Chapter 129: The Princess's Plan

"They have been settled in. They seem to be relatives of the Red Demon. The demon was watching from afar, and that dragon princess held the Red Demon and cried for a long time until her eyes were swollen. As for the other demons who arrived later, because they still carried the scent of demon aura, the Red Demon had to go out to the mountain gate to receive them himself."

"If Chifeng is lacking anything, help him get it. As for the money, I will reimburse you when the time for battle comes."

Kongkong patted his chest. "A little money is just a gesture of respect from a demon to you, my lord."

Jiang Lan thought of Chifeng’s appearance. "Better put it on my tab. Otherwise, Chifeng alone would be enough to drive you to distraction."

"Since you are so polite, my lord, I won't stand on ceremony." Kongkong laughed happily, having saved himself a sum of silver.

Jiang Lan did not care about such a small amount of money. She held several fertile estates and profitable shops in her hands. That cheap nephew of hers was actually quite capable; under his management these days, results were already showing. This year, they were bound to make a fortune.

"Are you aware that a princess from the Liang Kingdom is staying here?" Jiang Lan recalled the conversation among the soldiers at the gate when she arrived and probed Kongkong to see if he knew anything.

"Uh..."

Seeing the suggestive look in Kongkong’s eyes, Jiang Lan immediately knew the demon’s mind must be wandering into improper territory. She quickly said sternly, "I don't have that kind of relationship with her. Ahem, don't get the wrong idea!"

Watching Jiang Lan’s hurried explanation, the misunderstanding in Kongkong’s heart only deepened. "As for this Southern Liang princess, who else would be more familiar with her than you, Prince? Back then, your reputation for 'stealing jade and courting beauty'—though unsuccessfully—was famous throughout Jiankang. Later, there were even more rumors: they say that from the moment the Liang princess entered the city, you were smitten at first sight, unable to eat or sleep, inquiring about her whereabouts all day long, and even blocked the princess’s carriage on the street. Even more so—"

Seeing Kongkong hesitate, Jiang Lan asked again, "What else?"

"They say that the Liang Kingdom originally intended to use this princess for a political marriage, and their target was your cousin, the current Emperor of Great Chen. But before the matter could be formally discussed, the news of your infatuation with the princess spread like wildfire, and the Empress Dowager directly put the entire affair on hold.

Rumor has it that the Empress Dowager, fearing a rift between you and the Emperor, did not want the Emperor to marry this princess. Her intention was to find a member of the imperial clan to marry her instead.

In fact, the ministers share this sentiment. After all, marrying a princess of another country concerns the orthodoxy of the royal bloodline, and since the Liang Kingdom is merely a tiny patch of land, how could they possibly allow it to covet the position of Empress?

But the Liang Kingdom will certainly not accept this. It deviates quite a bit from their original plan."

***

A woman from the original body’s perspective going off to "steal jade and court beauty"? Jiang Lan wouldn't believe it even if she were beaten to death. However, she asked in a low voice, "The Liang princess is still at this post house, which means the marriage hasn't been settled yet. Do you know which imperial clansman my aunt is suggesting?"

Kongkong shook his head and sighed.

"This is truly difficult. The late Emperor only had the current Emperor as his sole heir; all the others were princesses. So, they have to look among the late Emperor’s nephews and princes. But while the late Emperor’s generation had plenty of brothers, they are all either the legitimate heirs or sons of concubines, and they fall short of the status required to marry a legitimate princess of a sovereign state.

However, the ministers have come up with a solution: they will bestow a title upon the chosen heir, but according to the rites, it cannot exceed that of his father, so he must remain a Commandery Prince. Still, this is a tremendous honor; many imperial clansmen spend years on the battlefield without seeing such a reward."

"So, who are they eyeing?" Jiang Lan asked.

"Li Shengmao, heir to the Prince of Yi, and Chen Shu, the great-grandson of the Prince of Qi."

