Chapter 85

Yan Yiming decisively resolved the trouble with the Crown Prince, even managing to shift the blame onto him.
Wei Xiongjie heard that the Emperor and Empress had severely reprimanded the Crown Prince and sent numerous gifts to console the Princess. Later, the Empress even invited the Princess back to the palace to persuade her not to be angry and asked her to stay in the capital for a while longer to enjoy herself.
Yan Yiming naturally played the part of the aggrieved party to perfection and readily agreed to the arrangement.
The first step had been effortlessly accomplished by Yan Yiming. Wei Xiongjie asked her what she had said to the Crown Prince to provoke his anger and prompt his outright rejection. Yan Yiming smiled faintly and replied, “Nothing much. We simply didn't see eye to eye.”
Wei Xiongjie had noticed that the Princess had changed significantly since arriving in the capital, inexplicably exuding a sense of detachment that he deeply disliked.
He could question Yan Yiming when she made mistakes, but he had no right to pry into her personal affairs. Wei Xiongjie could only listen as she calmly outlined the next steps, a wave of bitter sorrow washing over him.
After a moment of silence, Yan Yiming called his name again, snapping him out of his daze. She frowned slightly, her expression tinged with reproach. “What are you thinking about?”
“...Nothing,” Wei Xiongjie averted his gaze. “Now that the matter with the Crown Prince has been resolved and you've successfully stayed in the capital, I've met privately with Chancellor Jian. His son, Jian Yuyan...”
“What about him?”
“Chancellor Jian said that his son has been sinking into despair day and night over an actress and is often absent from the residence. I'm afraid you'll have to put in some effort and endure some hardship.”
“If it helps achieve our greater goal, what does a little hardship matter?” Yan Yiming's gaze was resolute. Pretending not to catch Wei Xiongjie's subtle disparagement of Jian Yuyan, she praised, “This young master Jian seems to be a man of deep feelings.”
Wei Xiongjie hadn't expected Yan Yiming to react this way. Frowning in displeasure, he retorted, “It's just an actress. To fall so low for an actress...”
“What's wrong with being an opera singer?” Yan Yiming's gaze sharpened. “Who is truly nobler than whom? Lord Wei, do not forget your place when you speak. No matter what, Young Master Jian's faults are not for you to judge.”
Even in the past, the princess had never smiled at him, but she had also never used such a tone to warn him. Wei Xiongjie knew he had spoken out of turn, yet he couldn't help the pang in his heart.
He had never been jealous of the Crown Prince, for that man was destined to die, but he couldn't help feeling envy toward Jian Yuyan.
In the end, the princess would marry him.
Wei Xiongjie responded in a low voice, masking the disappointment on his face, and turned to the matter at hand.
The prince had sent the princess to the capital as a pretext for placing his own people there. Under the guise of taking care of the princess, Wei Xiongjie and the others were to secretly meet with Chancellor Jian and others, gradually completing the prince's covert network in the capital.
Of course, the princess was not entirely useless. While they operated in the shadows, she was in the light. She needed to use herself to cover their tracks and, moreover, find opportunities to slowly drive a wedge between Jian Yuyan and Chancellor Jian.
Chancellor Jian harbored treacherous ambitions, to control the emperor and command the nobles. He had borrowed the blade of the Prince of Jiangxia but intended to be the ultimate beneficiary. The Prince of Jiangxia would naturally not let Chancellor Jian have his way.
The restoration of the state was inevitable, and Jian Yuyan was to be pushed onto the throne. However, the one who truly aided him must be the Prince of Jiangxia, not Chancellor Jian.
Earlier, they had learned that because of an opera singer, Jian Yuyan and Chancellor Jian had developed a rift. The Prince of Jiangxia would not let such a good opportunity slip by.
Jian Yuyan was willing to humble himself so deeply for a woman. Though the Prince of Jiangxia looked down on his lack of integrity, he was satisfied with such a temperament. If Jian Yuyan were like the current Crown Prince, Nan Gongxuan, he would be difficult to control.
The Prince of Jiangxia ordered Wei Xiongjie and the others to cooperate with Chancellor Jian on the surface, while secretly commanding Yan Yiming to win Jian Yuyan over. Once the cooperation was achieved, they would reap the benefits and take down Chancellor Jian in one fell swoop. This was the Prince of Jiangxia's ultimate goal.
As expected, Chancellor Jian had not yet realized that Princess Ming was more than just a decoy. When Wei Xiongjie spoke privately with Chancellor Jian, the latter was quite willing to let Yan Yiming meet Jian Yuyan soon, showing that he had not suspected anything.
Women always possessed an innate ability to deceive.
Chancellor Jian told Yan Yiming the location of Jian Yuyan's private residence but reminded her that Jian Yuyan disliked others entering his personal space.
