"What does it have to do with me? It's not like I did anything with a strange man in the Imperial Garden!" Liu Yunyun rolled her eyes and said disdainfully, "Fang Qingyue, you were so righteous before, and yet you still insisted on staying in the palace. It turns out you are just such a promiscuous woman."
Her voice was quite loud, and the Liu family had some power in the capital. For a time, the other girls from the aristocratic families also looked down on Fang Qingyue.
Shen Yuhan and Jian Yanzhi are both the best men in Beijing. How could they be taken advantage of by a woman like this?
"That's right, the daughter of a guilty minister sneaking into this palace banquet is truly disgusting. I don't know how she got in."
"I heard that she was already having an affair with Prince Jian'an even when she was still engaged to Shen Qiu Nian. I thought it was fake before, but now it seems to be true."
"How could such a promiscuous woman appear at a palace banquet? I'm afraid she would embarrass the reputations of the other women. Court Envoy Jian, you shouldn't stand with her. Perhaps she's trying to seduce you because she can't marry Prince Jian'an."
Upon hearing this, Jian Yanzhi's usually gentle face was tinged with anger. "Who said such nonsense? I know Miss Fang's kind of person much better than you do. Don't blame me for being rude to those who spread rumors!"
He was rarely this angry, so it was obvious that he was really pissed off.
Jian Yanzhi was, after all, the Deputy Commissioner of the Inspectorate, so his words carried some weight. Those people didn't dare to bring him up any further, and their words about Fang Qingyue became even more unpleasant.
This news also spread all the way to the front hall.
Hearing that Fang Qingyue and Jian Yanzhi were discovered alone in private, and that there was ambiguity between the two and that they seemed to have intimate contact, many ministers frowned and looked at Shen Yuhan for a moment.
The emperor naturally heard about this from the chief eunuch.
When he tilted his head to look at Jian Yongming, a smile appeared on his face. "It seems that good things are about to happen to your beloved Jian. Does your Excellency know what their relationship is like?"
Hearing this, Shen Yuhan put down his wine glass and looked at Jian Yongming with a gloomy look.
Jian Yongming didn't notice Shen Yuhan's expression. He stroked his beard with a smile and said, "Miss Qingyue and that brat from our family have known each other for a long time. I had an asthma attack and fainted on the street before, and it was Miss Qingyue who saved me."
"She's a doctor in the clinic, and my son also happens to have some knowledge of medicine, so the two of them are a perfect match. If I were to find a daughter-in-law for that brat, I would definitely choose Qingyue."
Since he had said so, the emperor immediately became interested: "If that's the case, how about I act as a matchmaker? I'll grant..."
Before he could finish his words, he was interrupted by Shen Yuhan: "Your Majesty, when it comes to granting marriages, it's better for both men and women to have affection for each other. Otherwise, granting marriages will only make people resentful and it won't be a good thing."
Hearing this, Liu's expression became even uglier: "Prince, since you are already engaged, please don't interfere with other people's marriages."
"My engagement? Wasn't it Lord Liu who forced me to accept it?" Shen Yuhan was furious when she saw Fang Qingyue was going to marry someone else. Now, she gritted her teeth and looked at Liu, saying bitterly, "Ever since you mentioned arranging an engagement between me and Liu Yunyun, I've refused time and again. I never thought Lord Liu wouldn't understand and even said that marrying me would be the blessing of Liu Yunyun's life."
"Why, if she marries the man she wants to marry, it's a blessing for her life. If I marry the man I don't want to marry, isn't it a disaster for me?"
"From the beginning to the end, I have no intention of marrying Liu Yunyun. Please don't push me too far, Master Liu."
Shen Yuhan has always been cold and sarcastic, and rarely speaks so much.
For a moment, everyone in the room was shocked.
The emperor was interrupted by Shen Yuhan before he could finish his words. He felt a little embarrassed for a moment, but he felt guilty towards Shen Yuhan about Ning Liangcai's matter. He could only say, "Don't worry, Prince Jian'an. Since you really don't like what Liu Yunyun said, I won't force you. You are a talented person who has made great contributions to the country. How could I let such a talented person feel disappointed?"
He comforted Shen Yuhan with a smile, and Liu had no choice but to swallow her anger.
At the same time, the palace servant sent by Jian Yongming to call Jian Yanzhi also called Jian Yanzhi over.
Jian Yanzhi even specially sent Fang Qingyue to the women's seat, and then came to the men's seat.
When the Emperor saw Jian Yanzhi, he thought of what Shen Yuhan had just said, and his tone became a little bad: "My dear Jian, you are actually hanging out with other women in the Imperial Garden during the palace banquet. Isn't that inappropriate?"
This statement sounds somewhat blaming.
Jian Yanzhi simply bowed respectfully and said, "I simply met Miss Fang in the Imperial Garden and wanted to discuss medicine with her. Your Majesty should also know that my father has always suffered from asthma. If he is not carefully cared for, he may be in danger of death."
"I only wanted to discuss medicine with Miss Fang to see if there was any better way to control my father's illness. I didn't expect that this would harm Miss Fang's reputation. I feel truly guilty."
He spoke seriously, and the emperor breathed a sigh of relief. He then asked, "Then I wonder what you think of Fang Qingyue?"
Jian Yanzhi saw the expression on the emperor's face and finally said, "Your Majesty, I and Miss Fang are good friends."
The emperor couldn't help feeling a little disappointed.
If Jian Yanzhi insisted that he and Fang Qingyue had an affair, he would arrange for Jian Yanzhi and Fang Qingyue to get married even if Fang Qingyue didn't mention it.
Jian Yanzhi didn't think so.
He did not want to go against Fang Qingyue's wishes. If Fang Qingyue did not want to marry him, he was willing to protect her silently. He did not want to force Fang Qingyue to marry him.
Shen Yuhan's fingers had been tightly gripping the teacup, nearly crushing it. Now, they suddenly relaxed.
After Jian Yanzhi returned to his seat, Jian Yongming looked at him unhappily: "You let go of such a good opportunity? Qingyue is so good. If you miss this chance, I'm afraid you won't have it again."
Jian Yanzhi smiled helplessly and said, "Dad, how could I not know this?"
"But if she already has someone in her heart, and I force her to marry me, not only will it not make her like me, but it will make her resent me, which is not good." He said it sincerely. After listening to it, Jian Yongming just shook his head helplessly.
"Well, since you have your own ideas, I won't bother with you. As long as you don't regret it later, that's all that matters."
Fang Qingyue returned to the women's table, sat in the corner, and lowered her head to pour tea for herself.
Her movements were smooth and relaxed, but she could hear the sneers of others: "Oh, you can still concentrate on pouring tea for yourself here? Is the daughter of a guilty minister so eager to get married? And you even want to seduce Master Jian. Everyone knows that Master Jian is now the Deputy Envoy of the Inspectorate, a man of destiny. A woman like this dares to think of being a match for him, bah."
"That's right, Master Jian doesn't even like me, so why would he like her?"
There were discussions all around, but most of them were mocking Fang Qingyue.
Laugh at her wishful thinking and her attempt to climb up the social ladder.
Fang Qingyue didn't care at all. She just lowered her head and poured herself another cup of tea, sipping it carefully.
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