The discussion of the marriage alliance had grown increasingly tumultuous in the capital.

Ever since Xiao Ye had someone beat that scholar named Weng Ang in a fit of rage, it was like poking a hornet’s nest. Not only were there discussions throughout the marketplace, but even within scholarly circles there was much criticism. Originally, about a small portion of people in the court and among the people already disagreed with the matter of making a marriage alliance with the Tartars. Once this incident occurred, immediately someone brought up old matters again, giving the Xiao family enormous pressure.

One moment it was Weng Ang filing a lawsuit, the next moment it was the magistrate’s office coming to investigate.

Not to mention there was still that Xiao Dingfei in the family who feared the world wasn’t chaotic enough.

From Xiao Yuan and Xiao Shu at the top to the servants and stewards below, for the first time they were tormented to such distraction.

If it were merely discussions in the marketplace, that would be one thing. After all, although Xiao Shu had been enfeoffed as a county princess, this dynasty had never had a precedent of a county princess making a marriage alliance. Though the Xiao family was in chaos, they weren’t afraid.

But who could have expected that several days ago, the situation would suddenly worsen.

The Xiao family was originally one of the capital’s premier great clans, with deep foundations and extensive protection. Ordinarily they had quite an arrogant air. They had done quite a few things openly and secretly oppressing common people and selling official positions. It wasn’t that there hadn’t been aggrieved parties filing lawsuits and accusations, but they had all been suppressed by the Xiao family with a wave of their large hand. Many aggrieved parties inexplicably lost their voices, while the Xiao family suffered no damage whatsoever.

Recently, these matters and these people had all resurfaced.

Some brought up old matters, posting notices throughout the capital; some beat drums to cry out their grievances, directly filing lawsuits at the magistrate’s office demanding the authorities uphold justice; still others directly requested scholars to jointly submit petitions, attempting to reach the Emperor’s ears…

Even more terrifying was that some things the Xiao family had done in secret that were kept confidential had actually been dug up and spread throughout the marketplace, causing shock from many quarters and widespread denunciation!

“Only so few people from top to bottom knew about the matter of Ganzhou disaster relief grain funds—how could it possibly spread outside?” Xiao Yuan, having just heard his subordinate’s report, flew into a rage. His entire face darkened, and he slammed his palm on the table, shaking off the expensive inkstone and brush stand. “Could it be, could it be that those few people from back then are kicking us while we’re down…”

The case of embezzling Ganzhou disaster relief grain funds was from three years ago.

When the matter was investigated, the entire Ganzhou official circles were completely purged, with over sixty people beheaded after the autumn assizes.

However, few knew that although these executed people were certainly not innocent, the true mastermind—the capital’s Xiao family—remained completely unscathed! The majority of the disaster relief grain funds had been submitted layer by layer, ultimately all falling into the Xiao family’s pockets!

Those who knew back then were either high officials in court now or had already become departed souls in the underworld.

Who would bring up old matters?

Who could bring up old matters?!

Those longtime enemies of the Xiao family, the old grudges they had formed—Xiao Shu went through them all one by one in her mind, but had no clues. “Our opponent in the shadows seems to both not want Grand Princess Leyang to make a marriage alliance and want to target our Xiao family. More importantly, the other party seems to have lain dormant for a long time, secretly collecting quite a few of our damaging secrets. This time releasing them all at once, it’s clearly a last-ditch battle, not letting us have an easy time.”

To have this intention, and also this capability?

Xiao Yuan dismissed his subordinates. His expression changed repeatedly before he suddenly lowered his voice, saying: “I always feel that ever since eliminating the Marquis of Yongyi’s household, His Majesty’s attitude has been strange. Especially after that unfilial son returned, His Majesty’s various behaviors have become somewhat unclear.”

After Xiao Dingfei returned, he opposed the Xiao family at every turn, bringing difficulty to the Xiao family.

Yet His Majesty actually stood entirely on Xiao Dingfei’s side.

This matter aside, after all on the surface Xiao Dingfei was the Emperor’s lifesaver—if the Emperor didn’t stand on his side, whose side would he stand on?

