Chapter 224: Chapter 224
An Ning did not wait long. Early the next morning, an imperial summons arrived from the palace.
The messenger was again one of the Empress Dowager’s close attendants—the stewardess in charge of Renshou Palace, Lady Dai. Amid the Old Yang Family’s astonishment and Yu’s worried glances, after dressing and arranging her hair, An Ning soon boarded the carriage heading for the palace…
Inside the carriage, dressed in county princess attire, Mu Yang had been waiting early. Seeing An Ning approach, she hurriedly grabbed her friend’s hand.
“A-Ning, don’t be afraid. Just stick with me and it’ll be fine. Grandmother is very kind—she usually wouldn’t mistreat someone!”
“Especially someone as pretty as you, A-Ning!”
Seeing a familiar face, An Ning’s previously tense mood relaxed a little.
The carriage was fairly spacious. The two squeezed side by side and stole a look outside; when they saw that the matron who had been there earlier was gone, An Ning finally breathed out a long sigh of relief and pulled her friend close to whisper:
“Yunjia, what’s going on? Why would the Empress Dowager want to see me?”
“Don’t worry. It’s not a bad thing!”
After relentless little glances and coaxing from An Ning, Mu Yang finally began to speak slowly.
“After you left that day, I couldn’t help feeling unsettled, A-Ning…” The Lady of Muyang’s face grew unusually serious. “This thing about fortune—though always mystical and hard to grasp—losing good luck so suddenly isn’t trivial. A-Ning, today might just be a dip in luck, but what about tomorrow? If it continues…”
As if thinking of something terrible, Mu Yang’s expression abruptly soured.
Silence filled the carriage, broken only by the county princess’s low voice.
“A-Ning, you don’t know—there are people so unlucky that just drinking cold water could make them choke to death!”
“Do you remember the son of the Marquis of Zhenbei? He was terribly unlucky. On the battlefield he was accidentally struck by his own man’s long spear and fell. As if that weren’t bad enough, the horse stomped on him in a vital spot. When he returned there was still a chance to save him, but the marquis’s wife was too emotional. When she lunged forward she accidentally pressed on the wound…”
“You see? A grown man just gone like that!”
Although that specific outcome might not have been inevitable given the severity of the injury, anyone would be unsettled by such petty details.
If the Zhenbei Marquis’s family hadn’t been renowned for generations and highly virtuous, rumors would have already swelled—accusations of the heir’s misconduct or karmic retribution.
Of course, conspiracy theories weren’t absent either…
In short, the previous incident was a warning; Mu Yang could not be careless. Today it might be merely a loss of luck—tomorrow it could be A-Ning’s life…
“This… is that serious…”
As if realizing the gravity for the first time, An Ning’s delicate face paled, trembling like a fragile red peony on a branch—beautiful but fragile.
This sight pained Mu Yang, who quickly pulled her into an embrace and murmured soothingly.
“Don’t worry, A-Ning. Don’t be scared. Yesterday I already told my mother. I heard Master Wuxiang’s jade talismans work better the finer the jade. It just so happens I have a lot of fine things my uncle and grandmother once gave me. I’ll have several made and you can wear them on rotation…”
Word that something from the royal house could ward off evil spirits seemed especially reassuring.
“Also, A-Ning, I’ll ask my royal grandmother to grant you a few personal gifts when we get there. Everything will be fine!”
“Wah… Yunjia, you’re the best!”
She felt no absurdity in any of this. Comforted, An Ning immediately brightened, her eyes sparkling as she looked at her childhood friend.
Mu Yang’s small face lifted high in pride, charming and pleased, and she waved a hand lightly.
“Don’t worry. Grandmother dotes on me!”
They bantered all the way, and by the time they arrived at Renshou Palace half an hour had passed.
Including the original body’s experiences, this was An Ning’s first trip to the palace. Her adoptive father’s rank as a third-rank Attendant Minister sounded impressive, but among the high officials and imperial relatives in the capital, it was not particularly notable. Coupled with the original body’s reputation, there were even fewer people here to notice them.
Naturally curious on the way in, An Ning kept her composure outwardly but kept glancing around with unconscious curiosity.
Such movements might seem petty on others, but on this face they only emphasized her delicate charm and vivaciousness.
Mu Yang covered her mouth and laughed softly.
Even Lady Dai, who had seen many beauties by the Empress Dowager’s side, found herself inwardly admiring.
This Miss Yang’s beauty was indeed abundant, and more impressively, she possessed an indefinable, radiant vitality…
As if recalling something, Lady Dai quickly lowered her head.
With a trusted attendant leading them, the group passed through unimpeded. In the inner hall, two noblewomen with similar features and equally imposing airs sat opposite one another.
“Royal Grandmother, Mother…” Mu Yang’s familiarity with the place showed—she didn’t need introduction and hurriedly pulled her friend straight into the inner hall.
An Ning followed and bowed as she entered; her first formal court bow was a little awkward from nerves.
Fortunately, the two elders at the head of the hall did not take offense.
After the bow, Mu Yang promptly pulled An Ning to sit at her side.
“So this is the Miss Yang Mu Yang talks about often. Indeed a fine appearance—and I heard her fortune is good as well…”
Soon, the Empress Dowager Zhou spoke softly, and An Ning found herself daring to lift her eyes to the most powerful elderly lady of the realm.
Empress Dowager Zhou was around sixty but looked no older than a woman in her forties. She wore a somewhat plain sandalwood-colored dress and modest jewelry, though an entire strand of purple jade prayer beads on her wrist was particularly striking.
Unlike the Grand Princess’s sharp intensity, the Empress Dowager’s presence was more balanced—yet the immutable royal dignity ran as deep as bone.
An Ning quickly dropped her gaze and nervously clutched the small pouch in her hand.
Unexpectedly, the Empress Dowager did not press for details. She did not mention the mysterious fluctuations in fortune; she only asked a few casual questions about An Ning’s daily life.
Seeing this, An Ning fully relaxed.
With Mu Yang joking at her side, the meeting—despite the vast difference in status—was bearable. The original body had always been carefree; after a brief nervous spell, An Ning soon felt at ease. When something amusing came up, the two girls sneaked closer and laughed together.
Laughter and bright voices echoed through the inner hall.
After a while, having gratefully received the granted gifts, the two girls exchanged glances and left hand in hand as they had come.
Only when their backs disappeared did the hall’s cheerful atmosphere evaporate. After a long hush, Empress Dowager Zhou spoke with some feeling.
“This child is truly honest. No wonder she plays with Mu Yang.”
“That child truly is good…”
The Grand Princess only nodded lightly, sipping her fragrant tea. Though mother and daughter by blood, a deep, unbridgeable distance seemed to lie between them.
Such estrangement seemed routine to the Empress Dowager.
“But about that so-called leveraging of influence…”
As if thinking of something, the Empress Dowager’s eyes narrowed, her authoritative gaze settling on the attendant below.
“Amber, how did the matter I asked you to investigate go? Master Wuxiang—what did you find?”
“Your Majesty, I specially checked. That monk’s jade talismans indeed have special properties…”
“And regarding that second Miss of the Yang family…” Amber pressed her lips together, and after a long moment said:
“There is indeed something odd…”