Marrying the Sweet Story’s Melodramatic Villainess [Transmigration] - Chapter 22

A birthday banquet that was supposed to be filled with flowers and celebration had instead birthed such a terrifying scandal.

The first person held accountable was Wang Shi, who had managed the banquet. All color drained from her face as she begged forgiveness from the Old Matriarch and Yan Linlang. The Great Princess, still wearing her solemn and magnificent birthday robes, looked on with sharp lines of anger around the corners of her eyes. “This matter is entrusted to you to investigate.”

The Old Matriarch rarely gave her a cold face. Wang Shi came from the prestigious Wang family of Taiyuan, and even her mother-in-law was usually polite to her. Who would have thought she would be plotted against today by some “rat in the gutter”? Wang Shi was also filled with hatred. “Yes. I thank the Old Matriarch and the Grand Princess for their trust. I will uncover the truth as quickly as possible.”

Wu Shi, the eldest daughter-in-law, went to the banquet hall to appease the imperial clan and the noblewomen to prevent any further mishaps. Upon hearing of the incident, the Marquis of Xiangyang—the Great Princess’s eldest son—tightened his expression and bowed to apologize to the guests. The guests were suspicious and alarmed, unsure of what had happened, but they remained in their seats without moving.

The third son of the Du family was young and couldn’t hide his worry. “I wonder what happened on the ladies’ side?”

Cui Yan, however, had an inkling. The situation wasn’t so serious that it was uncontrollable, and his wife and daughter were cautious by nature, so there was nothing to worry about. He even found the leisure to whisper gossip with a friend.

The members of the imperial clan were much more relaxed; they were all relatives, whispering and guessing who was bold enough to stir up such trouble. The relationships between the various princes were not harmonious or friendly. After all, the Son of Heaven had no heirs, and the lineage of the Prince of Yue was essentially finished. No one knew where the throne would eventually land.

Who wouldn’t want to move from a minor branch into the main imperial line?

The Prince of Ji chatted with the Prince of Yue: “The noble ladies of Chang’an are all gathered today. It’s the perfect chance for your wife to pick a good daughter-in-law for Zhen-ge’er, so you can hold a grandson sooner.”

As for the previously designated Consort for the Heir Apparent, one could only say she lacked the fortune. The Prince of Yue felt he owed the Liu family, but to let his newly recognized son marry the girl intended for the fake heir was inevitably absurd. It was truly a fated disaster.

The Princess of Yue was indeed picking a daughter-in-law. Previously, picking a girl from a family with low status for the fake heir was for the sake of keeping a low profile. Now that the truth of the real and fake sons was clear, and they could no longer dream of the throne, the Princess of Yue didn’t want to mistreat her only son.

After looking around, the eldest daughter of the Cui family, Cui Yi, was naturally among her top choices. However, Cui Yi’s health was poor. The Prince of Yue’s lineage was already sparse, so the Princess of Yue ultimately had to remove the Cui girl from her list.

Madam Du was unaware that her daughter was being picked apart by others. Several seats at the banquet were empty, her daughter’s being one of them. Even though Wu Shi had said her daughter was safe, Madam Du couldn’t help but worry. Her daughter’s constitution was so weak; having been mysteriously caught up in this trouble, she wondered if the girl had been frightened.

Guest Room.

After checking Pei Mingjiao’s pulse, the old physician sighed. “Fortunately, she didn’t drink much. The medicinal effect isn’t deep; a little medicine will set her right.”

Yan Linlang gazed at her daughter, who was soaked in sweat. “Will there be any effect on her body?”

“None.”

Yan Linlang’s tense brow finally relaxed.

The wrinkles on the Great Princess’s face also smoothed out. Fortunately, it wasn’t a major disaster, or it would have created a blood feud. The person behind the scenes was truly detestable.

Cui Yi, who was quietly resting, heard the old physician’s words, and a strange look touched her features. Her lips still felt a slight, stinging pain even now, and there was a faint taste of blood in her mouth. That was from when Pei Mingjiao had pressed against her—urgent and fierce, as if trying to suck her dry or bite her. That irrational, frenzied appearance…

The medicinal effect wasn’t deep?

