"Do you know that I arranged for Ms. Li to be here?"
Meng Qi breathed a sigh of relief, realizing she had guessed right.
"My wife just found out about this too." Meng Qi and Lian Fei looked straight at each other.
Lian Fei was stunned for a moment, then pursed her lips in thought for a moment before revealing a faint smile. "Are you testing me too?"
Meng Qi nodded. "The prince has built a mansion, and the queen couldn't possibly have just arranged for Matron Hai to go there. Although there are eunuchs in the mansion, it's not like the palace after all, so it would be difficult for eunuchs to know what's going on inside the palace. And Concubine Li has become the prince's concubine, so it's naturally inconvenient for her to maintain contact with the queen. So, I guess one of the two ladies must be the queen's concubine."
"Oh? Then why didn't you guess it was Ms. Zhang?"
"Ms. Zhang is close friends with Madam Wu and always makes time to visit her every day. If she were the Empress's person, she would definitely not devote her time and energy to Madam Wu. Moreover, when the two women went to the Marquis's residence to cooperate with Nanny Sang and Aunt Guan, Ms. Zhang always reported my performance to the Prince's residence, always exaggerating and trying to discredit me, so that the Prince would have a bad impression of me. I don't think the Empress would keep such a person by the Prince's side."
Concubine Lian stood up and slowly walked over to Meng Qi. "How do you know that Ms. Zhang didn't say anything good about you in front of Xiao Liu?"
Meng Qi leaned forward slightly and said, "Wang Chenghai told me."
"Wang Chenghai?" Concubine Lian turned to look at Aunt Mo. Aunt Mo stepped forward and whispered, "He's the eunuch in charge of the inner chambers, under Li Mancang."
"Is he at odds with Li Mancang?" Concubine Lian frowned.
Meng Qi marveled at Concubine Lian's astuteness. "Yes, Li Mancang holds most of the power in the inner chamber. Although Wang Chenghai is the second-in-command, he only does menial tasks and is often suppressed by Li Mancang. He overheard what Ms. Zhang said."
Concubine Lian nodded. "Xiao Liu's inner chambers need to be properly managed. Lin got pregnant right after she came in, and she barely paid attention to the household, and she passed away after the child was born. After Gong came in, she was obsessed with having a child and didn't pay much attention to the household affairs. After she gave birth, her health wasn't good, so she dragged it on for a year before passing away. Alas, Xiao Liu's inner chambers are in such a mess."
Meng Qi listened to Concubine Lian's words and realized that Song Chengze must have told Concubine Lian about his behavior, otherwise Concubine Lian wouldn't have spoken so frankly about the affairs of the Rui Palace. After all, Concubine Lian had always acted indifferent to her son, so how could outsiders see that she was so knowledgeable about the affairs of the palace?
But on second thought, the matter of the two princesses in the Rui Palace was not a secret. Perhaps some matters in the palace were also known to everyone. It was normal for Princess Lian to know about it and sigh a few words.
"Don't worry, Your Majesty. I have already made a promise to the Prince that I will take good care of the inner quarters of the Rui Palace and tighten the fences to prevent outsiders from learning any information we don't want them to know."
Concubine Lian walked over to the large kang by the window and sat down, saying nonchalantly, "That's your business as husband and wife. I don't care how you handle it. But Ms. Li just told me about Madam Hai. If this is related to what you just said about managing the inner chambers, then you don't need to tell me anymore."
Meng Qi knew that Concubine Lian didn't trust her, and she still acted indifferent to the Rui Palace. But Concubine Lian's recognition of Ms. Li as hers was a testament to her. And she desperately needed Concubine Lian's affirmation right now. Without Concubine Lian's help in the palace, she wouldn't be able to make any progress on some issues.
Meng Qi didn't know how much Song Chengze had told Lian Fei about herself, or even whether he had told her at all. She could only test the waters by picking up the teapot, pouring a cup of hot tea for Lian Fei, and handing it to her with both hands.
Lian Fei looked up at Meng Qi but did not reach out to take it. Meng Qi just held it with a perfect smile on her face.
After a while, Concubine Lian took the teacup and said, "Please sit down. Since you have just been cleared with the Empress, let's chat for a while."
Meng Qi let out a breath and sat down. Aunt Mo came forward to pour her some tea, then turned and walked out, closing the door.
"I won't ask about your past. Just answer me, is Mr. Hong San still in your heart?" Lian Fei's voice was soft but chilling enough to chill people's hearts.
Meng Qi laughed at herself, "I won't waste Mother's time by talking about those childish, useless, and foolish pasts of my younger daughter. I swear to Mother, that Third Master Hong has long since vanished from my heart. But I can't promise you that there will be no further contact between us in the future."
Concubine Lian frowned, but before she could get angry, Meng Qi continued, "It depends on what the prince means. If the prince needs me and Third Master Hong to talk about anything else, or needs me to find out something from Third Master Hong, I will do my best to help."
Concubine Lian's expression changed from anger to surprise. "What do you mean? You don't want your reputation anymore?"
Meng Qi smiled bitterly. "From the day Hongzhe sent me back to the Huainan Marquis Mansion in a carriage, from the day the prince saw me chasing Hongzhe at the Hong family's house, from the moment I accidentally fell into the icy water, my reputation could not have been any worse. So, I thank the prince for not abandoning me. There are many things that the emperor who granted the marriage may not know, but the prince involved cannot be unaware of. If the prince really did not want to marry me, I think both you and the prince would always have the opportunity and reason to refuse. Although it would make the emperor unhappy, it is not impossible.
"But the prince still married me, saving my face and preserving the pitiful status of the Huainan Marquisate. I sincerely thank the prince. I am also ashamed of my recklessness when I was young." Meng Qi said this and turned to look out the window. It started snowing again, and small snowflakes gently hit the glass windows.
"I don't know how much the prince has told you about me since we got married. I came to see you today just to make my position and my determination clear. For the prince, I can do anything as long as he needs me. What you just mentioned is not important, even my life."
This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
