Chapter 888: Great contribution
After a battle of wits, Leng Man was defeated.
Xu Yingyuan used a clever trick to lead her mother to the wall of her home, where she "accidentally" heard the rumors outside.
"I heard that something happened again at the residence of Lord Xu, the Minister of Copper Affairs."
"What happened?"
"Mrs. Xu couldn't stand the loneliness, so she had secret meetings with several men outside her family, and was caught by Lord Xu on the spot."
"How could such a thing happen? It's simply horrifying."
"Lord Xu is magnanimous and understands Madam Xu's difficulties, and does not take it to heart. Madam Mei also persuaded the master to stay at Zhuxian Residence more often and not neglect her sister. This matter was just let go, and Madam Xu was not punished at all."
"I have heard for a long time that Lord Xu dotes on his wife and Madam Mei respects her mistress. Now I hear that the rumors are true."
"That's right. Family members like Lord Xu and Madam Mei are rare in a hundred years, and they are hard to find even with a lantern. But some people are so greedy that they actually do things that corrupt morality and bring shame to them."
"Before, he beat Madam Mei for no reason. I felt that he was not a good person. You see, after a while, he couldn't stand the loneliness and started to have an affair. By the time someone found out, he had already done it so many times. Poor Master Xu, he had to swallow his anger for the sake of love."
"She probably blamed all her mistakes of having an affair on Madam Mei, and hated the concubine for clinging to the master, forcing her to take this path of no return."
"Perhaps, this is the truth behind Madam Xu's unprovoked injury."
"It's ridiculous. She was seeking pleasure and doing something wrong, but she felt justified in doing so and hurt Madam Mei. How could there be someone as rude and unreasonable as her in the world?"
Leng Man was so angry that her scalp was numb and her whole body was shaking.
This time, she learned her lesson and immediately ordered her servants to quietly leave the house, catch the gossipers, write a letter and send it to the Eighth Emperor.
Even if they chose the nearest door, it would still take some time for the servants to leave the house. Ning Jiewei kept a close eye on their movements, evacuated the servants in time, and erased all traces without leaving any evidence.
Leng Man failed again, and related rumors spread throughout Shengjing at lightning speed.
Fearing that her mother would be upset, Xu Yingyuan spared no effort to comfort her.
After returning to Xiaouju, Xu Yingyuan received a message from Ning Jiewei: "Third sister, please check and find out that you and your brother are half-siblings."
The rumor soon reached Gu Mengzhen's ears.
In Di Sheng Palace, Fang Zhixuan was summoned.
"I wish you the best of luck, my brother."
Gu Mengzhen waved his hand and motioned for him to sit next to him.
"Brother, come quickly."
"I have something important to discuss with you."
Fang Zhixuan sat down with dignity.
"Please forgive me for my presumptuous assumption of your Majesty's will."
"My brother, you mentioned something important. Does it have anything to do with Madam Xu?"
Gu Mengzhen was shocked.
"My dear brother, you usually don't pay attention to rumors, but why did you learn about this so quickly?"
"Could it be that you still miss Leng Man and can't forget her?"
Fang Zhixuan lowered his eyes and buried his head, feeling guilty.
"Only a little bit of delusion remains."
"I coveted your kindness, brother. This is a heinous crime, and even death is a light punishment. I have failed your grace and trust, and I am truly sorry to you, brother."
Gu Mengzhen patted his shoulder.
"We brothers don't say such polite words."
He spoke with great earnestness and eloquence.
"You usually pretend to be indifferent. I thought you had forgotten it all."
"I have advised you countless times that when you marry, remember to choose a virtuous woman. A woman like Leng Man, who is pampered in the mansion, is bound to be willful. She is not a good choice for a wife."
"In the early years, you returned to the capital after clearing your name. I was afraid that you would still be thinking about Leng Man, so I quickly rescued Tong Er and made a perfect match for you."
