Ji Youran was holding a string of beads in his hand, a string of sandalwood beads, one hundred and eight in total, and each bead was very full.
"This bead...what's wrong?" After taking a look at it, Xiao raised her head in confusion.
"Mother, give it to me and let me see it!" Ji Youran handed the sandalwood beads in her hand to Xiao.
Xiao took it and squeezed it with her hands. Although sandalwood is precious, it is not a rare thing for a family like theirs.
"What... is there?" After looking left and right and not finding anything, Xiao looked at her daughter again and asked cautiously.
"Mother, can't you tell where these sandalwood beads came from?" Ji Youran was so angry at Xiao's slowness that she almost lost her temper. "Could it be that mother forgot about the sandalwood beads in my aunt's hand?"
"Your aunt's?" Xiao was stunned and hurriedly took the sandalwood string to examine it carefully. Sure enough, she found the mark of the Ling'an Earl's Mansion on a bead next to the tube bead.
It turned out to be from my own house.
"This... How come this is with you?" Xiao's hands trembled as she asked anxiously.
These things belonged to the Dayue family and were not very valuable. She had sealed them up long ago and thrown them into a warehouse, and had never checked them.
When Ji Youran asked her, she had never thought about it in this direction.
At that time, when Ling Anbo was fighting outside, his wife would eat vegetarian food at home from time to time. This string of sandalwood beads was what Da Yue always wore on her wrist at that time.
Not very precious, but of great significance.
"This is a gift from the fourth lady of the Qu family to me as a return gift." Ji Youran said with a serious face.
"What does that bitch want to do now?" Xiao shuddered when she heard Qu Moying's name. She was really afraid of Qu Moying from the bottom of her heart. The two had fought several times, and Xiao had never gained any advantage.
"Mother, she is the future Princess of England, so please be careful with your words." Ji Youran was almost irritated to death by Xiao's outspokenness.
"Don't worry, mother knows. There's no one else here. It's fine for us to talk in private." Xiao said nonchalantly, "Why did that bitch give you this? Not only is it not rare, but it's also an old item."
"It wasn't sent by Qu Moying, it was sent by Liu Jingyu." Ji Youran said lightly. If she hadn't asked someone to investigate clearly and get close to the little maid who was sent here with the Qu family, she really wouldn't have known about this matter.
Along with the gift from the Qu Mansion were not only the sandalwood beads but also the fan pendant. These were all vaguely reminding Ji Youran of what she had done in the past, so did Liu Jingyu know something
"She...she gave it to me?" Xiao gasped. "What...what did she want to do?"
"Mother, Liu Jingyu is now the appointed Crown Princess. Judging from her expression, she will definitely not tolerate me. She hasn't even entered the palace yet, but she's already like this. When she enters the Crown Prince's Palace..." Ji Youran stopped talking here, her face looking very unhappy. If she had told herself when Ji Hanyue had just died, she could have told herself that the Crown Prince only had her in his heart.
But now
Liu Jingyu has a delicate appearance and is a newcomer. With Liu Jingyu's methods, how can I have a place in the Prince's Mansion? I risked my life and everything I have, but all I got is...
Make a wedding dress for Liu Jingyu.
Why? All of this originally belonged to her. The prince had clearly promised her, so why did it all fall into Liu Jingyu's hands? In addition, these small items were specially sent to her. Was it a warning or suppression? Or did Liu Jingyu know something about this a long time ago
"Mother, is there anyone suspicious in our house?" Ji Youran asked irritably.
The final beneficiary of this incident was not me. Is it possible that Liu Jingyu was also involved, but I just didn't know anything about it
"Suspicious person? Do you suspect that there are people from the Liu family in our house?" Xiao's eyes widened.
"Mother, you might as well check it yourself and say that you are investigating people from Northern Xinjiang. The entire capital is investigating spies from Northern Xinjiang. No one will suspect us if we investigate it now." Ever since she saw the sandalwood beads and the incident with the fan pendant, Ji Youran felt that there was something wrong.
She had no time to think about it. The outcome of the matter was beyond her expectations, and she lost her once secure position as Crown Princess.
"Just check the Northern Frontier. This is just an excuse. The most important thing is to check if there is any connection with the Liu Mansion, or the Duke of Qi's Mansion. I'm just afraid... some people have always known..."
Ji Youran lowered his voice and cold sweat broke out on his vest. If Liu Jingyu really had intervened early on and he knew nothing about it, then he really had to be extremely vigilant, otherwise he would not know how he died.
Xiao nodded repeatedly and quickly took people to do it.
Ji Youran also brought his confidants with him to help Xiao sort out the servants in the mansion, questioning them one by one. Not only did he ask about their backgrounds, he also specifically asked if they knew anyone else like Minister Liu and whether they had regular contact with him.
