Chapter 53 is a kind of waste utilization.

When she was a wandering ghost, she could only move around in the house and did not know anything about the affairs of Sheng Huai'an's court, so she could not be sure for a while.

But if what she guessed was true, Zhang Shuheng needed to get things sorted out even sooner!

...

The results of the poetry contest were soon announced.

Zhang Shuheng won first place.

The poems were taken upstairs by the maids.

Ye Mingzhu was also "fortunate" enough to see Zhang Shuheng's masterpiece.

He is indeed talented, but a talented person without virtue is more dangerous than a person who is neither talented nor virtuous.

Such a person is like a cold, venomous snake lurking deep in the grass, its scarlet forked tongue flicking out, ready to pounce and bite at any moment.

She also saw Xiang Tiancheng's poem, which was a doggerel.

Many of the ladies laughed and joked, making the eldest matriarch of the Xiang family sigh and say that her younger brother-in-law was likely to "return defeated" again, disappointing his mother-in-law.

Ye Mingzhu, however, found it very interesting.

She looked at Xiang Tiancheng's doggerel again and again, her eyes filled with admiration.

Looking at the characters is like seeing the person. Xiang Tiancheng's characters are vigorous and robust, steady but not clumsy, and the horizontal and vertical strokes reveal a reassuring strength.

She smiled and said, "Fu Shan once said in his 'Shuanghongkan Collection', 'A person of extraordinary character naturally produces excellent calligraphy, and a person of upright character produces excellent writing.' Young Master Xiang has such good handwriting, which shows that he is a person of noble character."

Perhaps because it was rare for Madam Xiang to hear someone praise her younger brother-in-law, she was so moved that she stood up and curtsied to Ye Mingzhu, saying, "It is the Duchess of Wei who is so righteous. With your words, my mother-in-law will definitely eat two more bowls of rice tonight!"

This made all the ladies present burst into laughter.

Ye Mingzhu couldn't help but laugh.

After the poetry contest ended, the young men were invited to the tea room on the west side of the second floor for tea. As they walked, they chatted and laughed, attracting the attention of many young ladies.

Zhang Shuheng attracted the most attention.

Ye Mingzhu stood up and personally delivered the prize money for the top three winners to the tea room next door.

When he reached Zhang Shuheng, he smiled and politely bowed to her in thanks.

Ye Mingzhu responded with a faint smile, but inwardly she scoffed.

She returned to her original position and looked down at the courtyard.

The light gauze screen in the courtyard had been moved by the servants, making enough space for the young ladies to play the game of passing a flower while drumming and showcasing their talents.

"Thump, thump thump..."

The drumbeats began, sometimes slow, sometimes fast.

Round flower balls would occasionally fly up and be passed from hand to hand among the ladies sitting in a row.

The game of passing the flower is thrilling and exciting, with screams of excitement. But as soon as the girl who has been "caught" gets the flower, she will gracefully get up and either play the piano, paint, or do something else.

If a young master appreciates a flower, he may present it to the young lady, who will then have her maidservant place it in a designated vase. The young lady who receives the most flowers wins the grand prize.

The girls were beautiful, lively, and charming.

The young gentlemen drinking tea in the tea room couldn't concentrate on their tea; their attention was all on the courtyard. Although they were relatively reserved, exclamations of admiration could often be heard.

Hearing the cheers from next door, the ladies all smiled, praising the other ladies from time to time while humbly admitting that their own daughters still needed to work harder.

Ye Mingzhu was no exception and subtly praised Sheng Wan'er several times.

She had specifically instructed the servant who played the drum to seize the right moment and ensure that all the young ladies had the opportunity to showcase their talents.

After the talent show ended, the maid counted the flowers and found that Sheng Wan'er had won first prize.

Ye Mingzhu was both surprised and delighted.

Ye Baozhu exclaimed in amazement, "Sister Wan'er is amazing!"

The young ladies were invited up to the second floor. Sheng Wan'er accepted the lucky money given to her by Ye Mingzhu. Her fair and pretty face flushed slightly, and her doe-like eyes were full of joy.

Ye Mingzhu smiled and said, "Your playing is quite good."

Sheng Wan'er smiled sweetly, her eyes shining even brighter.

After the two events ended, it was lunchtime.

Ye Mingzhu summoned a maid and invited the ladies to move to the flower hall for their meal.

When most of the people had left, she was about to catch up when Baozan suddenly tugged at her sleeve and handed her a fragrant gardenia.

“Miss, you also received flowers!” Baozan blinked rapidly, gesturing for her to look at the letter clipped to the flower branch.

