Troublemaker Prince C41
Translated by Sylver (ko-fi)
Chapter 41
On the third day after the wedding, according to Great Jing's customs, the newlywed couple had to return to the bride's family home.
Early in the morning, the Prince of Wu's mansion had already prepared gifts to send to Minister Su's residence—three full carriages containing various silks and satins, all kinds of tonics, and even fur materials that would only be used in winter.
These gifts were not only valuable but also very thoughtful. They were gifts that Consort Xian had carefully selected after much deliberation. Any discerning person could tell at a glance that the Third Prince and Consort Xian treated the Princess of Wu extremely well and had put considerable thought into the gifts.
Su Yingying and You Yushan also rose early and boarded a carriage bound for Minister Su's residence. You Yushan was tall and robust with sharply defined features, while Su Yingying was petite and gentle. With both of them cooperating according to their own agendas, they actually appeared to be a harmonious couple.
Meanwhile, in the Eastern Palace, You Yusui had just woken up. He lay in bed watching Huo Xiling, who was already tying up his hair, and asked, "Today is the Princess of Wu's return visit?"
"Mm." Huo Xiling nodded, then turned to look at You Yusui. "Does Your Highness want to sleep a bit more? When I return, shall I bring Your Highness some pastries from Chang'an's streets?"
"Alright." You Yusui closed his eyes. "Come back early."
The next moment, a kiss landed on You Yusui's brow, startling him into opening his eyes. But the youth who had stolen the kiss had already jumped out the window and fled.
You Yusui smiled and covered his forehead, saying, "Why run? This prince won't eat you."
On the other side, Huo Xiling directly took his waist token and left the palace. As a Senior Official serving close to the Crown Prince, Huo Xiling had the authority to enter and exit the imperial palace at will.
As soon as he left the palace gates, Huo Xiling headed straight for a separate courtyard next to Minister Su's residence, following Xie Tan's instructions.
This separate courtyard had been purchased through an agent by Xie Tan some years ago. It wasn't regularly occupied, only cleaned periodically by assigned staff. Now it was quite suitable for secretly meeting with Su Yingying.
Huo Xiling walked into the courtyard and looked at Xie Tan sitting at the stone table in the center of the courtyard, saying, "I didn't expect you to actually have a separate courtyard next to Minister Su's residence."
Xie Tan turned his head slightly to look at Huo Xiling and said, "I not only bought a courtyard next to the Su residence, but also next to the Li and Liu families."
Huo Xiling: ......
For a moment, Huo Xiling couldn't fathom Xie Tan's thinking.
Xie Tan looked at Huo Xiling and said, "There's always a time when they'll be useful, isn't there? Like now."
Indeed, no one had expected this courtyard would be put to use now.
"If you want to protect him well, you must learn to plan ahead and think a hundred steps ahead for every step you take." Xie Tan sat at the stone table, looking calmly at Huo Xiling before him, his words sounding like teachings.
You Yusui walked on thin ice in the palace. Since someone wanted to protect him, Xie Tan hoped Huo Xiling could do his very best to spare him from worry and sorrow.
"I know." Huo Xiling looked at Xie Tan across from him and said.
Although he wasn't strong enough yet, he would use all his strength to protect His Highness the Crown Prince. Right now, all he needed was an opportunity—military merit.
"The witness is inside." Xie Tan stood up and said, "How far you can make the Princess of Wu go depends on you. I need to report to Dali Temple now."
Having said that, Xie Tan rose and left through the courtyard's back door.
The witness had been saved by Xie Tan during an investigation. Cui Yan had spent considerable effort to bring her back to life, and only after finding a female corpse from the mass grave outside the city did they completely fool the Li family into thinking they had thoroughly cleaned up all traces.
At this moment, Huo Xiling glanced at the tightly closed room, then pulled a ghost mask from his sleeve—a greenish-black mask with a grotesque design, sharp fangs, and entirely black horns, almost identical to the ghost mask on the Ghost-Faced General's face. It concealed Huo Xiling's handsome features, preventing anyone from seeing his true appearance.