But this time, discussions in the marketplace had gone on for so long, even putting forth such an absurd idea as having Xiao Shu replace the princess to make a marriage alliance, yet as Emperor, Shen Lang had never once issued words of censure, instead remaining uninvolved.

Although he never supported it, he also didn’t say he opposed it.

How many fence-sitters were there in the court?

Seeing the Emperor not taking a stance, they just didn’t get involved.

Those others who already had opinions about the Xiao family were naturally encouraged, taking this opportunity to expand the battlefield, becoming increasingly arrogant and disrespectful, with an air of swearing to drag the Xiao family down.

Hearing Xiao Yuan’s words, Xiao Shu’s heart grew heavier, only saying: “Another day I’ll enter the palace to see the Empress Dowager again. But now regardless of who the opponent in the shadows is or which people they are, everything arose because of the marriage alliance. The clamor pushing me to replace Shen Zhiyi is extremely fierce—we absolutely cannot let them succeed.”

She was a woman born with noble status.

Under heaven, only the supreme position of Empress in the six palaces was worthy of her.

Make a marriage alliance with the Tartars?

Dream on!

Xiao Yuan was startled: “You have a solution?”

Although the matter of promoting Xiao Shu to replace Grand Princess Leyang in making a marriage alliance was causing quite a commotion, for many prominent families in the capital with daughters of marriageable age, they paid no attention at all, even feeling some schadenfreude.

After all, Prince Linzi’s selection of a consort was imminent, and Xiao Shu was still one of the popular candidates.

And the reputation of the Jiang Shilang household’s eldest daughter, Jiang Xuehui, had recently also been somewhat implicated by that matter involving Jiang Xuening at Shuxiang Inn, and wasn’t very good.

Who told the two sisters to come from the same household?

When prominent families arranged marriages, they always looked at the family situation. If any sister had a bad reputation, the other sisters in the same household would all be affected. With the slightest carelessness, they wouldn’t marry well.

Everyone said that having a younger sister like Jiang Xuening was Jiang Xuehui’s bad luck.

Meng Shi threw quite a fit at home.

Fortunately this matter would pass after spreading for a while, didn’t cause too much of a stir, and was quickly overshadowed by the marriage alliance discussion.

But unexpectedly, after just one day, even more turbulent gossip and slander came crashing toward the Jiang household like a violent storm!

“Hey, did you all hear? That young lady from the Jiang household isn’t very proper.”

“I know, it’s with that Lord Zhang Zhe, right? I heard she chased after him in full view of everyone—truly doesn’t even want face…”

“That’s not all!”

“She and that Young Master Dingfei from the Duke’s household are the ones who truly have an affair. Haven’t you heard the heir apparent is completely obedient to her, even sending things the Emperor bestowed to the Jiang household to please the beauty?”

“How could these two have an affair?”

“This is what you don’t know! Last year at the end in Tongzhou, my brother was serving as a soldier in Tongzhou and saw it clearly—that Second Miss from the Jiang household was actually mixed in with a group of escaped criminals, a group of grown men. Oh my, don’t you know what kind of libertine that Young Master Dingfei is? Back and forth, exchanging glances, naturally they got entangled, right? Lord Zhang was also there at the time. Tsk tsk, remarkable…”

“Harmful to public morals!”

…

For a time there were all kinds of stories on the streets. The Heavenly Doctrine rebels’ jailbreak had originally caused quite a stir in the capital. For a young lady to be caught up in this kind of situation was even more intriguing to countless people, who embellished and exaggerated—it was told with such vivid detail.

When Meng Shi went out and happened to hear it, rage surged in her heart and she nearly fainted.

Only at this time did she vaguely understand what Jiang Xuening meant by “this is only the beginning” when the incident at Shuxiang Inn occurred. As soon as she returned to the Jiang household, she darkened her face, first having Jiang Boyou summoned over, then having someone call for Jiang Xuehui and Jiang Xuening.

Knowing Jiang Xuening wasn’t very obedient to discipline, she deliberately added with a cold face: “Bring servants along. If she won’t come, tie her up and bring her to me! At such a young age ruining her own reputation is one thing, but at this critical juncture to implicate her sister as well! She really has some face!”

