Noble's Woman Guide

Chapter 28 - Scheme

Later, the Queen Mother summoned Ye Huaiyang into the Imperial Palace again and there was no outsider this time. Did she want her to confess the truth. Ye Huaiyang pretended to be listlessly ill and vaguely shirk her words whenever the significant parts were mentioned, giving the perception of clumsy denial resulting in self-exposure. After several rounds of questioning, the Queen Mother basically had a definite idea.

Looking at her appearance, she must have been subjected to intimidation from the Bai family and Chu Jinglan.

As the Queen Mother of the current dynasty, she naturally did not need to force Ye Huaiyang to identify Bai Zhixuan with strong means. The entire imperial harem was under her control. What could't she do? So, after the Queen Mother learned the 'truth', she allowed Ye Huaiyang to leave and was silent for the following week.

Rumors gradually roused in Wangdu. Some said Noble Lady Bai had affairs with King Lan, others said the Bai family attempted to errant, furthermore there were some who said the child that Noble Lady Bai carried was not the dragon descendant. Great clamor arose within this period of time that it was difficult to shut people's mouths and useless for the Bai family to suppress by any means.

These rumors were undoubtedly released by Ye Huaiyang who was not idle while waiting for these rumors to gradually festered. She visited King Lan mansion more diligently and no longer took the conventional route from Lingyun Pavilion, instead openly passing through the main entrance without any apprehension.

Today happened to be Tang Qingfeng's turn on duty. Seeing her being so opened, he felt somewhat troubled.

"Miss Ye, even though there is no other family within this square, aren't you being too ostentatious...."

"What's the matter?" Glancing at him with her phoenix eyes, Ye Huaiyang half mocking and half teasingly said, "Your family Wangye can even cover the side door of the inner Imperial City, what's this small square? Don't think I don't know, there are many shadow guards hidden outside these two residences that even a housefly can't fly in."

With a bitter face, Tang Qingfeng stated, "You should at least avoid a little.... what if you are seen by others?"

"No one sees me when I come over from Lingyun Pavilion, but should I tumble, will you be responsible or Wangye?"

"You are an old hand now. You are so stable going back and forth, how can you tumble?" Tang Qingfeng unwittingly blurted out and suffered a glare from Ye Huaiyang that he immediately rectified his statements, "What this subordinate meant isn't it time-consuming going around such a big detour?"

Ye Huaiyang smiled coquettishly before lowering her voice and asked slowly, "According to what you say.... is it more convenient for me to live in?"

Tang Qingfeng accidentally choked by his saliva that he violently coughed for several times before he replied, "This subordinate didn't say anything. Miss Ye, please come in..."

No joking. If Chu Jinglan knew he was the one who made Ye Huaiyang conceived this idea, he couldn't take the thrashing no matter how thick his skins were.

Ye Huaiyang walked in gracefully with satisfaction. Inwardly she thought the simple-minded Tang Qingfeng was truly adorable who was completely different from that wily old bird, Lu Heng. Astute and circumspect in whatever he did, totally despicable. Unexpectedly, mentioning Cao Cao and there he was*. She bumped into Lu Heng who just came out when she turned around the covered corridor to the doorway of the study room.

[T/N: (说曹操曹操到 -Shuō cáocāo cáocāo dào) - Speaking of the devil and here he comes]

"What a coincidence, Miss Ye. Aren't you usually going to Zhongxiao Pavilion, so what brought you to the study room today?"