“Shen Lixue and Mu Zhengnan are both from the countryside. They got married and had children in Qingzhou, which is a perfect match. Prince An and I are both in the capital, and our statuses are equal. It is only right for us to marry. But now, two ignorant country bumpkins have come to the capital and ruined everything that is beautiful…” Shen Yingxue scolded Shen Lixue and Mu Zhengnan repeatedly, her beautiful eyes filled with anger and hatred.
"All beauty and no brains, you're not worthy of Prince An!" A hint of disdain flashed in Zhuang Kexin's eyes, but it disappeared in an instant: "Yingxue, have you ever thought about putting things back on track?"
“Shen Lixue, Mu Zhengnan has already appeared, how can you return…” She stopped mid-sentence, suddenly realizing something, and glanced at Zhuang Kexin in surprise, “You mean…”
“That’s right. With Shen Lixue and Mu Zhengnan gone, there will be no more obstacles between you and Prince An…” Zhuang Kexin smiled brightly, her black pupils growing deeper and deeper.
"My mother and I have tried many ways to get rid of Shen Lixue, but none of them have worked!" Marrying Prince An has always been Shen Yingxue's dream. She has tried to frame Shen Lixue more than once, but only by devising a plan to make Shen Lixue disappear completely. She is looking forward to it, but she does not dare to act rashly.
"That's because your plan wasn't perfect!" Zhuang Kexin's gaze was calm, her words gently persuading: "Mu Zhengnan has committed a capital crime and will never be released from prison. His threatening letter is clearly an attempt to drag you down with him. He's a despicable and shameless scoundrel. Even if you do everything in your power to rescue him, he might not really let you and your daughter go..."
“I thought of that too!” Shen Yingxue nodded, gently wiping away the tears from the corners of her eyes. That bastard Mu Zhengnan embarrassed her in public and almost ruined her reputation. She was already being lenient by not kicking him twice, so why would she save him?
Zhuang Kexin glanced at the bewildered Shen Yingxue, a cold smile flashing in her eyes, and coughed lightly: "I have a brilliant plan that can both get rid of Mu Zhengnan and take the opportunity to bring down Shen Lixue!"
"Really?" Shen Yingxue's eyes lit up. "What plan?"
"Look here!" Zhuang Kexin smiled slightly, her expression unfathomable. She gently opened a crack in the inner room, and Shen Yingxue looked through the crack. A young man in black was standing in front of the window, looking out. From her angle, she could see the man's exquisite and perfect profile. His long eyelashes, bathed in sunlight, were tinged with golden light, giving him a noble and aloof air, and an innate arrogance.
Unlike Dongfang Heng's aloofness and nobility, or Nangong Xiao's peerless genius, or Dongfang Zhan's gentle and refined nature, he possessed a touch of youthful innocence mixed with a hint of icy coldness.
"Who is he?" Shen Yingxue's eyes showed a hint of surprise. She often moved among nobles, but she had never seen such a cute, childlike yet noble and proud young man. His appearance was not much worse than Dongfang Heng's.
Zhuang Kexin shook her head: "I don't know either. When I met him, he was on the street. When he saw the woman in green, he ran up to her and called out Shen Lixue's name!"
Shen Yingxue frowned deeply. It was Shen Lixue again. That bitch always found ways to seduce men, and what was even more infuriating was that she seduced outstanding men: "What is his relationship with Shen Lixue?"
"I don't know!" Zhuang Kexin shook her head again: "I said I would take him to find Shen Lixue, so he came here with me. Apart from talking about Shen Lixue, he doesn't say much. He just stands in front of the window and keeps looking out, looking in the direction of the porridge distribution street where you used to distribute porridge!"
"Is he an idiot?" Shen Yingxue frowned. Such a perfect man, it's such a pity he's an idiot.
Zhuang Kexin remained silent, recalling the moment when she brought the man to the private room but did not see Shen Lixue. The man's eyes were filled with intense anger, and his cold hand tightly gripped her slender neck. In that instant, she felt the breath of death.
Touching his long neck through his collar, Zhuang Kexin lowered her eyelids. The suffocating feeling still made her shudder. How could a man with such a sharp and decisive style be a fool? But normally, he was silly, knowing nothing and understanding nothing.
"You plan to use him to deal with Shen Lixue?" Shen Yingxue vaguely guessed Zhuang Kexin's plan.
“That’s right!” Zhuang Kexin smiled slightly, her expression enigmatic.
"He only has eyes for Shen Lixue, how could he possibly lay a hand on her!" Shen Yingxue closed the door, walked to the table to sip tea, her eyes blazing with anger. Shen Lixue was really lucky; she could just flirt with anyone and he would be obsessed with her.
"It's precisely because he can't forget Shen Lixue that it's easier for us to take action!" Zhuang Kexin's lips curled into a sinister smile.
A thought flashed through Shen Yingxue's mind: "You mean..."
"That's right, just like you think!" Zhuang Kexin smiled. If this little fool is used well, this is a brilliant plan that kills three birds with one stone!
"Why are you helping me?" Shen Yingxue raised an eyebrow at Zhuang Kexin. Although they were both noble ladies, their statuses were different. Although she knew Zhuang Kexin, they were only nodding acquaintances and did not have a deep friendship. It was puzzling that Zhuang Kexin was helping her like this.
"I just can't stand Shen Lixue!" Zhuang Kexin frowned slightly, her eyes filled with disdain: "She's clearly just a country girl, yet she dares to dream of becoming a phoenix on a branch. What a fool's dream!"
