"By then, she’ll be the Princess Consort and you’ll just be common folk. How will you withstand her wrath?"

Third Young Master Li frowned tightly. What his father said made some sense, but it wasn’t entirely right.

Might as well keep listening.

"Father, you said you had your own plan. Then what do you intend to do?"

At this point Li Shan had fully decided that Li Luru was not his daughter.

So his words were no longer polite in the slightest. "This connection to Prince An, we’ve finally managed to get close to it; of course we can’t let it break. In the early years, I had some dealings with his father, but in recent years his father hasn’t been in charge much, and our contact has dwindled. By the time it reached your generation, there was no contact at all. I’ve gone to visit Ye Zi’an several times, wanting him to introduce you to his son, but he never showed any intention of doing so."

Third Young Master Li and the others knew about this matter as well.

"Now that such a chance is right in front of you, you naturally have to seize it well. The fake younger sister is unreliable, but the real younger sister can’t possibly be."

"Father, what you mean is..." His gaze swept over to Li Mengru, and saw the corners of her lips tilt up, while Concubine Sun also wore a look of smugness.

"It’s exactly what you’re thinking. Li Luru cannot marry in, but Mengru can. If Mengru becomes Princess Consort An, isn’t that a bond far more solidly tied to our family than if Luru did?"

At this point Li Shan’s eyes shone brilliantly, as if everything were already settled, as if he were already Prince An’s father‑in‑law.

The several brothers looked at each other. Eldest Young Master Li propped his forehead and asked, "Father, this is only your idea. Why would Prince An agree?"

"Exactly!" The always‑silent Second Young Master Li also spoke up. "Luru and Mengru look different, their temperaments are different; they can’t even substitute for each other. Prince An isn’t blind—how could he not tell them apart?"

Second Young Master Li thought that his father planned to hide it from Prince An and marry Li Mengru over, tricking both sides, and by the time it was discovered, the raw rice would already have been cooked.

Third Young Master Li thought Li Shan intended the same, so he said, "Father, we don’t know what Prince An’s temper is like, but people in high positions generally hate being schemed against. If you plot against him like this, and he gets angry afterward, our whole family might not come to a good end."

"A bunch of idiots." Li Shan pointed a finger at them. "None of you are as clever as Mengru. Who said I was going to keep Prince An in the dark? Luru’s identity must be concealed from him, but the fact that the bride will be Mengru cannot be hidden."

"Huh?" Third Young Master Li was exasperated. "Then how do you plan to do it, so that Prince An knows the bride is Mengru and still agrees to marry her?"

"That will depend on Li Luru." Li Shan stroked his short beard, smiling very slyly. "Our Li Family has raised her for so many years; it’s only right she make some contribution to the Li Family. As for Prince An’s side, we’ll let her do the talking. She can find any excuse—unable to speak, unable to bear children, and so on, all of those can be reasons. Then she acts guilty and remorseful, and offers Mengru to make it up to him. Wouldn’t that make everything fall neatly into place?"

At this, Li Mengru laughed and said, "How to make Prince An marry me—that’s for Li Luru to worry about. Why should we rack our brains? We just tell her the facts, then hand this matter over to her. How to do it, what to say, let her go and accomplish it. She’s eaten so much of our Li Family’s rice—if she can’t even manage this little task, wouldn’t that be far too ungrateful?"

Concubine Sun echoed with a smile, "Yes, exactly. Our Mengru becoming Princess Consort, she certainly won’t forget you few real brothers in the future. But that one is different—who knows which family’s stray she really is?"