Shen Yubai raised an eyebrow. "Whether I will answer truthfully depends on what you ask. After all, allies don't always speak candidly to each other, right?"
Jiang Xiancao had already guessed that he would not cooperate, so he said calmly:
"I want to know what Jiang Huaizhu's current identity is."
Shen Yubai leaned back in his chair and sighed softly:
"I'm not sure right now. You need to find the answer yourself. But I can give you a hint. Tianming Pavilion paid such a huge price to replace her body, so we must get the best results.
Therefore, her new identity will most likely allow her to get to the heart of the court's political intrigues."
When Jiang Xiancao walked out of Prince Zhan's Mansion, her mind was full of the words Shen Yubai said to her.
He told her some of the principles of body swapping, which he had his men find out in a short period of time after he noticed something strange between her and Shen Tingsi.
Jiang Huaizhu's horoscope is very similar to hers, but there is one slight difference.
It is this difference that determines that she can only exchange with men, while Jiang Huaizhu can only exchange with women.
Therefore, Jiang Huaizhu’s new identity must be a woman.
Although the customs of the Dasheng Dynasty were open, it was still essentially a male-dominated society, and women were not allowed to serve as officials in the court.
Therefore, if a woman wants to get in touch with the core of power, besides being born into the royal family, she can only do so by marrying into the royal family.
Among the princesses in the royal family, Princess Wenyi, born to the Queen, and Princess Jingyi, born to Concubine Qu, are the most favored.
However, although these two princesses were favored, neither of them showed any ambition to interfere in state affairs.
Instead, the fight for the throne among several princes became increasingly fierce. All the noble families placed their bets on them, using the support of their family power to exchange for the position of principal wife for their daughters.
After this analysis, Jiang Xiancao felt that Jiang Huaizhu's new identity should be a noble lady from a wealthy family who was going to marry the prince.
But this time, Jiang Huaizhu will no longer be an adopted daughter in an illegitimate way.
But she is a legitimate daughter born with noble blood and a real family.
Because only a woman with such impeccable background is worthy of being the prince's principal wife.
Jiang Xiancao sneered.
The woman who had always been jealous of her because of her bloodline must be very satisfied with her new identity, right?
After returning to the palace, Jiang Xiancao walked into the dark room and looked at the things she asked the secret guard to bring.
Then she untied the black cloth wrapped around the head with her own hands.
Jiang Huaizhu's pale, dead face was revealed, staring at her with his eyes wide open.
This scene was a bit scary, but Jiang Xiancao didn't feel any fear at all.
She followed the method Shen Yubai taught her, used the knife in her hand to cut off a strand of Jiang Huaizhu's hair, and then put it into an ordinary purse.
Shen Yubai said that the Taoist he invited said that hair carries the breath of the soul.
Therefore, many folk sorcery techniques are performed through hair.
She doesn't know any witchcraft, but Jiang Huaizhu's hair can help her determine which body the other person's soul is attached to.
The way to identify it is to let the person she suspects touch the purse. If the hair in the purse is inexplicably burnt after that person touches it, then she has found the right person.
Ten days later.
Jiang Xiancao was in the study checking accounts with the newly appointed manager when Huayi walked in with a bitter face and said:
"My Lord, this is bad."
Hearing this, Jiang Xiancao put down the account book and asked the manager to go out first, then asked:
"What happened?"
Many serious speculations arose in her mind.
Hua Yi sighed and said:
"Tomorrow is Princess Wenyi's birthday, and the Queen is going to hold a grand celebration for her in the palace."
Jiang Xiancao didn't expect her to say this, and after a pause, he said:
"Did the Queen send me an invitation?"
Hua Yi observed her expression and whispered:
“It’s not just as simple as sending an invitation.
Your Highness, you have never attended the Queen's palace banquets before, but this time you probably can't refuse on the pretext of being ill. The Queen told the Empress Dowager that you are already old enough and that you've had a failed engagement before. It's time to choose a new concubine. It just so happens that all the noble ladies will be attending Princess Wenyi's birthday banquet, which is a great opportunity.
The Queen Mother was convinced. Hasn't she always wanted to choose a concubine for you? Her previous blessing banquet was ruined by that sinful woman Jiang Huaizhu. This time, she will not let you go and will definitely use this opportunity to finalize your marriage.
Jiang Xiancao lowered his eyes and fell into deep thought.
The Queen Mother has always loved the Emperor's grandson, Chen Tingsi, so it's normal for her to be anxious to choose a wife for him.
But why did the Queen suddenly worry about Shen Tingsi's marriage?
If Chen Tingsi gets married soon, he will have more support from his wife's family, which is not good for the queen or the prince.
Moreover, the relationship between Shen Tingsi and the Queen is known to be bad.
The source of their bad relationship started with Shen Tingsi's mother.
Not long after he was born, his mother, who was known for her beauty in the capital, was assassinated while accompanying Emperor Yong on a visit.
The situation was critical at the time. An assassin's sword was about to stab Emperor Yong's heart. It was Shen Tingsi's mother who, regardless of her own safety, stood in front of Emperor Yong and blocked the sword.
She sacrificed her life to save Emperor Yong.
After her death, Emperor Yong was deeply saddened.
Emperor Yong made an exception and gave his beloved woman the posthumous title of empress while his original empress was still alive. This decision caused great turmoil in the court.
The noble families, led by Empress Sun's family, instigated the Censorate to make a death-defying appeal to Emperor Yong. Two censors were knocked to death by the pillars of the Golden Throne Hall, with their blood splattered all over the ground. Only then did Emperor Yong finally change his mind.
In the end, Shen Tingsi's mother was posthumously named Imperial Noble Consort and buried with the ceremony of a queen.
Because of this incident, the feud between Empress Sun and Shen Tingsi's mother's family was completely formed.
It is also said that when Shen Tingsi's mother was still alive, she was the most favored person in the palace. Empress Sun always felt that she would threaten her position. There are even rumors that the assassination was actually arranged by Empress Sun.
From the very beginning, the assassin's target was not Emperor Yong, but Shen Tingsi's mother.
Although these were just rumors, it was an ironclad fact that the Queen disliked Shen Tingsi.
Her fear and hatred for Shen Tingsi far exceeded that for other princes.
Therefore, I am afraid that this palace banquet will not be peaceful.
Jiang Xiancao was silent for a while, then said to Huayi:
"Since both ladies want me to go, then I will go."
Huayi looked at her in surprise and wanted to say something, but finally left with something to say but remained hesitant.
Jiang Xiancao was the only one left in the study. She took out a purse from the secret compartment behind her back, with a slight smile on her lips.
Is this a palace banquet that all the noble ladies will attend?
This was the golden opportunity she had been waiting for.
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