Chapter 99: Wangjie

Hearing this, Liang Jiwen startled, feeling as if her eardrums were practically being shattered by the hammering of her heart. Why would Jiang Changbai suddenly summon her? Could it be that Xie Qianbing had revealed what they'd talked about that afternoon to Jiang Changbai? But—

Liang Jiwen clenched her hands, her fingernails practically biting into the flesh of her palms.

The sound of the hour travelled from outside Rongfan palace, twilight encroaching on the window lattice, and casting scattered shadows beneath Qing Huai's palace attire. At this moment, Qing Huai was standing with her head bowed, and the silver ornaments in her hair shone faintly with a white light. Liang Jiwen looked at Qing Huai from the corner of her eyes, and suddenly remembered the way she'd looked the countless times she'd seen her before

It had been like now as well.

With Liang Jiwen not showing the intent to leave, Qing Huai finally couldn't help but urge, "Dianxia, please follow after this servant."

The sentence was like being immersed in the frigid waters of a well, and startled Liang Jiwen such that a chill scurried up her spine. A draft crept in through the hall's door, its blowing causing the bell at her waist to jingle.

At some point, clouds had appeared in the heavens, and the layers of dark clouds hid the last remnants of the sunlight. The strong wind ruffled one's lapels, and startled the crows perched on the branches. The sound of the birds fluttering their wings and flying away caused Liang Jiwen to halt, yet when she raised her head, she only saw the ever-present carved beasts on the eaves.^[1]

She'd only just stepped into the imperial study when Liang Jiwen caught the heavy scent of ambergris. There was a worry on her mind, and she only dared to look, head lowered, at the woven gold rug beneath her feet, unable to see the dancing flames of the lamps, which cast Jiang Changbai's shadow in alternating lengths.

Jiang Changbai wasn't as harsh as Liang Jiwen had imagined, and the expression she looked at Liang Jiwen with was a bit like one for looking at a younger neighbour girl.

But the more gentle Jiang Changbai was, the louder the drum in Liang Jiwen's heart beat. She remained kneeling, her forehead pressed against the icy-cold, pale tile. Perhaps because too many people had previously knelt here, of the tiles here, some had sunken in.

"Ah, get up," Jiang Changbai said, indicating to Xun Zhu to help Liang Jiwen to her feet.

Liang Jiwen stood without waiting for Xun Zhu. She raised her head, and saw that, beside the mountainous stacks of memorials on the imperial desk, a bowl of steaming ginseng soup had been placed.

"With Bixia's summoning of this subject in the depths of the night, is there some matter?" Though her hands were trembling faintly beneath her wide sleeves, Liang Jiwen still strove to put on an appearance of calm.

But Jiang Changbai seemed not to know anything at all, and merely said, "Don't be so anxious; come, sit down."

"Understood."

"We recall that it's been two or three years since you left Shejin, hasn't it?" Jiang Changbai suddenly fiddled with the paperweight on her desk, the head of it raised upwards, as if able to cry out.

It was a light sentence, yet cold sweat rose on the nape of Liang Jiwen's neck. The sound of the water clock's dripping seemed to be sounding by her ear, and she felt that her middle layer of clothes were practically soaked. She suddenly thought of the day she'd been informed by her Royal Father that she'd come to the Great Li to make a marriage alliance; it seemed as if it was such a scene as well.

"Responding to Bixia, it's been three years and two months."

If the time that she and Nanny Pei Yu had struggled to survive among the common people were added as well, it was exactly this amount.

Jiang Changbai, hearing this, put down the red-dipped brush in her hand, and reclined on the Dragon Throne, her long, slender finger tapping gently against the arm. The moonlight spilled in through the floral patters of the window lattice, projecting Liang Jiwen's shadow lanky and long. When she'd first come to the Great Li, she'd been dirty and gaunt, and though now she'd recovered a bit, her figure was still frail.

"This time, the envoy from Shejin is a princess," Jiang Changbai paused for a moment, and then said, "to speak of it, she's your older sister; would you like to see her?"

Liang Jiwen's heart seemed to stop for a beat, and her fingertips unconsciously curled tight. Her thoughts were dragged to the afternoon, when she'd been sitting before Xie Qianbing, wracking her brains to beg her to find a way for her to meet the envoy. And now…

Her heartbeat grew clearer and clearer, each sound striking heavily against Liang Jiwen's eardrums. A few steps away, Jiang Changbai maintained her previous posture, her gaze on Liang Jiwen growing hotter and hotter.