At the third quarter of the hour of Chen, the Prince of Wu's carriage stopped at the entrance of Minister Su's residence. Su Yingying and Prince of Wu You Yushan descended from the carriage together and walked into the residence under her parents' reception.
"Yingying, my Yingying." Madam Su held Su Yingying's hand wanting to speak, but tears flowed first.
"On such a happy day, why are you crying?" Su Zhou gently scolded from the side, then greeted the Prince of Wu with proper etiquette.
You Yushan, having been instructed by Consort Xian, naturally didn't dare let Su Zhou actually perform the full ceremony. He directly extended his hand to support him, saying, "Father-in-law need not be so formal."
After exchanging pleasantries, the family entered the residence together.
Walking into the main hall of the Su residence, Madam Su pulled Su Yingying to sit down and talked incessantly, chattering on and asking if she had been bullied.
"Mother!" A thin blush colored Su Yingying's face. "How can you ask such things?"
"Alright, alright, I won't ask anymore." Madam Su said with a smile. "Why don't you show the Prince of Wu around the residence?"
"Very well." Su Yingying breathed a sigh of relief. Her mind was completely occupied by the little beggar mentioned in the letter outside the back gate.
Since Madam Su had asked her to show the Prince of Wu around, she could conveniently leave the Prince of Wu in her boudoir, then use making lotus pastries as an excuse to go meet that little beggar.
On the other side, Su Zhou couldn't find much to chat about with Prince of Wu You Yushan either. Seeing his daughter coming to fetch him, he quickly handed the Prince of Wu over to Su Yingying.
Su Yingying looked at You Yushan who had come out and smiled, saying, "Would Your Highness like to sit in my courtyard?"
"Fine." You Yushan answered with indifference.
Su Yingying lowered her eyes. He truly had not the slightest bit of affection for her. Although he seemed considerate and fond, in reality the Prince of Wu didn't care about her at all—this was evident in the details.
"Then let's go." After Su Yingying spoke, she led the Prince of Wu to her boudoir and had a maid light calming and sleep-inducing incense.
"Your Highness, rest here for a while. I'll go make you lotus pastries." Su Yingying said with a smile.
"Fine." You Yushan sat on the bed and responded.
Su Yingying nodded, then left taking only Xiao Yue with her. After leaving the courtyard, master and servant split up—Xiao Yue went to have the kitchen make lotus pastries, while Su Yingying headed to the back gate.
At the back gate, there was a little beggar sitting in the corner across from it, holding a bamboo pole in hand with a broken bowl in front of him, basking in the sun.
Hearing movement from Minister Su's back gate, the little beggar quickly scrambled up from the ground and pointed to a nearby courtyard, saying to Su Yingying, "The person you're looking for is inside. Just push the door and go in."
Having said that, the little beggar picked up his bamboo pole and bowl, lotus-falling song, and left.
Su Yingying looked at the courtyard gate nearby and walked to the door, reaching out to push it gently.
The black wooden door opened at the touch, and she was greeted by a youth wearing a ghost mask. Seeing it so suddenly, Su Yingying's heart couldn't help but beat faster in fright.
"The person you want to see is inside." A rough, hoarse voice sounded, like an old water wheel creaking.
"Alright." Su Yingying carefully walked into that room.
As soon as the room door opened, a woman dressed in plain clothes immediately knelt down.
Su Yingying looked at this woman's face, and in an instant her memory returned—it was her, this serving maid from the Spring Banquet who had said her close friend from the boudoir was looking for her, which led her to trustingly follow her away.
"Speak. Tell what you did." Huo Xiling leaned against the doorframe and said in a rough, hoarse voice.
The woman kneeling on the ground kowtowed repeatedly, saying, "It was someone from the Third Prince who made me do this. I didn't intentionally ruin your reputation. If I hadn't done it, he would have killed me. I had no choice but to work with others to send you to the Crown Prince's bed and ruin your and the Crown Prince's reputations."
