"Yanyue, you bitch!" Wanyue stopped crying and pointed at Yanyue, who was more or less uninterested in the irritating woman. "Beichen refused to speak or see me for the whole day, and it is all because you framed me yesterday!"
Wanyue stomped toward Yanyue but was stopped by Mrs. Shen.
"Stop crying! Why do I always hear you complain about Beichen?! Can't you do any better?!"
Mrs. Shen remarked, annoyed and impatient. She understood how incompetent her daughter was at seducing Beichen, or else they would have long been married by now. But, with the way everything unfolded lately, it seemed that she would have to take things into her hand.
Mrs. Shen rolled her eyes, "Stop crying and come eat."
Yanyue did not speak the whole time and left the table as soon as Wanyue sat down to dine. She felt like she would vomit if she sat at the same table as the annoying mother and daughter pairing. She walked into the room she had occupied for four years while the original owner was gone. On the desk and bookshelf were picture frames of the real Shen Yanyue and her family and friends.
The girl looked exactly like Yanyue. The similarity was strange and mysterious. Every growth period, from childhood to maturity was like hers. The only differences were the hairstyle and fashion.
The previous Shen Yanyue was prim and proper. Every picture of her was either in some floral or plaid dresses that were calf length. She looked like a young lady transported from the early 20th century, and Yanyue thought that she would have made the perfect princess consort seeing how graceful she looked in the pictures.
Yanyue walked to Leela's old quarter. Even though she watched the surveillance video of the night Leela got murdered more than a dozen times, she felt like she was missing something. The way Leela looked right into the closet where Shen Yanyue was hiding was unsettling and suspicious in some ways. If there was a message, then Yanyue was not sure what message Leela wanted to tell the little girl before she passed away ruthlessly.
The room was dark and smelled of old books. Yanyue pried open the mahogany window covers, and her eyes became blinded by the bright light for a few seconds. The tiny particles of earth and waste matter caused a small sneeze to escape her mouth uncontrollably.
After lightly rubbing her nose to rid the agitation, she looked around the room and saw the furniture in the room covered in a layer of white dust powder while tiny specs roamed liberally in the air. It seemed that housekeeping had been lazy and neglectful since the master's departure to the north.
The wooden closet stood a couple of feet from the large maple desk. Yanyue walked over slowly. Each step forward increased her heart rate little by little until she stood right in front of the closet. She heaved a heavy sigh and held her breath as she reached out with both hands to turn the knobs and opened the doors simultaneously.
Nothing.
Yanyue released the breath that she had been unconsciously holding in.
It was empty. Not even hangers were left.
So, what was so special about this closet?
Yanyue sighed inaudibly and felt herself back to base one. She closed the closet with a soft slam due to frustration, but it was old, so one of the knobs came off its loosened hinges and rolled down below the closet.
The space between the floor and closet was not very wide. Yanyue crouched on her knees to reach for the knob, which had rolled to the back of the flooring. She blindly felt the dusty floor until she touched the cold metal item. Due to excitement, she pulled back her arm a little too rashly and bumped into the bottom of the closet.
The closet must have been ancient, as the slight pressure from her arm managed to dislocate the whole bottom cover, and it fell to the floor.
"What is that sound?" Yanyue whispered curiously. She heard a soft cling against the wood floor when the bottom lid came off. Yanyue set the knob aside after retrieving it back and reached down again to salvage what fell from the closet. It was a light object, so she was able to slide it against the floor and retrieve it easily.
"This..."
Yanyue's eyebrows crumpled warily, staring at the item tightly clutched in her hand. Many things were out of the ordinary after she woke up from her four-year-long slumber. There was no simple explanation for what happened to her or where the real Shen Yanyue went, and now the jeweled item in her hand was added to her long list of mysteries.
The shining azure necklace on her hand was a token given to the direct descendants of the royal family of Zanaark at the time of their birth. So, how could one such item be found hidden thousands of miles from its home under the closet in the Shen mansion in Yilongguo?
Leela was looking towards the closet at the time of her death, and she was either looking at little Shen Yanyue or the Agrennite necklace.
But maybe Leela was looking at both.
Yanyue had an ominous feeling. Agrennite was a rare gemstone that did not exist anywhere else in the world except Zanaark. It had been a precious gem and was often used in sacred practices and ceremonies throughout the centuries that Zanaark had been alive. Due to its rarity and sacredness, the Goddess of Corydalis crafted the gem into a few necklaces that had been passed through thousands of generations to the pure-blooded descendants of the Zanaark royal family.
Yanyue remembered that her father always wore the necklace around his neck whenever he visited her at the Shrine. Her brother also wore one of his own all the time for a while, but he almost lost it, so their mother stored it away until he was older enough to take care of it.
