Palace maid Shuoning

(Up)

Seeing Jiang Shuoning's displeasure, Zhou Zhengyin also felt a surge of resentment.

He didn't think he had said anything wrong. He grew up in the imperial mausoleum, a place that was quiet and clean, free from the messy affairs of the palace.

After returning to the palace, he saw palace maids and eunuchs living together, and heard people say that it was "filthy," so he was convinced that it was wrong.

If he were the one on the throne, he would never allow such a thing to happen under his nose.

But he didn't want to upset his aunt, so after hesitating for a moment, he took two steps closer, reached out and gently tugged at her sleeve, his voice muffled:

"Aunt, that's not what I meant. I can't control what others do, but you certainly wouldn't be like them and go to find eunuchs to have sexual relations with. I just said those things because I didn't understand what Consort Chong and Song Zhang were doing, and I didn't mean to slander those who have sexual relations with eunuchs."

After he finished speaking, he lowered his head, his fingers still gripping her sleeve tightly, like a child who had done something wrong but refused to admit it completely.

Jiang Shuoning glanced down at the sleeve that he had been holding, remained silent for a moment, and then gently pulled it back.

"Ah Yin, you are inexperienced in the ways of the world, and you can't generalize about everything. Everyone has their own difficulties, and not everything you can't understand is wrong."

Zhou Zhengyin nodded, feigning understanding, then looked up and asked, "Auntie, you wouldn't do that, would you?"

Jiang Shuoning's gaze lingered on his face for a moment. His eyes were clean and clear, carrying the stubbornness and unease unique to young people, as if he needed her to say something in person to put his mind at ease.

"Alright." Bao Zhong spoke up at the right moment, looking up at Zhou Zhengyin. "Your focus should be on overturning the verdict against your mother. Other matters are none of your concern."

After speaking, he turned to look at Jiang Shuoning, his voice deepening:

"Song Zhang is dead, and Xin Damao is dead too. Consort Chong has now moved to Consort Su's palace to live with her. Although the Emperor has ordered me to investigate the case, Consort Chong is the only breakthrough if we want to uncover the old grievances. To get her to talk, we need solid evidence. Tomorrow I will go to the eunuch's quarters to look through Song Zhang's files."

"And her daughter," Jiang Shuoning interrupted without looking at him, "She placed her daughter in the care of Consort Mei; there must be something wrong with that."

Seeing that she wouldn't even glance at him, Bao Zhong clenched his fist, then relaxed it, turning his gaze back to the lake, and uttered only two words: "Be careful."

Zhou Zhengyin stood to the side, looking back and forth between the two, and asked, "What about me? What am I supposed to do?"

Jiang Shuoning then looked at him:

"Changmen Palace hasn't been repaired yet, so I'll arrange for you to go to the library first. Focus on your studies, and leave everything else to us. Until your mother's case is overturned, you're in danger at any time, so protecting yourself is more important than anything else."

Bao Zhong glanced at him and added:

"The library is quiet, and I'll arrange for two eunuchs to protect you. If you really want to help, you might as well let the people in the palace know about Song Zhang's poem."

Zhou Zhengyin's eyes darted around, and then he smiled: "I understand."

Lightning suddenly ripped through the night sky, accompanied by thunder and lightning. A fierce wind raged, and the willow branches by the lake were whipped wildly through the air.

"Let's go back, it's going to rain." Jiang Shuoning turned and walked forward.

Zhou Zhengyin quickly caught up with her, hurriedly took off his outer robe and draped it over her shoulders, his voice filled with concern: "Aunt, you've just recovered, you can't catch a cold again."

Jiang Shuoning took off his outer robe and stuffed it back into his arms, looking straight ahead: "You put it on, it will arouse suspicion if I wear it back."

Zhou Zhengyin gave a soft "Oh," and lowered his hand somewhat dejectedly. Glancing at Bao Zhong silently following behind, he remembered something, turned around, and asked:

"Baozhong, is your hand feeling any better?"

Jiang Shuoning paused, turned to look at Bao Zhong, and frowned, asking, "Is your hand injured?"

Bao Zhong calmly put his right hand behind his back, offering no response, and strode past the two of them, coldly tossing out, "That's not true."

The strong wind whipped Jiang Shuoning's clothes around. Gazing at Bao Zhong's straight and resolute back, she pursed her lips and turned to Zhou Zhengyin, saying:

"Ah Yin, you go back first. I have something to say to Bao Zhong."

Zhou Zhengyin glanced at her, then at Bao Zhong who had walked away, pursed his lips, lowered his head, and clenched his outer robe tightly: "I understand."

After saying that, he turned and walked in another direction. After taking a few steps, he looked back once more before quickly disappearing into the night.

(under)

Jiang Shuo called out several times, but Bao Zhong didn't turn around; instead, he quickened his pace.

In her haste, she lifted her skirt and hurried after him, stepping aside to block his path, panting as she said, "I want to see your hands."