She truly didn’t dare to imagine what it would have looked like if the effect had been deep.

This plot was a disaster that had struck her out of nowhere. No one would push a drugged woman toward another woman; that was clearly too bizarre and absurd. It could only be said that a certain link in the plan had gone wrong.

Where exactly was it?

Cui Yi recalled every detail.

Suddenly, Cui Yi remembered a subtle look from the maid who had led the way.

It was a look the maid only had upon seeing the vivid rose in her hand. Cui Yi’s fingertip instinctively tapped the table. The rose was a signal, and the mastermind hadn’t revealed who the contact was. She had picked up this rose on a small path; why did the contact throw away the signal?

Cui Yi pondered, the tapping of her finger pausing.

If one were to assume that the contact didn’t even know they were a contact, or even that they were the other protagonist of this conspiracy, then it would make sense.

Who was the other person intended to be plotted against?

It felt as if a layer of mist had shrouded everything before her eyes.

Gu Yue’s gaze didn’t leave Cui Yi’s fingertip. Although the tapping made no sound, Gu Yue felt as if the sound were striking her own body—thump, thump, thump—heavy and powerful. Gu Yue clenched her hands, her nails sinking into her flesh. The stinging pain helped her remain calm.

She thought with absolute certainty: her elder sister, Gu Ning, was definitely involved.

How could the Gu family possibly withstand the wrath of Grand Princess Huayin, Great Princess Anding, the Pei family, and the Murong family?

For a moment, Gu Yue was soaked in cold sweat.

The expression on Gu Yue’s face was too obvious. Cui Yi’s finger paused as she said softly, “Lady Gu.”

This call reminded Gu Yue of her surroundings. Fortunately, the Grand Princess and Great Princess hadn’t noticed her. Gu Yue gave Cui Yi a grateful smile, though it could hardly be called beautiful. “Fortunately, the one the Princess encountered was you.”

The look of a master strategist on Cui Yi’s face flickered. She instinctively wanted to touch her swollen, aching lips but forced herself to endure. Her nose seemed to smell that overripe, cloying sweetness again, and for no reason, she suddenly felt a sense of irritability.

That restlessness came too suddenly. Her calmness and reason had been contaminated.

She couldn’t ignore the sounds of gasping, the sticky sensation, and the way the other had called her name over and over while sobbing.

Cui Yi pursed her lips, feeling even more irritable. She wasn’t even that close with the villainess.

But the villainess, Pei Mingjiao, was truly too pitiful.

Cui Yi let out a breath. Yes, too pitiful.

Gu Yue saw Cui Yi’s distant expression and, as her reason returned, she finally noticed the details she hadn’t seen before: the red, swollen lips and the petal-like red marks on her neck. Although Gu Yue was inexperienced, she understood what they meant. Her pupils shrank. Almost instinctively, she looked toward the Grand Princess guarding the bedside.

Suppressing her awkwardness, Gu Yue pointed to her own neck and whispered a reminder: “Hickey.”

Cui Yi said nothing, using her silk wrap to cover the marks.

The sharp-eyed Gu Yue noticed that the ears of the cold, pale Cui Yi—who had supposedly severed ties with Pei Mingjiao—were flushed a rosy pink, like red plums in the snow.

Gu Yue thought vaguely that she couldn’t say exactly what was wrong, but it was truly very strange.

Wang Shi moved very quickly, following the clues. Not mentioning the maid who had suddenly drowned in a pond, she managed to reconstruct the general course of events.

She hadn’t expected this matter to involve Murong Xihua, the Great Princess’s favorite great-granddaughter from the second branch.

She went to Murong Xihua’s courtyard.

At the banquet, Madam Du and the Second Wife of the Duke of Weiguo were respectfully invited away. The guests looked at each other, but they didn’t think these two would be in any trouble; after all, they weren’t blind, and the servants who came to fetch them were very respectful. They were simply gossiping about why these two were invited.

