Feng Wu was astonished, saying, "Your Highness, the person who drugged you is truly malicious. This is intended to ruin your reputation. If Your Highness had not intervened in time, the consequences would have been unthinkable."
Xue Xingyue smiled faintly, "The one who drugged me has planned quite well. They not only intended to humiliate Duke Meng but also to make me, before I even married into the Duke's mansion, be looked down upon by my future mother-in-law. More than that, they aimed to bring disgrace upon the royal family and the Duke of Ning's mansion. A single arrow killing three birds."
"Your Highness, this person's intentions are poisonous. I will surely investigate and find this person," Feng Wu declared. To dare target Your Highness, she could not tolerate such presumptuousness.
"There's no need," Xue Xingyue shook her head.
"Your Highness..." Feng Wu was confused. Why did Your Highness suddenly retract the order?
"When exactly was the Duchess of Ning drugged? Perhaps neither you nor I know. However, one thing is certain: she was fine before leaving the Duke's mansion."
Feng Wu frowned slightly, "Your Highness means the Duchess of Ning was drugged at Wanjun Tower?" She found it incredible. She and Your Highness were both present at the time; how could they not have noticed something amiss with the Duchess of Ning?
Xue Xingyue nodded. "Yes. If I hadn't known the Duchess of Ning cared most about Duke Meng, I might not have realized she had been drugged."
Feng Wu knelt on one knee and said, "It is my dereliction of duty; I failed to notice."
Xue Xingyue replied, "It's not your fault. I also didn't notice it in time."
But who was that person, and why did they do it?
"Could it be Consort An?" Feng Wu suddenly asked.
"No," Xue Xingyue immediately denied. The Duke of Ning's mansion was, after all, Consort An's maternal family. Even if she were foolish, she wouldn't be so foolish as to harm her own family.
"Your Highness, why are you so sure?" Feng Wu inquired.
"It's simple. The Duke of Ning's mansion is Consort An's support. If that support collapses, it would only bring disadvantages to Consort An, no benefits."
Feng Wu finally understood and said, "Your Highness truly thinks of everything."
"However, this person, who could drug the Duchess of Ning without anyone noticing, cannot be underestimated..." Moreover, it was right under her nose. If this person wasn't caught, she felt uneasy.
With this thought, she gave an order, "Feng Wu, have Feng Ming send people to investigate who else Zhao Yanluo and Duke Meng had contact with at Wanjun Tower today."
Feng Wu was taken aback. "Your Highness means this person might know Duke Meng?"
"Perhaps." She wasn't certain.
"I will relay the order immediately." Feng Wu left.
Xue Xingyue turned and got into the carriage. As she lifted the carriage curtain, she felt a gaze upon her.
Turning back, she met a pair of eyes as vast as the starry sky. However, the coldness and a hint of playfulness in them marred their beauty.
For some inexplicable reason, she felt a sensation she had never experienced before.
She couldn't quite place it.
"Your Highness, what is it?" Feng Wu returned after finishing her tasks and found her Highness lost in thought, staring at a certain spot.
Xue Xingyue regained her senses, only to find that the person had long since disappeared.
"Your Highness..." Feng Wu called out again.
"Investigate Ji Wuran."
Feng Wu was slightly startled. "Young Master Ji Wuran of Marquis Ji An's mansion?"
Xue Xingyue nodded. "Investigate him."
Feng Wu nodded. "I understand."
After the carriage left, a man walked out from the spot where Xue Xingyue had been looking. He wore a silk brocade robe, and his handsome face bore eyes that shone like stars, but in moments, they became as deep as an abyss, leading one to eternal damnation.
"Wuran, why are you here?"
He turned his head, and those abyssal black eyes had returned to their former starlike brilliance. "Young Master Meng, I had something to attend to and left. Upon returning, I heard my aunt had visited."
Hearing Ji Wuran mention his mother, Meng Jiangming's face fell. "Don't mention it. I've hit rock bottom. Why did Mother go mad like that? Fortunately, Princess Xingyue helped out."
Mentioning Princess Xingyue, Meng Jiangming felt an indescribable feeling in his heart.
"Young Master Meng, even Princess Xingyue stepped in. You truly are something," Ji Wuran said with a smile.
Meng Jiangming's lips curled up involuntarily, a hint of pride in his voice. "After all, I will be a consort. If I lose face, doesn't she lose face too?"
Ji Wuran remained silent, a subtle hint of coldness flashing in his eyes.
Meng Jiangming had no inclination to go whoring anymore. He patted Ji Wuran's shoulder and said, "Wuran, thank you today. But I'm not in the mood to play anymore. Another day, perhaps!"
Ji Wuran nodded. "Alright."
Meng Jiangming got into the Duke of Ning's mansion's carriage and left.
Ji Wuran returned to Wanjun Tower, entering a private room at the very back. He opened the door to find a person kneeling on one knee. "Your subordinate, greetings..."
Ji Wuran raised his hand and said indifferently, "We are in a foreign land, dispense with such formalities. Let's get down to business."
An Ying said, "Young Master, the Master asks when you will return."
Ji Wuran sat on a chair and picked up the teapot to pour a cup of tea. As he brought the cup to his lips with his slender, fair fingers, he paused. He looked up, his black eyes now as cold as frost. "Is he impatient?"
Hearing this, An Ying, under the pressure of those cold black eyes, said with a stiffened scalp, "The Master asks the Young Master how he is considering the marriage."
Ji Wuran curled his lips into a cold smile, like the frost of a deep night, chilling the heart. An Ying shivered inexplicably, feeling the chill rising from the soles of his feet. If he could, he would have left this place long ago.
"Marriage?" Ji Wuran's smile became colder, deeper. His gaze was like a sharp, icy blade, piercing into An Ying.
It was then that An Ying understood why the other shadow guards hadn't come, and why he, a fool, had eagerly rushed forward.
It seemed those who rush forward never get good deals.
But at this moment, An Ying could only brace himself and continue. "Yes, that's what the Master said."
"Heh..." Ji Wuran let out a light laugh, looking up with deep, cold eyes, his entire being exuding a chilling aura.
An Ying swallowed. "Yo-Young Master..."
Unfortunately, before he could finish speaking, Ji Wuran coldly interrupted him. "Go back and tell him that I am not considering marriage at this time. If he forces a woman upon me, then I will also consider whether to force several more women upon him."
"Your subordinate obeys!" An Ying quickly replied. "If there's nothing else, your subordinate shall take his leave!"
"Wait!"
A voice called from behind him. An Ying was on the verge of tears. "Young Master, is there something else?"
"Pass the news of Princess Xingyue's secret meeting with Xie Yunliu to Consort An."
"Yes, Young Master."
"You may leave!" Ji Wuran said coldly.
Soon, the day's events reached Consort An. While the matter of someone targeting the Duke of Ning's mansion occupied her thoughts, she was even more concerned about Princess Xingyue's secret meeting with Xie Yunliu.
Who was Xie Yunliu? He was Princess Xingyue's capable subordinate. Furthermore, with Princess Xingyue's return to the court, he had temporarily taken over as the protector of Zhen Wuguan, commanding a hundred thousand troops.
A hundred thousand troops. Thinking of this, Consort An felt an unspeakable rage.
"Someone," Consort An commanded.
A palace servant quickly entered. Consort An handed over a letter. "Deliver this letter to the Duke of Ning's mansion."
"Yes, Your Majesty." The servant withdrew.
Consort An stood up and gazed into the distance. All of this should have been hers, Tianyue's.