Shen Lixue shook her head: "Su Yuting is the legitimate daughter of the Duke of Wen's mansion. As long as she can afford it, she can hire many experts to personally take action. She wouldn't do something as foolish as revealing her identity!"
"Shen Lixue, she set a trap for you, and you can set a trap for her too!" Nangong Xiao's wicked eyes flashed coldly as he gave Shen Lixue advice with a sinister smile.
"I've already set a trap, just waiting for Su Yuting to fall into it!" Shen Lixue smiled gently, looking mysterious.
"Really?" Nangong Xiao's eyes lit up, and his tall figure instantly appeared in front of Shen Lixue. He lowered his voice, full of anticipation, and said, "What kind of trap is it? Tell me quietly!"
Shen Lixue smiled slightly, her expression enigmatic: "Heavenly secrets cannot be revealed, but you will soon find out!"
The assassins failed, killing two and seriously injuring one. Su Yuting was furious. On the high platform, when she was fighting Shen Lixue, she realized that although Shen Lixue's moves were fast, she had no internal strength. She thought that sending three highly skilled assassins would make it easy to capture her, but unexpectedly, three powerful guards appeared out of nowhere in her courtyard, ruining her plan.
Shen Lixue is not favored in the Prime Minister's residence, and Shen Minghui is just an ordinary civil official. How could she have such powerful secret guards in her courtyard? Could they have been given to her by Prince An?
Su Yuting was filled with anger. Why did the person she liked not even glance at her, yet show such care and affection for Shen Lixue? She didn't believe that marriage contract could bind Dongfang Heng.
The assassin's attempt to capture Shen Lixue failed, alerting her. Shen Lixue will definitely be extra careful and might even secretly send more men. We must not repeat the assassination attempt; we need to find another way to capture Shen Lixue and report back to Qin Junhao.
Thinking of Qin Junhao, Su Yuting's calm heart instantly turned to anger. In the past ten years, she had never seen such a shameless person. The inn was heavily guarded, and her people dared not break in. Otherwise, she would have sent someone to kill him long ago.
The three-day deadline was fast approaching, and she had to come up with a good plan to capture Shen Lixue as soon as possible to complete her task.
The moonlight was cool and still, and all was quiet. Su Yuting changed into black night clothes and quietly sneaked into the Prime Minister's residence. As she expected, the security in the bamboo garden had been strengthened again. The number of guards had increased from three last night to six. It seemed that there was also a master in Shen Lixue's room, whose martial arts were comparable to hers. She dared not make any rash moves.
She gritted her teeth in resentment and was about to leave when two maids came over carrying cups and plates. The maid in red complained as she walked, "It's the middle of the night, and I'm almost dead tired. Fourth Miss actually wants to have a midnight snack. It's really exhausting!"
The maid in scarlet sighed softly, "He is the master, and you are a servant. It is your duty to serve your master, so don't complain!"
The maid in green said, "A concubine's daughter will never be very valuable in the future, yet she thinks she's so important every day!"
The maid in scarlet robes said, "Our fourth young lady is talented, ambitious, and her looks are beyond reproach. Even if she can't be the principal wife, being a concubine would be quite nice!"
The maid in green scoffed, "Fourth Miss's mother was just a commoner. Her maternal grandfather's family had no power. Who would marry her as a concubine?"
The maid in scarlet robes said, "Prince Zhan cares a lot about the Fourth Miss!"
The maid in green curled her lip: "After the zither competition, the Fourth Miss was injured, and Prince Zhan never came again. The Fourth Miss can no longer climb the social ladder even if she wants to!"
"Stop talking! Miss Fourth is getting impatient. If we go back late, she'll definitely get scolded!" the maid in scarlet clothes advised, and the two hurried forward.
Su Yuting's eyes flickered, and she followed silently.
In Yun Garden, Shen Caiyun lay half-reclined on the bed, her face cold. She had been seriously injured, and the doctor had instructed her to eat small, frequent meals to speed up her recovery. She, who never ate late-night snacks, had surprisingly started eating them. However, the two maids who were supposed to bring the snacks had been gone for more than half an hour, and they still hadn't returned.
Just then, the maids in scarlet and green entered carrying bowls. Shen Caiyun frowned and said unhappily, "Why did it take so long to get a midnight snack?"
"Reporting to Fourth Miss, the people in the main kitchen were asleep. We had to wake them up to prepare a midnight snack, which is why we were a little late!" the maid in scarlet clothes replied sheepishly.
Shen Caiyun frowned as she took the stewed lotus leaf porridge: "Isn't someone supposed to be on night duty in the main kitchen? Why are they sleeping?"
"Reporting to Fourth Miss, Madam, Eldest Miss, and Second Miss, their late-night snacks are all prepared in the small kitchen in the courtyard. It's close by and convenient, so..."
Shen Caiyun's face instantly darkened. The porridge she had just taken a sip of fell to the ground with a thud, spilling the remaining porridge everywhere and scattering shards. The servants were startled and their bodies jolted: "Besides the Madam, the Prime Minister, the eldest young lady, the second young lady, there are also the third and fourth young ladies in the Prime Minister's residence. How can the people in the main kitchen be so lazy and not respect their master?"
She was the daughter of a concubine, and without money, she couldn't afford to build a small kitchen. Making late-night snacks took up time, and it was clearly the people in the main kitchen who were giving her attitude. It was all because of Shen Lixue. If she hadn't stopped Concubine Jin from taking control of the household, how could she have been neglected?
