Song Wanchu knew her position clearly. As the one asking for help, she had to be pious enough.
So she confessed frankly, "Lord Shi, the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, has received an order from the Crown Prince. He will lead people to search the Princess Chang's Mansion when the princess attends the Spring Welcoming Banquet tomorrow."
"Okay, I will surely cooperate with Lord Shi and prevent the mansion guards from confronting the Court of Judicial Review."
Song Wanchu was stunned.
She suddenly remembered Cheng Simian's sigh.
"It's really comfortable to deal with smart people."
Aunt Fang was just such a smart person. She could understand with just a hint.
But why?
Song Wanchu had even prepared to spend some effort on persuasion.
Was Aunt Fang betraying the Princess Chang so easily?
Qian'er, who was kneeling behind, inched forward a few steps and whispered in Song Wanchu's ear, "The Princess Chang wants to marry Aunt Fang off to Young Master Liang as a concubine to intimidate Miss Cheng and Miss Yu."
A huge wave of anger welled up in Song Wanchu's heart.
She said indignantly, "How could the Princess Chang humiliate Aunt Fang like this?"
Aunt Fang was filled with grief and indignation. She was also touched to tears by Song Wanchu's spontaneous outburst of righteousness.
Qian'er nodded in agreement, indignant. "You're right. Aunt Fang is a person of noble character. She has never intended to marry a man in her life. But for her own self - interest, the Princess Chang is pushing her into the fire pit. Others even think it's a great favor. If Aunt Fang refuses, they'll think she's ungrateful. Aunt Fang really has no way to express her bitterness."
Aunt Fang couldn't tell for a moment whether Qian'er was sincere or not.
She was the Crown Prince's spy. Usually, she seemed inconspicuous. In front of the Princess Chang, she was always appropriately smart and subtly intelligent.
It turned out that she was so good at observing people's expressions and saying things that hit the mark.
Song Wanchu gave Qian'er a smile.
Qian'er was helping her to strengthen Aunt Fang's determination.
Aunt Fang bowed three times more to the memorial tablet of the Empress Dowager.
When she got up, her eyes were firm.
"Don't worry, Aunt Fang. Sincerity begets sincerity. Since you've helped us, we won't let you be humiliated by Liang Yuchuan."
Aunt Fang whispered to the memorial tablet of the Empress Dowager, "Empress Dowager, this servant is finally going to let you down. This time, this servant is going to live for herself."
...
Liang Yuzhou was resting and meditating in the back - yard Buddhist temple.
Song Wanchu gently pushed the door open and came in.
"So soon?" Liang Yuzhou was rarely surprised.
"Yes, I didn't expect it to go so smoothly."
Song Wanchu gave a charming smile. "I had prepared a whole bunch of words to say, but in the end, I didn't use any of them. The Princess Chang is so heartless that even her most loyal servant, Aunt Fang, is going to betray her."
She told Liang Yuzhou about how the Princess Chang forced Aunt Fang to be Liang Yuchuan's concubine.
Liang Yuzhou's gaze turned colder. "Those who do evil to themselves will not be spared. Aunt Fang has no desires or longings. She served the Empress Dowager. Her character is noble. What she cares most about in her life is her dignity. The Princess Chang's humiliation of her is something she can never tolerate."
Did the Princess Chang know that she was already at the end of her rope?
Song Wanchu noticed another thing.
"Sure enough, there are many capable people around the Crown Prince."
"Are you talking about Qian'er?"
"Yes, she is. She looks only eighteen or nineteen years old, but she's better at observing people's expressions than those old - timers. She only said two sentences, but none of them was useless.
Aunt Fang wasn't surprised at all when she saw me in the Jingchan Temple. I guess it was Qian'er who told her in advance.
She probably didn't know about our original plan to sneak into the Princess Chang's Mansion. But the moment Aunt Fang was humiliated, she told her that we were also coming to the Jingchan Temple today. Without instructions, her ability to adapt is so strong.
If it weren't for her, today's meeting and conversation with Aunt Fang wouldn't have gone so smoothly."
Song Wanchu sighed. "Only such a person could be a spy safely under the Princess Chang's sharp eyes."