"Me?" Ye Mingzhu asked in surprise.

When she opened the letter, she immediately took a deep breath and closed her eyes, feeling a headache coming on.

"He's back? Where is he?" Ye Mingzhu asked.

Baozan smiled mischievously and pointed out the window.

Ye Mingzhu followed her finger and saw Sheng Yunche, dressed in a white robe, casually leaning against a vermilion pillar in the courtyard downstairs. He looked relaxed and smiled freely, then snapped his fingers at her.

Ye Mingzhu: "...?!"

That lecherous scoundrel!

Her face flushed with embarrassment, and Baozan asked curiously, "Miss, what did the Duke write in the letter?"

Ye Mingzhu: "..."

It was too embarrassing, she didn't want to talk about it.

...

After Ye Mingzhu went downstairs, she looked back at the place where Sheng Yunche had been, but he had already disappeared.

It's like a dragon whose head is seen but not its tail.

She was puzzled, but thinking that he had probably come back to get something and then had to rush back to the military camp, she didn't bother to ask where he was going.

She had to greet guests at the banquet and was also preoccupied with exposing Zhang Shuheng's true colors. She had too many things to worry about and was too busy.

After lunch, the afternoon is free time.

If you want to rest, there are ice chests in the guest rooms.

If you're looking for fun, Yunxi Mountain Villa is quite large. Whether you're having a game of pitch-pot with a few friends in the courtyard, sitting in the pavilion, or playing in the stream on the mountain, it's all a great option.

Ye Mingzhu had no interest in having fun. After returning to her room, she immediately called Lianyu and asked her to keep an eye on Zhang Shuheng.

As a bodyguard, Lian Yu could easily keep an eye on Zhang Shuheng.

Zhang Shuheng did not disappoint her expectations, and was actually bold enough to get intimate with his servant Yuanbao in someone else's villa.

But how can we expose his scandals?

Ye Mingzhu had a flash of inspiration and a plan came to her mind.

She had Lianyu disguise herself and seduce Wang Jing, leading him to Zhang Shuheng's room so he would witness Zhang Shuheng and Yuanbao's affair.

In the storybook, Sheng Wan'er fell deeply in love with Zhang Shuheng after being harassed by a young nobleman and rescued by him.

Given Wang Jing's character, Ye Mingzhu strongly suspected that the "Young Master Wang" in the storybook was him.

Her scheme against Wang Jing this time can only be described as making use of someone who is already useless; it doesn't mean she wronged him.

Wang Jing has lived up to expectations.

After discovering Zhang Shuheng's shameful act, he was very excited and immediately called his friends to watch Zhang Shuheng's misfortune, wishing he could spread the news to everyone.

However, Zhang Shuheng was no pushover either. Risking offending Consort Shu, he ordered his men to tie him up and gag him.

When something happened, a servant came to inform Ye Mingzhu.

Ye Mingzhu rushed to the guest courtyard in a hurry to save Wang Jing, and then "cooperated" with the furious Zhang Shuheng to suppress the matter, saying to the outside world that the two of them were frightened by a snake.

But secretly, she instructed Baozan and the others to spread the news quietly, trying to make sure that all the ladies and young women who participated in the Qixi Festival banquet knew about it.

The news spreads like wildfire, eventually becoming an open secret.

Due to Minister Zhang's power, this matter may never be brought to the forefront, but it doesn't matter.

As long as no innocent women are harmed, the goal is achieved.

Having his shameful act discovered, Zhang Shuheng was too ashamed to stay any longer and made up an excuse to leave Yunxi Mountain Villa.

Wang Jing, on the other hand, was completely unaffected.

Ye Mingzhu reported this matter to Princess Ronghua. Worried that Sheng Wan'er would be upset, she specially sought her out and told her about it in person.

To everyone's surprise, Sheng Wan'er was not affected much. She was just surprised and regretful, saying, "I didn't expect that such a handsome man would have homosexual tendencies." Then she asked Ye Baozhu if she wanted to go to the mountain to play.

Ye Mingzhu felt both helpless and amused.

very good.

She was worried that Sheng Wan'er would be disappointed and sad, but she didn't expect that Sheng Wan'er hadn't quite figured it out yet.

But I can finally relax.

After seeing the two little girls off to play in the back mountain, Ye Mingzhu finally relaxed and prepared to take a short nap.

To her surprise, when she walked to the bedside, she saw a letter that Sheng Yunche had given her on the pillow.

She opened the letter as if possessed, glanced at it, and immediately blushed, angrily shoving it under her pillow.