Gan Qiongying knew that she had hurt the Regent, and that man-eating flower in the palace would definitely go crazy, but so what?
Now that all the hatred is directed at her, Princess Hui'an won't be pursued by the man-eating flowers, and it will also divert some attention from Gan Lin.
Lice don't itch when they're plentiful, and debts don't bother you when you're burdened. What is Gan Qiongying afraid of?
The man-eating flower has been poisoning Gan Lin for years and still wants to poison her. Even if Gan Qiongying doesn't shoot arrows at the Regent and instead kneels on the ground to lick him, does that mean the man-eating flower won't harm them?
Anyway, they're all vital organs, so nobody's going to get away with this. You poison my brother, I'll shoot your son.
We should all feel sorry for each other.
As long as she doesn't shoot the Regent to death here today, no one can do anything to her. In any case, she is a genuine princess.
Upon hearing that the Dali Temple had intervened, the people present quickly forgot about criticizing Gan Qiongying and became extremely anxious. Even if one was innocent, going to that place would be extremely difficult, let alone the fact that they had just fought each other and disrupted the birthday banquet.
Seeing that these people's arrogance had finally subsided, Gan Qiongying instructed the guard from earlier to handle the remaining matters, and then called the old steward to go together to the sleeping quarters of the Grand Princess Huian.
To make the performance convincing, Gan Qiongying actually had people from the Dali Temple come to investigate, since the matter had little to do with her anyway.
She also knew that the Empress Dowager and the Regent held immense power in the court, and the Dali Temple might not be entirely outside their territory. However, there were still several members of the imperial family in the Dali Temple, and they had a lot of influence. After all, the Grand Princess Huian was the head of the imperial family. No matter how much they feared the Regent, they still had to get things done.
In the end, this matter will definitely just be a mess. Even if someone gets hurt, it will be some young masters from less favored aristocratic families. Their families won't seek justice for them; they'll only complain that they've brought shame and disgrace to their families.
Gan Qiongying had no intention of actually pursuing the matter to any conclusion; she just wanted to gloss over it.
When Gan Qiongying arrived at the courtyard of the Grand Princess Hui'an, the Grand Princess Hui'an was still unconscious. Gan Qiongying waited in the outer room, hoping that the Grand Princess Hui'an would wake up, and also comforted Gan Huiyue, who was sitting next to her with swollen eyes from crying.
Fortunately, Princess Huian's emotions had stabilized. After waking up, she drank some medicine, but she was still too weak to sit up and leaned against the soft pillow.
She had already heard Aunt Wumei recount in detail what had happened outside, so she called Gan Qiongying in. Upon seeing Gan Qiongying's disheveled hair and torn skirt, Princess Hui'an immediately burst into tears, her eyes reddening.
She held Gan Qiongying's hand and said, "You have injured the Regent this time, so you must be more careful in the future."
Even though Princess Hui'an was unaware of the shady dealings between the Regent and Kou Ning'an, she knew that the Regent was no pushover.
Princess Hui'an understood perfectly well that Gan Qiongying intervened because she feared that if anyone at the birthday banquet caused a death tonight, the situation would be difficult to resolve.
“It’s alright, Aunt,” Gan Qiong said in a relaxed tone, patting Princess Hui’an’s hand. “Aunt, please rest well and don’t worry too much.”
Gan Qiongying hesitated for a moment, but in the end she did not tell the Grand Princess Huian about the private matter between the Regent and the Empress Dowager.
She wanted to use Princess Hui'an, but not to harm her. If Princess Hui'an really knew everything, she would definitely not sit idly by.
If the Grand Princess of Hui'an were to confront the Empress Dowager, it would inevitably result in mutual destruction. Gan Qiongying had no intention of seizing power, so she swallowed the matter after it had been on her mind.
Princess Hui'an looked at Gan Qiongying with worry in her eyes, "It's so dangerous for a young lady like you to be wielding those bows and arrows. I heard that they even hit the hostage from Jinchuan and the regent. I was terrified when I heard that."
Gan Qiongying smiled and said, "Don't worry, Aunt, I'm used to it."
She spoke so naturally, yet it was heartbreaking: "If I don't provoke the Regent, do you think he'll tolerate me? And what is that Jin Chuan hostage anyway?"
