Chapter 441: The Prince Lied to Me

Chapter 441: Chapter 441: The Prince Lied to Me

Just then, the Ninth Prince rushed over, announcing loudly, "I bought that Jade Token as a gift for my mother."

All eyes turned to the Ninth Prince, who was frowning as he strode toward Princess Consort Qi.

Princess Consort Qi was visibly stunned. The Ninth Prince stepped in front of her and bowed to Princess Shu with his hands clasped.

"Aunt, my sincerest apologies. As for this Jade Token, I begged my uncle for several days before I finally convinced him to sell it to me. He had originally intended to give it to you, but with my mother’s birthday approaching, I wanted to give her a truly unique gift."

"A Palace Attendant just found me in a hurry, worried that a misunderstanding might arise, so I rushed over to explain. Please, Aunt, don’t take offense."

Princess Shu was clearly skeptical, her gaze filled with faint suspicion.

Seeing this, Princess Consort Qi removed the Jade Token from her neck.

"I only knew my son was being filial. I had no idea this was something King Shu intended for his Princess Consort. Goodness, we nearly had a terrible misunderstanding. I don’t dare accept it now. This Jade Token should be returned to the Princess Consort."

Upon hearing this, Princess Shu let the matter go and said quickly, "Since it was all a misunderstanding, it’s good that we’ve cleared it up. It is Princess Consort Qi’s birthday, so you should keep the Jade Token. Don’t let the Ninth Prince’s filial piety go to waste."

Princess Shu had no desire to press the issue in public. Shen Ningning could see it too—the Ninth Prince had come specifically to save the day and defuse Princess Consort Qi’s crisis.

The little girl pursed her pink lips and snorted softly.

Throughout the banquet, everyone ate with mixed feelings, each lost in their own thoughts.

As soon as the meal ended, Princess Consort Qi grew restless. After a few perfunctory pleasantries, she left, leaning on the arm of a palace maid.

The other ladies also began to take their leave.

Shen Ningning was about to leave with Ye Shangyi and Qi Xiuwei.

But just as they were walking along a palace path, Princess Shu called out from behind.

"Ningning, wait."

Seeing that Princess Shu wanted to speak with Shen Ningning, Ye Shangyi and Qi Xiuwei tactfully excused themselves.

"We’ll wait for you up ahead," said Ye Shangyi.

Shen Ningning nodded before turning to Princess Shu. "Aunt, what is it?"

Princess Shu’s lips were a thin line, her dark brows still furrowed. She pulled the length of colorful thread from her sleeve.

She had been wearing it on her wrist, and even mentioning it had filled her with joy. But after what had just happened, she had taken it off.

"Ningning, you saw that Jade Token. Are you sure this colorful thread was the cord it hung from?"

Without hesitation, Shen Ningning nodded lightly. "I’m sure. I saw it with my own eyes."

The color drained from Princess Shu’s face, and her gaze grew distant.

"Fine. I understand. Thank you, Ningning." Princess Shu turned and strode away, her servants hurrying after her.

Watching her retreating figure, Shen Ningning silently shook her head. ’Princess Shu has been so thoroughly deceived,’ she thought.

「That night」

By the time King Shu returned to his estate, he already knew everything that had happened at the palace during the day.

He entered the room, his expression unreadable. Princess Shu had already changed into her nightclothes and was sitting grimly on the edge of the bed.

King Shu feigned ignorance, asking with a smile, "My dear, why aren’t you in bed yet? My apologies. I ran into some old friends today, and they insisted I stay for a few drinks. That’s why I’ve returned so late."

Princess Shu coldly held out the colorful thread.

"You told me," she said, her voice like ice, "that this was a lucky five-color rope you obtained after offering lamps before the Buddha for seven days. Is that true?"

King Shu’s heart went cold. He hesitated for a fraction of a second, but it was enough. Seeing his reaction, Princess Shu knew. ’He’s lying!’

Her eyes welled with tears. "Why did you lie to me?"

Princess Shu flung the colorful thread aside. "This is just the cord for the Jade Token! It’s nothing special! You gave the real gift to someone else, left me with a piece of string, and then lied that you’d prayed for it before the Buddha! Why?! Why would you say that?!"

King Shu rushed to her side, trying to embrace his sobbing wife, but she shoved him away.

He panicked. "My love, it’s my fault. I shouldn’t have lied! I did buy that Jade Token for you, but the Ninth Prince is my nephew. When he came and begged me for it, how could I refuse?"

