She Holds the World After Being Reborn-Chapter 17: A Secret Passage Hidden in Southern Mountain, Free Reign for the Mandarin Ducks in the Separate Courtyard

Chapter 17: Chapter 17: A Secret Passage Hidden in Southern Mountain, Free Reign for the Mandarin Ducks in the Separate Courtyard

Lin Yanran was totally stunned, covering her face as she fell to the ground, her eyes full of disbelief, "Father!"

"Shut your mouth." Fearing that his daughter might say something more rebelliously outrageous, Mr. Lin urgently chastised her loudly.

Lin Yanran, having been doted on from a young age and born with beauty, had developed an arrogant and haughty nature, treating everyone with disdain.

However, fortunately it was Prince Seven who remained to deal with the matter, and not the Crown Prince, which allowed Mr. Lin to breathe a sigh of relief.

"I have failed in my duty to educate my daughter properly, and today she has caused a great disaster. I realize it is too late, but what is urgent now is the well-being of the Commandery Princess. I have a miraculous elixir gifted by Abbot Xun Wu of the Southern Mountain and have already sent someone to deliver it to the princess as a gesture of apology. As for my daughter, I will immediately arrange for her to be sent home tonight to reflect on her faults behind closed doors. After the Empress’s plum blossom banquet concludes, I will bring her to personally apologize at Duke Zhen’s mansion."

Surely a capable general of Prince Seven, with just a few words he had managed to arrange everything about the incident meticulously. Mr. Lin was well aware of the importance of Duke Zhen’s mansion to the stability of Chaoyang. Yan Wanqing, as the legitimate eldest daughter of Duke Zhen and the Commandery Princess of Dawei, played a crucial role within.

As long as Prince Seven successfully marries Yan Wanqing, the Crown Prince’s Faction would no longer have unchallenged control over the imperial court.

"If that is the case, then Mr. Lin has quite the task ahead of him." Xiao Hongshen was very satisfied with Mr. Lin’s handling of the situation and lifted his foot to walk in the direction where the Crown Prince had disappeared. He certainly did not wish for Yan Wanqing and Xiao Pingfeng to develop any feelings for each other in such a short time.

Seeing everyone leaving, Mr. Lin helped his daughter up, and looking at the slap mark on her cheek, it would be a lie to say he wasn’t distressed. However, this matter was urgent and could not be delayed.

Lin Yanran was crying so hard she was nearly fainting, so he quickly had someone help her onto the carriage.

As she was leaving, Lin Yanran felt especially indignant, "Father, am I truly your daughter or not? This affair was clearly Yan Wanqing framing me to make me lose face in front of Prince Seven!"

Mr. Lin’s face darkened, "You’re too impatient. What are you competing with a sickling for? Even if she truly becomes Prince Seven’s official wife, how long would she live? You need to look further ahead."

"Are you telling me to swallow this insult?" Lin Yanran said, the corners of her eyes crimson with unwillingness.

Mr. Lin stroked his goatee and let out a cold laugh, "Do you think I’m that spineless?" From a rural scholar-official, he had carefully climbed to his current position, and it wasn’t only by being forbearing.

After giving Lin Yanran a few more instructions, Mr. Lin watched the carriage slowly descend the mountain, his heart finally easing.

But when he turned around, the previously tranquil forest was now ablaze with raging fire!

An hour before.

As soon as Madam Sun saw her daughter drenched and carried by the Crown Prince into the yard, the headache she had from the wind grew even worse.

"What is this?"

Madam Sun’s heart ached at the sight of Wanqing’s pale little face and stepped aside to let the two of them into the room.

Aunt Song methodically ordered the maids to heat up water and stoke the room’s charcoal fire to make it hotter.

"Madam, that is roughly what happened. We’ll have to wait for the Commandery Princess to bathe and see what the Imperial Physician says," Xiao Pingfeng commented as he watched the slender figure being assisted into the inner chamber, a trace of unconcealed anger in his eyes.

Madam Sun subtly shifted her position to block his gaze, maintaining proper decorum, "Today’s events owe much to the Crown Prince."

"Madam, you are too kind." Xiao Pingfeng gave a slight nod and stepped back outside the door, right as the Seventh Prince entered the courtyard.

Under the cold moon, the two brothers stood at a distance in the courtyard, neither speaking. Sun Madam, watching from the side, felt a chill of dread. In the end, it was the Seventh Prince who, conceding to his rank, bowed his head and greeted the Crown Prince.

"Seventh Brother’s arrival is perfect timing. I’ve obtained some interesting news. I was planning to discuss it with you after the plum banquet, but since we are both free today, why not talk about it now?" Xiao Pingfeng descended the steps. He stood half a head taller than Xiao Hongshen, his tall and muscular figure slightly at odds with the usual warmth with which he treated everyone. From a distance, Sun Madam couldn’t help but feel that the often-praised good-tempered Crown Prince might not be as mild-mannered as the rumors suggest.

She glanced over twice, thoughts whirling in her head, before finally instructing her maidservant to close the door.

To be honest, she did not wish for Yan Wanqing to have any entanglements with the Imperial Family, yet Yan Wanqing’s status was there for all to see, and her presence today was bound to attract those ambitious princes. However, Sun Madam hadn’t expected that today the Crown Prince would go so far as to carry her daughter home.

The people of Dawei were simple and honest but for a drenched girl to be held in a man’s arms in full public view was still highly improper.

What’s done is done; worrying was useless. Sun Madam decided to check on her daughter’s condition first.

Inside the chamber.

Yan Wanqing, with the help of a maidservant, rinsed her mouth with tea, spitting out the pinkish water. Her wet underskirt was exchanged for a black martial outfit. Her long hair was tied up high, concealing the sickliness in her brows beneath a spirited demeanor.

Upon entering, Sun Madam was startled by the sight. "What are you doing?" she exclaimed.

"There isn’t much time; your daughter has something urgent to do. If I can’t return in time, Mother, you will have to help me." Yan Wanqing lifted the bed plank to reveal a hidden passage below. Without hesitation, she swiftly descended, moving so fast that Sun Madam barely had time to react.

After she went in, Sun Madam spat out an exasperated curse.

"She’s just like her father, acting without notice and leaving others to deal with the mess." Despite her words, Sun Madam still instructed her servants to put the bed back and restore everything to its original state.

She couldn’t endure the evening breeze for long, so instead of joining in the fun, once the Empress had retired from the scene, she let herself be helped back to rest.

And what a solitary rest it was.

Massaging her temples, Sun Madam found a maidservant with a similar build to Yan Wanqing and ordered her to lie in the bed.

Elsewhere.

Yan Wanqing, lighted by her fire starter, navigated through the secret passage, quickly finding the exit using her knowledge from a previous life.

The night in the mountains was always much denser than in the Capital City. In the temple, the vast expanse of bamboo swayed and rustled under the night breeze.

Yan Wanqing brushed off the cobweb that clung to her forehead in the secret passage and crawled out of the hole overgrown with dry grass into a quiet courtyard.

Inside the house, the light from the candles flickered, casting the alluring figure onto the paper windows. Oblivious to the world, the passionately entwined mandarin ducks were lost in their indulgence, emitting sounds that could make one blush with embarrassment.

Who would have thought that the Empress, who had seemingly succumbed to alcohol at the banquet, was now in this secret courtyard... having an affair?!