"Oh no, the eldest princess has gone mad and is killing people! The eldest princess has gone mad and is killing people..."
Half an hour later, a cry of terror rang out from outside Fenghe Hall. No one knew who had started it, but the exclamation caused everyone outside the hall to surge forward. The bamboo windows of Fenghe Hall were glowing unusually bright under the flickering candlelight from within. From inside, the sounds of smashing objects and stifled groans could be heard incessantly. Through the bamboo slats, the crowd could vaguely see three or four shadows collapse.
The maids and guards looked at one another in shock.
"Isn't today the eldest princess's wedding day with the five Imperial Consorts? How could something like this happen?" the maids, unaware of the full truth, asked each other in hushed whispers.
"Could the eldest princess really have killed the Imperial Consorts?"
The servants and guards standing outside the hall still found it hard to believe. In their eyes, although the eldest princess was a bit arrogant, she was not cruel or deranged enough to take human lives. Besides, the Imperial Consorts had been sent by various clans to cement ties with the Phoenix Clan; anyone with a modicum of reason would not commit murder on their own wedding night.
"Or perhaps we heard wrong? Is the eldest princess just making a bigger scene than usual because it's their wedding night?"
Just as the servants and guards were at a loss for what to do, Li Qinghe arrived in a rush, accompanied by her own maids and guards.
"Why are you all standing there gawking? Push the doors open!"
A single glance from Li Qinghe shook the bewildered servants and guards to their senses. "Do you want the lives of the Imperial Consorts to be lost at the hands of the eldest princess?"
She had waited too long for this day to let such an opportunity slip through her fingers. Hearing this, the servants and guards dared not hesitate and rushed forward to push open the doors of Fenghe Hall.
A glint of sharpness flashed in Li Qinghe’s eyes, her heart racing with excitement.
"The Phoenix Emperor has arrived!"
Just as she was about to step toward the entrance, a loud, resonant voice echoed from nearby. Li Qinghe froze. When she saw who it was, a faint, imperceptible smile tugged at the corner of her lips, and she immediately knelt.
"This daughter greets the Phoenix Emperor."
"Greetings, Phoenix Emperor!" All the maids and guards knelt behind her, heads bowed in deep reverence.
Li Feng frowned as she glanced at the slightly ajar doors of Fenghe Hall. "What is the meaning of this?" she asked coldly, turning her gaze toward Li Qinghe, who was still kneeling on the ground. "Everything was fine—why would Yue'er suddenly go mad and kill people?"
Especially since the victims were the five Imperial Consorts she had just wed earlier that day. Li Feng knew that if word of this spread, the consequences would be catastrophic; she didn't believe Li Xuanyue was unaware of that. She had turned a blind eye when her daughter acted out or scolded her consorts in the past, but today was a different occasion. If her daughter couldn't even handle this, then there was no need to consider her for the position of the Phoenix ruler in the future.
"Phoenix Emperor, after the ceremony concluded today, the eldest princess showed signs of being gripped by madness," a maid in the crowd suddenly spoke up, risking her life. "But... at the time, the eldest princess dismissed it. I tried to persuade her, but in the end... the eldest princess had me thrown out."
"Absurd!" Li Feng flicked her sleeve.
It was no secret within the Phoenix Clan that Li Xuanyue suffered from fits of madness. It had happened periodically for three years, but never had it caused such a scene, and never had it been known to others. By now, not only the Phoenix Clan but likely all of the Hundred Clans would know that Li Xuanyue had murdered her consorts on her wedding night.
However, the moment Li Feng stormed into Fenghe Hall with her guards and maids, she was struck dumb by what she saw.
She was not the only one stunned; Li Qinghe, who had been full of confidence and convinced of her success, was also frozen. She had spent so much effort to make this happen today, only to find the scene inside so utterly different that the smug expression on her face twisted into one of confusion.
In the center of the hall, the five Imperial Consorts were sitting cross-legged on the floor, forming a circle around Li Xuanyue. Beside the consorts were various jars and bottles, and more than a dozen were arranged in front of Li Xuanyue. They were sitting there playing a game of finger-guessing.
When the consorts saw Li Feng burst in, looking furious and followed by a throng of servants, they were all startled—except for Li Xuanyue. After all, in her previous life, when Li Feng had broken in, Li Xuanyue had been standing in a pool of blood, holding her usual sword, ready to strike down her fourth consort. Only then, the blade had been stopped by Li Feng's right-hand man before it could land.
"Yue'er, what are you all doing?" As the ruler of the clan, Li Feng regained her composure after a few seconds and asked calmly.
"Greetings, Mother Emperor." The five Imperial Consorts stood up respectfully and bowed to Li Feng.
"Mother Emperor, why are you here?" Li Xuanyue asked, feigning surprise as she stood up. "This daughter... this daughter was just playing a game with the five Imperial Consorts!"
Li Xuanyue’s eyes darted around, feigning guilt like a child who had done something wrong and dared not meet her mother's gaze.
Li Feng frowned. "A game?"
"Yes," Li Xuanyue nodded. "Isn't today my wedding night? I thought... since it was still early, I discussed with the five Imperial Consorts to play a game of finger-guessing. Whoever lost all their porcelain bottles would not be allowed to serve in the bedchamber tonight."
"But... in the middle of our game, I heard some maids outside saying that someone was killed." Li Xuanyue successfully steered the conversation elsewhere. "Who was killed?" she asked, acting completely baffled.
Li Qinghe’s complexion turned ghastly pale.
Li Feng’s cold gaze shifted toward Li Qinghe. "Is this what you meant when you said Yue'er was suffering from madness in Fenghe Hall and would harm her five consorts?"
"Madness? Harm?" Linking these two ominous terms together, Li Xuanyue understood everything perfectly. "Sister, do you mean to say that this Palace would lay a murderous hand on my own five Imperial Consorts on my wedding night?"
Li Qinghe’s face drained of all color. "No, sister, that’s not what I meant."
Li Qinghe didn't know why things had turned out this way or which step had gone wrong. But since things hadn't gone according to her plans, she had to distance herself from this incident immediately to avoid being implicated and incurring the Mother Emperor's disgust.