Chapter 611 - 389: The Calamity Caused by an Errand for the Empress Dowager

Chapter 611: Chapter 389: The Calamity Caused by an Errand for the Empress Dowager

Caiqin didn’t dare say she knew nothing. Steeling herself, she agreed, and then began to wonder how she should handle this.

’Where did the news come from? How am I supposed to investigate it?’

Caiqin had no good ideas. Her only option was to find the person who had first passed on the message and trace it back, layer by layer, hoping to retrace the steps.

After Caiqin left, Xu Mingying’s expression remained dark. The more she thought about it, the angrier she became. The news she had heard earlier about Song Qinghan being turned away by the Marquis Wenxin’s Mansion no longer brought her any joy. All she wanted now was to find out who was trying to use her as a weapon.

’I’m not an idiot,’ she thought. ’Plenty of people want to deal with Ming Fei. Never mind me—is there anyone in this palace who still has ambitions who doesn’t want to kick Ming Fei, that stumbling block, out of the way?’

’But you need the skill to do it. And every last one of us in this group is useless. We’ve been in the palace for so long, yet we can’t even touch the hem of the Emperor’s robes.’ The thought only made her angrier.

Xu Mingying just couldn’t understand it. Her own father, at his advanced age, still enjoyed visiting his concubines’ chambers. Why wasn’t the Emperor fond of beauties? How could he look at Ming Fei’s face day in and day out and not want to see someone new for a change?

She couldn’t figure it out, and precisely because she couldn’t, Xu Mingying was even more afraid to act rashly.

She was trying to lie low and wait for the right moment, but now someone was giving her a hard shove, trying to turn her into a murder weapon. Of course she was about to explode with rage.

’Just let me find the mastermind behind this,’ she fumed. ’I’ll make them pay.’

Meanwhile, when Song Yunzhao learned that Xu Mingying’s palace attendant was actually tracing the message back to its source, she was genuinely surprised. She hadn’t expected Xu Mingying to be so sharp. This made things a bit difficult.

’It seems I won’t be able to use this weapon after all. Marchioness Wu Xin certainly raised a clever daughter. I suppose I can only withdraw my hand in regret.’

Song Yunzhao told Xiangxue to pull their people back and stop leading Xu Mingying astray. The two of them had no personal grievances. The real issue was with Marchioness Wu Xin, who was being unreasonable and always trying to drag her down. Since entering the palace, Xu Mingying herself hadn’t wronged her.

Hearing her mistress’s words, Xiangxue hesitated, looking like she wanted to say something.

Song Yunzhao frowned. "What is it? Did something unexpected happen?"

’If Xu Mingying runs into trouble over this, I might have to lend her a hand.’

’If I’d known it would be this much trouble, I wouldn’t have done it in the first place.’

"Noble Lady Xu’s attendant, Caiqin, didn’t trace it back to Yaohua Palace. Instead, she got sidetracked and mistakenly followed the trail to An Xiaoyi in Huayang Palace."

"What?" Song Yunzhao was stunned. "There’s such a thing as good luck like this?"

’I was trying to drag the Empress Dowager and An Shutong into this from the start. I thought it had failed, but who knew it would circle back around and succeed after all?’

"What exactly happened?" Song Yunzhao asked, her interest piqued.

Xiangxue replied, "Caiqin was trying to find out who released the information and traced it to the Laundry Bureau. Our contact there wasn’t very specific when they spoke, which led to a misunderstanding."

Song Yunzhao looked up at Xiangxue. "Was it on purpose?"

Xiangxue shook her head. "It actually wasn’t. The palace attendant took the silver to do the job, but she was afraid that if things went wrong, she’d have to give the silver back, so she wasn’t entirely truthful. Besides, for palace attendants like them who take money to solve problems, they can’t betray their employer unless a knife is at their throat. And some people wouldn’t betray their employer even then."

Song Yunzhao nodded slightly. ’It’s not easy being a palace attendant. I was lucky to be reborn as an official’s daughter. If I had been born a palace maid’s child, I probably wouldn’t have survived long with my personality.’

’That’s why I rarely make things difficult for the palace attendants. They’re all just trying to make a living. Life isn’t easy for anyone. If I can let something slide, I will. If I can use my status to make their lives a little better, I do my best to protect them.’

’I’m no saint. All of this is predicated on my own interests and safety not being compromised.’

’Although I sometimes feel I shouldn’t think this way, it’s true that selfish people live a little happier than others.’

The course of events, though taking a strange detour, ultimately ended up heading in the direction Yun Zhao had hoped for. The process was bizarre, but the goal was still achieved.

Song Yunzhao gave Xiangxue a few more instructions in a low voice. Xiangxue nodded quickly. "Rest assured, Mistress. Everyone is in place. The news will be spread as if it came from outside the palace, so no one will suspect Yaohua Palace."

Song Yunzhao nodded. "We must still be careful with everything. An Xiaoyi is a very intelligent person. Keep an eye out, and don’t let Noble Lady Xu’s people get trapped."

Song Yunzhao wanted to use Xu Mingying as a weapon, but she never intended for that weapon to be broken.

"Yes."

Xiangxue hurried away, and Song Yunzhao let out a long breath.

Not two days later, the news that the Tao Brothers were sharing a mistress spread like wildfire. When An Shutong heard the report from her attendant, her face changed drastically, but she didn’t immediately run to the Empress Dowager for help.

The Tao Brothers were her maternal uncles, but they were of no real relation to the Empress Dowager. She feared that if the Empress Dowager found out, she would become angry with the uncles for embarrassing Gu’en Houfu and, by extension, her.

An Shutong’s expression was grim. "First, go find out if this is true or if someone is deliberately trying to frame them."

’I don’t believe my uncles would do something like this.’

Keeping a mistress was one thing; such affairs were not uncommon among the great families of the Capital City. But for two brothers to share one mistress... that was utterly... humiliating.

Thanks to the Empress Dowager’s protection, it was easier for An Shutong to send messages out of the palace than it was for others. Her letter quickly reached the hands of Duchess Gu En.

At that moment, Duchess Gu En had just returned from her maiden home, her eyes still red. She truly couldn’t believe her brothers would do such a thing. The woman was just a lowly actress, yet she had somehow seduced both brothers, making them not only fight over her with jealousy but also keep her together.

Duchess Gu En was furious. Having lost so much face, how could she possibly show herself in public again?

In her rage, she sent people to the residence where the mistress was kept. They gave the slut dozens of slaps, nearly ruining her face.

’Without that face, let’s see what she uses to bewitch men now.’

She was still fuming when she returned, her face dark. When she received the letter from her daughter, her eyes rolled back in her head, and she nearly fainted. Her daughter knew, which meant... did the Empress Dowager know?

Duchess Gu En was frantic. Her maiden family relied on Gu’en Houfu, so how could they possibly clean up a mess like this?

Moreover, the task the Marquis had given her brothers had also been botched, and the connection to the Ling Family was severed. For a moment, Duchess Gu En’s heart was filled with anxiety, and she nearly crushed the letter in her hand.

Thinking of the Ling Family...

A glint appeared in Duchess Gu En’s eyes. The connection to the Ling Family had just been severed, and now this scandal with her brothers had erupted. Could the two be related?

’My brothers were implicated because of the Ling Family’s affair. If that’s the case, then even if the Marquis questions me, I’ll have some room to maneuver on behalf of my maiden family.’

Why did the Tao Family get into trouble?

’It’s all because of the trouble stirred up while running errands for the Empress Dowager!’