Chapter 18

Why aren't you wearing clothes?

The Prince of Zuo believed he had arranged things perfectly. All he needed to do was lure Jiang's father and the guests to catch them in the act, and Jiang He would have no choice but to marry Zuo Ji.

Money has always been a tried-and-true method. If the Zuo family gains control of the Jiang family, they will have a continuous stream of wealth in the future, and may even be able to annex the Jiang family for their own use.

The Prince of Zuo was very confident in his arrangements, but when he deliberately led people to catch Zuo Ji in the act of adultery, he found that Zuo Ji was not in the room. At this time, a servant came to report that the young master was unwell and had gone back to his room to rest.

Jiang He was the only one in the room. This room was specially used by the Zuo family to entertain guests, so it was not surprising that she was here. However, her clothes were neat and her expression was not erratic at all, so she did not seem to have been drugged.

Jiang He didn't even lift her eyelids to look at the Prince Zuo. The guests who wanted to watch the show were also not worth her attention. She calmly poured herself another glass of fruit wine and began to savor it.

The Zuo family's wine is indeed quite good, if nothing else has been added.

The Left Prince was over fifty years old and had been immersed in the court for many years, obsessed with power and lust. She had seen all kinds of people, but she suddenly realized that she could not see through this young man, Jiang He.

Jiang He's behavior clearly showed that she knew what was in the wine, but she was still able to pretend that nothing had happened, and even acted indifferently, as if she was not afraid of being set up.

Confident in her abilities, Jiang He saw the displeased expression on the face of the Prince Zuo. She raised her wine cup and smiled like a dashing playboy.

“Prince Zuo, this fruit wine is indeed quite good.”

The Left Prince's expression darkened further, but with guests present, she spoke authoritatively: "Do you know that even Jiang Shangyi has to address me respectfully? Don't you, a junior, think you're being too arrogant?"

"Oh?" Jiang He leaned back in her chair, her smile widening. "But I am not my mother, Prince Zuo. Even if I don't address you respectfully, even if I call you by your given name, what can you do to me? Are you going to file a complaint with the emperor like Imperial Censor Feng, or impeach me?"

Jiang He put down her wine cup and said casually, "I wonder if His Majesty would also like to try this fine wine if he knew that the Prince of Zuo had such good wine."

"Besides, I'm a spoiled brat. Would the Prince of Zuo bother with a spoiled brat?"

Jiang He's words completely blocked the path of the Left Prince.

Given His Majesty's favor towards the Jiang family and Jiang He, if the Zuo family were to frame Jiang He today and bring the matter to light, His Majesty would certainly not side with the Zuo family. Even if Imperial Censor Feng has an iron tongue, his daughter is still imprisoned in the Jingzhao government office.

The Prince of Zuo could only swallow his anger and watch helplessly as Jiang He, this junior, acted so presumptuously in front of him.

Upon seeing this scene, Jiang's father, who had been deliberately summoned, immediately understood what was going on. He had assumed that the Zuo family genuinely wanted a marriage alliance, but he never expected that they would secretly frame him.

“Prince Zuo, it seems that the Zuo family is not very welcoming to the Jiang family. They are using their status to pressure my Jiang family’s eldest daughter. I will go back and explain this to my wife. In that case, we need not stay any longer.”

Jiang's father came from an official family and had plenty of confidence, displaying the demeanor of a master of the household.

After this whole mess, Jiang's father temporarily abandoned his plan to find a husband for Jiang He. After all, who knows if those people also had ulterior motives like the Zuo family, or even resorted to despicable means to achieve their goals?

The thought that if the Zuo family succeeded, the Jiang family would be at their mercy, filled Jiang's father with anger.

Jiang He was quite relaxed; she had long been able to control her emotions at will.

This was not enough to anger her.

The Zuo family's desire to rise to power by sucking the blood of the Jiang family is too obvious. Besides, she would never marry a husband who is always scheming against her.

When his plan failed, the Prince of Zuo vented his anger on Zuo Ji, making him kneel in the ancestral hall all night and forbidding anyone from bringing him food or water.

As an illegitimate son in the Zuo family, Zuo Ji knew from a young age that beauty was a bargaining chip to help his family arrange marriages. His mother asked him to drug Jiang He and use his own innocence to frame her. Although he was unwilling, he had no right to refuse.

If he hadn't been feeling unwell today, he might not have given himself away like that.

Zuo Ji couldn't help but recall the words Jiang He had said to him during the day.

The intelligent woman immediately saw his predicament, and instead of showing disgust at his scheme, she advised him to turn back in time.

Zuo Ji clutched his throbbing stomach, the cold air from the ground creeping up his knees and onto his body. Large beads of sweat appeared on his forehead, but he could only grit his teeth and persevere.

He couldn't help but fantasize that if he really married Jiang He, even if she was a true playboy, it wouldn't be a bad thing.

As evening fell, Jiang Shangyi returned home and heard about the Zuo family's scheme against her daughter. She immediately lost her temper and mocked the Zuo family for their wishful thinking.

Jiang Shangyi immediately decided to cut off several business dealings with the Zuo family. Weren't they coveting the Jiang family's money? Then let them suffer a large loss of money first, which would at least make the Zuo family suffer for a while.

Jiang Shangyi also felt that the current situation was not suitable for Jiang He to marry a proper husband. It would be better to wait and wait for Jiang He to find someone she liked on her own.

Back in the palace, the Fifth Prince also said that he would only marry after finding a suitable match, so there was no need to worry for the Emperor that he would suddenly arrange a marriage for Jiang He.

The matter that Jiang's father asked Ruiming to investigate also yielded results. It was said that before Jiang He went to the Zuo family, she did not receive a kind look from Xue Lingyu in the small courtyard, and Xue Lingyu even disrespected Jiang He.

