Chapter 109: Catching Adultery
The night was as dark as ink, with rolling dark clouds, and a storm swept through Prince Duan’s Separate Villa.
An old woman hurried through the accumulated water, her steps flustered as she rushed to Qinghe Courtyard.
This was the residence of Princess Consort Duan, Xue Yuechen, which was very serene during the day.
Many distinguished guests were staying at the separate villa today. Xue Yuechen, to fulfill her duties as a hostess, had been busy from morning till night. Only now did she have a moment to spare, to sit down, change her clothes, remove her makeup, and prepare to rest…
“Is His Highness still in the study?” she asked, removing her earrings and placing them gently on the dressing table.
The maid, Yu Zhui, replied, “Reporting to Your Highness, I just met A Ji. He said His Highness has matters to attend to and will not be coming tonight, so Your Highness should rest early.”
Xue Yuechen’s brow furrowed slightly, and she remained silent, a hint of imperceptible disappointment flashing across her expression.
“Will he go to Liu Shang Yan Gui?”
That courtyard was spacious and bright, personally arranged by Li Huan for Xue Liu…
Could it be that he intended to consummate their marriage tonight?
As she was contemplating, a maidservant from outside reported, “Reporting to Your Highness, there is an old woman who claims to be working at ‘Haitang Feng Heng’ and wishes to see you urgently.”
Xue Yuechen glanced at Fei Cui, “Let her in.”
The old woman was soaked through, rainwater constantly dripping from the hem of her clothes. She was out of breath, and before she could even stand steady, she hastily offered a handkerchief with a fawning smile:
“Your Highness, this old servant’s surname is Zhang, and I serve in Haitang Courtyard. This is a handkerchief I found at the base of the courtyard wall…”
Xue Yuechen sat at the dressing table, letting the maid comb her hair. Upon hearing this, she frowned, “You found a handkerchief, why are you in such a panic?”
The old woman bowed and said tremblingly, “This humble one saw Madam Ping’an, under the cover of night, heading towards Haitang Courtyard by the winding corridor. She happened to drop this handkerchief outside the Crown Prince’s gate…”
Xue Yuechen’s face suddenly darkened, and she stared at the old woman coldly.
“Such words that incite suspicion should not be spoken carelessly. If you dare to slander, be careful of your skin!”
The old woman repeatedly agreed, her forehead beaded with sweat.
“This humble one saw Madam Ping’an hesitating and deliberately dropping the handkerchief, which is why I, I… picked it up to report to Your Highness.”
Xue Yuechen signaled Fei Cui to take the handkerchief.
The corner of the blue satin handkerchief was embroidered with a blooming Twin Lotus. Under the candlelight, the dark pattern seemed to shimmer with a faint glow.
Twin Lotuses?
If given to the Crown Prince, her intentions would be obvious…
Fei Cui glanced at Xue Yuechen’s expression, her fingers pausing slightly.
“These stitches look like Sixth Sister’s…”
Xue Yuechen pondered for a moment.
During the Liushang Banquet today, the Crown Prince’s behavior was indeed somewhat unusual. Sixth Sister had gained much attention, and the Crown Prince had personally chosen her as the top scholar, clearly with ulterior motives.
Could it be that the two truly had some unspeakable secret?
Xue Yuechen suddenly crumpled the handkerchief in her palm and turned to look at the old woman waiting for a reward, “You said you found it at the base of the wall of the Crown Prince’s residence?”
“Absolutely true!” the old woman said, “This old servant personally saw Madam Ping’an heading towards the Crown Prince’s residence. This handkerchief was dropped under the bamboo grove at the base of the wall. If this old servant hadn’t picked it up first, it would have been found by the Crown Prince’s guards, and it would have been delivered to the Crown Prince…”
Her words were like a thunderclap from a clear sky.
Xue Yuechen’s heart panicked, and she was momentarily at a loss.
How could Sixth Sister, so intelligent, do something so foolish?
No, this matter must be investigated clearly before His Highness.
