The Pampered Impostor Princess (Six)

The days in the palace passed quickly. In a few more days, it would be Jiang Xuefu's seventh birthday.

She hadn't known when she was born, but she hadn't wanted to take Jiang Xuefu's birth date and hour as her own, either. In the end, she simply made the day the fortune-teller had named her into her birthday.

When the emperor asked, she said there had been a mistake when it was entered in the official records, and that her birthday had always been celebrated on the date she remembered.

The emperor had always doted on her, and there was no way to verify such a thing, so the date was settled.

Jiang Xuefu remembered it clearly: the twenty-sixth day of the second month, less than two months after the New Year.

To show how much he valued Jiang Xuefu, the emperor specially arranged a lantern festival in the capital on her birthday. He even made the day a holiday, calling it the Festival of Prayers for Peace, a day to pray for happiness, good health, and peace.

So they could leave the palace to see the lanterns, the Imperial Study's tutor specially granted them half a day off.

Jiang Xuefu began dressing up early. She was the star of the day, so naturally she ought to look beautiful.

The little girl wore a pale green, front-opening brocade jacket beneath a red fox-fur cloak adorned with tassels and pearls. A ring of soft, snowy white fox fur trimmed the collar, setting off her delicate face like a little doll carved from pink jade.

When she reached the palace gates, two carriages were already waiting there.

Jiang Xuefu quickened her pace, lifting her skirt as she ran over.

"Xiao Fu'er, you're late again."

A familiar, lazy voice that begged for a beating came from one of the carriages. Jiang Xuefu paused, then turned and climbed into the other.

"Crown Prince Brother."

Qi Mujing lowered the hand holding a chess piece and looked at the little girl who had come in, a doting smile appearing on his face.

"You look so pretty today, Fu'er."

"Hmph." Jiang Xuefu gave a petulant snort and sat down beside Qi Mujing without ceremony. "Crown Prince Brother is still the considerate one, unlike that Ling Chengfeng. All he does is make me angry every day."

As she was speaking, the carriage curtain was suddenly lifted, revealing Ling Chengfeng's annoying face.

"Xiao Fu'er, you're talking behind my back again. I heard every word."

The boy's hair was tied in a high ponytail with a red ribbon, swinging freely with his movements and showing off his youthful energy and unruly spirit.

He sat down beside Jiang Xuefu as though he belonged there and produced a brocade box from behind his back as if by magic.

"You're angry already? Could you really be so delicate that no one can say a word to you?"

Jiang Xuefu pursed her lips. Though she didn't much want to pay him any attention, she still accepted his gift. When it came to presents, who would ever complain about having too many?

"It's a deal, then. Now that you've accepted my gift, you're not allowed to ignore me tonight."

Jiang Xuefu brushed him off. "We'll see."

"Then give my gift back."

"...Ling Chengfeng, aren't you annoying? Who asks for a gift back after giving it away?"

"Me, of course."

"Fine, you can have it back. I'll go complain to Madam Ling."

"You're not allowed to!"

The sound of their familiar bickering rang out in the corner. Qi Mujing merely smiled, then turned back to studying the chess game before him.

It had snowed in the capital a few days earlier, and now it was cold as the snow melted, but the people's festive joy and lively spirits hadn't diminished in the least.

Qi Mujing dismissed the guards and walked on one side of Jiang Xuefu, while Ling Chengfeng walked on the other. Together, they made a small space around her, protecting her from being jostled by the people nearby.

Though she had seen lantern festivals many times before, Jiang Xuefu was still full of interest. Her clean, porcelain-white face, still a little childish, was filled with anticipation and delight.

Before she turned four, she had hated rainy and snowy days most, because there were fewer people on the streets and she couldn't beg much money. Now she loved snowy days best. Snow was so beautiful, dressing the world in silver and white, as though she had wandered into a pure white fairyland. It was breathtakingly beautiful, and she could build snowmen in it, too.

"Xiao Fu'er, do you want some candied hawthorn?"

Ling Chengfeng had noticed her gaze linger on the candied hawthorn at the corner for a few extra seconds, so he asked.

Jiang Xuefu said nothing, merely nodding with restraint. The pointed look she gave Ling Chengfeng clearly said, Since you insist that I eat some, I'll try it.

An ordinary person might have been indignant: Eat it or don't. Ling Chengfeng, however, merely smiled as though he was used to it and reached out to fasten her cloak a little tighter.

"All you know how to do is order me around. Be good and wait here. I'll go buy you some."

With that, he patted Jiang Xuefu's hair, which had been arranged in a pretty bun, then turned around with a flourish and headed toward the candied hawthorn stall.

