The back gate of the Regent’s Residence was exceptionally lively today.
A dilapidated, blue-draped carriage was parked there, while several burly older maids were attempting to stuff Lin Wan’er—who was weeping as piteously as pear blossoms bathed in rain—into the vehicle.
“I won’t go! I am the Cousin Miss! Cousin was merely confused for a moment! I want to see Cousin!” Lin Wan’er clung deathly tight to the doorframe, two of her fingernails snapped clean off, her disheveled hair making her look like a madwoman.
Just at that moment, an exquisite carriage slowly drove up, pulling over not far away.
The curtain was drawn aside, and a young woman wearing a light-purple silk dress with an elegant aura stepped down with the support of a maidservant. Looking at the farce before her, she knitted her brows slightly and asked softly, “What is happening here? Sister Wan’er?”
The moment Lin Wan’er saw the newcomer, it was as if she had spotted a savior. Breaking free from the maids’ grip with a violent surge of strength, she threw herself over. “Sister Su Hua! Save me! Please save me! That wretched woman Su Tang is trying to ruin me!”
The newcomer was none other than Su Tang’s half-sister, the premier talented woman of the Imperial Capital—Su Hua.
Su Hua had originally intended to use visiting her elder sister as a pretext to build a presence at the Regent’s Residence today and casually test Lu Ci’s sentiments. She had never expected to stumble straight into this grand drama the moment she arrived at the gates.
A flash of disgust crossed her eyes, yet on her face, she maintained a perfectly proper smile, pulling out a handkerchief to wipe away Lin Wan’er’s tears. “Don’t fret, sister. Take your time and speak slowly. Though I am merely a concubine-born daughter, if there is any injustice, I will certainly demand an explanation on your behalf.”
With these words, she managed both to step on Su Tang and establish her own persona as a “champion of justice.”
The surrounding servants and passing commoners all paused to watch, whispering and pointing.
“It seems the rumors are true—this new Princess Consort is indeed a jealous woman. She wants to drive the Cousin Miss away the moment she enters the household.”
“How ruthless, not even sparing a frail young lady.”
Listening to the surrounding discussions, the corners of Su Hua’s lips curled into an imperceptible, cold sneer.
However, right at that moment, a crisp voice shattered her triumph.
“Yo, isn’t this my good sister? What wind blew you all the way here?”
Everyone turned their heads to see Su Tang sitting in a grand armchair borne by four sturdy guards. Holding a handful of melon seeds in her palm, she was looking down at them like a high-and-mighty overlord.
That posture was less like a Princess Consort and more like a bandit chief.
“Sister.” Su Hua curtsied slightly, her posture graceful. “I heard that Sister Wan’er committed an error, but isn’t this punishment a bit too harsh? After all, she is His Highness’s direct cousin. If word of this spreads, it may damage your reputation.”
“Reputation?” Su Tang cracked a melon seed, spitting out the shell with a ptui that landed right beside Su Hua’s feet. “Do I even have such a thing? How come I didn’t know?”
Su Hua choked, a flash of annoyance crossing her eyes.
How had this worthless fool become so sharp-tongued?
“Sister must be joking.” Su Hua took a deep breath and continued, “Sister Wan’er has a delicate constitution. If she is sent to the family temple to suffer, I fear she won’t survive it. Why doesn’t Sister grant her leniency this once, out of respect for me?”
Su Tang raised an eyebrow: Respect for you? Is your face really that big?
System, quickly look it up! Did these two goods ever collude in the past? Why do I feel like Su Hua being this eager isn’t quite right?
System Intel Report: Host is brilliant! These two are a ‘toxic besties’ combo! Half a year ago, when Su Hua participated in the Imperial Capital’s Talented Women Competition, she instructed Lin Wan’er to slip laxatives to the favorite contender to win—the daughter of the Minister of Rites! After it succeeded, Su Hua promised that once she married the Crown Prince, she would help Lin Wan’er handle Lu Ci and make her his side consort!
Pfft—
Su Tang could not hold it in and burst out laughing.
Hahahahaha! This gossip is ripe! These two are truly birds of a feather that rot together! One slips laxatives, the other wants to be a side consort—a match made in heaven!
Looking at Su Tang’s baffling smile, a sudden, ominous foreboding welled up inside Su Hua’s heart.
Sure enough, the next second, Su Tang opened her mouth.
“My dear sister, speaking up for her like this—are you afraid she’ll blab about the ‘good deed’ you did half a year ago?”
Su Hua’s expression changed. “What is Sister talking about? I don’t understand.”
“It doesn’t matter if you don’t understand, as long as everyone else does,” Su Tang said casually. “Half a year ago, at the Talented Women Competition, the Minister of Rites’ young mistress suddenly suffered severe diarrhea, humiliated herself in public, and ultimately had to withdraw. You should still remember this matter, right, sister?”
Su Hua’s hand violently tightened around her handkerchief, her knuckles turning white. “That… that was an accident. What does it have to do with me?”
“Is that so?” Su Tang smiled meaningfully. “Yet Cousin Miss Wan’er told me just now that you personally handed her those laxatives to slip into that lady’s tea. In exchange, you promised to help her enter the Regent’s Residence as a side consort… Tsk tsk tsk, so these are the methods of the premier talented woman of the Imperial Capital? Truly an eye-opener.”
The moment these words came out, an uproar erupted throughout the crowd.
“What? That’s how she won the Talented Women Competition?”
“Heavens, Su Hua is actually this vicious?”
“You can know a person’s face, but not their heart!”
Feeling the public opinion reverse in an instant, Su Hua’s entire body trembled.
No matter how many scenarios she had calculated, she had never calculated that Su Tang would actually know about this! And even speak it aloud in public!
