Chapter 30 The Ninth Prince has a clever and pitiful child named Si...

I learned from the servant that Shen Zhiyan had already arranged all matters for the poetry and martial arts conference in the past two days, and was busy with other matters, so he did not stay in the mansion.

During the days when Luo Wan was not at the Shen Mansion, Pei Shaochuan almost always went to the Shen Mansion to take a look, and when he found that Luo Wan was not there, he found various excuses to sneak back.

Seeing Luo Wan at the Shen residence today, Pei Shaochuan was delighted: "Wan Wan, Wan Wan, where have you been these days?"

Luo Wan said, "My mother's dowry nanny passed away in the countryside, and I went to see her."

Pei Shaochuan seemed lost in thought. "I'm glad your concubine isn't confining you again. Wanwan, I heard the capital's martial arts arena has been renovated and has many new facilities. Master Shen isn't at the mansion, so why don't you go take a look?"

Luo Wan was about to refuse when the maid knocked on the door and came in: "Miss Chi, the head of the family wants to see you."

Luo Wan thought about it seriously.

Apart from the palace banquet and the day Liu Zong visited, she had seen Shen Mo from afar, and they had no further contact.

Shen Mo never interfered with Shen Zhiyan's decisions, so he never asked about Luo Wan, his female staff member and student.

The same was true for the marriage between the Shen and Liu families. Since Shen Zhiyan wanted to cancel the engagement, he fulfilled his son's wish.

The maid said, "Miss Chi, please follow me."

Luo Wan walked out of the study, and Pei Shaochuan immediately followed.

The maid stepped forward to stop him.

When Pei Shaochuan went left, she went left; when Pei Shaochuan went right, she went right.

Determined to stop him.

Pei Shaochuan asked: "What?"

The maid bowed her head and said, "The master of the house only invited Miss Chi."

Therefore, Pei Shaochuan was left in the study.

The maid led the way in front, but not towards the meeting hall.

But it was the path leading to the backyard of the Shen Mansion.

The study where the three of them had previously discussed the poetry and martial arts conference had always been an ordinary study in the front yard.

Therefore, Luo Wan only entered the backyard of the Shen Mansion once, on the day of the Lantern Festival.

Shen Mo and Shen Zhiyan's residences were not next to each other, so Luo Wan had never walked this road before.

The further you go in, the fewer patrolling guards there are.

Only then did Luo Wan understand why Shen Mo asked the maid to bring her to the backyard, which was to avoid Jiang Cichen's eyes.

After passing through the last arched stone gate, you will arrive at Shen Mo's yard.

There are many green plants in the courtyard, and even in winter, it still looks full of vitality.

However, there is a house that contradicts the scene in the courtyard.

It was broad daylight, the doors and windows were closed, there were no lights on, and the place was dead silent.

The maid said, "Miss Chi, please come this way."

Luo Wan asked, "Why are the doors and windows of that room closed?"

The maid said, "Because no one lives here all year round."

Luo Wan was puzzled: "Doesn't Master Shen live in the courtyard?"

The maid shook her head: "I dare not say more."

So, Luo Wan didn't ask any more questions and followed the maid into the side room in the courtyard for meetings.

As soon as I stepped in, I saw Shen Mo sitting on the high table.

His eyebrows and eyes are very similar to Shen Zhiyan's, but his temperament is very different.

Perhaps it was the ten years of being a hostage that smoothed out Shen Zhiyan's edges, so he gave people the impression of a gentle and elegant gentleman.

But Shen Mo is different. He has a natural arrogance.

Being a prime minister, second only to the emperor and above everyone else, it is hard not to be arrogant.

Luo Wan wondered if Shen Zhiyan would also have this kind of arrogance if he had not become a hostage.

Shen Mo said, "Miss Chi, please take a seat. I have something I don't understand, so please enlighten me."

Luo Wan said: "I dare not. Wanwan is a junior, so it is not the case that I can teach you. Just ask Minister Chen."

The man in the hall seemed to be silent for a moment, and then he spoke lightly: "I heard that on the day Zhiyan said goodbye to Master Liu, Miss Chi specifically advised Master Liu not to cancel the engagement."

