“Quite cautious, aren’t you?” Shen Zaiyu raised an eyebrow. “What do you think would be an appropriate guarantee?”
Taohua, having already thought this through, replied directly, “I’ve heard you have a precious jade pendant. Could you leave it with me for now? If I die due to your actions, the jade will perish with me. How’s that?”
Shen’s face instantly darkened, his jaw tightening. The room seemed to dim suddenly.
“Not!”
Startled by his strong reaction, Taohua instinctively shrank back. “Why not?”
The man by the bed lowered his gaze, visibly displeased. “I never part with that jade pendant. Choose something else.”
“Oh… well, please don’t be upset,” Taohua said carefully, studying him. “If the jade won’t do, how about money? You could deposit ten thousand taels of gold with the Prince Nan. If I die because of your actions, the gold becomes mine. Would that work?”
Shen’s anger subsided slightly, but he gave her an odd look. “If you’re dead, who would the money go to?”
“Someone will claim it on my behalf. You needn’t worry about that,” Taohua smiled. “Ten thousand taels of gold isn’t a small sum. From what I know, the Chancellor’s annual salary is only fifty taels of gold. Of course, I’m sure your other income is substantial, so I’m not concerned about you being able to afford it.”
He could afford it, but being manipulated by a woman still irked him. “Is your life worth that much?”
“I’ll prove to you that this deal will only benefit you, my lord. If I’m still alive after six months, I’ll return the gold to you in full. It’s fair and just.”
Shen didn’t mind leaving the gold with the Prince Nan, as he would have done so anyway. This condition didn’t trouble him much, but instead of agreeing immediately, he looked Taohua up and down, as if appraising her.
Taohua straightened her back, her complexion poor but her spirit undiminished. Her eyes firmly told him: I am worth this price!
“If we’re to cooperate, we must trust each other,” Shen said, gently placing his hand on her neck. “I’ll agree to your request, but you must serve me well and abandon any devious thoughts.”
“Rest assured, my lord,” Taohua replied. “I’m very reliable.”
“If you’re so reliable, why did you try to use charm on me?” His eyes darkened, and the hand on her neck tightened slightly. Shen smiled coldly, “I can’t stand overly beautiful things. I want to crush them with my own hands. Would you like to try?”
Her heart skipped a beat, and Taohua quickly withdrew, shaking her head in fear. “No need, no need! Please calm down, my lord! I promise to break this habit in your presence from now on!”
Habit? She was trying to control him every time she saw him, looking for his weaknesses. If this was a habit, it was terrifying.
Shen snorted lightly and released her, seeing her shrink her shoulders obediently. He said irritably, “I’ll have someone write up the contract for you soon and send the gold to the Prince Nan’s mansion. You should rest well.”
“My lord!” Taohua called out as he was about to leave. “Do you think it’s enough for me to just be an ordinary woman in this rear court?”
Shen glanced at her sideways, folding his arms. “What more do you want?”
“I feel that you’ve been so generous with the gold, it seems unfair for me to just lie here,” Taohua smiled. “The matter with Prince Jing, you haven’t resolved it yet, have you?”
His expression tightened. Shen looked at her with dark eyes. “What do you know?”
“Don’t worry, not many people know what you’re planning,” Jiang Taohua said calmly, pressing her lips together. “Even if I know, I won’t say a word. I’m your person now, I’ll only help you, not harm you.”
Shen looked at her suspiciously, his hands slowly clenching under his arms.
Taohua pretended not to notice the killing intent and continued calmly, “Prince Jing is currently the Emperor’s most favored son. If you want to interfere in the succession struggle, you must start with him. Earlier, you wanted to use my death to create discord between Prince Jing and the Emperor, then win Prince Jing’s heart. From this step, I can understand your attitude towards Prince Jing.”
First, draw him in, then use him as a stepping stone, and finally discard him.
Shen’s disguise was excellent. Given the current situation, people outside would probably think he was starting to favor Prince Jing, and there should gradually be voices in the court calling for Prince Jing to be named Crown Prince. Prince Jing was eager to win Shen’s support and had no guard against him, so Shen’s move had a high chance of success.
“I’ve ruined your plan, and you must still be angry. Why not let me make amends? How about it?”
Such bold words! Shen sneered, “You think it’s something that can be easily accomplished? There’s only one chance, and once it’s gone, it’s gone. How do you plan to make amends?”
Feeling dizzy, Taohua rubbed her head, her voice weakening, “Forgive my directness, but your previous plan seemed somewhat hasty, with many flaws. Even if Prince Jing had killed me out of hatred, he would at most receive a scolding from the Emperor, without creating deep resentment. Moreover, he might become suspicious of you.”
“I have a way to make the Emperor doubt Prince Jing’s character without implicating you in the slightest.”
