CHAPTER 566: CHAPTER 566: DISASTER

Xie Jingchen stayed in the mansion, and a task fell from the palace.

Marquis Dongxiang was to train Prince NanAn and his attendants in endurance.

Two taels of yellow beans, one of which was crushed by them, and the other they trained from morning till night.

It took only a day to go from frantic to calm.

Because the more restless they were, the worse their aim was.

Only with a calm mind could they accurately pick up the beans and aim them into the bamboo basket.

In just three days, their accuracy in throwing hidden weapons doubled.

Is there a hidden weapon smaller than yellow beans?

Is there anyone else who uses chopsticks to launch hidden weapons?

No more!

When it comes to grinding people down, Marquis Dongxiang is the ancestor!

The four of them were defeated, bowing in admiration.

In the first two days, they only came out of the house when it was getting dark.

By the third day, they could come out for lunch, though a bit late.

The person with the most complex feelings about this was Young Master Su.

He was happy for them but depressed that he would earn much less money.

Although they made progress, and quickly at that.

It still wasn’t enough.

They were busy training, so the task of welcoming King Beimo Cheng was left entirely to Xie Jingchen.

He could guess why Marquis Dongxiang did this.

When King Beimo Cheng enters the capital, he will definitely meet King Beimo.

Whether in the Ministry of Justice Prison or the Duke Chong’s Mansion, they are both fake.

If the host was someone from Duke Chong’s people, the truth would surely be revealed.

But if it was someone from Marquis Dongxiang’s people, it wouldn’t be.

Prince NanAn and his attendants were perfect for this task.

They had just had a conflict and even a fight with the Heir of Duke Chong.

Their tension with the Duke Chong’s Mansion and its Heir made it reasonable for King Beimo Cheng to not meet King Beimo properly.

As long as they held out for three to five days, it would be fine.

Welcoming the envoy is the responsibility of the Ministry of Rites, but Xie Jingchen had to consult with the Minister of Rites.

Although in reality, it didn’t have to be so complicated, especially since Daqi and Beimo had recently been at war, they didn’t need to be too polite to Beimo.

A victor country should maintain the demeanor of a victor.

But since Xie Jingchen went to learn, the Ministry of Rites dared not teach carelessly, in case any mistake was made, and the Emperor would reprimand them.

For this, Xie Jingchen spent three whole days at the Ministry of Rites.

Su Jin was bored staying in the mansion, and with unused pill concoctions, she sent Xingxing to sell them at the pharmacy.

Though Xingxing feared heat, she loved to play more.

After delivering the medicine, she would roam around a bit, returning with a good mood for the day.

However, that day wasn’t as pleasant for Xingxing.

The silver hairpin she had just bought and took for a walk—

was gone.

The silver hairpin was bought with two taels of silver she found, adding another two taels.

It was her thickest silver hairpin, loved dearly.

And it got stolen just like that.

Xingxing was so angry she cried.

Bi Zhu asked her, "Do you know who stole it?"

"It must be those disaster victims!" Xingxing said, pouting.

Su Jin frowned, "Disaster victims?"

Xingxing nodded repeatedly.

"Yes, disaster victims."

"There are many disaster victims on the streets, clothes tattered, some nearly starving."

"I felt pity and bought a lot of buns for them to eat."

"At the time, I was looking down, and accidentally got bumped. Not long after, I found the hairpin was gone."

If someone had pulled the hairpin from the top of her head, she wouldn’t have known.

It was just that when she got bumped, all her focus was on steadying herself.

She didn’t notice someone took advantage in the chaos.

Four taels of silver.

Xingxing’s heart ached so much her breath hurt.

Had she known, she wouldn’t have taken advantage of those two taels of silver.

Ended up not making a gain, but losing two taels.

Seeing Xingxing like this, Su Jin said, "Alright, don’t be sad, I’ll reward you with a silver hairpin."

"But the one the girl rewards me with isn’t the one I lost," Xingxing said.

"So you don’t want it?" Su Jin asked.

"I want it!" Xingxing quickly wiped her tears and said.

If she let this silver hairpin slip away, she’d be heartbroken.