She participated in the zither competition not only to become famous, but also to win the ten thousand taels of gold. Although she eventually learned that the competition was a trap, she was still unwilling to accept it because she fell off the platform and was seriously injured. After returning to the mansion, Shen Yingxue came to mock her for overestimating her abilities almost every day.
Now, even the people in the kitchen look down on her. When she makes a late-night snack, they drag their feet and yell, "Get out, all of you, get out!" After suppressing her emotions for more than ten years, Shen Caiyun's anger erupted in a terrifying way. None of the servants dared to say a word. They quickly picked up the broken pieces of the porcelain bowl on the ground and hurriedly left the room, wondering to themselves why the Fourth Miss's temper had suddenly become so unpredictable.
After all the servants had left, Shen Caiyun sat alone on the bed, gazing at the bed curtains and sighing. Tears welled up in her beautiful eyes. Being born a concubine's daughter was bad enough, but she also had a foolish mother who knew nothing about human relationships. From childhood to adulthood, she relied on her intelligence to avoid being schemed against time and time again, keeping a low profile and living invisibly. Yet, she still couldn't escape the tragic fate of taking the blame for others.
After two months in prison, she had completely come to terms with things. She was determined to become someone of high status at all costs, so that no one could bully or frame her anymore. Things were going according to her plan. Although Shen Yingxue made things difficult for her from time to time, she was still able to get closer to Prince Zhan little by little. Who would have thought that Shen Lixue would suddenly rush out and steal all her glory...
Although she never directly bullied him, she was his strongest opponent and just as despicable as Shen Yingxue!
"Sister Caiyun!" A clear female voice suddenly rang out, startling Shen Caiyun. She snapped back to her senses and looked around in alarm: "Who is it?"
"It's me!" Su Yuting opened the window and jumped in. She had already taken off her black night clothes, and her beautiful purple military uniform tightly hugged her petite figure. She looked less delicate and more heroic, which made Shen Caiyun unable to take her eyes off her. "Miss Su, what are you doing here?"
"I came here specifically to see Caiyun!" Su Yuting avoided the main point and directly steered the conversation to Shen Caiyun.
"Look at me?" Shen Caiyun frowned. "Caiyun doesn't know what she has done to deserve such a visit from the legitimate daughter of the Duke of Wen's mansion in the middle of the night."
Shen Caiyun's tone was unfriendly and laced with sarcasm, but Su Yuting didn't care and smiled slightly: "Sister Caiyun is a straightforward person, so I won't beat around the bush. May I ask, Sister Caiyun, do you really want to be someone superior to others?"
Feeling her thoughts read, a hint of surprise flashed in Shen Caiyun's beautiful eyes.
Su Yuting knew she had guessed correctly, and the corners of her mouth curled up slightly: "Now there is an opportunity to become a superior person right in front of you. I wonder if Sister Caiyun is interested?"
Shen Caiyun's gaze darkened, and she smiled, "Miss Su, could you be the concubine of the Crown Prince of Southern Xinjiang?" Although she was seriously injured and carried back to Yun Garden, she had been following the news of the competition. She was well aware that Su Yuting had been outmaneuvered by Shen Lixue and had become the concubine of the Crown Prince of Southern Xinjiang.
Even though her purpose had been exposed, Su Yuting wasn't angry: "Is Sister Caiyun interested?"
"The concubine chosen by the Crown Prince of Southern Xinjiang is Sister Yuting!" Shen Caiyun sneered. Su Yuting didn't want to go to Southern Xinjiang, so she set her sights on herself, wanting to marry the Crown Prince of Southern Xinjiang in her place. How shameless.
Seeing the mockery in Shen Caiyun's eyes, Su Yuting was not angry. She said proudly, "I am the only legitimate daughter of the Duke of Wen's family and the future Crown Princess chosen by the Emperor. Even if that special surprise is announced in public, I will never marry into the Southern Frontier to become the Crown Prince's concubine!"
Shen Caiyun raised an eyebrow, unconvinced, and said, "Since you can choose not to marry, why do you need me to take your place?"
“Competing alongside my younger sister, I admire her talent and cannot bear to see her suffer. That's why I suggested she marry into the Southern Frontier as a concubine. If she disagrees, then so be it!” Su Yuting shook her head indifferently.
"However, Caiyun, you've been to prison and have a criminal record. And as a lowly concubine's daughter, no matter how talented you are, no noble young man will marry you..."
Shen Caiyun retorted, unconvinced, "Prince Zhan, he..."
"His interest in you is just temporary. Once the novelty wears off, he won't pay attention to you anymore. It's like someone who eats rich and fatty foods every day. When they get tired of it, they might occasionally switch to some light and refreshing dishes. But those light and refreshing dishes are just for seasoning. After a meal or two, they'll want to go back to rich and fatty foods. No noble family wants to eat those bland dishes every day!"
Su Yuting's few simple words were like ice water in the twelfth lunar month, instantly extinguishing the last glimmer of hope in Shen Caiyun's heart. She didn't want to believe it, but she had to admit that what Su Yuting said was true, especially since, after she fell from the high platform and was injured, she had someone secretly send a message to the Zhan Prince's mansion, but the Zhan Prince did not come to see her...