Princess Caifeng was not badly hit. It was just a little scratch at most. Even though Ling Mingyan was rash, she was not a fool. As such, the two carriages bumped into each other slightly. Furthermore, she had been knocked down and fainted. On the surface, the two carriages had collided accidentally, and she, Marquess Mingguo’s wife, was more gravely injured.
But in fact, Princess Caifeng’s injury was more serious than hers, because the princess’s face was scratched. It could be imagined how important the face was to an unmarried girl. Originally, Princess Caifeng wanted to use this face to attract Feng Yuran’s attention, but now there was a scratch from the corner of her right eye to the corner of her mouth on her face. The long scar ruined her overall beauty. Although it was not deep, the physician said that she had to rest for at least a month and be very careful with her diet to ensure that it would not leave a scar on her face.
Princess Caifeng, who was proud and arrogant and had wanted to be Consort Xuan, could not bear it. She smashed almost all the things in the yard. Then, she screamed, took away the palace maids beside her and beat them up. Later she sat among the fragments all over the ground, gritted her teeth, and slowly calmed down.
Princess Caifeng had grown up in the imperial harem, so she had seen many incidents like this one! The consorts in the imperial harem had gotten the Emperor’s favor just because of their good looks. When the other consorts could not bear to see one rise, they would plot various accidents and disfigure her face that the Emperor cherished. Just like what happened today, it could not just be an accident.
Since it was her first time to come to the capital, she had deliberately asked the coachman to slow down the pace. How could she crash into another carriage at such a slow speed? Moreover, she was knocked out of the carriage and fell to the ground, where a bamboo pole with a pointed end was erected!
What a coincidence! It was so coincidental that she knew she had been set up without even thinking about it. Furthermore, the person who had set her up was definitely Consort Yan. Marquess Mingguo’s wife was just her sister-in-law!
“Qianyue, have you looked into the matter?” Princess Caifeng asked with a gloomy face after she ordered the palace maids who were cleaning up the broken pieces to leave.
“I have sent someone to investigate it and also sent some people to confirm with Crown Prince. Marquess Mingguo’s wife is from a great family. She is the legitimate daughter of Ding General. The Empress and Empress Dowager of the Qin Kingdom are both from Ding General Manor. She is a descendant of a famous Empress’s family and is very noble.”
Hu Qianyue carefully lifted her dress and skillfully sidestepped the fragments at her feet. She sat down on a stool beside her and told her what she had found out while the imperial physician was dealing with Princess Caifeng’s wound.
The pain on Princess Caifeng’s face frequently reminded her that the woman had plotted against her. “What’s that woman’s name?” she asked through gritted teeth.
“Ling Mingyan, the eldest legitimate daughter of Ding General, the niece of the Empress, and the grand-niece of the Empress Dowager,” Hu Qianyue replied, briskly raising her eyebrows. “This woman’s identity is even nobler than an ordinary princess in the Qin Kingdom.”
“So what? I’ll definitely give her a hard time.” Princess Caifeng wanted nothing more than for Ling Mingyan to appear in front of her right now and she would tear her apart.
“Your Highness, how do you want to deal with her? Her current status is different from ordinary people. Besides, her carriage just collided with yours. If something happens to her, everyone will suspect you. After all, we are in the Qin Kingdom now, and we don’t have enough manpower to use. On the one hand, we have to deal with Consort Xuan, and on the other hand, we have to deal with Ling Mingyan. It’s sort of difficult for us.”
Hu Qianyue thought for a moment and said awkwardly. As Princess Caifeng’s close friend, she certainly knew her character. On the surface, she looked gentle and generous, but in fact, she was never a generous person. At this time, she would not suffer such a private loss.
“Put aside the matter about Consort Xuan for now. Anyway, they say that woman is seriously ill. You said just now that she can’t even get out of bed. Maybe she dies at some time. We’re not in a hurry to deal with her.” Princess Caifeng covered the wound on her face as her face darkened. She did not want King Xuan to see her face now that she was injured. She was afraid that she would leave him a bad impression. She had to wait for a month for her face to completely recover before she let King Xuan see her and be mesmerized by her beauty and then take a fancy to her. If Consort Xuan had not died then, it would not be too late for her to take action.
“If King Yan and Consort Yan come to see me, invite them to my room and tell that I am injured and not in the mood to come out and meet people.”
“Your Highness, do you want to discuss it with Crown Prince first?” Hu Qianyue immediately caught on what Princess Caifeng meant, but she still asked worriedly in a low voice.
“No, don’t have to tell Elder Brother first. Anyway, Father said that I only need to pick one of the sons of the Great Qin’s Emperor. I have not decided yet, so I feel like observing them and chatting with them one by one. Elder Brother will not judge. Furthermore, Consort Yan dared to plot against me. Elder Brother is very angry this time and has sent me a few more guards.”
Princess Caifeng was very satisfied when she thought of how highly her elder brother thought of her. Her elder brother had always been distant to others, but he was so infuriated by this incident that he had sent several of his guards to her. Princess Caifeng was very grateful for this gesture of his. She had thought that her elder brother did not care about anything. But unexpectedly, he actually cared about her. As such, she felt that she was more confident in getting back at You Yue’e.
“Also, since Elder Brother has sent someone to Mingguo Manor to question Marquess Mingguo’s wife, the Emperor of the Qin Kingdom will definitely give me an explanation. No matter what, I am still representing the Southern Barbarian Lands. Furthermore, Elder Brother is also backing me up. But if that woman thought that apology alone would do after she crashed into my carriage, she shouldn’t even think about it. I will not let her live a peaceful life now that she’s hurt me! So what if she is from the Empress’s family? The current Empress has never had a prince.”
