Chapter 77 The conspiracy was to test her.
A firefly landed in his palm. The King of Jin caught it with his fingers and presented it to Congying, but Congying let it go.
The King of Jin laughed: "You clearly like it, but you just don't want it."
Cong Ying said, "What I like is not the way it looks in my palm."
"If this firefly, because it loves you, were to live in your palm, regardless of the pain of life and death, you wouldn't want to accept such love, would you?"
Cong Ying knew what analogy he was trying to make, so she remained silent.
The Prince of Jin caught another firefly, holding it in front of her. A faint jade-green glow shone through his fingers. In her silence, he slowly tightened his grip, until the glow faded, and he was about to crush it to death.
From the firefly, I can imagine the firefly struggling in the cramped palm, and through its struggle, I think of some other things.
Finally, just as the Prince of Jin was about to crush the firefly to death, Ying spoke up, "Let it go, Your Highness. As you said, I really can't bear it."
The King of Jin opened his palm, and the fireflies breathed a sigh of relief and quickly flew away.
He said, "Even fireflies know how to attract life and force death. A smart girl like you shouldn't have tried to get into my palm in the first place."
Cong Ying said, "I am not a firefly, and he is not the palm of your hand."
"You don't want to admit it, and he's oblivious to it." The King of Jin looked at her. "You should have told him plainly. Otherwise, with his foolishness and arrogance, he'll wait until it's too late to regret."
Cong Ying twitched the corner of her mouth and said, "Tell him what? I want to break off all ties with him and marry someone else in the Prince of Jin's Mansion? In His Highness's eyes, this is waking up, right?"
"Do you think this is selfish of me?"
Cong Ying remained noncommittal, and slowly lowered her eyes under his questioning gaze: "Your Highness, let's not talk about this anymore, okay?"
"not good."
"Let's talk about His Highness," Cong Ying said. "I've been having some strange dreams lately. Many of the things I learned in my dreams have been confirmed in reality, but some things have taken a different direction, as if someone else had reversed them, like my brother's situation, or the princess's attitude towards me... In my dreams, I only saw Saburo, but never His Highness. I wonder if His Highness has foreseen something and wants to change something."
King Jin: "If it is your fate that I want to change, will you listen to my advice?"
Cong Ying said, "Your Highness has changed, hasn't he? In my dream, San Lang and I were already married, and we wouldn't have wasted time until now."
"But if you insist on marrying him, I'm afraid it will be difficult to have a happy ending."
Upon hearing this, Congying's expression darkened for a moment, then she paused before suddenly smiling softly. She said, "I've seen Sanlang in my dreams, too. While he's certainly different from the one I see now, I know he loves me and cherishes me, never bullying or betraying me. If he treated me this way, and I still didn't have a happy ending, then there are only two possibilities... One is an accident, and the other is that the Xie family is on the verge of collapse, and Sanlang can no longer protect me."
She paused and said, "If it's an accident, just avoid it intentionally. Why blame Sanlang? If the Xie family is in danger, then since I've received a warning in my dream, I must work with Sanlang to turn the tide. How can I abandon him?"
King Jin said in a hoarse voice: "He doesn't deserve it."
"He deserves it."
Cong Ying didn't know what she was thinking about. She looked a little embarrassed, and her tone was gentle and calm: "In my dream, we were very loving. I look forward to such a day."
These words were like a voice from heaven, momentarily choking the King of Jin. He gazed at the fireflies through their drifting glow, joy and sorrow swirling in his heart. He wanted to say something, but didn't know where to begin.
She said she loved him...him from her previous life.
This feeling was quiet and gentle, yet firm and unchangeable. He had really underestimated her feelings for him, so he tried to change her mind by persuading her.
My heart was filled with joy, pity... and sadness.
After a long while, King Jin sighed in a trance, "I know what you mean."
He turned to leave, but Cong Ying called out to him, "Your Highness Prince Jin."
I thought she was going to ask for some guidance on Xie San's behalf, but she instead said, "I dreamt that the eldest princess claimed to have lost her husband and son, and described herself as mournful. Your Highness... please take care of yourself."
…
This scene of the two talking was seen by Prime Minister Xie and Xie Xuanlan in the distance.
Prime Minister Xie said, "You don't want to marry the daughters of the Wang and Huan families, but insist on marrying the daughter of the Jiang family. She is of no use to you, and she is also entangled with the King of Jin. Now you see it?"
