The group returned to the temple. Shangguan Yan and Xiao Zhenting were husband and wife. There was nothing wrong with the two of them bringing their daughter-in-law out.
The Ninth Princess woke up halfway as she was shaken awake by Yu Wan.
Yu Wan said solemnly, “What you saw in the wooden hut today is a secret between me and you. Princess, can you not tell anyone?”
‘ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ᴡᴀɴᴛ ᴛᴏ ʀᴇᴀᴅ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs, ᴘʟᴇᴀsᴇ ᴠɪsɪᴛ Novel-(B)in.ᴄᴏᴍ ᴛᴏ ᴇxᴘᴇʀɪᴇɴᴄᴇ ꜰᴀsᴛᴇʀ ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ sᴘᴇᴇᴅ.’,
The Ninth Princess nodded blankly.
“Pinky promise.” Yu Wan stretched out her little finger.
The Ninth Princess loved to play this and happily made a pinky promise with her cousin-in-law.
Actually, Lady Wan of Bright Deportment could make the Emperor a cuckold, but that man could not be Xiao Zhenting. The Emperor was already afraid of Xiao Zhenting. When he found out that his favored concubine still had feelings for him, he would probably be jealous and kill him.
Yu Wan led the Ninth Princess to greet the Empress.
The Empress took her delicate daughter. “I was worried that something had happened to you in the forest during the thunderstorm just now.”
The Ninth Princess lay crooked in the Empress’s arms.
“Did you have fun?” The Empress asked dotingly.
The Ninth Princess and her cousin-in-law looked at each other and smiled. “Yes!”
Yu Wan read her eyes. The little girl had a pinky promise with her, so she would not tell anyone their secret.
The Empress nodded in relief. “I heard that Lady Wan of Bright Deportment also went to pick fruits and got separated from the female emissary. Did you meet her?”
“No,” Yu Wan said.
The Ninth Princess also shook her head. Even if the Empress didn’t believe her, she had to believe Little Nine. She sighed. “She’s been out for so long. I wonder if there’s anything wrong.”
An hour later, Emissary Cui reported, “Your Highness, Lady Wan of Bright Deportment has been found.”
However, the situation was not good. The maidservant found Lady Wan of Bright Deportment in the ditch that led to the grape forest. The ditch was filled with thorns, and Lady Wan of Bright Deportment was stabbed all over. More importantly, her face was also injured. To the Emperor’s concubines, this was almost a death sentence.
The Emperor returned from the abbot’s residence. When he found out about this, he went to the meditation room to visit Lady Wan of Bright Deportment.
Lady Wan of Bright Deportment was seriously injured.
The Empress blamed herself in front of her bed. “It’s all my fault for being careless. I didn’t know that Lady Wan of Bright Deportment had gone to the forest. If I had known earlier, I would have sent guards to follow her.”
The Empress seemed to be blaming herself, but she was actually telling the Emperor that Lady Wan of Bright Deportment had gone out behind her back. The entire matter had nothing to do with her.
The Emperor hated the Empress’s petty tricks, but this matter was indeed not the Empress’s fault. Not only did Lady Wan of Bright Deportment hide it from the Empress, but she also sent the female emissary away. He simply did not know what she wanted to do.
Could it be that she was committing suicide? The Emperor was depressed.
Lady Wan of Bright Deportment did not have any children. Whether she was favored or not was not a big threat to the Empress, but it was also a good thing if there was one less concubine.
The Empress called over the two imperial physicians. “Imperial physicians, you must treat Lady Wan of Bright Deportment’s injuries so that she can recover and serve His Majesty as soon as possible.” I dare you to treat her! I’ll execute your entire family!
The two imperial physicians trembled.
Everyone rested in the temple for the night. The next day, the Emperor personally served the Everlasting Lamp to the Empress Dowager. Then, the group went to the scripture hall to listen to the abbot recite the scriptures for the entire day.
The Emperor seemed to have been baptized in his soul. When he went down the mountain, he was as light as a swallow and in high spirits.
The women were also preparing to go down the mountain. What was worth mentioning was that there was a small incident at the main entrance of the temple before they went down the mountain—after the abbot sent the Empress off, he inadvertently saw Yu Wan holding hands with the Ninth Princess.
The abbot’s gaze landed on Yu Wan without blinking.
The Empress said pleasantly, “That’s the Prince Yan Manor’s Princely Heir Consort. Abbot, you have been looking at her, is there something wrong with her?”
The abbot shook his head. After a while, he said softly, “Indescribably noble.”
Although Yu Wan’s background was extremely poor, she had already married into the Yan Manor. It could be said that she had flown up the branch and become a phoenix, so she was naturally worthy of the words “indescribably noble”. Everyone smiled in their hearts and felt that this abbot’s words were so boring. They also knew how to say it better than him.
The group descended the mountain.
Shangguan Yan wanted to go to the manor to see her son. Xiao Zhenting first sent her and Yu Wan back to the Young Master Manor. Then, he used the time when Shangguan Yan visited Yan Jiuchao to tell Yu Wan what was inconvenient to say in the small wooden hut.
Yu Wan was in disbelief. “Princess of Nanzhao?”
Xiao Zhenting said seriously, “That’s right, that’s what she said. I don’t know how she found out, but she probably won’t lie to me.”
Yu Wan agreed deeply. Lady Wan of Bright Deportment’s greatest deception to Xiao Zhenting was to harm Yan Jiuchao. Now that she couldn’t even keep this secret, there was no need to hide anything else.
