"Lord Wang, help! Lord Wang!"
Wang An had a small courtyard next to the Third Prince's residence, which was not known to many people. Today, two ragged women suddenly ran over and started banging on the courtyard gate!
Seeing this, the guards exchanged glances, realizing that the neighbors around them were about to be called out!
Fearing that he might cause trouble, he hurriedly went back to report to his master.
"Who are you? Why are you causing trouble in front of my house in broad daylight?" Wang An sat in a grand chair. Apart from the servants, there were only the three of them in the front hall.
Upon hearing this, Wang Jinmei brushed aside her disheveled hair and said, "Lord Wang, it's me! Wang Jinmei, don't you recognize me? You were the one who contacted me and asked me to distract Xu Nian..."
Before she could finish her sentence, Wang An glared at her, and her voice grew weaker and weaker.
Seeing this, Zhao Yingying dared not say anything more. But she really couldn't get used to living a life of begging every day, lacking food and clothing.
She crawled a few steps closer to Wang An, adopting what she thought was a charming posture, "Lord Wang, please have mercy on me. I'm willing to serve you like a slave."
Wang An looked at that face and almost vomited. Zhao Yingying was usually just a pretty girl from a modest family, but her affected mannerisms had a certain charm.
But now, she's covered in filth. Her hair is a tangled mess, hanging down in strands, and her face is swollen like a bun—where is there any beauty left?!
Wang Jinmei spat inwardly, "Pah! Vixen!"
"Alright! If you two don't have anything important to do, you should leave now!" Wang An rubbed his eyes, a sinister glint flashing in his eyes as he recalled the Third Prince's words.
Wang Jinmei and Zhao Yingying trembled upon hearing this!
Go back?! Where can they go back to?!
"Lord Wang," Wang Jinmei said, forcing herself to speak, clearly unwilling to live that kind of life. "We, we can help you. If you need anything, please feel free to ask us."
...
After a rain, the weather turned completely autumnal.
Xu Nian was in her own residence, still wearing a cotton dress, her pretty face radiating a cheerful smile.
Su Wanting sat down next to her, sipping her tea. Suddenly remembering something, she said, "You're going to the palace tomorrow. Have you learned all the etiquette?"
Xu Nian gets a headache just thinking about this. The people in the Prime Minister's mansion remember her as the savior of their young master and young lady, and they are very kind to her in every way.
She was just too enthusiastic, and she felt embarrassed when she saw how they couldn't bear to criticize her.
In just two days, she had learned most of the etiquette, which exhausted her!
He squinted and nodded haphazardly. He had seen the emperor before, and as long as there were no annoying people around, everything was easy to handle.
"By the way, do you know who's number one on the list of the most desirable husbands for daughters of noble families?" Su Wanting asked with a smile, changing the subject when she saw her listless expression.
[I get really excited when this is mentioned.]
I bet a bag of spicy strips that you're a shoo-in!
[I bet on the Crown Prince. He's refined and elegant, and of noble birth; everyone would be scrambling to become his consort.]
Xu Nian got excited as soon as she heard that, sat up, and looked at her friend with bright eyes: "Tell me, tell me, who is it?"
The maidservant serving beside her couldn't help but lower her head and chuckle. Su Wanting leisurely sipped her tea and said, "Who else could it be? Isn't it your General Gu?"
With a loud bang!
A wave of heat washed over Xu Nian's face as the crowd joked around. It took her a while to realize that she was being teased, and she immediately jumped off the chair.
Enraged, he chased Su Wanting all over the yard.
The silvery laughter carried far. Gu Zhan never needed to announce his arrival at the county princess's residence, and he quickly walked to the inner courtyard.
Caught off guard, Xu Nian was caught off guard by Su Wanting's sudden movement and bumped into her broad, warm embrace. Her body stiffened instantly, and blushing, she quickly pulled away!
Gu Zhan felt a moment of disappointment as his arms went empty. But looking at the girl's rosy cheeks, he composed himself and said, "Don't go out these days. I'll go with you to see the Emperor tomorrow."
"General Gu, I'm not a child." Seeing his serious expression, Xu Nian belatedly asked, "What happened?"
"Have you heard? That Lady Fu'an, all those good deeds she did before were fake!"
"What? It's fake? But I heard she used her own food to help disaster victims before. Is all of that fake?"
"Isn't that right? She used to bully men and women in our group, and even robbed others of their food! I never expected that she would be granted the title of county princess. It's truly laughable!"
In the imperial study, the emperor slammed a memorial onto the table. "Nonsense! Don't these civil officials have any brains?! They submit memorials to impeach the people because of their voices of discontent! Where were they when there was famine and countless people were starving and dying?!"
Upon seeing this, Eunuch Wang quickly knelt down and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, please calm your anger."
"Your Majesty, General Gu and Princess Fu'an have arrived."
A eunuch guarding the door came to report, and Jiang Mingyun rubbed his temples. "Let them in."
"Your humble servant Gu Zhan greets Your Majesty. May Your Majesty be well."
"This commoner, Xu Nian, greets Your Majesty. May Your Majesty be well."
"Get up." Jiang Mingyun raised his hand, a slight smile finally appearing on his face. "It seems that the Princess of Fu'an has learned etiquette quite well these past few days, which deserves a reward."
Xu Nian smiled slightly, "Your Majesty is too kind. It's all thanks to the excellent teaching of the nanny." These past few days, she had learned more than just etiquette and manners; the Prime Minister's wife had talked to her for quite a while.
The ruler above is suspicious. Apart from Gu Zhan, the other ministers around him, though loyal, all have their own ulterior motives.
She was only granted the title of county princess because of Gu Zhan's influence and her merit in saving the emperor.
That means they are essentially on Gu Zhan's side, sharing both honor and disgrace, fortune and misfortune. They absolutely cannot afford to make the slightest mistake, lest someone find fault with them.
Jiang Mingyun was just speaking casually, and after hearing her words, she didn't ask any more questions. Instead, she called out to Gu Zhan, "Gu Qing, come here and take a look at this memorial."
"Your humble servant dares not."
"What's there to be afraid of? This is about you, see for yourself." The emperor glared and handed over the memorial. Gu Zhan took it and became more and more alarmed as he read it.
Xu Nian was still unaware of what had happened when she saw Gu Zhan bow deeply and say, "Your Majesty, everything stated in this memorial is false. I implore Your Majesty to investigate thoroughly."
How could Jiang Mingyun not know that these were all rumors? But now she still didn't know who it was. "But it's true that you were slacking off and delaying the work, Gu Qing, do you admit it?"
When Gu Zhan repeatedly delayed the orders issued by the court, he had thought about this possibility, but he never expected that someone would impeach him for abusing his official position to help Xu Nian bully men and women!
"Your Majesty, I am guilty and beg for punishment."
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