Xie Xuanlan smiled indifferently: "A beautiful lady is a good match for a gentleman. What's the point of making such a fuss?"
Prime Minister Xie sneered, "Stubborn and unyielding."
Xie Xuanlan said, "Yes, I am stubborn, but I am not your second brother. Don't bother with my marriage. If anything happens to Ah Ying, I will accompany her, and Xie will also accompany her."
Prime Minister Xie's breath caught in his throat and he said to him coldly, "Get lost."
Prime Minister Xie was uneasy about Xie Xuanlan's attitude. Of his sons, Xie Xuanlan was the most outstanding, yet he showed the least concern for the Xie family's future. His willful and arrogant behavior had repeatedly offended both the Ying Palace and the Wang family. Prime Minister Xie hoped to persuade Xie Xuanlan to change his casual attitude and win his heart back to the alliance with the aristocratic families by rescheduling his marriage and finding him a sensible and docile wife from an aristocratic family. However, his tentative attempts were met with a harsh warning.
He is simply a fatherless and homeless person, a traitor to his roots.
Xie Xiang and Xie Xuanlan parted on bad terms. As soon as he returned to the Prime Minister's tent, King Ying came to visit him.
The King of England stopped Prime Minister Xie from serving tea and said, "I came here to avoid people. I want to have a few words with Brother Xie and then I'll leave."
Prime Minister Xie picked up the copper spoon from the lampstand and extinguished the candle, leaving the two of them in darkness so that their figures would not be reflected on the surrounding felt. "Your Highness, please speak."
The King of England lowered his voice, "The matter of Guiwuzhang has yet to be resolved, and one of my son Zezhen and Wang Zhaoshen will inevitably have to take the blame. Originally, thanks to the Xie family's manipulation, my son was about to be exonerated, but unfortunately, the Western Tartar envoys arrived in Beijing at this time. I didn't expect that they would actually try to pressure Your Majesty to release Wang Zhaoshen."
Xie Xiang said, "It seems that Wang Zhaoshen has been colluding closely with the Western Tartars in the northwest over the past few years, and has been giving them a lot of leverage. Therefore, the Western Tartars do not want Wang Zhaoshen to fall."
King Ying said, "Yes, back then, Xuan Xiangling nearly wiped out the Western Tartars. Such a nightmare the Western Tartars never want to see repeated. Today, my third nephew chased the Western Tartar warrior Agula all over the paddock, his swiftness even surpassing that of Prince Consort Xuan. The Western Tartars will only be more terrified and will never want the military power of the northwest to fall into the hands of my third nephew."
Speaking of Xie Xuanlan, Prime Minister Xie sighed heavily: "Let alone the Western Tartars, even I can't do anything about this evil creature."
He told the King of England about his concerns about Xie Xuanlan's marriage. The King of England pondered for a long time and said, "Originally, I thought that if my son Zezhen could not escape the blame this time, I would cancel his engagement with your Liuniang and marry my daughter Longniang to my third nephew. Then Brother Xie and I would become in-laws."
With this simple sentence, Xie Xiang understood the real purpose of his coming here today.
Although Emperor Fengqi had no sons, his younger brother, King Ying, had five sons, two of whom were legitimate and three were illegitimate. In addition to Xiao Zezhen, there was also an eldest son, Xiao Zeling, who had already married and was named crown prince.
King Ying meant that if Xiao Zezhen could not be saved, he would push Xiao Zeling to be the heir of Emperor Fengqi. However, Xiao Zeling already had a Crown Princess, and before the Crown Princess died, he could not marry Xie Liuniang for the time being, so he married his daughter to the Xie family first to show the sincerity of the cooperation between the two families.
Xie Xiang said, "This is a good match, but it's a pity that Zi Wang is unwilling to appreciate it."
King Ying said, "My nephew has been blinded by the Jiang family girl, unaware that the Prince of Jin has already requested permission from His Majesty to promise her the title of Princess of Jin. If my nephew could witness her betrayal with her own eyes, given her pride, I'm sure she would quickly change her mind."
Xie Xiang raised his eyes and looked at the King of England: "It seems that His Royal Highness the King of England has made a plan."
The King of England smiled and said, "It's just a trap."
*
The next morning, just as Cong Ying got up, the maid beside Madam Xie came to tell her that Madam Xie was looking for her.
Congying said yes, and after washing up, he went to Madam Xie's tent. There was a half-open guest tent between their two tents. When passing by, Congying heard whispers behind the guest tent, and the voice sounded like that of Prince Huai.