When Su Yingying heard these words, her heart felt a sense of relief that things were indeed as she had suspected. At the same time, a strong sense of disgust arose within her.
For the Third Prince to use such despicable and underhanded methods against the Crown Prince, destroying an innocent woman's purity to achieve the purpose of slandering others.
For a moment, Su Yingying, who had been taught by her grandfather since childhood to be upright and honest, could not accept that such a person was her husband. He disgusted her to the point of wanting to vomit.
"Then did the Crown Prince know about this matter?" The moment Su Yingying asked this question, she already had the answer in her heart. The surprise on the Crown Prince's face when he saw her was definitely not feigned.
Moreover, it was the Crown Prince who had someone take her away from everyone's view, otherwise she really would not have been able to bear it and would have committed suicide.
"No." Huo Xiling said.
No one had expected the Third Prince would use such methods against the Crown Prince, and moreover target the granddaughter of Minister Su.
For an instant, Su Yingying felt like crying. Why did such a thing happen to her? Was it simply because her grandfather was Minister Su?
"Why wasn't the truth exposed back then?" Su Yingying asked, forcibly holding back her tears.
"Because this was the result of several parties' maneuvering, and also His Majesty's intention." Huo Xiling answered.
"I understand." Su Yingying cried silently.
How pitiful that she had become a chess piece in this game, and moreover became cannon fodder.
"What do you want to do next?" Huo Xiling asked.
Su Yingying looked at the youth wearing the ghost mask before her and said, "Divorce."
Huo Xiling was silent for a moment before saying, "They won't agree to it."
Although Great Jing was very tolerant toward women, and divorcing and remarrying wasn't particularly difficult, when the object of divorce was the imperial family, it became very difficult indeed.
"I still have to try." Su Yingying said.
"If you cannot, you can come seek my help." Huo Xiling said.
"You're one of the Crown Prince's people. What do you want me to do?" Su Yingying quickly caught on.
Telling her these things, they must have some designs on her.
Huo Xiling said, "Everything has a price. You can see whether you can accept it, then we'll make a deal."
"I know." Su Yingying pressed her lips together.
She was no longer a little girl and knew that no one would be good to her for no reason or help her without seeking anything in return.
"I want to ask my grandfather first." Su Yingying said.
She wanted to know if her grandfather would stand on her side. If so, she would pay any price to divorce the Third Prince.
Huo Xiling looked at Su Yingying and said, "May you get your wish."
Huo Xiling knew that Su Yingying simply could not get her wish.
Next, Huo Xiling sent Su Yingying away and had someone take the witness away. Finally, he removed the ghost mask and went to Chang'an's marketplace to buy a candied hawthorn skewer for his Crown Prince.
In the Eastern Palace, this was You Yusui's first time seeing such a food. He couldn't help but take a bite—after the sweet sugar coating came the sourness of the hawthorn fruit.
"So sour, I don't like it." You Yusui was so startled by the sourness that he even forgot his self-address and immediately tossed the candied hawthorn into Huo Xiling's hands.
After drinking several mouthfuls of honey water to recover, he looked at Huo Xiling and said, "This is the gift you brought for this prince?"
"But I saw all the children on the street loved eating it." Huo Xiling said with exceptional innocence.
"You actually treat this prince like a child." You Yusui frowned. "This entire hawthorn skewer is yours to eat."
"Thank you for Your Highness's reward." Huo Xiling smiled and bit off the half-eaten hawthorn that You Yusui had left.
You Yusui: ......It felt like he'd been taken advantage of somehow. What to do?
After a moment, You Yusui asked, "What did Miss Su say?"
"She said she wants a divorce." Huo Xiling answered.
"Divorce?" You Yusui tapped his lips with his finger. "She won't be able to get a divorce, but this prince can help her become a widow."