My Lady Always Lacks Ambition
Chapter 147 - 146 Madness Induced by Lust

Chapter 147: Chapter 146 Madness Induced by Lust

Upon hearing Qi Qian inquire about the maiden name directly, Huo Lang couldn’t help but twitch the corners of his mouth, somewhat speechless. No wonder his master was still a bachelor. Who would so bluntly ask for a lady’s private name?

"Commandery Prince, a lady’s maiden name is not something casually divulged to others. People usually call them by their nicknames or by their order in the family. However, the younger generation of the Qin family, regardless of gender, are all named with ’Ming’ as their generation name."

Qi Qian uttered an ’oh’ and then lost interest.

Huo Lang continued talking about the other branches of the family, saying, "Qin Boqing’s wife had a premature birth, giving birth to twins, fortunately, both mother and children are safe. However, the Qin family can really be said to be fraught with great disasters. Commandery Prince, you see, Qin Yuanshan has been sitting as the Minister of the Ministry of Rites for several years without any incidents, showing that he performs his duties meticulously. How could he make such a grave and low-level mistake on such an important occasion as the grand ceremony this year?"

If it was said that Qin Yuanshan made such a mistake right after taking office, then that would be one thing, as it could be chalked up to inexperience. However, he has been in this position for several years and it is not his first time overseeing such matters. Still making a mistake is rather unusual.

Qi Qian said: "Whether it is carelessness or a setup by others, the mistake falls on his head, and it’s all his problem. The Holy Emperor will not consider whether he is innocent or not, he will only look at the results."

As soon as he spoke, he paused slightly, and remembered what Qin Liuxi had said.

If the Holy Emperor trusts you, even faults are no faults, but if he doesn’t trust you, no faults are also faults.

Huo Lang spoke up: "Commandery Prince, shall we still investigate the Qin family? In my opinion, with that household of old, weak, women, and children, they probably don’t have the capacity to cause trouble, not to mention, now they have also offended the Zhao family, which is likely to bring them more trouble."

"Compile the information and I will report it as it is," Qi Qian instructed: "Also, remind others to pay more attention to those who have dealings with the Qin family." "Yes."

As soon as their conversation ended, Ying Bei reported that Assistant Zhao had come to visit, saying that since he learned Qi Qian had come to Li City, he had prepared food and drink to welcome and cleanse him of his travel dust, inviting the Commandery Prince to give them the honor of his presence.

Qi Qian had no particular liking for people from the Meng Family camp and coldly refused: "Not seeing him." He paused, then added, "Tell him, the commoners coming and going through the city gates are too many; a jammed carriage could impede traffic and is more likely to cause accidents. Ask him to keep his family in check—these city gates are not opened just for the Zhao Family."

That was a warning.

Ying Bei went to deliver the message.

Assistant Zhao, upon hearing the relayed words, was utterly dumbfounded, sweating heavily as he returned to his mansion in a rush and hastily called for his housekeeper to ask what had happened; he felt a rush of darkness before his eyes.

This little demon is really lethal!

He then hurried to his wife’s chamber, where he saw his beautiful aunt, looking wronged while complaining to his wife. Seeing him, she stood up, greeted him with the grace of a willow in the breeze, and coquettishly said: "Brother-in-law is back."

If it were any other day, her coquettish voice would have melted Zhao Tong entirely, but having just received Prince Rui’s warning, and being in his wife’s presence, he feigned indifference with a grunt.

"Brother-in-law, you must seek justice for me," Mrs. Xiao Zheng sulked a little and looked over with great grievance: "I rarely come to visit you and sister, yet I was harassed and bullied."

Mrs. Zheng glanced at her and frowned, asking, "Don’t start with that, why did you suddenly show up? Did you fight with your lord husband again?"

Mrs. Xiao Zheng’s eyes darted around, pouting, she said: "Not at all, I only missed you and wanted to have a chat with my sister. Who knew I would encounter that trashy person on entering the city—it’s really bad luck. Brother-in-law, you must air my grievances; mere family members of a criminal official dared to disregard the Zhao family, they don’t hold you in the slightest regard at all."