Yan Yiming smiled and said, “I'm not foolish enough to barge into someone's private residence.”
Doing so would blatantly tell everyone that she had come to the capital specifically to see Jian Yuyan.
Although she needed to leave some traces for Jiang Yi to notice, if everyone became aware, Jian Yuyan would be in danger, and the entire plan would fall apart.
Jiang Yi kept a close watch and, sure enough, Princess Ming did not leave the capital in anger but instead found a way to stay.
However, her subsequent actions left Jiang Yi puzzled about her true intentions.
The princess's words and deeds were vastly different from those of the noble ladies in the capital. She even invited the most renowned opera singer from the Pear Garden to perform while boating on the lake, making her the talk of the town.
The Emperor had told her to enjoy her stay in the capital for a few more days, and it seemed she was truly indulging in leisure. It was said that Princess Ming frequently visited taverns and teahouses, touring all the scenic spots in Jinling. That very day, someone saw her boating on Silver Lake.
Having been in the capital for half a month, Princess Ming had indeed met several princes, but precisely because she had met everyone, nothing out of the ordinary could be discerned.
The Crown Prince only thought this woman was restless, but Jiang Yi believed there must be a purpose behind her grand actions.
However, days passed without any change, and the Crown Prince, increasingly annoyed by the constant mention of Princess Ming's name, summoned the person responsible for looking after Yan Yiming to ask what the princess was actually doing.
The man couldn't provide a clear explanation either, only saying that Princess Ming had been indulging in food, drink, and entertainment. Recently, while boating, she had encountered Young Master Jian, who was also enjoying the lake.
“The princess didn't recognize Young Master Jian and mistook him for an ordinary painter. She insisted that he paint her portrait, and when he refused, they nearly got into an argument.”
Nan Gongxuan became intrigued and asked, “What happened then?”
“I heard that after learning Young Master Jian's identity, the princess apologized to him. They are now speaking, but what they are discussing, I truly do not know.”
Although Nan Gongxuan and Jian Yuyan were no longer as close as before, they had grown up together, and hearing Jian Yuyan's name again prompted him to ask a few more questions. Learning that Yan Yiming had been rebuffed by Jian Yuyan lifted his spirits.
Once again, it was this kind of behavior that seemed so out of character for her, and now she had crossed paths with Jian Yuyan. A flicker of doubt passed through Jiang Yi's eyes.
In truth, he knew something even the Crown Prince was unaware of, for instance, he had seen the actress whom Jian Yuyan cherished above all else. Her face was almost identical to Jian Yu’er's, which had astonished even him.
After the initial shock, he suddenly understood the secret hidden in Jian Yuyan's heart: Jian Yuyan had developed inappropriate feelings for his own younger sister.
But later, because of that actress, he had fallen into such a state. Was it because he had genuinely fallen for the actress, or had his unrequited feelings for Jian Yu’er driven him to this? Jiang Yi believed it was the former.
After all, Jian Yu’er remained unmarried, and Jian Yuyan remained despondent.
The Crown Prince trusted Jian Yuyan deeply, so Jiang Yi had never mentioned to him the unusual aspects of Chancellor Jian's behavior. There was a time when Chancellor Jian had tried hard to win him over, but Jiang Yi, still haunted by the regret of staying an extra day at the Jian residence and missing his final chance to see A'Ming, had never responded.
Jiang Yi was a man of deep suspicion, always seeking reasons behind everything. From that point on, he kept a watchful eye, and over the years, he had indeed uncovered some clues.
For example, the daughter of the Marquis of Dingbei, who had her engagement broken by Jian Yuyan but later sought to marry him, wore a bracelet of Lingshui pearls.
This item was unique to Hainan and only appeared as tribute when the Prince of Jiangxia made his offerings. Yet, it was now adorning the wrist of the Marquis of Dingbei's daughter.
From that moment on, Jiang Yi had his suspicions, and he later learned that the bracelet had been a gift from the Jian residence.
Prince of Jiangxia had not plotted a rebellion, and there was nothing inherently wrong with Chancellor Jian associating with him privately. However, now that Princess Ming and Jian Yuyan had inexplicably appeared together in the same scene, Jiang Yi couldn't help but overthink it.
At this moment, after several days of trying, Yan Yiming finally ran into Jian Yuyan. Watching his visibly sour expression upon learning her identity, which clearly conveyed his dislike for her, Yan Yiming dismissed all the maids attending her, suppressed her smile, and said calmly,
“I don't like your heartless and incompetent demeanor either. The feeling is mutual.”
Jian Yuyan frowned impatiently and retorted, “What do you know?” In all these years, no one had ever called him heartless.
Yan Yiming smiled leisurely and said, “If you weren't heartless, why haven't you gone to find her? She only left; she didn't die. Why not look for her? Is it because you don't dare, or you can't, or perhaps...”
“You just don't want to?”