"This subject…" Liang Jiwen's throat tightened, as if she were being choked by something freezing cold. She forced her voice to steady, to not lose too much self control. "In Shejin, this subject wasn't too close with her siblings."

Recalling the past, when Liang Jiwen spoke, a bitterness rose on the tip of her tongue. Though she'd been a respected princess while in Shejin, when comparing them, her life "relying on another's charity" in the Great Li was better than when she'd been in Shejin by who knew how much.

When she'd been in Shejin, it was her favoured siblings whom the world had revolved around, from time to time riding out to hunt, and then bringing back their rich spoils to the Palace. Liang Jiwen had never been given any attention by anyone, such that even by now, she couldn't shoot while riding.

But when she'd arrived in the Great Li, though she relied on another's charity, she could study, and could make friends. If she could chose, she would rather have been born in a commoner's family in the Great Li.

Jiang Changbai suddenly smiled. "Do you really not wish to? Then what reason did you visit the Xie residence this afternoon?"

Liang Jiwen, hearing this, suddenly raised her head, her eyes widening. The next moment, she fell to her knees with a thud, stammering, "This—this subject—"

"Don't be alarmed." Jiang Changbai laughed softly, rounding the imperial desk to come to her side, and said, looking down from high, "Homesickness is human nature; next time there's such a matter, just come speak to Us about it."

"Of course," Liang Jiwen replied, hanging her head, yet her eyes were dark and cloudy. In her mind, Xie Qianbing's dignified appearance unconsciously arose, saying she'd conceal it for her—but she hadn't she immediately told Jiang Changbai about the matter?

But Jiang Changbai didn't pay any mind to what Liang Jiwen was thinking, and merely continued, "There's another matter; from the time she entered the capital, the Shejin Envoy has been convalescing in bed, and no amount of medicine has been of any use. Zhao-taiyi took a look and said her body is healthy, and feared she has some sort of mental ailment.

"Go chat with her a bit; remaining ill like this can't stand."

"Thank you for your great kindness." No matter how many thoughts she had, at this time, Liang Jiwen could only kneel and kowtow, giving thanks.

By the time the scent of ambergris retreated, Liang Jiwen was still a bit dazed. Her desire to see the Shejin Envoy naturally wasn't because of any homesickness. It was precisely because of this that she hadn't dared to come ask Jiang Changbai, fearing that the Emperor's sharp mind would be like a torch, seeing through to her thoughts. But she hadn't imagined that Jiang Changbai would seem not to pay it any mind at all, as if, were she merely able to complete the task she gave her, whatever she thought wasn't important at all.

Jiang Changbai hadn't pointed it out, but Liang Jiwen knew the meaning in her words. It was only that she felt that this sister of hers had some unknown motives, and so was feigning at illness. Liang Jiwen believed so as well; after all, she'd been suppressed for so many years in the Shejin Royal Palace, and no "mental ailment" had arisen, so how was it that this sister of hers, coming to the Great Li as an envoy, would have a mental ailment emerge?

Yet perhaps there was another possibility—she really saw her as a friend.

How could she? Liang Jiwen shook her head, and tossed the thought away. After all, even the outstanding, admirable Regent had to be cautious before Jiang Changbai, so how could she have such a privilege?

Everyone in the Great Li's court said that Song Juguang had the Emperor's trust, monopolising great power, but only Liang Jiwen felt that there was some sort of undercurrent roiling between them.

But since Jiang Changbai thought that Liang Jiwen was eager with homesickness, then she could only be eager with homesickness. After bathing and changing her clothes, the next morning, Liang Jiwen, under Sheng Yunxing's lead, arrived at the relay station.

The location of this relay station was desolate, without anyone about, and without any shops or stands. The station's great doors were equally tightly closed, and it was as if the high courtyard walls isolated all the sunlight outside. Liang Jiwen couldn't help but think of Xie Qianbing's words.

With this being the case, she couldn't blame her for not knowing the location of the station.

"That Envoy's temper is strange; going in by yourself isn't too safe," Sheng Yunxing said, pulling Liang Jiwen to a halt, the concern in her gaze practically spilling out. "It would be better for us subordinates to enter with you, and that way you'd have protection."

