The Contest for the Throne
In her past life, Xiao Rongyan had pressed the Jade Cicadas into her hands and begged her to flee. But Bai Jingyan had not run. Instead, a bitter, poisonous hatred had seeped into her blood and gnawed away at her flesh, until all she wanted was to end everything—Prince Liang and all of it—right then and there. She wanted to drag him down to hell with the last of her dying strength and let the stones sort out the jade from the rubble.
Yet as much as she burned with fury toward Prince Liang, she was equally consumed by a crushing guilt.
Once, Bai Jingyan had suffered so terribly that she'd felt the urge to tear her own body limb from limb. Dong Zhengzhen, for her part, only hoped her cousin would never torment herself that way.
Before long, another shadow guard arrived to make his report. Eunuch Gao had gone to the Prince Liang Estate, he said, but imperial shadow guards were posted around the compound, and he had been unable to learn what words had passed between them.
"Prince Liang saw Eunuch Gao off with his own hands, my lady. The prince's complexion did not look at all well."
Prince Liang's complexion was poor?
With her head still bowed, Bai Jingyan let out a quiet breath of relief. So things had not gone as Prince Liang intended. What the Crown Prince had done, then, was all but certain.
"Understood. Go! Keep a close watch on Prince Liang."
It seemed unlikely that Prince Liang would actually take Dong Zhengzhen as his consort—but if that foolish girl dug in her heels and insisted on marrying into Prince Liang's household even if it cost her her life, no one alive could stop her. Once her stubbornness took root, no amount of reasoning would uproot it easily.
If another variable cropped up here, there would truly be no way to contain it.
She had to return to Suyang first thing tomorrow morning. If trouble broke out after she left for Suyang, there would be nothing she could do about it. She needed to put some countermeasure in place.
Of course the Crown Prince would already know that the Emperor had sent Eunuch Gao to the Prince Liang Estate.
The moment the Crown Prince entered the palace, Advisor Fang had sent someone to Prince Liang's compound. Since Eunuch Gao attended the Emperor more closely than anyone, he would surely have reported the visit to the Crown Prince as well.
After returning, the Crown Prince recounted everything that had happened in the palace to Advisor Fang, sparing not a single detail.
Advisor Fang stroked his white beard and asked, "Your Highness... you say that after Your Highness remarked, 'It is fortunate that Lord Dong holds the Honglu Si ministry rather than the garrison command of Fengjiang,' His Majesty fell into a long silence?"
"I mentioned it hoping he would think naturally of Dong Qing'e, the Governor of Dengzhou. Do you think the remark was ill-chosen?" The Crown Prince washed his hands thoroughly, dried them with the handkerchief Zhan Yu offered, and then asked.
"Not at all, Your Highness! Considering that His Majesty declined to grant a marriage decree and instead sent Eunuch Gao to the Prince Liang Estate, it seems unlikely the union between Prince Liang and Miss Dong will come about any time soon."
The Crown Prince nodded. "Just so. My father is mistrustful to the bone."
"Then, Your Highness—why not simply make your own words into the truth?" Advisor Fang blinked his clouded eyes as he sat by the lamp, pressing on in earnest. "Make His Majesty aware that Prince Liang harbors thoughts he should not harbor. Even though His Majesty has not permitted the marriage, suppose a rumor were to spread that Prince Liang is holding one of the Dong family daughter's possessions and using it to threaten Lord Dong. If Prince Liang would go to such lengths to take Dong Zhengzhen as his wife, and such a rumor reached the ears of His Majesty—who already suspects him—what do you suppose His Majesty would think?"
The Crown Prince accepted the teacup Zhan Yu handed him, sinking into thought, his brow furrowing. "Nip it in the bud so he cannot even covet the crown prince's seat... But if that happens, Lord Dong will have no choice but to give his daughter to Prince Liang, and willing or not, the Dong family and Prince Liang become family. From Dong Qing'e's standpoint, Prince Liang taking the throne would be more advantageous than my doing so. Wouldn't that, in the end, simply bind the Dong family and Prince Liang into the same boat?"