She gently raised her hand, signaling Fei Cui to come closer, a hint of coldness in her eyes.
“Take this slandering, divisive lowly servant and lock her up in the woodshed first, don’t let her go out and gossip anymore…”
Xue Sui was someone from the Prince’s Mansion. Regardless of whether the matter was true or false, servants should not be allowed to fabricate stories.
The old woman panicked, her face turning pale, her body trembling like a sieve.
It shouldn’t be like this.
The person who gave her money said that Madam Ping’an was favored by His Highness, and the Princess Consort was very displeased. She thought the Princess Consort would reward her handsomely for bringing the handkerchief to claim merit?
The old woman knelt with a thud on the blue brick stone, looked up at Xue Yuechen, crawled forward a few steps, and kowtowed like pounding garlic.
“Your Highness, this humble one did not spread rumors. Every word is true. This humble one just happened to find the handkerchief…”
Xue Yuechen glanced sideways, looking at her coldly.
“Take her away!”
After speaking, she asked Yu Zhui to help her change, and then said to Fei Cui.
“Light the lamps, and accompany me to Liu Shang Yan Gui.”
Fei Cui responded, “Yes.”
–
Liu Shang Yan Gui.
Jinshu was tidying clothes in the trunks in the inner room. Upon hearing that the Princess Consort had arrived, she quickly put down her work and, with Ru Yi, hurried out to perform a respectful deep bow.
Xue Yuechen’s expression was stern, and she asked immediately, “Where is Sixth Sister?”
Jinshu hesitated slightly, “Your Highness, Madam is not in the room.”
Xue Yuechen snorted coldly, “It’s raining so heavily, where could she have gone?”
Jinshu replied, “Madam took her poetry manuscripts and went out, saying she was going with Third Miss Gu to ask Young Master Zhao for advice on poetry…”
Upon hearing this, Xue Yuechen’s face instantly turned grim.
“Earlier, I invited her to Ting Yu Xuan for a late-night snack, and she said she wasn’t feeling well. Now that it’s dark, she has the energy to go discuss poetry with someone?”
Jinshu lowered her head and remained silent.
Seeing her like this, Xue Yuechen became even more suspicious and pressed, “Are you still not telling the truth? Will you only speak when your young lady gets into trouble?”
Jinshu quickly bowed and said with trepidation, “Your Highness, this servant used to serve Old Madam, so I know the gravity of matters. When Your Highness sent someone to invite Madam for a meal, Madam was indeed unwell. Later, seeing Third Miss Gu alone, instructed by Fourth Sister to find Young Master Zhao, Madam worried that it would be inconvenient for a young lady to travel alone at night, so she kindly decided to accompany her to Qixia Pavilion…”
Xue Yuechen frowned, “You’re saying Fourth Sister sent Third Miss Gu to find Young Master Zhao?”
Jinshu hesitated for a moment and mumbled, “This… this servant cannot say for sure. It just sounded like it.”
Xue Yuechen pondered in secret.
Xue Si hated Xue Liu to the bone, so it was inevitable that she would resort to some underhanded tactics.
Was the old woman who brought the handkerchief to report the news bribed by Xue Si?
If she had believed the old woman’s instigation and rushed to the Crown Prince’s residence to find someone, not only would she have been humiliated, but she might have also caused great trouble.
Previously, at the Hundred Flowers Banquet, Xue Liu’s relationship with the Crown Prince had already made His Highness suspicious. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have personally arranged their residences so close to each other.
If she rashly inquired, regardless of whether anything happened between Xue Liu and the Crown Prince, rumors would spread, and the one who would lose the most face would be her, the Princess Consort…
Well played, Xue Si.
Using her as a chess piece.
Did she really think she was foolish enough to be manipulated?
Xue Yuechen snorted coldly and said indifferently, “The night is long and rainy, and I can’t sleep anyway. I’ll go to Qixia Pavilion too, to listen to them discuss poetry…”
Fei Cui held the umbrella, and Yu Zhui carried the lantern, wading through the rain to care for Xue Yuechen as they slowly walked towards Qixia Pavilion.
