A Precious Pearl in the Imperial City

"Your Majesty, this concubine truly did not know there were such unspeakable things in this sachet. Had I known, even with a hundred times the courage, I would never have dared bring it to Bright Moon Palace."

Consort Zhang's knees had already weakened the moment she entered and saw both His Majesty and the Empress present. When the imperial physician confirmed the sachet contained poison, she collapsed to the floor in terror, her mind racing—who had framed her? Would her life even be spared?

Heavens, send down a snowfall to prove how wronged I am!

But the heavens showed no intention of obliging her—not a single snowflake fell, nor even a gust of wind.

"This... this 'drunken flower,' this concubine doesn’t even know what it looks like, let alone whether it’s poisonous." Consort Zhang wept pitifully. "I beg Your Majesty and Her Majesty the Empress to see the truth—this concubine harbors no intention of harming the Empress!"

"Enough." Emperor Longfeng rubbed his temples, irritated by her wailing. "The Empress hasn’t even spoken yet. Why are you in such a hurry?"

"This ​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​‍concubine dares not, this concubine is wronged." Consort Zhang sniffled softly, though she no longer dared to wail loudly.

"Little Pig, see that?" Prince Chen whispered in Jiuzhu’s ear. "This is one of the three tactics favored by both concubines and court officials—the weeping method."

"What are the other two?"

"The clamoring method and the suicide method. Sometimes, to achieve their goals, people combine all three."

Jiuzhu glanced at Emperor Longfeng with deep sympathy. "His Majesty truly has it hard."

With such people in both court and harem, what a life of suffering he must lead.

"Stop staring like that," Prince Chen muttered. "If you keep looking, half the memorials on His Majesty’s desk will end up on mine."

Jiuzhu quickly averted her gaze. The prince was still young—he shouldn’t suffer like His Majesty.

"Your Majesty, Her Majesty, the Fourth Prince and the Fourth Princess Consort have arrived."

Emperor Longfeng hadn’t seen this son of his since New Year’s Eve. Silently, he ran his fingers over the teacup in his hand.

"Your Majesty," Empress Su smiled. "No matter what happens, blood ties cannot be severed. Let bygones be bygones."

"All these years, you’ve suffered." Emperor Longfeng didn’t wish to wear a stern expression in front of Empress Su. He took her hand. "But what does blood matter? Before the temptation of the throne, everything becomes insignificant."

"Father, that’s not entirely true," Prince Chen interjected, leaning in. "Your son has never coveted your position."

"Silence!" Emperor Longfeng grew even angrier. The fact that he didn’t covet it was more infuriating than if he did.

Prince Chen quietly returned to Jiuzhu’s side. She patted his arm comfortingly. "Don’t be upset, Your Highness. Even Sixth Brother gets scolded by Uncle often at home, but Uncle cares deeply for him."

"Ah," Prince Chen feigned sorrow. "It’s my fault for not doing well enough."

"Your Highness has done more than enough."

Empress Su shot a glance at her son, who was playing pitiful in front of Jiuzhu, and cleared her throat as a warning to rein it in. "Summon the Fourth Prince and his consort inside."

"Xiangjuan, help Consort Zhang up. Let her speak slowly while seated."

Yun Yanze entered the hall and performed a full ceremonial bow. "This son greets Father Emperor and Mother Empress."

"Rise, both of you. Be seated." Empress Su smiled at the couple when Emperor Longfeng remained silent. After they sat, she exchanged a few pleasantries.

Yun Yanze answered each question flawlessly, his responses impeccable.

Empress Su had no intention of performing motherly affection in front of Emperor Longfeng. Once the formalities were over, she cut to the chase. "We summoned you today because the sachet Consort Zhang brought into Bright Moon Palace contained drunken flower and substances that induce madness."

Yun Yanze paled but maintained his composure. "This son knows nothing of this matter."

"Precisely because you don’t know, we called you here." Empress Su gestured, and the imperial physician presented the poisoned sachet on a tray. "Take a look, Fourth Prince."

The drunken flower was beautiful in full bloom, but dried, it resembled shriveled leaves, devoid of any charm.

At the word "poison," Sun Caiyao instinctively looked at Ming Jiuzhu.

Noticing the odd stare, Jiuzhu met her gaze. "Fourth Sister-in-law, is something the matter?"

"Nothing," Sun Caiyao averted her eyes hastily. "Nothing at all."

"Your Highness, the drunken flower repels insects, but its stems and leaves are poisonous. Ingesting too much can be fatal. However, these dried petals alone aren’t highly toxic—but when mixed with this powder and worn daily, they can drive the wearer to madness within a month."

Consort Zhang, hearing the physician’s words, slowly regained her composure. "Someone... wanted to harm me?"

"Don’t panic yet. I’ve already ordered a search of your quarters. Anything suspicious will be confiscated." Empress Su soothed her. "Tonight, you’ll stay in Bright Moon Palace’s side chamber."

"Many thanks for Her Majesty’s mercy!" Consort Zhang finally understood—the Empress had summoned her to protect her life.

"Bright Moon Palace has never housed other consorts. Let her stay in Breeze Pavilion instead. If you’re uneasy, assign more guards." Emperor Longfeng, who had remained silent until now, spoke up. "We cannot break precedent for her."

Consort Zhang: "..."

Very well. She understood—she wasn’t worthy!

"That works too." Empress Su shot Emperor Longfeng a reproachful look before turning back to Consort Zhang. "Breeze Pavilion has no other residents. You’ll take the main chamber—better than squeezing into my side room."

