Chapter 12 (Slightly Revised)

April 2nd, the wind howled and the rain fell fiercely.

That very night, Ding Jian’s two hundred Southern Yamen guards were withdrawn.

Early the next morning, Jiang Luan pushed open the window and, unsurprisingly, once again saw the figure of General Wen Jingwen from the small military unit.

The young martial general stood tall and straight against the wind and rain, leading his troops on patrol in the courtyard. Perhaps due to the military baton he endured yesterday, his steps were slightly unsteady.

If Ding Jian’s presence yesterday had offered reliable support, today the commanding officer on duty was Wen Jingwen. No matter how the palace servants, under the princess’s orders, summoned him, Wen Jingwen, having learned his lesson, refused to enter the hall and confined himself to guarding the courtyard.

In the morning, Wen Jingwen’s Yulin Guards were on duty; in the afternoon, Xue Duo’s Longwu Guards took over. Under the alternating protection of these two elite troops, the Linfeng Hall was as impenetrable as a fortress.

At noon, during the guard change, a distinguished guest attempted to visit in the pouring rain but was rudely stopped outside the hall. After questioning for nearly a quarter of an hour, they were finally allowed inside.

The visitor was the Second Princess, Jiang Shuanglu, titled Princess Yihe.

In the ranking of royal siblings, brothers and sisters were counted separately. Jiang Shuanglu was second among the sisters and sixteen years old, blooming like a delicate flower, every smile and frown captivating.

Several trusted maids and palace ladies who accompanied Jiang Shuanglu were interrogated one by one. When finally allowed in, they were drenched with rain, all bearing expressions of terror and apprehension.

“These Xuan Iron Cavalry are all ruthless fiends with blood on their hands. They should be sent back to the border to fight enemies, not used to guard the palace and be around the nobility day and night. What if their ominous aura offends the nobles?” murmured the maid beside Princess Yihe, carrying rain gear.

Jiang Luan lazily leaned against the imperial consort’s couch by the window, sipping freshly brewed old ginseng soup. The inner chamber was filled with a subtle medicinal fragrance. Seeing her elder sister dripping wet, she hurried to close the window and instructed to prepare a fumigation box to dry and warm the wet clothes taken off outside.

Princess Yihe changed into dry clothes without bothering to dry the rain at her hair ends, then reached out to hold Jiang Luan’s hand, looking at her with concern.

“You’re still not fully recovered, and I can see you’ve lost weight. What on earth happened that even your Linfeng Hall is now tightly surrounded? I almost couldn’t get in.”

Jiang Luan pushed a plate of loquats freshly delivered that morning toward her sister and explained lightly, “Something happened. I offended the Sovereign severely, which also dragged the Empress into it. Not sure if Marshal Pei is offended too. Probably that.”

Jiang Shuanglu gasped, speechless for a long while.

Her mother was not favored during the late emperor’s reign. Both mother and daughter kept a low profile, fearing trouble above all.

She comforted her youngest sister, “The capital is in chaos now. How did you suddenly offend so many? I’ve always advised you, as women, not to be headstrong. Listen more, be obedient. The Sovereign is quick-tempered. Once his anger subsides in a few days, I’ll take you to Zichen Hall to petition for an audience. Face to face, call out to your royal brother—maybe he’ll spare you this time.”

Jiang Luan lowered her gaze, picking up a loquat and nibbling on it with sharp canine teeth.

“Why silent?” Jiang Shuanglu knew her stubborn nature well and grew more worried. “You’ve always been headstrong since childhood. If others advise you west, you insist on going east. This time, listen to me. Show some humility, don’t be so obstinate.”

Jiang Luan discarded the fruit pit into a silver basin, washed her hands, and instructed Bailu to bring a bronze mirror.

The mirror reflected clearly the delicate beauty of the imperial sisters.

Jiang Shuanglu was bright and radiant, with gentle and serene grace—like a newly bloomed rare peony in the imperial garden.

Jiang Luan leaned on Princess Yihe’s fragile shoulder, signaling her to look into the mirror.

“Second sister, you are a national treasure, a peony of unparalleled beauty, and a precious princess of the royal family. Your gentle and obedient nature makes you a rare gem.”

Blushing shyly, Jiang Shuanglu watched Jiang Luan’s fingertips trace the reflected image and continued,

“To those with intent, such a rare gem is a prized possession, attracting a pack of wolves chasing after it.”

Princess Yihe was startled and raised her eyes.

The sisters’ gazes met in the mirror.

Jiang Luan stared directly at the startled flower-like face in the mirror, unwavering.

“As for breaking such a rare gem, with your gentle nature, you would be easily controlled. If you continue to endure and obey…”

Tears welled up in Jiang Luan’s eyes, and she could say no more. She clung to her sister’s delicate shoulder, completely relying on and trusting her, leaning against the softness of Jiang Shuanglu’s chest.

She sighed, “I am deeply worried about you.”