If it had been any other day, Zhao Tong might have agreed immediately, but having just received Qi Qian’s warning, he dare not agree and said with a stern face, "Don’t mention it, your scene at the city gate nearly gave someone important leverage over me."

Mrs. Zheng was immediately alarmed, glanced around, and as the servants exited, she hurriedly asked: "My lord, what do you mean by that? Who has leverage?"

"It’s because of Li Niang." Zhao Tong looked at Mrs. Xiao Zheng, his expression also somewhat troubled.

Mrs. Xiao Zheng: "!"

It wasn’t fair, she was the one aggrieved, so why was her brother-in-law blaming her now?

"Prince Rui happened to come to Li City today, and Li Niang had a conflict with the Qin Family, and they ran into him. I wanted to welcome him and dust off the travels, but I didn’t even see him, and I was warned." Assistant Zhao said solemnly, "He said that the gates of Li City are not opened just for the Zhao Family. Listen to this, are these good words?"

Mrs. Xiao Zheng exclaimed, "Prince Rui? Brother-in-law, are you talking about the one from Prince Ning Mansion? He actually came to Li City, right behind my carriage?"

My goodness, what an extraordinary person I’ve missed!

"Li Niang, shut up." Mrs. Zheng was furious, her face pale as she asked Assistant Zhao, "Sir, Prince Rui wouldn’t hold a grudge against you because of this, would he?"

"I don’t think so?" Assistant Zhao was also somewhat uneasy.

Mrs. Zheng frowned, "Regardless, Sir, you should still be cautious. Don’t be too flashy, since Li City is also within Prince Ning’s jurisdiction. Also, we need to find out why Prince Rui is here in Li City. Could it be to catch us in some wrongdoing?"

Assistant Zhao felt a chill down his spine and said, "I will go and arrange a meeting with some staff right away."

Mrs. Xiao Zheng watched Assistant Zhao about to leave and was dumbfounded, saying, "Brother-in-law, what about me? The Qin Family insulted me so, are we just going to let it go?"

Mrs. Zheng’s face sank and she coldly swept over, "If it weren’t for your lack of restraint, your brother-in-law wouldn’t have caught Prince Rui’s attention. Do you still dare to cling to this issue? Are you hoping your brother-in-law loses his position?"

Mrs. Xiao Zheng shrank her neck and said pitifully, "It’s just that I saw the Qin family acting so arrogant, and if we don’t teach them a lesson, they’ll think they can even sit above you!"

"The Qin family has been defeated, today in Li City it’s merely some old and weak women and children, what trouble could they stir up?" Mrs. Zheng sneered, "There will be plenty of time to deal with them later, now we definitely need to behave well under Prince Rui’s watch."

Assistant Zhao agreed, "Yes, once Prince Rui leaves, everything can be discussed."

As long as he still holds his official position, venting his anger would just be a matter of moving his lips, since the Qin family’s old home is right here in Li City under his watch. But if he loses his position, then everything is ruined!

He was aware of the priority of matters.

Mrs. Xiao Zheng was blocked by the two and was unhappy, but she didn’t dare say anything, merely stomping her handkerchief angrily as she left.

Mrs. Zheng shook her head; this sister was spoiled by their parents, totally unaware of the gravity of situations, and yet still couldn’t be criticized.

"Sir, you better go arrange things too."

Assistant Zhao nodded and hurriedly left the main house, but on his way to the study, he was pulled behind a banana tree, nearly scared out of his wits.

"Li Niang? What are you doing hiding here, trying to scare your brother-in-law to death?"

"Brother-in-law, do you really bear to see Li Niang suffer like this?" Mrs. Xiao Zheng’s face was tear-stained, and her soft, boneless hand was still hooked around his waistband.

Assistant Zhao’s mind exploded, momentarily losing his wits, he said, "Definitely not, just wait, your brother-in-law will definitely stand up for you."

Mrs. Xiao Zheng then smiled, even throwing him a flirtatious glance, extremely pleased with herself, waiting to see how Mrs. Qin weeps bitterly, and that wretched girl, hmph!