"Although my dear sister-in-law is of common origin, she is gentle, respectful and virtuous, just like our mother. Moreover, they have the same surname, so their ancestors may have been from the same clan. Only a wonderful woman like my dear sister-in-law is worthy of a man from our Zhuang clan."
"If you dare to think about other things and betray her feelings, I will definitely blame you."
"Don't forget that you already have three children. Wei'er and Rui'er are twin brothers. Do you know how difficult it is to conceive twins? Tong'er, you have made great contributions to our Zhuang clan."
Fang Zhixuan nodded in frustration.
"Brother Emperor, I will remember your teachings."
"I understand very well that I cannot let my wife down."
"This time, I found out about Man'er's affairs, it was just a coincidence, not my intention."
Gu Mengzhen was perceptive and noticed that his name had changed.
"Listen, listen for yourself, you keep calling yourself Maner."
"Now, you are no longer children, you have your own families, and you should be well."
Fang Zhixuan sighed silently, pretending to be depressed.
"Yes."
Gu Mengzhen instructed carefully.
"You must listen to it and don't ignore it."
Imitating Shaodi's tone, Fang Zhixuan responded helplessly.
"My brother obeys the order."
Unable to bear the blame too much, Gu Mengzhen changed the subject.
"By the way, what do you think about the rumors?"
Anticipating that Madam Xu would be in trouble, he devised a plan to dispatch Madam Mei, and with the appropriate cooperation from Fang Zhixuan, he was able to control the situation.
"In my humble opinion, this is Ning Yunxi's conspiracy, and her purpose may be Lord Leng's ambition."
Gu Mengzhen nodded.
"Heroes see the same thing."
"However, it is strange that the three Ning women's plan was easily seen through by us."
There was a hint of surprise in Fang Zhixuan's eyes.
"My Royal Brother, she deliberately let us see through it. In fact, she has another purpose?"
Gu Mengzhen and Yan Kaner.
"Yep."
"The position of Grand Commandant is just an honorary one, with no hereditary rights, and even inferior to a title of nobility. He is cold and incompetent, lacking in intelligence and talent, and a mere warrior. In his old age, he is useless."
"Why should they bother trying to persuade a useless person to surrender?"
Fang Zhixuan asked.
"According to your opinion, what does Ning Yunxi want to do?"
Gu Mengzhen humbly declined in reply.
"Unknown."
"That's why I summoned you to the palace. Please give me some advice."
Fang Zhixuan smiled warmly.
"My royal brother is so kind."
After the polite words, he got back to the point.
"Ning Yunxi is cunning and treacherous. Brother is completely puzzled, and I, your humble servant, have no idea what he is thinking."
"Why don't you summon Lord Xiaolin and ask him what's going on?"
Gu Mengzhen's eyebrows were handsome.
"Prince Dijin is very suspicious, and Miss Ning is acting cautiously. Lover Xiaolin may not know the reason."
Fang Zhixuan looked pleased.
"Master Kobayashi must know more than us."
"It would be a good idea to ask him to guess."
Gu Mengzhen loudly instructed the palace maids outside the palace.
"Xuan Linmu came to see you."
After receiving the emperor's oral order, Lin Mu rushed over from the Imperial Hospital.
After listening attentively to the Holy Word's narration, Lin Mu responded according to the plan.
"I happened to hear something, but I didn't take it seriously. But now, combined with Madam Xu's rumors, I can't help but think deeply that the two may be related."
Gu Mengzhen asked curiously.
"What did you hear, my dear?"
Lin Mu answered as if it was true.
"One day, Prince Dijin and Lord Jingshan were having a conversation. I was passing by and happened to hear Lord Jingshan say that he had admired Madam Xu for many years, so he remained single."
"At that time, I did not think about it carefully, nor did I ask which Madam Xu he admired."
"Looking back now, I now realize that what Lord Jingshan was referring to was Lord Xu, the copper minister's wife."
Gu Mengzhen looked puzzled.
"Fang Zhixuan, is in love with Leng Man?"