

“So in the end, are you going to learn or not? If you’re unwilling, then…”

Before Song Zhaoyan could finish her sentence, Pei Shen immediately gave his reply. “I’ll learn! I’m willing to learn! I humbly ask you, Senior, to teach me martial skills!”

Hearing this, Song Zhaoyan finally let out a full breath of relief.

At first, she’d been worried that this little trick of playing hard to get wouldn’t work. It seemed Pei Shen truly wanted the ability to protect himself—so much so that he believed her even when her words were riddled with holes.

Or perhaps it was because of what Bai Ri Zhan Xinyue had said earlier in the day, which allowed Song Zhaoyan to ride the momentum and make Pei Shen believe her now.

In any case, it didn’t matter, as long as Pei Shen wasn’t suspicious.

“Since that’s the case, then you should change how you address me and call me Master.”

Song Zhaoyan planted her hands on her hips, suddenly feeling especially imposing.

Pei Shen didn’t hesitate at all. He immediately dropped to his knees, performed a full kowtow toward Song Zhaoyan, and called out loudly, “Master, please accept this bow from your disciple Pei Shen!”

And just like that, Song Zhaoyan successfully took Pei Shen in as her disciple.

The reason Song Zhaoyan decided to take Pei Shen as her disciple was twofold. First, she had overheard Pei Shen’s conversation with Zhan Xinyue earlier that day and learned that he wanted to study martial arts. But given Song Zhaoyan’s established persona, the more Pei Shen wanted something, the more impossible it would be for her to agree to it. Even if Zhan Xinyue tried to teach him in secret, Chaoyang Palace was not some isolated corner—sooner or later, someone would notice. Once palace servants reported it, Song Zhaoyan would inevitably be forced to punish Pei Shen.

So, it was better for her to do it by herself.

Of course, there was another important reason. When Song Zhaoyan went to check on an injured Pei Shen as she had before, she couldn’t possibly knock him unconscious every single time. Spending points on things like that made her heart ache.

Now that she was Pei Shen’s master, she could come and go freely—no points required and no risk of arousing Pei Shen’s suspicion.

For literary studies, there were Junior Tutors to teach him, but martial training had to be done in secret and Song Zhaoyan couldn’t teach him personally.

Although Song Zhaoyan herself knew nothing about martial arts, she had plenty of points now. For matters like this, she could simply leave it to the system.

At Pei Shen’s age, starting martial training was admittedly a bit late. Even so, Song Zhaoyan exchanged points to help him clear his meridians and ease the bodily pain caused by these days of intense riding and archery practice. After that, she mechanically recited the instructions prompted by the system, guiding Pei Shen to calm his mind and practice inner cultivation.

“Adjust your breathing. Focus on your attention. Absolutely do not let your mind wander!”

Pei Shen closed his eyes and tried to follow his master’s instructions. But asking him not to be distracted was simply impossible. Especially the more he tried to focus, the more his thoughts scattered beyond control.

There was no other reason—what had happened tonight was simply too unexpected, leaving Pei Shen unable to rein in the excitement surging in his heart.

Song Zhaoyan noticed his state as well. After a moment, she deliberately said, “You brat—if you truly want to learn, then do exactly as I say. If you’re not sincere, then I’m leaving right now!”

The tactic worked immediately. Pei Shen panicked at once and hurriedly spoke to keep her from going. He no longer dared indulge in his private elation, forcing himself to focus and regulate his breathing.

It was his first lesson, so there was naturally no major progress. Song Zhaoyan wasn’t in a hurry. She merely said that it was already late and that he should rest early, then turned and left.

Pei Shen was left standing alone at the doorway, watching the spot where Song Zhaoyan disappeared, bathed in moonlight.

Once he finally calmed down, Pei Shen began to think carefully about what had happened that night.

Could this person have been sent by Miss Zhan?

Most likely. After all, aside from Miss Zhan, who else would pay attention to someone like him?

