Chapter 79 Chapter 79 “You also thought…
"You've figured it out," Wen Shen said. "Aside from factional disputes, I really can't imagine any connection between the Marquis of Jing'an and the Minister of Personnel. The Jinyiwei have already searched the Minister's mansion and found nothing. But I think the Marquis of Jing'an's mansion might hold some clues."
"You're crazy!" Jiang Wan said. "Searching the Shangshu Mansion could be justified as an investigation into corruption and bribery. Senior officials in the court who have been in office for a long time are bound to make mistakes, so using that as an excuse might be acceptable. But the Jing'an Marquis's Mansion is a hereditary title, and no one holds a position in the court. What justification do you have for searching it? Furthermore, the Jing'an Marquis is the late Consort De's brother and the Third Prince's uncle, and the Third Prince is the future Crown Prince. Aren't you afraid of offending him by forcibly searching it?"
Wen Shen pursed his lips, his dark eyes staring straight at her, making her feel uneasy.
Jiang Wan tilted his head: "Am I wrong?"
Wen Shen whispered, "Do you know how Concubine De died?"
Jiang Wan was stunned: "Not dead from illness?"
"Of course not." Wen Shen's eyes dimmed a little when he mentioned the old things.
"After the late Empress passed away, His Majesty intended to choose between my sister and Consort De as the successor. My sister was already a Noble Consort at the time, and therefore more favored. However, His Majesty valued the Third Prince, so he preferred Consort De as the successor."
"De Fei also understood this, but in order to secure her position as Empress, she took the risk of poisoning my sister. Furthermore, after the incident, His Majesty, for the sake of the Third Prince's reputation, was unwilling to pursue charges and declared her death from illness." Wen Shen gritted his teeth with every word he spoke. "Even if he only granted her death, he imposed two conditions on my sister. The first was that I must not serve as an official in the capital. He meant either a life of luxury and leisure in Lin'an, or exiled."
Jiang Wan breathed a sigh of relief. The image of the shattered mountains and rivers six months ago flashed before her eyes, sending a pang of pain through her heart.
"The second is that the Sixth Prince, born to my sister, is not allowed to participate in politics."
Jiang Wan slammed the table and stood up: "Isn't this pushing the Empress to death?"
Therefore, Concubine De and the Empress had a life-and-death feud. If the Third Prince ascended the throne, the Empress would have a very difficult time. Unfortunately, the Empress was a female physician, with no maternal family to rely on. Her only brother was not allowed to serve as an official in the capital, and her son was not allowed to participate in politics. Facing the Third Prince, she was like a fish on the chopping block.
After she said this, she felt something was wrong and quickly added, "Don't worry too much about that. At least your Majesty is the Queen, there is always a way."
Wen Shen slowly exhaled, "Marquis Jing'an has been getting more and more arrogant lately, repeatedly making things difficult for me. It's already difficult for me to move forward in the palace. Even if I don't provoke him, I'm afraid he'll deal with me sooner or later."
Jiang Wan lowered his head and drank tea, hesitant for a moment.
"So we must search, but I will try my best not to be noticed. Five days later, on June 15th, Marquis Jing'an will bring his wife to the palace to meet the emperor and will stay overnight in the palace. This is a good opportunity. If I have any clues, I will tell you immediately." Wen Shen said.
"How do you plan to get in?" Jiang Wan asked.
"I've already figured out the guard rotation schedule for the Marquis' Mansion. I'll just hide from them after dark."
Jiang Wan: "The Jing'an Marquis Mansion has been passed down for a hundred years. There must be experts in the mansion. Are you sure?"
Wen Shen paused, his lips tightly pursed. "There are no more than five masters in this world who can surpass me. There may not even be such a master in the Imperial Palace, let alone a mere marquis' mansion."
"You know what I mean," Jiang Wan stared at him without hesitation. "I don't need to be able to beat you. As long as I can sense your presence and catch you trespassing into the Marquis' Mansion, it will be a serious crime."
She leaned forward slightly and grabbed Wen Shen's hand. "You're not familiar with the Marquis' Mansion, but they are. You need to avoid the guards and servants, but they don't need to. You need to look for the key clues, because they know exactly where they are. Tell me, are you sure?"
Wen Shen pursed his lips into a line and said nothing, but his expression revealed a desperate stubbornness, like a wolf that had been hungry for several days.
Seeing him like this, Jiang Wan understood, sighed, and leaned back in the soft chair:
"Let me go."
The hungry wolf opposite froze in thought, its stubborn and fierce eyes blank for a moment, revealing a hint of clear stupidity.
The hungry wolf turned into a big stupid dog and tilted his head stupidly.
Jiang Wan explained, "If, as you say, the Marquis of Jing'an has been plotting something bad for a long time, then his mansion must have been guarded by experts long ago. Precisely because the Marquis himself isn't at home, the defenses are even tighter. As soon as they sense the presence of a martial artist, they're on full alert. I think they wouldn't be as wary of a woman like me who has no martial arts skills."
"I used to be a maid, so I can sneak in without any flaws by pretending to be one. It's impossible for the masters of the Marquis' Mansion to recognize all the maids in the mansion. Even if they find my face unfamiliar, they may not pay much attention to it - because in the eyes of martial arts masters, women who don't fight are not threatening at all."
