The Vicious Woman and the White Moonlight are both me - Chapter 4

Pei Shen was whipped after all. Not just one lash, but three.

It made sense to openly defy and curse Princess Zhaohua in front of everyone—if he were punished with only a single whip, that wouldn’t be like Princess Zhaohua at all.

But to confront and curse her face-to-face and receive only three whips as punishment?

The entire Chaoyang Palace was left puzzled. Yet no one dared to speak of it, not even in private. After all, the palace stewardess was exceptionally strict, and falling into her hands was not an easy task.

When night fell, Jiang Xiaoyu lay in bed, tossing and turning, unable to sleep.

Every time she thought of Pei Shen, who had been whipped by her earlier that day, guilt flooded her chest.

That first whip had broken the skin, bl00d immediately seeping out of Pei Shen’s. The pain had made him tremble all over, barely able to stay on his knees. His frail body shook, and a low, muffled groan slipped from his throat.

Yet Pei Shen still clenched his teeth, biting his lips until they bled, and clenched his fists tightly.

He only let out those muffled groans—never once did he cry out, much less beg for mercy.

The clothes he wore, already old and ill-fitting, with loosened seams from years of wear, were torn open by the whip’s barbed hooks, leaving three long, gaping slashes.

The expressions of those around them didn’t change; they seemed long accustomed to such scenes. As long as the punishment wasn’t falling on them, they had no reason to object.

Three bloody welts streaked across Pei Shen’s back. He lay flat on the ground, crimson drops dripping onto the floor beneath him.

But to the servants of Chaoyang Palace, who were used to far more gruesome sights, this little bit of bl00d was nothing—barely a drizzle compared to the carnage they had witnessed before.

Yet the one holding the whip, Jiang Xiaoyu, couldn’t stop trembling. She was the one who struck Pei Shen, but the hand clutching the whip beneath her wide sleeve was shaking uncontrollably.

To keep anyone from noticing, Jiang Xiaoyu forced herself to appear calm.

Now, as night fell, she couldn’t stop thinking about the sight of Pei Shen being carried away earlier that day. Tossing and turning restlessly, she finally couldn’t bear it anymore and sat up in bed.

During the day, she had even ordered that no one was allowed to treat his wounds. Which meant that right now, Pei Shen’s injuries must still be unattended.

That thought made her heart tighten painfully.

A moment later, unable to suppress her unease any longer, she called out to the system.

“Pei Shen is the male lead—he won’t die from those three lashes, right?”

[Of course not!]

Jiang Xiaoyu let out a breath of relief. “Then… is it the heroine who secretly helps him?”

[No!]

[The heroine hasn’t appeared yet. The male lead endured it on his own. Compared to the punishment in the original story, Host, what you gave him was practically child’s play. So there’s no need to worry too much about him.]

Truly a heartless machine—how could it possibly understand human emotions? The system could actually say something so cold-blooded.

“That’s not the point! It hurts so much—how could anyone endure that? Besides, you’re not the one who swung the whip. Of course you don’t feel guilty. No, this won’t do—I have to check on him!”

With that, Jiang Xiaoyu threw off her blanket, but her gaze immediately fell on the palace maid sleeping not far away on the floor, keeping watch for the night.

There were guards outside as well. If she went out like this, she would definitely be caught.

Jiang Xiaoyu hesitated, then reluctantly drew her hand back.

Suddenly, a thought struck her. Her eyes lit up, and her voice grew excited.

“System, system! You said I can use my points to exchange for items, right?”

[Yes, Host. Would you like to make an exchange?]

As soon as the words fell, a glowing interface appeared in Jiang Xiaoyu’s mind, displaying an endless list of goods that left her momentarily dizzy.

Too lazy to go through them one by one, she said, “Just give me some medicine—something that can heal Pei Shen’s injuries. Oh, and… is there a way to get it delivered to him?”

[It’s possible.]

[But Host, are you sure the male lead would use medicine that appeared out of nowhere?]

Jiang Xiaoyu thought for a moment, her excitement fading. Her gaze lowered in quiet disappointment.

Well, that was true. After suffering so much in this deep palace, Pei Shen would never dare to use medicine that suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

“But if I go deliver it myself, Pei Shen will probably refuse it even more, won’t he?” Jiang Xiaoyu said worriedly.

