Chapter 436: The Dreadful Insight into Human Hearts
"I know," Shen Xihe replied calmly, taking a sip of the meat broth.
"You don't!" Bu Shulin urgently needed someone to confide in. Though her curiosity had been satisfied, she felt as if she had seen a ghost, her heart trembling with unease.
Glancing at her, Shen Xihe took a bite of a crispy pastry. "Young Master Mu is dead."
Bu Shulin froze, stammering, "How... how do you know?"
"I told you yesterday that if she had the capability, she would make Young Master Mu take his own life," Shen Xihe said with a composed expression. "The Mu family has just undergone a major upheaval. If Young Master Mu were murdered, the Mu family would immediately file a complaint. The matter would not be easily resolved, and His Majesty would surely investigate deeply. Then, the rumors the Mu family spread about the Yu family would come under scrutiny.
Yu Sangning has invested so much effort—why would she leave a loose end at the final step? Whether for long-term considerations or immediate safety, Young Master Mu had to die, and die willingly. His death would confirm the fact that he harmed the Yu family, brought ruin upon his own, and had no face to continue living.
Only then could the Yu family become the complete and unquestionable victims, with no possibility of further turmoil.
His Majesty intends to honor the Pingyao Marquis. With Yu Sangzi's impeccable virtue, preserving the dignity of the Pingyao Marquis's household and smoothly elevating Yu Sangzi to become a consort to the prince would be a natural course of action."
Bu Shulin swallowed hard. Watching Shen Xihe, who appeared serene and elegant, eating her breakfast in small, delicate bites, she felt a growing panic.
Someone like Yu Sangning was terrifying enough, but now she realized there was an even more formidable young woman—one who could easily see through Yu Sangning and deduce her every move!
"Then... then do you know how the Second Miss Yu made Young Master Mu take his own life?" Bu Shulin quickly picked up the bowl of meat broth and took a large gulp, hoping the warmth in her stomach would soothe her alarm.
Shen Xihe lifted her eyelids slightly, already noticing Bu Shulin's unease. After eating a little more, she hesitated for a moment. "Should I make you unafraid of me, or should I make you feel that with me by your side, the Second Miss Yu is nothing to fear?"
"Huh?" Bu Shulin didn't quite follow.
"If I want you to be unafraid of me, I'll say I don't know and let you tell me," Shen Xihe explained. "If I want you to see me as your support, to believe that with me here, no one can scheme against you, then I'll tell you the truth."
Bu Shulin, who had been panicking, immediately calmed down. "You're right! Why should I be afraid? You're on my side!"
"Hmm?" Shen Xihe raised an eyebrow.
"Ahem, I'm on your side," Bu Shulin quickly corrected herself, flashing an ingratiating smile. "We're on the same side."
Shen Xihe didn't press the issue. Instead, she set down her bowl and chopsticks. "If Yu Sangning wanted Young Master Mu to die willingly, there's only one way..." Under Bu Shulin's expectant yet anxious gaze, Shen Xihe's smile deepened slightly, and she silently mouthed the words: The Peacock Flies Southeast .
Bu Shulin jumped to her feet in fright. It wasn't Shen Xihe she feared, but the sheer horror of Shen Xihe's insight into human nature.
Even if she had witnessed everything firsthand, she would never have imagined that Yu Sangning could employ such a method—making a person die without a trace, leaving even the authorities to conclude it was suicide upon discovering the body.
But Shen Xihe hadn't even seen it, yet she could guess Yu Sangning's method. How could Bu Shulin not be utterly astounded?Shen Xihe smiled faintly, picked up her bowl and chopsticks again, and began eating at a leisurely pace.
Bu Shulin took quite a while to calm down. She sat obediently across from Shen Xihe, quiet as a mouse, pecking lightly at her food. The sight made Pearl and Jasper, standing nearby, unable to suppress their smiles.
"Second Miss Yu has a highly skilled person by her side," Bu Shulin felt compelled to remind Shen Xihe.
Second Miss Yu was solely focused on attaining wealth and status. Now that she aspired to become a princess consort, who knew if she would develop even greater ambitions once she actually achieved that position? Wouldn’t that inevitably put her at odds with Shen Xihe?
Although Bu Shulin believed Yu Sangning might be the most ruthless and cunning woman among the young ladies, Shen Xihe had long surpassed comparisons within that circle. She was someone who could stand out even among men.
Yu Sangning was in no position to be compared to Shen Xihe, but Bu Shulin still worried that Shen Xihe might let her guard down.
"That person isn’t hers," Shen Xihe said calmly. "She belongs to the Lady of Huaiyang County."
Yu Sangning’s past had already been thoroughly investigated by Xiao Huayong. Shen Xihe had also glanced through the reports while working alongside him. At present, Yu Sangning had no one she could truly rely on.
"Why would the Lady of Huaiyang County associate with her?" Bu Shulin was puzzled, especially since the lady had even lent her own subordinate to Yu Sangning.
"It’s easy for Yu Sangning to get close to someone," Shen Xihe explained. Not everyone was like her, able to see through people’s disguises so effortlessly.
In truth, if not for her keen intuition, she might not have suspected a young girl who had risked her life to save her clan’s matriarch and who hadn’t even reached the age of maturity. She, too, might have been deceived by Yu Sangning’s hypocrisy.
"If I’m not mistaken, she has set her sights on Prince Xin," Shen Xihe added.
"Setting her sights on Prince Xin by first approaching the Lady of Huaiyang County?" Bu Shulin found it hard to believe.
"A stepping stone," Shen Xihe fully understood Yu Sangning’s intentions.
Gu Qingzhu was also born a concubine’s daughter. No matter how smoothly things went for her in the Gu family, she would always be overshadowed by Gu Qingzhi, just as Yu Sangning was suppressed by Yu Sangzi. They would naturally feel a sense of mutual understanding and sympathy. If Yu Sangning were to orchestrate incidents similar to those involving the Pingyao Marquis’s elderly lady and Yu Sangzi, it wouldn’t be difficult to win Gu Qingzhu’s trust.
Through Gu Qingzhu, she could learn more about Xiao Changqing and have more opportunities to see him.
"How dare she let the Lady of Huaiyang County’s subordinate see her true nature!" Bu Shulin exclaimed. "Wouldn’t that expose her?"
Shen Xihe looked at her, shook her head, and sighed with feigned gravity. "I think the reason you’ve managed to survive all these years, aside from your ability to play the fool, is probably because His Majesty has realized you’re genuinely not very clever."
Bu Shulin: "..."
In the past, Bu Shulin might have dared to retort, but after what had just happened, she didn’t dare utter a word in rebuttal.
Shen Xihe couldn’t help but smile slightly. "She dares to borrow this person to protect her while carrying out such schemes because she has also done this person a favor. Even if this person wouldn’t betray the Lady of Huaiyang County, they wouldn’t expose Yu Sangning either. Do you understand?"
Bu Shulin nodded, suddenly feeling that Yu Sangning was an utterly terrifying woman. She then remarked, "If Princess Xin were still alive, it would be quite a spectacle to watch."
Gu Qingzhi was no Gu Qingzhu. If Yu Sangning fell into Gu Qingzhi’s hands, would she have any peace?
"If Princess Xin were still alive, Second Miss Yu’s target wouldn’t be Prince Xin," Shen Xihe said calmly.
Once a concubine, always a concubine.Yu Sangning's ambitions soared to the heavens—she would never resign herself to being a mere consort for life. Not even the title of imperial noble consort could satisfy her, let alone that of a prince's secondary wife.
Long time no see, here’s a ten-thousand-word update for you, mwah!
(End of Chapter)
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