Liang Yuzhou smiled meaningfully. "This Qian'er is no ordinary maid. Her name is Jiang Qianyu. Her father used to be a seventh - rank official in charge of construction in the Ministry of Works. Although his official position was not high, he was very talented."
"She's a daughter of an official family. Then why is she willing to be a spy maid in the Princess Chang's Mansion?"
The daughter of a seventh - rank official in the capital is a proper official's daughter. Even if her family declined, she shouldn't have ended up as a maid.
"Her father was once ordered to supervise the renovation of the Princess Chang's Mansion. He submitted a memorial to the Emperor, saying that the floor tiles of the mansion were made of gold, which was too extravagant and might arouse public criticism.
The Princess Chang was angry and instructed Yu Jingnian, who was then the Minister of the Ministry of Works, to suppress Qian'er's father. Her father was depressed and turned to the Crown Prince for support. With the Crown Prince's backing, he exposed Yu Jingnian's embezzlement of the funds for river embankment repair, and Yu Jingnian was demoted.
To protect Qian'er's father, the Crown Prince transferred him out of the capital to serve as a local official. Jiang Qianyu wanted to secure a good future for her father, so she recommended herself to the Crown Prince to be his spy. The Crown Prince appreciated her intelligence and sent her into the palace first, and then the chief eunuch transferred her to the Princess Chang's Mansion.
The Princess Chang is so arrogant that she probably never thought of checking the background of an unremarkable maid. Jiang Qianyu is good at hiding her abilities. She has been a spy for four years, and most of the information from the Princess Chang's Mansion has been passed on by her. The Princess Chang has never suspected her."
Song Wanchu recalled Qian'er's appearance carefully.
She had a plain round face, and her eyes were also round and bright. At first glance, she looked like a naive girl without much scheming.
But with a flicker of her eyes, a hint of intelligence would show.
She could speak well but didn't talk too much. She knew how to judge the situation and when to speak for the best effect.
Saying she was unremarkable was just because she knew how to hide.
"Once the Princess Chang falls from power, Qian'er will be a meritorious official. She will surely have a place beside the Crown Prince in the future."
Song Wanchu smiled knowingly. "The reason she gave for wanting a good future for her father is just an excuse to make the Crown Prince trust her. A woman who is willing to take risks for a man and lie in hiding for so many years at the risk of her life can't do it without deep love."
"Yes, the Crown Prince won't treat her badly."
Song Wanchu suddenly thought of Mianmian again.
The Taoist priest Qiu said that Mianmian was an outstanding girl rare to find in a thousand years. With her qualifications, she was more than qualified to be the queen.
The Crown Prince also needed a calm, wise, and decisive queen like Mianmian to assist him.
But Mianmian seemed to have no interest in love at all.
Even if the Crown Prince had fallen in love with her and promised her the position of the Crown Princess, Mianmian would surely refuse decisively.
With her noble aspirations, how could she be willing to serve a husband with other women?
At the Cheng family, the engagement banquet was in full swing.
The male guests were in the outer hall, and separated by a screen, the female guests were gathered in the inner hall.
Liang Yuchuan was being flattered by the guests and was very proud.
The Princess Chang said that at the Spring Welcoming Banquet tomorrow, she would ask the Emperor in person to issue an imperial edict to confer the title of the heir apparent.
So what if Liang Yuzhou had come back? He had heartlessly cut off his ties with the Duke's Mansion, and his father hated him to the core.
Even though he had offered his heart - blood for his father, his father still didn't say he wanted to see him.
His father always favored him.
Once he became the heir apparent, the first thing he would do was to trample on Liang Yuzhou's dignity severely.
He was happily planning.
In the inner hall, Cheng Siyi was dressed in a bright red brocade dress with her head full of jewelry. She looked extremely magnificent.
She held a glass of wine and came to Cheng Simian.
"Elder sister, thank you for your self - sacrifice so that I can have such a good marriage. You've worked hard to organize this engagement banquet for me. I'd like to toast you."
Cheng Simian looked at the fragrant wine in her hand, and a faint smile played on her lips.