RWNEFE -Chapter 87 The Plan!

The two little maids were thin as bamboo sticks. Together, they weren’t even as strong as her personal servant. The four guards were even worse—dark-skinned, skinny, with unsteady steps. Even Shen Lanxi could tell they had no martial skills; they were clearly lowly hired men from who-knows-where.

None of them were worth worrying about.

After entering the residence, Shen Lanxi used the excuse of visiting her mother. Zhou Qiwu, in turn, claimed to have arranged a performance troupe and a dinner. After a few polite exchanges, the two families separated.

Back in her father’s guest room, her mother was resting after taking medicine.

“The doctor has seen your mother. It’s nothing serious—just overexertion. She needs only slow, careful recuperation.”

Shen Lanxi lowered her eyes. “Mother has lived a life of wealth and privilege, but in the end the whole family was exiled. It’s understandable she cannot accept it.”

Even the broadest-minded person may falter after such extreme ups and downs.

Shen Congwen sighed. He wanted to speak but feared someone might overhear and so remained silent.

“Father, speak freely—there’s no one else here.”

Trusting his daughter, Shen Congwen lowered his voice. “Lanxi… was the theft of the Wei Army’s provisions really the doing of the Third Princess?”

Shen Lanxi: “I used to think not… now I’m not so sure.”

“What do you mean?”

She didn’t hide anything and told him about the Second Prince’s arrival.

Shen Congwen frowned immediately. “Ever since the Third Princess was sent to her fief, she has no authority to enter the capital without imperial edict. Over these years, your mother never mentioned any imperial summons for her. How could she have colluded with the Second Prince?”

Shen Yuanjing spoke up: “Could it be that the Emperor sent the Second Prince to congratulate the Third Princess on her birthday?”

Shen Congwen oversaw the Ministry of Revenue. If the Emperor had sent gifts to the Third Princess, he would have known.

“Impossible. Every imperial gift is recorded by the Ministry. I remember clearly: there has never been a gift to the Third Princess.”

During festivals or birthdays, princes and princesses exchanged gifts. The Emperor valued etiquette—every tribute received would have a reply sent. Shen Congwen remembered well: in all such exchanges, the Third Princess was never involved.

“Could it be that the Second Prince is framing the Shen family, with the Third Princess as his accomplice?” Shen Yuanjing exclaimed.

“Whether yes or no, we’ll know soon enough.”

Not long after, Zhou Qiwu sent word inviting them to the banquet.

Now that Shen Lanxi was inside the trap, Zhou Qiwu no longer concealed her intentions. To flaunt her luxurious life to Zhou Xinrou, she arranged a lavish display of performances by the troupe.

Half the performers were strikingly handsome men, wearing thin clothes with only a layer of sheer fabric over their undergarments. The Shen family women didn’t know where to look!

Wang Xiangrong, hearing from a servant that Shen Lanxi had arrived, refused to remain in bed. He insisted on being carried to the banquet.

The servant described Shen Lanxi as a woman of unparalleled beauty. As the son of a princess, he had seen many beauties, but this one piqued his curiosity. Originally expecting a mediocre girl, he was utterly stunned at first sight.

How could such beauty exist in this world?

Wang Xiangrong stared dumbly, spilling wine on himself without noticing.

Zhou Qiwu, seeing her son in such a state, coughed irritably.

The servant tugged on his sleeve to remind him.

“Miss Lanxi, I apologize for my brother’s rudeness!”

Shen Lanxi simply nodded.

Wang Xiangyi shot her brother a glance, silently calling him an idiot. Thinking of their mother’s arrangements, another idea sprang to her mind.

Soon, Wang Xiangrong overheard the servant leaking a bit of news and became anxious.

How could such a stunning beauty be left to the humble servants of the house? And their mother—such a good opportunity and yet she thought of the son first?

“I’ve had enough to drink for now. I’ll return to my room!”

Zhou Qiwu wanted her son out of the way quickly, so she immediately instructed the servant to escort him back.

Apart from this small hiccup, Zhou Qiwu felt superior at all times.

She knew that although Shen Congwen was mediocre, he had multiple concubines, numerous illegitimate children, and parents-in-law who used her household to support their other sons.

Even if she had the favor of the Empress Dowager, what of it? She still had to endure her in-laws’ control, be denied her husband’s love, and hear a horde of concubines and children calling her “mother”?

The thought delighted Zhou Qiwu greatly.

During the banquet, the Shen family felt as if they had a fishbone lodged in their throats. Near the end, the servants brought bowls of sobering soup—one for each person.

Zhou Xinrou and her daughter, using the soup as cover, kept a close eye on Shen Lanxi. When she drank hers all down, a secret cold smile crept across their faces.

Shen Lanxi, having had enough to drink, was helped by the two maids assigned by Zhou Qiwu to her room.

Chunxue and Qiushuang were a step behind. They couldn’t intercept the residence maids and had to settle for helping the other ladies.

As soon as she left the hall, Shen Lanxi closed her eyes, tilting onto the maid supporting her.

The two maids exchanged a glance and swiftly carried her toward the guest room.

Hidden behind the rockery, someone watched everything and quietly followed.

After eating, Zhou Ru’an had been waiting in the guest room. Unexpectedly, a guard came mid-way with urgent news: a chest containing important items had gone missing.

Thinking of the contents, Zhou Ru’an was terrified and rushed to inspect.

In the guest room, the maids reported twice, but no one responded.

“Shall we leave her in the room and wait outside?”

“Fine. She’s drugged—she won’t wake up easily.”

After putting Shen Lanxi down, the two maids left and closed the door behind them.

A ghostly black shadow drifted down from the rooftop.

Shen Lanxi, lying on the couch, suddenly opened her eyes.

The shadow handed her a scroll and whispered, “Everything has been unloaded from the ship and is now in the warehouse at the dock.”

Shen Lanxi’s lips curved, eyes sharp as cold stars.

“We leave tomorrow.”

“Yes!”

Zhou Ru’an had carefully kept the most important items off the ship and outside the Princess’s residence, carrying them in the carriage instead.

Yet, disaster struck.

By the time he arrived, all he saw was a smashed carriage frame. The horse and the contents of the carriage were gone.

“Can you tell who did this?”

A guard assessed: “It must be a common thief. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have caused such a commotion.”

“Then go catch them immediately!” Zhou Ru’an was furious, like a storm.

“Yes!”

The guards hurried off to search.

Zhou Ru’an’s anger needed release. Thinking of the beauty in the room, he immediately ran into the Princess’s residence.

Today, beauty, you shall bear my wrath!

~

Wang Xiangrong saw two maids guarding the door, so he sneaked to the other side and climbed through the window.

Beauty, here I come!

He stumbled upon entering, legs giving way, and fell onto the couch. Shen Lanxi poured all the sobering soup from the banquet into him, then lit two incense sticks in a corner.

She leapt onto the rooftop, ready to leave.

“Master, Wang Xiangyi is here!”

Wang Xiangyi tiptoed past the rockery to the window. Just as he opened it a crack, his legs gave way and he fainted.