Chapter 6

Chapter 6

The two of them left one after the other.

In the vast, empty hall, only Song Lianwei and I remained.

Her voice was ragged and broken. “Why? Why did you have to do this? I only wanted to marry well. I only wanted someone to rely on. Was that so wrong?”

She broke down sobbing, utterly pitiful.

If I could still see her, perhaps my heart might have softened.

But now, I could not see.

I said calmly, “Now we’re even.”

“How are we even? You ruined my entire life!” she cried.

I felt irritation rise in me.

“And what about me? What about my life? I could have remained a perfectly safe and secure princess. I could have ignored you and left you to fend for yourself in this palace.”

“But I didn’t. I got involved. In the future, no matter which one of those three ascends the throne, none of them will spare me. I was the one charging into danger at the front, while you quietly pulled yourself out. On what grounds?”

“Even if you wanted to back out, why couldn’t you have told me first? When there was trouble, I blocked it for you. When there were benefits, you enjoyed them. Song Lianwei, did you ever truly see me as your sister?”

Song Lianwei choked on her sobs.

“But women have to marry eventually. If I don’t plan for myself, what else can I do?”

“When I went home in the spring, my stepmother flattered me to my face, but behind my back she bragged that she would marry my stepsister to one of the three imperial princes.”

“By then, she would be a lofty prince’s consort, able to trample over me whenever she pleased.”

“They tormented me so much in the past. How could I possibly endure that? If one daughter of my family was destined to marry a prince, why couldn’t it be me?”

For a moment, I had no words. Then I couldn’t help letting out a laugh.

“You miscalculated. Your stepmother was waiting for you to panic and ruin yourself. Empress Mother loathes her to the bone. How could she possibly allow her daughter to marry one of my imperial brothers?”

“When you were allowed to go home in the spring, it was clearly so you could throw your weight around.”

“What do your stepmother and sister even count for? So what if you beat them to death or crippled them?”

“Do you think I couldn’t protect you? Do you think Empress Mother couldn’t protect you? Without those sisters of yours, do you think your maternal uncle wouldn’t step in to shield you?”

“I can tell you plainly: if you had done nothing, a fine future would naturally have been waiting for you.”

“But you took matters into your own hands and played a winning hand into absolute ruin, then blamed the person who dealt you the cards for giving you a bad hand.”

“With that kind of skill, what right do you have to sit at the table? If you’re not capable, then at least know your own limits. Don’t imitate others and try to scheme against people.”

“Hongshuang, we’re leaving!”

Hongshuang was trembling with anger, but she held me steadily and helped me leave the hall, step by step.

When we reached the outside, Song Lianwei’s broken wails came from within the hall.

My heart ached faintly, but I thought that I would never stand up for her again.

I had Hongshuang take me to Empress Mother’s palace.

Hongshuang could not help asking, “Princess, what are we going there for?”

“To admit my mistake.”

Empress Mother said I had disappointed her.

Then I must have done something wrong.

Though I did not know why, apologizing could not be wrong.

I knelt outside Empress Mother’s palace for a very long time.

The Danmaku all pitied me.

But I did not think I was pitiful.

Self-pity could not save me.

Only by uncovering the truth and waiting for the right moment to act could I fight my way to a chance at survival.

Though Song Lianwei was foolish, there was one thing she had gotten right.

Once any of my three imperial brothers took the throne, none of them would spare me.

Right now, while Empress Mother was still alive, I could only try to secure more bargaining chips for myself.

As the setting sun sank in the west, I did not end up waiting for Empress Mother. Instead, I waited for Qiao Lifu, Empress Mother’s favored male consort.

He passed by me, then stopped and advised, “Her Majesty is in a poor mood today. Your Highness should return at once.”