Shen Huiyi stood at the edge of the pavilion and heard this exchange clearly. Biting her lip, she gave Song Chuyi one last glare with her eyes, inexplicably feeling that her family had fallen short by a head—her brother, who had never been willing to lower his head to anyone or speak soft words, had already lowered himself to this degree, yet hadn’t even earned a single smile from her.
Shen Qingrang himself wasn’t doing much better. The kite surface in his hand had been crushed by his grip. A breath of anger lodged in his chest for a long time before he could exhale it, wishing he could immediately recover the face he’d lost.
But after all, he was no longer at that childhood age when he knew nothing of worldly affairs. He restrained himself and truly swallowed this anger, only his pair of eyes shining brightly with light.
This matter was promptly reported by a young maid to Old Madam Song. Old Madam Song didn’t comment on it, but that evening after sending everyone off, she pulled Song Chuyi to her side, stroking her face for a while before asking: “Do you truly detest him to this degree?”
She paused and then felt the question was superfluous. Song Chuyi had been deeply affected by that dream. Otherwise, why would she have immediately cast aside the Seventh Young Master Shen she’d once yearned for? Observing coldly, in these past few years Song Chuyi hadn’t just treated him differently from before—she hadn’t even given Shen Qingrang a proper glance.
Song Chuyi hugged her arm and sighed softly. After thinking for a moment, she added: “I only hope he won’t provoke me. If we each go about our own business without interference, that’s fine. But if he truly won’t let me have peaceful days, I also have ways of not tolerating it.”
As soon as she said this, Old Madam Song trembled but couldn’t speak words of reproach. She reached out to tap Song Chuyi’s nose: “How could it come to that? As long as your grandfather and I are still alive, your marriage matters won’t be left for others to meddle with.”
Earl Songning entered from outside and happened to hear this sentence. He looked up at Song Chuyi in surprise, then smiled at Old Madam Song: “Who is so blind as to overstep you and me to make decisions for Xiaoyi?”
Old Madam Song smiled and changed the subject, asking him why he’d returned so late today: “Could it be about the Yangzhou matter again?”
“Indeed it’s precisely about this matter. Zhang Yuan has been brought back, but this case has implicated over a dozen officials large and small in Yangzhou, plus there are entanglements in the capital. How can it all be interrogated in a short time?” Earl Songning sighed, went to the washing room to change clothes and came out, picked up the tea Yushu had brought and took a sip, then continued: “I’m not planning to get involved in this matter anymore. Having already pulled out Zhang Yuan, if a few more emerge, I’m afraid this official position is all I’ll ever achieve.”
Old Madam Song could hear her husband’s unhappiness and knew why he was unhappy. She half-lowered her eyes for a long while before responding: “Not getting involved is good too. How can everything in the world go according to one’s wishes?”
He had already made up his mind to align with the Crown Prince. Even though there wasn’t complete sincerity in it and he still harbored one or two parts of selfish desire to remain neutral, this was already a rare risk.
Yet the Crown Prince had to push him at this critical juncture, treating him like a weapon. Not only had he facilitated his going to Jiangnan with Fang Xiaoru to collect disaster relief funds, he’d even had him personally pull down Zhang Yuan.
Prince Duan had already considered him a thorn in his eye and flesh. This time the Crown Prince and Elder Chen had insisted on pushing him to offend Prince Gong as well. This meant leaving him no retreat.
But Song Chuyi knew this was probably not the Crown Prince’s intention. If the Crown Prince truly had the ability to bind the Earl’s residence to his boat, the incident with Prince Duan three years ago wouldn’t have happened.
She lowered her head and sighed softly. This could only be the work of Marquis Jinxiang’s residence.
Though Marquis Jinxiang’s residence had a verbal marriage agreement with the Zhang family, others might not know, but Song Chuyi knew—in the previous life, Han Zhi clearly hadn’t married the Zhang family’s daughter, yet the Zhang family had still fallen.
The two families probably stood on different sides and had conflicts. Young Lady Fan naturally breathed through the same nostril as Noble Consort Fan. Since Han Zhengqing knew that Noble Consort Fan had become the Crown Prince’s Good Companion yet still deliberately did the dishonorable thing of marrying Young Lady Fan, he was naturally wholeheartedly clinging to the Crown Prince.
But the Zhang family, like Elder Du, happened to be in Prince Gong’s faction.
Though Prince Gong and the Crown Prince were birth brothers from the same mother, they’d never gotten along since childhood. Though called brothers, they were even more distant than strangers. The Crown Prince could tolerate him, but couldn’t withstand Noble Consort Fan instigating from the side. Marquis Jinxiang’s residence had kept a low profile for so many years. Seeing that both Cui Shaoting and Cui Yingshu had been reinstated, they must be getting anxious. Just a Chief Commander of Datong couldn’t satisfy them—they also wanted to grasp the Weaving Bureau, that place flowing with wealth. Perhaps there was even more. Earl Songning had just mentioned that Yangzhou had exposed a string of officials. If investigated layer by layer, there would probably be a major purge.
The deeper Song Chuyi thought, the more she felt the matters interlocked one after another, making her increasingly alarmed—thinking this way, even Earl Songning being maneuvered to go to Jiangnan to collect disaster relief funds was probably something Noble Consort Fan had premeditated long ago.
But she didn’t know—Elder Chen, who had strongly facilitated this matter, though standing in the Crown Prince’s camp, was he actually standing for the Imperial Grandson, or for that person?
Earl Songning laughed, though his eyes held not a trace of mirth: “I’m afraid even this selection of the Princess’s study companion will have its share of troubles.”
Old Madam Song immediately recalled the friction between the Eleventh Princess and the Ninth Princess, frowning with some anger: “How is it that those raised by the imperial family are inferior to daughters of ordinary families? Valuing things and despising people—if this were placed on officials in the previous dynasty, wouldn’t the censors submit memorials impeaching them?”
“Impeach her for what? If they say her upbringing is poor, wouldn’t that be pointing at His Majesty’s nose and scolding him?” Earl Songning tapped the table: “Those hot-tempered censors also know how to read people’s expressions when submitting memorials. But His Majesty is clear-minded about it. At the latest it won’t drag past the spring hunt—the Princess’s study companion matter will be decided.”
Consort Xian had always been petty. Because of that incident in her youth, she remembered it to this day. Her daughter would be even worse—at this moment she probably wished never to have any contact with the Eleventh Princess for the rest of her life.
But the Eleventh Princess still had connections with the Song residence. Could she not put this account on the Song family’s head?
After a moment of silence, Old Madam Song discussed with Earl Songning: “Can we think of a way to report an illness as a reason and be exempted from selection?”
Otherwise, who knew what torment the Ninth Princess might inflict.
Earl Songning glanced at Song Chuyi and slowly shook his head: “Someone is deliberately instigating Consort Xian against us. How could they easily let our family go? If we casually report illness as a reason, I’m afraid Consort Xian will spread some ambiguous words from above, which would instead cause trouble.”
Old Madam Song couldn’t help but feel somewhat irritated: “These nobles and princes have hearts more calculating than one another. After you’ve thrown in your lot with them, they still insist on forcing you to become isolated, afraid you might still board someone else’s ship. It’s truly laughable.”