“Boom—”
A thunderclap struck.
Amidst the sound of rain, a shout suddenly came.
“A thief is climbing up Yu Jie Qing!”
“Quick, someone! There’s a thief on Yu Jie Qing!”
The shouts suddenly erupted in the rainy night and quickly spread throughout the separate villa.
How could there be a thief in Prince Duan’s separate villa? This was unacceptable!
Li Huan received the news, his expression changing drastically.
He was unsure who resided in “Yu Jie Qing” because these domestic matters were arranged by his Princess Consort.
However, he knew very well that Yu Jie Qing was the most secluded place in the entire separate villa…
Could it be that they… chose that place for a rendezvous?
Li Huan immediately led several personal guards and rushed towards Yu Jie Qing like a gust of wind.
Before reaching the place, he sensed something was amiss.
Along the way, there wasn’t a single guard.
To be able to move the guards away without anyone noticing, and without him being informed, could it be an ordinary person?
Among the guests staying at the separate villa tonight, there were fewer than three people with such capability.
The Crown Prince was one of them…
Li Huan reached the outside of the courtyard and raised his arm, signaling the guards to wait where they were.
The guards remained silent, lurking in the sound of the rain.
Li Huan led two confidantes and quietly approached the closed door.
The sound of the rain masked their footsteps. Those inside couldn’t hear the commotion outside, while those outside, filled with suspicion, suddenly kicked the door open…
“Bang—”
A heavy bang shattered the rainy night.
Li Huan, accompanied by the howling rain, burst into the room.
He saw Xue Yueying with her hair disheveled, shrinking into the corner of the couch in terror, her clothes in disarray.
And Li Yan’s outer robe was hanging conspicuously on the screen.
Li Huan used the tip of his sword to lift the bed curtain.
“It’s you?”
Xue Yueying screamed, clutching half of her undergarment, and shyly burrowed into Li Yan’s embrace.
Li Yan’s undergarment was wide open, his expression extremely awkward, and he stammered:
“Imperial Brother, this… this is a misunderstanding…”
Li Huan saw this and laughed in anger.
“Well done, Prince Wei!”
“Well done, the dignified and virtuous Young Madam Gu!”
He turned away, not looking at Xue Yueying’s disheveled state, and with gentlemanly grace, walked around the screen, and sternly ordered his subordinate.
“Go, invite the Princess Consort over!”
The entire separate villa was brightly lit, as if it were daytime.
Countless wind lanterns were lit, their light flickering in the wind and rain, illuminating faces filled with astonishment or curiosity, all heading towards Yu Jie Qing.
Raindrops splattered on the blue stone slabs, splashing up layers of water.
Xue Sui accompanied Gu Ruoyi, discussing poetry with Zhao Hong in Qixia Pavilion.
Upon hearing the commotion outside, they bid farewell to Zhao Hong.
Zhao Hong looked at Gu Ruoyi with eyes full of tenderness.
“The wind and rain are heavy tonight. Madam Ping’an and Third Miss Gu, be careful on your way.”
Gu Ruoyi blushed and nodded slightly.
“Thank you for your concern, Young Master Zhao.”
The two, accompanied by their maids holding lanterns and umbrellas, walked out.
Gu Ruoyi looked back at Zhao Hong, whose shadow was elongated by the lamplight under the eaves, and said to Xue Sui, “Tonight, I have to thank Sister Xue. If not for your company, it would have been awkward for me to come alone to ask Young Master Zhao for advice…”
Xue Sui said, “I should thank you too. If not for Third Miss Gu, how could I have heard such exquisite insights? Young Master Zhao is talented, and he and Third Miss Gu are a perfect match, truly a match made in heaven.”
Gu Ruoyi blushed and lowered her head, playfully chiding shyly.
“Sister Xue, don’t tease me…”
The two walked and talked, laughing, and saw many people hurrying towards ‘Yu Jie Qing’, saying that a thief had been caught.
Gu Ruoyi frowned in confusion and asked, “A thief actually broke into my and my sister-in-law’s room?”
