Chapter 15

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Murong Xuan worked efficiently. In just three days, he had rounded up everyone involved in spreading the rumors. One by one, they were interrogated, and eventually, it was traced back to the servant from the Crown Prince’s maternal family. The servant insisted that it was all fabricated by himself, with no one instructing him to do so.

He refused to admit it even under duress and couldn’t be certain that the Empress was behind it. In the end, the only punishment was a mild reprimand for the negligent cousin of the Duke, and the matter was left unresolved, which cleared Zhuang Xiaoyu’s name.

Meanwhile, the Empress in the harem had been nowhere to be found, not even seen by the Emperor. She claimed that the harem was not to be involved in state affairs, and she was avoiding suspicion.

“Hmph, that poisonous woman got off too easily.”

Zhuang Xian knew it was the Empress’s doing but had no solid evidence and was helpless.

“Father, don’t get angry over such a small thing. I heard the Empress has come down with a strange illness, and she’s been passing gas all day. She’s too embarrassed to see the Emperor, afraid she’ll suffocate him with the smell.”

Zhuang Xiaoyu comforted him, knowing how foul that gas must be. The entire Renxi Palace was probably stinking up a storm.

“So that’s what happened, and she said she’s avoiding suspicion? Hahaha… seems like heaven has eyes after all.”

“Father, can we go out and have some fun?” Seeing that Old Zhuang was in a good mood, she quickly made her request—after all, she couldn’t always sneak out.

“Alright, you three siblings can go together, but take a few guards with you. Be careful.”

“We don’t need guards. The three of us, who would dare to bully us?”

“At this critical time, it’s better to be safe than sorry.”

Unable to argue with Old Zhuang, they had no choice but to bring along two guards, my siblings who were generously given two silver coins each.

The five of them set out, with Zhuang Xiaoyu as the leader. If she said east, they went east; if she said west, they went west. The two younger ones had no opinions, and the guards dared not express any.

“Buy whatever you want. It’s on me, little sister’s treat.”

“Where did you get the money, Sister?”

“I stole it.”

Her younger siblings thought she was joking and didn’t take it seriously.

They bought a few small trinkets, each spending a couple of taels of silver.

Zhuang Xiaoyu then took them to a clothing store, intending to buy them a couple of new outfits.

“Xiaowan, try on this one. Xun, try on this one.”

Zhuang Xiaoyu didn’t even ask for their opinions, displaying her eldest sister’s authority.

They didn’t object, taking the clothes and heading to the fitting rooms.

Zhuang Xun quickly emerged after changing. “Sister, does it look good?”

“It looks great. My little brother is so handsome. Just get this one, wrap the old one up.”

Girls were troublesome. Zhuang Xiaowan took a long time to come out, pouting and looking upset.

“What’s wrong? Don’t like it?”

“It’s not that. I saw someone I don’t like.”

As Zhuang Xiaowan spoke, someone walked out of the fitting room. It was Sun Yulan.

Zhuang Xiaowan didn’t expect Sun Yulan to be trying on clothes there. She thought about leaving, but then realized that the one who had done wrong was someone else, so why should she leave? She glared angrily at Sun Yulan instead.

Sun Yulan wasn’t doing well either. Recently, there had been rumors about her being involved with the Crown Prince. After these rumors spread, her parents were extremely disappointed in her. Fortunately, her talent as the number one talented woman still held up her reputation. She was relying on this to keep appearing in public. With the Grand Princess’s birthday banquet coming up, she hoped to restore her name at this event, so she was out buying new clothes.

Now that Zhuang Xiaowan had seen her, she couldn’t keep hiding and had to walk out.

“Well, what a coincidence. Miss Zhuang is here to buy clothes too?”

Sun Yulan greeted her warmly, making it hard for outsiders to detect any ill intentions.

“It is quite a coincidence. These two outfits should be charged to Miss Sun’s account. I’m sure you don’t mind, right?”

Zhuang Xiaoyu said with a half-smile, giving her an opportunity to show her true character. If she handled it well, perhaps Zhuang Xiaoyu wouldn’t expose her.

“Of course not. If Miss Zhuang doesn’t mind, you can pick out one too. Just put it on my account.”

“Hmm, that’s quite considerate. In that case, I’ll take one. Don’t let Miss Sun’s kind offer go to waste.”

Zhuang Xiaoyu picked a light purple dress. She loved the color purple, and most of her wardrobe was filled with purple clothing.

Watching Sun Yulan pay for the items, Zhuang Xiaowan finally stopped pouting.

Afterward, they all went to the largest restaurant in the capital, Xiangshan Ju, for a meal.

“With a name like that, there must be some signature dishes. Let’s try them all.”

“Big sister, we can’t eat that much.”

“Well, if we can’t finish it all in one go, we can always come back another time.”

“I agree, I agree.” Zhuang Xiaowan was quite the foodie.

Once inside the private room, Zhuang Xian finally asked about Sun Yulan. Seeing the way his two sisters acted, he knew there was more to the story. He hadn’t asked in front of others, but now, he couldn’t wait any longer.