"Isn't the Prince of Yi a prince of a different surname? How did his son get on the list?" Recalling what she saw on the flower boat that day, Li Shengmao should have been deeply affectionate with Princess Ningyuan, to whom she was betrothed. How could he be a candidate?

"Even though he is a prince of a different surname, his mother is a royal princess, and his father is the only prince with a different surname, so he is naturally included. Furthermore, most of the imperial clansmen of suitable age already have betrothals that match their status; they were carefully selected from birth, so how could it fall to them to marry a troublesome foreign princess?"

"But isn't there one more? Why doesn't he have a betrothal?"

Seeing Kongkong’s eyebrows arch, Jiang Lan knew there must be something interesting there.

"This great-grandson of the Prince of Qi is also a well-known figure in Jiankang. He has 'cursed' two betrothed fiancées to death in a row. The great families, having poured all their efforts into raising their daughters, wouldn't dare send them in to be ruined, so he was passed over, and now it's his turn."

"Are the ministers not afraid that he will curse the princess to death as well?" Jiang Lan asked.

"While there is talk of incompatible horoscopes, those of us who know better understand there is no such thing as a curse causing death; it is all hearsay," Kongkong said. "At the time, the rumors were wild, and as a demon, I was often pestered by visiting pilgrims, so I naturally learned a thing or two. It wasn't that the great-grandson of the Prince of Qi had a 'hard life' that cursed others. The first betrothal was arranged before birth by parents who were old friends, but it turned out the girl’s father had a restless concubine. The mother suffered a difficult labor, and since it wasn't a happy matter, few knew of it.

The baby girl was frail and grew up pampered in the boudoir. Though she looked no different from others, her heart and lungs had been damaged for a long time. I have seen her; she had the face of someone short-lived."

"And the other one?"

"That was when the Prince of Qi’s great-grandson was already over twelve. By then, any girl of similar age from a nearby family was already betrothed, so they looked far away to a daughter of a military family in the Longyou Circuit of the Northwest. They were counting on her robust health, but no sooner had they exchanged the betrothal documents than the girl fell from her horse and died shortly after."

"…And you say he doesn't curse his wives?"

Kongkong laughed. "My lord, that is not the right way to put it. The horoscopes were matched here with me, and I have seen them. That girl would have fallen from a height and met her end regardless of whether the marriage went through. It really had nothing to do with the Prince of Qi’s great-grandson."

"Going by what you say, how old is he now?"

"Seventeen by nominal age. Rumor has it he is as handsome as Pan An, well-mannered, and a truly fine young nobleman."

Jiang Lan smiled faintly. "If what you say is true, the Liang princess should be quite taken with him. He is talented, handsome, young, and has the Prince of Qi as an ancestor—that’s a major branch of the imperial clan."

Kongkong shook his head, his eyes gleaming.

"My lord, take a guess at what the Liang Kingdom is planning?"

Just as Jiang Lan was about to guess, Kongkong blurted it out.

"The Liang princess wants to marry the Prince of Anping! Hahaha!"

Compared to Kongkong’s excited laughter, Jiang Lan was visibly lost in thought.

"I have met Chen Mian. Although he has a pair of 'peach blossom' eyes and is quite handsome, he is no longer young, and his son, Chen Yu, is almost of age. Besides, his primary consort is still alive, and there is no talk of a second wife. A princess of a sovereign state wouldn't settle for being a secondary consort. Furthermore, the Princess of Anping has offspring—the heir—so there is no way she would be demoted. Could the princess be trying to use power to oppress others?"

Kongkong shook his head. "The Liang princess is not stupid; going head-to-head with a primary consort would not be in accordance with etiquette. But as for being a secondary consort, even if she were willing to suffer that indignity, the people of the Liang Kingdom probably wouldn't allow it. The ministers wouldn't stand for it either; it would be tantamount to damaging diplomatic relations between the two countries."