Chapter 4 — Red Plum Blossoms in the Snow

I lowered my eyes and murmured, "Let us speak of this later; I wish to rest for a few days first." Xiao Chengze did not press me further; he merely reached out and gently stroked the top of my head. "Very well, tell me whenever you are ready. For these next two days, leave the management of the estate to me. Focus entirely on recuperating."

Early the next morning, I was stirred from sleep by a commotion outside. Lu Zhi came in to help me wash and dress. As she wrung out the damp towel, she lowered her voice and said, "My Lady, the capital is in an absolute uproar today. The Heir Apparent exposed the corruption and bribery scandal of the Pei family to the public, and now the entire city is whispering about their downfall. The family home is being investigated, and even the matriarch of the Pei family was cornered at her own gate by people demanding answers."

I knew exactly whose handiwork this was. It was no wonder Xiao Chengze, who usually preferred to lounge in bed with me, had departed so early today. I nodded to signal that I understood, then prepared to pay my respects to Xiao Chengze’s mother. The Princess Consort was an incredibly kind soul. Years ago, when Xiao Chengze brought me back from Qingzhou to the capital, she never once looked down upon me. Instead, she took my hands and said, "With that brat’s difficult temperament, it is a blessing that anyone is willing to marry him at all."

Over the past three years, even though I was not there to serve her, she treated me with more affection than a biological daughter, constantly sending endless gifts to Qingzhou. She had missed the banquet yesterday due to poor health, but she must have heard the news by now. Indeed, as soon as I reached her courtyard, a maid greeted me, saying the Princess was expecting me. She waved away my formal salutations and pulled me to sit beside her on the bed. "I have heard of yesterday's events. The Pei family are truly vile creatures. To think they had the audacity to harass you after all the suffering they caused you in the past." She sighed, her eyes filled with warmth. "Chengze has finally vented your grievances for you. Does your heart feel a little lighter now?"

I nodded softly. "Yes, thank you for not harboring any disdain for me, Mother."

The Princess glared at me playfully. "What nonsense are you spouting? My son is the unruly one; if anyone is to be despised, it should be you despising him."

I was moved to laughter by her words. Just as I was about to reply, a maid rushed into the room in a state of panic. She caught sight of me and abruptly bit her tongue, hesitating to speak. Sensing that the news concerned me, I said directly, "Go ahead. Speak."

"Heir Consort," the maid stammered, "something has occurred in the city. Master Pei, Pei Mingyuan, is hosting a banquet at the tea house in the eastern district for several young nobles. During the gathering, he made some… rather unpleasant remarks. He claimed that your behavior in the capital years ago was improper, and suggested that the Heir Apparent had been blinded by infatuation and married someone of loose character…"

Before the maid could finish, the Princess's face flushed with fury, but not because of me. I closed my eyes. Pei Mingyuan had clearly lost his mind. Having been publicly humiliated by me and shamed by Xiao Chengze the day before, he had awakened to find himself the laughingstock of the capital. Now, he was acting out of pure spite, desperate to drag me down with him. His words were a web of half-truths. The rumors of impropriety in the past were born from his mother’s attempts to force me into a compromising position, but how could outsiders understand the nuances of that entrapment? To them, it would only sound like I was a shameless woman who had debased herself.

The Princess, trembling with rage, gripped my hand. "Do not be afraid. Chengze has already gone there. We shall see if Pei Mingyuan dares to utter another word against you!"

Deep down, I knew this would not be resolved so easily. Pei Mingyuan’s words had already spread; even if Xiao Chengze beat him half to death right now, he could not silence the entire city. In the future, every time I stepped out, I would inevitably be the target of pointed fingers and whispers.

"Mother," I said, rising, "I must go out. Some things must be clarified in the light of day."

By the time my carriage reached the tea house, I had not yet fully stepped down when the sound of shattering furniture echoed from the second floor. A moment later, a pathetic scream from Pei Mingyuan pierced the air. I lifted my skirts and hurried from the carriage. Looking up, I saw a window overlooking the street burst open from the inside. Pei Mingyuan was dangling halfway out, his collar gripped tightly by a hand, his face a bruised shade of purple. Xiao Chengze’s voice thundered from within: "Pei Mingyuan, repeat what you just said. Say it again to my face."

I rushed upstairs and threw open the door to the private chamber. Pei Mingyuan’s face, once considered handsome, was a mess of blue and violet, his lips split and bleeding. He choked out a desperate plea: "Heir Apparent, please—I had too much to drink! I was speaking foolishness!"

Xiao Chengze tilted his head to look at me, then loosened his grip. Pei Mingyuan tumbled out of the frame, crashing onto a pile of porcelain shards littering the floor.

"Didn't I tell you to rest at the estate?" Xiao Chengze asked, frowning.

"If I hadn't come, were you planning to throw him out of the window?" I glanced out the window. It was not a great height, but a broken leg would be an inevitability.

Xiao Chengze scoffed. "Death would be too easy for him."

I looked past him at Pei Mingyuan, who was curled in a ball on the ground. His face was smeared with blood and dust, stripped of any remaining dignity. When he saw me standing beside Xiao Chengze, a twisted, bitter look flashed in his eyes. "Have you come to watch my humiliation?" he sneered. "You climbed to a higher branch, so you’ve come back to trample on me? Who was it years ago who wept and swore they loved me?"