Chapter 88 She didn't believe it! This woman's destiny is 'incredibly noble,' she possesses the qualities of a phoenix...
It was late autumn, and the upheavals in the capital were like a boulder thrown into a lake, creating ripples that eventually reached Nanjing, a thousand miles away. But the distance was too great; unlike in the heart of the capital, where everyone was on edge and fear gripped the city, the situation on the banks of the Qinhuai River felt more like listening to a story, inspiring a more detached, detached interest in commenting on the events from the sidelines.
The storytellers of Jinling City have a keen sense of current events, and the hottest topic of conversation in the city's teahouses and taverns right now is the dramatic changes in the lives of the two princes.
The restaurant diagonally opposite Juxianglou was bustling with activity in its lobby downstairs, filled with the aroma of tea, while the private rooms on the second floor were packed to capacity.
The storyteller, about fifty years old, had a booming voice and was spitting as he spoke, "Esteemed guests, listen to today's most exciting tale! The Second Prince of the capital, truly a prince born with a silver spoon in his mouth! His maternal family is the prestigious Duke of Dingguo's mansion, and his mother, Consort De, is deeply favored by the Emperor—his life is like a blazing fire, adorned with flowers and brocade! Who would have thought that a thunderbolt would strike from nowhere at the autumn hunting grounds… alas…"
The gavel slammed down. "The horse stumbled and fell into the woods! The imperial physician declares that the leg is likely beyond repair!"
The audience below the stage sighed and murmured; some shook their heads and lamented, while others whispered among themselves.
He abruptly changed the subject, his tone rising and falling, "Ladies and gentlemen, please be patient, and let me tell you more about this Third Prince. His mother's family was of humble origin, merely a county magistrate whose name is unknown. His mother had worked her way up to the rank of Noble Lady after many years in the palace, and only became a Consort after giving birth to a prince. Logically speaking, with such a background, let alone vying for the throne, it would be difficult for her to even gain a foothold in the palace. But this Third Prince is exceptionally gifted, displaying extraordinary talent from a young age..."
Meng Lingyao took a sip of tea, her eyebrows slightly raised. The storyteller spoke with such vivid detail, effortlessly recounting numerous palace secrets, as if he had overheard them from under the two princes' beds.
"What's even more wonderful is that Heaven itself is on his side!" the storyteller said mysteriously. "He has found an exceptionally good match! The eldest daughter of the Marquis of Wuxing's family has been blessed since childhood. It is said that when she was young, she accompanied her mother to offer incense, and the old monk in the temple saw her and said that this girl's destiny was 'incredibly noble,' and that she had the appearance of a phoenix dancing in the heavens! This is a match made in heaven, how could it be something that ordinary people could achieve?"
Meng Lingyao paused slightly in her teacup, the tea swirling gently. If she weren't in Jinling, she would have suspected that this storyteller was a plant hired by Zhao Ruxuan at great expense.
Songlan quietly leaned close to Meng Lingyao's ear and whispered, "Miss, is it true that the Second Prince's leg injury, as rumored outside, was caused by the Third Prince?"
Meng Lingyao shook her head slightly, then nodded slightly, leaving Song Lan looking completely bewildered.
She smiled slightly, her voice low, barely audible to the two of them, "Although I don't know who did it, given the Third Prince's character and methods, if he really wanted to do it, he would have cleaned it up completely, leaving no trace for anyone to find. But if you say this was purely an accident..." She shook her head slightly, with a hint of barely perceptible sarcasm, "that would be like fooling a three-year-old."
Songlan was even more puzzled, "Then...why would he do that? Wouldn't he just be getting himself into trouble for nothing?"
"Taking risks to seek good fortune." Meng Lingyao's gaze drifted to the bustling streets outside the window, and her voice became even softer. "The Third Prince was already weak, and only gained the right to compete for the throne because of the Emperor's partial favor. If we don't take advantage of the Second Prince's growing power to strike at his root, once the dust settles, even if we want to take risks, there will be no risks left to take."
Songlan nodded, seemingly understanding but not quite.
Meng Lingyao finished the remaining tea in her cup. "Let's go, it's too noisy here."
As soon as I stepped out of the private room, I bumped into a group of people coming out from the next room.
The one leading the group was Cui Qingyin. Their eyes met in mid-air, and Meng Lingyao clearly caught the surging resentment in her eyes, as well as... a hint of smugness that wasn't very well hidden.
She had a prior grudge against the Cui family, so she wasn't surprised by Cui Qingyin's malice. As for that smugness...