Miss Zhan hadn’t spoken plainly to him during the day—perhaps it was out of concern for her reputation. As for not letting Master say it outright tonight, it was probably for the same reason.

Since that was the case, Pei Shen decided not to mention this matter to anyone else. He would treat it as an unspoken secret shared between himself and Miss Zhan to avoid prying ears and prevent others from taking advantage of it.

With that thought, Pei Shen finally fell into a deep sleep.

In the blink of an eye, the Reunion Festival arrived.

The Empress’s confinement had already been lifted but the other two princes and the princess were still under house arrest, reflecting on their faults. Judging by the situation, unless the time was up, His Majesty had no intention of letting them out.

Seeing their own siblings meet such a fate, the princes and princesses attending the banquet naturally felt a sense of shared peril. Once again, they attributed His Majesty’s harsh punishment to his concern for Song Zhaoyan and their resentment toward her deepened even further.

However, at present, what truly preoccupied them was not Song Zhaoyan but their Crown Princess sister-in-law.

The Crown Prince’s physical condition had long been an open secret. Although it was never stated outright, everyone knew. Even their respective consort mothers had often used veiled barbs to mock the Empress over this matter.

And yet now, the Crown Princess was pregnant—and already three months along. It was simply too baffling.

They were dying to know whether the Crown Princess’s pregnancy was fake or whether she had put a green hat on the Crown Prince.

Naturally, they did not dare discuss such matters openly. Instead, they decided to find someone to test the waters to see whether the Crown Princess was truly pregnant.

Aside from imperial physicians, who could probe the Crown Princess and still walk away unscathed afterward?

Other than the most favored Princess Zhaohua, there was likely no second candidate.

The Eighth Princess, Pei Yayun, daughter of the Noble Consort, had already devised her plan.

After news of the Crown Princess’s pregnancy spread throughout the palace, she secretly sent people to stir up discussions in places where Song Zhaoyan was likely to pass by.

Talk of how His Majesty had even confined the Empress—without setting a time limit—surely meant he had been considering deposing the Empress and the Crown Prince.

Once the Crown Prince was deposed, the new heir would naturally be chosen from among the other princes. Since His Majesty favored Princess Zhaohua and Princess Zhaohua was devoted to the Fifth Prince, then the next Crown Prince would certainly be the Fifth Prince.

But the Empress had played a superior move. In order to preserve her position, she announced the news of the Crown Princess’s pregnancy, forcing His Majesty to release her from confinement.

All of this, taken together, pointed to one conclusion: the Crown Princess’s pregnancy had to be fake, orchestrated secretly on the Empress’s orders.

Hearing such rumors once might have been nothing but when Song Zhaoyan heard them every single evening during her walks in the Imperial Garden, even a fool would sense that something was amiss.

However, according to the original owner’s persona, she would never grow suspicious. On the contrary, she would truly believe it.

And the system issued a new task: maintain the persona, speak out for love.

That love, of course, referred to the original owner’s deep affection for the male second lead, Pei Chengyun. Once she fully believed the rumors, she would naturally go and test whether the Crown Princess’s pregnancy was fake.

“So is the Crown Princess really pregnant?”

This time, the system finally responded. “No. They intend to seize the child of the Second Prince, Pei Chengzhou.”

“So that’s how it is. They really are calculating to the extreme.”

As soon as Song Zhaoyan finished speaking, Aunt Tao stepped forward to report that the banquet was about to begin and that it was time to take their seats.

On the way to the banquet hall, Song Zhaoyan thought that even if she didn’t take action herself, the Eighth Princess would certainly do so personally—perhaps by pushing over the Crown Princess and then framing Song Zhaoyan for it.

But exactly when would she make her move? Song Zhaoyan didn’t know. All she could do was take things one step at a time.

At the banquet, the Emperor and Empress sat high upon the dais. This was the first time Song Zhaoyan had seen the Empress again since the Qixi Festival. Though they were far apart, Song Zhaoyan still felt a gaze laced with malice shooting toward her from above.