"I promised you I’d find a special gift for you when we reached the Capital City. I couldn’t bear to break that promise, but I was also afraid you’d be upset, so I made up a story to deceive you."

"But my love, my feelings for you all these years are true, the heavens can be my witness! Please don’t let this break your heart and harm your health."

Princess Shu covered her face, weeping bitterly. "You’ve made me a laughingstock! Do you have any idea? On the way to the palace today, I was bragging to everyone that the colorful thread my husband gave me was a sacred object he prayed for before the Buddha."

"But... but... it was just an afterthought! An accessory! The real gift is with someone else! How am I ever supposed to show my face in the Capital again?"

"It won’t be like that, my love. The day after tomorrow—no! Tomorrow! We will go to the temple to offer incense, and I will get you a truly meaningful gift," King Shu said, taking her hands and soothing her gently.

When Princess Shu wouldn’t stop crying, King Shu steeled his resolve. He shot to his feet and cursed, "That Princess Consort Qi is a real piece of work, causing a fight between us! I’ll go to the palace this instant, explain the situation to the Emperor, and demand she return the Jade Token!"

He turned as if to leave. Princess Shu, snapping out of her grief, quickly grabbed him, her eyes swimming with tears.

"No, don’t! Just let it go," Princess Shu sobbed, shaking her head.

’If she let King Shu go to the palace and bother the Emperor over this, who knew what fresh new scandal it would create.’

’What’s done is done. If Princess Consort Qi has it, then she has it.’

’Princess Shu didn’t really care about the gift itself; she just hated that King Shu had lied to her.’

’Did he think he could just take a piece of string, spin some tale, and she’d be happy? Was she that easy to fool?’

King Shu turned back, seizing the opportunity to pull Princess Shu into his arms and wipe away her tears.

Then he said with deep emotion, "Forget what anyone else says. Aren’t you happy? My love, the physical gift may have been a lie, but my feelings for you are real. You know in your heart that others can only look upon you with envy."

Princess Shu remained silent, but her sobs began to subside.

King Shu continued, "There now, don’t be sad anymore. I was wrong. I’ll be more careful next time. Crying too much is bad for your health, and don’t we still want a child of our own?"

At these words, Princess Shu finally stopped crying and looked up, her eyes red.

"Prince, you must never lie to me like this again."

Seeing she had calmed down, King Shu immediately nodded. "I won’t. By the way, my dear, about our plan to invite the Ninth Prince over to admire the bamboo in a few days..."

Deep down, Princess Shu was still bothered.

She pursed her lips. "Let’s cancel it. With this incident so fresh, I don’t want to give anyone more to gossip about. It’s just admiring bamboo; he can do that anywhere in the palace. There’s no reason he must come to our estate."

A cold glint flashed in King Shu’s eyes, but he said nothing, only nodding. "Alright. We’ll do as you say."

’He had wanted to use this opportunity for the Ninth Prince to get on Princess Shu’s good side, thereby strengthening their alliance.’

’But Princess Consort Qi’s birthday banquet had ruined everything!’

Once Princess Shu was asleep, King Shu went to the South Courtyard and slapped Mo Zhirou hard across the face.

"AH—" Mo Zhirou cried out, collapsing to the ground.

The room was unlit, and the pitch-black darkness only made King Shu’s furious eyes seem colder and more sinister.

"Useless!" King Shu snarled. "I told you to be discreet when you bought the Jade Token. Not only did you disobey, but you went and flaunted it in front of Princess Funing?"

’She had ruined everything!’

Clutching her face, Mo Zhirou sobbed, "Father, I didn’t know who you intended to give it to! I... I know I was wrong!"

King Shu pointed a finger at her, his voice stern. "From now on, avoid Princess Funing. You’re not as clever as she is, so don’t speak to her. If you let her trick information out of you, I won’t spare you!"

With that, he stormed out, slamming the door behind him. Mo Zhirou was left sobbing as she wiped her tears.

The next day, Princess Shu saw Mo Zhirou’s badly swollen cheek and asked with concern what had happened.

Mo Zhirou could only lie. "I knew I’d done wrong, so I couldn’t sleep. I was feeling dazed and wasn’t paying attention when I got up. I bumped into the corner of the bed."

Hearing this, Princess Shu’s heart ached for her. "This wasn’t your fault. It’s your father who wasn’t clear with me. I have some ointment for the swelling and bruising. I’ll have a maid bring it to you."

Mo Zhirou thanked her mother, but as she lowered her head, a flash of resentment flickered in her eyes before vanishing.