"This is going to be difficult..."
The wicked man sat in the study of the Grand Commandant's mansion, frowning as he looked at the several secret reports on the table. The moonlight was bright outside the window, but he showed no intention of resting.
"Grand Commandant, it's already past midnight, you should rest." Zhang Erhe walked in carrying a bowl of hot soup.
"Rest? There's no time for rest!" The wicked husband sighed, flipping through the secret report in his hand. "Look at this, in just one day, so many rumors have spread throughout the palace!"
He spread out several secret reports: "The Black Ice Guard reports that the Princess Consort is restless and loses her appetite whenever she hears Afang's zither music. Afang is the same; she spends her days in tears, saying she feels she is disturbing the Princess Consort's peace and insists on moving out of the villa..."
"This..." Zhang Erhe was also at a loss. "Then, in the Grand Commandant's opinion, what should we do?"
"What else can we do?" The wicked husband slapped his forehead. "The most important thing right now is to stabilize Mi Ji's pregnancy. As for A Fang..."
Before he could finish speaking, an urgent report came from outside: "Grand Commandant, something terrible has happened! The Princess Consort is having trouble conceiving again!"
"Damn it!" The wicked man jumped to his feet. "What's going on so late?"
"They say...they say they heard the sound of a piano again..."
"The sound of a zither?" The wicked husband was taken aback, then realized, "That's not right, Afang lives in a villa in the south of the city, how could it be so far away..."
"There's someone playing the zither outside the Princess's palace," the person said in a low voice. "It sounds like...it's someone from the Southern Palace."
"Nangong?" The wicked husband narrowed his eyes. "Interesting. You may leave now. Have the imperial physicians stay with the Princess. I, the Grand Commandant, will go and examine her myself."
After dismissing the visitor, the wicked husband turned to Zhang Erhe and said, "Tell me, in this harem, who most wants something to happen to the Princess?"
Zhang Erhe thought for a moment: "The only woman in the Southern Palace is the late King's granddaughter, who happens to be from the State of Yan..."
"Shh!" the wicked husband stopped him from continuing. "Those kinds of things are fine to think, but you can't say them out loud. But..."
He sneered, "Since some people can't wait to cause trouble, then we'll play along! Go, summon the leader of the Black Ice Guard."
Not long after, a man in black appeared silently in the study. The wicked husband gave a few instructions, and then the man vanished without a trace.
"Grand Commandant, what's wrong...?"
"Just you wait and see," the wicked man straightened his clothes. "Let's go report to the King first. Some people really need to be dealt with!"
......
Ying Zheng was handling state affairs; although it was late at night, the bamboo slips on his desk were piled high. Suddenly hearing that Mi Ji was in trouble again, he couldn't sit still any longer: "What happened?"
"Your Majesty," reported the Black Ice Guard agent, "it sounds like there's music playing a zither... which has disturbed the Queen..."
"Playing the zither?" Ying Zheng's face darkened. "Isn't Afang in the villa south of the city?"
"It's not Afang. It's..." The spy hesitated, unable to finish his sentence.
Just then, the wicked husband strode in: "Your Majesty, I have come to lodge a complaint!"
"What's up?"
"You have no idea!" the wicked husband exclaimed indignantly, "Someone actually used Afang's affair to their advantage, deliberately playing the zither outside the Princess's palace, clearly trying to cause her miscarriage!"
"Who dares to be so bold?"
"Who else could it be?" the wicked husband sneered. "The people of Nangong! I wonder which princess ordered them to cause trouble at this critical juncture. What's even more hateful is that they deliberately imitated Afang's zither playing, intentionally trying to mislead the princess!"
"Insolence!" Ying Zheng slammed his fist on the table and stood up. "Go, seal off Nangong Palace! No one is allowed to enter or leave!"
"Wait!" the wicked man stopped him. "Your Majesty, this cannot be done."
Why?
"Think about it, the harem is already in turmoil because of Afang's affair. If you were to appoint Nangong now, wouldn't that confirm Afang's identity? It would probably only make things more chaotic. Besides..."
He leaned closer and lowered his voice: "Some people are probably hoping you'll do that. If you get angry, they can use the opportunity to stir up trouble, and then the harem will be even more chaotic."
Ying Zheng pondered for a moment: "Then what's your opinion?"
"How about this," the wicked husband said, "first send the Black Ice Guard to thoroughly investigate this matter. Once we find out who's behind this, we can deal with them all at once. Only by seizing real evidence can this harem remain peaceful."
"Alright!" Ying Zheng nodded. "I'll leave this matter to you."
The wicked husband excused himself and left, while Zhang Erhe waited outside: "Grand Commandant, what you just said about Nangong..."
"Shh!" The wicked husband gestured for him to follow, and only when they were in a secluded spot did he say, "It's basically confirmed that Consort Sun is the one in question."
"Huh?" Zhang Erhe was taken aback. "Then why did you...?"
"You're still too young," the wicked man said, shaking his head. "Since someone wants to cause trouble, we'll just go with the flow. Just wait and see; in less than three days, those hiding in the shadows will jump out on their own!"
"This..." Zhang Erhe still didn't understand, "What about the princess's pregnancy..."
"Don't worry, I already had the imperial physicians watching over things," the wicked husband laughed. "It was just a false alarm. We can use this opportunity to expose all those who want to stir up trouble. Think about it, which of these women in the harem doesn't have their own schemes? Now is the perfect time to purge them all!"
Zhang Erhe suddenly realized: "No wonder the Grand Commandant has been having the Black Ice Guard keep an eye on everything..."
"Of course," the wicked man said smugly. "Those who accomplish great things are all about proceeding cautiously, step by step. Look at them, those people thought they could use the Epang Palace incident to cause trouble, but little did they know, they'd given us the perfect opportunity to deal with them."
As he spoke, he suddenly remembered something: "Oh, right, we also need to send more people to keep an eye on Miss Afang. At a time like this, it's hard to guarantee that no one will cause her trouble."
"Don't worry, Grand Commandant," Zhang Erhe said. "I've already arranged for the elite troops of the Black Ice Guard to guard the villa. Not even a fly could get in!"
"Alright!" The wicked husband nodded in satisfaction. "But we still need to go take a look. Come on, accompany me to the villa in the south of the city."
"It's so late..."
"We need to go now more than ever!" the wicked husband said as they walked. "You have no idea how shrewd the women in the harem are. If they notice anything, things will get complicated..."
Under the moonlight, the two figures gradually disappeared into the streets and alleys.
The wicked man pondered how to make this move to wipe out all those restless people in one fell swoop.
The waters of the imperial harem run even deeper than those of the imperial court...
If there's one thing that's truly difficult in the world, it's navigating relationships with these women.
The wicked husband couldn't help but sigh, realizing that he himself was the one who knew how to live a clear-headed life and never got involved in such matters of love and affection.
Just then, they arrived at the villa. From afar, they could hear the melodious sound of a zither. It was Afang playing the zither; the tune was mournful and poignant, making one's heart ache.
"Sigh," the wicked man sighed, "this one is a pitiful person too..."
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