Shen Yingxue smiled. It seemed that she wasn't the only one in Qingyan Capital who disliked Shen Lixue: "When do you plan to make your move?" Since she had a good plan to get rid of her, how could she miss it?
"Let's devise a perfect plan. We'll strike when the time is right. You'll be in charge of Shen Lixue at the Prime Minister's residence. I'll keep an eye on this man in black. When the time comes, we'll work together to kill them!" Zhuang Kexin's lips curled into a bright smile: Shen Yingxue had agreed to her plan, so half the battle was won!
At the Prime Minister's residence, Granny Ding acted swiftly. Just after noon, she found a human trafficker and sold four maids. Then she selected more than ten young girls to go to the bamboo garden for Shen Lixue to choose from.
The girls, dressed in simple, clean and neat clothes, stood respectfully in the living room with their heads slightly bowed. Granny Ding's old face beamed with joy as she carefully explained, "Of these twelve girls, the young lady can choose four third-class maids, three second-class maids, and two first-class maids."
Shen Lixue, dressed in a light blue dress, smiled slightly as she slowly walked in front of the girls. Her long skirt glided gently across the ground, leaving a long trail. There were twelve girls in total, and she could choose nine of them, meaning she could only cut three.
"Qiuhe has been promoted to head maid of the Bamboo Garden. I only need to select another head maid!" Shen Lixue said calmly, her cold gaze sweeping across the girls' faces.
"Whatever Miss likes!" Granny Ding smiled politely: According to custom, whether it is first-class, second-class, or third-class, Zhuyuan will add nine servants.
Seeing nothing amiss on Granny Ding's face, Shen Lixue sat down on the mahogany chair and sipped her tea. Her dark eyes, hidden behind the rising steam, were unfathomable. "The third-class maids don't need to be too concerned, but the first and second-class maids must be strictly vetted. These girls are all new here, and I don't know them. I don't know how to select or assign them. Perhaps Granny Ding could introduce me to their backgrounds and special skills so I can make a selection based on that!"
"Miss is wise, it was my oversight!" Granny Ding curtsied apologetically and pointed to a dark-skinned girl, introducing her carefully: "Her name is Xiaoying, she's from Lanyang, she's thirteen years old, her parents are farmers and she can't read. Her name is Lian'er, she's from Jingzhou, she's thirteen years old, and she knows a few characters..."
In the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Granny Ding finished introducing the girls' identities, ages, and special skills. Shen Lixue wrote them all down. According to the introduction, these girls were all from out of town, the closest being four or five hundred miles from the capital. But was that really the case?
"Qiuhe, tell the kitchen that I want to eat osmanthus cake tonight!"
Qiuhe scratched her head, somewhat bewildered. Why did her young mistress suddenly think of eating osmanthus cake? "Miss, you need osmanthus flowers to make osmanthus cake. The Prime Minister's residence doesn't have any osmanthus flowers. We'll have to go to the estate to pick them. I'm afraid we won't be able to make it tonight."
"Zhuangzi? Which Zhuangzi?" Shen Lixue frowned, feigning ignorance.
"It's the estate that Madam gave as part of her dowry, located on a small hill fifty miles away!" Qiu He had been at the Prime Minister's residence for over a year and knew quite a bit about it. When daughters of high-ranking noble families married off, they would bring farms and shops as part of their dowry. The Lei family naturally had one as well, and the number of dowries they gave was quite substantial.
"Could you make pear blossom cake and peach blossom cake?" Shen Lixue lowered her eyelids, her cup lid lightly touching the tea leaves in the water. It was a very ordinary action, but when she did it, it exuded an indescribable elegance and mystery.
“This…we also need to pick flowers at the manor…Miss can eat them tomorrow!” Qiuhe said while secretly observing Shen Lixue’s expression. The young lady was never picky about food; she would eat whatever the kitchen made. Today, she was unusually craving pastries, but unfortunately, the kitchen didn’t have the ingredients.
Ding Mama's smiling face turned slightly gloomy. She had said so much, just waiting for Shen Lixue to choose people, but Shen Lixue actually ignored her and ordered the kitchen to make pastries. Clearly, she didn't respect her, let alone the Madam...
"Then forget it. Just have the kitchen make a few snacks and send them over!"
Shen Lixue abruptly slammed the lid on the cup, the crisp sound pulling Ding Mama back from her displeasure. She looked up and met Shen Lixue's radiant smile, but her dark eyes held an indescribable eeriness. Ding Mama's eyelids twitched, and a very ominous premonition welled up in her heart.
"You, you, you, and you stay here. The rest of you can leave!" Shen Lixue pointed lightly with her slender hand and instantly selected four maids.
Granny Ding was taken aback, her face turning quite grim. She softly reminded her, "Young Miss, you need to choose nine maids; there are only four here..."
"I find these four maids pleasing to the eye, so let's choose these four for now," Shen Lixue said calmly, glancing at Granny Ding.
"Madam specifically instructed me to make sure that Miss has enough servants. You are the legitimate daughter, and if the number of servants is insufficient, it will cause gossip, and Madam will blame me!" Ding Mama's forehead was covered with a fine layer of sweat.
“Madam is always frugal in managing the household. By using fewer servants, I save the Prime Minister’s mansion’s expenses. Madam should praise you, not scold you. If Madam really scolds you, or if anyone dares to say that Madam is wrong, I will explain. There’s no need for you to worry, Granny!” Shen Lixue gently comforted her, a hint of mockery flashing in her cold eyes.