Steward Cen didn’t expect ng Qianqian to answer so straightforwardly.
"Young Madam, in your heart..."
ng Qianqian understood what he wanted to ask; this question, even she didn’t have an answer to.
Is Lu Yuan special to her?
Naturally.
But why is he special?
Is it because he holds power over the entire court, to the extent that even if she were the forr Chu Grand Marshal, it wouldn’t be easy to topple him; if she couldn’t destroy him, she might as well obtain him.
Is it because he calculated against her, yet genuinely saved her life? In her calculations against him, she also developed so gratitude.
Between them, there is too much entanglent, the ties are too deep; if they can’t be severed, then they should be twisted into a single rope.
"Steward Cen, I don’t wish for today’s conversation to be known by my husband."
"Understood, Young Madam."
In the past, when facing ng Qianqian, Steward Cen more often felt like he was looking at a smart and clever youngster, but now he truly sensed the aura emanating from ng Qianqian.
She had beco as unassailable as the Grand Commander.
No, perhaps she had always possessed it, just never shown it in front of him.
After leaving the accounting room, ng Qianqian sat alone in the pavilion for a while.
She was calming her emotions.
Thinking of the inhuman tortures Lu Yuan once suffered, ng Qianqian was filled with anger towards the Pri Minister’s Mansion, wanting to slap even the dogs there.
But one cannot make any decisions while angry; she needed to calm herself down.
"ng Xiaojiu, you have three breaths."
After three deep breaths, ng Qianqian’s eyes regained their usual calmness.
She began to think about what to do next.
Yesterday, the imperial marriage ceremony went smoothly, and Lu Yuan fulfilled the Supre Emperor’s condition; once a word is given, it cannot be retracted, and the Chu family case is about to be reinvestigated.
It will be handled by the Ministry of Justice without a doubt.
No, it must be handled by the Ministry of Justice.
The reason is simple: Minister Xing is one of the few officials in the court who holds real power and maintains a neutral stance.
Pri Minister Xun’s cronies are almost everywhere in the court, he wouldn’t allow Minister Xing to beco a loose end.
Before, while Lu Yuan pretended to be a great traitor, he secretly protected Minister Xing, Sacrificial Officer Lin, and Imperial Censor Wang, who never participated in court struggles.
This was the first path Lu Yuan paved for himself.
When the Supre Emperor was under house arrest at the monastery, his every move was under Lu Yuan’s surveillance, and not even a single letter could be sent out.
Yet, on the night the old madam went to the monastery to request a decree annulling the bond between her and Lu Lingxiao, Lu Yuan allowed Eunuch Fu to proceed.
A decree unrelated to state affairs, the great traitor didn’t care, and this seed reasonable.
But how could the Supre Emperor miss such a great opportunity to contact his confidants?
Eunuch Fu’s official task was to announce the decree, but he secretly conveyed the Supre Emperor’s oral ssage.
This led to Lu Yuan’s forces being significantly purged while he went to the border for battle, and those officials were originally cronies of Pri Minister Xun.
Using the Supre Emperor’s hand to cut off one of Pri Minister Xun’s arms was the second path Lu Yuan paved for himself.
Back then, the Supre Emperor probably didn’t guess that Lu Yuan’s backer was the Pri Minister, or even if he did, he had no choice but to do so.
This began the confrontation between the Supre Emperor and Pri Minister Xun even before the latter returned to court.
This was the third path Lu Yuan paved for himself.
Thus, Lu Yuan turned from a sacrificial pawn used by the Pri Minister to establish authority, into a boorang used by the Supre Emperor to attack the Pri Minister—it was a natural progression.
Understanding everything, ng Qianqian’s mind was left with only four words: A mind almost devilish.
The last person who gave her this feeling was Chu Nan.
She was very curious, if Chu Nan were to encounter Lu Yuan, who would be more formidable?
Of course, Chu Nan is already dead, and this matter will never have an answer.
What she was more interested in now was, with the reinvestigation being a foregone conclusion, the Pri Minister’s Mansion must be inevitably implicated with the Chu family’s case.
How will the Pri Minister’s Mansion respond?
Will they kill Lu Yuan? Or kill Minister Xing?
With the Miao King protecting Lu Yuan, he can’t be killed.
Neutral officials are not limited to just Minister Xing; if he dies, another will take his place. This path is clearly also not feasible.
"What are you thinking?"
Lu Yuan’s voice suddenly appeared above her.
She gasped.
Was she so engrossed that she didn’t even notice Lu Yuan’s arrival?
