He remarried after his mother's death, seized power over the world, and slept on the emperor�

Wang Kun clearly took Lin Wenbo's words to heart.

He stopped bothering the Lin family and instead focused all his energy on Jiang Bingning.

From the second day onwards, the area outside the gates of Prince Xin's mansion became exceptionally lively.

Wang Kun, along with a group of thugs, would arrive at the door every day to shout and cause trouble.

"Jiang Bingning! You get out here right now!"

"Your sister is shameless, ruining the reputation of the Wang family!"

"You'll have to pay this debt!"

He simply took off his shirt, revealing his muscular chest, and stepped on the stone lion in front of the palace gate, looking just like a street ruffian.

"If you don't marry me, you're disrespecting the Wang family!"

"I, Wang Kun, am making this clear right now!"

"I'm going to marry Jiang Bingning!"

The common people stood at a distance, pointing and whispering. The guards of the Prince's Palace drew their swords, but were restrained from harming anyone, resulting in a stalemate.

The atmosphere inside the Prince Xin's mansion was oppressive.

This was the day when the women of the household paid their respects to the Dowager Consort morning and evening.

The wives and young ladies from each household gathered in the Dowager Consort's courtyard, seemingly chatting casually, but their eyes kept glancing at Jiang Bingning out of the corner of their eyes.

Jiang Bingning seemed completely unaware.

She sat quietly in the corner, her back ramrod straight.

Until the Dowager Empress slowly walked out of the inner hall and sat down in the main seat.

Everyone stood up and bowed.

Just as everyone sat down again, Jiang Bingning made a move.

She walked gracefully into the hall, faced the direction of the Dowager Consort, and knelt down directly.

"Bing Ning has something to say."

Everyone in the room was stunned. Even the Dowager Empress slightly opened her eyes and looked at her.

"Your Highness, ladies, please understand."

"Since the day before yesterday, Bingning's mother, Liu, has been depressed."

"She suffered from insomnia, lost her appetite, and was bedridden, her body and mind deteriorating."

"As a daughter, I wish I could suffer in my mother's place."

Her voice trembled slightly.

"Mother is now staying at the Prince's Mansion, where she can finally catch her breath. Bingning serves her medicine day and night, hoping that she can recover soon."

"Grieved by her mother's illness, and restless day and night, how could Bingning possibly have the slightest thought to discuss her children's marriages?"

She suddenly raised her head, her eyes glistening with tears.

"Hereby, Bingning swears an oath to the heavens!"

"Until her mother recovers, Bingning will never marry!"

"May I be struck down by heaven and earth if I break this oath!"

"Only Heaven can bear witness to my heart. I hope the Dowager Princess and all the ladies will be my witnesses!"

His words silenced all the women in the room.

No one expected that she would respond to the foul language from outside in this way.

Without arguing or defending themselves, they simply used the word "filial piety" to quell all the rumors and gossip.

A genuine emotion flickered in the old lady's eyes.

She slowly sat up straight.

"What a fitting saying: 'I will never marry until my mother is cured.'"

The Dowager's voice echoed in the quiet hall.

"Foolish child, get up quickly."

The Empress Dowager's gaze swept over the crowd below, and her voice suddenly turned cold.

"Did you hear everything?"

"Miss Jiang is both filial and righteous. She is a guest of my Prince Xin's Mansion and someone I value highly."

"If anyone dares to spread those vile rumors into the manor again, don't blame me for having no qualms about strict family discipline!"

All the women in the room stood up, no longer daring to show the slightest contempt.

Wang Kun's forced marriage thus became a complete joke.

-----------------

Late at night.

Just as Jiang Bingning changed her coat, a very soft knock came from the window.

A thought struck her, and she walked to the window.

A dark shadow, like a raccoon dog, silently slipped in.

Under the moonlight, Ji Ling's handsome face held a playful smile.

"If her mother's illness persists, she shall never marry?"

He mimicked her tone, with a hint of teasing.

