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Jiang Chuan frowned deeply. "The wall collapsed?"

Those useless people in the Internal Affairs Department, claiming loyalty to their mistress, yet they let the walls of their Hexi Palace crumble.

They were all just a bunch of bootlickers who talked big but did nothing.

Unlike him, who actually worked for his mistress.

He turned back to his room and put on a thin robe. "Let\'s go take a look."

A young eunuch stepped forward, trying to curry favor: "Eunuch Jiang, it\'s late and dewy outside. Please go back to sleep! This small matter can be handled by us, and we can have the Internal Affairs Department send people to fix it tomorrow."

Jiang Chuan slapped the top of his head. "What? Trying to steal my credit to look good in front of our mistress? Let me tell you all, in this Hexi Palace, anything concerning our mistress and the Sixth Prince is never a small matter. Keep your lanterns bright, and if you truly serve our mistress and the Sixth Prince, time will prove your worth, and rewards will come your way. But if any of you try to take shortcuts, you won\'t need to wait for our mistress\'s punishment - I, Jiang Chuan, will be the first to deal with you."

The young eunuchs immediately straightened their attitudes and repeatedly assured they wouldn\'t dare.

Truth be told, none of the palace servants who had served in Hexi Palace ever wanted to leave.

Their mistress was beautiful and kind-hearted, never mistreating her servants, and even gave out rewards during festivals and holidays.

Moreover, their mistress was favored by the Emperor, so people outside treated everyone from Hexi Palace with respect, whether master or servant. They all had face when they went out.

So even though their mistress trusted only Jiang Chuan, Xiao Xiangzi, Shuang Jiang, Xi Que, and Nanny Xiang the most, they didn\'t want to serve in other palaces.

What was the point of standing out anyway?

Wasn\'t it all about living a comfortable life?

They could live comfortably without exhausting themselves trying to stand out, so why put their necks on the line for unnecessary trouble?

Seeing they had all become obedient, Jiang Chuan led them to the vegetable garden.

All those fruits and vegetables in the garden were Shuang Jiang and Xi Que\'s precious treasures. If they were damaged by the fallen wall, those two young ladies would surely throw a fit when they returned.

"Achoo!"

Xi Que sat on the bed rubbing her nose, sneezing several times in succession.

Shuang Jiang slapped her injured leg, and Xi Que dramatically clutched it, wailing, "It\'s broken, it\'s broken..."

She was met with Shuang Jiang\'s eye roll: "You were told to rest in your room after getting injured, but you insisted on going to watch the commotion. Do you want your leg to heal or not?"

Xi Que pouted: "I only had a bite of flesh taken out, the bone wasn\'t injured. Imperial Physician Yan said it was fine, you and mistress are just being too worried."

Before Shuang Jiang could retort, she quickly changed the subject: "You should have seen that Consort Zhang, thinking Concubine Cheng\'s favor would let her show off in front of our mistress. These past few days she\'s been kissing up to Concubine Cheng - imagine a Consort flattering a Consort who ranks below her! I\'ve truly seen it all."

Shuang Jiang poured her a cup of hot water: "Concubine Cheng\'s father was just promoted to Department Director of the Ministry of Justice, working under our mistress\'s father. Consort Zhang probably thinks Director Cheng might be able to bring down the Minister, that\'s why she\'s acting this way!"

Jiang Xinyue was playing with the Sixth Prince while Nanny Xiang told her about this matter as if it were a joke: "This Consort Zhang is truly peculiar. She\'s always been the one making little schemes behind the scenes, and you\'ve never even bothered with her, mistress. Why is she obsessing over you like a mad dog?"

Even Consort Jin had found her way back and was contentedly playing her role as a palace ornament. The mistress never mistreated her and often sent her new interesting things.

Yet this Consort Zhang kept jumping around like a grasshopper.

Xiao Xiangzi nodded: "Some people never look for reasons within themselves when they make mistakes and face bad outcomes. They always think others are to blame."

Jiang Xinyue remained silent, shaking a rattle left and right to train the baby\'s visual tracking ability.

Everyone in this world had their own rules for survival, and she never judged anyone\'s way of life. As long as they didn\'t harm her, she didn\'t want to be someone with blood-stained hands.

The Emperor hadn\'t visited for several days. He had kept Director Cheng at the summer palace to escape the heat, waiting to return to the capital with his officials for duty.

Jiang Xinyue guessed that the Emperor didn\'t really want to keep him there to escape the heat, but rather because her elder cousin had not yet returned and his fate was unknown. He wanted to keep Director Cheng at the summer palace as a target.

The Zhu family had fallen, but most of their former allied officials were still in place, having not participated in the rebellion.

Jiang Yanxi\'s takedown of the Yu family would make him a target of public criticism.

And now, in the Emperor\'s eyes, the Jiang family was like a floating duckweed without roots, unable to withstand any storm.

So, he kept Director Cheng at the summer palace as a target for her elder cousin.

Observant people would surely investigate why Concubine Cheng only gained favor after her father\'s arrival.

Moreover, Director Cheng had been appointed as Department Director of the Ministry of Justice, working under the father of the most favored Imperial Noble Consort.

What a promising future!

The Yu family wasn\'t without allies; they had friendly connections with other noble families in the capital.

The Xuanwu Emperor would follow the trail and root out all the officials in the capital who had connections with the Yu family.

Even if they couldn\'t be eliminated all at once, these people would eventually be replaced, one by one.

So...

While others were waiting to see Jiang Xinyue fail, she didn\'t take it to heart at all.

No matter how much Consort Zhang jumped around, she was just like a grasshopper after autumn - her joy wouldn\'t last long.

And was Concubine Cheng any better?

"Has Concubine Ye found out anything from her investigation?"

This was what Jiang Xinyue cared more about.

Aliali: 6748532dc4f3f33ac4772656

There was still a hidden poisoner in the palace who had managed to target both the Emperor and Wang Dequan without a trace, so subtle that even the Imperial Hospital couldn\'t determine the cause.

That strange ice-blue butterfly turned out to be just an ordinary butterfly after investigation.

Xiao Xiangzi shook his head: "We\'ve had Concubine Ye recall countless times, and the Internal Affairs Department people say they still haven\'t found any suspicious persons."

"What about the young eunuch who served the wine?"

"He was one of Eunuch Tang Shiliang\'s men, and no one was allowed near the wine pot throughout... However... your servant noticed something strange."

"What\'s strange?"

"In both Concubine Ye\'s and the young eunuch\'s testimonies, there was mention of a large black fat cat."

"A cat?"

Xiao Xiangzi nodded: "Perhaps it was abandoned by a former consort and has been hiding somewhere? It occasionally comes out. On the night of the banquet, the young eunuch saw that cat, and Concubine Ye was startled by it and took a drink of wine. Consort Zhang kindly lent her a handkerchief to wipe off the wine stains."

Jiang Xinyue closed her eyes and silently recited in her mind: strange cat, wine, butterfly, handkerchief... and... Consort Zhang.