ebookland Chapter 240 Hatred for Madam Lin
Chapter 240 Hatred for Madam Lin
Lan Zhi spoke frankly and seriously:
"I said, you guessed right, Consort Lan is Ling Lanhua, my nominal sister..."
"what?"
Upon hearing this, Wei Jianning felt an immediate surge of rage.
"Does the Emperor know?"
"Of course he knew. The day Ling Lanhua disappeared was the same day your mother celebrated her birthday and the day the Emperor came to the Crown Prince's residence. She appeared at the Crown Prince's residence, and the Emperor left early for no apparent reason. How could he not know her identity?"
"I have to go find him."
Wei Jianning, in a fit of rage, tried to turn around, but Lan Zhi stopped him.
"What are you going to do?"
"I'm going to ask him if he knows about your relationship with Ling Lanhua. If he doesn't, I'll let him know. If he does, I'll ask him why he did such a shameful thing."
"Wei Jianning, can you please not be so impulsive?"
"This is not an impulsive act. If people find out about this, they'll laugh their heads off."
"Even if she is my sister in name only, we are not related by blood. Her becoming the emperor's concubine is a matter of mutual consent, so there doesn't seem to be anything abnormal about it."
"But...but why does this sound so awkward to me?"
"Keep your voice down, let's go! We can talk as we walk."
Lan Zhi pulled him along, walking towards the palace gates as she whispered:
"The Empress and the ladies in the palace don't know about this, otherwise they wouldn't be keeping quiet like this. You shouldn't tell anyone else about it either."
"But this is not something that can be kept secret, especially now that Cui has entered the palace. Given her competitive nature, she won't rest until she turns the harem upside down."
"Let them stir things up. It's none of our business anyway, as long as they don't disturb our Crown Prince's residence."
“But…but the Emperor has already neglected state affairs because of this. I absolutely cannot let this matter go unaddressed. You go back to your residence first, and I will go to the Lin residence.”
The person the Emperor fears most right now is probably Lin Chengda.
“I’ll go with you. I need to have a word with Madam Lin.”
When Consort Liang and Consort Zhen met with Madam Lin at the Crown Prince's residence last time, a maidservant overheard her mentioning that Zhu Kui had a daughter he had just brought back from the mountains; she was eighteen years old and unmarried.
Just a few days after they finished speaking, the Emperor issued an imperial decree to grant them the marriage. Could things really be so coincidental? This made her suspicious.
Perhaps we can get some information from Madam Lin.
After leaving the palace, the two of them got into the same carriage and headed straight for the Censorate.
The Imperial Censorate is not far from the capital, located in the most prosperous area of the city, even better than the Crown Prince's residence.
However, this was earned through generations of outstanding achievements by the Lin family in the imperial court, something that others could neither envy nor be jealous of.
Upon arriving at the Lin residence, Wei Jianning was welcomed into the main hall. He sat down to talk with Lin Chengda and his son Lin Xingliang, while Lan Zhi went to the backyard to chat with Madam Lin. The other servants waited in the courtyard.
The layout of the Lin family mansion courtyard is excellent. Passing through the moon gate and following the bluestone path to the backyard, you can see a rockery built up around a clear pond where several small fish swim leisurely.
"I am deeply sorry for not welcoming the Crown Princess properly."
Madam Lin's somewhat insincere voice came through the phone. Lan Zhi frowned slightly and looked up to see Lin Yuwei standing beside her, looking at her with a gloating expression.
She guessed that Lin Yuwei already knew about the Emperor's bestowal of marriage, and she was genuinely happy for her, even though she couldn't marry Wei Jianning as she wished.
She smiled politely, then nodded and said:
"Mrs. Lin, I hope my sudden visit hasn't disturbed you."
Madam Lin quickly waved her hand in acknowledgment.
"Your Highness, what are you saying? Your arrival is an honor to my Lin residence. How could it be an intrusion? Please come in."
After nodding and smiling, Lan Zhi went to the back hall at Madam Lin's direction.
As soon as she sat down, Lin Yuwei said impatiently:
"I heard that the Crown Prince is going to take a concubine into his household? And he will do so with the same etiquette as a principal wife? This is truly a joyous occasion. Congratulations, Crown Princess!"
Lan Zhi could tell that her words were laced with sarcasm and disdain.
She smiled calmly and replied:
"Thank you, Miss Lin. Back then, you wanted to marry the Crown Prince as a concubine, but the Crown Prince refused, and neither did Lord Lin and Madam Lin. Now, the eldest daughter of Grand Commandant Zhu wants to marry the Crown Prince as a concubine, and the Crown Prince has agreed, as has the Emperor. It is clear that this Miss Zhu has extraordinary qualities. While I am happy for the Crown Prince, I also want to offer you some words of comfort. Even if Prince Xun is not as handsome as the Crown Prince, nor as charismatic, and his status is far inferior, you don't need to be too sad. After all, you will be the principal wife after you marry him."
Her words not only implied that Lin Yuwei was inferior to Miss Zhu, but also suggested that Wei Jianxun was inferior to Wei Jianning.
Anyway, she was the one who disrespected her first, so it's only right that she retort.
"you……"
Before she could finish speaking, Lin Yuwei's face had already turned cold and indifferent.
She kept wringing the handkerchief in her hands and let out a soft hum.
"I've heard that this Miss Zhu comes from the mountains and has a very wild nature. If she marries into the Crown Prince's mansion, you'll have a lot of trouble. You'd better make plans soon!"
"Thank you for the reminder, Miss Lin. But what do you think I should do? Should I give up the position of Crown Princess?"
Her tone was clearly a bit off, and seeing this, Madam Lin quickly smoothed things over:
"Yuwei, go check if the clothes I ordered for you have arrived yet? And the cornucopia I ordered, if it has, your mother will decorate it for you herself."
Lin Yuwei knew that her mother was afraid that she would upset Lan Zhi if she said too much, so she secretly glared at Lan Zhi and got up to leave.
Mrs. Lin quickly got up and sat down in the chair opposite her, then personally refilled her teacup.
"Yuwei is a child who speaks without thinking, don't be angry with her."
Lan Zhi laughed, completely unconcerned.
"What's there to be angry about? I think Miss Lin is right; she's given me a good reminder."
At this point, she looked up at Madam Lin.
"I heard that this Miss Zhu was introduced to Consort Liang by you, Madam Lin?"
She wasn't sure, so she wanted to try and trick her.
Upon hearing this, Madam Lin blushed and paused for a moment, then stammered an explanation:
"I... I just said it casually at the time, who would have thought that Consort Liang would really take it to heart? This matter has nothing to do with me."
She was busy distancing herself from the matter, which confirmed Lan Zhi's guess that the matter was indeed related to Madam Lin and Consort Liang.
No wonder the Emperor's decree was issued so suddenly and decisively.
She suddenly sneered, "Is Madam Lin holding a grudge against me for slapping Miss Lin, which is why she offered advice to Consort Liang?"
These words struck a nerve with Madam Lin. She frowned awkwardly, wanting to explain, but Lan Zhi chuckled, put one hand on her waist, and stood up. A Qi quickly came over to help her.