Chapter 164 Crack
The marriage between Princess Yongning and Young Master Li granted by Emperor Hong Xiao caused quite a stir in the city of Yanjing.

Among the noble families in Yanjing City, there were many who wanted to marry the princess, and even more who wanted to marry into the Li family. However, with the decree of Emperor Hong Xiao, Princess Yongning could only marry Li Xian. So those who wanted to marry Princess Yongning and those who wanted to marry into the Li family were both disappointed.

When Prince Cheng got the news, he was also very depressed. Although he was not on good terms with Emperor Hong Xiao, he had never been so open about his stumbling blocks. Shen Yurong was his man, and Li Xian was also his man. Li Xian might not be unaware of the matter between Yongning and Shen Yurong. These two were now his right-hand men, and he couldn't let the internal chaos start. When he learned from Concubine Liu that there was no room for maneuver, Prince Cheng invited Shen Yurong to his house for a gathering.

In the final analysis, when it comes to closeness and background, the Li family is more important. But Shen Yurong also has something he admires, and it would not be a bad thing if he could use her in the future. Therefore, when everything is not so bad that it cannot be reversed, King Cheng still hopes that Shen Yurong can work for him.

He invited Shen Yurong to take a seat, had someone pour tea for her, and said in a friendly manner: "Yurong, the reason I asked you to come here today is because of Yongning's matter."

Shen Yurong looked calm and said, "I understand."

King Cheng looked at Shen Yurong. Even at this moment, Shen Yurong still looked calm and composed. He was gentle and steady. It was no surprise that he could capture the heart of Princess Yongning. Even King Cheng himself had to admit that this man had an unforgettable demeanor. And as time passed, his official position became higher and higher, and his temperament became more outstanding.

"The Emperor's marriage was granted inexplicably. What my mother and the Queen Mother mentioned before was clearly a marriage between you and Yongning, but for some reason, it ended up being a marriage between Yongning and Li Xian. I know the relationship between you and Yongning, and you also understand that Yongning has always had a crush on you..."

Shen Yurong was silent.

"There are tens of thousands of women in the world," King Cheng patted Shen Yurong on the shoulder, "You are a man who is determined to do great things. You don't have to be obsessed with love affairs. When you have achieved success in your career, what kind of woman can't you have?"

King Cheng could not comfort Shen Yurong that there was still room for maneuver in this marriage, because it was impossible. Similarly, King Cheng could not tell Shen Yurong to be patient and wait for a while until Li Xian and Princess Yongning divorced. The Li family could not tolerate such a thing, and Li Zhongnan was someone King Cheng still needed to rely on. He could only sacrifice Shen Yurong, who was not as good as the Li family at the moment, or promise to compensate him in the future.

"I know that you are not a short-sighted person and you have your own goals. In this case, you might as well follow me wholeheartedly to do great things. It will be better than these trivialities." King Cheng said again, his eyes were somewhat meaningful.

If Shen Yurong and Princess Yongning were truly in love, King Cheng might have found Li Zhongnan to discuss whether he could compromise and come up with a win-win solution. But obviously, King Cheng knew from the beginning that Shen Yurong did not really love Princess Yongning. In fact, although his sister was born charming and lovely, she had a bad temper and few men liked her. Especially for someone as proud as Shen Yurong, it was impossible for her to truly love a selfish woman like Princess Yongning.

The reason why he has been entangled with Princess Yongning until now is nothing more than wanting to climb up. This can be seen from the fact that he stood aside and watched his ex-wife Xue Fangfei's family. But without ruthlessness, there is no man. King Cheng actually admired Shen Yurong's ruthlessness. Even if he did not get together with Princess Yongning in the future, King Cheng was willing to use Shen Yurong because of his means and talents.

Therefore, he was promising Shen Yurong that even if he did not marry into the Shen family, he would not treat Shen Yurong unfairly.

Shen Yurong said calmly, "Your Highness, I am grateful for your kindness."

He used the word "minister", which is the way of the monarch and his subjects. When King Cheng heard this, he was really delighted and laughed loudly, "You and I will definitely accomplish great things in the future! Since that kid deliberately angered me and tampered with Yongning's marriage, I will do as he wishes! In three months, I will definitely give him a big surprise!"

The laughter was unbridled, echoing in the hall, with an indescribable arrogance. Shen Yurong lowered his head, and no one could tell what he was thinking.

By the time we left Prince Cheng's Mansion, it was already dark.