Princess Caifeng sneered. When an Empress had never given birth to a prince, she would not have much power. All the Emperor’s women in the palace attached great importance to their son. Even though she was the noble Empress, so what? Before she came here, Princess Caifeng already heard that the Empress treated King Yan very well and took him as her own son.
Princess Caifeng discussed the details with Hu Qianyue. She gritted her teeth and swore that she would teach You Yue’e and Ling Mingyan a lesson.
In Mingguo Manor…
Ling Mingyan stood timidly in You Yuecheng’s study and explained tearfully, “I… I just want to avenge Yue’e. I can’t bear to see that woman bully her like that.”
You Yuecheng’s face darkened and the veins on his forehead twitched. He paced back and forth, then came to Ling Mingyan and said hatefully, “Then, you intentionally collided with Princess Caifeng’s carriage and scratched her face so that she would not have a chance to enter King Yan’s Manor.”
“I… I was helping Yue’e!” Ling Mingyan explained stubbornly. She looked up and felt that she was not wrong at all. However, under You Yuecheng’s fierce glare, she could not help but lower her head and her voice. Tears welled up in her eyes but didn’t drop. She was just being kind to help You Yue’e vent her anger. When she happened to see Princess Caifeng’s carriage coming over, her carriage slightly collided with hers. She did not do anything else to her. Furthermore, she had “fainted” herself. She was hurt more seriously than Princess Caifeng. Why was he scolding her?
“Are you feeling wronged? Do you think that you are helping Yue’e? Yue’e has a high status. If she is really unhappy, won’t she get back at that princess herself? But you just have to be the one who couldn’t bear it. Do you also think that I can’t have another woman since I married you? Ling Mingyan, you are also a noble lady. Haven’t you read ‘Classics for Women’?”
You Yuecheng was furious when he saw that she didn’t regret it at all and couldn’t admit her wrongdoing. He regretted that he didn’t withstand the pressure and refuse to marry her. When he thought that he almost could marry that other woman if not for her, he felt an inexplicable hatred in his heart. He looked at Ling Mingyan with even more disgust in his eyes, and his words were overbearing and merciless.
“I, that’s not what I think. I was just helping Yue’e…” Ling Mingyan almost could not speak when You Yuecheng shot such a nasty look at her.
“Thank you for your help. If you really want to help her, please be really injured now. Don’t let others smell anything fishy.” You Yuecheng took a deep breath and suddenly calmed down. He interrupted Ling Mingyan and walked slowly to her. Looking her up and down, he said coldly, “What did you ask the servants to say when you hit her?”
“Say… say that I was hit on the forehead and fainted!” Ling Mingyan took two steps back subconsciously.
You Yuecheng looked at her head and asked, “Hit which part on your forehead?”
“It’s… it’s here.” Ling Mingyan casually pointed at her forehead. She was talking nonsense by then, so she didn’t remember these details. She replied subconsciously. When she saw You Yuecheng approaching a few steps closer, she couldn’t help but step back and ask uneasily, “What, what are you up to?”
“Princess Caifeng is a princess sent by the Southern Barbarian Lands to marry one of those princes. She is disfigured now. What do you think will happen if this matter is brought up to the Emperor?” You Yuecheng uttered coldly.
“His Majesty will not do anything to me. And Aunt Empress will protect me.” Ling Mingyan trembled at his cold look as she still tried to defend herself, but her voice became lower and lower.
“Does the Empress value you or King Yan?” You Yuecheng did not intend to let her off the hook.
Needless to say, conceited as Ling Mingyan was, she knew that King Yan was the only one who could support the Empress. She stuttered, “His Highness King Yan!”
“If she has to choose between you and King Yan, who do you think the Empress will choose?” You Yuecheng put his hands behind his back and walked to his desk. He sat down and picked up a glaze brush washer beside him. Then with a cold expression, he handed it to Ling Mingyan who had just cottoned on. “You’d better do it yourself!”
“I…” Ling Mingyan’s face immediately turned pale and her hands trembled. She felt that her wrist was too heavy to hold up.
“Do you want to force His Majesty to come to our place and involve both Mingguo Manor and Ding General Manor in this? Or do you want to say that King Yan planned to marry Princess Caifeng, but you did this trick after seeing Younger Sister was unhappy? If the two countries start a war because of this, are you going to be the sacrificial offering?” You Yuecheng stuffed the brush washer in Ling Mingyan’s hand coldly.
Ling Mingyan was indeed arrogant and domineering, but there was a prerequisite for that—she knew that others could not do anything to her. However, what about now? Now, for the first time, she felt that the previous protection she had enjoyed could no longer protect her. From You Yuecheng’s words, she realized that she not only recklessly did something terrible, but also ruined King Yan’s plan. She might even lead the trouble to Mingguo Manor.
You Yuecheng stood up and cast a harsh glance at her, as if he didn’t see her pale face. “Hurry up. Maybe His Majesty’s messenger will come soon. If you want to muddle through with a fake injury, it’s a crime of deceiving the Emperor. Mingguo Manor can’t afford it, neither can Ding General Manor,” he urged sinisterly.
Then he turned around and stomped out. No sooner did he reach the door that he heard a heavy thud and then the sound of a heavy object falling to the ground behind him. He turned around and saw Ling Mingyan’s pale and delicate forehead bleeding. She fell down slowly and looked at him pitifully. Then, her look turned painful when he turned around and left in a cold and calm manner…