Could it be that they think that with the Second Prince in trouble, the Third Prince is the undisputed heir apparent, and the Cui family will also have contributed to the succession?
Leaving aside whether the Third Prince can actually sit on that position, even if he does, will he be able to tolerate the growing power of the maternal relatives?
No, it's highly likely that by the time the position of crown prince is decided, the marriage alliance with the third prince will no longer be considered powerful.
Mr. Zhang once said that from Nanjing to the capital, one could travel at full speed, changing horses at every post station, and arrive in less than ten days.
Judging by the days, it'll be soon.
"What a coincidence." Cui Qingyin spoke first, her words laced with barbs. "Isn't this Miss Meng from Juxianglou? I still vividly remember Miss Meng's insightful remarks on the art of incense at the garrison commander's residence that day. It's a pity that Miss Meng was always surrounded by admirers, and I never had the chance to properly learn from her."
Meng Lingyao remained calm, offering only a polite smile upon hearing this. "Miss Cui Jiu is too kind. It's merely a case of showing off my limited skills before an expert; it's hardly worth learning from. If you are interested in the art of incense, you are always welcome to visit Juxianglou."
Seeing Meng's nonchalant demeanor, as if she genuinely accepted the "overpraise," Cui Qingyin felt a surge of anger and couldn't help but sneer, "Miss Meng, there's no need for you to be so modest. I just wonder, is Pei Shaoqing, who is far away in the capital, aware that his fiancée is in Jinling... so carefree and at ease?"
Meng Lingyao was slightly surprised and blinked. "He naturally knows. He will also be happy that everything is going smoothly for me in Jinling. Miss Cui's words are puzzling."
This matter-of-fact attitude made Cui Qingyin's chest heave. She stepped forward, her eyes fixed on Meng Lingyao's face, and gritted her teeth as she scolded, "Pretentious! Having Lord Pei isn't enough, you still have to flirt around in Jinling! Truly shameless!"
Meng Lingyao tilted her head, showing no annoyance, but her confusion deepened. "What do you mean by that, Miss Cui Jiu?"
"Wang Li."
Cui Qingyin spat out two words through gritted teeth, her heart bleeding with hatred.
She originally intended to use Wang Li to manipulate Meng Lingyao, and also to sow discord between Pei Xu and him. Unexpectedly, this vile woman was so clever that she managed to arouse Wang Li's interest.
She deliberately set a trap, intending to teach Meng Lingyao a lesson at the garrison commander's residence, but Wang Li ruined her plans. Wang Li was furious afterward, implying that she was malicious. Looking at Meng Lingyao's fair face now, she practically wanted to tear her skin off.
"Oh?" Meng Lingyao suddenly realized, then her face showed urgency, "Miss Cui Jiu must have misunderstood! Young Master Wang's feelings for Miss are as clear as day. These days, he has never stopped buying rouge and perfume for Miss in my little Juxiang Pavilion."
She sniffed slightly, then smiled and said, "Take the 'Autumn Begonia' that Miss Cui Jiu is wearing today, for example. It is refreshing and captivating, and is one of our shop's finest fragrances this autumn, worth a hundred taels of gold. Young Master Wang is willing to spend a fortune just to make Miss smile. Who in Jinling City doesn't know of such deep affection? How can Miss question his feelings?"
Before she could finish speaking, Cui Qingyin's pupils suddenly contracted.
When Wang Li gave her this perfume, he clearly said that it was a gift from Meng Lingyao, whom he had come to know and love, and that he had specially given it to her!
She applied the product every day, deliberately flaunting it in front of Meng Lingyao. She thought she was showing off by stepping on Meng Lingyao's sore spot, but unexpectedly... she was actually showing off the product that Wang Li had bought at great expense in front of the real person.
She was so angry that she trembled all over, her knuckles clenched so tightly that her nails almost dug into her flesh, a metallic taste stuck in her throat, and she couldn't say a word. She felt an unprecedented humiliation sweep over her, and her vision blurred.
Seeing that she was swaying precariously, Meng Lingyao was afraid that if she said a few more words, she would really faint from anger. So she stopped talking at the right time and nodded slightly to Cui Qingyin, "It's getting late, so I won't disturb Miss Cui any longer. I'll take my leave first."
Having said that, Songlan, who was barely suppressing a laugh, walked slowly past Cui Qingyin, whose face was ashen, and stepped down from the teahouse.