Shen Yurong went to the Shen family again. When he returned at noon today, he was questioned by Shen's mother and Shen Ruyun who had rushed back from Ningyuan Marquis's Mansion. Why was this possible? Shen Yurong had to perfunctorily say that this was all Emperor Hong Xiao's idea. Even so, Shen's mother and Shen Ruyun actually said that they would go to Princess Yongning to ask if they could change the marriage. Shen Yurong was very troubled.

For the first time, he carefully examined his mother and sister and found that they were not only stupid, but also had developed a character of not knowing the depth of the situation because he had been asking for everything from them over the years. He felt that even the emperor, who sat in the highest position, could change his words at will. Princess Yongning was omnipotent. No matter what difficult problem was, as long as he told Yongning, it would be solved.

How can you be so naive? Even unreasonable.

In the end, Shen Yurong almost got angry with them before she told them to calm down. Even so, Shen's mother and Shen Ruyun still looked as if the sky had fallen. They probably thought that the Shen family's current situation was all related to Princess Yongning. Without Princess Yongning, the Shen family's wealth would disappear in an instant. As for him, he was valuable only because of his relationship with Yongning Palace.

How sad.

Shen Yurong thought of Xue Fangfei again. He didn't have such good patience to reason with Shen's mother and Shen Ruyun. In the past, when Shen's mother and Shen Ruyun had a dispute with Xue Fangfei, Xue Fangfei always gave in. He didn't take it seriously and comforted Xue Fangfei in private. When he faced the real him, he found that there was no reason to talk with his relatives.

It was really hard for her.

Thinking of Xue Fangfei again, Shen Yurong shook his head. He always couldn't help but think of her. Thinking of the time when she stood under the tree to collect flower dew, when she made tea for him in winter, when she added fragrance to his life... He once had a wife, she was so good that even after her death, she would appear in front of him from time to time.

Shen Yurong walked very slowly. When he turned a corner, someone suddenly called his name: "Master Shen!"

He looked back and saw a person who looked like a maid walking out of the darkness. He recognized her as Meixiang, Princess Yongning's personal maid.

Mei Xiang said, "Sir Shen, the princess is waiting for you at a nearby teahouse. I have something to tell you. Please follow me."

This was something that Shen and Rong Naigong were accustomed to, so he did not refuse and followed Meixiang to the mentioned teahouse.

Princess Yongning was indeed waiting for him inside.

Princess Yongning looked much more haggard, and even her breath became extremely weak. She didn't know if it was Shen Yurong's illusion, but she seemed to be a little thinner than a few days ago.

"Shen Lang." Seeing him coming, Princess Yongning stood up.

Shen Yurong stood at the door and did not go inside. She just said calmly, "Congratulations, Your Highness."

Just these words were like a knife stabbing Princess Yongning's heart. She felt as if her heart was being cut by a knife and she almost burst into tears for a moment.

Princess Yongning said: "I don't want to marry Li Xian. You know, you are the only one in my heart!"

For the princess of the golden branches and jade leaves, such humble words with pleading, if heard by others, I am afraid they would not believe that they came from the mouth of Princess Yongning. Shen Yurong seemed to be touched by the crying voice of Princess Yongning. He turned around and looked at Princess Yongning.

"Shen Lang!" Princess Yongning grabbed his hand, "You have to believe me! I told my mother that I wanted to marry you, and my mother and the Queen Mother also said so. But the Emperor issued an edict to marry me to Li Xian, and I don't know what's going on. I'm still pregnant with your child, how could I take the initiative to marry Li Xian?"

It was this sentence that made Shen Yurong's face change immediately. He asked, "What child?"

Princess Yongning was stunned for a moment before she realized that she had let the cat out of the bag. But when she looked into Shen Yurong's eyes, she hardened her heart. She had never found an opportunity before and didn't know how to talk to Shen Yurong about this matter. But it would come out sooner or later, so she might as well take this opportunity to tell it all.

"Yes," Princess Yongning said, "I am pregnant with your child. The imperial physician has checked and it is full term."

"How is this possible?" Shen Yurong's usually calm expression showed a crack, and his voice was not as calm as usual. "How is this possible?"

Every time he and Princess Yongning were intimate, Princess Yongning took contraceptive pills. But now she was pregnant, this was no small matter!
"I don't know," Princess Yongning shook her head and said, "Maybe the contraceptive pills can't completely avoid pregnancy... By the time I found out, it was already too late."

