When Ye Jingchuan ran to the Princess Consort of Zhennan to pay his respects, the Princess Consort was somewhat surprised as she handed an eight-treasure tiered box to a nearby maid. Turning to see it was him, she teased: “What now? Here again to ask me about Guo Huaiying?”
Ever since Ye Jingchuan had returned and mentioned Song Chuyi’s suggestion, he had been like an untethered wild horse with not a day of peace, constantly pestering people to investigate what exactly Guo Huaiying’s capabilities were.
Prince Zhennan and Ye Jingkuan had been quite startled when they first heard this suggestion. After a long while, they had simultaneously struck the table in approval—according to them, with the current state of affairs, placing himself under Guo Huaiying would be equivalent to both obtaining an excellent talisman for preserving his life and gaining more opportunities to establish merit and build a career.
The Princess Consort of Zhennan didn’t understand what they meant. She had heard of Guo Huaiying—her entire impression of him came from Shen Yang, as Guo Huaiying was Shen Yang’s husband.
Therefore, she looked at her husband and son in complete bewilderment, quite uneasy: “I don’t know what position this person currently holds or what his character is like, yet you’ve made a decision based solely on a young girl’s words?”
Wasn’t this a bit too hasty? Although that little girl Song Chuyi’s words had indeed been accurate every time, this still concerned her son’s future prospects and life! To look so delighted about such a major matter without carefully considering it—wasn’t this placing too much trust in this little girl?
Ye Jingchuan’s interest had originally been piqued by Song Chuyi and Zhou Weizhao’s attitude toward this person. Seeing that his father and elder brother indeed agreed as Song Chuyi had predicted, his curiosity intensified even more. He pestered the Princess Consort of Zhennan day and night to gather intelligence for him to see exactly what kind of person this Guo Huaiying was.
At this moment, hearing the Princess Consort of Zhennan ask this, Ye Jingchuan unhesitatingly nodded his head. As the second son, he had always been closer to the Princess Consort of Zhennan, and stuck to her like taffy, wanting to get to the bottom of things.
The Princess Consort of Zhennan found this both amusing and exasperating. She reached out and poked him with a finger, her face full of smiles: “I knew you wouldn’t be able to sit still. I’ll tell you honestly—this person truly is capable. Back when he served as judicial officer in a small county in Yunnan, do you know how difficult it was to govern that place with its treacherous mountains and unruly people? Yet he was able to keep those troublesome commoners in check. Not only that, he even led a few family guards in chasing bandits all over the mountains.”
“Later he became county magistrate in Yanping and served consecutive terms—six years in total. He managed to completely resolve the black mine issue that had plagued Yanping for many years. During those years, Yanping enjoyed favorable weather and harvests, and the common people were deeply grateful to him.”
The Princess Consort of Zhennan couldn’t help but sigh: “But he’s not someone who came from poverty—he’s from a prominent family. Having such tenacious spirit and dedication makes him all the more rare. Right now he’s serving as regional inspector in Zhejiang, but from what I gather from your father and brother’s meaning, it’s probably just a matter of time before he’s promoted. Whether comparing seniority, political achievements, or background, such a person is bound to rise sooner or later. Therefore, what Sixth Miss Song said is absolutely correct. Since you want to establish merit and build a career, and we also want you to be safe and sound, following him would be the perfect arrangement.”
Ye Jingchuan couldn’t help but feel drawn to this, wishing he could sprout wings and fly to see this remarkable person. Hearing his mother’s last words, he couldn’t help but laugh: “I told you long ago she wouldn’t harm me, but Mother Consort, you wouldn’t believe it.”
The Princess Consort of Zhennan was so annoyed she pinched him again: “If Mother Consort truly didn’t believe it, why would I help you investigate and gather information? Do I have nothing better to do than specially write letters to your Aunt Guo?”
To ask for someone’s help, of course one couldn’t do so at the most conspicuous moment. Now, while Guo Huaiying hadn’t yet risen to prominence, was the best time to establish connections.
She was about to scold her son some more when a maid suddenly came from outside to report that the wife of the heir apparent of Duke Yingguo had arrived.
The Princess Consort of Zhennan’s brows furrowed slightly. She glanced at the box held by the maid behind her, sighed, and quickly said to invite her in.
Recently, this wife of the heir apparent of Duke Yingguo’s manor seemed to be visiting quite frequently. Ye Jingchuan thought of Shen Qingrang and couldn’t help but frown as he asked the Princess Consort of Zhennan: “Why do they keep coming like this? What’s the matter?”
“Don’t even mention it. Isn’t it all because the Earl of Changning’s manor had a baby boy? She comes to discuss with me about gifts for the full-month celebration.” The Princess Consort of Zhennan sighed: “In the past when the Earl of Changning’s manor had events, I never saw her being this attentive. It really is rather strange—why has she suddenly become so intimate out of nowhere?”
Ye Jingchuan felt something was off about this. Recalling that the Shen family did indeed seem excessively eager toward Song Chuyi, he suddenly felt he understood somewhat.
Even if Song Chuyi had no other advantages, she was still the granddaughter currently raised at the knees of and most beloved by the Song family elders, and moreover had backing like the Cui family. It was inevitable that some would develop thoughts of treating her as a rare commodity worth hoarding.
Last time when he had beaten Shen Qingrang, hadn’t Shen Qingrang displayed an attitude of being determined to have Song Chuyi?
“Don’t stand around in my quarters either. If she sees you later, she’ll pull you over for a round of fussing, and don’t you hate that sort of thing?” Seeing his expression was poor, the Princess Consort of Zhennan urged him to leave: “Go see your two sisters, or go out and play—just don’t confine yourself to my quarters.”
These older women, who knew what was with them, really did like to hug and embrace people. Ye Jingchuan felt goosebumps rising and hurriedly slipped away.
However, he had just stepped over the threshold into the adjacent room, preparing to go out, when he heard He Shi’s voice cheerfully ring out.
“I’m disturbing Your Highness the Princess Consort again.” After He Shi paid her respects and sat down with the Princess Consort of Zhennan as host and guest, without beating around the bush, she came straight to the point and asked the Princess Consort of Zhennan: “Tell me, is that ginseng of mine acceptable?”
The Princess Consort of Zhennan laughed: “I just finished looking at it and was marveling at where you found such a treasure. Both the quality and age are probably hard to come by.”
As she spoke, she took the tiered box from the maid’s hands and passed it over with a smile: “This gift is far too valuable.”
He Shi smiled and shook her head, quickly taking the box and handing it to the maid behind her: “There’s also an element of apology in it. Last time when Sixth Miss Song was at my home, it was because that worthless son of mine was too mischievous. After all, we’re old family friends. We were thinking we should apologize to Sixth Miss Song in person before Old Madam Song.”
Ye Jingchuan heard everything clearly from the adjacent room and sneered, finding He Shi’s words nauseating—if she truly intended to restrain her son, the incident from before wouldn’t have happened. Now wasn’t she only developing such thoughts because the Earl of Changning’s manor stood firm and the Cui family had re-entered officialdom?
Yet she still had to make her words sound so pleasant, as if everyone else were fools who couldn’t see through her intentions. This was being done far too deliberately.