Chapter 9: The Plan

No, she was determined to have Wen Qiao bring her into the palace as well!

Wen Qi schemed quietly to herself, completely unaware that Wen Qiao on the other side was plotting the same thing.

To feign weakness before striking, one must first offer the opponent a small favor; only then can one reveal true strength without seeming afraid. If suspicion arose too soon, the act would fall apart.

After returning to the palace, Madam Song reported everything she had witnessed at the Marquis’s residence to the Empress Dowager. Although Wen Qiao had tried to dissuade her at the time, she believed Wen Qiao was simply forced to yield under the Marquis’s roof. If the Empress Dowager did not promptly send two palace maids to escort Wen Qiao, no one could say how much the soft and gentle Wen Qiao would be tormented by the Marquis’s household.

She did not want to see a second Chang Le—a delicate, fragrant young lady—devoured utterly by this ruthless Marquis’s family, with nothing left but scraps.

Especially since the current mistress of the Marquis’s residence was a concubine, whose malicious intentions toward Wen Qiao could not be ruled out. Wen Qiao was young and had just returned from the countryside; how could she possibly contend with a woman who had long perfected underhanded schemes?

“What?” The Empress Dowager slammed her hand on the table, abruptly rising from her chair. The sudden movement, coupled with her anger, made her head spin.

“How dare they treat Qiao Qiao so poorly? She is the only cherished memory left to me of Chang Le!” Her chest heaved unevenly, still catching her breath, she immediately ordered, “You, You Ming, arrange for Hua Ping and Dai Qiao to go to the Marquis’s residence at once. Tell them these are gifts from me to Qiao Qiao. Let’s see if Wen Congqing dares to disregard imperial authority!”

Hua Ping and Dai Qiao were the two palace maids who had attended to Wen Qiao that day. Since they had informed her about Wen Qiao’s injuries, the Empress Dowager trusted them.

“Yes, your humble servant will handle it immediately.”

You Ming was Madam Song’s personal name. With the Empress Dowager’s command, Madam Song readily agreed.

After all, this was an order from the Empress Dowager herself. The two maids dared not delay and soon arrived at the Marquis’s residence.

Upon their arrival, Wen Qiao’s lips curled slightly, as if she had long anticipated this outcome.

The others in the household wore grim expressions, especially Wen Congqing, whose face flushed and paled in turn. Coincidentally, Li Yanlan had yet to assign any maids to serve Wen Qiao, so these two palace maids were naturally retained.

Among them, Wen Qi was the most furious. She had just been hoping Wen Congqing would petition at the palace on her behalf, so she, too, could enter the palace and study alongside the prince and princess. Now, seeing how much the Empress Dowager favored Wen Qiao, she wondered if Wen Congqing would even agree once he heard of this.

After much effort, the two palace maids were finally settled. Since they came directly from the Empress Dowager’s quarters, Wen Congqing dared not neglect them.

Just as this matter settled, Wen Qi went straight to Wen Congqing’s study.

“Father, I want to enter the palace and study with Sixth Sister.”

Wen Qi entered, first putting on a pitiful expression.

Though Wen Zehan had threatened Wen Qiao to bring her into the palace, she felt uneasy for some reason, sensing Wen Qiao might have backup plans. It seemed safer to go through Wen Congqing’s channel to enter the palace. That way, if anything happened to Wen Qiao, she would still have a chance.

This country girl thought differently.

“Only one person from the Marquis’s residence should enter the palace. Wen Qiao has the Empress Dowager’s favor. Replacing her with you now would offend the Empress Dowager.”

Wen Congqing spoke gently. Though Wen Qi was not his biological daughter, he had raised her for many years and was willing to grant her some face. Yet this matter was not his decision alone; a misstep could cause greater losses.

Since Wen Qiao had returned to the Marquis’s residence, she was bound to it. Anyone mentioning her would be recognized as the Marquis’s daughter. If Wen Qi could also enter the palace, fine—but there was no need to upset the Empress Dowager over such a trivial matter. Besides, Wen Qi could bring benefits even outside the palace.

Though he had earlier wanted Wen Qi to enter the palace, now that Wen Qiao had, it was unnecessary.

Still, if Wen Qi could become the emperor’s consort, that would be far better than merely being a companion reader like Wen Qiao.

Thinking of this, Wen Congqing’s mind began to stir again.

“Father misunderstands. I’m not asking to take Sister’s place. I just want to study in the palace alongside her. Sixth Sister has just returned from the countryside and does not know many court etiquettes. I fear she might inadvertently say or do something untoward, offending the emperor or the Empress Dowager, which would harm the Marquis’s reputation. Especially since the Empress Dowager adores Sixth Sister; such favor could restore the Marquis’s residence to prominence within the capital.”