Gan Qiongying's tone was just as arrogant as the real Princess Duanrong's, which convinced Grand Princess Huian that she disliked the Jinchuan hostage and was not trying to use her to achieve any purpose.
Their relationship has grown even closer without them even realizing it.
"Aunt, please don't worry. However, after this, the clans in the entire capital may be somewhat hostile towards me. After all, I have sent all their young masters to the Dali Temple, and I will not be able to visit your residence for a while."
Gan Qiongying held Princess Hui'an's hands in both of hers and pressed them against her forehead, which seemed like she was being coquettish, but was actually more of a pleading act.
Upon hearing this, Princess Hui'an raised her hand to cover her face and hide her tears, but she couldn't help crying, and her shoulders were trembling slightly.
Gan Qiongying reached out to wipe away the tears of the Grand Princess Hui'an, and hesitated before speaking again, "Aunt, you must have heard about what happened to those young masters from noble families today."
Princess Hui'an took Gan Qiongying's handkerchief and wiped her own tears, calming her breathing. "I've heard about it. You really can't tell from everyday life... They all seem like good children."
Gan Qiongying snorted coldly: "The Nanzhao aristocratic families are corrupt and ignorant. What good things can they produce? They're all just animals inside, stripped of their human skin. I didn't even see them fighting like a pack of mad dogs."
“Now all those scions of noble families are in the Dali Temple, and everyone will be punished, whether lightly or heavily,” she said, looking at the face of the Grand Princess Huian. “I know that the reason my aunt is holding such a grand birthday banquet is to find a suitable husband for Huiyue.”
Gan Qiongying thought for a moment about how to phrase it, but finally said directly, "It really won't work. Auntie, please don't try to find a husband for Huiyue in the cesspool."
Princess Hui'an was dignified and virtuous throughout her life, and few people would speak such rude words to her.
But when she heard Gan Qiongying say that, she was not angry at all, but thought that she was just being genuine.
"Yes, this matter will have to be put on hold for now." Grand Princess Huian sighed deeply. Although she was disappointed, there was nothing she could do.
She pulled Gan Huiyue over from beside her, and then took Gan Qiongying's hand, placing their hands together in a clasp.
Then, looking at her granddaughter with loving eyes, she said, "Thanks to your aunt, I was able to see the true colors of those people. If nothing had happened today, wouldn't I have entrusted you to the wrong person? You should thank your aunt."
Huiyue was also very sensible. With her eyes red and swollen, she looked at Gan Qiongying, held her hand tightly, and thanked her softly, "Thank you, Auntie."
Gan Qiongying readily agreed. Suddenly being promoted to aunt, she was overjoyed, feeling that her beloved granddaughter was close to her. It was clear that the Grand Princess of Hui'an truly treated her as family.
For a time, the family was filled with joy and harmony.
Princess Hui'an was still exhausted and needed to rest after speaking so much. Gan Qiongying and Gan Huiyue then withdrew outside the hall.
As soon as Gan Huiyue stepped out of the palace gate, she couldn't hold back her tears. She had been holding them back inside, afraid that her obvious reaction would upset her grandmother even more, and had managed to suppress them until now.
Upon seeing this, Gan Qiongying immediately patted Gan Huiyue on the back and led her to sit down in the corridor.
She has a younger sister who is about the same age as her. She knows how to soothe children and is quite good at it. She quickly became close to Gan Huiyue.
Seeing the tense atmosphere, Gan Qiongying immediately brightened things up, saying, "There are plenty of fish in the sea, what's so great about a bunch of bastards?"
She patted her chest and assured her, "You're still young, this can't be rushed. You'll find a good husband eventually. Your aunt will find one for you."
This statement is truly empty talk; how could Gan Qiongying possibly know any promising young talents?
The only man she knew who could be considered a promising young talent was her beloved God of Wealth; the rest of the men, apart from the guards around her, were the male concubines in her harem.
She just wanted Gan Huiyue not to rush into marriage, and not to end up like in the drama, being hurt by the son of the Vice Minister of Revenue and then marrying an abusive man.
Such a lovely girl shouldn't have had to go through that.
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