Since ancient times, matters involving the imperial examinations had never been trivial. If the accusation of leaking examination topics were truly established, Elder Chen would become the object of contempt for scholars throughout the realm, and would never again be able to stand firm in official circles.
Old Master Song’s eyes lit up. He picked up his brush and sketched a few names on paper, then immediately tore it up. His fingers tapped on the table as he thought, then he smiled. “Good, it’s worth trying. However, this scheme must be laid out with exquisite precision—we can’t let that old fox notice anything amiss. Your two uncles and I will discuss it further.” At the same time, he instructed Song Jue, “Go invite Master Cheng and Master Shan to the front study.”
Song Jue withdrew together with Song Chuyi. Turning his head, he asked her, “I heard Her Majesty the Empress has summoned you to enter the palace tomorrow?” He paused, and without waiting for Song Chuyi to answer, patted her head. “If it truly has something to do with what that bald donkey Yuanhui said, just deny it all and say our family doesn’t believe in such things.”
Not believing meant that there was absolutely no possibility they would actually use this as a pretext to seek the fates of His Highness the Grand Prince and Prince Dongping to suppress her own fate. Since they sought nothing, then no matter how bad this fate was, it was merely Song Chuyi’s own affair, implicating no one else, and others would have no reason to meddle so broadly.
Just mentioning this topic, however, Song Jue’s expression involuntarily darkened. Yuanhui had really said far too much. The last time at the hunting grounds, he’d already said it once. This time what he said was even more sensational.
As he finished speaking, they had already turned through the corridor. Yulan and Ziyun, who had been waiting outside all along, came forward to pull her along. “Quickly, quickly! The Princess and Madam Cui have both arrived and are waiting for you.”
“Yuanhui never opens his mouth to say anything good.” Madam Cui was complaining to Old Madam Song. “But this time Her Majesty the Empress wishes to see Xiao Yi—it truly isn’t because of him, but because of Miss Tong.”
Tong Shao? Old Madam Song immediately recalled how the Marchioness of Wuning had inexplicably been provoked by Shen Xiaohai and come to Earl Changning’s manor that time. Her expression darkened. They had already explained everything clearly to the Marquis of Wuning’s household—Earl Changning’s manor had not the slightest relationship with Duke Yingguo’s manor, and all that talk about betrothal arrangements was completely baseless. Could it be that just because Miss Tong had recently been causing chaos in the Shen household and wasn’t well-received, she’d brought this matter up again?
Song Chuyi also couldn’t figure out what this had to do with Tong Shao. She’d thought it would either be because what Yuanhui said made the Empress consider her a menace and plan to marry her off carelessly first, or that the Empress wanted to take advantage of the situation to win over the Song family as support. She never imagined it would have anything to do with Tong Shao.
Madam Cui herself found it absurd as she spoke about it, both amused and annoyed. “Miss Tong says that the reason Seventh Young Master Shen dislikes her is because something went wrong with her leg, and her leg only developed problems because she was implicated by Xiao Yi in Tongzhou.”
Even First Madam Song couldn’t help laughing at this. “Has something gone wrong with her brain? How could Xiao Yi possibly implicate her?”
“Isn’t it all because of this business about the Heavenly Fiend Solitary Star fate!” Yu Shi put down her teacup. “Miss Tong already bore a grudge against Xiao Yi. This time, seeing Yuanhui bring up the old matter again, she naturally doesn’t wish Xiao Yi well. She brought this matter before Her Majesty the Empress all at once, definitely with the intention of spreading Xiao Yi’s reputation even more widely. She wishes nothing more than for Xiao Yi to be like a plague god from now on, feared by all who see her.”
This probably wasn’t entirely mindless troublemaking. Song Chuyi sat in her chair without saying a word.
She’d heard that recently Shen Qingrang had been growing quite close to Wei Yansheng, Prince Dongping’s study companion. The two shared similar interests and spent every day outside drinking and carousing, cockfighting and dog racing, never returning home at night.
Since Yuanhui might have been acting on Grand Consort Fan’s instructions, or perhaps wanted to help Grand Consort Fan and Prince Dongping, and thus wanted to completely destroy her so she couldn’t become support for the Grand Prince, then this scene Tong Shao was causing—though it seemed unreasonable and absurd—was actually just adding fuel to the fire, making the Empress even more convinced that she was an inauspicious person.
She had originally given up on dealing with Shen Qingrang, thinking that living out his life in chaos with Tong Shao was punishment enough. But unexpectedly, there was one thing about Shen Qingrang that was exactly the same as in her previous life—no matter what, deep in his bones there still flowed utilitarian blood, and like Shen Xiaohai, he was opportunistic and adept at currying favor with all sides.
Trying to step on her corpse to rise up and ingratiate himself with Grand Consort Fan? That would depend on whether she agreed or not. They probably still didn’t know why the Crown Prince had fallen ill, or why Prince Dongping had immediately fallen ill right after, did they?
Old Madam Song was angered into laughter. She’d never expected there could be such utterly senseless people in this world. After she’d laughed enough, she stopped and looked at Madam Cui. “What does Her Majesty think?”
A parent’s heart is pitiful indeed. Zhou Weizhao had stayed on Longhu Mountain for seven or eight years before his health could be considered restored. Her Majesty the Empress naturally didn’t want him to become entangled with anything evil or ominous, much less use his fate to suppress Song Chuyi’s fate.
Madam Cui bit her lip, seeming somewhat at a loss for how to speak. After a long while, she finally sighed and urged Song Chuyi to go outside. “Why don’t you go see your elder cousin sister? We’ll have a chat here.”
In fact, Madam Cui needn’t have deliberately sent Song Chuyi away—Song Chuyi could already guess what Her Majesty the Empress’s current attitude was. What Yuanhui said last time had after all come true. Something had indeed happened at the hunting grounds, people had indeed died, and blood had indeed been shed. This time, using his previous words to say that bloodshed and disaster were imminent for her—no matter who it was, they couldn’t treat it as if nothing had happened.
Grand Consort Fan hoped to use this pretext to make Zhou Weizhao completely afraid to become entangled with the Song family, and also hoped the Empress would distance herself from the Song family. Then if Prince Dongping were to magnanimously extend a hand to help her without holding past grudges—he needn’t necessarily marry her, just arrange her marriage into a decent meritorious noble household—the Song family and she would likewise feel grateful.
Grand Old Madam Cui’s birthday banquet was just around the corner. Perhaps Yuanhui was even setting his sights on the young ladies of the Cui family.
Before Song Chuyi could stand up, Nanny Huang reported from outside the curtain, “A nanny from the Zhennan Prince’s manor has come.”
Old Madam Song and First Madam exchanged glances, then looked at Madam Cui and Yu Shi. They were all somewhat surprised and hurriedly called out repeatedly to invite her in quickly.
Madam Cui lowered her voice and said to Old Madam Song, “Her Majesty the Empress heard that Second Young Master Ye from the Zhennan Prince’s manor has always been close to Xiao Yi, and noting that they’re of similar age, yesterday she hinted at something to Princess Rongcheng and me.”
So was the Zhennan Prince’s manor sending someone this time because they’d heard the rumors and come in fear to refuse? That old bald donkey Yuanhui had really—with just one sentence he’d ruined matters quite thoroughly. Her Majesty the Empress wanted to marry Song Chuyi off so as not to interfere with His Highness the Grand Prince, yet didn’t want to offend Earl Changning’s manor, so she simply thought of the Zhennan Prince’s manor.