Cong Ying paused subconsciously.
The case of Guikuzhang has not yet been concluded, and the guilt of Prince Huai has not yet been cleared. What is he planning?
Then, Cong Ying heard the words "King of Jin".
Her heart skipped a beat as she quietly entered the guest tent. Through the thick felt wall, she heard Prince Huai order his men, "This horse-dizzying powder contains poisonous salt. If applied to a horse, it will seep into its hide as it runs. The horse will then become mad with thirst and run uncontrollably towards water. Mix this horse-dizzying powder into your master's horse feed."
Then he turned to another person, as if handing him a blueprint, and raised his voice, "The horse will most likely follow this road up the mountain in search of water. Tell your assassins to ambush along the way. Remember to use redwood bows and Yanzhou swords. Once you're done, blame the King of Jin. Since he's close to your lord, let them fight each other."
Yanzhou is the fief of King Jin, and it produces redwood bows. This is to leave "physical evidence" for the assassination of the noble lord.
Such a major plan, yet it is treated as such a joke.
Cong Ying quietly left the guest tent, thinking in his heart, while continuing to look for Madam Xie.
Mrs. Xie had nothing important to talk to her about, but rather to invite her over for tea: "This Junshan Silver Needle is something the Prime Minister just acquired this morning. I remember you like yellow tea, so please come and try it."
After taking the teacup from Ying, he took a sip, savoring it slowly and figuring out a strange taste.
She had once dreamt that Princess Chun'an would encounter an accident during a hunting expedition, where her startled horse would collide with Xie Liuniang, causing a miscarriage and nearly resulting in two deaths. So when she heard that Prince Huai was plotting to kill the princess, she subconsciously believed it and considered how to warn her master to be careful of Prince Huai.
But she soon realized something was wrong. In her dream, Prince Jin was dead and had never participated in the hunting. But today, Prince Huai said that the person he wanted to put the blame on was Prince Jin.
This is different from the dream.
Was it the change in Prince Jin that caused the Huai Jun Prince's plot to deviate, or was it that what the Huai Jun Prince was planning was not the same thing as what happened in the dream? If the former, she should still stop it, but if the latter, was the Huai Jun Prince's move to test her?
"Aying, Aying?" Mrs. Xie saw that she was in deep thought and asked with concern, "What happened? Why are you so unhappy?"
Cong Ying smiled and pressed her forehead: "I didn't sleep well last night. Madam, do you know where Sanlang went?"
Madam Xie said, "The hunt is about to begin, and Sanlang has gone to patrol the enclosure."
Zeng Ying put down the teacup and apologized, "I feel a little bored and want to go for a walk outside."
She left Madam Xie's tent and asked the patrolling Fengchen Guards for Xie Xuanlan's whereabouts. Finally, she spotted him southwest of the Holy Tent, intently speaking to his subordinates. The Holy Tent was surrounded not only by the Twenty-Four Guards but also the Emperor's personal guards. Cong Ying couldn't possibly approach without being summoned. She hoped Xie Xuanlan would be done with his business and leave. A moment later, she saw Prime Minister Xie bringing a young woman to speak with him.
At Mrs. Xie's birthday party, Cong Ying had seen the girl, who was Princess Wenshuang, the daughter of King Ying and the sister of Prince Huai.
Princess Wen Shuang walked up to Xie Xuanlan and greeted him gently and courteously. Xie Xuanlan nodded coldly and turned to continue talking to his subordinates.
Princess Wen Shuang did not leave, but took a step forward and, with the connivance of Prime Minister Xie, interrupted and said something, with her eyebrows slightly curved, like a peacock deliberately preening its feathers.
His thoughts are obvious.
Cong Ying couldn't reveal the Huai Jun Wang's plot to Princess Wen Shuang's face, but Princess Wen Shuang's behavior gradually clarified her suspicions: assassinating the noble lady wasn't the Huai Jun Wang's goal, but rather to alienate her from Xie Xuanlan. He was using Princess Wen Shuang's soft words to seduce her while setting a trap for her, hoping to catch her betraying the Huai Jun Wang and the Xie family.
It seems that the horse-stirring drugs and the ambushes along the way were all fake.
With mixed feelings, Zong Ying breathed a sigh of relief. It was good that it was fake. If your mistress was really pregnant, she would not be able to withstand such ordeal.
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