The Crown Prince grew annoyed at the mention of the Fu family. "Your son has always said that my uncle doesn't truly want to help me, but you didn't believe it and insisted they were reliable."
"Your uncle would be hurt if he heard you say that," the Empress quickly tried to salvage the situation. "Alas, this matter can't entirely be blamed on Ying Xiao. She doesn't have much wealth, and her business is only average. Mother will discuss this properly with your uncle later. The dowry given to Ying Xiao back then was indeed too little."
The Crown Prince snorted.
The Empress continued, "The most important thing now is to resolve the current issue. Situ Yan's actions are already attracting enough attention; we can't let his wife steal the spotlight like this."
"What do you propose we do?"
"She solicited a sum of money, but who knows where over six hundred thousand yuan went. She claims it was for disaster relief, but who knows how much she might have siphoned off for herself. Let's spread word of this."
The Crown Princess had done similar things before, and the Empress had often benefited from them, so the words came easily.
The Crown Prince pondered, deeming it a last resort. "Your son will have the Fu family handle the arrangements."
The Empress frowned. The Fu family?
When had her son become so distant from his niece?
Soon, rumors spread throughout the capital. The story of Rui Wangfei forcing donations and pocketing the money was retold with names changed, becoming a popular tale among storytellers in teahouses.
Qing Ya had not listened to storytellers for a long time since she began handling the shop's business. However, the rumors were so widespread that she still caught wind of them. She went to listen to a storyteller, growing increasingly angry. She almost got into a physical altercation with the storyteller, but Wang Shoucheng, standing beside her, held her back tightly. "Qing Ya, my dear, hold back. This is just a story. If you confront him, wouldn't you be confirming the Wangfei's identity?"
Unable to act, Qing Ya huffily went to find Lu Nian Fu for a solution.
Lu Nian Fu, however, remained calm. "The pure will remain pure. Why bother with these rumors?"
"Wangfei, you haven't heard how detestable they portray you..."
"It's fine. We'll continue with our own affairs," Lu Nian Fu said, picking up a brush and writing a calling card. "Take this to the Third Wangfei later."
Qing Ya took the calling card. "Alright. But Wangfei, shouldn't we clarify the rumors as well? The capital is not Yangzhou. If those censors file a complaint..."
"Wouldn't it be even better if they file a complaint? It would give the Dali Temple a chance to thoroughly investigate and clear my name."
Qing Ya became angry at the censors again. "Are all those people in the Censorate useless? The rumors are spreading so widely, and they haven't filed a single complaint. Don't they usually love such matters?"
Lu Nian Fu chuckled, finding it both amusing and exasperating. "What nonsense are you spouting? The censors have their considerations before they impeach."
If they were to impeach everything they saw, they would have offended the powerful and been killed long ago.
Currently, the court was divided into two factions: the Crown Prince's party and the Rui Wang's party.
There was no doubt in her mind that the rumors were concocted by the Crown Prince's party. They clearly intended to tarnish Lu Nian Fu's reputation through public opinion, and they wouldn't allow the censors to intervene until the rumors had spread to a certain extent.
Those close to Rui Wang would certainly not impeach her based on such baseless accusations.
As for the neutral faction, they were observing the conflict from the sidelines, waiting for the Emperor's move.
Lu Nian Fu estimated and asked, "How far have the rumors spread now?"
"Many people have heard them. I heard that the Liyuan is already accelerating rehearsals. Within a couple of days, this mess will be staged. Then, they'll invite a famous actor. Wangfei, although the Dali Temple Minister is on our side, such matters as rumors are indeed difficult to investigate. What if..."
Lu Nian Fu smiled. "What's the point of investigating rumors? Can't we just publish the accounts? We haven't actually embezzled the disaster relief funds, so why worry about not being able to prove our innocence? You're usually quite sharp, girl, why are you so slow this time?"
Qing Ya blinked for a moment, then sheepishly touched her stomach and said with a pained expression, "I always thought that being pregnant for three years made one foolish..."
Lu Nian Fu was startled, then overjoyed. "You're pregnant?"
Qing Ya bit her lip fiercely. "If I don't get pregnant soon, those little vixens will start offering themselves."
"Does Shou Cheng have the nerve?"
"He doesn't, but those little vixens have too many tricks. Shou Cheng has already rebuffed them several times, yet they still have their eyes on him, always bringing up that I haven't had children. Men are indeed not to be wealthy; once they have money, they attract an endless swarm of admirers." She moved closer to Lu Nian Fu. "Wangfei, can you teach me? How is it that there's only you beside the Wangye?"
Lu Nian Fu smiled very happily. "The root of this matter lies with the man himself. As long as he has you in his heart, he will naturally distance himself from those seductive women."
If Situ Yan hadn't insisted, given his current status and achievements, his inner court would have long been overcrowded.