Given the choice, who wouldn’t prefer Bright Moon Palace’s side chamber?

"Thank you, Your Majesty." Consort Zhang dared not protest.

Soon, the men sent to search Consort Zhang’s quarters returned.

"Reporting to Your Majesty and Her Majesty, we found two vermilion-painted long-necked vials, a box of incense containing drunken flower powder, and... and..." The lead eunuch hesitated, stealing glances at Jiuzhu.

"And what?" Empress Su’s expression darkened.

"And a cursed doll bearing the birth characters of Princess Consort Chen." The eunuch kowtowed. "This servant begs Your Majesties and Their Highnesses for mercy."

Throughout history, the imperial family abhorred witchcraft. Finding the doll beneath Consort Zhang’s bedding had nearly made them collapse in fear.

"Consort Zhang?!" Empress Su’s fury was unmistakable.

"Your Majesty, this concubine knows nothing of this!" Consort Zhang shook her head frantically. "I’ve never believed in such things!"

"Wait." Jiuzhu spoke up. "Where is this doll? Bring it to me."

"Princess Consort, such a vile object—"

"Bring it to her," Prince Chen cut in coldly. "With Father Emperor here, what evil dares approach?"

A eunuch entered with a tray covered by red cloth, a small lump visible beneath it.

Jiuzhu lifted the cloth and examined the doll, then laughed. "This isn’t a cursed doll—it’s just a cloth doll. Where exactly in Consort Zhang’s quarters was it found?"

"Replying to the Princess Consort, beneath the bedding Consort Zhang slept under."

"If this were truly a voodoo doll, who would dare hide it beneath their bedding?" Jiuzhu picked up the silver needles pinned into the doll and poked at the fabric a few times, where her own birth characters were written. "A proper voodoo doll should be woven from straw, tied with red thread inscribed with the target's name and birth details—preferably even their hometown. That’s the most basic method. This cloth doll is completely useless."

The doll was soft and oddly satisfying to poke.

Prince Chen, who had been lounging with one leg crossed over the other, quietly lowered it as he watched Jiuzhu gleefully stab the doll.

"Also, these silver needles are all wrong. For a proper curse, gold needles should be used—they’re far more effective at sealing fate and severing breath." Jiuzhu shook the doll a couple of times before tossing it onto a tray. "Most importantly, witchcraft is pure nonsense. If a mere doll could eliminate all one’s enemies, what kind of order would our Great Cheng have left?"

When she finished, she noticed everyone staring at her in silence. "What’s wrong?" she asked, puzzled.

Ahem. Prince Chen glanced at the doll Jiuzhu had just been poking. "How do you know so much about making voodoo dolls?"

"What’s the big deal?" Jiuzhu plucked out the remaining needles and neatly lined them up. "Both of my masters were practitioners of the mystic arts. They told me plenty of folk legends."

"Those with righteous hearts are impervious to evil. Even if ghosts and demons existed, they’d retreat at the sight of soldiers and constables."

Consort Zhang, who had been wailing about her innocence, fell silent, her tear-streaked face drying in the breeze.

Even Yun Yanze and his wife stood frozen, their expressions a mix of shock and bewilderment—especially when they saw Ming Jiuzhu casually stabbing the doll bearing her own birth details.

What kind of person would dare do such a thing?

Did she have no sense of taboo at all?

Sun Caiyao swallowed hard, her gaze toward Jiuzhu now tinged with awe.

"Jiuzhu," Empress Su finally managed, her voice strained, "are you saying Consort Zhang was framed?"

"Yes." Jiuzhu nodded. "Consort Zhang isn’t foolish enough to hide a voodoo doll in such an obvious place, just waiting to be caught."

Given Empress Su’s favored status in the palace, if Consort Zhang had truly hidden a cursed doll in her bedding, she’d have been reported by the palace maids before the next sunrise.

Consort Zhang stared at Jiuzhu with gratitude, all her earlier resentment about her daughter’s lack of support vanishing. Now, all she could think was how astute and fair-minded the Princess Consort of Prince Chen was—a woman who wouldn’t wrong an innocent person.

"Cinnabar is highly toxic. Prolonged exposure can drive a person to madness," the imperial physician said, eyeing Consort Zhang. Whoever she had offended clearly wanted her to lose her mind.

"Thank you, Physician." Empress Su nodded. "You may retire to the side hall for now."

"Your servant takes his leave." The physician understood—what came next was not for his ears.

Once he was gone, Prince Chen lazily turned to Yun Yanze. "Fourth Brother, have you figured out this little play yet?"

"This is a scheme targeting both me and Fifth Sister-in-law," Yun Yanze said, glancing at Jiuzhu. "Someone used Consort Zhang to pit me against her."

The entire court knew of his feud with the Ming family. If someone framed Jiuzhu using Consort Zhang, suspicion would naturally fall on him first.

"Wrong. The Princess Consort and I are one, so this is a plot against both of us—and you." Prince Chen emphasized the word both with a sharp smile. "Don’t misphrase it, Fourth Brother."

Yun Yanze chuckled. "You’re right, Fifth Brother."

Sun Caiyao added, "Fifth Brother is correct. This was aimed at us and you."

Her husband and Ming Jiuzhu had no connection—they shouldn’t even be mentioned together.

Yun Yanze glanced at her, his smile gentle.

Consort Zhang sat silently, not daring to speak. If this was a conspiracy against two imperial princes, why drag her into it?

Was she just a mindless pawn, disposable at will?

Did she not deserve dignity?

This was beyond insulting!