This investigation actually allowed Ji Youran to find out some things. There were actually three people who had connections with the Liu Mansion. From time to time, they would go to Minister Liu's Mansion to visit their relatives. They had a very good relationship with each other. It could be said that they were relatives with very deep friendship, not the kind of relatives who were distant from each other.
There actually was someone in her own house who was so close to Minister Liu, and he was not a newcomer. Xiao was furious and locked up all three of them. Then she brought people to see her daughter again.
This time, Ji Youran was not in a hurry to go back. She waited in Xiao's house, waiting for their reply. She had to take this matter seriously.
"My lady, there really is someone coming from Minister Liu's side." Xiao said angrily as she entered the room, "What does she want to do? Han Yue was still the Crown Princess at that time. She wouldn't have planned it at that time!"
"Mother!" Seeing that she spoke loudly, Ji Youran glanced at her and stopped her from speaking further.
Xiao waved her hand, and everyone under her retreated. It was still just the mother and daughter. There were some things that they would avoid even if they were close to their hearts.
That's not just a matter for one person, all nine generations of the clan will be killed.
"How many people have been found?" As soon as Ji Youran saw Xiao's expression, he knew what they had found out and asked with a gloomy face.
"Three people, all three of them have been here for a while. I didn't expect that there are people from the Liu Mansion in my house. Fortunately, these people are ordinary servants, otherwise..." Xiao cursed viciously, "They really have been spying on this position for a long time. If we don't take action, she will take action. If we had known this, we should have given it to them at that time."
season
You Ran stood up and turned around several times. "Mother, there must be a way to ruin Liu Jingyu's reputation, no matter if it's true or false."
She is now at a loss. She originally thought that everything would have to wait until Liu Jingyu married into the Eastern Palace, but now she realizes that this matter is right in front of her and she can't avoid it.
"Your Majesty, what you mean is..." Xiao also knew that something was wrong, and asked with a gloomy face.
"Spread the word about how Madam Liu and Liu Jingyu harmed Fourth Miss Qu and King Ying, and then look for other aspects to see if you can push this matter onto the Qu Mansion." Ji Youran stopped and sneered with a gloomy face.
She is also good at shifting the blame to the east.
Qu Moying had people deliver these things today, and also had people say some half-truths. She could do the same as long as she could find something to hold against Liu Jingyu.
I hate Liu Jingyu, and Qu Moying must feel the same way. The most important coming-of-age ceremony in a woman's life has been ruined. Who else can I blame if not Liu Jingyu
"It would be best to find someone who can contact both the Qu Mansion and the Liu Mansion... Let the two of them fight each other, and I can just sit on the sidelines and watch the fight." Ji Youran said, "Mother, do you have anything that concerns the two of them that can trap them both?"
Xiao shook her head: "I... can't think of it for the moment, let me think about it."
"Then I'll have to trouble you mother. Please pay more attention to this matter. You can stir up the rumors outside. The more complicated the better. It's rare to have the reputation of the Liu family, so we can't let her get away with it like this." Ji Youran gritted her teeth. Even if she wanted to marry, Liu Jingyu had to marry into the family with a ruined reputation.
She came here to check on the affairs of her own house, and on the other hand to let Xiao handle this matter. Even if she risked her life, she had to bite off a piece of flesh from Liu Jingyu.
She was in the Prince's Eastern Palace, where it was inconvenient for her to move around. Xiao's life was much more convenient in the Ling'an Marquis's Mansion than her.
The mother and daughter agreed that Ji Youran would take people back to the East Palace. Xiao sent them to the door and only turned back after seeing the carriage leave.
Unexpectedly, after walking a few steps, I met Mrs. Duan.
Xiao raised her eyebrows coldly and was about to come over from Madam Duan with her people without even saying hello. Xiao looked down on a maid who was promoted to a concubine from the bottom of her heart.
Although there is a branch of the eldest son's family in this mansion, it is not our family that is in charge of the household.
Mrs. Duan looked indifferent as she watched Xiao leave. She had just received a message from Qu Moying. When Xiao passed by, she suddenly said, "Sister-in-law, there was a thief in my room!"
"What was lost?" Xiao stopped impatiently.
"Some old things left by the uncle." Madam Duan raised her eyes and looked at Xiao. Although she was born a maid, she also understood during this period that if she herself is not strong, it is useless to rely on others. Although Fourth Miss Qu has been helping her, she is an outsider after all, and she needs to become strong herself.
"It was originally intended to be sent to the old lady. She asked me to find it before." Mrs. Duan said slowly.
"I got it. I'll send someone to investigate later." Xiao had a lot on her mind and didn't really care about such a small matter. But since the old lady was mentioned, she had to give a perfunctory reply. After that, she left with her people, leaving Madam Duan and her servant there.