Yu Huiyan was determined to see how Song Wanchu would make her choice.
Why should she be miserable and downcast while Song Wanchu could enjoy glory and honor?
The Princess of Jiahe quickly motioned for Nanny Gao to step forward and pull Yu Huiyan away.
"Huiyan, didn't we agree last night? This is an act of disrespect to the princess! Let go of the princess's dress quickly!"
A sarcastic arc curled up at the corner of Yu Huiyan's mouth.
Look, this was the aunt who always claimed to love her dearly.
Now that Song Wanchu's status had risen, she regarded Song Wanchu as noble.
If she touched Song Wanchu's dress, it was considered an insult to her.
She just wanted to insult her.
Nanny Gao tugged hard at Yu Huiyan's arm, but she just refused to let go.
The Princess of Jiahe got anxious. Her face turned ashen, and she felt extremely embarrassed. "Today is a great happy day for the Duke's Mansion. Are you out of your mind? Or are you deliberately causing trouble?"
A great happy day?
Yu Huiyan sneered inwardly. She just wouldn't let Song Wanchu have an easy time.
Looking at Song Wanchu in a dilemma, she felt a twisted sense of pleasure.
The old lady's face darkened. Looking at the Princess of Jiahe, she said in a dissatisfied tone, "She's already married, and the person she married has nothing to do with our Duke's Mansion anymore. You were so kind - hearted to take her in. Aren't you tired of having her disgrace our Duke's Mansion?"
The Princess of Jiahe's face flushed and paled alternately. She felt so ashamed that she was at a loss for words.
But in the end, she couldn't bear to see Yu Huiyan fall into a den of wolves. She argued in a low voice, "That brute Liang Yuchuan doesn't treat Huiyan like a human being at all. No matter how bad Huiyan is, I can't just watch her lose her life at Liang Yuchuan's hands..."
"Your Highness has treated Yu Huiyan whole - heartedly. But do you know how Yu Huiyan has treated you?"
A cold and calm voice fell into Yu Huiyan's ears. She was stunned for a moment, then looked up with a mixture of joy and sorrow.
Liang Yuzhou strode over.
Just now, when Li Luxiang came to read the imperial edict, since he was no longer a member of the Duke's Mansion, he had stepped aside.
"Cousin..."
Yu Huiyan couldn't help but call out. Her whole body was getting hot, and she stared blankly at Liang Yuzhou, her eyes shining with hope.
But when she met Liang Yuzhou's cold gaze, the blood that had just boiled in her body instantly cooled and solidified.
There was simply no place for her in Liang Yuzhou's eyes.
He just glanced at her, as if looking at something unimportant. His gaze didn't stay on her face for even a moment.
Liang Yuzhou didn't even bother to touch Yu Huiyan. He put his arm around Song Wanchu's waist, exerted a little force, lifted her into the air, spun her around, and then gently put her down.
Song Wanchu stood behind him. Yu Huiyan was still kneeling, and her hands were now empty.
The look of anticipation on her face cracked bit by bit, and her eager eyes collapsed little by little.
Liang Yuzhou had rushed over in a hurry just to pull Song Wanchu away from her, and he was even going to pour salt on her wounds.
He really had no affection for her at all.
Liang Yuzhou had just taken the initiative to say a few words to the Princess of Jiahe, which made the princess extremely excited.
It was only now that she understood the hidden meaning in those words.
"Zhour—Daoist Qingzhou, what do you mean by your words?"
She asked in confusion.
Huiyan had deceived her in the matter of the heart - blood, but Huiyan had been forced to do so. She had sincerely apologized, and the Princess of Jiahe had already forgiven her.
Apart from that, had Huiyan done anything else to let her down?
Liang Yuzhou didn't answer her question. Instead, he looked at Song Wanchu intently.
He was extremely nervous, afraid that Wanchu would be wronged.
The old lady's stern gaze swept across Yu Huiyan's face.
"Your Highness, you're blind and heartless. I didn't want to interfere in your affairs originally. But this bitch has come to disgrace us again and again. Today, our Duke's Mansion should clean up these dirty things and dirty people!"
The Princess of Jiahe felt even more embarrassed. She twisted the handkerchief in her hand uneasily and asked, "Old Lady, what do you mean by this?"
The old lady's gaze was cold. "Qiaoying, bring the person here!"
Qiaoying responded and left.
Not long after, she came back, followed by the panicked Caidie.
As soon as Caidie saw Song Wanchu, she gasped for several times, knelt on the ground, and kept kowtowing.
"Your Highness, please show mercy! Your Highness, please show mercy!"
