The Grand Madam’s expression shifted.

“Oh?”

“Given Lady Quan’s status, as soon as she arrived at the Zhu residence, Lady Zhu would certainly follow her every step, never leaving her side.” Seventh Miss spoke eloquently.

Her small face naturally radiated an indescribable brilliance.

“Even if she needed to wait outside to receive Mother, she would certainly have first led Lady Quan to the washing room, kept her company briefly, and only after someone came to report would she excuse herself to greet us. This is the proper etiquette for receiving guests in great households… Judging from Lady Zhu’s round table arrangement today, she was only more careful than Little Seven suspects—she wouldn’t have been so negligent as to let Lady Quan go alone to the washing room to change clothes.”

The Grand Madam looked thoughtful. “Even if she herself needed to come out to receive us mother and daughter, she should have sent a daughter-in-law to attend Lady Quan. That would be the proper way to treat guests.”

Though Lady Zhu had made considerable effort with the spring wine banquet seating to avoid distinguishing superiority between the two parties, she was abnormally negligent regarding the clothing change. Lady Quan had emerged from the main hall alone.

“Everything has a reason. Though Lady Zhu might have had a momentary oversight, no matter how Little Seven thinks about it, it seems more likely that… she and Lady Quan are quite familiar privately, which led to the lapse in etiquette.”

Just as when the Grand Madam visited the Li family, Lady Li wouldn’t be too particular about formalities.

The Grand Madam’s eyes gradually deepened.

What was the Yang family’s relationship with the Li family?

And what was the Zhu family’s relationship with the Quan family?

After being lost in thought for a long moment, she praised Seventh Miss. “Little Seven is still the most observant. Your father’s praise of you is never wrong… If you hadn’t thought of this layer, I truly wouldn’t have noticed anything amiss.”

Seventh Miss remained neither proud nor anxious, pressing her lips together to remind the Grand Madam, “This is merely Little Seven’s small speculation. Without evidence, it ultimately can’t be taken as truth…”

She truly feared that because of her words, the Yang family would become enemies with the Zhu family.

“Mother naturally knows this.” The Grand Madam smiled. “We can’t interfere in military affairs, but we can pass a word to your cousin. He naturally has ways to investigate. If the Zhu family truly has connections with the Quan family, then this thorn must be removed.”

Seventh Miss immediately recalled Xu Fengjia’s words.

“General Zhu and I don’t quite see eye to eye…”

She also remembered he had entered the White Plum Grove to avoid General Zhu.

She felt Xu Fengjia probably already had seventy to eighty percent certainty in his heart.

To the Grand Madam’s words, she only responded with a smile without further comment.

The Grand Madam also set aside her concerns, gripping Seventh Miss’s wrist to carefully admire the pair of white jade bracelets Lady Quan had gifted.

“Tsk tsk, Lady Quan was truly generous.” She couldn’t help remarking to Seventh Miss, “Such flawless white jade bracelets were probably brought back from the Western Regions by Second Young Master Quan. Since the Northern Rong rose up and blocked the Western Region trade routes, the capital hasn’t seen such fine jade in many years.”

Seventh Miss was somewhat surprised. “I thought they were just worth three to five hundred taels…”

For jewelry to cost three to five hundred taels couldn’t exactly be called cheap.

The Grand Madam looked at Seventh Miss, finding her more endearing than usual.

Even the most perceptive person had areas of ignorance.

“Gold has a price, but jade is priceless. Over the years, how many precious pieces of jewelry has your Third Sister received from your father? Does she have jade bracelets this beautiful?” She smiled and enlightened Seventh Miss. “They’re all just gold and silver… Your father merely spends money to make her happy. Though those things are also valuable, they ultimately carry the air of nouveau riche. Capital families value jade artifacts most. If this pair of bracelets were put on the market, they could fetch over ten thousand taels of silver—it’s hard to say.”

Seventh Miss now understood.

Jade was difficult to mine in ancient times, so jade artifacts were inherently valuable.

Moreover, such pure, flawless mutton-fat white jade… naturally it would cause powerful aristocratic families to compete in bidding. Such jade bracelets had little to do with money—they were symbols of status.

“Mother has several pairs in hand…” she murmured. “I didn’t see them as particularly rare. Little Seven was shallow-sighted.”

“You can’t be blamed for being shallow-sighted.” Saying the Grand Madam had many fine things naturally pleased her. Her eyes crinkled with smiles as she reminisced with Seventh Miss. “Of Hetian jade of this grade, I only have three pairs of bracelets. One pair was my mother’s dowry. Another pair was a trousseau gift from your Third Sister. The third pair—your father obtained it from a merchant caravan and gave it to me when he was promoted to Jiangsu Provincial Administration Commissioner… The others all have slight flaws and can’t compare to this flawless pair.”

As she spoke, she herself frowned.

