During the Qingming season, rain fell in a fine, ceaseless drizzle. The Third Prince walked along the damp flagstones of Linhan Palace, wet grass brushing against his boots. Not far ahead stood a solitary grave. Within it lay a woman of peerless beauty.
He had once promised to choose an auspicious site and build for his mother-consort a residence unlike any other—a secluded palace courtyard of rare elegance. Thus Consort Mu became the only concubine within the harem to possess two dwellings. Before others she basked in glory, yet in her heart she always knew: the second residence had never been built for her.
It had been built for another woman.
Within that courtyard, many of the landscapes and details had been personally tended by the Third Prince himself. The woman’s name was Lin Yue. Twenty years ago, she had married Grand Tutor Mu.
Born in the mist-laced waterways of Jiangnan, Lin Yue was gentle by nature, well-read and refined—the niece of a local magistrate. Though her marriage to the Grand Tutor had been arranged by her elders, she had fallen in love the moment she beheld the graceful and brilliant young scholar.
In those years, when male companions were the fashion of the court, the Grand Tutor was no exception—his youthful beauty and charm stirred countless admirers. Even the Emperor was among them.
The Emperor had once promised him high office and rank if he would enter the palace. The Grand Tutor declined with courtesy. It was not that he lacked such inclinations—only that none among them were the one his heart desired.
Lin Yue never sought status for herself. She wished only for a quiet life. To catch sight of her husband now and then was enough to content her.
The Grand Tutor’s secondary wife was named Mu Wan’er—own sister to Consort Mu. Later he married yet another woman, one who never stepped beyond her chamber door. Even the manor servants had never glimpsed her face.
That woman and Lin Yue conceived at nearly the same time, and each bore a son within days of the other. Yet the Grand Tutor rushed only to the secluded woman’s chamber, taking away the grotesque-looking infant Mu Xueshi had birthed. The other child—handsome and radiant—was secretly sent into the palace, where he would become a pawn in Consort Mu’s pursuit of power.
The woman who had never left her chamber died shortly after giving birth to Mu Xueshi. Some claimed she had hidden herself because she was hideously ugly—else how could she have borne such a ruinous son? Others swore in whispers that they had glimpsed her once, and that she had been breathtakingly beautiful.
Mu Xueshi was adopted by Mu Wan’er. Two days later, Lin Yue died under mysterious circumstances, and the “daughter” she had borne was likewise given to Mu Wan’er to raise. From childhood, Mu Xueshi believed Mu Wan’er to be his true mother, and that his “younger sister” was Mu Yuanqing—the daughter of Consort Mu. Naturally, Mu Yuanqing received greater favor. As for Mu Xueshi, his ugliness ensured cold indifference from the entire manor—including Mu Wan’er herself.
The Third Prince had grown up in the palace. It was said that when the Emperor first laid eyes upon him, he was instantly captivated and showered him with favor ever after. Not merely because of his handsome features—but because he bore a resemblance to the Grand Tutor whom the Emperor had long admired.
Yet the Third Prince never treasured that imperial favor. Or perhaps it was fate—because from the moment of his birth, he remembered Lin Yue’s face.
And in all the years since, she alone had occupied his heart.
In those days, Linhan Palace had not yet been constructed. The land had been nothing more than a stretch of open grass leading to the eastern palace wall. As a boy, the Third Prince had always wondered what lay beyond that wall. In secret, he had chipped away at its base. Day after day, the crack widened until it became a small tunnel he could crawl through.
When he finally squeezed outside, he discovered nothing more than pastureland.
Beside that hidden opening knelt a maimed woman, her body blackened and broken. At the sight of him, she began to crawl away with what remained of her hands.
He recognized her instantly.
She was his mother.
Stumbling on unsteady little legs, he chased after her.
That brief period became the only truly happy memory of his childhood. Though Lin Yue had been disfigured beyond recognition by Consort Mu’s cruelty, her scent and the inexplicable warmth she radiated allowed him to know her at once.
Back then, Consort Mu and Mu Wan’er had ordered Lin Yue dragged into the wilderness, beaten until crippled and left unconscious. Believing her dead, they had set fire to her body. Yet as the flames rose, a torrential rain poured from the heavens. Impatient to endure the downpour, their subordinates fled for shelter, abandoning the task.
Thus she had survived.
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