Chapter Sixty-Four: Calamity

For the first time in his life, Yu Hualiang wanted to hit a woman. He watched the maid leave, his face twisted in distress as he returned to his room.

No sooner had he entered than Jinhe followed, carrying food and dishes.

Yu Hualiang looked at her and asked, “Jinhe, do you know Anxu Hall?”

She smiled. “Of course.”

“What kind of place is it?” Yu Hualiang pressed. “Who lives there?”

She replied, “I heard it’s haunted, so it’s been abandoned.”

Yu Hualiang was perplexed. Why would Princess Xuan summon him to such a place in the dead of night? Was she planning to kill him? Or were they to investigate supernatural mysteries together?

He had Grass Blade by his side now, and the Seventh Prince was still present in the manor at night. It was impossible for her to kill him. Did she want him to see a ghost?

Yu Hualiang shuddered at the thought. He deliberated for a long time—should he go or not?

Jinhe tried to reason with him. “You know the princess’s temper well. If she’s gone to the trouble of inviting you to a place like that, perhaps she truly has something to say to you.”

“What could she possibly say? Besides cursing me, the only thing left is to urge me to leave,” Yu Hualiang replied.

“She is, after all, a woman. If you’re worried she’s plotting something, I can go with you tonight,” Jinhe offered.

Yu Hualiang eyed her suspiciously. “There’s something fishy here! You’re never this considerate!”

Jinhe was momentarily stunned, then put on a wounded expression. “You always accuse me wrongly! I’m only worried that if you refuse the princess, she’ll cause you trouble in the future!”

Her words sent a chill down Yu Hualiang’s spine. He quickly said, “Speak properly!”

With a dramatic flick of her sleeves, Jinhe rolled her eyes at him and left. Yu Hualiang propped his chin, deep in thought.

Grass Blade hopped down and said, “Tonight, I’ll go with you.”

Yu Hualiang looked up at him. “Honestly, I think it would be best not to go.”

Grass Blade’s gaze drifted away as he replied, “She’s right… Princess Xuan is still a woman. If she’s asking for you, perhaps it really is important.”

Yu Hualiang sighed. “What could be so important…”

He truly hadn’t intended to go. After all, his relationship with Princess Xuan could only be described as adversarial. But with Jinhe urging him—and even Grass Blade encouraging him—he felt he should reconsider. He paced the room a dozen times, making Grass Blade dizzy just watching him.

“What are you doing?” Grass Blade asked.

“Thinking,” Yu Hualiang answered concisely.

Grass Blade turned away, unconcerned. Yu Hualiang hadn’t expected him to offer advice anyway.

After much deliberation, Yu Hualiang decided to go and see for himself. With Grass Blade accompanying him, there shouldn’t be any real danger.

At midnight, Yu Hualiang quietly dressed, but when he looked up, Grass Blade was nowhere to be found—though Jinhe arrived punctually to meet him.

Seeing Jinhe’s sinister smile, Yu Hualiang suddenly felt it might be wiser not to go after all.

Under the faint moonlight, he followed Jinhe as they slipped out into the night. She led him along unfamiliar paths, winding left and right as if navigating a maze. Yu Hualiang couldn’t help but ask, “Jinhe… how much farther?”

Jinhe silenced him with a gesture. “Shh!”

Yu Hualiang immediately fell silent. There was something mysterious about Jinhe tonight. Suddenly, she dragged him into a shadowy corner by the wall just as he was about to scold her for being crazy.

He saw a shadow flicker on the ground—someone was standing atop the wall, surveying the area.

Only after the shadow disappeared did Jinhe lead Yu Hualiang onward.

For the first time, Yu Hualiang felt as if he were part of a clandestine mission—it was exhilarating! Jinhe seemed utterly unfazed, clearly accustomed to such evasions. Yu Hualiang found himself growing more curious about her.

He didn’t know how long they walked. By the time he snapped out of his thoughts, they were standing before a dilapidated courtyard.

He was unfamiliar with the place—after all, the Seventh Prince’s residence was vast, and he rarely wandered within its walls.

The sight was indeed novel. Jinhe announced, “We’re here.”

“This is… Anxu Hall,” Yu Hualiang murmured, surveying the building before him.

The courtyard was in ruins, its tiles broken, grass growing wild along the walls.

Following Jinhe a few steps further, Yu Hualiang saw Princess Xuan’s maid awaiting him with a lantern, her expression sour.

“I told you to come alone!” the little maid snapped at him.

Yu Hualiang ignored her. “Why did the princess summon me here?”

She rolled her eyes. “She’s inside.”

Yu Hualiang entered, but the maid glared at Jinhe. “Alone!”

Jinhe and Yu Hualiang exchanged a glance and went in together.

The door, old and brittle, creaked and groaned at the slightest touch, the strange noise made all the more eerie by the silence and the tales of hauntings.

Yu Hualiang’s heart pounded as he entered. Inside, the courtyard was spacious yet overgrown with weeds; the pools on either side long since dried up. Properly tended, it might have been quite a lovely garden.

A faint light seeped from a tightly closed door—Princess Xuan must be within.

