Chapter 152

Chapter 152

The maids and eunuchs waiting outside the pavilion heard the commotion. Their expressions changed, and they rushed forward in a panic to help their respective mistresses, quickly turning the scene into complete chaos.

Chi Wan’s nails left several bloody scratches on Sheng Zhaoning, along with a few bruises. Chi Wan, meanwhile, had a distinct palm print on her face that made her look rather ridiculous.

Sheng Zhaoning had put all her strength into that slap. It had to look convincing.

If she and Chi Wan had met here today without anything happening between them, Wei Yi would inevitably have grown suspicious.

Only by having a fight like this could they avoid arousing his suspicions.

Unfortunately, that meant Chi Wan had to suffer a little.

When the news reached Wei Yi, he tossed aside the memorial and vermilion brush on his desk and strode over. The sight of the bloody scratches across Sheng Zhaoning’s face and neck, as well as the dark bruises on her arms, turned his expression black as ink.

He had taken his eyes off her for barely a moment, and she had already come back covered in injuries again.

Wei Yi’s face was cold, rage simmering in his chest and fury plain in his eyes.

Chi Wan’s previous intrusion into Changhua Hall had already displeased him. Now that she had caused trouble again, he naturally had no intention of letting her off lightly.

Wei Yi did not openly call it a punishment. Instead, under the pretext of an upcoming sacrificial rite to pray for blessings, he ordered Chi Wan to hand-copy the Medicine Buddha Sutra fifty times. She was forbidden from leaving her residence until she finished, and for every character she copied incorrectly, she was to receive one stroke of the disciplinary ruler. There was no need to go easy on her.

Zhao Quan could barely suppress his amusement when he heard the order.

Chi Wan had been born into a military family and hated nothing more than writing and calligraphy. The Medicine Buddha Sutra symbolized the removal of karmic obstacles, the accumulation of blessings, and deliverance from illness. Clearly, this was Wei Yi’s way of punishing her to avenge Sheng Zhaoning.

The scripture was not short, either. Copying it fifty times would take her from dawn until dusk for who knew how many days. Her back and waist would ache, and her wrist would become so sore and swollen that she would wish it would simply fall off. She was bound to make mistakes if her attention slipped. Then she would either have to start the copy over or endure the disciplinary ruler. She was in for quite an ordeal.

Having received his orders, Zhao Quan quietly withdrew.

Changhua Hall kept medicinal salve on hand. Wei Yi glanced at the dried, clotted streaks of blood on Sheng Zhaoning’s face. He could not quite describe what he was feeling, but he knew he was deeply uncomfortable.

“Come here,” he ordered harshly.

Sheng Zhaoning lowered her eyes. Without resisting, she shuffled over to him. Wei Yi pulled her close and, without allowing any argument, pressed her down across his lap.

He gently applied a green, gel-like salve to her wounds.

Wei Yi’s gaze was intent and meticulous, and he deliberately softened his touch. His voice, however, remained as cold and hard as ever, and his words were just as unpleasant and irritating.

“Use your head the next time you go out, and bring more people with you. With your current skills, you’d have trouble catching a chicken, yet you still dared to fight someone?”

Sheng Zhaoning closed her eyes, her face expressionless, and made no reply.

Back then, she had crippled her own martial arts without the slightest hesitation. It had been entirely her own choice. Yet Wei Yi insisted on bringing it up every so often, prodding at the wound in an attempt to make her admit she had been wrong and regret what she had done.

Sheng Zhaoning did not want to respond, but Wei Yi seized her chin and tilted her face up, forcing her to open her eyes. His gaze demanded an answer.

Annoyed and helpless, Sheng Zhaoning sighed. “I understand.”

Wei Yi’s expression finally eased. Satisfied, he released her.

Sheng Zhaoning did not leave the palace again for several days.

When the spring apricot blossoms fully unfurled across the branches, Capital City grew lively once more.

The results of the Spring Imperial Examination had finally been posted.

For a woman to become an official, she had to place in the First Class or she would not be permitted to enter the imperial court.

