The Vicious Woman and the White Moonlight are both me - Chapter 30

The cry instantly drew everyone’s attention. The Noble Consort glanced at the Emperor, and when he gave a slight nod, she hurried into the inner chamber. The others followed, and only then did they see what had happened inside.

Crown Princess Consort Zhao Anxian lay on the bed in plain robes, her long hair loose and unbound. The Crown Prince clutched her hand, wailing in grief. On the bed, the Crown Princess Consort’s eyes were wide open, her expression frozen in disbelief.

Apart from that, there was no sign of life.

Crown Princess Consort Zhao Anxian was dead.

As for how she had died, no one knew yet.

And inside the chamber, there had only been the Crown Prince and the Crown Princess Consort.

It couldn’t possibly be that the Crown Prince had killed her… could it?

Sensing movement behind him, the Crown Prince rushed forward in three quick strides and dropped to his knees before the Emperor.

“Father! Summon the imperial physicians at once—have them treat Anxian! How could she suddenly become like this? Hurry!”

As he spoke, he reached out to drag the physicians toward the bed.

“How could this be? When we took her pulse just now, the Crown Princess Consort was perfectly fine. How could she suddenly pass away?”

They were all terrified the blame would fall on them.

Another physician stepped forward to take her pulse, but after a brief moment, he could only shake his head.

“Your Highness, please restrain your grief. The Crown Princess Consort’s pulse is gone. She has already passed.”

Her pulse was gone. She had already passed.

With the pulse gone, even if there had once been a fetal pulse, there was now no way to prove it. Dead men told no tales.

Unless her abdomen were cut open and examined, who could possibly be certain whether the Crown Princess Consort had ever been carrying a child?

But if her belly were truly opened for inspection, that would not only be an unspeakable humiliation for the Zhao family, it would also be a disgrace to the imperial house.

“How could this be? How could this be?” the Crown Prince shouted again and again as he returned to the bedside, looking every bit like a man who had lost the love of his life. With trembling tenderness, he reached out to stroke Zhao Anxian’s face.

“Anxian, how could this happen? Was it because she fell into the water and frightened the child in her womb, causing massive bleeding and her death? Why didn’t you save her? Why didn’t you save her?”

Before the imperial physicians could reach any conclusion, the Crown Prince had already decided the cause of his wife’s death.

Having said that, he flew into a near-mad frenzy and lunged to grab at several of the physicians. In the scuffle, he stumbled before the Emperor, who seemed thoroughly enraged and kicked the Crown Prince to the ground without hesitation.

“Enough! As the heir to the throne, look at the state you’re in—utterly unhinged!”

The Crown Prince finally calmed down a little, but his face was still carved with anguish.

“Father, Anxian was my proper wife. Jinrong is still so young—must she grow up without a mother? If Anxian hadn’t fallen into the water, she wouldn’t have been frightened. If she hadn’t been frightened, she wouldn’t have miscarried and bled profusely. If that hadn’t happened, she wouldn’t have lost her life!”

As he spoke, the Crown Prince rose and pointed at Pei Yayun in the crowd.

“It’s all because of you. You insisted on proposing that moon-worship ritual. If you hadn’t brought it up, the banquet would have ended long ago, and none of this would have happened!”

“Enough. It was I who suggested that the Crown Princess Consort go to worship the moon. Is the Crown Prince blaming me?” the Emperor said coldly.

“I wouldn’t dare!” The Crown Prince’s voice dropped at once. “I only… only…”

“Your Majesty, the Crown Prince has just suffered the sudden loss of his beloved wife. His grief has overwhelmed him—please forgive his slip of the tongue.” The Empress wiped away her tears as she pleaded on his behalf. In the present circumstances, the Crown Prince had instead become the victim.

“Of course I am not blaming Father,” the Crown Prince said. “It’s just that if Eighth Sister hadn’t proposed the moon-worship in the first place, Father wouldn’t have agreed to let Anxian go. Every cause has its consequence. Anxian’s death—Eighth Sister bears part of the responsibility. And there’s also Zhaohua. If she had been more vigilant, Chen Meiren wouldn’t have injured Anxian. Her study companion knows martial arts—if she had restrained Anxian, she wouldn’t have fallen into the water at all.”

He laid the blame on all of them, and with the Crown Prince now cast as the “wronged party,” his words stirred sympathy among those present. Many could not help but feel that what he said made sense.