But unexpectedly, such measures weren’t needed at all.

Jiang Xuening had prepared early. As soon as someone came to summon her, she went with a smile on her face.

Jiang Xuehui’s participation in selecting Prince Linzi’s consort was originally the Jiang household’s top priority recently.

Even Jiang Boyou was very attentive.

After all, Jiang Xuehui seemed to have won Shen Jie’s favor quite well. Previously in the imperial garden she had also saved the pregnant Wen Zhaoyi. In the palace she could be said to have a noble patron’s appreciation. It could be said she had the right time, place, and people—only the final success was lacking.

But at this critical juncture, last year’s matter of Jiang Xuening getting mixed up in the Heavenly Doctrine jailbreak and being abducted to Tongzhou was revealed!

As soon as Jiang Xuening arrived, Meng Shi threw her teacup at her, trembling with rage: “Look at what you’ve done! I thought after you entered the palace you had reformed, but I didn’t expect your nature is hard to change—you’ve even intensified!”

The furious person lost her aim, and Jiang Xuening easily avoided it.

She glanced at Jiang Xuehui sitting beside her with furrowed brows, but appeared quite leisurely. Stepping around the broken teacup fragments on the floor, she bowed toward Jiang Boyou in greeting: “Greetings, Father.”

Jiang Boyou had a massive headache. He sighed and had someone first persuade Meng Shi to calm down, then told Jiang Xuening to sit first before saying: “The Heavenly Doctrine jailbreak and Tongzhou matter were things that already happened, and weren’t something Ning girl could control herself. What use is blaming her now? It neither solves the trouble nor prevents us from throwing ourselves into disarray. It’s not worth it.”

Meng Shi laughed coldly: “Still not blame her?!”

Jiang Xuehui gently sighed, saying: “Mother, please calm your anger. The urgent task is to think about how to respond.”

Jiang Xuening sat boneless in the chair beside her, head lowered picking at her nails, a lazy appearance echoing: “Right, things have already happened. Could stuffing me back in the womb make it as if it never happened? Those people scheming against you behind the scenes can’t wait for you to join together and destroy me.”

Meng Shi said: “Sarcastic and strange—do you have no sense of hierarchy!”

Jiang Xuening was very honest: “No.”

Jiang Boyou finally couldn’t bear it anymore. His face darkened as he shouted angrily: “Have you quarreled enough! Isn’t the situation chaotic enough already?”

With this, the room finally quieted down.

Jiang Boyou heard the clue in Jiang Xuening’s earlier words and directly asked: “Ning girl said someone is scheming behind the scenes—what do you mean?”

Jiang Xuening smiled with narrowed eyes: “There’s no profit without effort. Clearly the source of this disaster isn’t on me but on elder sister. Last year didn’t His Majesty mention wanting to establish an Imperial Younger Brother? The child in Wen Zhaoyi’s belly—who knows if it’s male or female? There are plenty of young ladies in the capital eyeing the position of Prince Linzi’s consort. Father is in the court—you must have seen this kind of thing often, right? This time it was originally daughter who was implicated by elder sister, yet the blame is placed on daughter. How ridiculous.”

Meng Shi was immediately stunned.

Though Jiang Xuehui didn’t say much, she saw matters clearly and gently nodded.

Jiang Boyou’s heart wasn’t without such thoughts.

On the surface it only seemed to happen by chance, that Ning girl’s matters from last year were dug up by someone to discuss. But looking one layer deeper, the one indirectly affected was Hui girl who was about to participate in selecting Prince Linzi’s consort. Looking even one layer deeper, the one who would benefit from this should be Hui girl’s greatest opponent this time.

Only this opponent…

His brows furrowed and for a long time he didn’t speak.

Jiang Xuening rarely had a kind of anticipation and satisfaction that things would soon succeed: Right now in the capital, the marriage alliance discussion was almost single-handedly stirred up and propelled by her; in the previous life after the Xiao family’s destruction, Xie Wei had listed and publicly announced the Xiao family’s various great crimes—she followed the map to find one or two flaws and naturally could poke at the Xiao family’s sore spots; in the Tongzhou campaign, the Xiao father and son had originally led troops there and knew of her existence. At the critical moment, “clever people” would naturally think of this matter.