Yu Hualiang felt a surge of anxiety. What if, as soon as he opened the door, the princess attacked him with a kitchen knife or, dressed provocatively, falsely accused him of impropriety…

Yet the reality was far less dramatic.

The room was thick with dust, the floor carpeted with weeds, broken furniture, and bundles of straw. In the center, however, stood a remarkably clean table with a teapot and two cups.

Princess Xuan sat there in resplendent red, dressed beautifully enough to make Yu Hualiang stare.

She neither shouted nor made a scene, but sat quietly, expressionless. Yu Hualiang thought that if she had been this gentle a day earlier, perhaps the Seventh Prince would have treated her better.

He collected himself, glanced around the room, and said, “Princess Xuan… you didn’t bring me here just for tea, did you?”

“Sit,” she said.

Yu Hualiang obediently sat. The princess poured him tea with mechanical motions. He eyed the cup but dared not drink.

He cut to the chase. “Princess, why did you call me here?”

“You can’t possibly claim now that you’re not interested in men, that you don’t like the Seventh Prince, can you…” she asked.

Yu Hualiang was taken aback, unable to respond for a moment. Princess Xuan sneered, “Still won’t admit it?”

He frowned. Even if he denied it, the truth was he did have feelings for the Seventh Prince. So he mustered his courage. “Yes, I do like him.”

“Honesty would have saved a lot of trouble,” she said with a smile.

Yu Hualiang had kept his feelings hidden for fear she’d kill him if he confessed too soon, yet now she seemed indifferent, which unsettled him.

Princess Xuan’s eyes were vacant. Her calmness was almost disturbing.

She sipped her tea. “In the Xuan family, my father is a high-ranking minister, and I am his only daughter. I grew up with several princes and the emperor.”

She seemed stable enough, so Yu Hualiang let her speak.

“As a child, I adored the Seventh Prince. Marrying him was my dream. But after I grew up and became his wife, I realized everything was different.”

As she spoke, she raised her sleeve to wipe away tears. Yu Hualiang understood—she had never held the Seventh Prince’s heart. She was merely a tool to solidify political alliances.

She continued, “I thought… that’s just how he was. He never said much, but I believed he cared for me, and that would be enough. But he took one concubine after another.”

“I thought he was only putting on a show for the court, never realizing… I was just like the rest.”

Yu Hualiang sighed, just as Princess Xuan turned to look at him, startling him. “But with your arrival, I finally understood—he’s like any fine gentleman: gentle and strong… but only toward you.”

Her words sent a chill through Yu Hualiang, amplifying his guilt.

“All I can say is I’m sorry,” he offered sincerely.

Princess Xuan shook her head and smiled. “No need to apologize. What isn’t mine, I can’t have—that’s a truth I understand.”

Looking at her, Yu Hualiang said, “I’ve misjudged you all this time… I didn’t know you suffered so much.”

“I’m not suffering… The path I chose wasn’t mine to decide. I’m simply helpless,” she replied.

“Then why did you call me here tonight?” Yu Hualiang wanted to ask what she truly intended.

Suddenly, Princess Xuan laughed, stood, and spun in a circle. “To get married, of course.”

Yu Hualiang grew increasingly uneasy—this was not right. She seemed almost mad.

“You’re already married to the Seventh Prince, aren’t you?” he reminded her.

“But… if I die, no one can control me anymore,” she said with a smile.

“You want to kill yourself!” Yu Hualiang exclaimed, rising to his feet.

Princess Xuan leaned against the door, looking at him. “Who said that?”

“Then what do you want? Do you want me to kill you, so the Seventh Prince will have me executed?” Yu Hualiang thought, keeping as much distance as possible.

She said, “If I can’t have my wish in life, and if I can’t be with my beloved in death… what’s the point?”

A sudden pang struck Yu Hualiang’s heart. “You want to kill the Seventh Prince!?”

She lowered her head. “I can’t kill him… Not even my father could.”

Now Yu Hualiang was truly bewildered. Did she mean to die for love?

“Come, tell me—how did you kill Qingzhang?”

“What? Qingzhang?” Yu Hualiang realized she was after Grass Blade! She thought Grass Blade was Qingzhang, and that Qingzhang had died in his courtyard.

“I didn’t kill him!” Yu Hualiang explained.

“You lie!” Princess Xuan shouted. “Qingzhang told me himself—it was you! Stop denying it!”

“What? You must be dreaming!” Yu Hualiang protested.

“You killed Qingzhang! You killed Qingzhang! You stole my happiness as soon as you arrived at the prince’s residence, again and again taking everything important from my life!”

“I didn’t! Why won’t you listen to reason?” Yu Hualiang felt like a scholar arguing with a soldier—logic was pointless.

“Well, fine! No need to wonder how I died—I’ll die right in front of you!” she declared.

She truly was impossible when she threw a tantrum. Yu Hualiang frowned. “Princess, can we talk this through? The Qingzhang you saw… isn’t the dead one…”

“I won’t listen! Your silver tongue won’t deceive me! If I die tonight, you’ll die with me!” Princess Xuan vowed.

Now Yu Hualiang understood—she really did mean to kill him.