In other words, after the Spring Imperial Examination, only a woman who went on to rank as Zhuangyuan, Bangyan, or Tanhua in the upcoming Palace Examination could enter the imperial court as an official.

During the Late Emperor’s reign, the new policy permitting women to sit the imperial examinations had been implemented only once. Unfortunately, not a single woman had passed.

No one had expected much from this year’s imperial examinations. Yet on the day the Apricot List was posted, one striking name appeared among the top three, sending the entire nation into an uproar.

Anyone who placed in the top three of the Spring Imperial Examination stood an excellent chance of earning a place in the First Class.

In other words, the upcoming Palace Examination could very well produce another female official at court.

When the Minister of Rites presented the list of the top ten candidates from the Metropolitan Examination, Wei Yi merely skimmed it from top to bottom before one name caught his eye.

“He Sui?” His fingertip tapped the desk out of habit.

The Minister of Rites bowed slightly. “Yes. She is the daughter of the Former Grand Secretary, He Wenbo.”

Wei Yi’s gaze lingered on her name. She had placed third and was now qualified to sit for the Palace Examination.

If she remained among the top three in the Palace Examination and earned a place in the First Class, He Sui would be able to enter the imperial court.

His gaze traveled past the folding screen toward the inner chamber. Sheng Zhaoning had been Great Wei’s first female official. She, too, had once possessed an impeccable reputation and enjoyed the wholehearted support of the people.

Now, all she had left was infamy.

A trace of irritation rose in Wei Yi’s heart.

He casually set the list aside. “Choose a suitable date for the Palace Examination. Fairness must come before all else.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Silence returned outside.

With only a folding screen between them, Sheng Zhaoning had naturally heard the entire conversation.

Wei Yi did not come in. Perhaps he was reluctant to discuss such matters with her.

Leaning against the window, Sheng Zhaoning gazed toward the distant palace walls. The clouds hung low, and beyond the magnificent glazed roofs gleaming with gold, there was nothing else to see.

Her days at court seemed so far away now. Looking back on them felt like recalling a dream.

“I hope that the next time we meet, you’ll call me Lady He.”

He Sui’s voice still echoed in her ears.

Sheng Zhaoning had not forgotten those words.

She gazed calmly beyond the window at the towering palace wall. It enclosed the sky on all four sides, leaving only a small patch visible.

The sliver of daylight her Ah Heng had won for the countless women of this world still shone upon the mortal realm.

Even if that light could never reach her again, even if she was no longer “Lord Sheng,” anyone else could become one.

Sheng Zhaoning had no regrets left in her heart.

The results of the Palace Examination arrived before April fifteenth.

When Zhou Lingsheng told Sheng Zhaoning that He Sui had placed third in the First Class and earned the title of Tanhua, her eyes curved into an unconscious smile.

“It must be lively outside,” Sheng Zhaoning said with a gentle smile.

Recently, whenever Zhou Lingsheng came to take her pulse, he would tell her about events beyond the palace walls. Wei Yi had never tried to stop him.

“It is. Great Wei rarely sees a female official. Everyone in Capital City is talking about her.”

Sheng Zhaoning still remembered the young woman’s bright, free-spirited manner. She was truly happy for her.

It was just that they might never have another chance to meet.

She would probably never have the opportunity to congratulate her as Lady He.

Sheng Zhaoning slowly raised her gaze, a shadow passing through her eyes.

“Tomorrow is the fifteenth.”

She gave Zhou Lingsheng a long, searching look before turning to Wei Yi with a smile. “Don’t forget that you promised to accompany me to offer incense at the Temple of Ten Thousand Blessings.”

Wei Yi had not forgotten.

Sheng Zhaoning had not left the palace in a long time. She had been remarkably obedient of late, and Wei Yi did not want to keep too tight a rein on her. Besides, he had already promised her and naturally would not go back on his word.

“All right,” Wei Yi said.

He never noticed that a note had already been slipped into Zhou Lingsheng’s medicine case and was leaving Changhua Hall with him.