Chapter 61 An assassin appeared, alarming the Imperial Guards.
Meanwhile, at the Luanfeng Palace.
Consort Su was furious when she learned that the Emperor had bestowed the title of Consort Ya upon the Princess of Chaoxi Kingdom. Not wanting to attend and become a laughingstock, she simply claimed to be unwell and declined the banquet.
Yunfang knelt respectfully before Consort Su, "Your Majesty, after this servant's secret observation and diligent searching, I have finally found a handle against Princess Heng."
Consort Su said in a deep voice, "Last time you sent me a message asking me to persuade the Emperor to invite talented and virtuous students from the Imperial Academy to the banquet for the envoys from Chaoxi Kingdom. What exactly are you trying to do?"
Yunfang curled her lips into a cold smile, "Your Highness, this servant has discovered a secret of the Princess Consort of Heng."
Consort Su frowned upon hearing this. "Are you sure?"
“This servant has investigated thoroughly, and it is absolutely true. That person is studying at the Imperial Academy and is Jiang Huai’s student. He also entered the palace today. Jiang Fenghua and the two may have been in a relationship long before she married Prince Heng.”
Consort Su stared coldly at Yun Fang, "Jiang Fenghua is not stupid. She would never be so foolish as to run into the palace with a man to flirt or do anything improper. If it doesn't work out, Yun Fang, do you know what the consequences will be?"
"This servant understands, so this servant has made two preparations. Only by ruining her reputation will the concubine have a chance to take her place. Your Majesty, please rest assured!" Yunfang also knew that only by making Su Tingwan the mistress of the Heng Prince's mansion would she have a chance.
"I have always trusted you to handle things, which is why I sent you to Wanwan's side to help her." Consort Su's eyes were filled with laughter. "Don't worry, as long as you can be loyal to me, I will definitely not treat you unfairly."
Yunfang quickly kowtowed, "This servant understands, thank you for your appreciation, Your Highness." Xiaoju was also your person, but in the end she was beaten to death. Why didn't the Imperial Concubine save her? Only by becoming a person of high status can one have a voice; otherwise, she will be a servant for life.
Consort Su curled her lips and sneered, "If anyone sees Jiang Fenghua flirting with another man, and something else happens, Jiang Fenghua is finished. Last time, I lost a trusted confidante, and I will make sure she never leaves the palace alive."
After Yunfang finished speaking, she left Luanfeng Palace.
When she arrived at Hongfu Palace, she did not see Su Tingwan and Jiang Fenghua, nor even Xiao Yu.
She wondered to herself, could it be that Su Tingwan had already brought the two of them together?
Yunfang hurriedly headed to the Imperial Garden.
-
Wuxin brought Jiang Jinyan to the Imperial Garden at Jiang's request, and there they saw a sneaky man hiding behind the rockery.
"Su Tingwan is trying to harm Ruan Ruan." Jiang Jinyan's eyes were filled with rage, and his knuckles cracked as he clenched his fists.
Wuxin had been keeping an eye on Yunfang ever since he received the news. He only found out when she returned to the palace that she had secretly brought back a man during the palace banquet today. It was only after seeing Princess Heng that he was certain that Yunfang intended to harm her.
The banquet hall was set up in Hongfu Palace, but this person had been hiding near the Imperial Garden.
"Young Master, please rest assured, with this servant here, she cannot harm Miss," Wuxin said.
Jiang Jinyan made a decision: "Do you have a way to send this person to Consort Su's palace without anyone noticing?" Since Consort Su has been making trouble for Ruan Ruan, then she shouldn't blame him.
Wu Xin nodded. "Tonight, a large number of palace maids and eunuchs have been transferred to Hongfu Palace to serve him. Even the main force of the Imperial Guards is in the banquet hall. If we can knock him out, I have a way."
Jiang Jinyan nodded.
Without saying a word, he knocked the man unconscious and stuffed him into a cloth bag.
At this moment, Yunfang hurriedly walked over, and Jiang Jinyan put down the cloth bag and pulled Wuxin, who was hiding in the shadows.
Yunfang imitated the chirping of crickets towards the artificial hill, but no one responded, so she approached to investigate.
The next moment, a figure suddenly flashed behind her, and before Yunfang could react, she was also knocked unconscious.
Jiang Jinyan stepped forward. "Is she Yunfang?"
Wuxin nodded, "It's her."
In the dim light, he saw a scar on her forehead, but upon closer inspection, he realized something was amiss: "Her scar is fake."
Wuxin was also stunned. "How could this be? What should we do with Yunfang now?"