Before Xue Sui could answer, she heard someone calling her from the misty rain.
“Sixth Sister.”
Xue Sui calmly turned around and looked at Xue Yuechen under the lamplight. Half of her skirt was soaked by the rain, but her expression remained dignified and noble. She quickly held up her umbrella and elegantly bowed.
“Greetings, Your Highness.”
Gu Ruoyi also bowed to Xue Yuechen.
Xue Yuechen nodded and asked Xue Sui, “Where have you been just now?”
Xue Sui’s expression was normal, and she recounted the story she had prepared.
It was exactly the same as what Jinshu had said.
Gu Ruoyi saw Xue Yuechen’s solemn expression, as if she didn’t quite believe it, and chimed in, “Your Highness, Sister Xue and I were in Qixia Pavilion discussing poetry with Young Master Zhao. We were together the whole time and never separated…”
Xue Yuechen asked, “Did you hear anything just now?”
Xue Sui calmly replied, “I was listening to Third Miss Gu and Young Master Zhao discuss poetry and literature, engrossed in it, and did not hear any unusual sounds.”
Xue Yuechen looked deeply at Xue Sui, then at Gu Ruoyi, “Sixth Sister, please invite Third Miss Gu to sit in your room for a while. There’s no need to rush back.”
Gu Ruoyi noticed the wrong tone in her voice and her expression instantly changed, anxiously asking, “Your Highness, I heard that a thief entered Yu Jie Qing. Has something happened to my sister-in-law?”
“Nothing, nothing. I’ll go and see now…”
Xue Yuechen gave Xue Sui a look, signaling her to take Gu Ruoyi away.
After all, Xue Yueying’s reputation was also related to the Xue Mansion’s reputation.
Servants who knew could be silenced, but how could Gu Ruoyi’s mouth be sealed?
Once Third Miss Gu knew the truth, it would be equivalent to the Marquis Jingyuan’s Mansion knowing the truth…
Xue Yuechen did not want the matter to become too embarrassing.
Unexpectedly, Gu Ruoyi, with her kind heart, immediately became anxious upon thinking that the pregnant Xue Yueying might have been frightened.
“Your Highness, please don’t comfort me. Something must have happened to my sister-in-law, right? My brother specifically instructed me to come to the separate villa to take good care of my sister-in-law. If something happens to my sister-in-law, how can I face my brother? I shouldn’t have left my sister-in-law alone. It’s all my fault…”
Before her voice faded, the young lady, without even holding an umbrella, lifted her skirt and ran towards Yu Jie Qing.
Xue Yuechen: “……”
Xue Sui feigned confusion, “Your Highness, what exactly happened?”
Xue Yuechen’s fingers tightened.
Thinking of the handkerchief she was still holding in her embrace, her brow furrowed even tighter.
“Fourth Sister is being foolish. Go and persuade Third Miss Gu later. Don’t let things escalate and lose face for both our families…”
–
Yu Jie Qing was already in chaos.
Li Yan slowly put on his clothes behind the screen…
“Imperial Brother…”
Li Huan’s face was cold, “Don’t call me that.”
Li Yan touched his nose and said awkwardly, “This matter, it was truly my fault, and I hope Imperial Brother will forgive me.”
Li Huan slowly turned around and questioned, “What can I forgive you for? You should be thinking about how to resolve this situation that has escalated like this.”
Li Yan said, “If you don’t say it, and I don’t say it, who will know…”
Li Huan looked at him and reprimanded him with disappointment, “It’s one thing for you to be dissolute usually, but to cause trouble in my separate villa! If the Marquis Jingyuan’s Mansion finds out about this, how will they maintain their dignity? How will Imperial Father explain to the Marquis Jingyuan, and how will I explain?”
Li Yan looked at his ashen face, then at his long sword in his hand, completely drenched, looking like he had come to catch them in the act, and couldn’t help but feel suspicious.
“Imperial Brother… why are you here?”
Li Huan’s face darkened, “I am asking you!”