Xiao Shu must be very displeased right now, right?

She assessed Jiang Boyou with a glance and lightly added a potent ingredient to his already heavy suspicions: “Whoever is the greatest beneficiary is the mastermind in the shadows. Everyone in the capital is discussing using Xiao Shu to replace the Grand Princess in making a marriage alliance. If the Xiao family doesn’t want Xiao Shu to make the marriage alliance, the simplest method is nothing more than marrying Xiao Shu off. Prince Linzi is talented and handsome, graceful as jade, and has an unlimited future—wouldn’t this be the best choice? If Prince Linzi selected her as his consort, even if His Majesty wavered in his thoughts, he couldn’t very well seize his younger brother’s future wife to send for a marriage alliance, right? So the position of Prince Linzi’s consort—she’s determined to get it.”

The calculations within were linked one after another. The essence was that the Xiao family could no longer hold steady and had been forced by the capital’s marriage alliance discussion to a desperate situation.

Meng Shi hadn’t thought this deeply before, but now suddenly understood.

Jiang Xuehui lowered her eyelids without speaking.

But Jiang Boyou looked deeply at his second daughter who currently had a mocking smile on her lips, clearly not so simple. In the end he still didn’t ask whether she was the one propelling things behind the scenes, only saying: “The arrow is on the bowstring. The Xiao family bullies people too much—how can our Jiang household allow them to knead and rub us as they please?”

The next day, this usually amiable Vice Minister of Revenue, Jiang Shilang, submitted a memorial to court discussion requesting a reinvestigation of the Ganzhou disaster relief case from three years ago, and supporting using Xiao Shu to replace the Grand Princess to marry into the Tartars for the alliance. It could be said he ruthlessly stabbed the Xiao family!

Court and country were shaken with much discussion.

When news spread to the marketplace, Jiang Xuening was leaning by the window on the second floor, listening with Xiao Dingfei to famous performers singing opera below.

Xiao Dingfei worked like an ox and horse for her, willingly and without dignity shelling a plate of melon seeds for her and placing it beside her hand, but couldn’t help asking curiously: “How did you know about the Ganzhou disaster relief case?”

Jiang Xuening rolled her eyes: “None of your damn business.”

Xiao Dingfei: “…”

A perfectly good young lady—after mixing with him for so long, how had she also learned a belly full of crude language?

He frowned: “You’re a girl, you know.”

Jiang Xuening scoffed, pulling that plate of melon seeds in front of herself, grabbing a handful to toss up and catch in her mouth. Not half a trace of a noble young lady’s gentle elegance and virtuous propriety could be seen.

But that unrestrained and willful energy…

Xiao Dingfei watched somewhat mesmerized, his courage emboldened by lust, quietly moving closer wanting to pull her fair white hand.

Jiang Xuening lightly slapped his face, raising her eyebrows: “Seeking death?”

Xiao Dingfei covered his face aggrieved: “I just helped you handle so many matters. Isn’t there even a little reward?”

Jiang Xuening pushed that plate of melon seeds over: “For you?”

Xiao Dingfei: “…”

Wasn’t this what this old man shelled himself?

He felt stifled, but seeing Jiang Xuening about to take that plate of melon seeds back again, he quickly grabbed a handful in his hand, also standing by the window together with her looking down below.

They were performing “The Dream of the Millet.”

Rather fantastical and melancholy.

Xiao Dingfei watched for a while, then suddenly stared at her intently for a long time, saying: “Do you truly only want to save the princess from leaving her cage?”

Jiang Xuening’s fingers picking up a melon seed paused for a moment. She seemed to find his question strange and looked back at him: “Otherwise?”

Xiao Dingfei didn’t speak.

Though he was certainly a good-for-nothing, having grown up reading others’ expressions to get by, in perceiving others’ hidden feelings he had trained quite remarkable abilities.

After a long while he suddenly smiled: “I was just thinking—when you look at the princess, aren’t you looking at yourself?”