"Your Highness, what matters most is making His Majesty suspect Prince Liang. Have you forgotten? Prince Liang forged Bai Weiting's handwriting in an attempt to brand him a traitor to the nation. And it does not end there—he even kept one of the retainers of Prince Er's rebellion among his personal guards. That matter was quietly buried only because Prince Xin was implicated, and His Majesty did not wish to press it further! But if, at the moment suspicion of Prince Liang takes root, that old affair resurfaces, the Emperor will never let him be."
"Have you a decent scheme in mind?"
The Crown Prince's spirit jolted awake. He set down the teacup he had merely been holding, bowed his hands to Advisor Fang, and continued, "I need your guidance, Advisor Fang."
"Devoting my utmost to Your Highness is simply my duty. How could I dare call it guidance?" Advisor Fang smiled. "Your Highness, I have sent word to find whether anyone close to Gao Sheng still lives. If we can produce a witness and apply the slightest pressure, Your Highness will be able to punish Prince Liang exactly as you wish."
Then Advisor Fang went on with a smile. "Of course, finding a witness takes time. I have one more method—but I cannot say whether Your Highness will accept it."
"Speak."
"Before the Zhenguo Commandery Princess left the capital, Left Chancellor Li Mu had marked Lady Gao—Go-ui-gunju—for his youngest son's bride. Your Highness will recall how, over that affair, the Zhenguo Commandery Princess broke the youngest Li son's leg."
Advisor Fang lowered his voice, eyes glinting.
The Crown Prince nodded.
At those words, Zhan Yu lifted his head and looked at Advisor Fang.
Seated beside the table where the glass lamp stood, Advisor Fang tilted his body slightly and dropped his voice to a whisper. "The Zhenguo Commandery Princess cherishes Lady Gao dearly. No one in the capital is unaware of it. If Prince Liang were to cast his eyes on Lady Gao, does Your Highness imagine the Commandery Princess would sit idle? To protect her younger sister she would do anything at all. But that would have nothing to do with Your Highness, would it?
Consider a step deeper. Prince Liang lingers around the Commandery Princess's circle, then abruptly declares he will take Miss Dong as his wife. And at the same time... suppose Lady Gao's reputation were sullied as well. What would become of Prince Liang then?"
The Crown Prince frowned as he studied Advisor Fang, his expression betraying his distaste for the proposal.
Yet Advisor Fang, utterly without shame, pressed on. "Above all, having already pawed at Lady Gao, whatever manner the hot-tempered Commandery Princess chose to dispose of Prince Liang, the people would judge it deserved. Even His Majesty could not blame her—and both His Majesty and the Dong family would learn just how vile a heart Prince Liang harbors. When Prince Liang then sends a matchmaker to the Dong household, the Dongs will hesitate. And if, in the middle of all this, Prince Liang begs His Majesty for a marriage decree, it will only deepen the Emperor's suspicions!"
Hearing this, the Crown Prince slowly leaned back in his chair.
Only if begging the Emperor for a decree proved useless, and going in person to raise the matter proved fruitless, could the marriage to Miss Dong be shattered into nothing. Even if the Dong family kept its hands out of the struggle for the throne, they had to be made to hold a grudge against Prince Liang. And of course, if he could get the Dong family into his own boat in the process, so much the better.
Ever since Bai Jingyan had come under him, the Crown Prince had come to lean on her more and more. He had even refused Advisor Fang's proposals and taken Bai Jingyan's counsel instead—more than once. Advisor Fang decided things could not go on like this. If it kept happening, his own position might be taken from him.
He hoped this affair would drive a wedge between the Zhenguo Commandery Princess and the Crown Prince.
Watching the Crown Prince's expression, Zhan Yu's heart plummeted. He hesitated a long moment, head bowed, before changing the tea for a fresh cup and venturing a smile. "Your Highness, the Crown Princess sends word asking you to come for supper. A servant has already been waiting outside for some time. What will you..."
Advisor Fang rose with a dry chuckle. "Your Highness, do give my proposal some thought. If you decide in its favor, I will make preparations at once! The Commandery Princess and Lady Gao are due to return to Suyang tomorrow—you must decide as quickly as possible."
"Very well."
The Crown Prince nodded.
Once Advisor Fang had gone, the Crown Prince turned to look at Zhan Yu. Cup in hand, his face wore an unreadable smile. "Zhan Yu. You grow bolder by the day, it seems."