Li Yan gave a few awkward laughs and repeatedly clasped his hands in apology, “I hope Imperial Brother can help me handle this matter. Even if not for me, it should be for your sister-in-law’s reputation…”
Before his voice fell.
A notification came from outside.
“The Crown Prince has arrived—”
Why is he everywhere?
Li Yan thought to himself, “This is bad.”
But before he could come up with a plan, Li Zhao, leading a group of guards, broke in through the rain.
“I heard there was a thief in the separate villa, so I came to help…”
Li Yan and Li Huan exchanged glances, bowed, and seeing the Crown Prince’s half-smile expression, their hearts sank.
The Crown Prince’s arrival at this time was definitely not out of kindness.
“What’s wrong? The two Imperial Brothers look unwell?”
Li Zhao’s gaze slowly swept across their faces, asking meaningfully.
“Where is the thief? Where is the thief? The two Imperial Brothers have arrived, why aren’t you coming out to surrender?”
Li Yan opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but before he could, Li Zhao, with his men, swaggered inside.
Li Yan reached out to stop him, “Your Highness the Crown Prince…”
Li Huan quietly gazed at Li Zhao’s back and calmly stopped him.
Inside the room, Xue Yueying, unable to tidy herself up, frantically clutched her clothes with both hands, her hair disheveled, and with a terrified expression, got off the couch. She didn’t dare to look at his face and bowed barefoot.
“I, I, greet Your Highness the Crown Prince…”
Li Zhao chuckled softly and slowly bent down to pick up a sash from the footstool.
“Isn’t this Imperial Brother’s sash? How did it end up on Young Madam Gu’s couch?”
Xue Yueying’s face still held a hint of lingering charm. Upon hearing this, she lowered her head in shame.
“No, it wasn’t Prince Wei’s…”
“I didn’t say which Imperial Brother,” Li Zhao smiled slightly, turned to look at the extremely awkward Li Yan, and raised his eyebrows with a half-smile.
“So the thief who broke into the separate villa was Prince Wei?”
Xue Yueying panicked, her whole body stiffened, as if her tongue had gone numb. The more she tried to explain, the less clear it became.
“I, I… we… no, it’s not what the Crown Prince thinks…”
Li Zhao smirked, looking nonchalant, “Young Madam Gu wants to say that you and my Imperial Brother were in the room, undressed, just to discuss that poem of a married woman’s sorrow from the Liushang Banquet?”
He never minced his words, each one sharp and venomous.
Gu Ruoyi rushed into the room through the rain and heard Li Zhao’s questioning.
“Sister-in-law, you…?”
The question got stuck in her throat.
Seeing the scene before her, what was there not to understand?
Her voice trembled slightly, her face filled with disbelief.
“You…”
There were only these few people in the room. Who the “thief” was, was obvious at a glance.
Gu Ruoyi was gentle and kind-hearted. Even if the person who betrayed her was her own brother, she would only bite her lower lip and cry, unable to curse.
But Xue Yue E was different.
She rushed over upon hearing the news, only to catch Fourth Sister and Prince Wei in the act.
Her father had been racking his brains to arrange a remarriage for her with Prince Wei, and Fourth Sister had actually gotten there first—
How could she stand this?
Xue Yue E was filled with grief and indignation, “Fourth Sister, how can you face Fourth Brother-in-law, how can you face me, how can you face Father? Your Highness, Brother-in-law, you must uphold justice for me!”
Xue Yuechen entered right after her. Seeing the weeping Gu Ruoyi, the furious and indignant Xue Yue E, and the shocking and awkward scene before her, she felt a headache coming on.
She looked at Xue Yueying coldly.
“Fourth Sister, how could you be so foolish?”
Seeing her, Xue Yueying suddenly found a scapegoat and abruptly turned, pointing at Xue Sui.
“It’s her! Xue Liu set this up, she wanted to harm me!”
A two-chapter combined release, goodnight, goodnight~~
Xue Sui: This time it’s my turn, and it’s over?
Li Zhao: Heh heh, Happy New Year!
