Chapter 128 We must find out who did it.
The early spring weather still carried a chill. Ye Wanning had just gotten up and was about to have a bowl of ginger soup when Chun Tao rushed in, her face pale: "Miss! Something terrible has happened! Rumors are circulating that you're having an affair with the general's bodyguard, and they say someone found the bodyguard's jade pendant in your room!"
The bowl of ginger soup in Ye Wanning's hand fell to the ground with a "clatter," spilling scalding hot soup onto her feet, but she felt nothing. She never expected that someone would spread such a rumor, trying to ruin her reputation!
"Who spread the word?" Ye Wanning swallowed, trying to calm herself down.
"I don't know. Someone posted an anonymous letter at the gate this morning, and now the whole city knows." Chun Tao was almost in tears. "Miss, please think of something quickly, or the General will definitely be angry when he returns."
Ye Wanning remained silent, but she knew perfectly well that no one but the Crown Prince's Consort would dare to do such a thing. The Crown Prince's Consort had harbored resentment ever since the birthday gifts were switched, and now she was undoubtedly trying to use this incident to retaliate and cause Pei Zhi to turn against her.
Not long after, Pei Zhi returned, his face ashen, holding a jade pendant in his hand—the very same "guard's jade pendant" mentioned in the rumors. He had barely entered the manor when someone brought him the pendant, saying it had been found in Ye Wanning's room.
"Wan Ning, what exactly happened?" Pei Zhi's voice was angry, but his eyes were full of worry, without the slightest doubt.
Ye Wanning took the jade pendant and examined it carefully. Suddenly, she remembered something: "This jade pendant belongs to Guard Zhao! Last year, when Guard Zhao was on a mission, he accidentally lost it. Many people knew about it and helped him search for it for several days, but they couldn't find it. I never expected it to appear here now!"
She paused for a moment, then said, "Besides, I'm with you every night. When have you ever seen me alone with a guard? The secret guards patrol the courtyard every night; they can testify that I've never seen Guard Zhao come here!"
Pei Zhi immediately ordered Zhao, the bodyguard, and the secret guards to be summoned. Upon seeing the jade pendant, Zhao's expression changed: "General, this jade pendant is indeed mine. I lost it in the woods outside the city last year, and I searched for it for days without success. How did it end up in Madam's room?"
Guard Zhao blushed with anxiety: "General, please investigate! My wife and I have barely exchanged a few words, how could we possibly have an affair!"
The guard stepped forward, clasped his hands in a fist salute, and said, "General, I patrol the courtyard every night, every half hour. I have never seen Guard Zhao approach the Madam's residence, nor have I seen anyone sneak into her room."
Pei Zhi's expression softened slightly, but he was even angrier inside—this was clearly a setup, an attempt to ruin Wan Ning's reputation! He looked at Ye Wan Ning, his eyes filled with heartache: "I'm so sorry you had to go through this. I'll go investigate right away and find out who did it."
“No need to investigate, I know it’s her.” Ye Wanning pulled him back. “The First Prince’s Consort has held a grudge ever since the birthday gifts were switched last time, so it must be her this time. Have someone investigate whether anyone from the First Prince’s Consort’s faction has been in contact with any of the servants in the manor recently.”
Pei Zhi immediately ordered an investigation, which revealed that the Crown Prince's wife's maid had recently secretly met with an old servant in the mansion and given him fifty taels of silver. After being arrested, the old servant quickly confessed—the Crown Prince's wife had instructed him to secretly place the jade pendant in Ye Wanning's room and spread rumors about her outside.
With the evidence in hand, Pei Zhi stormed into the palace to complain to the emperor. Upon seeing the evidence, the emperor slammed his fist on the table in anger: "You have gone too far, Crown Princess! How dare you use such despicable means to frame a court lady!"
The Emperor confined the Crown Prince's wife to her quarters for three months and ordered the Crown Prince to go to the General's residence to apologize to Ye Wanning. The Crown Prince had no choice but to go, bowing deeply to Ye Wanning and Pei Zhi: "General Pei, Madam Pei, it's my fault for not disciplining you properly; you've suffered this injustice!"
Ye Wanning didn't press him further: "Your Highness, you flatter me. I hope this kind of thing won't happen again!"
After the eldest prince left, Pei Zhi pulled Ye Wanning into his arms, resting his chin on her hair, his voice tinged with lingering fear: "Thank goodness you weren't affected, otherwise I really wouldn't know what to do. If something like this happens again, no matter if the other party is royalty, I'll confront them!"
Ye Wanning leaned against Pei Zhi's chest, inhaling the sandalwood scent emanating from him, feeling a sense of security: "I know you will protect me, so I'm not afraid at all!"
Pei Zhi released her and pinched her cheek: "If something like this happens again, tell me immediately. Don't bear it all alone. I'm your husband, it's my duty to protect you!"
Ye Wanning nodded, took his hand, and led him into the house: "I made some white fungus soup, come and try it, I added your favorite rock sugar!"
The herb garden should have been lush and green, but when Ye Wanning watered the flowers and plants in the morning, she found it in a mess—the mint and perilla had been uprooted, the newly planted honeysuckle vines had been cut into pieces, and there were a few stones lying in the flower garden, which were particularly conspicuous.
"Who's so heartless!" Chun Tao stomped her feet in anger. "These herbs were all grown with great difficulty, and they'd soon be ready for medicinal use, and now they've all been destroyed!"
Ye Wanning squatted down, looking at the destroyed herbs, both angry and pained: "These herbs were grown for the children of Ci'an Hall. Peppermint can cure headaches, and perilla can dispel cold. Now, if the children get sick, they won't have any medicine to use."
She stood up: "Don't be angry, someone must have done it on purpose. Look, there's a woman's footprint here, not very big, probably from a servant in the manor."
Ye Wanning had all the women and servants in the mansion brought to the herb garden and made each of them walk around it to have their footprints compared. When it was Liu Ma's turn, Ye Wanning's eyes lit up—Liu Ma's shoe prints were exactly the same as those in the herb garden!
"Aunt Liu, did you destroy this medicinal herb garden?" Ye Wanning stared at her, her tone calm.
Aunt Liu's face turned pale instantly: "It wasn't me! Madam, please don't wrong me! I was in the laundry room all day yesterday and didn't go to the herb garden at all!"
Before Liu Ma could even try to argue, Ye Wanning interrupted her: "Never been there? What's this?" She held up a silk thread. "I found this thread in the herb garden; it's from your apron. I saw you wearing this apron yesterday. How did it end up in the herb garden?"
Looking at the silk thread, Liu Ma's legs went weak, and she knelt down with a thud. Tears streamed down her face like a broken string of pearls: "Madam, spare me! It was...it was the Crown Prince's maid who made me do it. She said if I didn't destroy the herb garden, she would banish my son from the capital! I had no choice!"
Ye Wanning had long suspected it was related to the Crown Prince's wife, but she hadn't expected her to dare cause trouble so soon after being confined to her quarters. Ye Wanning didn't make things difficult for Liu Ma, but instead had her confess the details of how the Crown Prince's wife's maid had instructed her.
When Pei Zhi returned and heard about the incident, he was so angry that he threw down his teacup: "The Crown Princess Consort is truly unrepentant! This time, I will make sure the Emperor punishes her severely!"
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