The system stayed silent.

Then, Jiang Xiaoyu’s determination flared again. “Still, there’s always a chance—maybe it’ll work if I try… But I can’t exactly leave Chaoyang Palace on my own, ah—”

[I have a way to let you reach the male lead’s residence without obstruction. Would Host like to make the exchange?]

There’s such an option?

Jiang Xiaoyu didn’t hesitate for even a second.

“Exchange!”

[Exchange successful. Internal and external healing medicines obtained. ‘Unimpeded Passage’ duration: one hour. The Host will be able to avoid all patrol teams safely. Host’s points: now zero.]

Holding two small bottles of medicine, Jiang Xiaoyu couldn’t help but swear the moment she heard that last line.

“Damn it! System, you did that on purpose!”

[Countdown begins.]

[The male lead’s quarters are located in a remote section of the palace. Please be mindful of your time.]

After speaking, a glowing map appeared before Jiang Xiaoyu’s eyes, complete with directional guidance—apparently to make sure she didn’t take a wrong turn and waste precious minutes.

[Host, aren’t I considerate?]

Jiang Xiaoyu threw on a coat and tucked the medicine safely away, replying with a forced smile, “Of course you are!”

She hurried out of Chaoyang Palace, following the system’s guidance. After slipping through half the Imperial Palace, she finally arrived at the place where Pei Shen lived.

Normally, princes and princesses were raised by their birth mothers within the palace. If their mothers held low rank, their children would be placed under the care of a higher-ranking consort, though the birth mother could still visit frequently.

But Pei Shen’s mother had never been favored by the Emperor—and her status was so low that she wasn’t even allowed to live in the palace.

So not only did Pei Shen reside in a remote corner of the grounds, he was, in truth, completely alone.

As for why he was treated with such neglect, the system had already told Jiang Xiaoyu about the male lead’s origins.

Princess Song Zhaoyan’s mother and the Emperor had once shared deep affection but never became a true couple—she eventually married another man. Pei Shen’s mother, on the other hand, had been an ordinary palace maid. Because she bore a slight resemblance to Song Zhaoyan’s mother, the Emperor, in a drunken haze, mistook her for his long-lost “white moonlight” and spent the night with her. That encounter led to Pei Shen’s birth.

The deeper his drunken tenderness, the stronger his sober disgust.

Even though it was obvious that Pei Shen’s mother had been taken advantage of, the Emperor believed she was scheming—that she had deliberately approached him with ulterior motives.

To avoid scandal, the Emperor granted her the lowly title of Cairen, a minor consort, which effectively trapped her in the palace forever.

Even after giving birth to Pei Shen, she never received the slightest promotion.

By reason, when a concubine of low rank gave birth to a prince, other consorts without children would usually find ways to claim the child under their name and raise him as their own. But in Pei Shen’s case, not a single consort was willing to do so.

Because the Emperor despised Pei Shen’s mother, naturally, he also despised Pei Shen himself. The other consorts, fearing they might be dragged into trouble, all kept their distance.

Being promoted from palace maid to Cairen hadn’t improved her life in the slightest—especially with a child to care for.

Without the Emperor’s favor, even the other palace maids dared to look down on her, whispering behind her back and calling her shameless for seducing the drunken Emperor. Yet despite her supposed scheming, she hadn’t managed to climb her way to glory.

If Song Zhaoyan was the Emperor’s beloved “because of love for the one he loved,” then Pei Shen was the opposite—despised simply because of who his mother was.

The Emperor renamed his beloved’s daughter from Song Yuyan to Song Zhaoyan, while for Zhang Cairen’s son, he chose the name Shen—a single character, unlike the other princes who all had three-character names that reflected their rank. The message was clear: Zhang Cairen was to “be cautious” and remember her place, never letting the thought of ambition cross her mind just because she had borne a son.

Thus, both Zhang Cairen and Pei Shen lived their days in the palace walking on thin ice.

Still, no matter how hard life was, as long as he was with his mother, young Pei Shen had felt happy.

But when he turned five, the Emperor suddenly ordered Zhang Cairen to guard the imperial mausoleum—calling it an act of filial piety.

From that day on, for the next seven years, Pei Shen never saw his mother again, left to fend for himself in the vast and lonely imperial city.