Unflinching, Song Zhaoyan lifted her head and met it directly—only to see that the Empress had already withdrawn her gaze, replacing it with a gentle, composed expression as she looked elsewhere, as if that earlier glance had merely been Song Zhaoyan’s imagination.

“Your Highness, you should return early tonight,” Zhan Xinyue, seated slightly behind and to the side of Song Zhaoyan, spoke up to remind her. “You’ve been practicing riding and archery all day. You must be exhausted.”

There was no other reason for her concern—Zhan Xinyue had also noticed the Empress’s gaze just now.

As Song Zhaoyan’s study companion, it was only natural for her to worry. If anything were to happen, she would be held responsible as well.

But this was not something Song Zhaoyan could simply decide to leave on her own. Still, she didn’t coldly brush aside Zhan Xinyue’s goodwill.

In a tone neither warm nor cold, she said, “I know. Do you really need to remind me?”

When the banquet began, the general flow was no different from previous years—various song and dance performances, all proceeding smoothly. That was, until the Eighth Princess suddenly spoke up, saying that the moonlight was beautiful tonight, and she wished to go and pay homage to the moon.

Setting up incense and worshipping the moon was hardly a new or special ritual. Naturally, the Emperor did not object. He even said that the banquet had more or less run its course and that everyone should simply enjoy themselves.

Thus, the Eighth Princess took the initiative to look toward Song Zhaoyan. “Sister Zhaohua, would you like to join me and make a wish to the moon?”

Zhan Xinyue tugged worriedly at Song Zhaoyan’s sleeve, signaling that she could find an excuse—such as being too tired from practicing riding and archery during the day—and decline. Song Zhaoyan understood at once and was just about to refuse when a consort suddenly spoke up.

“This concubine recalls that in the past, I once made a wish to the moon, hoping to find a suitable husband. Who would have thought it would truly come true? This year happens to be the Reunion Festival again. I wish to make another prayer to the moon. I ask that Your Majesty grant permission.”

When she spoke the first part, the Emperor listened with evident pleasure. But at the latter part, he grew curious and asked in a dignified voice, “Oh? And what does my beloved consort wish to pray for this time?”

The consort lowered her head and smiled shyly. “Naturally—this concubine prays to soon bear a royal heir for Your Majesty.”

At these words, the Emperor burst into hearty laughter. With a wave of his hand, he said loudly, “Then go!”

The consort rose and paid her respects, then turned toward Song Zhaoyan, her tone teasing. “Princess Zhaohua might as well come along and make a wish to the moon—for a husband of your heart’s desire.”

The Eighth Princess had proposed the moon worship, and before it was even clear whether Song Zhaoyan would participate, the consort had already emphasized how efficacious praying to the moon was—especially for obtaining one’s ideal husband.

Based on what they knew of Song Zhaoyan, she was certain to agree.

In an instant, several gazes turned in unison toward Song Zhaoyan. In order to maintain her persona, she lifted an eyebrow and agreed without hesitation. “Sure. This palace will go along as well.”

As she spoke, Song Zhaoyan swiftly swept her gaze across everyone present, wanting to see who would speak up and suggest that the Crown Princess join them too.

If the one behind tonight’s scheme were present, they certainly wouldn’t dare to bring it up themselves. After all, they were about to test the Crown Princess. No matter whether anything happened to her later or not, whoever suggested that she come along would inevitably be implicated.

As for those not in the know, they were even less likely to speak up. Who in the palace would willingly invite trouble for themselves?

At once, silence fell over the banquet hall. No one responded.

When someone finally did speak, Song Zhaoyan couldn’t help but freeze for a moment.

“The imperial physicians have confirmed that the Crown Princess has been pregnant for three months, and her condition is stable. She might as well go with them,” the Emperor said. “Pray to the moon and give me a healthy little imperial grandson!”

At these words, the hearts of everyone present began to stir with hidden thoughts.

And Song Zhaoyan never would have imagined that the one to propose the Crown Princess join the moon worship would be His Majesty himself.

Why?!