Shen Nian turned to leave, but Ruan Jiqing caught his arm. Glancing at Yutao, he said: "Marquis Shen, do allow this servant to announce you before you go—it will only take a moment."
Yutao frowned slightly, a flicker of confusion in her eyes.
Ruan Jiqing paid her no mind and walked straight to the hall doors, knocking twice. After the Emperor's somewhat cool voice came from within, he announced: "Your Majesty, Marquis Zhenbei requests an audience."
The doors opened, and Shen Nian entered with his head bowed.
Yutao looked at Ruan Jiqing with a trace of displeasure. Before she could speak, Ruan Jiqing raised a finger to his lips in a quieting gesture and said: "Miss Yutao, His Majesty has always placed state affairs above all else. If he were to learn later that Marquis Zhenbei had come to the palace today but did not enter the hall, that would bring trouble upon Her Majesty the Empress as well."
Yutao understood this well enough, but she still inwardly blamed Shen Nian for his ill-timed arrival.
Today, Empress Wen Wan had personally prepared soup and brought it to the Emperor, and he had not refused it. She had thought that harmony between the Emperor and Empress was within reach—only for this unexpected interference to ruin everything.
Ruan Jiqing knew exactly what Yutao was thinking, but he stood by without saying anything more.
Truth be told, he had hesitated before announcing Shen Nian's arrival. The Emperor had shown the Empress little kindness lately, but he had long heard this saying: husband and wife quarrel at the head of the bed, make up at the foot of the bed. In the past, the Emperor had held the Empress like a pearl in his palm—such feelings could not simply vanish overnight.
[床头吵架床尾和 (chuáng tóu chǎo jià chuáng wěi hé): lit. "Quarrel at the head of the bed, make up at the foot of the bed"; fig. Couples' arguments are usually short-lived.]
He reasoned that the Emperor simply wanted the Empress to soften and yield.
By keeping her at arm's length repeatedly, it was clear that the Empress had finally understood his intent, as she had been making one overture after another to close the distance between them.
If the Emperor went along with it, then the Empress would remain the pearl in his hand.
But Ruan Jiqing kept all these speculations to himself. The death of his adopted son was still seared into his heart. If he guessed wrong, this time it would be his own head on the line.
So after much deliberation—even if it meant incurring the Empress's wrath later—he had to announce Shen Nian to the Emperor now. Whether the Emperor wished to see him or not was the Emperor's decision.
And as it turned out, he had made the right call.
Shen Nian went in, and the Empress lip came out.
Because of this, Ruan Jiqing felt a wild and audacious thought take root in his mind. Perhaps the Emperor truly had grown weary of the Empress—not merely throwing a tantrum as he had imagined.
But the notion was too startling, and in front of Yutao, he dared not show even a trace of it.
Shen Nian entered Qianhua Hall, and Empress Wen Wan emerged.
As Yutao helped her away, she repeated Ruan Jiqing's words in a low voice. Wen Wan nodded.
After walking some distance, she turned to look back at Qianhua Hall, a strange emptiness settling in her heart.
In the past, if she happened to exchange even a few extra words with Qi Junmu, he would be overjoyed. Now she had personally prepared soup, hoping to mend the rift between them—yet he had not even glanced at it.
She had barely spoken two sentences to him before he had lowered his head to read memorials.
She had stepped forward of her own accord to grind ink for him, and Qi Junmu had not refused.
At first, Wen Wan had taken this as a sign that Qi Junmu was softening. But gradually, she began to feel that Qi Junmu regarded her as nothing more than a maid grinding ink—a servant to be used.
Even Yutao and the Empress Dowager believed the Emperor was merely sulking with her. But only Wen Wan knew in her heart: the Emperor had truly grown cold. There was no trace of her in his eyes—he could not even be bothered to pretend.
Wen Wan sighed inwardly, then turned and walked away.
On the way back to Weiyang Palace, Wen Wan asked: "That was Marquis Zhenbei just now?"
Yutao nodded, unable to hide her displeasure. "Marquis Zhenbei is far too presumptuous. Knowing full well that Your Majesty was inside, he still had the nerve to barge in so tactlessly."
"Nonsense," Wen Wan said, her tone turning sharp. "How could Marquis Zhenbei have known I was in there? He entered the palace at this hour because he had state matters to discuss with the Emperor. If such words get out, who knows what slanderous tales people will spin about me."
Yutao quickly lowered her head. "Your Majesty, this servant spoke clumsily. Please do not be angry."
Wen Wan shot her a look. "I'll let it slide this once. But if you forget yourself again, I will not go easy on you."
No matter what Yutao really thought in her heart, she naturally agreed aloud.
After walking for a while, Wen Wan added, "It's still early. Go invite Princess Fuhua to Weiyang Palace. I've made some of her favorite pastries, as a way to make amends to her."
After that messy affair in the imperial garden last time, both she and Fuhua had been victims too.
Fuhua was someone dearly cherished by both the Empress Dowager and the Emperor. Wen Wan couldn't afford to sour their relationship—that would be bad for her and for the Wen family.
Yutao escorted Wen Wan back to Weiyang Palace before heading to Fuhua's palace.
When Fuhua heard that Wen Wan had made pastries, she smiled and said, "The Empress's cooking is the best. Have you sent any to His Majesty?"
At this, Yutao couldn't help but reply, "Your Highness, of course we did. But as luck would have it, no sooner had we sent them over than Marquis Zhenbei entered the palace."
"Marquis Zhenbei?" Fuhua thought for a moment. "Is that the same one who saved my cousin Lin En in the imperial garden last time?"
Yutao nodded. She had already been feeling indignant on Wen Wan's behalf, and though Wen Wan had told her not to say too much, Yutao simply couldn't keep things bottled up. Now that she'd spoken her piece to Fuhua, she felt much lighter—and her mind had cleared too.
She quickly added, "Your Highness, Her Majesty just instructed me not to be loose-tongued. Please don't mention this in front of her—I'm afraid it might upset her."
Fuhua smiled and agreed.
She was a woman of her word. When she arrived at Weiyang Palace, she didn't breathe a word about Yutao's indiscretion. She only praised how delicious Wen Wan's pastries were and how good her soup tasted.
Every time Fuhua visited the Empress Dowager, she could bring a smile to her face—not only because of her status, but also because she had a real gift for witty conversation.
Wen Wan had been feeling somewhat downcast, but with Fuhua's constant teasing and cheerful talk, she too couldn't help but laugh.
So they chatted and laughed together in Weiyang Palace, the atmosphere warm and joyful.
Over in Qianhua Hall, Qi Junmu and Shen Nian sat facing each other in silence.
Since Shen Nian had entered the palace at this hour, Qi Junmu naturally assumed he had business to report. He sat there waiting for Shen Nian to speak—but after paying his respects, Shen Nian just stood there without a word.
Qi Junmu waited for half an incense stick's time. When he could wait no longer, he said, "Marquis Shen, didn't you have something to report? Is there some difficulty you find hard to speak of?"
Qi Junmu considered himself quite considerate—when his minister wouldn't speak, he'd even found an excuse for him.
But Shen Nian wasn't reluctant to speak—he simply had no idea what he was supposed to say.
The crux of the matter was this: before he arrived, the Emperor and Empress had been enjoying some time alone together. The moment he showed up, he'd scattered the pair of lovebirds.
If he couldn't come up with a good reason for his presence, wouldn't the Emperor be angry enough to have him caned?
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