Chapter 3

Chapter 3

For some reason, His Highness had a sudden change of heart and ordered someone to escort me back.

I shared a room in the servants’ quarters with a White-Haired Old Palace Maid. She brewed a medicinal tonic to ward off the cold for me and whispered a piece of advice: “The Crown Prince will be conferring rewards for meritorious service at the Golden Luan Hall tomorrow. You must seize the opportunity to ask for the status of a concubine. In the future, you could even become a high-ranking consort.”

The old maid knew exactly how many scars I bore on my body. She knew that such a frail frame had supported His Highness through every step of his long road of exile.

Even if His Highness loathed me now, asking for a title was hardly asking for much.

I held the bowl of medicine as the sound of rain drummed against the window.

The candle flickered, its flame as small as a bean.

I shook my head, my eyes shining with a rare, youthful innocence. “I already have someone else in my heart.”

I pulled a silk pouch from against my warm chest and carefully unfolded its contents. Inside was a marriage certificate. It was stained with blood and tears, making it somewhat blurry, but the names were still legible.

Shen Zhao and Wei Fu.

His Highness loved Side Consort Wei.

And I had someone I loved, too.

It was just that His Highness was a bit luckier than me.

In the middle of the night, I was jolted awake by the howling wind. In my daze, a thought suddenly occurred to me.

It had been a night just like this when I stood in for my sister to marry His Highness.

There had been no festive candles, no ceremonial hall-only a three-thousand-mile journey and a body covered in wounds.

In truth, I had once been His Highness’s primary wife.