“Why did Miss Sun agree to pay for our bills? Did something happen that I don’t know about?”

“It’s the Crown Prince’s shamelessness. He tried to frame my sister and ruin the Imperial Orchid Garden. He even bribed a few people to give false testimony, including Sun Yulan, who’s supposed to be the number one talented woman. But her heart is wicked.”

Zhuang Xiaowan was still fuming as she remembered it.

“So what happened in the end?”

“You already know, right? The Crown Prince was deposed.”

Zhuang Xiaoyu took a sip of tea, which tasted a bit bitter. She didn’t like it much; she preferred plain water.

“Father must have put in a lot of effort,” Zhuang Xun thought. He assumed that with his father’s position as Prime Minister, he had worked with other officials to bring the Crown Prince down.

“Yes, your father was really angry that day. The Empress wanted to punish someone without asking the truth. Even Lord Xuan saw it wasn’t our fault, but she still wanted to punish someone.”

“The Crown Prince was deposed, but did the Empress get punished?”

As expected, Zhuang Xiaoyu’s younger brother didn’t miss any details.

“She contracted a strange illness and has been passing foul gas every day. She’s now called the ‘Farting Empress.’ Life won’t be easy for her.”

“That’s quite something.”

“Don’t worry. Anyone who opposes us doesn’t end up well. The food’s here—let’s eat.”

Just as they were about to continue their meal, a commotion outside interrupted them.

“Zhuang Xiaoyu, you disaster! You’ve ruined my sister’s chance of marrying far away! You won’t live long!”

Zhuang Xun immediately stood up. “Big sister, it’s Xue Yang. He actually found us here.”

“Don’t get worked up, let’s eat. Zhang Wen, Zhao Wu, throw him far away.”

They had brought two guards along, and now it was time to put them to good use.

Moments later, the noise outside disappeared.

“Let’s eat, eat well so we have the strength to deal with people.”

Zhuang Xun started to gobble down his food as if each extra bite would give him more strength.

With Xue Yang’s outburst, many people outside now knew that Zhuang Xiaoyu was in this room.

Sima Mo was also dining at the restaurant. With Murong Xiao having been deposed, and as a friend who had known him since childhood, he felt it was right to console him and invited him for lunch.

Upon hearing that Zhuang Xiaoyu was in the same restaurant, Murong Xiao got furious. He insisted on finding her, but Sima Mo had to hold him back to prevent him from storming over.

“What are you causing trouble for a woman for? Now that you’re no longer the Crown Prince, what does she have to do with you?”

“You don’t understand. It’s because of her! If it weren’t for her, I wouldn’t have ended up like this.”

“But wasn’t it because the officials impeached you? You made mistakes first.”

“It’s her, all her fault! I’m going to kill her. I’ve had many women, I’ve treated them well, fed them, never wronged them. But they all turned on me and accused me. It was Zhuang Xiaoyu’s doing, or her father’s!”

“I took bribes, so what? Which official in court hasn’t taken bribes? I’m the Crown Prince, so what if I take a little bribe? How did that make me of low character?”

“I can’t stand her playing games with me. I just wanted to teach her a lesson, but she made sure I was deposed. I’m never going to let this go.”

“Stop causing trouble. You’re no longer the Crown Prince, but you’re still a prince. Life goes on. Don’t antagonize her anymore.”

Sima Mo was losing patience. He thought about saying, “Zhuang Xiaoyu could crush you with one hand,” but realized Murong Xiao probably wouldn’t believe him.

This guy had been the Crown Prince his entire life. He had never faced setbacks and had his maternal family to back him up. His behavior had become more and more absurd. If he didn’t repent, he wouldn’t be able to live peacefully anymore.

Zhuang Xiaoyu and her siblings finished their meal and called Zhang Wen and Zhao Wu in to eat.

In ancient times, servants weren’t allowed to eat with their masters, so they ate leftovers. Though it was a bit rude, the servants didn’t mind.

After they left the building, they found that Xue Yang hadn’t left yet. He had been thrown out but was still waiting at the entrance, as the innkeeper wouldn’t let him back in.

“Zhuang Xiaoyu, you witch! You’re a disaster!” Xue Yang shouted.

Zhuang Xiaoyu yawned after eating too much. “A witch can kill, you know. Are you two ready?”

“You dare? We’re in public. I don’t believe you’ll kill anyone.”

Her sister had told them that Zhuang Xiaoyu was the one who hit her, but her father didn’t believe it. He was worried she would offend people with her wild talk, so he had married her off.

Now, Xue Yang looked a bit scared of being beaten but still stubbornly held his ground.

“Xue Yang, don’t slander my sister!” Zhuang Xun was about to charge at him, but Zhuang Xiaoyu stopped him.

“Hmm, you’ve got some guts. It seems you care a lot about your sister. How about this—take ten years to practice, then come back and look for me.”

After saying that, Zhuang Xiaoyu led her siblings away, but not before giving Xue Yang a scornful glare.