Shen Mo looked at her, his smiling expression was colder than the winter night in the capital.

After a pause, Shen Mo continued, "I don't know why Miss Chi is so concerned about Zhiyan and Liu Shuyi's marriage, so I would like to ask for your advice."

She shouldn't have come. It was harder than Luo Wan had imagined to get away with it easily in front of the Prime Minister of the Northern Kingdom who had seen countless people.

From Luo Wan's perspective, this matter is indeed difficult to explain, but if you think about it from Shen Mo's suspicious perspective, it is easy to explain.

There are only two situations: one is official business, and the other is personal affairs.

The official business then escalated into a dispute between the aristocratic families, and what was the purpose of bringing about a marriage between the Shen and Liu families?

The private affair then degenerated into a personal relationship. Why did she interfere in the marriage of Shen Zhiyan and Liu Shuyi?

Luo Wan wasn't sure which one Shen Mo wanted to know, so she gave a standard answer: "After the palace banquet that day, Miss Liu went to talk to Master Shen. Women understand women best. I know Miss Liu doesn't want to break off the engagement. And Master Shen just lacks the time to spend with Miss Liu. I believe that one day, they will become a harmonious couple praised by everyone in the capital."

Shen Mo said: "This reason is not enough to support Miss Chi's behavior."

Luo Wan raised her eyes and said, "Wanwan has her own selfish motives. My mother died early, and Wanwan's position in the mansion is virtually meaningless. Although my father is a retainer of the Gu family, I have already offended them before, so she needs to find a backer. Accomplishing Liu Shuyi's wishes and facilitating this marriage is my stepping stone to join the Liu family. This way, Master Shen's career will be smoother with the support of the Liu family, and as Master Shen's student, I will naturally have an extra layer of security."

After a moment, Shen Mo said, "I hope Miss Chi understands. After all, Miss Chi's father is a retainer of Duke Gu. Miss Chi's interference in the marriage between the Shen and Liu families for no reason will inevitably arouse suspicion from others. I also have to ensure that there are no treacherous people around Zhiyan."

Luo Wan said: "I understand the heart of my parents."

Shen Mo said: "Besides that, please ask Miss Chi to come over. I'd like to trouble Miss Chi to do something for me."

When Luo Wan left the Shen Mansion, he realized that he had been completely caught up in the party-political struggle.

From the moment she planned to get close to Shen Zhiyan, it was destined that sooner or later she would be involved in this dispute like Shen Zhiyan.

Just now it seemed that Shen Mo was testing Luo Wan, and even Luo Wan thought so at first.

But on the contrary, what Shen Mo finally asked her to do was his real purpose.

As for the wedding date of the Shen and Liu families, Shen Mo actually asked Luo Wan to go to Liu Mansion to inform them!

In a euphemistic way, Luo Wan was said to be the matchmaker who saved this marriage.

The fact is that it was done for the Gu family and the princelings to see.

Previously, Gu had confined Luo Wan because she had attended a palace banquet and, as Shen Zhiyan's aide, had drafted a title for Jiang Cichen, which had touched the bottom line of the Prince's Party.

This is the Gu family's warning to the Shen family.

A proud person like Shen Mo would naturally not swallow his anger.

Asking Luo Wan, the daughter of Gu's retainer, to deliver the invitation, promote the marriage between Shen and Liu, and strengthen the power of other aristocratic families is a counterattack against the Gu family.

What Jiang Cichen said at the palace banquet that night has become a reality.

Now thinking about her statement of "not participating in party and government disputes" seems a bit ridiculous.

Luo Wan bid farewell to Pei Shaochuan, got on the Shen Mansion carriage, and arrived at the Liu Mansion.

Liu Zong did not find the Shen family's change of attitude towards marriage sudden, but simply accepted it calmly.

When Luo Wan was about to leave, Liu Zong sighed and said, "Miss Chi, please accompany me to the garden for a walk."

The Liu clan not only had a son and a daughter, Liu Shiyu and Liu Shuyi, but also several illegitimate children, so the Liu Mansion was particularly large.

