Chapter 89: She Wants to Take the Fall for Li and Let the Peach Die

Ye Jingchuan was quite curious about what Prince An’s other plan was.

However, on the road to the main hall, the servant girls and boys were busy, and he didn’t ask too many questions.

Upon arriving at the flower hall, Ye Jingchuan bowed to Zhao Qingshu, “This official greets the heir.”

“Lord Ye, you are a guest today, no need for such formalities.”

After Zhao Qingshu spoke, he called a servant to escort Ye Jingchuan to the main hall.

As Ye Jingchuan was leaving, he overheard Prince An asking his son, “Are all the guests here?”

“Everyone is here, except for the Crown Prince and the Second Prince.”

In other words, Prince Chen had already arrived.

Prince An nodded, “You go ahead and attend to the guests, I will wait for the two princes here.”

“Yes, Father.”

After Zhao Qingshu left, Princess Anping raised her hand to fan her sunburned face.

“Father, all the female guests have arrived, so I’ll head to the theater.”

“Go ahead, don’t cause any trouble.”

Princess Anping pouted unhappily, “It’s not me causing trouble, it’s Ye Chutang who deliberately provoked me!”

“You are the host, if she provokes you, you must endure it. You can’t lose the dignity and face of the Prince An’s residence.”

“Father, whether it’s Tang Wanning or Ye Chutang, neither of them are your own. Don’t be so partial!”

Princess Anping often heard her mother complain about how her father, for the sake of Tang Wanning, almost had a falling out with the emperor, and even nearly caused her mother’s death.

That’s why she held deep animosity toward Tang Wanning’s daughter!

Prince An, hearing his daughter’s rebellious words, gave her a cold stare, “Siming, mind your words!”

Princess Anping’s full name was Zhao Siming, with the title Anping.

Seeing that her father was truly angry, she quickly tried to flatter him.

“Father, Anping knows her mistake. Please be magnanimous and forgive me, okay? I didn’t mean to.”

As she spoke, she tugged at her father’s sleeve and shook it.

Her father’s heart immediately softened.

“Anping, don’t worry, your father knows who is an outsider and who is an insider. It’s hot here, you should go to the theater to cool off.”

“Father, I’ll go now.”

“Alright, go ahead.”

Prince An called over a servant, “Go call Prince Chen to the lotus pond and tell him I have important matters to discuss with him.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Not far from Princess Anping, upon hearing this, her smile instantly vanished, and her eyes turned cold with a sharp glint.

Ha, her father knows she likes Prince Chen and that she won’t marry anyone but him, yet he’s still plotting against him, trying to get him to marry Ye Chutang.

What kind of father is this!

Since no one is helping her, she’ll take matters into her own hands and fight for her chance to marry Prince Chen!

She wants to use Li to replace the peach, make Ye Chutang fall into the water!

When Princess Anping arrived at the theater, she heard the Princess Consort talking, “A few days ago, I got some rare blue-scaled koi, which I’m keeping in the lotus pond. Would you like to see them?”

The Princess Consort was today’s birthday star, and regardless of whether everyone was interested in the blue koi or not, they would all give her face.

“Since it’s a rare sight, I must go see it.”

“As the saying goes, seeing koi brings good fortune, so I’ll take advantage of the Princess Consort’s good fortune.”

The Princess Consort looked at Ye Chutang, who hadn’t said a word, and smiled, “Miss Ye, you have such extraordinary talent. I wonder if you could compose a poem for the koi?”

Ye Chutang screamed in her mind: Here it comes, she’s bringing her scheme right towards me! From the three words “lotus pond,” I’ve already guessed the Princess Consort’s plan.

Falling into the water, skin-to-skin contact, wet clothes, ruined reputation, and forced marriage!

She gave the Princess Consort the middle finger.

“It’s an honor for a small girl like me to be invited by the Princess Consort.”

Although the Princess Consort didn’t understand Ye Chutang’s gesture, she felt extremely uncomfortable, thinking it was some kind of insult. But right now, the most important thing was to lead Ye Chutang to the lotus pond, so she didn’t ask any more questions.

“Let’s go, the sunlight is not too harsh right now, and it’s the perfect time for the koi to swim happily. If we’re lucky, we might even see them jump through the Dragon Gate!”

The female guests immediately followed the Princess Consort to the nearby lotus pond.

Ye Chutang intentionally squeezed through the crowd, creating an opportunity for the Princess Consort to strike.

Princess Anping immediately followed, her eyes tightly locked on Ye Chutang’s back, ensuring she wouldn’t miss the opportunity to make Ye Chutang take the fall.

She had overheard her father and mother plotting to use the banquet today to get Prince Chen and Ye Chutang to have skin-to-skin contact, hoping to have the emperor grant them a marriage.

She didn’t know the full reason, nor did she care.

She just wanted to turn their plan around, so the emperor’s marriage decree would be for her and Qi Yanzhou instead!

Ye Chutang sensed a piercing gaze on her back. She turned her head and met Princess Anping’s predatory stare.

She raised her eyebrow, her lips curling into a smile, and her eyes filled with disdain, a clear provocation.

Princess Anping remained unmoved.

For her, securing Qi Yanzhou was the most important thing. Everything else had to take a back seat!

Ye Chutang was a little surprised by Princess Anping’s reaction and kept her guard up.

Soon, the group arrived at the lotus pond.

The Princess Consort had a servant bring fish food and threw it into the pond filled with lotus leaves.

The koi immediately swam over, fighting for the food.

“Ah! There really are blue koi, their scales shimmer and sparkle, they’re so beautiful!”

“I see several! One of them is purple, it looks so majestic!”

At this, the women crowded around the lotus pond, eager to see the rare koi.

“Look, the koi are jumping through the Dragon Gate! This is my first time seeing it, so amazing!”

“Where? I don’t see it, I just see the fish fighting for food.”

“It’s right under that highest lotus leaf, the blue koi jumped again!”

Everyone crowded around the spot where they could see the koi jumping through the Dragon Gate.

Seeing that Ye Chutang was about to be squeezed out of the crowd, the Princess Consort quickly said, “Everyone, don’t crowd, you might fall in! Make way for Miss Ye, let her enjoy the view and compose a poem for the koi.”

Her words were like an imperial decree, and the women quickly stepped aside.

Ye Chutang looked at the narrow path that could barely fit one person and slowly walked toward the pond.

Her eyes were sharp, watching for any signs of a plot against her.

Princess Anping followed closely behind.

Just as Ye Chutang reached the edge of the pond, suddenly a foot stretched out to trip her.

She was about to dodge and kick the culprit into the pond when Princess Anping grabbed her shoulder, switched places with her, and fell in herself.

“Splish!”

Water splashed everywhere.

Ye Chutang clearly saw Princess Anping’s satisfied smile as she was submerged in the water.