How could she fail to guess?

Who else, besides Wei Yan, had been watching over her with such concern, and had enough influence to persuade Consort Wei to act?

Ever since entering the palace, she had been careful and cautious in everything, keeping a low profile and enduring quietly. Yet trouble had still come knocking on its own. She had suffered an unwarranted grievance, yet could not speak up to defend herself.

She could not glare coldly at the Crown Princess, who had deliberately made things difficult for her. She could not confront the Crown Grandson for his rash words and actions. She could only endure in silence and wait quietly for the rumors to die down.

She had never imagined that, all along, someone had been quietly watching over her, doing so much for her in secret…

Faced with such silent, gentle, deep affection, faced with a man who had quietly protected her all this while — even a heart of stone would find it hard not to be moved.

Ling Jingshu’s nose tingled faintly, and warm moisture stirred at the corners of her eyes.

Consort Wei’s voice sounded in her ear: “A’Shu, this matter — it was A’Yan who came to me privately and asked me to handle it that way. He even specifically told me never to let you know. I’d already promised him I wouldn’t say a word, but I didn’t expect you to be clever enough to guess it on your own.”

“From now on, whenever you see A’Yan, you absolutely must not let him know that you’ve found out. Otherwise, I won’t know how to explain myself to him.”

Ling Jingshu sniffled and nodded firmly. “All right, I’ll pretend I don’t know. Regardless, I will never forget the kindness of your help, Your Ladyship. If you ever have need of me in the future, I will never refuse.”

Consort Wei smiled meaningfully. “It was a small thing — you needn’t keep dwelling on it. Speaking of which, there is indeed something I wanted to ask you privately. That day, did the Crown Princess deliberately make things difficult for you because the Crown Grandson has feelings for you?”

Ling Jingshu fell silent for a moment, then sighed. “I won’t hide it from you, Your Ladyship. His Highness the Crown Grandson and I became acquainted on a boat. He saved my life, and he has also helped my brother and me — I am grateful to him from the bottom of my heart.”

“I understand perfectly well the saying that one should not marry above one’s station, and I have never had any thought of reaching for something beyond my place. It’s only unfortunate that the Crown Princess has held a prejudice against me from the very start and has never liked me. The day His Highness brought the Crown Grandson Consort into the palace to serve tea, it was probably because he paid me too much attention that the Crown Princess grew displeased, and so she deliberately made things difficult to embarrass me.”

Everything was just as Consort Wei had expected.

Consort Wei probed carefully. “So in other words, His Highness the Crown Grandson’s feelings are one-sided, and you have no intention of marrying into the Crown Prince’s household?”

Ling Jingshu gave a brief affirmative.

Yet Consort Wei could not fully set her mind at ease. Back in her own day, had she ever imagined that she would one day enter the palace as a consort? No matter how much backbone a person has, it can never withstand the weight of power.

If the Crown Grandson was set on marrying Ling Jingshu, then Wei Yan would become a thorn in the Crown Grandson’s eye, a splinter in his flesh. There was no telling how much trouble that might bring…

If Wei Yan were clever and calm enough, he ought to give up entirely!

Unfortunately, though Wei Yan appeared gentle in temperament, he was in truth stubborn and obstinate — once he had made up his mind about something, no one could persuade him to change it.

Thinking of this, Consort Wei could not help but sigh inwardly. She glanced up at the beautiful, composed young woman before her, not quite sure what to make of the feeling in her own heart.

The two of them sat facing each other, each lost in her own thoughts, each silent.

After a long while, Ling Jingshu finally broke the silence. “Your Ladyship, I’ve been out for so long now — I should be heading back.”

Consort Wei brightened and smiled. “You have your duties to attend to now, so I won’t keep you longer. Whenever you have free time, do come visit Lingbo Hall.”

Once outside Lingbo Hall, Ling Jingshu quickly composed her tangled thoughts and returned to Jiaofang Hall with her expression as calm as ever.

The moment she stepped into Jiaofang Hall, she saw Luoyan walking toward her.

“A’Shu, where have you been off to?” Luoyan asked with a deliberately casual smile. “It’s rare to see you out and about!”

Ling Jingshu answered lightly, “I went to Lingbo Hall to pay my respects to Consort Wei.”

Lingbo Hall?

Luoyan’s eyes lit up, and she immediately leaned in with a smile, asking eagerly in a low voice, “You must know about that incident at Lingbo Hall a while back, right? Did Consort Wei say anything to you when you went today?”

Ling Jingshu said evenly, “I knew Consort Wei before I even entered the palace, and she has been kind enough not to forget me — she treats me very generously. I’d heard about what happened at Lingbo Hall too, and worried she might be in low spirits, so I went specially to chat with her for a while. Bringing up such an upsetting matter would only wound her feelings, wouldn’t it? It’s really not appropriate of you, Sister Luoyan, to ask about it.”

Luoyan, rebuffed in a way that was neither soft nor harsh, looked rather embarrassed. “Just look at this loose mouth of mine — I say whatever comes to mind without thinking it through at all. A’Shu, I didn’t mean anything by it, don’t be angry.”

Ling Jingshu appeared gentle and even-tempered on the surface, but she was, in truth, not someone easily provoked.

Luoyan had probed her, openly and covertly, a few times now, but had never gained the upper hand.

Ling Jingshu’s lips curved slightly. “Sister Luoyan speaks without thinking, that’s all — how could I be angry with you? If there’s nothing else, I’ll be heading to the Peony House.”

At the mention of the Peony House, Luoyan’s eyes darted about again, and she smiled with feigned warmth. “Oh, right — in just over half a month the peonies should bloom. Her Majesty the Empress has already given orders ahead of time for everyone to prepare for the flower-viewing banquet.”

“I’ve long heard that you’re skilled at cultivating peonies. This time, you’re sure to steal the spotlight.”

By the last sentence, a hint of jealousy had crept into her tone.

As it turned out, the Peony House had been under her charge. The palace maids would cultivate new peony varieties, and she would be the one to present them before Empress Xu. Every year after the flower-viewing banquet, Empress Xu would give generous rewards, and she had indeed gained no small benefit from it.

This year, unfortunately, that good fortune had been snatched away by Ling Jingshu.

Ling Jingshu glanced at Luoyan with a half-smile. “Whether I steal the spotlight or not doesn’t matter — what I’m worried about is whether those peonies will bloom well. If they end up outshone by the other ladies’ peonies, Her Majesty will lose face, and when the blame comes down, those of us serving as maids won’t escape it.”

She placed extra weight on the word “us,” whether intentionally or not.

Luoyan’s smile stiffened.

She was no fool — of course she understood the implication behind Ling Jingshu’s words.

The two maids who had cultivated the new peony varieties had been privately held back by her and were now doing rough chores like sweeping. If the peonies in the Peony House failed to bloom well, Ling Jingshu could easily pin the blame on her.

If that happened, Ling Jingshu would suffer misfortune, but she herself wouldn’t come out unscathed either!

Thinking of this, Luoyan could not help but feel secretly vexed.

She must have truly lost her senses back then — how could she have come up with such a foolish scheme?

Luoyan coughed once and said ingratiatingly, “A’Shu, if you’re too busy to manage, I happen to have two girls under me who are skilled at tending plants. I’ll have them go help you…”

“Thank you, Sister Luoyan, for your kindness,” Ling Jingshu replied quite politely. “But you yourself are so busy — how could I bring myself to take your people from you? It’s fine as it is, no need.”

Luoyan: “…”