The ninth young lady of the Cui family had likely grown up in Qinghe, the Cui clan's stronghold, where no one dared to disobey her. Having come to Jinling as a relative of the garrison commander, she was also subject to much flattery. However, her eloquence was somewhat lacking.
She is probably not even as good as Zhao Ruxuan in the capital.
Downstairs, the storyteller was still enthusiastically recounting the tale of the Third Prince's "destined benefactor," making Meng Lingyao want to laugh. The warm sun of Jiangnan shone on her shoulders, dispelling the wind and rain of the capital into fodder for casual conversation.
This city of Jinling remains that tranquil and somewhat sluggish land of beauty.
Cui Qingyin stormed back to the mansion and smashed everything she could in her boudoir as soon as she entered.
The precious porcelain and exquisite decorations were all reduced to shards. Her chest heaved violently, and the thought of Meng Lingyao's nonchalant demeanor made her grit her teeth in hatred.
As soon as Miss Yuan stepped onto the corridor, she was startled by the sound of shattering objects coming from inside. Looking up, she saw two young maids standing outside the door, their faces pale and trembling, with bits of debris spilling out from the cracks in the door.
"Tsk," she muttered, pursing her lips. "What's gotten into her now? Didn't she just cause a scene a couple of days ago?"
Her head maid had already found out the details and quickly leaned in to whisper, "I heard a couple of days ago that she had a disagreement with Young Master Wang. Today she went out for a walk to clear her head and bumped into Miss Meng from the capital. From their conversation... it seems that Ninth Miss was the one who suffered a loss."
"Oh?" Miss Yuan shrugged upon hearing this. "Have you run into that person again? It's certainly going to be difficult to get along with. I wonder if all the young ladies in the capital are so...eloquent?"
She waved away the maid at the door, walked around the broken porcelain shards on the ground, and said a few words of seemingly concerned comfort to Cui Qingyin, then said, "Cousin, calm down. The day after tomorrow, the autumn sky will be clear and the air will be crisp. Some of my close friends have made plans to go to Xiuyai Mountain outside the city to climb and enjoy the view. Why don't you come along?"
Cui Qingyin was not in a good mood and immediately refused.
Miss Yuan's eyes darted around, and she leaned closer to whisper, "Actually, someone privately asked me to make sure you come along. They said they have something extremely important to tell you in person, perhaps... it's about apologizing to you for what happened the other day?"
Cui Qingyin paused. Without thinking, she immediately realized that this "someone" was Wang Li; who else could it be?
Wang Li took the initiative to back down? Her resentment subsided slightly. Although she hated him for protecting Meng Lingyao, in Jinling, Wang Li was indeed a top-tier suitable husband in terms of family background, talent, and looks; it would be difficult to find another like him easily. She hadn't forgotten her aunt's constant nagging about the great benefits of a marriage alliance between the Cui and Wang families.
Weighing the pros and cons, her slight displeasure seemed to be temporarily suppressed. She hummed in agreement, "I understand."
"Oh, right," Cui Qingyin called after Miss Yuan before she left, "Is that little bitch going or not?"
It took Miss Yuan a moment to realize she was talking about Meng Lingyao, and she casually replied, "She should go."
"Alright, I understand. You can arrange the carriages and horses for me."
Miss Yuan left.
Cui Qingyin stood alone amidst the chaos, her hatred slowly settling into a chilling gloom. She walked to the window, her gaze seemingly piercing through the layers of buildings in the mansion, looking towards Xiuyai Mountain on the outskirts of the city.
"Qiuyue," she said coldly, without turning around, summoning her trusted head maid, her voice icy, "You will personally handle two matters for the trip the day after tomorrow..."
Xiuyai Mountain is very close to the mine that my uncle recently cleared out. If things are arranged properly, it would be very easy for an accident to happen.
The Yuan garrison commander and his wife kept their only daughter completely hidden, never letting her know about many of their sordid affairs. But Cui Qingyin was different. As a direct descendant of the Cui family, she had been traveling between the two mansions with her aunt and had long been aware of her uncle and the Cui family's activities in Jinling, using the guise of "bandit suppression" and "wasteland clearing" to seize mines and occupy mountains.
She knows where the forbidden zones are and where things are most likely to go wrong.
How did Meng Lingyao manage to escape danger time and time again?
She doesn't believe it!
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Author's Note: Miss Yuan, you wicked entertainer [doge emoji]
The young couple will finally end their long-distance relationship in the next chapter! Yay! They're finally getting to that part! [Let me see!]
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