Madam Du and the Duchess of Weiguo were led to a small courtyard. As soon as Madam Du entered, her eyes were entirely on her daughter. Seeing her face was unharmed, she breathed a sigh of relief, then paid her respects to Great Princess Anding and Grand Princess Huayin.

At that moment, Wang Shi arrived leading a deathly pale Murong Xihua.

The Great Princess’s normally kind face showed no readable expression.

Under the gaze of the crowd, Wang Shi presented the evidence and spoke the truth at an unhurried pace.

“It began as a squabble between young ladies. Jiu-niang wanted to make the Princess lose face at the banquet, so she followed her maid’s suggestion to add a bitter drug to the Princess’s tea. She didn’t expect that someone with ill intentions would calculate to add a vile aphrodisiac to the bitter drug…”

Hearing this, Murong Xihua’s face was filled with terror. She instinctively looked toward her grandmother, who had always doted on her, but the Great Princess didn’t look at her.

Wang Shi continued: “…The person behind the scenes used Jiu-niang to achieve a scheme, and in fact, they succeeded. After the Princess drank the drug, she was taken to a pre-prepared guest room. The mastermind’s goal was to force a scandalous union, and the other person for this scandal was Zhao Xuan, the Heir of the Duke of Weiguo.”

Hearing that the Duke of Weiguo’s mansion was involved, the expressions of those present varied. The Duchess of Weiguo’s eyelid twitched.

“But at the critical moment, something went wrong with the Heir of the Duke of Weiguo; he was drunk.” At this point, Wang Shi paused. “He discarded the rose signal in his hand halfway, and it was picked up by Lady Cui, who had wandered into the trap. Fortunately, the maid leading the way didn’t know the identity of the person she was supposed to receive, which allowed the Princess to escape a disaster.”

“The mastermind is very cunning and swiftly silenced the participants. I am incompetent and have not uncovered their identity.” Wang Shi looked ashamed.

“I asked the young ladies who later burst into the guest room, and found they were led there by a maid. However, among them, Eldest Lady Gu’s expression was somewhat unusual.”

“She stated directly that she had grievances with the Princess and didn’t wish to discuss the Princess’s affairs too much.”

Gu Yue’s heart stopped when she heard Gu Ning’s name, but she breathed a faint sigh of relief at the latter part.

Everyone who came today had status, and Wang Shi was restricted at every turn. To be able to piece together the truth was already quite good.

Grand Princess Yan Linlang said with an unreadable tone: “Old Matriarch, your residence is not at peace.”

How could the mastermind succeed so easily? The Great Princess Mansion definitely had an undercover agent, and one with a significant status.

The Great Princess naturally understood this as well. She could only swallow her pride and give away many fine things just so Yan Linlang wouldn’t hold a grudge.

How could Yan Linlang not hold a grudge? The one plotted against was her daughter. She said with a face full of anger: “Since you cannot find the truth, I will do it myself. When the time comes, I ask the Old Matriarch to cooperate.”

And so, the gathering broke up on an unhappy note.

However, word of what had happened at the Great Princess Mansion eventually leaked out.

Even Emperor Qi heard of it. Furious at such low-handed tactics, Emperor Qi ordered his eunuchs to assist the Grand Princess in uncovering the truth. The situation suddenly became grave. In response, the Great Princess Mansion officially separated the second branch from the main household, and Murong Xihua was confined to her room from then on.

As for Pei Mingjiao, once she was fully awake and her memory returned, she was filled with both bashfulness and shame. She never imagined she would cling to Cui Yi and kiss her so shamelessly.

And it was a deep kiss with an exchange of saliva—an intimacy meant only for husbands and wives.

Pei Mingjiao covered her face with both hands, suppressing a scream in her throat. Her whole body felt burning hot, and her heart felt as if it were about to burst from her chest. In a panic, she called for her maid to fetch the mansion’s physician; she felt as if the drug effect hadn’t been entirely removed.

After a chaotic fuss, it turned out to be just a false alarm of panic.