“But if Sixth Sister slips up and offends the Empress Dowager, and she punishes the Marquis’s household, wouldn’t that be a loss?”

Wen Qi spoke rapidly, her reasoning somewhat sound. Wen Congqing thought about his earlier hesitation; if both daughters were in the palace…

Especially Wen Qi, who had studied music, chess, calligraphy, and painting since childhood, she would surely win the emperor’s favor.

At this moment, Wen Qi was unaware of her father’s deeper thoughts.

She indeed wished to marry into the royal family, but the emperor was already advanced in years, half-buried in the earth. No one knew how long he could hold the throne; the crown prince would soon succeed.

Rather than becoming the emperor’s consort, it was better to be the crown prince’s. His future was clear. Since both paths led into royalty, marrying the crown prince was wiser. Though he might not rise quickly, with her intelligence and charm, she could captivate the crown prince’s heart and advise him, becoming a great contributor.

Once the crown prince ascended, her fortunes would soar as well.

But all of this required her to enter the palace first. The crown prince rarely left the palace, and since he held no princely title, he did not establish a mansion. She had little chance to meet him otherwise. As for other princes, she found none appealing.

A prince was merely a prince, not the heir apparent.

Wen Qi’s calculations were shrewd, but she did not realize her father was also pondering her marriage.

“You make a good point, but this matter is not solely up to me. As you know, our Marquis’s residence does not have the emperor’s favor now. I can only petition the emperor, and if he disagrees, there’s nothing I can do.”

“No matter, Father, rest assured. I will speak to Sixth Sister shortly. Since she just returned to the Marquis’s residence, she surely knows she belongs to the family. My request is not entirely selfish; I believe she will understand my intentions. Besides, the Empress Dowager favors Sixth Sister so greatly; this is but a simple matter. With Sixth Sister there, everything will be fine. But Father, please help me as well.”

Wen Qi was crafty, fearing failure. She even mentioned Wen Qiao’s recent return.

If Wen Congqing’s efforts failed, Wen Qiao would have to push harder. If Wen Qiao could not manage it, then she clearly did not regard herself as part of the Marquis’s residence. At that point, Wen Congqing’s attention would surely turn to Wen Qi, and there would be no fear of Wen Qiao usurping her position.

With this thought, a triumphant smile curved Wen Qi’s lips.

Wen Congqing agreed.

Since Wen Qiao had returned, she must contribute to the family. Now that the Empress Dowager favored her, her greatest value lay not in marriage but in currying favor with the Empress Dowager. If the Empress Dowager arranged a marriage, it would be a matter of prestige for the Marquis’s residence.

Most importantly, the Empress Dowager would not allow Chang Le’s daughter to marry just anyone. Wen Qiao’s future husband would also bolster the Marquis’s household.

Wen Qiao understood Wen Qi’s intentions and indeed planned to have Wen Qi enter the palace.

In the previous life, Wen Qi entered the palace and studied with the princes and princesses, which gave her a chance to come into contact with Crown Prince Xiao Minghe, thus securing a path onto his ship.

However, later, many princes and dukes began vying for succession. The crown prince was kept in the harem; many officials were his allies, but the aging emperor grew increasingly suspicious, believing his sons coveted his throne. Therefore, he tightly controlled military power.

The other princes had already left the palace to establish their own households, making their movements easier than the crown prince’s. Though lacking military command, they garnered the support of many generals.

While these princes lacked official military power, their generals held it. Even borrowing such power made them stronger than the crown prince, who had none.

Coincidentally, Wen Qiao possessed a pair of earrings left by Princess Chang Le before her death.

Logically, when Wen Qiao was switched out, Princess Chang Le could not have given her these earrings. But after the princess gave birth, everyone around her was transferred by Wen Congqing. Even the princess’s wet nurse refused to leave but was tied up and thrown into the woodshed by Wen Congqing.

Princess Chang Le called for help to no avail. Though she did not know Wen Congqing’s exact intentions, she understood her daughter was doomed. Saddened, she took from a hidden compartment beside her bed a brocade box containing a pair of jade earrings.

“My child, your mother’s time is short. These earrings were left to me by the late Emperor. If you live in peace, they mean little. But if you encounter hardship, they will protect you for life.”

She tucked the earrings deep within the swaddling clothes. Shortly after, she passed away. As for the wet nurse, upon the princess’s death, Wen Congqing forced her to drink poison, killing her.

Fortunately, though ordered to kill Wen Qiao, the servant assigned to the task saw her gentle and quiet nature and pitied her, sparing her life.

