Waking Up to an Imperial Marriage with My Archenemy - Chapter 16

The moment Yue Xiu brought it up, Qiao Wan felt a sudden urge to go and blow up the Princess’s Estate. She should have known better than to trust that Luo Fengxin was a reliable person!

Following Luo Fengxin’s advice that day, she had stayed at the Princess’s Estate for three days, taking advantage of her illness to enjoy a few days of Luo Fengxin’s personal care. Her illness had come on suddenly and vanished just as fast; by the fourth day, she was fully recovered. And, as per usual, Xiao Bai reappeared the moment she was well.

Everything was going perfectly—until the moment Qiao Wan stepped out of the estate.

On her way out, she ran into Zhou Kejong. Both were in their respective carriages and happened to be looking out the windows at the same time. Their eyes met, and they exchanged brief nods of greeting. Zhou Kejong’s carriage was headed in the opposite direction and soon vanished into the distance, but the more Qiao Wan thought about it, the more she felt there was something eerily familiar about the look he had given her.

After racking her brains for a while, it suddenly clicked.

That expression of concern, pity, and “hesitating to speak of the unspeakable”—it was the exact same look Luo Fengxin’s subordinates had given her when she accompanied the Crown Prince to the Northern Frontier and left again!

Sensing something was wrong, Qiao Wan sent someone to investigate. When she discovered what Luo Fengxin had done, she was fuming. The most infuriating part was that Luo Fengxin hadn’t technically lied to her; the current outcome was exactly what Qiao Wan had asked for.

Qiao Wan wanted to blame Luo Fengxin but lacked a valid reason. Yet, if she did nothing, her face burned with sheer embarrassment.

No, she thought, I’m not suffering through this breath of frustration alone.

Qiao Wan immediately ordered her carriage to turn toward the palace. Although she was technically a commoner now, the guards at the gate all recognized her and knew she was set to become the Princess’s consort. None dared to stop her, letting her pass on the merit of her face alone.

She arrived at the Imperial Garden. Luo Fengxin wanted her to pick lotus leaves, didn’t she? Fine. Today, she would pluck every single leaf in the Mirror Lake until it was bald!

Qiao Wan summoned the maids and eunuchs, claiming the Princess required the lotus leaves and ordering them to get picking. Among them was the young maid who had delivered Luo Fengxin’s message that day; with her as a witness, the others didn’t doubt the order’s authenticity. However, it was currently the peak of the lotus-viewing season. To strip the lake bare, it felt rather improper.

Someone suggested reporting to the Emperor first, but seeing Qiao Wan’s urgency, they had no choice but to start picking while sending a messenger. By the time Luo Jinhe received the news and rushed over, half the lotus leaves in Mirror Lake were nothing but bare stalks.

Gazing at the row upon row of pathetic stems, Luo Jinhe covered his eyes with his sleeve in exasperation. He summoned Luo Fengxin, gave her a thorough scolding, and Qiao Wan finally “got her wish.” For the crime of damaging the Mirror Lake, she was sentenced to assist the gardeners in tending the palace flora for half a month.

Once Luo Jinhe departed, the unfairly reprimanded Luo Fengxin grabbed Qiao Wan in front of the assembled servants and dragged her into a deserted side hall. No one knew what happened inside. At first, Qiao Wan’s screams could be heard, but they soon stopped, as if someone had covered her mouth. Occasionally, a stray sob or whimper leaked out from the hall.

More than an hour later, the doors opened. The crowd saw Qiao Wan being carried out in Luo Fengxin’s arms, motionless and seemingly unconscious. Her hair was disheveled, and she was draped in her own outer cloak, hiding her condition from view. Even Luo Fengxin’s robes were not as tidy as when she had arrived.

Seeing the Princess’s flushed cheeks, everyone lowered their heads in unison. Only after the Princess had carried her away did the gossip erupt.

The news spread like wildfire—first among the maids and eunuchs, then somehow leaking from the Imperial Academy of Medicine that a physician had been summoned to the Princess’s Estate in the middle of the night to treat Qiao Wan.

Gradually, the rumors transcended the palace walls and flooded the capital. Everyone said that after Censor Qiao was betrothed to her former nemesis, she had suffered terrible retribution. The Princess was acting with wanton cruelty toward her; Censor Qiao’s resistance was futile, and she had been “played with” until she fainted multiple times. Her life was, by all accounts, miserable.

“Hey, I’m asking you—is it true? Is Princess Leping really that formidable? When you two are doing that.”

Seeing that Yue Xiu’s questions were becoming increasingly lewd, Qiao Wan quickly cut her off. “You actually believe such rumors? I’m starting to doubt the accuracy of your intelligence network.”

“It sounds quite convincing; everyone’s talking about it,” Yue Xiu teased. “Besides, many of the folk stories written about you two describe it exactly like that—how Princess Leping came back, locked you up, and every day she—”

“Shut up! This is a sacred Buddhist site. Aren’t you afraid of offending the Bodhisattva with such talk?”

Blushing furiously, Qiao Wan dragged Yue Xiu away. She deeply regretted the moment of temporary insanity that led her to spite Luo Fengxin that day. Spite was one thing, but she should have seen her scheme through. Instead, halfway through her palace stunt, she changed her mind and ended up playing along with Luo Fengxin to complete the charade. This level of self-sacrifice was truly moving; she only hoped Luo Jinhe would one day grant her a plaque reading “Loyal and Patriotic” to hang on her wall.

On second thought, maybe not. Other people served their country by fighting enemies; she was serving hers by starring in a royal sex scandal. If she actually got that plaque, the original heroes of history would probably climb out of their graves in a rage.

“Have you heard anything regarding the situation in Min Province that I asked you to check?” After leaving Qinglu Temple, Qiao Wan took the initiative to change the subject.

“It’s even messier than before,” Yue Xiu replied, her tone turning serious. “Last month, continuous heavy rains caused the Cang River to rise, and the dikes burst near Fuqu County. Over a thousand people drowned. It happened right during the new Emperor’s enthronement, so the Governor of Minzhou didn’t dare report it. He’s been suppressed the news until now.”

“Without the court knowing, there’s no disaster relief—no grain, no silver. Minzhou already has a severe bandit problem. With displaced refugees added to the mix, I estimate this can be kept quiet for another month at most. If there’s no improvement by then, a riot in Minzhou is inevitable.”

“I recall the court allocated a sum for dike repairs in Minzhou just last year. It shouldn’t have happened.” Qiao Wan frowned. “Could the Governor have embezzled the funds?”

Yue Xiu shook her head. “There are rumors among the commoners, but we don’t know for sure yet.”

The people of Minzhou were known for their fierce temperament; they had rioted three times in the past due to official oppression. They fared well in harvest years, but in times of famine, bandits overran the region. The imperial court found the area a massive headache.

If they sent troops to suppress them, the bandits used the mountainous terrain to their advantage. If they sent too few, they couldn’t win; if they sent too many, the bandits simply abandoned their camps and vanished into the deep forests.

Of course, if the court were determined to wipe them out, they could send ten or a hundred times the force necessary. But Minzhou was barren and sparsely populated; spending such a fortune on banditry was a losing proposition.

Yet, they couldn’t simply ignore it. In the past two years alone, three officials in Minzhou had been murdered. These desperate people had no fear of the government. If the Governor really did steal that money, Qiao Wan had no doubt the people would have the audacity to lay siege to the provincial office.

“This is crucial to the success of our operation,” Qiao Wan said after weighing her options. “Go to Minzhou yourself. See if you can find evidence of the Governor’s embezzlement. If you find it, don’t move yet—wait for my word. If there’s nothing, we’ll make other plans.”