Yan Zheng nodded: "Don’t worry, I’ve assigned more guards to protect them. But I’m not too concerned about that. An Sheng is clever—she targeted Yao Qing because she knew I wouldn’t interfere after my fifth brother divorced her. Besides, she still needs to use me as her ‘son,’ so she won’t harm those close to me for now."
Chu Ruoyan thought about it and realized it made sense. Even during the incident with her second sister, it had ultimately led to a marriage alliance with the Prince of Qin’s concubine, and no real harm had come to the Chu family!
"With the court in turmoil right now, from what I’ve observed, among the Six Ministries, aside from the Ministry of Personnel under your father’s control and the former Ministry of Revenue overseen by your uncle, Dou Sicheng of the Ministry of Justice and Xu Yan of the Ministry of Rites are both An Sheng’s people. After today, it seems the Zou family has also sided with her. The remaining Minister of Works is an old fox who won’t easily pick a side."
"With half the Six Ministries supporting her, the only remaining forces are the Grand Secretariat and the Five-City Military Command. But the Five-City Military Command has always been under the emperor’s direct control, so she can’t interfere there yet. That leaves only the Grand Secretariat for her to target."
Yan Zheng paused here, wondering if he had made things too complicated for the girl to follow.
But to his surprise, Chu Ruoyan nodded thoughtfully. "Among the four influential ministers in the Grand Secretariat, Chancellor Gu holds the most power, followed by Grand Tutor Rong. The other two are elderly and rarely involved in affairs, and Grand Tutor Rong’s health is failing—he’s practically semi-retired. So now, Chancellor Gu alone calls the shots. That’s why the emperor brought my uncle into the Grand Secretariat—to counterbalance him..."
As she spoke, she noticed Yan Zheng staring at her intently, and her cheeks warmed. "Why are you looking at me? Did I say something wrong?"
Yan Zheng shook his head. "No, I’m just surprised. How do you know all this so well, A-Yan?"
Shouldn’t young ladies like her be more interested in spring outings and flower-viewing?
Even the livelier ones, like Princess Jiahui or Chu Ruolan, only played polo at most. Who would pay such close attention to court affairs?
And phrases like "counterbalance" and "semi-retired" sounded like something only seasoned officials would say!
Chu Ruoyan pressed her lips together, not daring to admit that she had studied these matters specifically to prevent him from becoming Chief Grand Secretary—after all, in her dreams, he had once slaughtered a city.
Instead, she simply said, "You forget that my father oversees the Ministry of Personnel. He mentions things from time to time, and if you pay attention, you naturally pick things up."
Yan Zheng’s gaze softened instantly.
Why would a woman concern herself with such matters? It could only be to help him—to help the Yan family.
"A-Yan, I understand your feelings."
Chu Ruoyan: "?"
She sensed he had misunderstood, but to avoid further questions, she quickly changed the subject. "We haven’t finished discussing earlier. You said the Grand Princess might target the Grand Secretariat—do you mean she’ll go after Chancellor Gu or my uncle?"
Yan Zheng collected his thoughts. "Hard to say. Chancellor Gu has survived this long precisely because of his balancing act. He and Grand Tutor Rong are both masters of evasion—they won’t be easily toppled. As for your uncle... even when Cao Dong was in trouble, the emperor protected him. Do you think he could be bribed?"
Chu Ruoyan’s heart trembled.
Whenever An Sheng set her sights on someone, she couldn’t help but feel an inexplicable sense of danger.
Just as she was about to ask more, Meng Yang’s voice came from outside: "Young Madam, it seems Miss Xue of the Cao family is ahead..."
Chu Ruoyan blinked and lifted the carriage curtain, spotting Xue Ling’s carriage hurrying toward the Duke of Chu's Mansion.
Xue Ling even leaned out, urgently urging the coachman forward, as if something dire had happened!
Chu Ruoyan called out, "Cousin!"
Xue Ling initially thought she’d misheard, but when she turned, she saw Chu Ruoyan in the carriage.
She immediately ordered her coachman to approach. "Cousin Ruoyan, thank goodness! I’ve been looking everywhere for—" Her voice cut off when she noticed Yan Zheng inside. "L-Lord Yan is here too..."
Yan Zheng gave a slight nod in acknowledgment.
Chu Ruoyan said, "I should go now?"
He hummed in agreement, then naturally reached out to tuck a loose strand of her hair behind her ear. "Go ahead. Be careful on the road."
Chu Ruoyan didn’t think much of it. She hopped out of the carriage but turned back to add, "Oh, and don’t forget to read that novel later!"
Yan Zheng agreed. Once back at his residence, he retrieved The Tale of Yongniang.
After lighting incense and brewing tea, he settled in to read—only to summon Meng Yang less than half an incense stick later.
According to the Yan family servants, it was the first time they’d seen Meng Yang punished. Not only was he made to stand in a horse stance all day, but he was also forced to copy the novel ten times. The poor man ended up dousing himself in cold water in the dead of winter and caught a chill the next day...
But that was all later. At the time, Chu Ruoyan boarded Xue Ling’s carriage, and only after traveling a distance did Xue Ling hesitantly ask, "Cousin... you and Lord Yan... are you two...?"
"Don’t misunderstand, Cousin. We just happened to meet on the road, and he gave me a lift." Chu Ruoyan lied without batting an eye, swiftly changing the subject. "By the way, you were looking for me earlier? Did something happen?"
Xue Ling gasped and slapped her forehead. "Right! It’s my mother! Lately, she’s been unable to eat, constantly exhausted, sleeping all day, and complaining of chest pains!"
"What? Has a physician been called?"
"Yes! But the doctor from Hui Chun Hall said she’s suffering from an unknown illness and needed to consult medical texts. Grandmother was furious and threw him out, ordering me to find other physicians. But all the reputable ones in the capital are already retained by noble families. I remembered that old divine doctor who treated Mother before, so I came to ask if you could persuade him to help?"
Chu Ruoyan understood. "Let’s go to Tianyi Tavern!"
At the tavern’s rear courtyard, the portly manager led them inside, where Old Divine Doctor Qin was crouched in a corner, watching crickets.
The manager said respectfully, "Old Divine Doctor, you have visitors—Miss Chu of the..."
Before he could finish, the old man waved impatiently. "Scram, scram! Don’t bother this old man!"
The manager shrugged helplessly. "As I warned you, without the pavilion master’s orders, no one can move this old divine doctor. You’d best seek help elsewhere."
Xue Ling nearly rushed forward in distress, but Chu Ruoyan stopped her. "Thank you, Manager. We’ll try our luck."
As the manager retreated, Chu Ruoyan took a deep breath and shouted, "Someone’s about to die!"
The old man, who had been engrossed in the crickets, sprang up instantly. "Where? Who’s dying? Take me there at once!"
His eyes gleamed as if he’d spotted treasure. Chu Ruoyan shot Xue Ling a look, and the latter tearfully said, "It’s my mother! She’s been unconscious for days..."
Old Divine Doctor Qin immediately bounded over. "Just unconscious? Any other symptoms? No time for chatter—let’s go!" He dragged Xue Ling out, leaving the manager utterly bewildered.
What just happened? Wasn’t he supposed to obey only the pavilion master?
How did Miss Chu manage to trick him away with just one sentence?