Yan Linlang, fearing her daughter would have lingering effects, said helplessly: “…Oh, you.”

Having suffered such an ordeal, the corners of Pei Mingjiao’s eyes turned red. She said softly, “How can someone be so wicked?”

“Jiao-niang, don’t worry. I will make the culprit wish they were dead.” Yan Linlang stroked Pei Mingjiao’s head. “For the time being, you stay home and rest your body.”

Pei Mingjiao obeyed dutifully: “Okay, I’ll listen to Mother.”

“Lady Cui saved you; remember to thank her.”

Pei Mingjiao started to feel hot again, the burning sensation spreading through her body with an indescribable tingle.

After Yan Linlang left, she ordered a thorough investigation into the Duke of Weiguo’s mansion. On the surface, the Heir Zhao Xuan was also a victim, but she didn’t believe things were just that coincidental.

Duke of Weiguo’s Mansion.

The Duchess of Weiguo had a huge fight with the Duke, her chest aching with anger. She immediately ordered her maid to prepare the carriage; she was going back to her maiden home.

While the Duchess was making her move, there was also a commotion at the Gu residence. Father Gu was determined to send the “female lead” Gu Ning back to their ancestral home. Even the Old Madam Gu’s intervention couldn’t change his mind. When the Old Madam tried to pull rank as an elder, Father Gu went to her courtyard personally; from then on, even she stopped making a fuss.

Seeing no hope left, Gu Ning immediately wrote a letter to the “male lead” Yan Zhen.

After reading the letter, Yan Zhen didn’t take it to heart at all.

Gu Ning waited a long time for a response from Yan Zhen to no avail. Seeing that Father Gu had already started sending people to pack her things, Gu Ning panicked and made a foolish move: suicide. Father Gu was so angry at this “wicked daughter” that his liver hurt; he declared that if she died, he would hold the funeral immediately.

Gu Ning was completely out of options. This wasn’t the modern world; she couldn’t defy the absolute authority of a feudal patriarch.

She hadn’t even achieved anything yet, and she was forced to leave in disgrace. Besides, there was no evidence, and the male lead was unreliable. Gu Ning was suddenly disheartened, wondering what the point of her transmigration even was.

When Gu Yue found out, she went to see Gu Ning personally. Looking at her despairing elder sister, she sneered: “Do you really think you’re the only smart person in the world?”

Gu Ning looked up at her and said dismissively: “I never thought that.”

“You are not welcome here to kick me while I’m down. Please leave immediately.”

Gu Yue found it laughably absurd. “Eldest Sister, I truly don’t understand why your hostility toward me is so great.”

“You know perfectly well in your heart,” Gu Ning said cryptically. “You and your mother have the mouth of a Buddha but the heart of a snake. Don’t pretend to be a good person with me.”

Gu Yue stopped arguing with her and let out a sigh. “Eldest Sister, just go back to the ancestral home. I don’t want to have a sister who ‘died of illness’.”

Gu Ning was momentarily horrified. From then on, she stopped struggling and quietly returned to the ancestral home.

The Great Princess’s “fortune” hadn’t been shared; instead, they had been tainted with a whole lot of bad luck. Madam Du made Cui Yi bathe with pomelo leaves as soon as they returned.

Cui Yan hadn’t realized that the incident at the Great Princess Mansion was connected to his wife and daughter. After hearing the full story, he sighed: “This matter is not simple.”

Madam Du gave him a look. “As if you need to tell me that.”

Cui Yan didn’t mind. After pondering for a long time, he had a guess in his heart. He pointed toward the sky. “No heirs.”

Madam Du was startled. “Who do you think it is?”

Cui Yan shook his head. “I don’t know.”

Madam Du didn’t press further, and the matter was considered passed.

Cui Yi emerged from her bath. Looking into the bronze mirror, the marks on her neck had faded, leaving behind scattered red spots like those from accidental scratching. On her fair skin, they appeared somewhat ambiguous.

She lowered her eyes and suddenly reached out to scratch them hard.

So itchy.