“Lady Quan’s conduct is truly too unexpected.” She pondered Lady Quan’s intentions. “Such precious bracelets—even the Quan family doesn’t have many pairs. How could she so suddenly slip them onto your hands? Looking at it this way, the ruby I gave can’t match her greeting gift. I only glanced at the time and didn’t notice how valuable they were…”

Seventh Miss was also quite puzzled.

The Quan and Yang families had never been particularly close, and their relationship had grown even cooler in recent years.

Lady Quan’s gift was unreasonably substantial.

#

Having just returned to the mansion, the very next day the Grand Master summoned Seventh Miss to the outer courtyard to attend him.

Since court was in session, letters piled up on the Grand Master’s desk. Holding an important position, he had to review all governmental affairs of Jiangnan before they could be submitted upward. Various official documents were never absent from his desk.

Upon entering the small study, Seventh Miss saw the Grand Master personally organizing the oiled paper seals on his desk. She hurried forward to assist.

“Oh, you’re here.” The Grand Master seemed in good spirits. Seeing Seventh Miss, he handed the papers in his hands to his daughter. “I’m accustomed to having you assist. The young servants always seem clumsy, so I might as well do it myself.”

“Father expends mental energy year-round. Getting up to move about and exercise is also beneficial.” Seventh Miss spoke softly, lowering her head to categorize the official documents, sorting and organizing them for later binding. She simply sat down at the desk, roughly scanning the documents’ contents while writing summary labels for each.

The Grand Master sat down in the reclining chair, chuckling. “Mm, Little Seven is right. Walking around, my mind relaxes considerably—not so stifled.”

Seventh Miss’s hands paused. Only then did she realize the Grand Master wasn’t in good spirits today—on the contrary, he’d just encountered something vexing.

It was probably because of this that he was too lazy to summon someone to assist with organizing the desktop.

Just from such small details, one could see how profound this frontier official’s thoughts were.

“What matter could vex Father so?” Her hands didn’t stop as she especially softened her voice to chat with the Grand Master. “In my opinion, Father should have kept that ‘Composure’ scroll for himself… Otherwise, keeping vexing matters in your heart only makes them more vexing.”

The Grand Master couldn’t help laughing. “This Little Seven!”

He then chatted idly with Seventh Miss.

“You probably don’t know yet, your cousin at the start of the year…” Adding and subtracting details, he repeated what the Grand Madam had said. “News just came—this very morning, a grain shop in Hangzhou caught fire. When the fire was extinguished, they discovered not a single living soul remained in the entire establishment from top to bottom. Over forty people died in the fire. The coroner examined the bodies…”

Seventh Miss’s hands couldn’t help trembling.

“Don’t mention this to your mother yet. These forty-some people were all young, sturdy men. Many wore clothing nothing like grain shop workers—some even wore silk and satin. The Hangzhou Prefect wrote to me saying the culprits probably brought corpses from elsewhere and pushed them into the fire scene to destroy evidence.” Though the Grand Master’s tone was calm, his words still gave Seventh Miss goosebumps all over. “We’re approaching the moment when the dagger is revealed… Even I didn’t know about this hidden stake of Prince Lu’s in Hangzhou. How did Fengjia track it down? Prince Lu’s circle must have a traitor…”

Seventh Miss felt cold all over. After a long moment, she murmured, “The weather is about to change…”

The Grand Master closed his eyes, wearily rubbing his face. “Even I can’t quite see through this matter. The Eastern Palace’s movements are so dramatic—aren’t they afraid of angering the Emperor? If the Eastern Palace made this decision on its own, such capability is truly admirable…”

Seventh Miss understood the Grand Master’s meaning.

The Yang family’s actions to root out Prince Lu’s forces in Zhejiang Province were already quite dramatic.

At this time, Xu Fengjia created such a huge commotion—naturally he couldn’t have impulsively massacred an entire establishment on his own. Someone behind him must have ordered it. This person was certainly his childhood companion, Crown Prince of the Eastern Palace.

From open to covert, from political circles to military circles—first remove the hidden stakes, then pick out Prince Lu’s people from political circles, finally eliminate General Zhu… Jiangnan would truly become the Crown Prince’s territory.

Not moving at all until striking with overwhelming force—this Crown Prince of the Eastern Palace was truly someone.

However, countless doubts remained: with the Crown Prince making such dramatic moves, was the Emperor dead? Having just begun elevating Prince Lu, Prince Lu received a harsh slap to the face. Though this move was ruthless, it carried some desperation. After the Crown Prince’s joy of victory, wouldn’t retaliatory strikes from above follow in quick succession?

Could a political figure capable of deploying such meticulous plans be so oblivious?

Seventh Miss immediately thought of the pair of white jade bracelets Lady Quan had given her today.

She also thought of Quan Zhongbai’s identity.

Cold sweat seeped densely from beside her cheeks.

She lowered her head, quietly echoing the Grand Master. “The Eastern Palace’s methods are indeed brilliant. Our family just began laying out our network when they removed Prince Lu’s intelligence stakes. This way, intelligence transmission in Jiangnan will inevitably stagnate. Our Yang family’s actions will face fewer obstacles and proceed more smoothly.”