After learning Pei Shen’s past, Jiang Xiaoyu couldn’t help but feel a deep, aching sorrow for him.

Some male leads were born with golden luck, blessed with talent and fortune from the start. But Pei Shen—his life had been nothing but hardship from the very beginning.

Panting heavily, Jiang Xiaoyu finally reached the place where Pei Shen lived. She stopped outside the door, took a few deep breaths to steady herself, then bent low and quietly pushed it open.

The place was called Duwei Hall. It was said that after Pei Shen moved here, the Emperor had personally renamed it.

That alone showed just how little affection the Emperor had for this son.

She hadn’t been caught the entire way here, but once she reached Duwei Hall, even the slightest noise could wake Pei Shen—and then she’d be exposed.

Jiang Xiaoyu crept closer to the room, pressing her ear against the door first. Hearing nothing inside, she moved toward the window and peeked through.

It was summer, and the heat was unbearable—no one could sleep without leaving the window open.

But summer also brought swarms of mosquitoes. With the windows open, countless insects buzzed their way inside.

Duwei Hall was small and isolated; from her position at the window, Jiang Xiaoyu could see the entire room. Under the faint glow of moonlight, she spotted Pei Shen lying on the bed.

He looked like he was asleep.

Still uneasy, Jiang Xiaoyu picked up a small pebble and tossed it through the window, hoping to wake Pei Shen so he’d notice the medicine she planned to leave nearby.

But even after throwing several pebbles—some even hitting him—Pei Shen didn’t stir.

No reaction at all? Could he be… dead?

The thought struck her like lightning. Without thinking, Jiang Xiaoyu hurriedly climbed through the window to check.

She leaned close and felt for his breath—thank goodness, it was still steady.

Well, of course. He was the male lead; how could he die so easily?

But then… why wasn’t he waking up?

Jiang Xiaoyu reached out and poked Pei Shen’s cheek. The moment her fingertip brushed his skin, she realized how hot he was. Touching his forehead confirmed it—he was burning up.

“System, what’s going on? It’s the middle of summer—why does Pei Shen have a fever?”

Even the usually emotionless system sounded slightly exasperated.

[His wounds weren’t treated in time, leading to an infection and a fever.]

“Oh,” Jiang Xiaoyu murmured in realization. “So he’s not asleep—he’s unconscious.”

She immediately pulled out the two bottles of medicine she had exchanged. “Then I can give him these, right?”

[Of course. The medicines you exchanged are suitable for his condition.]

Hearing that, Jiang Xiaoyu quickly went to fetch some water.

After painstakingly helping Pei Shen swallow the internal medicine, she lit a candle and began treating his wounds.

Jiang Xiaoyu had always been terrified of pain. And though the injuries weren’t hers, just looking at them made her skin crawl. Every time she glanced at the bloody gashes, her face twisted as if she could feel the sting herself.

[The wounds aren’t on you. Why do you look so pained?]

“Even if they’re not on me, it still hurts to look at them, okay? Stop talking—you’re distracting me while I’m trying to treat him.”

With that, Jiang Xiaoyu gritted her teeth and focused on cleaning his wounds.

She didn’t know whether Pei Shen was too weak to change or simply couldn’t bear to soil a clean robe, but he was still wearing the same bloodstained clothes from the punishment. The dried bl00d had glued the torn fabric to his back. Every time Jiang Xiaoyu tugged it free, her hands trembled uncontrollably.

Pei Shen didn’t react at all, but Jiang Xiaoyu felt her own clothes sticking to her from sweat.

Boiling water, cleaning the wounds, applying the medicine, bandaging everything carefully—by the time she finished, her nerves finally relaxed. She let out a long sigh.

“Finally done.”

[Host, please hurry. The duration of your exchanged item is about to end.]

Only then did Jiang Xiaoyu notice that the timer in front of her was nearly at zero. Panicking, she quickly gathered the leftover medicine and gauze.

Not daring to waste another second, she lifted her skirt and sprinted through the night, hoping to escape before the time ran out and someone discovered her.

And the moment Jiang Xiaoyu slipped out of Duwei Hall, Pei Shen—who had been unconscious this whole time—suddenly stirred, faint traces of awareness returning to his eyes.