Chapter 103

Jiang Xiurun was not a native of Great Qi, so she often didn’t pay much attention to Great Qi’s customs.

However, Feng Wu’s reminder brought some of those customs to her mind.

Seeing Feng Wu’s confident and serious demeanor, she found it somewhat amusing and couldn’t help but ask him with a sidelong glance, “You’re overthinking things, aren’t you? Are you daydreaming, hoping for a pie to fall from the sky?”

Feng Wu didn’t seem to think his earlier words were overly boastful.

He simply smiled and said, “Success depends on effort, doesn’t it?”

To be honest, Feng Wu didn’t believe his elder brother was capable of being tender and considerate toward women.

A woman like Jiang Xiurun, who understood the finer things in life, would never be truly cherished by a man like Feng Liwu, whose mind was solely occupied with power and strategy.

Feng Wu didn’t expect Jiang Xiurun to switch sides based on a few words.

However, he wanted to plant some seeds of doubt in her mind.

She was a smart woman, and with so many concubines in the crown prince’s household, she should understand the importance of leaving room for future possibilities, especially given her and her brother’s precarious situation.

Jiang Xiurun didn’t say much more.

After all, Feng Wu was now the second prince of Great Qi.

As Feng Liwu’s concubine, it wasn’t appropriate for her to spend too much time with him.

Moreover, her maid, Taohua, was loyal to Feng Liwu, and Feng Wu’s words would undoubtedly be reported back to him.

With a cold tone, she said, “Second Prince, you’re overthinking things. I’m not familiar with you, so I’ll take my leave.”

With that, she walked away.

When she returned to her seat, Cao Xi followed closely behind, looking at her with a half-smile.

“I saw you chatting with the second prince earlier. What were you talking about?”

Jiang Xiurun took a sip of her wine and replied without even a smile, “If you’re so curious, why don’t you go ask the second prince yourself?”

Cao Xi’s face tightened in anger, and she spoke in a tone befitting the principal wife: “Yao, remember that you are now the principal concubine of the crown prince’s household. Don’t be so frivolous as to casually chat with others, especially the second prince. If the crown prince finds out, he’ll be furious with you.”

Cao Xi had expected concubine Yao to be frightened and beg her to keep the matter secret.

However, concubine Yao showed no fear of Cao Xi reporting her to the crown prince.

After all, with someone monitoring her, Jiang Xiurun didn’t need to explain anything—Feng Liwu would know everything.

Since Feng Wu had initiated the conversation, it wasn’t her fault.

Moreover, Jiang Xiurun found Feng Wu’s words somewhat inspiring.

If Feng Liwu didn’t want his younger brother to inherit the family estate, he would need to be more cautious.

Feng Liwu wasn’t like those spoiled heirs who simply inherited their father’s wealth.

The arrival of Feng Wu would make him more aware of how to secure his position.

Compared to the same period in her past life, Jiang Xiurun thought Feng Liwu was doing quite well.

At the very least, he was in good health, capable of satisfying her in bed, and had managed to prevent his father from seizing power, maintaining a balance of power.

However, there was one thing Jiang Xiurun couldn’t figure out: why hadn’t Feng Wu appeared earlier in her past life?

Jiang Xiurun blinked and suddenly realized the reason.

In her past life, the emperor already had a favored concubine who was pregnant at this time.

Although Feng Liwu still held the position of crown prince, given his weakened state after the assassination attempt, it was uncertain whether he would outlive the emperor.

The emperor, in no hurry, could afford to wait for his new concubine’s child to grow up and replace Feng Liwu.

Even if Feng Wu had wanted to return to the palace, the emperor’s favored concubine would have been unwilling.

With this realization, Jiang Xiurun’s sympathy for the emperor, which had been based on his devotion to his deceased concubine, diminished significantly.

Looking up, she noticed two beautiful women by the emperor’s side.

They were said to be newly promoted maids who had just been granted the title of “Beauty.” The emperor seemed particularly fond of the one on the right, a young woman who appeared to be only seventeen or eighteen years old.

It seemed her rise to prominence was imminent.

Jiang Xiurun felt a pang of regret for not noticing this earlier.

Otherwise, she could have used it to counter Feng Wu’s earlier remarks.

He had just returned to the royal family, hoping to inherit his elder brother’s estate, but little did he know that behind him, there would be many younger brothers eagerly waiting their turn.

The Mid-Autumn Festival celebration in the Great Qi royal court naturally featured music and dance performances.

This year’s performances were especially captivating, as the emperor had specifically instructed the music and dance bureau to prepare exquisite performances.

Although the emperor had failed to depose the empress, he had dealt a heavy blow to Empress Wei and the Wei family’s influence.

Seeing Empress Wei’s sallow complexion after her miscarriage, which even makeup couldn’t fully conceal, the emperor felt a sense of satisfaction.

Now that he had forced Feng Liwu to agree to Feng Wu’s return to the royal family, Feng Liwu could no longer act as the de facto ruler of Great Qi with impunity.

As the beautiful music and dance performances continued, the emperor took a sip of fine wine, feeling that it was only a matter of time before he reclaimed the military power from Feng Liwu.

However, the emperor’s smugness was unbearable for Empress Wei.

Seeing her lifelong enemy accuse her of being promiscuous while he himself indulged in the company of new concubines, she felt a surge of resentment.

Her son had previously promised not to allow his father to take on new concubines, yet in the short time she had been recovering from her miscarriage, the emperor had already taken in two new beauties.

With this thought, Empress Wei’s accumulated resentment turned toward Feng Liwu.