How could a concubine possibly rise above the wife? Besides, Jiang He's act of sending so many things into the courtyard had also caught the eye of Jiang's father.

In his opinion, Xue Lingyu was arrogant because of Jiang He's favor, and wanted to do evil because of Jiang He's past affection for him.

It seems we need to give them another good talking-to.

Since we can save the Xue family, we can also help them return to their original situation.

Father Jiang had a new plan in mind.

The Zuo family's wine was fine; the cup under Zuo Ji's watchful eye was naturally poured out, but in front of Prince Zuo, it was drunk without hesitation.

When Jiang He returned, she felt a little dizzy. It seemed that not only was the fruit wine given to her drugged, but even the wine cup had been drugged. Fortunately, she only took a sip, and she was able to suppress the effects of the drug with her willpower.

She was originally going to go back to her own little house by the stream to rest, but as if guided by some unseen force, she was led back into the courtyard.

It wasn't too late, and Xue Lingyu hadn't rested yet. Jiang He could see through the window screen that he seemed to be embroidering something. She deliberately kept her footsteps very light, not wanting Xue Lingyu to notice her.

Xue Lingyu's embroidery skills are excellent. As a young master from a prestigious family who was once admired by countless people, the education he received from childhood was unparalleled by ordinary people.

Zuo Ji of the Zuo family was also well-educated, but compared to Xue Lingyu, he was completely outclassed and utterly crushed.

Jiang He believes that she has never seen a man who can compare to Xue Lingyu.

Today, Xue Lingyu was angry for a while because Jiang He had humiliated her. After calming down, she was still a little angry, so she couldn't help but take out the wedding dress she had embroidered in her boudoir and add a few strokes.

Every stitch of this wedding dress was made by him. Concubines were not allowed to wear bright red, so Xue Lingyu embroidered it with utmost care, after all, this was her last wish. In the past, the Xue family had only brought this one piece of clothing into the Jiang residence.

Jiang He quietly entered the room and saw Xue Lingyu carefully holding the wedding dress, her hands gently embroidering it, her eyes filled with great affection.

She coughed deliberately, trying to get Xue Lingyu's attention.

When Xue Lingyu looked up and saw Jiang He, she was so startled that she almost pricked herself with the needle and thread in her hand. She hurriedly hid her wedding dress behind her back, not wanting Jiang He to see it.

"Am I that scary? You're always so afraid of me." Jiang He's gaze fell behind him, and she stepped forward to take the wedding dress from his hands. The craftsmanship was indeed excellent, and the workmanship was exquisite. However, she couldn't help but ask, "Why didn't you wear this dress on the day you entered the family?"

This was another case of feigning ignorance. Xue Lingyu sneered inwardly, but outwardly lowered her head and said meekly, "Concubines are not allowed to wear bright red."

Jiang He was indeed unaware that all red appeared to her as the same color.

She looked closely at Xue Lingyu's face and had to admit that Xue Lingyu's complexion had indeed improved a lot since she hadn't seen her for half a day.

She returned the wedding dress to Xue Lingyu, looking at his delicate features, and asked, "Has your health recovered?"

As soon as Jiang He approached, Xue Lingyu could smell the faint scent of alcohol on her. However, Jiang He's eyes were noticeably unfocused, and she seemed slightly drunk.

Before Xue Lingyu could answer, Jiang He continued, "Today at the Zuo family, I almost fell into a trap. The Prince of Zuo tried to drug my wine, falsely accuse me of having an affair with Zuo Ji, and force me to marry Zuo Ji."

Such a thing is true? Xue Lingyu was somewhat surprised; no wonder Jiang He smelled of alcohol.

Jiang He hugged him, seemingly truly drunk, and murmured, "Aren't you even a little curious?"

Xue Lingyi instinctively wanted to push her away, but hesitated and said, "My period isn't over yet, I'm afraid... I'm afraid I can't."

After being rejected, Jiang He let go of his hand without any disappointment, and her eyes instantly regained their clarity.

The best proof is that the answer is irrelevant.

Xue Lingyu doesn't care about her at all. Even after she entered the Jiang family, she still doesn't have a place in his heart.

Jiang He remained silent, and for some reason, her emotions were stirred again because of Xue Lingyu.

Seeing that Jiang He remained silent, Xue Lingyu felt uneasy. He was worried that Jiang He would get angry and take away his wedding dress, since it was not in accordance with regulations for a concubine.

So he tried to coax them, saying, "They were just curious, but judging from their behavior, they didn't succeed."

Jiang He glanced at him and said with certainty, "Of course they didn't succeed."

If she had really touched Zuo Ji, she wouldn't have come to the courtyard that night.

Xue Lingyu had to admit that Jiang He was much stranger now than before.

He couldn't figure out what she really wanted.

◎Latest Comments:

She wants you, you idiot.

I don't want to read anything except this book TAT, but the story is so shallow.

I don't want to read anything except this book TAT, but the story is so shallow.

[It would be strange if the two of them were completely honest with each other at this stage. The male lead doesn't like the female lead, and the female lead is the one who is giving her all. She confessed her feelings and was rejected and humiliated by the male lead. Who would open their heart to someone who has humiliated them before? I feel unlucky to encounter such a person and I wish he would just die.]

[Will there be an update tonight?]

[That's it? That's it? Waaaaah!]

"...Don't these two have mouths?"

[Sigh, it seems like Xiao Jiang wants Xiao Xue to understand her, but she doesn't tell Xiao Xue anything. Their thought processes are completely different.]

If the two of them had talked things out, there wouldn't have been so much suffering in the future.

【Hahaha】

[The male lead is so oblivious!]

[Beep~]

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[This is so little! When will you release a big update? It's not enough!]

【claw】

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