Bao Zhong was forced to stop, looking down at her with a blank expression, his right hand still motionless behind his back: "There's nothing to see."

Jiang Shuoning looked up at him, her chest still heaving, but her tone had become steady:

"I can tell if you're injured just by looking at you. The fact that you're hiding it means something's wrong."

The two stood frozen in the wind, when another bolt of lightning struck the horizon, illuminating the expressions on their faces.

Bao Zhong's eyelashes drooped, and his Adam's apple bobbed slightly, as if he had swallowed back some words.

After a moment, he sighed very softly, as if he had finally admitted defeat, and slowly extended his right hand from behind his back.

A burn the size of a coin was on the palm of my hand, covered with a dark brown scab with slightly raised edges. The surrounding redness and swelling had subsided considerably, but the mark was still clearly imprinted on the skin.

Jiang Shuoning's gaze fell on the wound, and her heart felt as if something had gently squeezed it. A sour feeling rose from her chest to her throat. She endured the discomfort and asked softly, "Did Feng Xi burn you?"

Bao Zhong withdrew his hand, his tone as indifferent as if he were talking about someone else: "It was a gift from him, how could I refuse it?"

Jiang Shuoning didn't reply. The night wind passed between them, making her skirt rustle.

After a long while, she finally spoke: "You took it off so easily, but how much pain must it have hurt when you were burning yourself?"

Bao Zhong turned his head away from her, his lips twitching as if he wanted to smile: "Whether it hurts or not, you'll get used to it."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Shuoning's eyes reddened slightly, and his voice became somewhat hoarse: "Thank you for saving me at Yanxi Palace. I owe you so much."

She paused, as if she had something on the tip of her tongue before finally letting it out:

"If you are interested in Xiahe, I... I can ask the Empress to give Xiahe to you in marriage."

Upon hearing this, Bao Zhong's body stiffened instantly, and he lowered his gaze to stare at her. A smile suddenly appeared on his lips, a smile devoid of warmth, even more chilling than when he wasn't smiling.

"Say what you just said again!"

Jiang Shuoning was rooted to the spot by his expression. After a moment's hesitation, she repeated, "I... I mean, if you like Xia He..."

Bao Zhong laughed out loud, a very soft sound, as if he was so angry at something that he found it absurd.

"I saved you just so you could play matchmaker for me?"

He took a step forward, each word seemingly encased in a thin layer of ice:

"Jiang Shuoning, all these years in the palace, you haven't learned anything else, but you have learned how to stab people in the heart. When you put Xia He in my arms, did you ever think about whether I wanted her?"

He clenched his fists tightly, his smile fading. "Or perhaps you never even considered it? In your eyes, I'm just someone who should accept whatever's offered to me, right?"

Jiang Shuoning felt a tightness in his throat and his eyes reddened further after hearing that sentence.

She clearly didn't mean it that way, but the words were already out and couldn't be taken back. Her lips moved, but she couldn't squeeze out a single word.

Bao Zhong's heart skipped a beat, and he suddenly realized that he had spoken too harshly.

A sudden, intense pain shot through my chest, like being pierced by an extremely fine needle, the pain spreading inch by inch along my blood vessels.

"I'm not angry at you." His tone softened unconsciously, as if something had dampened his sharp edges. "Alright, I'll take you home."

Jiang Shuoning bit her lower lip hard, looked up at him, tears welling in her eyes, and forced out a voice from her throat: "I'm sorry."

Bao Zhong looked at her face, which looked so wronged it seemed about to break, tears welling up in her eyes, dangling on her eyelashes.

Suddenly, the image flashed through my mind: at the bottom of the pond, in the cold, murky water, she was stripped naked and locked in an iron cage, curled up in a ball, lifeless.

Without further hesitation, he reached out and grabbed her wrist tightly, the force of which startled even himself for a moment.

He then pulled her into his arms, holding her tightly as if he wanted to meld her into his bones and never let go.

"No one else's words can hurt me, but your words and your tears can hurt me the most."

Jiang Shuoning froze for a moment, his hand hanging by his side, his fingertips curling up as if he wanted to raise it but dared not, and finally gently grasped the fabric at his waist.

The scent of agarwood emanated from him was faint, as if it were seeping out from deep within his clothing; it wasn't strong, but it lingered around the tip of his nose.

His heartbeat, faster than usual, pressed against her forehead with each beat.

After a long silence, she finally spoke, her voice low and hoarse: "Didn't it hurt when you burned yourself?"

Bao Zhong tightened his grip on her arm, and after a long while, he replied, "It hurts." It was a single word, as soft as a sigh.

She said no more, slowly raised her hands, wrapped them around his waist, and buried her face even deeper.

Tears soaked his clothes, a small, warm patch clinging to his chest through the fabric.

Baozhong closed his eyes, rested his chin on her hair bun, and hugged her even tighter.