Jiang Shuanglu half understood but knew her youngest sister was cautioning her. She tapped her forehead, laughing and scolding, “Where did you learn such strange talk? Always saying extreme things to scare me. Wolves, breaking gems... I’m fine here in the palace. Who dares to have bad intentions? They’d be dragged out and beaten to death.”

---

Her soft white palm touched Jiang Luan’s forehead. “No fever, but you’re sweating coldly at midday. Clearly still weak. Don’t push yourself. Lie down.”

She took the half-drunk bowl of old ginseng soup from the table and personally fed Jiang Luan one spoonful at a time.

When she set down the bowl, she glanced toward the tightly shut wooden window and asked softly, “Which side issued orders to the guards outside? How long will your Linfeng Hall be under lockdown?”

Jiang Luan wiped the soup from her lips with a handkerchief, unconcerned. “Maybe one or two months. Once my princess residence is established and I’m moved from the palace, the two guard units surrounding Linfeng Hall will withdraw.”

Jiang Shuanglu was quite surprised. “Princess residence? You haven’t even had your coming-of-age ceremony yet. Can it be granted so soon?” She worried, “You just said you offended the Sovereign badly. He’s angry at you, yet says he’ll grant the princess residence? Sounds like a trick.”

“Normally, it’s not possible. But I found someone.” Jiang Luan recalled the events of the previous day and said casually, “I said a lot, did a lot. Finally convinced someone to be my advocate before the Sovereign.”

As the sisters spoke, a commotion arose outside, lasting for a while before subsiding. It was a messenger sent by the imperial court to deliver the Sovereign’s decree.

The messenger was a familiar face—Grand Eunuch Xu Zaian, who had visited just yesterday evening and had some rapport with Jiang Luan.

Xue Duo barred others from entering, allowing only Grand Eunuch Xu Zaian and two junior eunuchs inside.

With Wen Jingwen’s recent fate of being beaten fresh in mind, Xue Duo refused even the pretense of avoiding the situation; he crossed his arms, standing at the door with unblinking eyes, clearly watching the interior.

“Your Highnesses,” greeted the old eunuch.

The two junior eunuchs carried large leather bookbags filled with wooden scrolls. One, prompted by Xu Zaian, stepped forward and neatly laid all scrolls on the intricately carved redwood peony desk before Jiang Luan.

“This morning, Marshal Pei had a closed-door audience with the Sovereign. After their talks, the Sovereign issued the following verbal decree: ‘Many remnants of bandits remain outside the city. For the safety of Princess Hanyang, a princess residence within the capital is granted. Princess Hanyang shall retire behind closed doors in the newly bestowed residence to pray for the Sovereign’s blessings.’”

Princess Yihe was both shocked and delighted. “It’s true? Princess Luan’s residence will really be granted?”

Jiang Luan calmly rose and bowed toward Zichen Hall. “Thank you for the Sovereign’s grace.”

Turning to the piles of scrolls on the desk, she asked, “What are all these scrolls? Surely they aren’t blueprints of the newly granted residence—Ministry of Works couldn’t finish so quickly.”

Xu Zaian smiled, “The residence’s location hasn’t been decided yet, not even a stroke on the blueprint. Even if officials worked overnight, it wouldn’t be this fast. These scrolls are portraits of sixth-rank officials in our court.”

He casually pulled out a scroll, unrolling it slowly. The finely mounted scroll bore the official’s name and place of origin at the top, a simple sketch portrait, and densely written details of their life and career below.

“As the Princess Hanyang residence opens soon, regulations require appointing one chief secretary, four recorders, and several clerks. The chief secretary, a sixth-rank civil official, bears the responsibility of assisting the princess. The candidate must be selected from the current sixth-rank civil officials in the capital, chosen for merit and transferred to the residence. Marshal Pei’s intention is for the princess herself to choose.”

“Ah, I see,” Jiang Luan said happily. “Very thoughtful. Thanks to Marshal’s kindness.”

Xu Zaian’s mouth twitched.

Being chief secretary of the princess residence was no easy task. Officials assigned there found it nearly impossible to transfer out, effectively ending their careers. Ambitious young talents who had worked hard to enter officialdom aimed to rise to the highest ranks and be recorded in history. Who would willingly retire in a princess’s residence?

The Ministry of Personnel was reluctant to assign anyone, pushing the task of selecting officials for the residence to Pei Xian.

Pei Xian, indifferent to bureaucratic squabbles, simply sent all sixth-rank officials’ dossiers to Linfeng Hall and told Jiang Luan to choose whoever she wished.

After Xu Zaian finished explaining, he gestured to the dossiers, “Your Highness, please choose.” He stood silently by the desk.

He had expected a long wait, as the princess was sheltered deep in the palace with few connections to court officials except for some noble youths frequently visiting the palace. Although she knew a few military officers involved in the city’s defense, none appeared in the civil official dossiers.

