Cui Yunchu stared at her blankly.
She had always held a sense of awe toward Tang Qingwan, and even more so, envy. It was just a pity...
"I am a coward. I am scared."
She lacked Tang Qingwan's boldness, her manipulative skill, and her intellect. Even more so, she lacked the ambition to risk her life on a single throw of the dice.
Tang Qingwan glanced at her sideways. "What is there to be afraid of in this kind of matter? You are Cui Yunchu after all."
She was always the most skilled at this sort of thing—Tang Qingwan left this sentence unspoken. It sounded too much like mockery, and she was afraid of making Cui Yunchu anxious.
With that face of hers, combined with her personality and acting skills, Cui Yunchu indeed had a lethal attraction to men. However, her utilitarian motives were too obvious, and she did not understand the art of subtlety, which often ruined people's good impressions of her.
Cui Yunchu shook her head vigorously. "What kind of fantastical nonsense are you spouting?"
Although she was slowly becoming less afraid of that man now, seducing him was absolutely impossible.
She was, quite frankly, terrified of death.
"He is a lunatic. If I provoke him, he will stab me, and you will never see me again."
Tang Qingwan only thought she was joking, overlooking the faint trembling of Cui Yunchu's fingertips.
"Alright, I was just saying it in passing."
Tang Qingwan smiled faintly. "The current political situation is quite unfavorable to our Cui and Tang families. My marriage into the Crown Prince's estate is also a matter of treading carefully at every step, like walking on thin ice."
"Shen Xiabai harbors great hostility toward our two families, repeatedly making things difficult for us in the imperial court. I just feel that if we could eliminate such a formidable enemy, it would ease the situation, and I would feel much more relaxed."
Tang Qingwan massaged her temples, feeling somewhat exhausted.
"Yunchu, Yunfeng, marrying into the Crown Prince's estate is only the beginning. If there ever comes a time when I can no longer hold on, I will have to rely on your help."
No matter how capable and ambitious she was, she was ultimately still a young woman. There would be times when her strength fell short of her desires, and times when her calculations went awry.
And in the royal family, a single misstep could very likely cost someone their life.
Fighting a lone battle, there would inevitably be times when she found herself in a tight corner with no room to maneuver.
The conflict and guilt in Cui Yunfeng's eyes deepened, and she kept her head lowered, not daring to look up.
Cui Yunchu said, "There is no way I am going to the Crown Prince's estate to be a secondary consort."
Tang Qingwan: "..."
Perhaps Tang Qingwan's expression was too speechless, prompting Cui Yunchu to scratch her head and ask, "Is that not what you meant?"
She had read many storybooks, and tales of sisters marrying the same man, whether for the sake of the family or for producing heirs, were not uncommon.
Cui Yunchu said sheepishly, "What I mean is, if even you cannot handle it, if I were to go to the Crown Prince's estate, I am afraid I would be chewed up until not even my bones remained."
This was the truth!
Tang Qingwan glared at the two sisters in exasperation. "Neither of you can be relied upon."
The thought of forming a marriage alliance with the Shen family flashed through Tang Qingwan's mind.
The three sisters fell silent.
From the wedding robes to the accessories, Tang Qingwan tried them all on one by one. Each piece left Cui Yunchu clicking her tongue in profound envy.
Cui Yunchu sighed in her heart. The wealth and honor that came at the risk of one's life were indeed not something ordinary people could enjoy.
Cui Yunfeng presented her own dowry gift, a set of eastern pearl hair ornaments, which was extremely valuable.
The inlaid eastern pearls were all plump and round, with a beautiful luster. Even a single pearl was likely worth a fortune, easily equivalent to one of Cui Yunchu's hairpins.
Cui Yunchu's eyes went wide. How did she not know that Cui Yunfeng possessed such fine things?
Cui Yunfeng pulled the jewelry set closer to her chest, looking at Cui Yunchu warily. "This is my dowry gift for our cousin. Do not go coveting it."
Cui Yunchu snorted coldly. "I did not realize you had this trick up your sleeve."
Cui Yunchu was certain she had rummaged through her dressing table before, and this set of ornaments was definitely not there.
Cui Yunfeng had a secret stash.
Cui Yunfeng curled her lips and muttered softly, "With you acting like a greedy skinflint, if you had seen it, you would have swiped it long ago."
"..."
"I am your elder sister. How can you speak to me like that?"
"Besides, if you did not give it to me, would I actually steal it?"
Cui Yunfeng scoffed softly. "You might not steal it, but you would definitely pry the pearls off. It is not like you did not do that when we were kids."
Speaking of which, it was just a plate of pastries made by Cui Yunfeng's wet nurse. They were very soft and fluffy, with candied fruit wrapped inside.
At that time, Cui Yunfeng had just returned to the capital and strongly disliked Cui Yunchu, so naturally, she refused to share.
She had left the pastries in the pavilion while she went to relieve herself. When she returned, the pastries were still there, but the candied fruits were gone.
Seeing the holes gouged out from the bottom of the pastries, Cui Yunfeng cried for a long time out of anger.
Cui Yunchu: "..."
"That is ancient history. Why are you still holding a grudge?"
Cui Yunfeng retorted, "You do not hold grudges? I pushed you once, and you complained to our grandmother about it for over half a month."
"." Cui Yunchu looked embarrassed and glared unhappily at Cui Yunfeng.
