Chapter 1 — Calling Off the Wedding at the Shen Estate

My imperial father, mindful of the services Shen Yan had rendered in securing the throne, bestowed upon me the grace of marriage into the Shen clan. Yet, on the very day of our grand wedding, the young son of my husband’s cousin, Liu Yiyi, fixed his gaze upon my lower abdomen and blurted out:

“Why did the Princess consort have four younger sisters and three younger brothers in her belly before?”

The countenances of the guests filling the hall shifted instantly; whispers erupted like a wildfire through the rafters. I frowned, but before I could utter a word, Shen Yan strode forward.

“Your Highness, the child speaks without restraint.” He looked at me with a hollow deference. “The Princess holds a position of noble status; surely you would not bicker with a mere child over such trifles. Consider this… the Shen family shall simply swallow the bitterness of this insult.”

With a single sentence, he had firmly cast this bucket of filth upon my head. In the eyes of his cousin, Liu Yiyi, a flash of provocation danced, though she feigned a look of contrition, covering the child’s mouth while apologizing to me.

“I beg the Princess to forgive him. The child is young and ignorant; he knows not how to guard his tongue. Your Highness is a branch of gold and a leaf of jade; you could not possibly stoop to quarrel with a child, could you?”

I burst into laughter.

“The child is ignorant, but is the mother who raised him equally senseless?” I pointed a finger at his cousin and gave a casual, sweeping wave of my hand. “Drag this woman out and behead her.”

I am the eldest Princess, born of the Empress and the most honored daughter of the Great Chu; do I truly need to debase myself to prove anything to the likes of you? The moment my command fell, several of my personal guards drew their blades and stepped forward to seize Liu Yiyi. The child began to wail in terror. Shen Yan abruptly lunged forward, shielding the mother and child behind his own body.

“Your Highness, I implore you to reconsider!” As he spoke, he drew a gold-plated token from his robes, raising it high into the air. “I, Shen Yan, rescued the Emperor at the Northern Border; I risked my life to ensure the safety of the throne. This is a token of immunity from death, granted by the hand of the Emperor himself!”

Seeing the token, my guards were forced to take a step back. Shen Yan’s expression grew increasingly cold. “Today, whoever wishes to touch my family must first step over my corpse!”

Earlier, when I stepped from the palanquin, I had noticed the hem of Liu Yiyi’s skirt catch on the threshold; Shen Yan had instinctively reached out to steady her waist. Then, the child had walked between them, holding Yiyi’s hand with one and Shen Yan’s with the other. The three had stood at the gates, smiling at one another—a picture of a perfect, domestic trio. I had thought myself overly sensitive, but now, it seemed, my suspicions were far from groundless. I arched an eyebrow.

“You truly care deeply for your cousin, do you not?” I remarked. “Those who know the truth understand she is your cousin. Those who do not might easily mistake her for the wife you married with proper rites.”

A flicker of panic crossed Shen Yan’s eyes, but he composed himself in a heartbeat. “Princess, choose your words with care! Yiyi’s husband may not have had glorious military achievements, but he was a hero who wore armor and gripped a spear, dying for the nation! I, Shen, must naturally risk my life to protect the widow and orphan left behind by such a martyr!”

Liu Yiyi’s eyes reddened, and she clutched Shen Yan’s sleeve with a trembling hand. Her voice choked with sobs. “Cousin… today is your day of great celebration. Do not let conflict with the Princess arise on my account. My death is of little consequence; I only pray that I do not bring ruin upon you.”

As she finished, tears streamed down her cheeks. The display of fragile, pitiable grief made it seem as though she were suffering the greatest injustice under heaven. Shen Yan was moved to his core. Clad in the armor of righteous indignation, he refused to yield an inch.

“How could this be called ruin?” he declared. “If not for the countless soldiers spilling their blood on the battlefield, where would the peace of the people come from? And where would the luxury and noble status of the Princess be today? If you, Princess, would slay a martyr’s widow over a child’s stray remark, would that not chill the hearts of every soldier in the realm?”

His words rang with a deafening, manufactured nobility. The surrounding guests shifted in their seats, their faces tight.

“It is no wonder Master Shen risked his life to save the throne; he is a man of such deep loyalty and righteousness, it is truly admirable!” one murmured.

“Indeed! The Princess is being far too tyrannical!”

“Could it be that the child actually spoke the truth…?”

The murmurs grew louder. Seeing this, Shen Yan stood taller, challenging me directly. “It was merely a thoughtless remark from a child; the people heard it and that should have been the end of it. But now, Your Highness is in such a hurry to kill to silence the witness. It makes one wonder… are you perhaps feeling guilty?”

If I ignored it, I was tacitly admitting guilt; if I punished them, I was acting out of fear. Was there ever such an absurd logic in this world? I snatched the marriage contract from the hands of the ceremonial officer and, as if discarding a piece of filth, flung it directly into a nearby coal brazier. I turned to leave without a backward glance.

“If that is the case, then this marriage shall not proceed. Raise the palanquins; we return to the palace.”

Everyone stood stunned. I spared a glance at Shen Yan and spoke with icy indifference: “Since you are so eloquent, you shall accompany me to the palace. Let us see if you have the courage to repeat those words before my imperial father.”

Shen Yan’s complexion finally shifted. My gaze fell upon the immunity token in his hand, and the corners of my lips curled into a cold smile.

“Shen Yan, slandering the Imperial House is a crime punishable by death. Let me remind you: your immunity token can only save one life. On the road to the palace, think carefully—will you use it to save your own head, or that of your beloved cousin?”

I turned to board the palanquin as my guards surged forward. “Escort them to the palace!”

At that moment, an aged, authoritative voice rang out from behind the crowd.

“Presumptuous! The youths of this generation have truly lost all sense of propriety!”