There is a lotus pond in the palace, which is like a crescent moon and surrounds half of the palace.

Liu Zong said: "Shen Mo's behavior is not right. He shouldn't have dragged you into this for his own selfish reasons."

Luo Wan knew that Liu Zong was referring to the fact that Shen Mo asked her to deliver the invitation.

From the first time they met at the Shen Mansion, she sensed that Liu Zong had a very good impression of her.

Compared to getting along with Shen Mo, getting along with Liu Zong feels much more comfortable.

When both the Gu and Shen families used her to intimidate the other side, and the young general of the Jiang family targeted her everywhere.

Among the four great families, only Liu Zong said that she should not be involved.

But Luo Wan didn't know the reason.

Just as he was wondering, Liu Zong said, "This matter has nothing to do with you. Even without Miss Chi's persuasion, the marriage would most likely not be cancelled. This marriage was personally chosen by His Majesty. That day, I discussed with Prime Minister Shen how to ask His Majesty to revoke the marriage, and yesterday I received His Majesty's oral order urging the marriage. You are the most innocent person in this whole matter."

Luo Wan was flattered.

She suddenly remembered that when she died in her previous life, Su Qinghuan said she deserved it, but now some people actually said she was innocent.

Even she herself had never thought of it.

From the bottom of her heart, and without pretending to be a lady like Chi Wanwan, Luo Wan said, "Master Liu was the first person to stand up for me."

Liu Zongdao said, "Shi Yu was to blame for this in the first place. He misunderstood you and Master Shen... He was judging you with his own petty mind and deliberately made things difficult for you at the banquet. I've already punished him, so I'm letting you vent your anger!"

The two walked onto the arched bridge across the lotus pond. Luo Wan said, "Young Master Liu is simply too protective of his sister. However, there's one thing Wanwan doesn't understand. You seem to be taking extra care of me."

Liu Zong smoothed his beard and said with a smile, "I haven't told you yet that you look very similar to one of my students."

As far as Luo Wan knew, all the students taught by Liu Zong were princes and princesses of the imperial palace.

Similar, how are they similar?

Luo Wan has had few relatives since she was young, so she is curious about what people who look like her are like.

She asked, "Did I see him on the day of the palace banquet?"

Liu Zong shook his head. "No, he wasn't there. But I can tell you about this student of mine."

Luo Wan said: "I would like to hear the details."

Liu Zongdao said, "That story begins a long time ago, when I was serving as the Grand Tutor of the Emperor's sons in the Imperial Study. The Emperor had many sons, but there was one named Si who was both intelligent and pitiful, not talkative, yet he left a deep impression on me."

"His biological mother was of humble origin and from a foreign land, ostracized by the concubines. Although favored by the emperor, she could not escape the intrigues of the inner palace, and soon died of depression. He was only four years old when Concubine Lan passed away, leaving him alone and without the support of his maternal family. His early maturity and outstanding performance made him stand out among the other princes, so the emperor favored him more than any other prince, which made him more likely to attract jealousy."

"Almost every day, he was subjected to intrigue and assassination in the palace. Fortunately, the young eunuchs around Concubine Lan were smart and loyal, and with my protection, he was able to grow up."

At this point, Luo Wan had already guessed who this prince was.

The only person who was not present at the palace banquet that day was the Ninth Prince.

Jiang Cichen once said that Yuan Jinbao was the Ninth Prince's man. Presumably, the young eunuch who was beside Concubine Lan back then has grown up to become a capable eunuch chief.

Luo Wan said: "It's the Ninth Prince, right?"

Liu Zong nodded with a smile and continued, "He left the capital a few years ago to recuperate and returned not long ago. He has changed a lot and is no longer so taciturn. Wait, you will meet the Ninth Prince."

Luo Wan still had some doubts: "The Ninth Prince has been a student of Master Liu for many years, but you have only met me twice. Why are you so sure that I look like the Ninth Prince?"

Liu Zong said: "Because when I see you, I always feel like I see him."

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The author has something to say: I actually spent a lot of money to get a new cover (o^^o)

I hope the little ones won’t fail to recognize me when I change [poor][poor][poor]