Song Zhaoyan was just about to speak when the Consort could no longer hold back. Seeing someone step forward, Song Zhaoyan closed her mouth again.

“The Crown Prince’s words are rather unfair,” the Consort said coldly. “The true culprit, Chen Meiren, has already been executed. Are you suggesting His Majesty should also put Yayun… and Zhaohua to death?”

The Crown Prince no longer looked crazed as before; instead, he seemed hollowed out and despondent.

“Father, I’m not someone who refuses to reason,” he said softly. “But Anxian is dead. How am I supposed to explain this to her parents?”

Even if the Zhao family were set aside, the court’s civil and military officials could not be ignored. The one who had died was the Crown Prince’s principal wife.

If the supposed culprit behind the Crown Princess Consort’s death was merely a low-ranking Meiren, could the Zhao family truly accept that?

The Emperor remained silent for a long while, seemingly deeply moved by the Crown Prince’s profound feelings for his wife. At last, he finally spoke, directing the blame toward Pei Yayun.

“Consort Zhou has failed in disciplining her daughter. She is demoted to Defei and her stipend is suspended for three months. The Eighth Princess has a willful temperament and is confined for three months as a warning to others.”

Stripped of her rank so abruptly, the Consort could not accept it. She immediately fell to her knees, crying out in protest.

“Your Majesty, please see clearly—”

“Enough. Say another word, and you’ll be demoted again.”

Defei immediately fell silent, but she could not suppress the resentment in her eyes as she looked toward Song Zhaoyan.

With Defei and Pei Yayun dealt with, Song Zhaoyan had yet to receive any punishment at all. Of course they were unwilling to accept that.

Especially the Crown Prince, who looked at the Emperor with eyes full of pain.

“Zhaohua is confined for one month and her stipend is suspended for one month. As for your study companion—although she attempted to save the Crown Princess Consort, she was still too slow. Her crime warrants death.”

Song Zhaoyan immediately pleaded, “Father, please show mercy. Xinyue, she—”

“In light of the fact that she saved you, the death penalty is waived. But punishment cannot be avoided. Ten strokes of the cane.”

Death reduced to ten blows—on the surface, it seemed like a bargain. But Song Zhaoyan could not accept it. They had done nothing wrong.

“Father, please see clearly—this matter has nothing to do with Xinyue!”

But the Emperor had already turned and walked out, instructing the Empress to handle the Crown Princess Consort’s funeral arrangements, paying no heed at all to Song Zhaoyan’s words.

Zhan Xinyue reached out and grabbed Song Zhaoyan’s hand, shaking her head gently.

“Your Highness, there’s no need to plead anymore. Given the circumstances, this outcome is already very good. After all, the Crown Princess Consort lost her life.”

Yes, the loss of a life was tragic—but it had nothing to do with them, yet she still had to suffer this beating for no reason.

The very next moment, the eunuchs tasked with carrying out the punishment stepped forward and dragged Zhan Xinyue away.

Too much had happened this night. It had been the Mid-Autumn Festival, a night meant for reunion—yet the Crown Princess Consort had lost her life.

The Consort had been demoted.

Pei Yayun had been confined.

Song Zhaoyan had not suffered any physical punishment, but Zhan Xinyue had taken it in her stead. Pei Shen’s gaze toward Song Zhaoyan was filled with such hatred it was as though he wished he could kill her.

The cudgel came down again and again, heavy and merciless. Song Zhaoyan tried to rush forward to stop it, but the supervising eunuch said coldly, “His Majesty has given orders—if Princess Zhaohua interferes, for every interruption, five additional strokes will be added!”

With no other choice, Song Zhaoyan could only watch as Zhan Xinyue endured all ten blows.

Even though Zhan Xinyue had practiced martial arts since childhood and was strong of body, taking ten solid strokes like that was bound to have consequences.

For many days afterward, she could only lie in bed to recuperate, unable to go anywhere.

Unable to bear it, Song Zhaoyan did not hesitate to exchange points to ease much of Zhan Xinyue’s pain and also traded for better medicine to give her.

Seeing the medicine Song Zhaoyan brought, Zhan Xinyue was deeply grateful. Thinking again of how Song Zhaoyan had protected her, she became even more convinced that the temperament Song Zhaoyan had shown before had merely been an act. She said to her earnestly, “Your Highness need not worry about me. I am truly fine.”

