Chapter 52: Glimpsing the Clues

Chapter 52: Glimpsing the Clues

Song Zhao sent the pastries to Yonghe Palace overnight.

Outside the palace gates, she faintly heard the sound of opera from within.

As the palace maid led her to Consort Chen's chamber, the sound of the opera grew clearer:

"The official enters the concubine's room, the poisonous mother hides her conscience. Oh, the hatred, the coldness towards the wife, let her kneel and bow eighteen times at the altar, knowing her place in the hierarchy..."

Ying Xiang, standing guard at the door, glanced at Song Zhao without bowing and said coldly,

"Consort Chen is inside listening to an opera. You should wait here at the door."

Song Zhao smiled and nodded, "Thank you, auntie."

Inside, a singer was performing the Henan Opera "The Embroidered Hairpin Lady,"

A drama not fit for the public stage, it tells of a wealthy official favoring his concubine over his wife, leading to his family's downfall.

Although the opera was performed inside, its lyrics were meant for Song Zhao's ears.

Patiently, Song Zhao waited outside for a full hour.

Only after the singer left did Consort Chen's languid voice emanate from within,

"Bring her in."

As Song Zhao entered, Consort Chen was sitting cross-legged on a heated seat, casually flipping through a script, not even glancing at her.

Song Zhao kneeled and bowed, "This concubine pays respect to Consort Chen."

Consort Chen, without looking up or responding, let Song Zhao continue her formalities.

After a moment of contemplation, Song Zhao silently placed the food box on the small table by the heated seat and then knelt upright in front of Consort Chen, bowing her head and saying:

"This concubine greets Consort Chen, wishing her endless peace and prosperity."

Consort Chen scoffed lightly, then finally closed her script.

She lifted the lid of the food box with her slender, fair fingers, picked a piece of freshly steamed brown sugar gardenia cake, examined it for a while, and then said with a sneer,

"Your culinary skills are indeed remarkable. The intricate process of making these pastries has been mastered so well by you. It shows that you must have been preparing such delicate and delicious food for the Emperor regularly, haven't you?"

Song Zhao hurriedly responded, "This concubine acted thoughtlessly, please forgive me, Your Highness."

"You are one of the Emperor's consorts. Preparing food for him is your duty. How could it offend me?"

Consort Chen took a bite of the cake, chewing delicately,

"Although the pastry is tasty, the Emperor usually does not favor sweets. You should know that sometimes good intentions can lead to bad outcomes, and doing nothing might be better than doing anything at all."

Having listened to the opera outside for an hour, how could Song Zhao not understand what Consort Chen was implying?

Her insinuations were clear – she was telling Song Zhao,

That she might allow Song Zhao to serve in the Emperor's chamber, but she would never tolerate her sharing even a fraction of Xiao Jingheng's affection.

If Song Zhao overstepped her boundaries and displeased her, then like the lawful wife in the opera, she would be utterly destroyed, never to find peace.

Song Zhao replied, "Today's actions were my folly, offending the Emperor and his taboos. Consort Chen's admonition is apt. I will stay in my place from now on, doing less to err less, doing nothing to err not."

Consort Chen looked down, smiling faintly, and nodded, "I'm saying this for your own good. It's best if you understand. I'll accept these pastries. The night is deep and dew is heavy; you should return and rest early."

Consort Chen disliked any woman competing for favor, but as long as Song Zhao remained under her control, and since she needed a piece to balance the Empress, she decided not to further dispute with Song Zhao. She fondly remembered this dessert, which she often ate at home, made personally by her mother.

Later, when her father was promoted and the family moved to the Sichuan-Shaanxi area, her mother could no longer frequently send things to the palace.

Much of Consort Chen's haughty and unrestrained behavior stemmed from being overly pampered at home.

Remembering her family's affection, she unconsciously ate a few more pieces of the cake.

*

Recently, Liu Changzai, who entered the palace with Song Zhao, had been frequently visiting Yonghe Palace.

She sought to ingratiate herself with Consort Chen, hoping to find support in the harem.

But Consort Chen, unimpressed by her lack of family background and ordinary looks, was usually unwilling to entertain her.

Yet, like a persistent plaster, Liu Changzai diligently served by her side every day, leading Consort Chen to treat her more like a servant.

One day, while attending to Consort Chen, Liu Changzai noticed her having a cold seafood dish for lunch and advised,

"This concubine remembers that these are Your Highness's special days, and it's best to avoid cold food."

Consort Chen, who had already picked up a piece of shellfish with her chopsticks, became momentarily distracted upon hearing this and turned to Ying Xiang to ask,

"How many days late is it?"

Ying Xiang replied, "Your Highness's monthly cycle was supposed to start three days ago, and now..."

She paused, her dark eyes shifting as a look of joy swiftly spread across her face,

"It's rare for Your Highness to have a delayed cycle. Combined with how you've been frequently feeling fatigued and drowsy recently... Aren't these the same symptoms as when you were first pregnant?"

Hearing this, Liu Changzai quickly joined in with flattery, "Congratulations to Your Highness! If it is indeed another pregnancy, that would be a great blessing!"

Consort Chen had longed for pregnancy in her dreams, and would hastily summon the imperial physician even for minor symptoms like nausea.

Now, with the early signs of pregnancy seemingly in place, how could she sit still?

She immediately sent Ying Xiang to summon the palace's most esteemed physician for a diagnosis,

Only to have her joyful expectations turn into disappointment.

The physician said, "According to the pulse, Your Highness is not exhibiting a pregnancy pulse... Instead, there are signs of a deficiency in menstrual blood. I dare to conjecture that Your Highness might have been drugged..."

"What did you say?" Consort Chen's joy vanished from her face. She slammed her hand on the table, numbing her palm, "Drugged? Who in the palace dares to poison me?"

Consort Chen summoned her eunuch responsible for food tasting and ordered a thorough check of everything she had recently consumed.

Eventually, they found something amiss in the brown sugar gardenia cakes.

Furious, Consort Chen exclaimed, "Has Song Zhao grown tired of living? Ying Xiang, report this to the Emperor immediately!"

Ying Xiang was about to leave on her orders, but Liu Changzai stopped her,

"Your Highness, please wait. I feel there's something odd about this situation."

"What are you suggesting?"

"Who would be so brazen as to poison someone? Besides, Song Zhao seeks closeness with Your Highness. Such an act would be easily exposed and bring her no benefit."

Consort Chen pondered for a moment, then said to the food-tasting eunuch, "Explain clearly. What exactly is wrong with these cakes?"

"Your Highness, the brown sugar gardenia cakes contained two extra ingredients: 'Begonia honey' and 'Chushen grass.' The issue lies with 'Chushen grass.' It's incompatible with brown sugar and should not be consumed together."

Consort Chen wasn't familiar with 'Chushen grass,' but she knew 'Begonia honey' was exclusive to Consort Yun in the entire harem, who, she heard, had recently gifted some to Song Zhao.

She silently pieced together the clues and quickly realized:

It was likely Consort Yun's plot to frame Song Zhao, accusing her of faking a pregnancy to gain favor.

And Song Zhao, thinking Begonia honey was beneficial, added it to the brown sugar gardenia cakes, inadvertently causing Consort Chen to consume it.

Consort Chen furrowed her brows, and after a brief silence, she warned Liu Changzai,

"Regarding today's incident, act as if you know nothing. If you utter a word you shouldn't, beware of your tongue."

Liu Changzai hurriedly agreed and, after being dismissed, Consort Chen's face darkened as she instructed Ying Xiang,

"Go to Changchun Palace and summon that fool, Consort Yun, for me."