Chapter 5

Before I entered the palace, Shi Lin gave me a honey pill.

Worry clouded his face. “Zhuozhuo, are you truly determined to do this? Do you understand all the pill’s side effects?”

I accepted the pill and hid it inside the pomegranate-red hairpin on my head. My sister had given me the pin for my thirteenth birthday. It was the only possession I had carried out of the fire.

I closed my eyes briefly and spoke in an even voice. “Brother, this is the fastest path to bringing down the Marquis of Cheng’en’s household.”

Depriving Zhou Lanzhi of the position of empress had been only a small appetizer for them.

What I truly intended was to drag down the person standing behind that household.

At my request, Shi Lin had secretly found the honey pill. Taken a month in advance, it delayed menstruation and produced signs of a false pregnancy. Its danger was that it could easily cause uncontrollable uterine bleeding.

I touched the hairpin in my hair. This was the greatest weapon I would carry into the palace. I could not do without it.

Shi Lin stared for a moment, then looked at me intently. “Zhuozhuo, remember this: I am not only your brother-in-law. I am your only family. Whatever you intend to do, discuss it with me. Do not use that secret drug unless you have no other choice.”

The concern in his eyes was unmistakable. I lowered my gaze and murmured my agreement.

I knew Shi Lin had never approved of my entering the palace. He had been gathering evidence of the Marquis of Cheng’en’s crimes in secret.

The household had burned, murdered, looted, and pillaged, he said. Their crimes reached the heavens. Given time, he was certain he could find decisive evidence.

But I did not want to wait. It would take too long. I was desperate to send them all into the grave as companions for every murdered member of the Shen family.

After I entered the palace, the emperor spent several nights in succession in my residence, yet never once set foot in Zhou Lanzhi’s Chengqian Palace.

Palace people were masters at following the prevailing wind. In private, they whispered that Zhou Lanzhi had lost imperial favor.

To everyone’s surprise, she did not throw one of her spoiled young-mistress tantrums or vent her anger on others.

I grew even more cautious. No one raised in the Marquis of Cheng’en’s household was harmless.

Sure enough, Zhou Lanzhi made her move.

On the bright Mid-Autumn night, she hosted the festival banquet and invited every official of the third rank or above.

Naturally, that included her natal family—the household of the Marquis of Cheng’en.

As the festival approached, Zhou Lanzhi grew increasingly generous. The latest clothes from the Imperial Wardrobe and rouge and powder reserved for palace use all arrived at my residence.

I tried every item with deliberate fussiness, choosing the outfit that best enhanced my coloring and the boxes of cosmetics I liked most.

I had taken only a few steps away when Zhou Lanzhi finally gave in and whispered mockingly to her maids that I was a shallow creature dazzled by trinkets.

I raised a brow and smiled. That was more like it.

How could someone so habitually arrogant have lost her temper overnight?

When someone offered unasked-for kindness, she was either a traitor or a thief.

Zhou Lanzhi’s transformation could mean only one thing:

she was plotting against me, most likely in connection with the approaching Mid-Autumn banquet.

She delighted in my supposed stupidity, and I played along with perfect enthusiasm.

But how could she know that I, too, was waiting for her to enter the trap?

On the night of the banquet, I put on the loveliest palace dress and left my residence after arranging every detail of my appearance.

I was beautiful by nature. Dressed in such splendor, I drew every eye the moment I entered the banquet hall.

From behind came a sticky, revolting stare.

I needed no introduction to guess who it was.

Zhou Lanzhi’s elder brother, Zhou Jingshan, heir to the Marquis of Cheng’en—and one of the murderers responsible for destroying my family.

I clenched the hand hidden inside my wide sleeve, curved my lips into their most beautiful smile, and greeted the emperor in a soft, gentle voice.

Wonder filled his eyes. Smiling, he raised a hand and told me to sit at his right.

Zhou Lanzhi’s expression was ghastly. A vicious light flashed through her eyes again and again, though something seemed to hold her in check.

She looked at me with mocking frivolity. “Consort Shi chose her clothes well. They make you look even more luscious, slender, and alluring. That pomegranate-red hairpin is particularly fitting. If I recall correctly, my father’s favorite concubine owns one just like it.”

I lifted a hand to touch the hairpin, pressed my lips together, and smiled.

“Consort Lan is joking. This hairpin is a keepsake from my mother, commissioned by my father. It is the only one of its kind in the world.”

The emperor stroked my hand and said coolly to her, “Your eyesight grows worse by the day.”

Zhou Lanzhi’s face stiffened visibly, but the banquet was crowded, and no one paid close attention to her expression.