The more she talked, the more Shen Yurong suspected that Princess Yongning did it on purpose, and wanted to use her pregnancy to force her to marry her. But she didn't expect that Emperor Hong Xiao would marry her to Li Xian, so she panicked.

"What are you going to do now?" Shen Yurong asked.

"What should I do?" Princess Yongning looked at him blankly. When she saw Shen Yurong's slightly cold eyes, she shuddered and suddenly understood. She said, "You don't want me to have this child!"

Shen Yurong was silent: "His existence is indeed not the best right now..."

"No!" Princess Yongning screamed before Shen Yurong could speak, "This is my child. I will never allow anyone to hurt him, and I will not abandon him!"

Shen Yurong patiently comforted her: "Yongning, now you are going to marry Li Xian. If the Li family finds out that you are pregnant, it will be very disadvantageous for you. The Li family will never allow such a shame. Even if you can keep the child for a while, you may not be able to give birth to it. The Li family will find ways to get rid of the child, and will also have a rift with you and His Royal Highness Prince Cheng."

He thought that after these words, Princess Yongning would at least be moved. After all, in the past, Princess Yongning would listen to his words. But today, Princess Yongning just looked at him coldly and said, "You keep saying that you are thinking about me, but in fact you are afraid that the truth will be exposed and it will implicate you as the father of the child, so that you can no longer rest easy! Shen Yurong, this is your child. You have thought of everything, but have you ever thought about this child at all? Yes, I forgot that you have already lost a child, so you don't care about losing another one."

Shen Yurong's expression changed drastically.

He had lost a child before, an unborn child that belonged to him and his wife Xue Fangfei. When the child he had been waiting for for a long time came, Shen Yurong was not happy when he knew the good news. Because at that time, Princess Yongning had told him several times that she liked him very much.

Does giving birth to a child mean everything is fine? Now that he thinks about it, when Xue Fangfei had a miscarriage, although he was not the one who did it himself, he even felt relieved after knowing about it, and felt that a matter was resolved. At that time, he comforted himself that even if the child was born, outsiders might say that it was the child of Xue Fangfei's affair with someone else, and it would not be good for the child's future at all, so why should he come to the world to suffer?
Then the last trace of guilt disappeared. He had no joy for the child's arrival, nor did he feel any pain for his departure. He was like an insignificant stranger, and he had even forgotten about it. But at this time, when Princess Yongning brought it up, he felt as if his heart was pierced by fine needles, spreading a dense pain.

Shen Yurong didn't want to stay any longer and turned to leave, but Princess Yongning hugged her from behind. She said anxiously, "Shen Lang, I was wrong just now. I didn't say anything on purpose. You are the father of the child, so you must like him very much, right?" She seemed to be trying to convince Shen Yurong, but also seemed to be trying to convince herself, "There is no father in the world who doesn't like his own child."

Shen Yurong sighed and turned around. Princess Yongning looked at him in panic.

"Do you really want to keep this child?"

"That's right!" Princess Yongning said firmly immediately, without allowing any doubt. She said, "My mother also knows about this. She promised me that she would keep it secret when I married into the Li family!" Concubine Liu already knew about it. Shen Yurong's heart skipped a beat. In this case, it would be impossible for him to secretly take action against the child in Princess Yongning's belly. If something happened, Concubine Liu would definitely think of him first.

"Then how do you plan to hide it?" Shen Yurong said calmly: "It's not even visible now because the baby is not yet born. After a long time..."

"Mother will ask the Queen Mother for permission to get married next month. After I get married, I will think of other ways to cover it up." Princess Yongning said, "But after the child is born, Li Xian will be the nominal father."

She said this with an extremely unwilling look.

Shen Yurong sneered in her heart. If Princess Yongning was not happy, how could Li Xian be happy? If Li Xian really knew that he was cuckolded, he would kill his wife. He had been the right prime minister for so many years, and he was not a kind person. He would not be able to swallow such a great humiliation. Princess Yongning's move might even implicate herself.

"Shen Lang, don't worry. My elder brother will start a rebellion in a few months," Princess Yongning whispered, "When my elder brother becomes emperor, the world will belong to him. No one dares to disobey his words. When the time comes, I will ask him to issue an edict. I will present the gift to Li Xian and be with you. The Li family will not dare to say anything."

She said it as a matter of course, as if everything would develop as she thought, but Shen Yurong sneered, thinking that Princess Yongning was too naive. The reputation of the Li family was not something she could change as she wished.

But right now, there is no other way to go.

