Taking her into his tent, he incurred the wrath of a powerful and mad minister, from which he could

Madam Wang shut her mouth in embarrassment. She had shot herself in the foot, and had no choice but to accept it.

Feeling embarrassed to stay any longer, I made an excuse to leave with my daughter as soon as the banquet ended.

Once outside the Zong residence, Wang Shuyao couldn't help but complain to her mother:

"The old lady was praising me a few times, but you, of all people, brought up old stories and steered the conversation toward Ji Mingyi, making the old lady annoyed with us."

Madam Wang's face was very unpleasant: "I'm only doing this for your own good! Do you really think the old lady took her in? Nonsense! It was clearly Second Master Zong who took her in!"

"That woman has a foxy look to her face. I think she used that face to seduce Zong Xian and that's how she got to live in the Zong family. The old lady liked her so much and even made sure she sat next to her. It was all for show."

Wang Shuyao didn't follow her mother's train of thought and subconsciously asked, "What are you showing this to outsiders?"

Madam Wang said, "Of course she wants us to know that Ji Mingyi's status is extraordinary, and she values ​​that girl very much."

Wang Shuyao hesitated and said, "Even if the old lady likes her, it doesn't necessarily mean she wants to elevate her to be Zongxian's concubine."

"You, you think too simply." Having come this far, Madam Wang was too lazy to say anything more.

...

Next to the flower hall was a two-story warm pavilion, and at this moment a figure was lazily standing by the window on the second floor.

The man's gaze fell in the direction of the flower hall.

A teasing voice came from behind: "Your residence is quite lively, with a group of young ladies coming for you. Aren't you going down to say hello?"

Zong Xian wore a silver-gray brocade robe, his aura as unapproachable as high mountain snow. He said calmly, "There might be spies he planted among those people. Once I show myself, he will know tomorrow that I am not seriously injured at all."

The "he" that Zong Xian mentioned refers to is the emperor.

The emperor wanted a good knife to wipe out the Empress Dowager's faction in the court, but he didn't care whether the knife would die because it made too many enemies.

The emperor didn't care about his life, so he had to consider his own safety.

"I was just saying, I didn't actually ask you to go." Fan Siyuan poured himself a cup of tea, glanced at Zong Xian, and said, "I used to think you were blindly loyal to the emperor, but this incident has shown me that's not the case."

Zong Xian did not respond.

Fan Siyuan added, "But I'm curious, the emperor has always been very composed, so why has he been making so many moves lately, as if he's afraid of something?"

Zong Xian remained calm before saying, "I'm curious too."

Everyone thought he was the emperor's confidant, but in fact, the emperor did not fully trust him.

"Let's not talk about that. You finally have some free time and don't have to worry about the power struggles between the Emperor and the Empress Dowager. Why don't you find some fun to do?" Fan Siyuan asked.

"What fun things are there to do?"

Seeing his indifferent expression, Fan Siyuan curled his lip and said, "You're such a boring person. Don't you want anything besides power?"

What else does he want besides power?

Zong Xian didn't speak, but his deep gaze fell on the woman below.

...

After Madam Wang left, the ladies and young women all sought out Mingyi to speak, their words seemingly testing the waters for something.

Mingyi felt that talking to them was too much of a mental strain, and she was too lazy to deal with them, so she took the opportunity to sneak out for some fresh air and planned to walk back to Shuangxu Garden.

But as she walked, she suddenly felt a watchful gaze fixed on her.

Mingyi felt a chill run down her spine and subconsciously looked around, but didn't see anyone suspicious.

I must have misjudged the situation.

"Young lady, why is the old lady suddenly being so kind to you?" Yuegui asked, holding her hand.

"Perhaps he had a change of heart and realized how good I am," Mingyi replied casually.

After a while, Mingyi clutched her chest and said softly, "Yuegui, I'm about to get what I want and leave the Zong family, but for some reason, I feel uneasy."

Yuegui seemed to realize something and whispered, "Is Miss worried about Second Master?"

Mingyi nodded slightly: "Those ladies and young misses were overly enthusiastic towards me just now. I feel that it has something to do with the old lady, but I can't quite put my finger on why."

Yuegui also found it strange, and she comforted her, "Didn't the old lady agree to let you and your cousin go to Qingzhou? Don't worry, young lady, just wait for your cousin to come back, and then you can leave. Who cares what they think?"

Mingyi suddenly asked, "What if my cousin doesn't come back?"

Yuegui quickly said, "Pah, pah, pah! Miss, please don't say such unlucky things. Young Master will definitely return safely!"

"I hope so."

Just then, I heard a soft sobbing sound.

Mingyi stopped and looked at the slightly trembling figure behind the flower bushes, asking, "Who's crying there?"

A young maidservant emerged from behind, sobbing as she addressed Mingyi, "I accidentally lost Second Master's calligraphy. I'm afraid of being punished. Could you please plead with him for me?"

Only the servants of Songhe Garden had access to Zong Xian's calligraphy.

Mingyi found the maid unfamiliar, but she rarely interacted with the people around Zongxian anyway.

She recalled the time when Zong Xian secretly hid her handkerchief, which almost caused a scene in front of the old lady. Mingyi was worried that the maid in front of her also knew something, otherwise why would she ask her for help to plead for mercy?

If she doesn't help, will the other party hold a grudge and spread rumors behind her back?

Mingyi didn't want to cause any trouble before leaving the Zong family mansion, so she wanted to refuse, but she hesitated because of some concerns.

The maid pleaded, "Please have mercy, young lady! Only you can save me."

Mingyi finally said, "Where did you lose your calligraphy? Let me help you look for it."

She didn't want to meet Zong Xian alone unless absolutely necessary.

The maid's eyes flickered slightly. Fearing that she would arouse suspicion, she could only say, "It...it should be...lost in the warm pavilion."

The warm pavilion wasn't far away, so Mingyi nodded: "Lead the way."

"Yes! Thank you, Miss!" the maid said happily.

The maid walked ahead to lead the way. She caught a glimpse of a figure out of the corner of her eye and subtly gave that person a look.

Neither Mingyi nor Yuegui noticed.

Upon arriving at the destination, the maid suggested, "Second Master will need the calligraphy soon, so it might be faster to search separately."

Mingyi had a vague feeling that something was off about the maid, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it.

But this place is very close to the flower hall, so if the other party wanted to do something wrong, they wouldn't choose such an easy place to be discovered.

Mingyi nodded and told Yuegui to look for it nearby, but instructed her not to go too far.

Beside the warm pavilion was an artificial lake, complete with rockeries and pavilions. The maidservant led Mingyi to the lakeside little by little.

After searching for a while, Mingyi became a little impatient. "Think again carefully, did you leave it here?"

The maidservant composed herself and said, "It's nearby. I was attracted by the dragonflies by the lake, and the calligraphy must have been accidentally dropped there."

"Holding such valuable things in your hands, why don't you take care of yourself?" Mingyi walked towards the lake.

The maid followed behind her, her sinister gaze fixed on her retreating figure: "Miss is right to reprimand me. I will certainly not dare to do it again next time. Miss Ji is kind-hearted, and I am extremely grateful."

Mingyi suddenly stopped and turned to look at her: "What did you call me?"