"Your Highness, this servant's liver is as good as a gift from Your Highness's own hand. Of every master I have ever served, Your Highness is the most righteous and generous. That is why I can speak without fear before you!"
Zhan Yu went on with a smile. "You have been rushing about all day without so much as a moment to sip your tea, so I took the liberty of intruding on your conversation. You look terribly weary, Your Highness."
As the Crown Prince blew gently on the steaming cup and his mood seemed to settle, Zhan Yu spoke carefully. "Your Highness... Advisor Fang means to make use of Lady Gao. But the Commandery Princess and Lady Gao are sisters bound by uncommonly deep affection, and the Commandery Princess offers her whole loyalty to you and you alone. You would not wish to wound her yourself—I know it weighs on you."
The Crown Prince nodded. "True. But Advisor Fang's words hold reason as well. I will need to think on it."
Seeing his persuasion had failed, Zhan Yu nodded and said he would have a meal brought in at once.
When Zhan Yu returned leading the maids with their stacked food boxes, someone was slipping out of the Crown Prince's chamber and heading toward Advisor Fang's courtyard.
Standing beneath the corridor with its painted pillars and beams, Zhan Yu frowned. If the Commandery Princess ever learned of it, she would surely turn against the Crown Prince.
Did the Crown Prince truly fail to grasp the consequences?
Zhan Yu did not want the Crown Prince to lose someone as capable as the Commandery Princess—and he did not want to see her hurt, either.
Behind him, a maid had been standing at a deferential bow. When Zhan Yu remained motionless for a long while under the wind stirring the hem of his robe, she hurried over and spoke in a low voice. "Eunuch Gao?"
"...Let's go."
Zhan Yu gathered himself and led the maids inside.
As instructed by Advisor Fang, Lin Shijie had taken charge of spreading the rumor: that Prince Liang held the peace talisman Dong Zhengzhen always carried on her person, and had begged the Emperor for a marriage decree. Then, some time later, news arrived from the Prince Liang Estate—after Eunuch Gao departed, Prince Liang had gone straight to the Dong residence.
At that report, Advisor Fang's eyes narrowed to slits. He surmised that Prince Liang intended to visit Lord Dong of the Court of Judicial Review in person and raise the matter of marriage himself.
Lin Shijie asked, puzzled, "Do you suppose His Majesty... ordered Prince Liang to go to the Dong residence and return Miss Dong's belongings? Or is Prince Liang going to try to persuade Lord Dong himself?"
"Whatever his intent in visiting the Dong residence, one thing is certain: it is a golden opportunity to aid His Highness by removing the man who covets the crown prince's seat."
Lifting his teacup, Advisor Fang spoke to Lin Shijie and Zhen Xiangzhi. "Think carefully. Prince Liang schemed to frame Bai Weiting, and he even meddled with the army provisions bound for the Southern Border—yet His Majesty did not punish him. Why? Because Prince Liang is His Majesty's own son, and above all, because he never touched the Emperor's true reverse scale!"
Advisor Fang took a sip of tea and set the cup down. "His Majesty is human too; he might forgive his child any outrage. But drawing near to military power—he will never forgive that. Prince Er's rebellion dealt His Majesty a wound deeper than any. So the more Prince Liang refuses to give up the Dong family's daughter, the greater the Emperor's suspicion of him will grow."
Seated beneath the glass lamp, Zhen Xiangzhi lifted his head and looked at Advisor Fang. At times the man's pigheaded thinking drove people mad—yet even Zhen Xiangzhi had to admit that when it came to the Emperor's mind, Advisor Fang understood it with uncanny precision.
If only Prince Liang could be kept from the throne, Zhen Xiangzhi would do anything. Even if Miss Dong was the Commandery Princess's own cousin, even if Miss Dong's reputation was dragged through the mud, he would not care in the slightest. Let her blame herself for being so blind to a man's character, since she was the one infatuated with Prince Liang.
Zhen Xiangzhi lowered his head and stilled the faint unease that lingered in his heart. When a son of lesser birth reached for an elder brother's rightful seat, it meant, in the end, that one of them had to die. He had chosen this path himself; no one could blame him for it.