As for her own... Yanyue touched her bare neck, reminiscing how it felt when there was one still hanging around her neck. She had given it to a boy in an incident more than fifteen years ago. She wondered and doubted that he would have kept it with him until today with how much time had changed everyone. Suddenly, Yanyue felt extremely stupid and at a loss for giving away the meaningful relic.
But it was so long ago that it would be hard to retrieve it back. At least, Yanyue would have to do it discreetly if she had to prove her identity when she returned to Zanaark.
Yanyue sighed helplessly, thinking about the long, hard unforeseen road in front of her. She tucked the necklace away in her clothes before heading out. A necklace as important as this one could not be kept at the Shen mansion and had to be safely tucked away.
Afterward, Yanyue came downstairs and bid goodbye to Granny Dao. Even though she was unable to obtain more clues about Leela's death, Yanyue found another secret that was as serious as the crime.
When she returned to the Eastern Palace, she took a long bath and went straight to bed. She was the only one in the big mansion tonight. Wanyue was at the Shen mansion and was not likely to return. As for Beichen, he was gone after the occurrence from the previous night. Yanyue felt an inexplicable feeling rising in her chest, believing that last night's matter affected him more than she had imagined. But it was safe to say that no one could handle that kind of betrayal from someone they loved and trusted.
After feeling a little sad, Yanyue scoffed and felt silly for feeling jealous. She cheered herself, and since no one was home to bother her, she had a peaceful slumber.
In the morning, Yanyue woke up feeling like a brand new person because of the great rest. And it was good that she got all the rest she needed because she had to attend the Equestrian festival.
The royal family hosted a horse racing event every year, followed by a party in which there were endless scenes of socialites sucking up to other high socialites. It was an event that Yanyue had had to attend in the last couple of years because of General Shen's status.
She had always been a private person, so no one paid any attention to her, which she did not mind one bit because Wanyue could have all the attention that she so desperately vied.
However, this year was different because she would attend as Prince Beichen's wife, the princess consort, and it was a title that every lady in Yilonggua would kill to obtain. Yanyue could already imagine all the petty tricks such as splashing wine or tripping or even as far as drugging and poisoning that she would have to avoid until the end of the event.
The Equestrian festival was held within the Palace's walls down the mountains' valley. Although there was no visible wall, the Palace extended far and wide beyond the many residences where the royal family lived and worked.
Yanyue chose to go old fashion and took the carriage to the equestrian court where she was supposed to meet up with her husband, whom she spotted was surrounded by young ladies even though Wanyue clung to his arm like a shameless bird. Yanyue saw the unsightly scene and sneered as she walked past the bunch to find her seats.
"Feeling heartbroken?"
Yanyue looked up to see Yanfeng, and he was dressed handsomely in a finely tailored outdoor wear.
"Don't be silly," Yanyue smiled, "I'm a liberal woman."
Before Yanfeng could speak back, another clear voice asked, "Does that mean that I can take this seat and, as well as be the princess consort's underground lover?"
Him?!
Yanyue was shocked.
"And who might you be?" Yanfeng asked rudely. No one dared to hit on his Yanyue when he was around. To him, all these beautiful young men were monsters who were trying to take his Yanyue away.
The man ignored Yanfeng's question and proceeded to take a seat next to Yanyue. Yanfeng tried to push him away discreetly, as he was also trying to sit next to Yanyue.
However, before both men could compete for the seat, Beichen had already rushed over silently and sat down on it. Yanyue was secretly surprised because she was very certain he would sit with his lovely Wanyue instead.
"Hey, that's my seat!" Yanfeng yelled out regretfully. He saw the other empty one next to Yanyue and quickly claimed it.
The mysterious man saw no more seats near Yanyue, so he went away. He noticed Beichen's fierce gaze and smiled and greeted him politely before walking away.
"Did you want him to sit here?" Beichen asked with an annoyed tone. He did not like how Yanyue kept peeking at that man's back, even when he was far away and nowhere in sight.
"And if I say I do?" Yanyue looked at Beichen, who was even more unhappy that she did not deny it.
He sneered impatiently.
"Remember your identity. You are my princess consort, so better not act unruly in front of all these people. My father would not be kind to tolerate any embarrassment, especially from his beloved daughter-in-law."
Yanyue smiled and said, "We both know who it is that should be aware of their identity."
Beichen did not take her words to heart. He raised his eyebrows smugly and smirked, "Jealous?"
Yanyue moved closer to Beichen. His throat bobbed as he inhaled Yanyue's soft lavender scent. "And if I am?" Yanyue looked into his eyes earnestly, "Would you abandon my sister and come to me?"