Tang Qingwan accepted Cui Yunfeng's eastern pearl ornaments, had someone put them away safely, and then turned her gaze to Cui Yunchu, holding out her hand. "Where is yours?"
Cui Yunchu coughed lightly, took a brocade box from her sleeve, and handed it to Tang Qingwan. "I am poor, so consider it a small gift with deep affection."
Tang Qingwan opened it and was momentarily stunned.
"Why does this hairpin look somewhat familiar?"
Cui Yunfeng leaned in to look and was immediately rendered utterly speechless. "Is this not Cousin's hairpin?"
Cui Yunchu mumbled, "Ah... yeah."
"Cousin gave it to me, so it became mine. Now I am giving it back to Cousin, so there is nothing wrong with that."
Cui Yunfeng felt helpless. Even presenting Buddha with borrowed flowers should not be done like this.
"What about the jewelry sets you asked for from Cousin and me?"
Cui Yunchu stammered slightly.
She could not bear to part with an entire set. A single, slightly valuable piece that was presentable enough—this was the only one.
"You penny-pincher."
Watching the two sisters bicker, Tang Qingwan found it extremely amusing. She could not help but pinch Cui Yunchu's cheek. "You miser."
Cui Yunchu smiled sheepishly. "Cousin, I really love that set of ornaments. When I get married, could you give it to me as my dowry gift?"
Tang Qingwan was practically astounded. She waved the hairpin in front of Cui Yunchu's eyes. "You gave me a single hairpin, yet you are asking me for such a hefty return gift. Is that appropriate?"
"We are sisters," Cui Yunchu said, her skin thick enough to brush it off.
Tang Qingwan: "..." Even so, you do not just directly ask someone for it.
"That was a gift from Yunfeng, so I cannot give it to you." Seeing Cui Yunchu's face fall, she continued with a smile, "But do not worry. When the time comes, I will definitely pick something valuable from the Crown Prince's storehouse for you."
Cui Yunchu's expression immediately cleared up like a cloudy sky turning sunny. She curved her lips into a smile and pointed her spearhead at Cui Yunfeng. "When the time comes, you have to give me something even more expensive, otherwise you should change your surname to Tang and stop being a Cui."
Laughter and cheerful voices filled the room constantly. The Tang Manor was exceptionally bustling, but it did not compare to even half the joy within Tang Qingwan's courtyard.
Old Madam Cui and Grand Tutor Tang were both deeply worried.
Cui Yunfeng recounted her encounter with Liu Wanting in the garden just now, along with the entire sequence of events.
Tang Qingwan knew that Liu Wanting had come today, but she paid her no mind.
"The Crown Prince and I did indeed find the Ministry of War's wooden tally at the bottom of the cliff."
Cui Yunfeng immediately said, "Then can we go before the Emperor to file a complaint against her?"
Previously, just because she was dunked in a slop bucket, the Liu family made a fuss all the way to the palace, even getting Liu Wanting the title of County Princess. Now that they finally had something on them, Cui Yunfeng naturally wanted to punish the Liu family.
Thinking of the suffering Cui Yunchu had endured, and the scene of her being found lying on the ground on the verge of death, Cui Yunfeng wished she could kill Liu Wanting.
Tang Qingwan fell silent. After a long moment, she gently shook her head. "If we were able to find this out, Uncle must surely know by now as well. If he hasn't exposed the matter, he must have his own considerations."
Cui Yunfeng could not understand.
"What considerations? The Liu family nearly killed Eldest Sister, and you were their target as well. If we let her off this time, won't she become even more arrogant and unbridled in the future?"
Cui Yunchu listened to the two of them, resting her chin in her hand as she pondered deeply, not joining the conversation.
Tang Qingwan looked toward her. "Yunchu, what are your thoughts?"
Cui Yunchu replied, "I just feel that there is something very bizarre about this whole affair.
"It is certainly possible that the Liu family wanted to harm you, Cousin, since our interests are in conflict. However, leaving a wooden plaque at the bottom of the cliff seems highly unlikely. It doesn't seem like careless evidence, but rather something left behind on purpose for us to find."
Cui Yunchu continued her analysis. "Think about it. Prince An, the Crown Prince, Cousin, and Father were all able to find the wooden plaques. No matter how foolish Liu Wanting might be, could she really be that stupid?"
Tang Qingwan nodded repeatedly as she listened.
Cui Yunchu said, "Therefore, I suspect that the Liu family might have deliberately set a trap to lure us in, and that they have a backup plan ready."
Cui Yunfeng's eyes widened in shock. "Is that really the case?"
Tang Qingwan was speechless for a moment.
"Could there perhaps be another possibility?"
The two whispering sisters turned to look at her, and Tang Qingwan continued, "Someone might be framing them. The true culprit could be someone else entirely."
Her gaze swept over Cui Yunfeng with an indiscernible meaning, but the latter was too immersed in her own thoughts to notice.
Tang Qingwan added, "But without evidence, all of this is nothing more than baseless speculation. As for those wooden plaques, everyone serving in the Ministry of War has one. The Liu family could easily come up with a hundred excuses to evade responsibility. They cannot be counted as solid proof."
Cui Yunfeng felt deeply unwilling to let the matter rest.
Tang Qingwan fell silent for a brief moment before suddenly speaking up. "Yunfeng, there is something I need your help with."