She was of noble blood, a princess’s daughter, yet was switched out at birth and forced through a deadly trial.

She knew she would not survive if she returned, and only the dead could keep the secret forever. She knew Wen Congqing and Li Yanlan’s ruthlessness. Since she would be silenced anyway, better to let this child live, perhaps one day to return to the capital and exact vengeance.

What she did not know was that Wen Congqing used her family as leverage, and after her death, none of her family survived either.

Finally, the girl fled into deep mountains, asking many villagers. Only an older woman agreed to raise Wen Qiao.

The village was poor. One more mouth to feed meant less food for all. Being a girl, Wen Qiao was of little help in labor, her only value being the bride price she might bring. Yet the bride price would likely not cover the cost of her upkeep.

Such a losing proposition, no one wanted to take her in.

The woman who sheltered Wen Qiao—now often called her grandmother—was Wen Caixia.

Wen Caixia found the earrings and a neatly folded piece of paper inscribed simply with "Wen Qiao" from the swaddling clothes. This was the last thing Princess Chang Le did for her daughter.

As for the earrings, the princess said nothing.

Only the royal family knew their purpose. Even if others knew Wen Qiao had such earrings, they wouldn’t know what they looked like.

The princess’s intention was clear: if Wen Qiao was killed, the earrings would be useless. She could not save herself, let alone her daughter.

If someone else found Wen Qiao, given Wen Congqing’s nature, the daughter would surely be sent to a poor family. The hope was that family might pawn the earrings to buy food for her.

Only when the princess lay dying did she find relief.

Why she insisted on marrying Wen Congqing was not love—perhaps even Wen Congqing himself did not know why.

Years passed. Wen Qiao grew up. The middle-aged woman who raised her grew gray.

When the emperor and Empress Dowager asked about the princess’s death from childbirth, Wen Congqing wept bitterly, claiming someone had conspired within the Marquis’s residence to act during the birth, even poisoning the wet nurse when she tested the medicinal soup.

The Empress Dowager, not one for overcomplicated thoughts, sent investigators who confirmed Wen Congqing’s story. They executed the scapegoats and mourned the princess’s tragic fate.

But the emperor, having ascended through succession struggles and raised in the harem, was no fool. Though Madam Song shielded the Empress Dowager well, she wanted him to learn more. She never hid the palace’s intrigues from him and even took him along on assignments to observe and learn, so he would not be deceived by consorts in the future.

Naturally, the emperor did not believe things were so simple. Though Chang Le always reported good news, the emperor saw her growing haggard after marriage and knew she suffered. Yet, despite her suffering, she protected Wen Congqing, for reasons unknown.

The emperor’s long investigation yielded nothing. Sometimes, he wondered if he had been too suspicious. Recently, with Wen Qiao’s return to the Marquis’s residence, those doubts resurfaced.

The earrings’ true purpose was that they represented the elite cavalry left by the late emperor to Princess Chang Le. Whoever wore them commanded this troop, which was sworn to protect unless given a direct assassination order against the princess.

Though small in number, the cavalry was composed of masters trained by the royal family from childhood, with impeccable coordination.

This cavalry was Xiao Minghe’s trump card in the previous life and the greatest reason he ascended the throne.

However, when Wen Qiao realized this in her past life, she swallowed one earring. Xiao Minghe, who could hardly be called human, immediately cut open her belly. Her soul drifted free, watching helplessly as the only thing her mother left her was taken by Xiao Minghe, turning her into his puppet.

After ascending the throne, Xiao Minghe, fearing this cavalry, ordered them to commit suicide one by one before him, erasing the last link to Princess Chang Le and Wen Qiao. It was as if they had never existed.

Seeing Wen Qi rise to power, Wen Qiao felt bitter and disgusted, finally seeing her true nature.

To fund Xiao Minghe’s army, Wen Congqing plundered the people’s wealth, amassing great corruption. Though Xiao Minghe’s ascension owed much to this, Wen Qi, to bolster his reputation, immediately arranged for officials to denounce corruption in court.

For this position, Wen Qi did not hesitate to have Xiao Minghe annihilate the entire Marquis’s household, sparing not even Wen Zehan, who had always protected and cherished her.

Before death, Wen Zehan finally stopped praising his “beautiful, lovely Qi Qi sister.” But the horse’s hooves were already over the cliff’s edge—too late to pull it back.

In this life, Wen Qiao would never be deceived by Xiao Minghe again. Moreover, she would pull him from the crown prince’s position.

As for Wen Qi, whether she could continue to ingratiate herself with Xiao Minghe depended on her own skill.