Chapter 21: The Spread of Rumors Among the People

Shui Dalangjun is the eldest grandchild, the legitimate child of the second wife, but unfortunately, born into the second household.

Originally, it had nothing to do with him, but Shui Mingxi remained like a child and might never recover for the rest of his life.

This could easily give rise to others’ ambitions.

Over at the Hanlin Academy, Shui Mingxi also attends, always accompanied by his servants. They keep him away from others.

After work, he returns home, often taking leave.

As Yan Ziqi was about to leave, he understood.

No wonder Shui hurried home every day.

It turns out, it wasn’t because there was a beautiful maiden hidden at the academy.

Nor was it because he was an obedient, mama’s boy.

It was because he wasn’t mentally sound. What a pity.

Fu Mingying had no idea what kind of trouble she had almost gotten herself into.

Before Shui Wuniangzi arrived, she had already been asked to leave, while Li Ning’an stubbornly stayed, as no one forced her out.

When she saw Yan Ziqi come out from inside, Li Ning’an followed him as they left together. On the way back to the city, Li Ning’an asked:

“Yan Zi, don’t you think something’s off here? For example, how could any servant dare to harm their master by pushing them into the water?”

If it was just for money, how much would Shui Wuniangzi’s maid have to pay him to take such a risk?

Could it be because of love?

That’s not impossible.

Yan Ziqi looked at her with a ‘teachable’ expression. “This couldn’t possibly be done by just the maid.”

How could she have bribed both a second-tier maid by Shui Yurong’s side and a servant in Shui Mingxi’s courtyard?

It’s important to know that the inner household is now run by the Duchess of Dingguo.

If they were found out, being beaten to death would be deserved.

So, it’s highly likely that Shui Wuniangzi ordered it and promised something tempting enough for them to take action.

Shui Wuniangzi knew she couldn’t hide it, so she pushed the blame onto her personal maid.

She grew up with Shui Wuniangzi, and her indenture contract was either with the second household or Shui Wuniangzi herself.

Shui Wuniangzi must have found a way to make her confess.

The Duchess of Dingguo wouldn’t really want to completely sever ties with the second household.

After all, she only has one son to inherit the Duke of Dingguo’s title.

With Shui Mingxi in this condition, she would still have to rely on the eldest son of the second household in the future.

Now that both Shui Mingxi and Shui Yurong are fine, at most they’d be beaten with a few dozen strokes, kept alive, and sold off to a distant place.

Li Ning’an nodded in agreement, praising, “I knew you were smart. Your reward is to write another memorial and hurry off to the border.”

“Why are you always pushing me to go to the border?”

Yan Ziqi slumped limply in the carriage as if he had no bones.

Li Ning’an saw that he really seemed unconcerned about going to the border.

But in her previous life, it was he who had actively requested the assignment, even vowing on military orders to go.

Li Ning’an tentatively asked, “How much do you know about the Tong family?”

She suspected that Yan Ziqi trusted the Tong family too much at this point, believing they had the ability to defend the nation, and thus he didn’t bother getting involved.

Yan Ziqi sensed her stubbornness regarding this matter, so he responded with a question instead of answering:

“You wouldn’t happen to have messed up your act and are now sticking close to me, hoping I’ll die in battle so you can go after Fu Minglang again?”

Yan Ziqi pretended to shiver in fear, crossing his arms as if to protect himself.

Li Ning’an nearly kicked him out of the carriage. “I have no more feelings for Fu Minglang. I’ll chop him up with a knife if you don’t believe me.”

She raised her hand, mimicking a chopping gesture.

In this dynasty, even if the emperor broke the law, he’d be judged the same as a commoner.

Let alone killing a minister of the court.

Yan Ziqi didn’t really dare let her do it.

“Did you really let go of three years of affection just like that?”

Yan Ziqi sized up Li Ning’an with a skeptical gaze.

Li Ning’an clutched her chest. Stay calm, stay calm. She had been foolish back then, loving too earnestly, pursuing too flamboyantly.

It was hard for anyone to believe that she had let go of such a fateful entanglement.

“Don’t mention that thing anymore.” Li Ning’an waved her hand dismissively, her eyes filled with disgust, then turned to look at Yan Ziqi.

Here’s the translation of the passage you provided:

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Li Ning’an’s tone suddenly became sweet and soft. “How could I compare to Yan Lang in the slightest?”

She swayed as she moved to Yan Ziqi’s side, pretending to hook her arm around his.

“Xiao Anzi, you’re making me, ugh, feel sick.”
Yan Ziqi’s earlobes turned slightly red, and he quickly pushed her away, pretending to gag.