Or perhaps, in her heart, Lu Yuan was already soone she didn’t need to be wary of, soone who could approach her anyti?
"Just sitting around."
"Did you go see Steward Cen?"
"Asked about your illness."
"I’m not sick," said Lu Yuan.
ng Qianqian: Can’t you survive a day without being stubborn?
Lu Yuan said, "Be careful when you enter the palace today."
ng Qianqian suspiciously asked, "Will I be in trouble?"
Lu Yuan glanced at her, "I’m afraid soone else will be in trouble; your face is just shy of having ’I want to kill soone’ written on it."
ng Qianqian cleared her throat, "Is it that obvious?"
Lu Yuan withdrew his gaze, "But when you enter the palace today, you can actually keep an eye on soone."
"Who?"
"The Lady of Changning Marquis," Lu Yuan said lightly, "Do you know why she challenged you at the palace banquet last night?"
ng Qianqian shook her head.
Lu Yuan said aningfully, "Changning Marquis Mansion wants to align with the Pri Minister’s Mansion through marriage. Do you guess who the Marquise of Changning has chosen as a son-in-law?"
"It can’t be you, right? No, outsiders don’t know about your relationship with the Pri Minister’s Mansion."
ng Qianqian paused, her eyes trembling, "Chen Long? My brother?"
-
Tan’er didn’t get to eat the braised pork at the Imperial Palace yesterday, and there were no ingredients for braised pork back at the mansion, so she was sulky all night. Today, she was determined to follow ng Qianqian into the palace to eat the braised pork the Emperor owes her.
ng Qianqian chuckled lightly and helplessly.
Tan’er pouted, "Sister, why are you laughing like that?"
ng Qianqian patted her head, "Tan’er, promise to always be this carefree."
Tan’er crossed her arms, "That depends on whether there’s braised pork to eat!"
Ban Xia scolded teasingly, "All you think about is eating!"
Tan’er made a face and stuck out her tongue, "h!"
Ban Xia opened her mouth, "I won’t argue with a child!"
Tan’er said, "That’s because you can’t argue with !"
Ban Xia quipped, "Who says I can’t out-talk you?"
Tan’er said, "You said so!"
Ban Xia said, "Fine, fine!"
The two kept bickering until they reached the Imperial Palace and then stopped.
As soon as they got off the carriage, no matter how much Tan’er provoked, Ban Xia refused to argue back, staying cautiously by ng Qianqian’s side.
Tan’er looked towards the sky, "I’ve won."
The imperial marriage of the Emperor and Empress was completed in Jiaofang Palace with the wedding wine and marital rites, after which Yao Qingluan moved into Jingren Palace.
But last night, the imperial wedding wine was taken by Lu Yuan, and ng Qianqian estimated their marital rites were also quite unlikely.
Zong Zhengxi indeed didn’t consummate the marriage with Yao Qingluan last night.
At fifteen, he’s neither too young nor too old, as many noble youths and princes already understood the ways between n and won at that age, yet Zong Zhengxi was an exception.
He hadn’t grasped such matters yet.
The Supre Imperial Concubine had once sent him palace maids for instruction, but he wouldn’t let them touch him.
"Your Majesty, did you sleep well last night?"
Wang Dequan went to visit Zong Zhengxi early in the morning.
Zong Zhengxi frowned, "Not well, I’m used to sleeping alone, I couldn’t sleep well with another person."
"Ah..."
Looks like the marriage wasn’t consummated.
Zong Zhengxi asked, "Can I sleep alone tonight?"
Wang Dequan laughed awkwardly, "This... is not sothing a servant can decide."
Zong Zhengxi said resentfully, "Forget it, it’s no use asking you either, I’ll go to court."
Wang Dequan reminded, "Your Majesty, there’s no court session today."
Zong Zhengxi forgot about this, "Oh, then I’ll go do my howork, I want to be a diligent emperor."
Wang Dequan was taken aback, "Your Majesty, didn’t you always dislike doing howork? Why the sudden—"
Zong Zhengxi, full of morning grumpiness, said, "Why, why? Naturally, to eventually kick out all you useless servants!"
Wang Dequan: "..."
-
In Jingren Palace, ng Qianqian t Yao Qingluan, who was sitting on the Phoenix Chair.
Yao Qingluan, though the niece of the Supre Imperial Concubine, bore little resemblance to her in features; the Supre Imperial Concubine likely took more after her birth mother’s looks.
Yao Qingluan was also an absolute beauty.
However, her beauty was more like the earthly richness of brocade, while the Supre Imperial Concubine was as ethereal as a cloud from the Immortal Palace.
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