Princess Yongning was going to get married next month, so she couldn't afford to have any mishaps with the baby in her belly, otherwise someone might find out. As long as she could keep it a secret for the first month and then tell Li Xian that she was pregnant on the wedding night, she could have peace of mind for a while.

As for the future... we'll talk about the future later. But Yongning, this chess piece, might be useless. Shen Yurong's eyes darkened.

Princess Yongning didn't realize that Shen Yurong had already had many thoughts in her mind, and she continued to tell Shen Yurong that she was infatuated with him. Shen Yurong said, "I know, Your Highness, I know your feelings."

Princess Yongning looked at him with both joy and worry. She was happy that Shen Yurong's attitude had finally softened a bit, but she was worried that he was already very distant when he called her "Your Highness".

"Then please don't be angry with me." Princess Yongning said. She still lowered her attitude and took the initiative to hold Shen Yurong's hand. After all, this matter was caused by her. If she hadn't gone to find Concubine Liu, things wouldn't have turned out like this. Princess Yongning felt guilty about Shen Yurong. She said, "I still have you in my heart, only you."

"I know." Shen Yurong smiled faintly and hugged Yongning in her arms, but her eyes became very distant.

It's time to cut ties with Princess Yongning.

……

At the Prime Minister's residence, Jiang Li was stunned for a moment when she received the news that Emperor Hong Xiao had granted a marriage between Li Xian and Princess Yongning.

Although this was within her expectations, it didn't happen so quickly. But think about it, Emperor Hong Xiao also regarded King Cheng as a thorn in his side, and now that there is an opportunity to tie the Right Prime Minister and King Cheng together, he will naturally be impatient to give the order.

I don't know what Shen Yurong and Yongning are feeling now after hearing the news. It's not a good feeling to think about it. The plan that has been planned for many years has been ruined in one day. And things seem to be going in a bad direction. No one would be happy. Princess Yongning and Shen Yurong don't know that this is just the beginning. This beginning is not too bad. What happens next will only get worse and worse, until it is irreversible.

"What are you laughing at, young lady?" Tong'er asked curiously. She saw Jiang Li laughing happily. These days, Jiang Li had been unhappy since she learned that Xue Huaiyuan of the Ye Mansion might have recovered his memory and was in a coma. It was curious that she suddenly became happy today.

"I smile and hope everything goes well and everything goes as planned." Jiang Li said.

Tong'er blinked and was about to say something when the branches outside suddenly shook and a figure appeared, cursing.

Tong'er screamed "Ah!" and was startled. Then she saw clearly that the person standing at the window was Zhao Ke. Who else could it be? Tong'er now knew Zhao Ke and knew that Zhao Ke was from the Duke's Mansion. Although she had some complaints about Ji Heng placing her people in the Duke's Mansion, she thought about it and realized that these guards were all highly skilled in martial arts. If Jiang Li was in danger, these people might be more reliable than the guards of the Jiang family. She could just treat it as a free labor. Besides, Zhao Ke's identity in the Jiang Mansion during the day was still a gardener. There were not many little fools like this who were gardeners during the day and guards at night and only received one monthly salary.

Zhao Ke had no idea that he was already a "little fool" in Tong'er's eyes, and just said to Jiang Li: "Second Miss Jiang."

Jiang Li asked: "But what happened?"

Zhao Ke would not show up if she had nothing to do. Most of the time, it was Jiang Li who blew the whistle to find her. So when she saw Zhao Ke, Jiang Li's first thought was whether Ji Heng had something else to tell her.

"We have now found out what Miss Jiang Er asked me to investigate before." Zhao Ke replied.

Jiang Li asked, "What's the matter?" She had so many things to figure out that she didn't even know what Zhao Ke was talking about.

"Who was the person who spread Ji Shuran's story?" Zhao Ke said, "It was Jiang Yuanxing."

"The people from the third house." Jiang Li suddenly realized. In fact, the last time she met the third house, she had already had some doubts about it. Jiang Yuyan's food, clothing and daily expenses were much better than usual, and Yang's attitude was vague and occasionally disdainful. In the past, although Yang didn't know how to please, at least she wouldn't offend the first and second houses.

It looks like there is someone backing him up.

"Not only that, Jiang Yuanxing has private dealings with Li Zhongnan." Zhao Ke said.

