Broken Jade - Chapter 134

Chapter 134

The day Sheng Zhaoning was reinstated in her official position was the eve of the Ghost Festival.

The person who found it hardest to accept the restoration of her identity was not the venerable censor officials of the Censorate.

It was Sheng Yuanzhong.

Even Old Madam Sheng had gradually come to accept reality.

Yet Sheng Yuanzhong still could not recover from the shock, remaining silent and withdrawn for many days.

It was not that he was trapped in the blow of his son becoming his daughter and unwilling to acknowledge it. Rather, he kept thinking about how, during all those years Sheng Zhaoning had been separated from the family and left to fend for herself, she must have been just as she was now: only by disguising herself as a man could she have gained even the slightest ability to protect herself.

After returning to the Sheng Family, she had still been forced to shoulder the family’s rise and fall, conceal her identity, and bear the weight of the entire family alone as she entered the court through the imperial examinations.

How frightened must she have been inside?

She had walked so carefully for so long, all by herself. Only now could she finally stop and set down the burden she had carried on her shoulders for so many years.

His daughter had suffered.

Sheng Yuanzhong could not bring himself to say these words aloud. Once he had gradually recovered, however, he became even more indulgent toward Sheng Zhaoning.

After returning to the residence, Sheng Zhaoning made a special trip to the He Family.

The words He Wenbo had spoken for her in court could be said to have directly determined her fate.

Unexpectedly, it was not He Wenbo who came out to meet her, but He Sui.

Although Sheng Zhaoning was somewhat surprised to see her, she quickly composed herself and rose to greet her. “Miss He.”

After leaving the Court of Judicial Review, she had already resumed dressing as a woman.

She wore no hair ornaments and had not applied any makeup. Her dark hair was simply bound with a jade crown, and she still wore a long robe. Tall and graceful, she looked refined and otherworldly.

No matter how many times He Sui saw her, that face still made her heart skip a beat.

Shamefully, she thought, A woman… wouldn’t be so bad either.

He Sui cleared her throat and secretly pinched her own thigh, forcing herself to calm down.

“Lord Sheng.” She gave a small curtsy.

A servant brought them tea, and the two sat together in the main hall. For a moment, neither spoke.

Sheng Zhaoning did not quite understand why He Sui had come to see her, but she had heard that the person who had worked tirelessly to plead with the Emperor for mercy on her behalf was He Sui, the leading student of the women’s school in the Capital City.

She was just about to thank her when He Sui spoke first.

“Actually, I’ve always liked you quite a lot.”

The words Sheng Zhaoning had been about to say caught in her throat.

Perhaps He Sui also felt embarrassed to have blurted it out so directly, but she continued, “Before this, I asked my father to go to the Sheng Mansion and propose marriage, but Father thought the matter should be discussed in advance, so he had my mother go to the Sheng Mansion instead.”

Sheng Zhaoning knew about this.

When the He Family had come to discuss the marriage, she had used the excuse that her heart already belonged to someone else and had asked Sheng Yuanzhong to politely decline.

He Sui continued, “When you said you already had someone you liked and refused, I was heartbroken for quite some time. At the same time, I was terribly unwilling to accept it.”

“With my family background, appearance, learning, and character, how could I be inferior to any other woman? It was only after your identity was exposed that I understood. It wasn’t that I wasn’t good enough after all.”

Sheng Zhaoning heard a trace of relief in her voice.

“Miss He, you are wonderful.” Her gaze was sincere.

A woman as bright and passionate as He Sui, someone who dared to love and hate wholeheartedly-if Sheng Zhaoning had truly been a man, she probably would not have been able to stop herself from falling for her either.

He Sui lifted her head and looked straight at Sheng Zhaoning.

“Actually, even now, I still like you very much.”

“I admire your courage, and I respect your resilience. One day, I will stand in the court just like you and carve out a place in the world that belongs to me.”

If she could not have the person she loved, then she would become the kind of person she herself admired.

She looked at Sheng Zhaoning seriously. “I hope that the next time we meet, you will call me… Lady He.”

Something softened in Sheng Zhaoning’s gaze, and she smiled faintly. “All right. I’ll wait for you.”

……

The ban on the Eastern Palace was lifted on the second day after Sheng Zhaoning was reinstated.

It happened to be the Ghost Festival.

Wei Heng had sent a letter inviting her to meet him at the hour of Xu.

She could no longer remember how long it had been since she had last seen Wei Heng.