She glanced down at her son, who was sitting below, and saw Feng Wu toasting him.

To her dismay, Feng Liwu returned the toast, showing none of the dignity befitting the crown prince.

Beside him were her niece, Cao Xi, and Yao, who had feigned illness to avoid serving her during her recovery.

As for Tian Ying, she had become more cunning and hadn’t even shown her face this time.

Empress Wei decided to humiliate the crown prince by targeting concubine Yao.

She turned to Madam Zhao beside her and said, “Summon Concubine Yao to serve and pour wine.”

Madam Zhao obeyed and went to deliver the message.

In such a public setting, Jiang Xiurun couldn’t refuse the empress’s summons.

She stood up and, under Cao Xi’s gleeful gaze, approached the empress.

Empress Wei was in poor health and wasn’t drinking wine.

Instead, she was served a pear juice made from white pears, silver fungus, and goji berries.

To prevent the drink from becoming too cold, a small charcoal fire burned beneath the fine-mouthed copper pot, keeping the liquid scalding hot.

Jiang Xiurun used a thick cloth to hold the pot’s handle and filled the cup carefully.

She then respectfully presented the cup to the empress with both hands.

The empress slowly took the cup, which was wrapped in a cotton sleeve, but suddenly splashed the hot liquid toward Jiang Xiurun.

How dare this woman, a mere hostage from a weak state, act so boldly in the crown prince’s household!

Did she really think that with the crown prince’s favor, she could surpass Cao Xi?

Jiang Xiurun had already heard about Tian Ying’s experiences in the household and knew the empress was deliberately looking for trouble.

She had prepared herself for this moment.

As soon as the empress moved, Jiang Xiurun knew what was coming—the empress would claim the drink was too hot and use it as an excuse to splash her.

She couldn’t dodge completely, so she tilted her body slightly and used her sleeve to shield her face, avoiding burns.

However, to her surprise, the expected scalding pear juice never reached her.

When she moved her sleeve aside, she saw Feng Liwu standing in front of her.

The hot liquid had splashed onto his face, leaving red marks almost immediately.

Although the empress had noticed Feng Liwu approaching out of the corner of her eye, she hadn’t expected him to shield a concubine from the hot liquid.

She was momentarily stunned.

Feng Liwu’s chin dripped with water, and his eyes burned with barely concealed anger.

He gritted his teeth and said, “Who prepared such scalding liquid for the empress? Were they trying to burn her?”

Empress Wei was at a loss.

After all, she had just scalded the crown prince in front of everyone.

She couldn’t very well vent her anger on concubine Yao now.

Madam Zhao quickly stepped in to smooth things over.

“Which clumsy maid prepared this? Go and punish her immediately!”

Empress Wei forced herself to suppress her displeasure and said, “I was momentarily scalded and couldn’t hold the cup. Are you alright, Your Highness? Should we apply some ointment to ease the pain?”

She then turned to Jiang Xiurun behind Feng Liwu and said, “I’m feeling rather tired. Yao, accompany me to fetch some high-quality ginseng paste for the crown prince to apply to his face.”

Feng Liwu had no intention of letting Yao go with his clearly hostile mother.

He said, “That won’t be necessary. It’s nothing serious. I respectfully bid you farewell, Mother.”

However, Empress Wei was now determined to make a scene.

She glared at Feng Liwu and said, “It’s just fetching some medicine. Are you so protective of her? If you know how to cherish beauty, why don’t you share your favor more evenly? You have so many concubines in your household, yet you dote on Yao every day. Her belly remains empty, and you risk leaving Great Qi without a legitimate heir. By the time your father’s concubines bear children, you still won’t have a proper son! Your father doesn’t need you to continue the family line—he can do it all by himself!”

Empress Wei grew angrier as she spoke.

Just as the music and dance performances came to an end, her sharp voice reached the ears of the emperor and many officials.

The recently miscarried empress’s words clearly criticized the emperor’s recent indulgences, and the festive atmosphere immediately cooled.

At this moment, Jiang Xiurun felt deeply embarrassed for Feng Liwu.

What kind of mother humiliated her son in public like this?

Empress Wei, born into the Wei family, had truly been spoiled rotten.

Logically, Jiang Xiurun should have kept her head down and stayed behind Feng Liwu.

But for some reason, she couldn’t bear to see him humiliated like this.

She softly said, “Please calm your anger, Empress. The crown prince is injured, and you must be worried. I will accompany you to fetch the medicine.”

Feng Liwu turned to look at her.

Jiang Xiurun blinked at him, signaling that he needn’t worry.

Feng Liwu slowly said, “Since you’re going to fetch something, bring back more while you’re at it. The medicinal wine in the empress’s palace is excellent. Bring some back for me. Your maid sprained her foot earlier, and your brother Jiang Herun’s maid is on duty outside the hall today. Have her accompany you.”

The maid Feng Liwu referred to was Qian’er.

To avoid any issues with Jiang Xiurun’s identity, Qian’er often accompanied her on such occasions.

With Qian’er by her side, Feng Liwu felt more at ease.

After all, there were also his informants in the empress’s palace, so he could ensure Jiang Xiurun wouldn’t suffer too much.

Thus, Jiang Xiurun, accompanied by Qian’er, followed Empress Wei into the palace.

Empress Wei had no real concern for her son.

The more Feng Liwu protected Jiang Xiurun, the angrier she became.

She was determined to take Jiang Xiurun back to the palace and make her suffer.

A mere hostage from a weak state, relying on her beauty to serve her son and seduce men—what was there to fear?

Empress Wei only wanted to teach her son a lesson.