After my father was sent to marry into the princess's household, I became the darling of the en

Xiao Jingzhang's face turned bright red, as if someone had pressed his head against a brazier.

Her round little eyes were filled with guilt and anger. She looked around at the palace servants, but they all bowed their heads faster than the next, and none of them stood up to help her out.

"You...you're talking nonsense!"

He held it in for a long time, his face turning as red as a pig's liver, then stomped his foot, turned around, and ran away.

The group of palace servants behind them hurriedly followed.

Xiao Jingshu scoffed from the side, put her hands on her hips, and shouted loudly.

"Why are you running away! If you dare to be so disrespectful next time you're in front of the Phoenix Palace, this princess will beat you up!"

Shen Jingque patted her shoulder to comfort her.

"Anger, anger, anger will make you sick and no one can take your place."

His gaze followed the direction in which Xiao Jingzhang disappeared, and he fell into thought.

Those words just now sounded like the boastful talk of a child.

But upon closer inspection, something doesn't seem right.

The current emperor is in his prime, the country is at peace, and the national treasury is full. This is the golden age for him to enjoy supreme power.

Which emperor would be in such a hurry to establish a crown prince at this time?

Moreover, Empress Wang was also eyeing the court with covetous eyes. Even if the emperor wanted to cultivate Xiao Jingzhang, he would not say such things to a ten-year-old child.

Who taught him to say that?

The expression on Xiao Jingzhang's face when he let it slip earlier didn't seem like it was the first time he'd made such a mistake.

It's as if they've gotten used to talking in the palace, and they don't know how to keep their mouths shut.

Shen Jingque felt a chill run down her spine when she recalled the attitude of the palace servants behind him.

When their master made outrageous remarks in public, not a single person stepped forward to pull him back or offer a word of advice. Instead, they all pretended to be dead and let him jump into the pit.

Then there's only one possibility: someone is deliberately trying to ruin him by praising him too much.

"Shen Jingque? What are you spacing out for?"

Xiao Jingshu waved her hand in front of her.

Shen Jingque snapped out of her daze, smiled at her, and temporarily suppressed those thoughts.

"It's okay, let's go. Weren't you going to take me swinging?"

Xiao Jingshu's attention was successfully diverted by the word "swing," and her eyes lit up as she dragged her toward the Imperial Garden, muttering to herself.

"Just you wait, that swing can swing as high as a tree!"

"...Please don't use that tone to talk about scary things."

The two ran off laughing and joking, leaving behind the eaves of the Phoenix Palace casting a quiet shadow in the sunlight.

Shen Jingque silently made a mental note of it.

I need to tell my elder brother about Xiao Jingzhang's matter when I get back.

Regardless of who is behind it all, it seems that the Fourth Prince's inner circle has already been infiltrated.

……

Cining Palace.

The sandalwood incense rose gently from the gilded beast-shaped incense burner, filling the entire hall with an intense, almost overwhelming, sandalwood fragrance that made one's temples throb.

Three gilded Buddha statues were enshrined in front of the Buddhist hall. The scriptures on the table were neatly stacked, and there were dents on the prayer cushions where people had knelt. Next to them was a string of prayer beads that had been mostly recited.

Everything testifies to the piety and compassion of the palace's owner.

Empress Zhao sat on the rosewood Luohan bed, her hand holding a 108-bead sandalwood Buddhist rosary. With a slight movement of her knuckles, the beads clinked together and made a soft sound.

When she looked up from the scriptures in her hands, she met the gazes of two figures stepping into the temple.

Xiao Mingyue walked ahead, her posture upright and her demeanor imposing.

Shen Yan followed half a step behind her, his eyes gentle as spring water, his steps composed and measured.

The Empress Dowager's gaze swept over the two of them, finally settling on Shen Yan, where it lingered for a couple of moments.

"It's rare for the bright moon to come and sit here with me."

She put down her scripture and said slowly, "What brings you here today? You even brought your husband along, that's quite unusual."

The couple stepped forward and bowed, their posture respectful and impeccable, without a single fault.

"Your subject greets Your Majesty."

"Your subject pays respects to the Empress Dowager."

The Empress Dowager raised her hand to gesture for the two to sit down, and then turned her head to instruct the maid beside her to serve tea.

The palace servants filed in, arranged the tea, snacks, and fruits neatly, and then silently withdrew.

The hall was quiet for a few breaths, with only the sound of the prayer beads turning between the Empress Dowager's fingers.

She suddenly sighed, a look of nostalgia rising on her face, and her voice softened considerably.

"Mingyue, you also grew up by my side. From the time you entered Cining Palace at the age of three to the time you married and established your own household at the age of twelve, although I am not your biological mother, I have taken good care of you all these years."

"When you were young, you fell ill with a high fever that lasted for three days. The imperial physicians said it was a serious condition, and I stayed by your bedside for three nights without closing my eyes..."

Before he could finish speaking, Xiao Mingyue interrupted.

"Mother has such a good memory; she remembers things from so long ago so clearly."

The Empress Dowager stopped.

Xiao Mingyue looked at her, her expression calm and indifferent, unaffected in the slightest by the Empress Dowager's so-called tender memories.

"But what I remember are other things."

From the age of five to twelve, I lived in a side hall on the west side of the Phoenix Palace. In winter, there was no underfloor heating, only a charcoal brazier.

There was only one elderly nanny serving them, and when she was lazy at night, even the lights in the palace were turned off.

Shen Yan sat to the side, his hands resting on his knees without moving, but his fingertips tightened slightly.

He never imagined that the pampered princess would spend her childhood in such a way.

Xiao Mingyue had never told him these things.

The Empress Dowager's expression changed. The prayer beads were rubbed together in her palm, making a soft rustling sound. The veil of kindness in her eyes seemed to be torn away, revealing the sharpness beneath.

Xiao Mingyue ignored her reaction and continued talking to herself.

Outsiders only know that the late emperor raised his eldest daughter under the empress's care, what a great favor that was.

What they didn't know was that the hands that held me on their laps in public never offered me even a bowl of extra bird's nest porridge in private.

She raised her eyes and looked straight into the depths of the Empress Dowager's pupils.

"I don't blame you. There's no obligation to be completely devoted to someone who isn't your own child."

"But Mother, please don't reminisce about the past in front of me."

The Empress Dowager's face turned pale and bluish, her chest heaved violently, and her voice was filled with suppressed anger.

You are ungrateful!

If the late emperor felt that I had mistreated you, he would have taken you away long ago!

His keeping you by my side is a sign of his trust in me!

Xiao Mingyue smiled calmly.

"Naturally, what Father Emperor trusts is the dignity of the Zhao family, a noble clan, and he trusts that you will not go too far and cause criticism from the world."

"I didn't want to put Father in a difficult position, so I never said anything. At least you ensured my safe upbringing, didn't you?"

She paused, her voice softening slightly.

"But that doesn't mean I owe you anything."

Once, she was as close to her mother as any princess, longing for her mother's love.

But she later learned that her mother's love was conditional.

She needs to present her achievements and support her younger brother.

She had to compromise time and time again, letting her husband die and giving up the pursuit of justice.

Later, she realized that her mother's love was like hay hanging in front of cattle and sheep, forever unattainable.

Moreover, later on, her mother tried to kill her time and time again.

As Xiao Mingyue watched the Empress Dowager's face gradually regain its composure, she lowered her voice again.

"Your subject has come today not to settle old scores."