Yu Huiyan felt as if a huge rock had hit her face. Her head was dizzy, and there was a buzzing sound in her ears.
She had already sold Caidie to a brothel. How could she appear in the Duke's Mansion?
What had the old hag asked out of her?
Caidie hated Yu Huiyan to the core.
She had been loyal to Yu Huiyan and had done a lot of dirty work for her. She had even stained her hands with human blood for Yu Huiyan.
But when Yu Huiyan was short of money, she had sold her without any pity!
She had even sold her to a brothel on the Flower Street. She had made an agreement with the madam that they would split the money from Caidie's clients fifty - fifty!
In her most desperate moments, Caidie just wanted to bang her head against the wall and die.
Then she could be free from the nightmare.
Cuizhu, whom she had pushed into the water and drowned, would often appear in her dreams. With disheveled hair and a soaking - wet body, she would stretch out her pale hands and tightly strangle Caidie's throat.
Caidie had lived a miserable life.
Just when she was completely desperate, someone from the Duke's Mansion had redeemed her and arranged a place for her to live.
She felt like she had been reborn and was extremely grateful to the old lady.
Now, the person she feared the most was Song Wanchu.
Back then, Yu Huiyan had framed Song Wanchu. When Song Wanchu was most desperate and helpless, she had helped Yu Huiyan call Liang Yuzhou away.
Song Wanchu hated Yu Huiyan, so she must also hate her to the core!
A myriad of emotions surged in Song Wanchu's eyes, but they soon calmed down.
"Get up."
Only then did the old lady say, "Caidie, tell us everything you know. Let the Princess of Jiahe see what kind of person Yu Huiyan, whom she has loved like a daughter, really is."
Yu Huiyan's face was as pale as a dead person's. She looked around in a hurry, but all she saw were cold and hateful faces.
Caidie stared at her, gnashing her teeth.
"Back then, it was she who got the dirty medicine from Yu Rongbai and mixed it into the tea that the princess drank. She also bribed Cuizhu from the Fragrant Snow Pavilion to inform Lord Du. Fortunately, Lord Du was a gentleman and only stopped in the courtyard of the Water Rhyme Residence. And then the Second Lord arrived in time, so her evil plan didn't succeed!"
The Princess of Jiahe was struck like a thunderbolt. She staggered back a few steps.
"It's you, Huiyan. It's really you!"
She shrieked, her voice filled with boundless anger and hatred. "How could your heart be so vicious! You... You even wanted me to take the blame for you?"
At that time, even though she had disliked Song Wanchu, she had never thought of using such a despicable way to ruin her reputation.
She had been completely unaware and had even been the first one to "catch the adulterers". Because of her foolishness in public, the Duke had completely drifted away from her.
The culprit turned out to be Yu Huiyan, the person she trusted and loved the most!
She rushed forward, grabbed Yu Huiyan's collar, and shook her violently. "Why did you hurt me? I'm your aunt! Have I ever done anything wrong to you?"
Yu Huiyan was like a dead person, letting her do whatever she wanted.
Caidie felt extremely delighted. Like a victorious soldier in hot pursuit, she continued, "It was also she who poisoned the Duke! The poison the Duke was poisoned with was the same as the one the Second Lord was poisoned with at the palace banquet four years ago! Four years ago, it was also she who, instigated by the Princess Dowager, poisoned the Princess Yuening. The Second Lord drank that cup of poisoned wine in order to save the Princess Yuening!"
The Princess of Jiahe trembled all over, as if struck by lightning.
Her expression changed from shock to hatred.
Deception, more deception!
The niece she had raised by her side and carefully taught turned out to be a murderer!
She had almost killed the two men she loved the most!
She raised her arm and slapped Yu Huiyan hard on both sides of her face.
"Scoundrel, poisonous woman, bitch! You even lied to me, saying that you couldn't offer your heart - blood because the blood of close relatives would have a negative effect!
It was Zhou'er's heart - blood that had cured the Duke's poison.
Obviously, it was because of their blood relationship that the antidote had the best effect!
"How much have you lied to me? Have you lost your conscience?"
"A selfish, greedy, and insidious person like her will never treat anyone sincerely. You're just a convenient knife for her to use."
Liang Yuzhou's words completely shattered Yu Huiyan's false mask and showed her true face to everyone.
The Princess of Jiahe spat on Yu Huiyan's face and roared angrily, "Get out! Get out of here! From now on, I'm no longer your aunt. Even if you're beaten to death by Liang Yuchuan, it has nothing to do with me!"
Yu Huiyan rolled her eyes and fainted.