“Drag her to a secluded side hall and hide her away. She’s just a lowly palace maid. Once Consort Su’s misdeeds are exposed, she won’t get away with it either.”
Now that the entire palace's focus is on Hongfu Palace, even without intention, he could easily and secretly send the person to Consort Su's palace and hide them away.
-
Meanwhile, Su Tingwan noticed Jiang Fenghua wandering aimlessly along the lake and said, "It's awfully cold here. Everyone's gone, let's go too!"
“Yes, everyone’s gone, let’s go too!” Jiang Fenghua’s graceful figure made Su Tingwan’s heart itch.
"Would the concubine like to take a walk in the Imperial Garden?" she suddenly asked.
Su Tingwan's eyes lit up. "Great! I heard the flowers over there are blooming beautifully. I've been wanting to go and see them."
“I was just thinking of going to take a look too. The flowers in the palace are more lush than those in our Prince’s Mansion.” Jiang Fenghua seemed to love flowers very much, and gently reached out her hand to Su Tingwan. “Could you give me a hand, Consort? These steps are too high, I can’t get over them.”
Su Tingwan's pupils widened in shock. Even if Jiang Fenghua was delicate, she didn't need to be this delicate! She used this expression to seduce A Shang.
If Su Tingwan hadn't been wearing a veil, she might have seen the almost distorted expression on her face. She cursed inwardly, but still patiently pulled her aside, saying, "Your Highness, be careful."
"Thank you, Consort." The two got along extremely well, attracting the attention of those around them. The Princess Consort and the Consort had such a good relationship.
Jiang Fenghua could only feel that her palms were full of sweat. Even though it was already summer and the riverside was so cool, Su Tingwan still broke out in a sweat with nervousness at the mere mention of the Imperial Garden. She couldn't hide anything.
Just as she reached the bridgehead, Zhang Yumo suddenly appeared in front of her and bowed respectfully, saying, "Yumo greets the Princess."
Jiang Fenghua held her hand affectionately, her expression innocent and naive. "From now on, Sister Zhang, just call me Fenghua. Sister Zhang, will you come to the lakeside to play too?"
“It was a bit stuffy in the banquet hall, so I came out for some fresh air and saw the Princess by the lake.” Her cheeks were flushed. She continued, “When I came out just now, I met Young Master Jiang. He said he had left the palace.”
Jiang Fenghua understood. She must have sent Xiao Yu out of the palace. Xiao Yu was a good person, and she didn't want him to get involved. "My brother just can't stay anywhere. Let him go."
"Sister Zhang, Consort Su and I are going to the Imperial Garden to admire the flowers. Do you want to come?"
Zhang Yumo nodded. "Go."
Su Tingwan had no idea why Zhang Yumo was getting involved.
The group walked and stopped along the way until they arrived at the Imperial Garden. It was already dark, and there weren't many lights on, so the flowers were barely visible, and everything was shrouded in mist.
Su Tingwan's mind wasn't on the two of them. She only remembered that Yun Fang had said she would try to lure Jiang Fenghua to the Imperial Garden, but there was nothing there. She and Jiang Fenghua strolled by the lake for a long time, but Xiao Yu didn't take the bait and didn't follow them.
Jiang Fenghua suddenly exclaimed, "Ouch!"
Zhang Yumo asked with concern, "Fenghua, what's wrong?"
"My stomach hurts so much." Jiang Fenghua clutched her stomach, her eyes filled with embarrassment. "I need to go to the toilet."
"Oh no, what should we do?" Zhang Yumo looked around anxiously.
Jiang Fenghua grabbed Zhang Yumo's hand and ran to the side, saying, "Sister Zhang, come with me to the latrine quickly, I can't hold it in any longer."
Once the two had disappeared from sight, Su Tingwan called out in all directions, "Your Highness, Miss Zhang."
On the other side, Jiang Fenghua pulled Zhang Yumo's hand and hid to peek outside.
Zhang Yumo asked, "Fenghua, is your stomach no longer hurting?"
"It doesn't hurt," Jiang Fenghua whispered. "There'll be a good show to watch later."
After waiting for a long time, Su Tingwan wandered around, but nothing happened.
Jiang Fenghua thought to herself, "She's so eager for me to come to the Imperial Garden, could it be that my elder brother has already..."
Just then, a commotion broke out in the palace, alarming the Imperial Guards.
Suddenly someone shouted, "Assassin! Catch the assassin!"
Zhang Yumo felt a sudden panic. "Fenghua, there's an assassin! What should we do?"
Jiang Fenghua grabbed Zhang Yumo and ran towards the fire, saying, "Let's go take a look together."
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