"Madame Sun’s trusted old woman is greedy. I bribed her with fifty taels of silver and she agreed to help me get in touch with the personal maid of the third house of the Song family, who happens to be her own niece and is quite easy-going. So, I sent Xiaochaihu over to the prefecture city. Xiaochaihu promised the little maid a reward of one hundred taels, and the maid agreed to help us find out about the Song family." Xiaoyu reported.
Xin He glanced at the envelope Xiaoyu handed over, which contained some information obtained by Xiaochaihu from the little maid.
From this information, it seems that the little maid is quite gossipy. Most of her chats were complaints. After carefully reading it three times, Ji Xinhe finally grasped some key information.
Xin He’s eyebrows furrowed slightly, a glint of confusion in her eyes.
Mu Houchu asked, "What’s wrong?"
Xin He handed the envelope to him, "According to the statement from this little maid, the Song family are quite discordant internally, and not as simple as we thought. Not only is there unrest in the rear houses, but also the differences between the different houses in the Song family are quite large."
Mu Houchu scanned the letter and said solemnly, "So it seems that even between the main branch and the second branch in the capital, despite being siblings, the animosity seems quite significant."
"Yes, especially on the issue of marrying into the royal line. The attitude of Patriarch Song is negative towards this marriage, but the second elder Song is keen on allying with the royal family. That’s why there’s been discord between the two of them recently. However, as Patriarch Song is in the capital city, he can’t control much." said Xin He.
After thinking for a moment, Marquis Mu spoke, "This main branch of the Song family is really quite peculiar."
They rejected an alliance with the royal family, abandoned the support of the Emperor, sent their young son to Yu State, and made clandestine overtures to him, everything seemed unbelievable. And yet, there were no slips or giveaways from the main branch of the Song family.
This was the first time Marquis Mu was facing a situation he found difficult to judge, or rather, a situation difficult to comprehend with normal thinking.
Xin He said, "Actually, I think that the abnormal behavior of the main branch of the Song family doesn’t necessarily mean they have an ulterior motive. You don’t need to be overly cautious, this path is very beneficial for us."
Mu Houchu nodded, "I know, I’m just mulling it over."
He continued, "However, if the second branch of the Song family indeed form an alliance through marriage with the Great Prince, things can get really complicated. If the main branch of the Song family stands with us but the second branch stands with the royal family, who knows if they’re putting on a show together, trying to keep both sides happy?"
Xin He’s eyebrows furrowed, "That’s also a possibility."
One could say, sometimes Marquis Mu really thought things through meticulously.
Seeing her frown this much in thought, Marquis Mu helplessly pinched her face, "Don’t think too much. I’ll keep an eye on this, you don’t need to overwhelm yourself."
"I know!" Xin He suddenly reacted as if remembering something, "But speaking of the marriage alliance between the second house of the Song family and the Great Prince, I doubt it will work out."
"You are referring to the Great Prince’s affairs at the brothel?" Mu Houchu laughed and shook his head, "These matters have no impact on a family alliance. For such an alliance, mutual benefits are the focus. Who cares about these affairs? A courtesan wouldn’t make a difference."
However, Ji Xinhe felt differently. As a woman, she thought that the Great Prince being foolish for a woman could potentially create some surprise events. Even if there are no surprises, they could take advantage of it and create some.
With this idea in mind, Ji Xinhe decided to go to the brothel tomorrow.
"What are you thinking about again?"
Xin He grinned, "Nothing."
Looking at her like this, it seemed like she was definitely not planning anything good.
Mu Houchu pinched her nose, "Can you relax a little bit? Our child has a mother who’s so anxious, isn’t that pathetic?"
Xin He responded testily, "The more I think now, the more intelligent our child will be in the future!"
With that, she touched her own belly, with a wide grin, "Isn’t that right, baby?"
"You and your twisted logic..." he sighed.
——
A few days ago, Marquis Mu told Ji Xinhe that he had dumped all the blame on Duan Lan.
Today, it really happened as such.
Unwilling to take the blame again, the Emperor ordered a strict investigation by the Dali Temple and even the Empress Dowager in the palace sealed off the Inner Palace, initiating a thorough investigation. Ultimately, the real culprit behind the poisoning was identified.
It wasn’t the Emperor’s man. It wasn’t Mu Houchu’s man. It was Duan Lan’s man.
Furious, the Emperor summoned Duan Lan to the palace and was almost incensed enough to execute him on the spot.
Duan Lan remained silent from beginning to end, with his only statement being that he was not involved in this event.
But would the Emperor believe this? Enraged, the Emperor was close to flipping the table and ordered Duan Lan’s demotion from all his positions, even downgrading his official rank by three levels. The capital was abuzz with noise.
The Emperor no longer wished to see Duan Lan, putting him outside the Golden Throne Hall, where he kneeled for a day and a night.
Seeing the increasingly pale complexion of their young master, Qingyun could no longer bear it and gently advised, "Young Master, let’s go back. If you continue like this, you might faint from exhaustion! The Emperor is probably just angry for the moment. Perhaps he will come around in a few days?"
However, Duan Lan remained silent, kneeling upright even though his face was deathly pale.
The Emperor is suspicious. He may suspect that Duan Lan did this, but he would also suspect that Duan Lan was framed. Duan Lan understood the Emperor’s personality, which is why he made this final struggle. He had to at least retrieve something for himself after losing this gamble.
He could not admit defeat!
Because he still could not accept his defeat! He did not want to know why the poisoner suddenly became his subordinate now, because he knew Marquis Mu must have had a hand in this. Once again, he had lost this time.
Where is the so-called truth? The truth is for the winner to determine.
If today was a loss for Marquis Mu, then he, Duan Lan, would be the one determining the truth.
However...
Duan Lan bit his teeth in anger, his eyes filled with fierceness - Marquis Mu, I will never let this feud go!
——
"Minister Duan kneeled outside the Golden Throne Hall for a day and a night, fell unconscious due to exhaustion, and woke up after three days. As soon as he woke up, he went to the palace to resign his position, but the emperor has not responded to this matter yet." Ling Feng reported the situation in the capital.
However, Marquis Mu sneered, "He first used the victim’s trap, then adopted a retreat for progress strategy. Minister Duan’s tactics have certainly improved."
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