Quickly wear salted fish, she won by lying down

Chapter 1611 Substitute Bride 15
If the mastermind behind this is indeed Third Master Jiang, then his spreading rumors about Consort Ding and Prince Qinghe was probably mainly to annoy the Consort, to make her angry and refuse to sleep with Prince Qinghe, thus preventing her from getting pregnant. This would allow him to confirm to the Dowager Consort Qinghe that Prince Qinghe could not have children, making it easier to control Prince Qinghe.

There's no need to worry about this news getting into the palace and causing trouble for the Qinghe Prince's Mansion. He has such great power that brainwashing the emperor to prevent anything from happening to the Qinghe Prince's Mansion is a piece of cake for him.

The reason for the rumors about Consort Ding and Prince Qinghe is probably because of some conflict between them. For example, a lecherous man like him might have taken a liking to Consort Ding, but she might not reciprocate his feelings. She might even have expressed her admiration for Prince Qinghe, which angered Third Master Jiang. So, he spread rumors about the two of them. If these rumors reach the palace, he has the ability to brainwash people and control Prince Qinghe's residence so that nothing goes wrong, but Consort Ding will definitely be in trouble.

Of course, these are all speculations, and further clues are needed. After all, without concrete evidence, all inferences may be wrong.

Some might think, if Master Jiang is so powerful, why doesn't he kill the emperor and become emperor himself?

...That's definitely none of his business, because his relationship with the emperor is too distant. The emperor has many sons, so even if he kills the emperor, it won't affect him. Therefore, the best wealth and glory he can get is to kill his brother and take everything from him.

Of course, Master Jiang might not have had this ability for a very long time, otherwise Prince Qinghe would definitely not have survived. After all, when the old prince was alive, as long as Prince Qinghe was killed, he, as the only legitimate son, could inherit the title.

Although Linlang felt that the possibility of Master Jiang being the mastermind had greatly increased, after observing Master Jiang for a few days, she really didn't think he was a person with superpowers. With his personality, if he had such abilities, it would be almost impossible for him not to expose them. Also, he didn't seem like a scheming person who could plan such a big scheme. Even though the possibility of Master Jiang being the mastermind had greatly increased, Linlang really didn't believe that he was the mastermind.

If Master Jiang isn't the mastermind, then who else could be the culprit?

Linlang turned her gaze to Grandma Jiang.

Grandma Jiang is much more composed than Grandpa Jiang; if she were the mastermind behind it all, she could do it.

But then again, it seemed unlikely, because what benefit would it bring to Jiang San's wife if the children of Jiang San's concubines obtained a title?

Unless... Grandma Jiang is prepared to give her child to Prince Qinghe for adoption, then it is not possible.

And this is not impossible. After all, if she were the mastermind behind the murder, and had the ability to brainwash people, it would be something she could do in no time.

If it can be done, then Third Master Jiang will be the biggest beneficiary, and she will be the biggest beneficiary as well.

To be honest, knowing Jiang Sanye's situation, the fact that she was still willing to marry him made Jiang Sanye's behavior somewhat unusual.

Of course, one could say her family coveted wealth and status, so they married her off, and she had no choice in the matter—though she only pretended to be forced into it; in reality, she wanted to marry him. But if she truly coveted wealth and status, why didn't she marry the emperor? After all, she had the ability to brainwash people. Marrying the emperor, having a son, and then brainwashing him into making her son the crown prince wasn't impossible. Even if she didn't become emperor, she could still have the emperor favor her son, granting him not only the title of prince but also substantial estates and stipends. Wouldn't that be far better than scheming for a mere county prince title?

Unless... there are restrictions imposed on people of high status, such as the brainwashing emperor, that force her to settle for second best.

Speaking of which, so far, if Grandma Jiang has really brainwashed anyone, it's not anyone of high status. When the Qinghe Princess said that the Qinghe Prince's offspring were difficult to conceive, it was the doctor who told her that. Grandma Jiang only needed to brainwash the doctor; she didn't need to brainwash the Qinghe Princess.

The status of the old woman who spoke with the original owner of the body and Linlang and others in the prequel was even lower.

When Linlang turned her attention to Granny Jiang and investigated, she discovered that Granny Jiang's behavior was indeed unusual. Not to mention, her marriage to Master Jiang was not even out of her own hands. It was because the Dowager Princess of Qinghe came to propose marriage to her family. Her parents were worried about Master Jiang's character and hesitated, but she was very satisfied. Fearing that her parents would not agree, she personally persuaded them to agree to her marriage to Master Jiang.

These details were revealed by Grandma Jiang's parents when they were discussing at home whether their daughter was doing well in her husband's family. They had always been worried that Grandma Jiang was not doing well in the Qinghe Prince's Mansion.

This is highly unusual. After all, who would want to marry someone like Master Jiang, especially someone so proactive?

Thus, after entering the mansion, Granny Jiang, who had only gained the favor of the Dowager Princess Qinghe and had otherwise remained relatively quiet, came into Linlang's view, and Linlang began to investigate Granny Jiang's situation in detail.

This investigation was quite remarkable. It quickly revealed that Granny Jiang and Consort Ding had indeed had a conflict. Granny Jiang's family was actually a distant relative of Consort Ding's family. In the past, her family had relied on the Duke of Cheng's mansion and would frequently visit the Duke of Cheng's mansion to curry favor. During this process, Consort Ding, as the eldest daughter of the Duke of Cheng, had a noble status but was of mediocre character. She must have looked down on Granny Jiang at times, which made Granny Jiang hold a grudge against Consort Ding. Even those around her knew about it.

If Linlang hadn't conducted a thorough investigation, who would have known that the daughter of a poor relative who came to her door to curry favor actually hated her so much, and then somehow gained superpowers, started spreading rumors about her, and was preparing to kill her?

Linlang also speculated that Grandma Jiang might be a reincarnated person with superpowers, because after falling into the water, she behaved strangely, which probably meant she had gained superpowers and knew about the future, hence her strange behavior.

Linlang guessed that in Grandma Jiang's previous life, she probably didn't marry Master Jiang because her family knew that Master Jiang was a bad person and didn't want her to marry him. At that time, she had neither superpowers nor knew what the future held, so she naturally agreed.

But in her previous life, she married someone else and may not have had a happy life.

On the contrary, Consort Ding might have some potential, otherwise she wouldn't have insisted on spreading rumors about Consort Ding after her rebirth. After all, if Consort Ding didn't have any potential or even lived a miserable life, she could just quietly wait for her to suffer.

Furthermore, judging from her insistence on marrying Third Master Jiang, it's possible that the Qinghe Prince's Mansion will present great opportunities in the future, which she hopes to seize upon. For example, it's possible that the Qinghe Prince's son or grandson will become emperor in the future. Otherwise, she wouldn't have schemed against the Qinghe Prince after her rebirth, wanting to have her son adopted by him.