Unexpectedly, Jiang Luan carefully examined each dossier with steady speed. It seemed less like picking and more like searching for someone.

Soon, she selected one.

“Choose him.”

Xu Zaian, curious, peered at the portrait: an ordinary-looking but fair and refined young man with unremarkable credentials from a humble family, a successful candidate in the imperial exams in his twenties, currently a sixth-rank official in the Ministry of Personnel.

His surname, however, was unusually distinctive.

“Chunyu Xian,” Xu Zaian read aloud, hardly believing it. “The princess has chosen the chief secretary? What makes him special?”

Jiang Luan tapped the portrait of the young scholar with a faint smile.

Chunyu Xian was a capable minister in a previous life.

Pei Xian was an excellent judge of talent; those he promoted and employed in his past tenure as prime minister were all capable leaders in their own right.

She was in desperate need of capable people now. Sorry, but she was poaching talent.

“He has a good name, one I like. Chunyu Xian... once he enters my princess residence, he won’t have a moment’s leisure.”

“Ha ha ha,” Xu Zaian chuckled dryly and said no more. He carefully rolled up Chunyu Xian’s dossier and ordered a waiting eunuch to repack the other dossiers into the leather bags.

Everyone thought Xu Zaian was about to leave. Jiang Luan returned to the imperial consort’s couch by the window and sipped the steaming sweet jujube papaya soup.

Unexpectedly, Xu Zaian gestured to the other junior eunuch following him and instructed, “Take out the scrolls from your bag.”

“You’ve already made a choice, haven’t you?” Jiang Luan asked in surprise, sipping her sweet soup.

Xu Zaian smiled wryly, “Two separate matters. The chief secretary is chosen, but this bag contains dossiers not of ministry officials.”

The scrolls in the second bag all had ivory tags for quick reference. He casually selected one and unrolled it before Jiang Luan, revealing a carefully mounted full-body portrait of a handsome young gentleman.

The man appeared just over twenty, dressed in the traditional robe of a noble family’s son, fair and elegant, seated amidst a bamboo grove by a clear stream, his demeanor ethereal as if a banished immortal.

Below, in tiny script, was a dense account of his family background and life.

“Oh,” Jiang Shuanglu, sitting beside Jiang Luan, recognized immediately and blushed, looking away.

“Isn’t this the seventh son of the Wang family? Are you sure there’s no mistake? The seventh son of the Wang family is unmarried. How could his portrait be presented to Luan? She hasn’t even had her coming-of-age ceremony.”

Xu Zaian replied, “No mistake. This was specifically ordered by Marshal Pei. When he discussed with the Sovereign this morning, he said: Since the Princess Hanyang residence has been granted and she is about to leave the palace, and she is just fifteen, her coming-of-age ceremony and the selection of a husband can be arranged together.”

As he spoke, all the sixth-rank official dossiers were cleared from the desk. Xu Zaian signaled the second junior eunuch to pile up dozens of portraits of eligible bachelors from noble families on the desk.

“Princess Hanyang has not yet had her coming-of-age ceremony. Originally, the Ministry of Rites and the Court of Imperial Clan Affairs had not prepared for it. Luckily, Princess Yihe has reached the appropriate age, and the Ministry of Rites is preparing portraits of potential husbands for her. The marshal ordered these to be sent by noon. Due to the rush, some portraits are incomplete. Princess Luan, please forgive this.”

Jiang Luan licked her lips near her canine teeth and chuckled softly.

She tossed the silver spoon back into the bowl, stood, and approached the desk, picking up one half-finished portrait.

The young gentleman depicted was tall and slender, wearing wide-sleeved robes, holding a scroll, posed as if reading solemnly. Only the face was blank—like a pristine white duck egg.

Jiang Luan’s finger touched the blank face, a playful smile curling her lips.

Xu Zaian looked embarrassed. “This... was sudden and unprepared...”

“Too sudden indeed,” Jiang Luan said bluntly. “That seventh son of the Wang family must be over twenty, right? Such an age, and his portrait is incomplete but still shoved at me?”

Jiang Shuanglu nearly choked on her sweet soup.

Xu Zaian agreed it was inappropriate and cleared his throat. “Princess Hanyang has not had her coming-of-age ceremony. Although the seventh son of the Wang family is talented and virtuous, he is twenty-three this year, which is... not quite suitable.”

Cautiously, he added, “When Marshal Pei discussed the princess residence with the Sovereign this morning, he mentioned the princess’s marriage arrangement on the spot and made a decision. Perhaps he didn’t consider it fully. Should I go back and mention this to Marshal Pei...?”

“Take all the scrolls back,” Jiang Luan said, sitting back down on the soft couch to continue her sweet soup.

“When you report back, say this: ‘Thanks to Marshal Pei’s help, the princess residence was granted early. I am grateful to him. But the Marshal spent only one morning trying to arrange my entire life...’”

She chewed on the jujube and murmured indistinctly, “Really, it’s way too perfunctory.”