“You’re lying! I didn’t!” Su Hua shrieked in rebuttal, her dignified image maintained for years collapsing in an instant.
She whipped her head around toward Lin Wan’er, her gaze ferocious: “Is it you? Did a wretched woman like you go around wagging her tongue?!”
Lin Wan’er was completely stunned as well.
She had never mentioned any of this to Su Tang!
“It wasn’t me! Sister Su Hua, believe me, I didn’t…”
Slap!
A crisp, loud slap struck Lin Wan’er’s face viciously.
Driven mad with anger, Su Hua put all her strength into this slap, causing blood to leak from the corner of Lin Wan’er’s mouth as half her face instantly swelled up.
“Wretch! I came out of the goodness of my heart to save you, and you actually slander me! Go to hell!” At this point, Su Hua only wanted to sever all ties; how could she care about any sisterly affection?
Holding her face, Lin Wan’er looked at Su Hua in utter disbelief.
She had always regarded Su Hua as her best sister, even going so far as to offend the household of the Minister of Rites for her sake! Yet now, to protect herself, Su Hua actually slapped her in public?!
“Fine… Fine then, Su Hua!” Lin Wan’er’s temper flared as well, her rationality vanishing entirely. “Since you are unfeeling, don’t blame me for being unjust! That’s right! She was the one who gave me the laxatives! And last time—”
“Blegh—”
Before she could finish her sentence, Lin Wan’er suddenly felt her stomach turn upside down.
Her previous pregnancy nausea combined with her sudden surge of rage sent a wave of sickness straight up to the top of her skull.
Unable to hold it back any longer, she clutched her mouth, turned around, and charged straight toward a small wooden shed nearby.
That was the… outhouse used by the servants at the back gate of the residence.
“Blegh— Blegh—”
Agonizing sounds of dry heaving echoed from the outhouse, accompanied by waves of stench, prompting the people outside to cover their noses one after another.
Sitting in her grand armchair, Su Tang laughed so hard she slapped her own thighs.
Hahahahaha! Absolutely peak! Is this the legendary ‘puking from rage’?
And what a spot she picked—the outhouse! Now Lin Wan’er has truly ‘stunk for ten thousand years’!
A moment later, the noises inside the outhouse gradually quieted down, turning into intermittent crying, before… fading into total silence.
An older maid held her nose, peeked inside, and emerged with a complex look on her face: “Reporting to the Princess Consort… Cousin Miss… she fainted crying by the latrine pit.”
Pfft—
The onlookers around could no longer hold back, bursting into a roar of laughter.
Standing where she was, Su Hua’s face turned from green to white, wishing she could find a crack in the ground to crawl into. She had come today to gain favor, but not only had her persona collapsed, she had also ended up covered in filth!
“Sister… regarding today’s matter, perhaps there is a misunderstanding,” Su Hua ground out through gritted teeth, barely maintaining a final thread of dignity. “I shall come another day to ask for Sister’s forgiveness.”
With that, she scrambled into her carriage as if fleeing for her life and drove away.
Watching Su Hua’s wretched, fleeing figure, Su Tang was in high spirits.
Want to fight me? I have a system cheat; do you?
Still, this Su Hua isn’t an easy target either. Having suffered a loss this time, she’ll definitely bottle up a big move. The next time we meet, it’ll probably be at that poem gathering or whatever.
Just as she was thinking, a steady set of footsteps echoed from behind.
Lu Ci was standing under the corridor at some unknown moment. Looking at Su Tang’s smug, delighted expression, the corners of his lips curled up slightly.
“The Princess put on quite a good show today.”
Su Tang turned around. Seeing Lu Ci, she immediately pulled back her smile and put on an obedient expression: “Your Highness overpraises me. This servant merely… raised a shout upon seeing injustice on the road.”
Hehe, of course! Who do you think I am! With the system in hand, the world is mine! Lu Ci, just hang out with me from now on, and I’ll make sure you enjoy all the fine food and drink!
Lu Ci: “…”
Hang out with her?
He, the grand Regent of the realm, needed to cling to this woman’s thigh?
Though… seeing Su Hua suffer a setback just now had indeed felt… quite satisfying in his heart.
“Since the Princess Consort’s energy is so vigorous,” Lu Ci walked up to her, his gaze deep, “then accompany this Prince to tonight’s palace banquet.”
Su Tang paused: “A palace banquet?”
“The Empress Dowager’s birthday banquet, celebrated by all officials.” Lu Ci leaned down, whispering beside her ear, “I heard… your father, Prime Minister Su, has prepared a ‘grand gift’ for you.”
Su Tang’s heart skipped a beat.
A grand gift? What grand gift could that old fox of a father give me?
System, quickly preview it!
System Intel Report: Host, there is indeed major gossip at tonight’s palace banquet! To curry favor with the Crown Prince, your father plans to betroth your ‘talented’ sister, Su Hua, to the Crown Prince as a side consort! And to pave the way for Su Hua, he intends to publicly expose your crime of ‘impersonation’ at the banquet!
Su Tang: Huh? Impersonation? Whom did I impersonate?
System Intel Report: Impersonating the original host! He’s going to claim that the current Princess Consort isn’t the Su family’s eldest young miss at all, but an evil demon!
Su Tang instantly bristled in rage.
Holy crap! This old thing is ruthless enough! He wants to put me to death!
Looking at her small face, which had turned dripping with murderous intent in an instant, the laughter deep within Lu Ci’s eyes grew even richer.
“What? Scared?”
Su Tang raised her head, showing an incomparably brilliant smile: “Scared? Your Highness underestimates me. Since my dear father misses me so much, I’ll go and show him some proper ‘filial piety’!”
Just watch me expose all their dirty laundry! I’ll let you know the true meaning of ‘filial devotion’!