"With the Li family?" Jiang Li was stunned, then smiled, "It seems that the people of the third house really hate the Jiang family." The two brothers of the first and second houses of the Jiang family are brothers from the same mother, but the third house is a bastard, and the old lady Jiang looks down on him. The two brothers Jiang Yuanbai and Jiang Yuanxing are naturally not as close to each other as they are to each other. But they lived in peace before, but now they are almost torn apart. Especially Jiang Yuanxing actually interacted with the enemies of the Jiang family. It is conceivable what their purpose is.

Jiang Yuanxing could not rely on the Jiang family to develop his career, and his own ability was not enough to get him promoted. After facing the fact that Jiang Yu'e could only be Zhou Yanbang's concubine, perhaps because he was furious, or perhaps because he finally saw the importance of power, he took the risk, threw away the teachings of Mr. Jiang, and found a way to climb up again, which was to betray the Jiang family.

Telling the Jiang family's secrets and scandals to the Jiang family's mortal enemy, the Li family, in order to get a chance to be promoted. This method can be said to be very despicable.

Tong'er and Bai Xue were listening quietly on the side. When they heard that the culprit was actually the third room, they were also surprised. Tong'er asked: "Miss, the third master actually has such evil intentions. Will our Jiang family be emptied by him?"

"That's not the case." Jiang Li said calmly, "The third branch is insignificant in the Jiang family. Even if Jiang Yuanxing wanted to secretly tell the Li family the Jiang family's secrets, he probably couldn't tell much. My father and second uncle are not close to him, and they will not take the initiative to tell him their secrets. Even if Jiang Yuanxing racked his brains, what he knew would probably be similar to what the Jiang family's servants knew. I think, so far, the thing he said that is most interesting to the Li family is only Ji Shuran's matter."

"Then girl, do you want to keep the people from the third house?" Tong'er asked, "If the old lady knew about this, she would definitely separate the family from the third house and let them leave the house and live separately."

Madam Jiang has never liked the third wife. If she knew about this, Jiang Li could guess what Madam Jiang would say. She would definitely say that the third wife was a traitor and an ungrateful person, and would immediately expel her.

"I won't tell you what the old lady said. Keeping the third house is not useless." Jiang Li said, "The third house is in contact with the right prime minister. If the right prime minister gets useful information, he will definitely pass it on to King Cheng. If we need to pass some 'useful' information to King Cheng, the third house is a good way."

Let Jiang Yuanxing spread false information to King Cheng.

Zhao Ke stood at the window like a piece of wood, but he took in all the words in the room. He thought to himself that Miss Jiang was really a tough character. Others might have been sold out, but they still had to do their best to count money for her.

"But I have to tell my father about this and ask him to remind my second uncle." Jiang Li continued, "The Jiang family is not just my Jiang family. My father and second uncle are much smarter than me. They know how to use the third branch to achieve their own goals. Seeing that the day when King Cheng will start a rebellion is not far away, the existence of the third branch will be more useful at this critical juncture."

"Thank you, Zhao Ke," Jiang Li looked at the guard in front of the window, "Thank your master for me too."

"I will definitely convey Miss Jiang Er's words." After saying that, Zhao Ke's figure disappeared in front of the window.

He came and went without a trace. Tong'er pouted and said, "Miss, you have to talk to the Duke. Forget about other things. Zhao Ke can protect your safety in the mansion. But he always appears suddenly. Miss is a woman after all. What if she is changing clothes? Wouldn't she be taken advantage of?"

"Didn't you open the window?" Jiang Li reminded, "I know that when you really need to change clothes, you won't open the window."

"That doesn't seem right, why don't we try a different girl next time?" Tong'er suggested, "A girl with martial arts skills, just like..." Looking at Bai Xue walking aside, Tong'er's eyes lit up, "Just like Bai Xue!"

Jiang Li smiled and shook her head: "The Duke's Mansion doesn't even have a maid, how can we find a maid with martial arts skills to serve me? Besides, these guards are all handsome and elegant. If we really replace the maid, don't you think it's a pity?" Jiang Li teased her.

Tong'er blushed: "Young lady, go and make fun of me. No matter how handsome these servants are, they are not as good as one finger of yours. Aren't you used to seeing these guards?"

Bai Xue was packing the mattress. Hearing this, she said with her head down: "Young lady, you are used to seeing the Duke's face. When you look at these guards, you naturally can't feel any appreciation. They are different from yours."

Jiang Li: "..."

Well, although what he said was not very pleasant, it did make some sense.

　Bai Xue is a fan of the Duke, hahahaha

　　
　
(End of this chapter)