Liang Jiwen hadn't been worried after anyone much before, and suddenly hearing these words of Sheng Yunxing's, she felt her heart warm. But she still refused, waving her hand as she said, "That Envoy is my elder sister; even if her temper were worse, how could she harm me? Sheng-daren, you needn't worry; if there really is danger, it wouldn't be too late for me to come out and ask for your help."

"Since that's the case," Sheng Yunxing said, loosening the hand that was pulling at Liang Jiwen's sleeve, "then be careful."

"Of course." Liang Jiwen pulled her hand away, yet the corners of her lips unconsciously rose in a slight arc.

The inside of the relay station and the courtyard were an utterly different sight; the adornments were nearly the highest luxury, showing off the Great Li's might entirely. In the shadow of the second floor's pillar, a figure suddenly appeared; a maid clad in deep red clothes with narrow sleeves pressed a hand against her waist, where the silver bells in the braids swayed with her motions, letting out sounds. Liang Jiwen blinked, and felt as if this maid looked quite familiar.

Yet the maid seemed not to recognise her, and said harshly in the Central Plains language,^[2] "Did you not bring a translator?"

She was a woman who'd grown up on the steppes, and even her voice carried a bit of the unique roughness of the steppes. Liang Jiwen's gaze flitted across the turquoise that hung at her waist, and in an instant, recognised her identity. Even the identity of the person in the room, she could guess at with near total accuracy.

Seeing the maid still wore a baffled expression, Liang Jiwen's heart chilled as well. It wasn't that she hadn't known that no one in the Shejin Royal Palace had paid her any ind, but she hadn't imagined that her lack of presence would have been to such an extent.

"It's been a long time since we've seen each other," she said lowly in Shejinese.

In the maid's moment of dazedness, Liang Jiwen had already passed by her shoulder and pushed the carved wooden door open. The door, which had been in place for so long, let out a hoarse groan, and the sunlight crept into the room, even the dust floating all about taking on a shape.

This place was equally as heavy with fragrance, yet it couldn't cover up the thick scent of medicine. Liang Jiwen looked all about, and rapidly saw the bowl of medicinal decoction laid out on the table, still letting off steam.

Even if the maid by the door couldn't recognise Liang Jiwen's identity, she knew that she was someone the Great Li's court had sent, and didn't dare to obstruct her. Yet her mind was still enveloped in doubts—when had a Shejinese person appeared in the Great Li's court?

The Envoy laid on the bed, her exposed hands wan. She was quite a bit more slender than she had been three years ago, and even the veins on her hands showed.

Without waiting for the Envoy to hear the sound and turn over, Liang Jiwen called out to her in Shejinese, "Su Ya, it's been a long time since we've seen each other."

When Liang Jiwen had departed from the Shejin Royal Palace, Su Ya was the princess of highest status in the Royal Palace. Her mother was the most talented at riding and archery, and even the men struggled to surpass her. The King of Shejin didn't dare to underestimate her mother, and so naturally didn't dare to neglect her.

Even when Liang Jiwen had left for the Great Li to form a marriage alliance, it had been Su Ya who's made the final decision.

Suddenly hearing someone call her name, Su Ya was equally as startled. She struggled to push herself up from the bed, but when she saw Liang Jiwen, her gaze was as bewildered as the maid's.

"Who are you?" Su Ya's voice was a bit weak.

Only now did Liang Jiwen have the chance to look at her carefully; now, she wasn't as lively as she had been before; her complexion was wan, and no colour could be seen on her lips.

However, hearing these words of her, Liang Jiwen's heart chilled. If a maid didn't recognise her, then so be it, but how was it that even her fourth sister, who shared half her blood, would also not be able to recognise her?

She sighed, and closed the door, taking a few steps to Su Ya's side. Her vermilion lips rose faintly, and she spoke in the Shejinese she hadn't used in so long. "Wangjie^[3] has forgotten this younger sister; my marriage alliance to the Great Li that year, wasn't it you who decided it? The turquoise that you gifted me that year, I've carried with me the entire time."

As she spoke, Liang Jiwen took the piece of turquoise from her breast; perhaps because it had been so long, a number of the tassels that hung on it had already fallen off. But the size and quality of this piece of turquoise barely differed from that of the maid by the door.

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Translator's notes: 

[1]: 脊兽 (jishou), a type of roof decoration used on official buildings.

[2]: 中原话 (zhongyuan hua) in the real world is Mandarin Chinese, but since this is a fictional setting, using that terminology would seem out of place.

[3]: 王姐, literally "Royal Sister".