While Ling Chengfeng went to buy the snack, Qi Mujing waited with her to one side.

Jiang Xuefu glanced around casually, considering where they should go later.

The food at the Li Family Restaurant was good, and it was well situated. From a private room on the fifth floor, they could take in almost all the beautiful sights of the capital.

They could eat there later. Afterward, they could stroll around nearby and look at the lanterns. If she remembered correctly, there was a place nearby for guessing lantern riddles...

Jiang Xuefu's thoughts wandered. The warm lamplight fell on the girl's face, making her skin look even whiter than snow. Though she was young, it wasn't hard to see that she would one day possess a beauty capable of toppling cities.

"Fu'er!"

"Fu'er!"

A faint call came from the crowd in the distance. It was so quiet that Jiang Xuefu thought she had misheard.

But the voice grew louder right afterward. It seemed to be a girl's.

Jiang Xuefu glanced back, and her heart instantly began pounding like a drum. A cold sweat broke out on her palms.

It's Jiang Xuefu! How is she still alive? And how did she find her way to the capital?

"What's wrong, Fu'er?"

Seeing that Jiang Xuefu didn't look quite right, Qi Mujing asked with concern.

"I'm fine, Crown Prince Brother. Let's go to the Li Family Restaurant and wait for him there. Ling Chengfeng is so annoying, dawdling every single time."

Jiang Xuefu took Qi Mujing's hand and headed toward the Li Family Restaurant. Her steps grew faster and faster, until she was almost running.

The guards in the shadows followed them.

Behind them, separated by the crowd, Jiang Xuefu froze when she saw her leaving. Thinking she hadn't heard, she couldn't help calling out loudly several more times.

But it was no use. In just a few breaths, Jiang Xuefu was nowhere to be seen.

"Xue'er, haven't you seen it yet? She has a guilty conscience and doesn't dare face you, because she stole your identity!"

A boy stood beside Jiang Xuefu, looking about her age. At that moment, he clenched his fists, stared at the place where Jiang Xuefu had disappeared, and spat indignantly.

"But what if she had some unavoidable reason? Perhaps it wasn't what she wanted. I still want to find her and talk to her face-to-face."

"You can think that way because you're kind, but she might not think the same! All along the way, we heard how much the emperor dotes on her. Even if she still thinks of you as a sister, she might not be willing to give up all that glory and wealth!"

Hearing him, Jiang Xuefu hesitated only briefly before saying firmly, "I believe in her."

Wang Xiaolu pressed a hand to his forehead, feeling a headache coming on. His junior sister was kind, but she was also frighteningly single-minded.

"In that case, let's stay in the capital a couple more days and see if we get a chance to find her. In any case, we still have enough travel money from Master."

Jiang Xuefu was touched. "Thank you, Senior Brother."

Fortunately, she still had her master and senior brothers.

When she had returned home that day, she had seen the dreadful scene: blood flowing like a river, her father and mother tortured and killed. Little Jiang Xuefu had frozen where she stood, her hands and feet cold, feeling certain she was having a nightmare.

That very morning, before she went out, Mother had reminded her to study medicine diligently. Over breakfast, Father had said she had grown taller again...

Only half a day had passed. How could this have happened? How?

She had fallen to her knees and wept bitterly. Pain, grief, hatred, fear, panic...

So many unfamiliar emotions had filled her body that Jiang Xuefu had cried until she nearly fainted.

Later, she had found an old maidservant among the pile of dead bodies in the front courtyard who wasn't quite dead yet. The maidservant had told her to go to the capital and find the emperor, and had also told her her mother's true identity. Not long after saying this, the maidservant had breathed her last.

But she hadn't wanted to leave. She had wanted to stay there and keep watch over Mother.

The little girl had hidden in a cupboard that night and cried until morning. The next morning, her strength had given out, and she had cried herself unconscious.

Wang Xiaolu, who had come looking for her, had found her and carried her all the way to Master's house outside the city. Only then had she woken up.

Master had told her not to act rashly and that she should hide for the time being, or her own life would be in danger too.

Though Jiang Xuefu had been grief-stricken, she had resolved to uncover the truth and avenge her father and mother!

She had remained in hiding for two years. Throughout those two years, she had studied medicine in Master's courtyard. Master wouldn't let her go to the capital to find anyone until she had completed her training.

Master had said that a little girl going to a man-eating place like the capital needed a skill to rely on, or she wouldn't even know how she had died.

So Jiang Xuefu had studied diligently every day. At last, after two years, she had completed her training and set out for the capital with her senior brother Wang Xiaolu.