Chapter 16 — Sacrificed by the Heir: Reborn as Yue Zhaoyue to Avenge Sixteen Years of Injustice

I asked, "Your Highness, does my true lineage have anything to do with the Northern Frontier?" The Grand Princess’s expression shifted instantly.

"How do you know about the Northern Frontier?"

I lowered my eyes. "I saw it in a dream."

She did not press me on that absurd explanation. After a long silence, she replied, "It does." The elderly nurse beside her immediately looked anxious. "Your Highness."

The Grand Princess waved a hand. "The girl has a right to know at least this much." She looked directly at me. "You may be carrying something on your person that many desire. When the official Shen brought you back to the capital all those years ago, it was not necessarily out of kindness."

I reached up and touched my throat. I had always worn a plain wooden token there. My mother had once told me it was a toy I had clung to tightly since I was a child. After Shen Yuntang returned to the household, she had tried to take it from me several times, but I refused. She would weep and call me stingy. My father had once been so enraged by the dispute that he nearly sliced the red cord with a blade, but for some reason, he had stayed his hand. The Grand Princess watched my movements.

"Is that it?"

I removed the wooden token and placed it in my palm. The edges were worn smooth from years of handling, and a faint, crescent-moon carving was etched into its surface. The Grand Princess did not touch it, but a single glance was enough to drain the color from her face.

"Keep it hidden. Regardless of who asks, tell them you lost it."

Qing Xing whispered, "Your Highness, what exactly is this?" The Grand Princess turned a sharp gaze toward her, and the maid immediately clamped her mouth shut. I put the token back on.

"Your Highness, does the Heir of the Xie estate know?"

The Grand Princess replied, "He does not. And the Shen family does not necessarily know the whole truth, either." I had just let out a breath of relief when a maid entered to report. "Your Highness, the Heir is outside the courtyard; he says he wishes to see the Second Young Miss."

The Grand Princess’s face darkened. "Tell him to get lost."

The maid stood stunned. The Grand Princess repeated, "Relay my exact words to him."

The maid retreated. A moment later, Xie Linchu’s voice drifted in from beyond the courtyard. "Shen Zhaoyue, I only need to say a few words."

The Grand Princess rose, intending to head out. I intervened, "Your Highness, let me go." She looked at me intently. "Do not be soft-hearted."

I smiled faintly. "I will not."

Outside the gate, Xie Linchu stood amidst the falling snow, his cloak already dusted with white. In the past, I had feared him catching a chill above all else. Every winter, I would hand-stitch warm socks, knit covers for his hand warmers, and brew soups to ward off the cold. He used to say I was thoughtful. Later, when Shen Yuntang returned, he claimed she didn't know how to do such things, finding her clumsiness endearing. Seeing me, Xie Linchu spoke first.

"Shen Yuntang has been sent to the Quiet Heart Temple."

"I know," I said. He waited a moment, seemingly expecting a reaction I would not give. "Her health is not good."

"That is none of my concern."

He frowned. "Shen Zhaoyue, even if she was wrong, she suffered a great deal during her years away."

I asked, "Does that give her the right to harm me?"

"That is not what I meant."

"Then what, exactly, did the Heir mean?"

He was silent for a moment. "I simply feel that now that you know you are not a daughter of the Shen family, there is no need to keep such a rigid tally of past grievances between you two."

I was so incensed I nearly laughed. "Because I am not a daughter of the Shen family, the debt for her framing me for kidnapping should be forgotten? Because I am not a daughter of the Shen family, it is only natural for her to steal my belongings? Because I am not a daughter of the Shen family, her spiking your wine with incense to harm me should also be easily forgiven? Xie Linchu, given the state of your intellect, has the manor not yet invited a physician to examine you?"

The guard at the gate lowered his head, his shoulders trembling slightly. Xie Linchu’s face turned leaden. "Your words are becoming increasingly sharp."

I nodded. "You will get used to them in time."

He suppressed his anger. "I did not come here to argue with you."

"Then I invite the Heir to return home."

He reached out to stop me. "Is Mother investigating your origins?"

I looked at him. "That is none of your business."

"You are in the Prince's manor; it is my business."

I countered, "This is the Grand Princess's manor, not the Heir's." Xie Linchu was left speechless. He changed his tone. "Shen Zhaoyue, I misunderstood you before. I will investigate the matter of the incense thoroughly."

"There is no need to trouble the Heir."

"Must you keep everyone at such a distance?"

I looked at him. "When you were shielding Shen Yuntang, did you not shut me out of all fairness as well?"

His lips parted. "I thought you were truly acting out of jealousy."

"And now? Do you believe me now?"

He did not answer immediately. I laughed softly. "You see, you still do not believe me. You have only discovered that my background may hold other secrets, and you feel that I am no longer someone you can treat as you please."

A look of struggle flitted across Xie Linchu’s face. "Shen Zhaoyue, in your eyes, am I truly that wretched?"

I replied, "It seems the Heir has yet to understand himself at all."