Wen Shen shook his head repeatedly: "But it's very dangerous for you to do this! If you are discovered, we won't be able to help you."
Jiang Wan looked at him seriously: "But is there any other better way?"
"Let me think about it. Anyway, I can't ask you to take any risks." Wen Shen said in an unyielding tone.
"I have my own way to get out of this, trust me." Jiang Wan thought of the "special products" in the system and assured him with a pat on his chest.
"That won't work either. After all, you've never done anything like this before..."
"If you want to help the Empress, I shouldn't help Wanrong?" Jiang Wan interrupted him. "This is your business, and mine as well. Now that you've made the decision, why bother being so hesitant and timid?"
Wen Shen was stunned for a moment, then suddenly grabbed her sleeve tightly, with a strange look in his eyes.
"Okay, I'll listen to you." He stood up, his voice hoarse, "I'll let Jianqing arrange it."
At noon on June 15th, Marquis Jing'an went to the palace to meet the emperor.
In the evening, an oxcart carrying fruit stopped at the gate of the marquis's mansion. A young woman jumped out of the cart. She was wearing delicate makeup and the clothes of a servant in the marquis's mansion. She directed two servants to carry baskets of fruit into the mansion.
Two guards stopped her and asked, "Which room are you from? The purchases for the Marquis' Mansion are handled by a special maid. Where are you sending these baskets of fruit?"
The woman made a face and said with a smile, "My name is Lanxiang. I went out with the eldest lady on the Duanwu Festival. Don't you remember me, brother?"
One of the guards shook his head a little embarrassedly and asked his colleague: "Do you remember?"
The other guard was confused for a moment and scratched his head: "I think you have seen her before? It's okay, let her in. The young lady is impatient, don't delay and let Miss Lanxiang get scolded."
"Lanxiang" smiled and nodded, then led the servants into the mansion.
Walking all the way to the small kitchen, Lanxiang turned to the servant and said, "Alright, just leave it here. The young lady just finished dinner and has no appetite. I can personally deliver it to her later."
After the two servants left, "Lanxiang" washed fruits in the small kitchen, looking up at the sky from time to time.
As the sky gradually darkened, the servants retired to bed, and the vast mansion was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop. The night guards began their patrols, inspecting the entire mansion every half hour.
Lanxiang put down the fruit, wiped her sweat, and muttered softly, "This dress is too troublesome, dragging and hot. I really don't know how the original owner could endure this kind of maid's clothes for seventeen years. And this makeup is thick and stuffy. Fortunately, the temperature dropped tonight, otherwise the makeup would be wiped off if I sweat."
She squatted down, rummaged through the fruit basket, and pulled out a map of the mansion from the bottom. After confirming the location of the study on the map, her palm lit up, and the map disappeared into thin air.
Jiang Wan spent five points to open a one cubic meter space in the "Paradise" section and placed the map in it.
She wasn't willing to eat the map. Not only could she digest it, what if she needed it later? And if she found something useful later that she didn't have time to examine, she could put it in the space and bring it out without worrying about being searched.
She had previously thought it was too expensive to store her silver, but now it seemed like the five points were well worth it.
Next, she carried a lamp and a food box and swaggered towards the study.
The guards had just finished their rounds and were resting at that hour, so they wouldn't run into her. If there were truly other experts watching the palace, she wouldn't be able to hide her whereabouts even if she searched the study. It would be better to be aboveboard and not arouse suspicion.
As expected, as she reached the study, a figure floated down from the roof, blocking her path. The figure, veiled in black, landed silently, and even Jiang Wan, a layman, could tell he was a martial arts expert.
Seeing that it was a young girl, the master was stunned for a moment, and gracefully did not draw his sword to put it on her neck. However, the action of holding the sword with one hand and the scrutinizing gaze still showed his suspicion of her.
"Little girl, what are you doing here so late at night?"
Jiang Wan imitated the original owner's behavior, arrogantly put his hands on his hips, and said angrily: "Who are you? I have lived in the mansion since I was a child, how come I have never seen you before? Are you from our mansion?"
After a few words, the martial arts master opposite him visibly relaxed a lot, his tone softened, even with a hint of a smile, but his eyes were still fixed on her. "So you are a young lady from my family. My apologies. I am the Marquis's personal bodyguard, and you know that ordinary people cannot enter the study without the Marquis's permission."
"Look carefully! I'm Lanxiang from the eldest lady's room. I'm here to deliver something under the eldest lady's orders." Jiang Wan continued his arrogant demeanor. "Get out of the way quickly! You're delaying our eldest lady's business. Be careful, or the Marquis will punish you."
After hearing this, the martial arts master's hostility almost disappeared, and the hand pressing on the hilt of the sword also dropped. In the general impression, those who intend to do evil are often guilty of their crimes. How could she be so arrogant and domineering, swaggering, and with a temperament that was exactly the same as the eldest daughter of the Marquis' Mansion, she looked like someone close to the eldest daughter.
But the other party still maintained a trace of vigilance: "Miss Lanxiang, the Marquis has gone to the palace today. Is there something urgent that requires you to come tonight? Could I convey it to you?"
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