Shen paused, the killing intent in his eyes diminishing slightly. “What way?”
“Let me rest for a while first. I’ll tell you when I wake up. I always keep my word, especially when it concerns my life.” Her face is deathly pale, Taohua managed a smile before lying down with furrowed brows and closing her eyes.
Shen was speechless.
This was the first time someone had managed to keep him in suspense. How did this woman, who had just arrived, know so much? She seemed to understand everything about him, the rear court of the Chancellor’s mansion, and even court affairs.
How did she manage that?
He poked her forehead, noticing her small face completely drained of color. Shen found the scales in his mind tilting slightly towards “letting her stay.”
It would be a waste to kill such a capable woman, wouldn’t it?
If she could truly handle the matter with Prince Jing, then… he might not have a reason to kill her anymore.
Thinking of her injuries, Shen reached to lift the blanket, expecting to see some scabbing by now. But as he pulled back the cover, even before removing her outer garment, he saw a large bloodstain on her white nightgown.
His face darkened. Shen called out sharply, “Zhanlu, summon the female doctor and physician!”
“Yes, my lord.”
Qingtai looked up, her heart tightening. Forgetting protocol, she quickly went forward to gently pull back Taohua’s clothes and remove the bandages to check.
“She must have torn the wound when she sat up earlier!” Qingtai’s eyes reddened with worry. She looked at Shen reproachfully, “Couldn’t you have let her speak while lying down, my lord? The wound was finally…”
Shen pressed his lips together. “She insisted on sitting up herself. Are you blaming me for that too?”
He refused to take the blame! It was Jiang Taohua’s foolishness!
Qingtai opened her mouth but couldn’t say anything more. She could only turn to prepare the medicines, waiting for the doctor and female physician to come and rebandage the wound.
Shen watched for a while, then left with Zhanlu when the medical staff arrived.
“Is there another room in Zhengchun Pavilion?” he asked.
Zhanlu nodded. “The side hall is empty.”
“Good. I’ll rest in the side hall tonight. Just tell everyone that the Chancellor spent the night caring for Lady Jiang.”
Zhanlu looked at him in surprise. “But aren’t you cooperating with Lady Jiang…”
“In this cooperation, she needs to demonstrate her value. Otherwise, why would I agree to her conditions?” Shen smiled lightly. “Jiang Taohua is tough. You needn’t worry about her.”
Zhanlu’s heart skipped a beat. He shook his head vigorously, looking terrified. “This servant doesn’t worry!”
“I’m just teasing you, don’t be so anxious,” Shen glanced at him and sighed. “Jiang is beautiful indeed. Few men could resist her.”
He wouldn’t be surprised if men other than himself were attracted to her.
Zhanlu tensed up, secretly observing his master. For the first time, he felt uncertain. His master’s words seemed casual, and he didn’t appear to be accusing anyone, but the aura he was emitting felt somewhat strange.
Shen paid no attention to him. He entered the side hall to wash up and rest, no longer inquiring about the situation in the main room.
Taohua’s injury was severe. Once the wound reopened, the doctor and female physician busied themselves for another two hours before withdrawing.
After a night’s rest, she opened her eyes to find Shen’s face, wearing a fake smile, in front of her again.
“Get up and have some porridge,” he said.
Smiling weakly, Taohua looked at him. “Are you so free, my lord?”
“Not free, but you didn’t finish what you were saying yesterday, and it’s been on my mind,” Shen looked down at her. “Once you explain clearly, I’ll be off to the morning court.”
Closing her eyes briefly, Taohua said, “Just tell me what the Emperor is most wary of, my lord. How I go about it is my own business. Are you the type who likes to watch the process?”
The Emperor’s concerns?
Shen glanced at her. “If you don’t tell me your specific plan, how will I know you won’t implicate my Chancellor’s mansion?”
“I won’t use the Chancellor’s name in my actions,” Taohua replied. “Outside this mansion, few in Great Wei would recognize me. What are you worried about, my lord?”
That did make sense. Currently, only the Prince Nan and himself had seen her face; even Prince Jing hadn’t met her.
After a moment’s thought, Shen spoke, “The Emperor is most wary of princes who don’t know their place and act impulsively. That’s why Prince Jing has always been steady and never overstepped his bounds.”
“I understand,” Taohua nodded. “After a couple more days of rest, when my wound has healed better, I’ll go and handle this matter for you, my lord.”
“Two days?” Shen smiled. “The imperial physician said you won’t be able to leave bed for half a month with that injury.”
“Can you afford to wait half a month, my lord?”
“I can’t.”
“Then that settles it,” Taohua chuckled lightly. “You needn’t concern yourself with how I’ll do it. Just wait for the final result.”
People like them never cared about the difficulties of the process; they only looked at the outcome.
(End of Chapter)