Jiang Bingning rolled her eyes at him and turned to pour tea.

"Your Highness, you've come to visit so late at night just to make fun of me?"

Ji Ling walked to the table and sat down, poured himself a cup of tea, and looked at her with deep eyes.

The woman before me was calm, intelligent, and even ruthless.

Today, the Dowager Empress's words have spread throughout the city.

It may seem like filial piety, but it's actually a radical solution that solves the problem once and for all.

Such scheming and such methods, if it were truly the work of a spy...

But for some reason, when he thought of Jiang Bingning's words, "I wish I could suffer in place of my mother," the doubt in his heart quietly faded a little.

"I've heard a little about Jiang Yuerong's matter before," Ji Ling broke the silence.

"I only knew Lin Wenbo was a bad guy, but I never imagined your sister was this stupid."

Jiang Bingning's eyes turned cold.

"She brought this upon herself; she deserves to die."

"There's no need to mention her anymore."

She steered the conversation back on track.

"How's your investigation going with the Lin family?"

"That ledger is the key to bringing down Lin Wei."

Ji Ling's expression also turned serious.

"The account book is a single piece of evidence; other evidence is needed to form a complete chain."

"Lin Wei is meticulous in his actions; it's difficult to find fault with him."

Just as the two were about to have a deeper discussion, a series of hurried footsteps suddenly came from outside the door.

"Girl! Girl!"

It's a spring peach!

Ji Ling flashed and was already at the window.

"I'll go first. Contact me if you need anything."

Before he finished speaking, he had already disappeared into the night like a black feather.

Jiang Bingning quickly went forward to close the window, straightened her clothes, and then said in a deep voice.

"Come in."

The door was pushed open, and Chun Tao rushed in with a look of panic, then immediately bolted the door shut.

"girl!"

Her voice was trembling.

"Don't panic, speak slowly." Jiang Bingning supported her and handed her a cup of warm tea.

Chun Tao drank several mouthfuls before she could catch her breath.

"This servant went to the small kitchen to get you some calming soup. When I passed the alley to the west, I heard people talking."

"That's the sound from Miss Shao Huan's courtyard!"

"I was afraid of being discovered, so I hid behind the artificial hill and overheard everything..."

She opened her eyes wide in fear.

"I heard Miss Shaohuan talking to an old woman!"

"I recognize that old woman; she's the head maid in charge of purchasing for the Lin family!"

Jiang Bingning's eyes sharpened instantly.

"What did they say?"

"That old woman gave Miss Shaohuan a paper packet, saying it was the eldest young master of the Lin family's order, and asked Miss Shaohuan to find a way to put it in your calming soup."

"They say the medicine is colorless and odorless, a slow-acting poison. If you take it for a month, it will gradually weaken you, making you emaciated, and eventually, like someone suffering from tuberculosis, you will die silently!"

"At that point, no one will be able to find out!"

As Chuntao spoke, tears streamed down her face.

"The poison has already been brought in by that old woman; it's hidden in the third brick compartment under the big locust tree in Miss Shao Huan's courtyard!"

Jiang Bingning showed no sign of panic after hearing this.

"well done."

She gently patted Chun Tao's back.

"This matter must not be made public."

"Starting tomorrow, just pretend you know nothing."

Chuntao was stunned.

"Miss? Shouldn't we go and tell the Dowager Princess?"

"Tell the Dowager?" Jiang Bingning sneered. "Without evidence, Ji Shaohuan will only deny it to the death. Even if poison is found, she can claim that the Lin family framed her."

"In the end, it will just be another painless house arrest and kneeling punishment."

"That's too easy on her."

Her fingers tapped lightly on the table.

"Tomorrow, find an excuse to go to Wu Qingyan's place and ask him to help me investigate whether the people around Ji Shaohuan have any other dealings with the Lin family recently."

"What I want is to catch her red-handed, so she'll never have a chance to recover."

Chuntao looked into her young lady's cold eyes and nodded heavily.

"Yes, I understand!"