She went to the storeroom and picked the thickest and largest silver hairpin, finally putting her in a good mood.

Outside, a maid came in, "Princess Consort, Eldest Young Madam Sun from the Vice Minister Sun’s Mansion seeks an audience."

"Have her wait for me in the main hall," Su Jin said.

The maid went to deliver the message.

Su Jin stepped off the stairs.

She met Eldest Young Madam Sun just outside the main hall door.

Her forehead was a bit swollen and red.

Upon seeing this, Su Jin said, "What happened here?"

Eldest Young Madam Sun sighed, "There was an incident of disaster victims looting and smashing shops on the street, causing the carriage to be startled, and I accidentally hit the carriage."

Having just learned that disaster victims snatched the silver hairpin off Xingxing’s head, now there were incidents of victims looting and smashing shops.

The disaster seems to be more severe than she anticipated.

When people are at their wits’ end, propriety and honor easily crumble.

Su Jin invited Eldest Young Madam Sun inside to talk.

Eldest Young Madam Sun had come to express her gratitude to Su Jin.

After Old Madam Sun took the medicine, her condition greatly improved, though she could only live for another three months, the Sun Family was nonetheless satisfied.

Having received kindness, it was natural to say thanks.

Before Eldest Young Madam Sun left, she mentioned another matter, "Today, my eldest sister-in-law returned and mentioned that the Princess Consort has excellent medical skills, urging my mother-in-law to invite the Princess Consort to treat the Old Madam."

Su Jin frowned, "How did the Lady of the Mansion learn of this?"

"It was the Second Madam of the mansion who told her," Eldest Young Madam Sun laid bare the Second Madam’s role.

Knowing that the Princess Consort did not wish her medical skills be disclosed,

Yet the Second Madam of Prince Zhenbei Mansion revealed this to others, blatantly causing trouble for the Princess Consort.

Though it was good news for the Vice Minister Sun’s Mansion.

But there’s no such thing as unearned blessings in this world; the Second Madam of Prince Zhenbei Mansion surely had her motives.

From what the eldest sister-in-law said, the Second Madam likely had designs on the position of Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue.

She just acted subtly without revealing her intentions.

If the Princess Consort of Prince Zhenbei hadn’t been the first to treat the Old Madam, they might not have even noticed.

Eldest Young Madam Sun came to form a connection with Su Jin to express sincerity, even if she knew it might seem opportunistic.

Su Jin knitted her eyebrows.

The other day when Mrs. Li fell ill, it was the secondary wife who made sure to inform her.

Although there was a suspicion of using her to suppress the Old Madam, she did it knowingly.

And now the Second Branch was using her to curry favor.

It doesn’t make sense for the Princess Consort to save even a servant like Mrs. Wang but not to save the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites.

Mr. Sun was an official of the Emperor after all.

With the Second Madam of Prince Zhenbei Mansion doing this, she must have some scheme in mind.

The rumor that Eldest Young Madam Sun went to see Princess Consort Zhenbei to ask for help spread quickly like wildfire at the West Courtyard of the Prince Zhenbei Mansion.

Naturally, the Second Madam heard about it.

The matter had only just been brought to light to the Sun family, and already they’re at the door seeking medical assistance with lavish gifts, and they came rather quickly.

If the Princess Consort went to cure Old Madam Sun, the favor the Sun Family would owe would definitely help the Second Master vie for that position.

Before leaving, Eldest Young Madam Sun also mentioned another matter, "Today, the Great Aunt talked about it too."

"It was Second Aunt of the house who told her," Eldest Young Madam Sun said.

"It was the Second Wife who had told others, wasn’t it obvious she was capitalizing on this to gain favor with me.

Eldest Aunt speaking of it today means she had learned it somehow. "

Just as Li Mama fell into the scheme, it was again the Second Branch using this matter to score favor points.

Now, the Second Branch was again using the opportunity to gain favor.

If the Princess Consort of Prince Zhenbei hadn’t treated the Old Madam first, they really might not have noticed.

It seemed that the Second Madam of Prince Zhenbei Mansion aimed for Assistant Minister Sun.

In her heart, she must have some ulterior motive.