Chapter 260 - 111: You Really Think I’m a Pushover?
The matriarch was indeed a bit annoyed, but with Princess Ming’an apologizing so sincerely at their door, she couldn’t say much more. She could only smile and say, "Princess Ming’an meant well. Let’s not speak of this again."
In front of the matriarch, He Lan Yun handed the letter to Song Yexi. "It’s not easy for Yun Zhao and me to meet. When I heard from Ye Xi that she was delivering a letter to the palace, I shamelessly asked her to take this along for me."
What else could the matriarch say? She had no choice but to smile and agree.
After He Lan Yun left, the matriarch scolded her daughter. Song Yexi hung her head in silence.
"Delivering a letter is no big deal, but right now, the imperial examination case is at its peak. Princess Ming’an is engaged to the Left Minister’s son. We just received news yesterday that the Left Minister’s faction has also secretly gotten involved in this matter. Under these circumstances, how can we be sure what the Princess will write in her letter?"
Song Yexi’s heart jolted. She hadn’t known the Left Minister had also been implicated.
"And it’s not like you haven’t heard about Princess Ming’an and Young Master Ji. She’s always been chasing after him. I heard Young Master Ji was unwilling to go through with this engagement. If she writes something she shouldn’t in the letter just to please him, wouldn’t that implicate Yun Zhao?"
"Mother, I don’t think the Princess is that kind of person. Her relationship with Yun Zhao is genuinely good."
"Let’s hope so." The matriarch would rather think of herself as petty than court disaster for no reason.
The letter eventually reached Yun Zhao’s hands. She was a little surprised to see two letters, and even more so when she saw one was from He Lan Yun.
She opened the letter from her family first. The matriarch wrote that everything was proceeding smoothly. The Left and Right Ministers were already turning on each other, and there would be a resolution soon.
Song Yunzhao felt greatly relieved. ’It seems the Emperor’s methods are firm, so the investigation is moving quickly. The two Prime Ministers don’t have much time left. They’ll have to make a choice.’
After finishing the letter from home, she opened He Lan Yun’s. The very first sentence shocked her: He Lan Yun said she wanted to break off her engagement with Ji Yunting.
She knew how much He Lan Yun liked Ji Yunting. Back then, she’d chased after him, even fighting with Qin Xiyue on several occasions. ’After all the trouble she went through to secure the engagement, why would she want to break it off now?’
With this thought, she continued reading. He Lan Yun wrote that the Left Minister’s Mansion had initiated the marriage proposal, and she had been overjoyed, thinking it was Ji Yunting’s idea.
But after the engagement, Ji Yunting began avoiding her at every turn, always making excuses when she wanted to meet. At first, she truly believed he was busy with his studies. However, her brother later discovered that while Ji Yunting wouldn’t meet with her, he frequently spent time at the Three Yuan Building. Her brother guessed that Ji Yunting might still have feelings for Qin Xiyue and told her about it.
Song Yunzhao frowned. ’In the book, the Three Yuan Building was indeed where Ji Yunting and Qin Xiyue interacted the most. For Ji Yunting to do this... it’s just disgusting.’
He Lan Yun wanted to break off the engagement but couldn’t bear to. Yet, she couldn’t bring herself to just stomach it all. That was why she had written to Yun Zhao to pour out her frustrations.
’Ah, people in love are always torn by anxiety.’
Song Yunzhao could well understand these feelings. After all, He Lan Yun’s affection for Ji Yunting wasn’t just romantic love; it was also the bond of having grown up together. It was indeed very difficult to let go of that.
But what disappointed her most wasn’t any of that. It was that Ji Yunting had only agreed to the engagement because Qin Xiyue had written him a letter persuading him to do so.
Song Yunzhao truly didn’t know what to say. ’Qin Xiyue really lives up to her title as the original female lead. This is exactly the kind of stunt she would pull.’
’Isn’t she just doing this to spite people?’
’With He Lan Yun’s personality, she definitely didn’t know the reason when she got engaged. But after the engagement, Ji Yunting’s attitude was off, so she must have investigated. And once she did, it all became clear.’
’He Lan Yun probably wrote this letter having already made up her mind. She just needed to say it out loud to feel a little better.’
Song Yunzhao first wrote a reply to He Lan Yun. This time, unlike when she was at Zhichun Palace, she didn’t try to persuade her. She only wrote that life is a long journey of several decades, and she just hoped that He Lan Yun could live happily.
How "happily" was to be defined was up to He Lan Yun herself.
But as for Qin Xiyue, Song Yunzhao truly felt she had overestimated her. ’The female lead in the book was supposed to be resolute, strong, and unyielding in the face of evil. Why is the one I’m seeing her complete opposite?’
’When she first entered the palace, she tried to use Beauty Zhen to make a name for herself, but I intervened and she failed.’
’After that, her hand was in several incidents in the palace. Lu Zhixue acting like a fool and clashing head-on with her? Qin Xiyue’s "contribution" there was undeniable. And in the middle of it all was Zhu Cairen, who lost her life.’
’Then there was Chen Guoji. In the book, Chen Guoji wasn’t blameless, but that part of the plot was supposed to happen much later. This time, not only did the plot move up, but Qin Xiyue also used Chen Guoji as a stepping stone to get a promotion.’
’The female lead’s steps are indeed steady, but she’s walking a path of wickedness with no turning back.’
Song Yunzhao also vied for favor in the harem and would protect herself in a planned, legitimate, and reasonable manner. But her one rule was that she would never proactively plot to take someone’s life.
’I really don’t know where it all went wrong for things to turn out like this.’
After writing and sending her reply to He Lan Yun, Song Yunzhao still couldn’t calm her frustration. ’How could someone so vile exist in this world?’
’She’s miserable herself, so she can’t stand to see anyone else happy.’
’It’s a good thing I’ve managed to talk some sense into He Lan Yun a few times. With her old temperament, she would have definitely caused a huge scene...’
At this thought, Song Yunzhao’s expression turned grim. ’So, is it possible that Qin Xiyue actually *wants* He Lan Yun to cause a scene?’
’In the book, He Lan Yun’s ending was terrible. Is Qin Xiyue targeting He Lan Yun now because she’s friends with me? Since Qin Xiyue can’t get to me for the time being, is she trying to make my life difficult instead?’
The more Song Yunzhao thought about it, the more sense it made. And the more sense it made, the harder it became to suppress her fury!
’Fine. If Qin Xiyue won’t let me live in peace, then I’ll have to give her something to keep her busy!’
’I remember a crisis the female lead faced in the book. It was caused by her older brother accepting bribes. Grand Tutor Qin’s eldest son, Qin Yuanjing, is a Director in the Ministry of Industry, in charge of smelting affairs. All mining operations require the Ministry of Industry’s approval, so his position carries some weight.’
’Qin Yuanjing used his official position to accept bribes, exploiting the mines and profiting handsomely from it.’
’If Qin Xiyue is going to be malicious, she can’t blame me for being ruthless.’
’If I don’t teach her a lesson, she’ll really think I’m a pushover.’
Having made up her mind, Song Yunzhao began to recall how this incident had erupted in the book. She couldn’t drag the Song Family into this, so she would have to use the troublemakers from the book to make it all happen ahead of schedule.