Longing was poison, churning bone-deep pain through her again and again.

She agreed almost without thinking.

The Eastern Palace carriage gradually disappeared into the distance.

Light colors were considered appropriate for the Ghost Festival. As night drew near, Jin He had deliberately chosen Sheng Zhaoning a moon skirt of finely woven silk with a subdued pattern. Gold and silver threads intertwined throughout it, accentuating the gentle, graceful beauty of a woman to perfection.

Sheng Zhaoning gazed at her reflection in the mirror. The image felt intensely unfamiliar.

A thin layer of powder and rouge had been applied to her face, softening the coolness that usually rested between her brows and eyes. Her jade-like features had been lightly adorned, transformed into a radiant and striking beauty.

This was the first time she would be meeting Wei Heng dressed as a woman. Even the hands accustomed to wielding blades could not help but grow tense with nerves.

Jin He was so stunned by her appearance that she forgot to breathe for a moment.

Sheng Zhaoning had always been beautiful. Her entire being was carved from jade, radiating an otherworldly purity from head to toe.

Now, all of Great Wei knew that a female official had appeared in the imperial court, so she no longer needed to deliberately dress as a man. But Jin He felt that a face like this was simply too… eye-catching.

Next time, she absolutely could not dress the magistrate up so beautifully again.

Otherwise, someone might set their sights on her and snatch her away.

A carriage waited outside Sheng Mansion.

There was still some time before the hour of Xu. When the time came, Wei Heng would come to Sheng Mansion to find her.

As Sheng Zhaoning climbed into the carriage, the tenderness in her eyes at the thought of Wei Heng abruptly faded as she became someone else.

She clenched her fist. Her nails dug into her palm, leaving one bloody mark after another.

“Take me to Mingyue Pavilion.”

Wei Yi had deliberately had Xuanniao deliver a letter, inviting her to meet him.

Sheng Zhaoning did not avoid him.

If she refused to go, who knew what Wei Yi might do, given his temperament?

Today, she did not want anyone causing trouble or disturbing her peace.

The carriage sped along before stopping in front of Mingyue Pavilion.

On Ghost Festival Night, Mingyue Pavilion was alive with noise and crowds.

The last time she had come here was during the Shangyuan Festival.

That time, Wei Yi had falsely passed on an assassination order in Prince Zhenbei’s name, nearly making her kill Wei Heng.

Sheng Zhaoning disliked this place intensely. In fact, she loathed it.

Yet she had never expected Shadow Seven to be the one who came out to receive her this time.

“Long time no see.” Shadow Seven looked at her with an amused smile.

The news that Sheng Zhaoning had fled the Zhenbei Prince’s Mansion had been suppressed. Only a few Shadow Guards who remained in Capital City knew about it.

Shadow Seven was utterly baffled. Men were a dime a dozen, weren’t they? Was one really worth giving up everything for and going so far?

She was deeply puzzled.

At the same time, she had also developed a strong curiosity about the legendary Crown Prince.

Sometimes, she truly wanted to see what the person who had managed to pull Sheng Zhaoning away from her stubborn, almost-mad love for Wei Yi actually looked like.

Shadow Seven led her through a secret passage all the way to the top floor.

“Go in.”

It was not yet time for her and Sheng Zhaoning to catch up.

There was still a fearsome fiend waiting for her inside.

Sheng Zhaoning stood before the door.

All six floors of Mingyue Pavilion had been opened through the center. A ring of railings surrounded the middle, allowing one to look straight down to the first floor and take in the entire building.

Shadow Seven remained by the doorway, showing no sign of leaving, as though she were afraid Sheng Zhaoning might turn and run.

Sheng Zhaoning had no idea why Wei Yi had summoned her. Under Shadow Seven’s watchful gaze, she reached out and pushed open the thin wooden door.

From the moment she stepped inside, every nerve in her body was on alert.

Even so, the instant she saw what lay beyond the door, her entire body suddenly went rigid.

Silken apricot blossoms filled her view, hanging throughout the uppermost level of Mingyue Pavilion.

The carved windows stood wide open. The brilliant city lights shining from all directions illuminated them, casting a hazy, dusky golden glow over the silk flowers.

From a shadowed corner where the lights grew dim, a figure slowly emerged. He stepped out from the darkness and into the radiance, quietly gazing at her.

On his face was a careful, tentative eagerness to please her, something she had never seen there before.