Li Ning’an sat back, stretched out her leg, and lightly kicked his calf. “You just don’t understand romance.”

When the carriage arrived at Xiangguo Duke’s Mansion, Yan Ziqi was about to jump down when he suddenly remembered the servants that Li Ning’an had sent him.

“Take away those people you bought immediately. I can’t afford to keep them.”

“I gave them to you, how can there be any reason to take them back?”

Li Ning’an definitely couldn’t let anyone know she was planning to train secret guards.

“You took back the indenture contracts you sent to the Fu residence, didn’t you?” Yan Ziqi, having heard about that, thought the sun had risen in the west.

She had actually sent a palace maid to retrieve the contracts and even slapped the steward several times.

Although he was just a manager, it was an insult to the Fu family’s face.

Could she be changing her ways to act like a spoiled princess?

Or perhaps she was thinking of becoming a mountain bandit?

Yan Ziqi nimbly jumped out of the carriage and landed firmly on his feet.

From inside, Li Ning’an’s voice rang out, “I! Don’t! Like! Fu! Ming! Lang!”

She lifted the curtain and stepped down, supported by Xing’e. “Is my residence ready?”

To break free from her obsession with Fu Minglang, she needed to quickly move into Yan Ziqi’s residence.

She had originally planned to attend the flower appreciation banquet hosted by the Duchess of Dingguo to solidify her relationship with Yan Ziqi.

But due to being preoccupied with the Shui Yurong matter, she had forgotten about it.

A few days earlier, Li Ning’an had purchased people at a broker and sent them to Xiangguo Duke’s Mansion, causing some discussion among the common folk.

They believed that the Duke of Xiangguo was loyal, courageous, and resolute, while the heir, Yan Shizi, was indulging in beauty and games all day, which wasn’t quite right.

There was still no arrangement regarding the title he was supposed to inherit, and he was no longer young, yet no elders were helping to arrange his marriage.

The Iron Cavalry Army was, after all, under the command of the Duke of Xiangguo, with years of remarkable military achievements, yet it was being swallowed up by the Tong family.

This Yan Shizi was rather pitiful.

There weren’t many servants in the mansion, and it even required help from Princess Ning’an.

The emperor shouldn’t let the soldiers at the border lose heart.

If, after fighting their entire lives, this is what they end up with, who would want to defend the country and fight bravely on the battlefield?

Recently, the northern Yue kingdom had been causing trouble, but the war reports from the border all mentioned victories by General Tong.

Emperor Mingde was also considering whether to send Yan Ziqi to gain some experience.

Next year would be the boy’s coming-of-age ceremony, and yet he spent his days in brothels, associating with actors. What could he possibly learn from that?

After reviewing the memorials in his hand, Emperor Mingde asked Yan Gonggong, “Send word to the empress. I’ll be visiting her.”

Yan Gonggong acknowledged the order, then called for his most trusted apprentice, whispered some instructions to him, and sent him off to the Weiyang Palace.

Yan Gonggong then returned to the inner hall to attend to the emperor, thinking about delivering the message to the empress so that she could be somewhat prepared for the emperor’s arrival.

The empress had always been known for her kindness and virtue.

Even after losing two of her own sons, she had been able to manage the inner palace, maintain order, and remain free of resentment, always thinking about the emperor’s well-being.

It was no wonder that Lady Tong, the imperial concubine, could never surpass the empress in her lifetime.

That kind of character was rare.

Princess Ning’an hadn’t learned even a fraction of it; she was practically becoming a troublemaker.

The empress would rest every afternoon, and as luck would have it, she had just woken up when the eunuch from Qian Palace arrived. She sat sipping tea on the couch in the inner hall.

After the eunuch paid his respects, he said, “Gonggong Yan sent me to inform Your Majesty that His Majesty seems to be taking an interest in Yan Shizi’s marriage.”

The empress gave a quiet acknowledgment and instructed Sujin to reward the eunuch with silver. After bowing again, he slipped the silver into his sleeve and said, “This servant takes his leave.”

After the servants left, Sujin softly asked the empress:

“Recently, the princess and Yan Shizi have been quite close. They even attended the flower appreciation banquet at Dingguo Duke’s Mansion together.”

What exactly is His Majesty planning?

Does he want the princess and Yan Shizi to marry?

Or is he looking to find someone else for Yan Shizi?

“There’s no need to rush about that. His Majesty will be coming soon, so prepare his favorite golden thread jujube cake, and make sure the tea is served at room temperature.”

When Emperor Mingde arrived, he saw the empress smiling warmly as she leaned on the couch, with Ning’an squatting beside her, pretending to massage her legs.

“You little rascal, what kind of trouble did you stir up this time to come bothering your mother?”