"Host, why did you deliberately scare her?" the system wondered.
Gu Shengyin replied with a bright face, "Did I scare her? Everything I said is true. Whether she overthinks it or not is up to her."
System: I always feel like the host is developing towards something quite remarkable.
Ji Yu, after reading the message passed over by his subordinate twice, covered his lips and chuckled softly, "I originally thought she was just a lazy, noble Persian cat, but it turns out she's a little wildcat baring its claws and teeth." He found Jiang Lingzhen even cuter this way and couldn't wait to go to her side and have a look at her.
Gu Shengyin sat in her chair, listening to Hu Zhu report how the Second Miss had become paranoid recently, insisting that the food in the mansion be tested for poison before she would touch it, and how tightly guarded her courtyard was.
She laughed, Jiang Yunsan was indeed scaring herself. Even if she truly had any intention to act, she would not choose the Grand General's Mansion. After all, being the future side consort of the Crown Prince, if something happened, although it wouldn't be a fatal blow, the Grand General's Mansion would still encounter some trouble.
The day for Jiang Yunsan to leave her parental home quickly arrived.
A side consort couldn't wear a bright red wedding dress, be carried in an eight-bearer palanquin, nor was she eligible to leave through the main entrance of the mansion.
Furthermore, Eldest Princess Wen Cheng truly detested Jiang Yunsan, hastily prepared some dowry for her that was barely decent, and the Grand General's Mansion did not even bother hanging up red lanterns.
Fortunately, with the imperial family's gifts for support, outsiders still viewed Jiang Yunsan in a rather splendid light, but discerning people could tell at a glance that this newly minted Crown Prince's Side Consort was not favored by her parental home. The Crown Prince might not care much for her either; if he did, he wouldn't have been frolicking with a maid just a few days before taking her as his consort.
Jiang Yunsan would soon discover that marrying the Crown Prince was not as wonderful as she had imagined.
Three days after the wedding.
Jiang Yunsan returned to the Grand General's Mansion alone, the procession was grand enough since she was now the only high-ranking mistress in the Crown Prince's inner quarters.
Gu Shengyin looked at her in her elaborate outfit and chuckled inwardly, wondering what lay beneath the thick layers of makeup when stripped away.
Having the system by her side, she naturally knew that the day after the wedding night, the Crown Prince took a fancy to Green Sleeve, the maid Jiang Yunsan had brought with her.
Eldest Princess Wen Cheng, citing illness, did not attend the event, leaving only the Great General to briefly meet with Jiang Yunsan.
Jiang Yunsan seemed not too keen to stay in the Grand General's Mansion either, and hurried back to the Crown Prince's Mansion after lunch.
Afterward, Gu Shengyin's days were quite leisurely, simply listening to the messages relayed by the system, appreciating flowers, idling with the birds, and waiting for an appropriate opportunity.
This opportunity came sooner than expected, when the Empress punished a newly favored low-rank concubine in the palace. Unexpectedly, the concubine was pregnant, resulting in a miscarriage due to the punishment. The woman was clever; while basking in the Emperor's pity, she did not speak ill of the Empress. Instead, she lamented her lack of fortune and inability to produce offspring for the imperial family.
The imperial family already had few members; thus, this incident caused the Emperor to view the Empress with disfavor.
It was at this time that the Imperial City was swept by a sudden flurry of rumors regarding the Crown Prince's mistreatment of civilian girls that spread overnight throughout the city.
There were all sorts of versions, and even specific addresses and names matched.
The Emperor initially thought it was a malicious slander against the Crown Prince and simply ordered that the civilians not spread it, but as the rumors grew increasingly rampant and even alleged family members of the victims began to publicly denounce the injustice, he took the situation seriously and ordered the Hidden Guard to thoroughly investigate.
This investigation made the Emperor feel a chill in his heart.