The Grand Master responded absently with a sound, then fell back into contemplation.

Seventh Miss also changed the subject, chatting with the Grand Master about family matters. “The other day at Lady Zhu’s residence, I met Lady Quan. Little Seven received quite a prize—Lady Quan removed a pair of pure, flawless mutton-fat jade bracelets from her wrists and gave them to your daughter. Even Mother, seeing them, praised them profusely, saying they were priceless treasures…”

The Grand Master’s expression suddenly shifted.

He looked up and asked Seventh Miss, “Are you wearing them?”

Seventh Miss smiled and shook her head, then smiled again. “If Father wants to see them, I’ll have someone fetch them.”

Without waiting for the Grand Master to speak, she left the room and instructed a young servant to go to Hundred Fragrance Garden with a message.

Before long, the pair of white jade bracelets Lady Quan had gifted arrived before the Grand Master.

The Grand Master carefully examined them before pushing them back to Seventh Miss.

This middle-aged scholar’s expression shifted unpredictably—clearly he had fallen into deep thought.

After a long moment, he sighed deeply. “Little Seven, oh Little Seven… you’re truly too perceptive.”

Seventh Miss pressed her lips together. “My heart also found it strange. I’ve been pondering these matters these past days, so I developed some thoughts. Your daughter lacks worldly experience—I don’t know if these thoughts have merit…”

If one only placed the two matters side by side, they seemed unrelated.

Lady Quan had given her a pair of rare, precious jade bracelets and shown her uncommon affection.

The Crown Prince’s actions were abnormally fierce and ruthless.

But with just a slight connection, one couldn’t help but produce the most reasonable yet most ominous association.

Since the Emperor’s serious illness in the twentieth year of Zhaoming, his health had actually been quite robust.

But even if Quan Zhongbai had miraculous healing abilities, how could an illness not damage one’s vitality?

Aside from his physician, a person’s physical condition was probably clearest to the wife and children attending him.

The Emperor’s constitution had likely shown signs of deterioration again…

“Father’s decision to support the Crown Prince was ultimately not wrong.” As Seventh Miss carefully placed the jade bracelets in the brocade box, she comforted the Grand Master. “Though the present is difficult, the future is ultimately bright…”

The Grand Master, however, showed no relaxed expression.

Between his brows, things grew even darker.

“The Hangzhou matter couldn’t make your father worry to this degree.” He finally revealed the truth. “A letter came from the capital—Second Master Niu was just promoted to Xuande Chiliarch.”

Fearing Seventh Miss wouldn’t understand, he explained further. “Though Xuande is remote, it’s frequently troubled by foreign incursions. Placing Second Master Niu in Xuande means letting him familiarize himself with military affairs…”

The Niu family was the current Empress’s natal family.

Over these years, Seventh Miss had heard bits and pieces about the Niu family’s circumstances from the Grand Madam.

When the Emperor was still Crown Prince, his situation wasn’t particularly favorable. Crown Princess Niu’s birth wasn’t high—among capital families, though also a marquis house, it had long declined. Even after producing an Empress, it hadn’t become prominent or prosperous. For many years it remained obscure. The heir, Niu Deyu, was mediocre and incompetent, managing nothing. Second Master Niu Debao had a poor temper, never gaining the Emperor’s favor, remaining idle at home for years without important appointments.

If the Niu family weren’t so unsuccessful, the Empress wouldn’t need to cultivate Noble Consort and find a second foster mother for her adoptive son.

At this critical juncture, Second Master Niu received a promotion to Xuande to familiarize himself with military affairs…

Only then did Seventh Miss understand the Grand Master’s vexation.

The Crown Prince made such dramatic moves in Jiangnan without even a preliminary notification. The Grand Master’s heart naturally wouldn’t feel good.

Moreover, openly installing his own people in Jiangnan.

On this side, hastily promoting the Empress’s natal family.

Though scholar-officials practiced political maneuvering, they also had their own integrity. A scholar dies for those who appreciate him…

Yet the Crown Prince decidedly didn’t view the Grand Master as a confidant—using him while guarding against him.

This frontier official was growing cold toward the Crown Prince!

Even Seventh Miss’s heart—how could it not contain a trace of chill?

Before even crossing the river completely, there were already signs of demolishing the bridge. No wonder the Grand Master was preoccupied, rarely losing his composure.

After a long moment, she quietly consoled the Grand Master. “The Xu, Qin, and Sun families are all intimately connected with our Yang family. Father needn’t worry excessively.”

Yet even she felt this comfort was too pale.

The Grand Master looked deeply at Seventh Miss, patting her tender, delicate shoulder. After a long sigh, he slowly expressed his feelings.

“Yes, who knows—perhaps Little Seven’s future husband might even be able to give our Ninth Brother a hand.”