"Insolence!" Sister Jin scolded sternly before Yang Mengchen could speak, as Wet Nurse Zhou was merely a servant. It was more fitting for her to step in if the Crown Princess Consort’s response was beneath her dignity: "You say the Crown Prince is faithless and untrustworthy, so what would you have him do? Or perhaps Ms. Liao, what would you have him do? Or even the Liao Family Clan, what would they have him do? What kind of explanation do you want from the Crown Prince? If you seek an explanation, go directly to the Crown Prince; what sense does it make to intercept the Crown Princess Consort in the street? Could it be that you think she is kind-hearted and easy to bully?"
As Sister Jin finished speaking, Liao Zhiyan and Wet Nurse Zhou’s faces turned ashen, filled with fear and despair.
The Liao family clan members were nothing but a bunch of selfish, greedy cowardly villains. If they knew she had fled to the Capital with all the family wealth, and that the Crown Prince had no intention of marrying her, the Liao family clan would certainly take her back to Hanba Prefecture to avoid implicating the whole clan. The outcome that awaited her was unspeakable.
No! She had painstakingly planned everything. She could not accept it all falling apart like this! She couldn’t bear it!
Clearly, Wet Nurse Zhou was having second thoughts. She truly loved her mistress, but her own children and grandchildren lived on the Liao family’s estate in Hanba Prefecture. If the Liao Family Clan found out that she accompanied her mistress to the Capital, they would surely not spare her children and grandchildren.
What was most important was that the words of the Crown Princess Consort were not unreasonable. Upon reflection, she also realized she had never heard the Master or Mistress speak of this marriage agreement. Could the mistress be lying? But considering all the hardships the mistress endured to travel to the Capital, even risking her own reputation, she did not seem to be lying.
Was the marriage agreement real or not?
Yang Mengchen shook her head slightly and elegantly ate a piece of fruit from the jade plate.
This was an ancient time under imperial rule, where everything was naught but illusion before absolute power. If it were not for her unwillingness to kill without good reason, and if she did not harbor suspicions about Liao Zhiyan, even if she killed Liao Zhiyan now, no one would dare to utter a word.
The crowd echoed in agreement.
While it was common to seek the lady of the house in such matters, given that women are generally softer-hearted, the situation of the Crown Princess Consort was special. If by chance she was stressed and it affected her pregnancy or led to some mishap, wouldn’t Liao Zhiyan become the prime culprit?
Sister Jin still refused to let go of Liao Zhiyan: "I have been with the Empress Dowager for over twenty years and have never seen a legitimate daughter of an official family, who instead of being content with her position as mistress of a household, degrades herself by coveting another woman’s husband. Failing to properly teach her own daughter, it inevitably leads one to question how Prefect Liao is able to govern Hanba Prefecture."
"When the guard from the Crown Prince’s side came for Ms. Liao, I personally heard the guard say that the Crown Prince, remembering her life-saving grace, asked the Emperor to bestow upon her the title of County Lord, and to arrange a good marriage for her. The Crown Prince would also prepare a generous dowry," declared someone out loud.
"I heard it too, the guard definitely said as much," another person promptly concurred.
"What woman wouldn’t want to be the mistress of a household? To instead covet someone else’s husband is truly shameless!" a scornful female voice suddenly exclaimed.
"Exactly, and she’s a legitimate daughter of an official family, not even as good as us common women," evidently it was a civilian girl talking.
"Could the marriage agreement she mentioned be fake?" This voice clearly rang out for all around to hear.
"That’s not impossible. After all, the difference between the Crown Prince and a Prince is like heaven and earth. If she married the Crown Prince, she’d become the future Empress, the Mother of the Nation. Maybe that’s why she showed up only after the Crown Prince’s status stabilized," remarked a voice pointedly.
Upon thinking it over, the crowd found the point very reasonable and nodded in agreement.
In an instant, the eyes of the people around Liao Zhiyan were filled with hatred and anger; even those who had previously looked upon Liao Zhiyan favorably and sympathetically stood opposed, their expressions entirely changed.
They had thought Liao Zhiyan to be a gentle girl, a victim. They never expected that she was so deeply scheming, shameless, and probably fabricated the marriage agreement just to become Empress. Indeed, you can know someone’s face, but not their heart.
Some quick-witted individuals took this further, speculating that maybe even the life-saving grace had its own mysteries. After all, it was during a time of war that the Crown Prince happened to visit that remote estate, resulting in Liao Zhiyan saving him.
It must be said that these people naturally leaned towards conspiracy theories, but unwittingly, they were coming close to the truth.
Yang Mengchen, with a keen ear, detected the two doubting voices distinctly coming from the trusted guards of Prince De and Meng Jinghui. She smiled slightly, touched inside. Even without blood ties, they truly cherished and protected her, unwilling to see her wronged in the slightest. How could she not be moved?
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