“For the next few days, just rest properly. I’m confined anyway and can’t go anywhere, so you don’t need to accompany me. It’s late—get some good rest.”

Song Zhaoyan left. Pei Shen had originally followed along with her, but soon after, he turned back.

Considering the late hour and the impropriety between men and women, he did not enter the room, instead stopping outside the door.

Zhan Xinyue quickly noticed someone there, her tone turning wary.

“Who’s outside?”

Pei Shen lowered his voice. “It’s me.”

Unable to get out of bed, Zhan Xinyue also did not invite him inside. The two could only speak this way.

“Ninth Prince… what brings you here?”

Pei Shen had many things he wanted to say to Zhan Xinyue, yet he did not know where to begin. After a moment of silence, he finally spoke.

“As for the medicine the princess just gave you… I still advise you not to use it.”

Zhan Xinyue was even more puzzled.

“Why?”

Pei Shen seemed to hesitate again, but in the end he chose to voice his thoughts.

“You’ve been around her for quite some time now. You should know what kind of temperament she has. Today, she seemed completely different, but that’s definitely just an act—put on for His Majesty to see. His Majesty has been misled for years, which is why he’s always believed Song Zhaoyan to be innocent and indulged her without limits. Don’t be fooled by her sudden show of goodwill.”

After hearing Pei Shen’s words, Zhan Xinyue’s brows knit with disbelief—though Pei Shen could not see it.

In the past, she really had thought Song Zhaoyan’s conduct was questionable. But if that were truly the case, why would she have protected her so fiercely today? It couldn’t possibly be just because she was a mere study companion.

A lowly companion—if she truly caused trouble, Song Zhaoyan would not care at all. She wouldn’t bother defending her; she might not even spare her a glance. If she were disposed of, so be it.

So, Zhan Xinyue believed that much of what Princess Zhaohua showed to the outside world was a disguise—a deliberate façade.

“Is that so?” Zhan Xinyue did not argue heatedly. She simply stated calmly, “But I don’t see it that way.”

Seeing her defend Song Zhaoyan, Pei Shen wore an expression as though Zhan Xinyue had been deceived, his face filled with anxious urgency, like someone trying to pull another back from the wrong path.

“See? That’s exactly her goal—to confuse you so you can’t see the truth clearly. You grew up freely on the frontier; how could you possibly understand how treacherous the hearts of people in the palace are? Miss Zhan, just trust me—you won’t be wrong. Do not use that medicine, no matter what. Be careful your injuries don’t worsen. If something like a ‘death from untreatable causes’ were to happen, who knows—someday, the death of the Crown Princess might inexplicably be blamed on you. And then your family and the Zhao family would end up locked in a life-and-death struggle at court. When that time comes…”

“Ninth Prince, watch your words!” Zhan Xinyue’s expression turned solemn at once, and she hurriedly cut Pei Shen off.

Pei Shen seemed to realize he had misspoken and immediately covered his mouth.

He had only been making a hypothetical analysis. In his haste, he had spoken without thinking.

Fortunately, there was no one else around.

“I appreciate the Ninth Prince’s concern,” Zhan Xinyue said, “but I believe the princess has no ulterior motives. When the Eighth Princess and Consort Chen stirred up trouble today, it was the princess who stood her ground and protected me. Besides, if there truly were something wrong with the medicine she gave me, where would it have come from? Wouldn’t it still be from the Imperial Medical Bureau? If that were the case, wouldn’t it be easier to simply give an order to the imperial physicians? There would be no need to go through all this trouble. However, Your Highness, do not speak of what you said just now again. It’s already late—please return and rest.”

Pei Shen grew anxious, annoyed with himself for acting too hastily. Now that Song Zhaoyan had shown goodwill, it was only natural that Zhan Xinyue would be swayed.

Forget it. He would simply pay closer attention to Zhan Xinyue in the days to come.

“It was my mistake. Thank you for the reminder, Miss Zhan. I won’t disturb your rest any longer.”

With that, Pei Shen finally left.

So much had happened tonight. It was already the hour of Zi, yet Song Zhaoyan lay in bed wide awake.

She had more or less figured it out by now—many times, the system would not give her the full plot. She had to feel her way forward on her own. Still, there was an upside to that: her points would be doubled.

At this moment, she tossed and turned, replaying everything that had happened tonight over and over again in her mind.

Starting from the moment the Eighth Princess first spoke up and proposed the Moon Worship.