An Eight-year-old Princess

Chapter 135 Making A Plot (Part Two)

In the afternoon, Yun Shang was playing chess with Prince Jing in her Palace. Yun Shang had been

taught to play chess by Xiao Yuanshan, and she had been complimented by him many times. But

during the whole afternoon, she didn't beat Prince Jing even once.

"Your Highness, the physician checked Princess Hua Jing and reported her condition to the Emperor.

The physician said that Princess Hua Jing was physically weak due to her miscarriage but in general,

Princess Hua Jing was all right, " said Qian Yin gently as she walked in the room.

Yun Shang nodded and placed her piece. Looking at the chessboard, Prince Jing said, "Shang'er, are

you sure you want to put the piece here? If so, you will lose again."

Yun Shang looked at the chessboard and couldn't figure out when Prince Jing started to set a trap to

beat her. She did lose the game again. Yun Shang sighed. She remembered her grandfather had often

told her, "You will know a man by watching him play a chess game." Yun Shang had always been

cautious when playing chess. She would think carefully before putting down a piece. But Prince Jing

seemed to put down every piece casually. In the beginning, Yun Shang never had any idea of how he

was going to play the game. But at the end, she found herself falling into a trap set by Prince Jing.

"Uncle, you are farsighted and prudent. You make me ashamed of myself." Yun Shang sighed and put

down the piece.

Prince Jing smiled slightly and said, "Shang'er, you're inexperienced. It's normal that you would lose to

me. If you spend more time practicing playing chess, you will beat me easily."

Yun Shang knew of her poor ability. Seeing that Prince Jing was trying to console her, she appreciated

Prince Jing's kindness and said with a smile, "Thank you, uncle."

Prince Jing smiled and shook his head. He noticed that Yun Shang looked absent-minded and

wondered what she was thinking about. But it was inappropriate for him to ask. So he rose to his feet

and said, "My brother must be very disappointed at the Empress and Hua Jing. Now the envoys of the

State of Yelang and the State of Xia are here. Brother won't punish the Empress and Hua Jing right

now because he wants to save the prestige of the royal family. From now on, it will be hard for the

Empress and Hua Jing to regain their power in the Imperial Palace. Tonight, there will be a bonfire

party. Let's attend it."

Yun Shang nodded and said, "Have you found the culprit who fed the purgative to Ta Yun?"

Prince Jing was shocked. He turned around to look at Yun Shang and said with a brief smile, "You

ordered Cangyang Yu'er and Jing Wenxin to do it, didn't you?"

Yun Shang was embarrassed. She was indeed the culprit, but she didn't know how Prince Jing found

out.

Prince Jing said with a smile, "I have checked those black beans. I think Ta Yun wouldn't eat those

black beans mixed with the purgatives because they smelled bad. Cangyang Yu'er and Jing Wenxi

didn't prepare them well due to limited time. Maybe they thought the horse would eat what it is fed no

matter how bad it smelled. What's more, Ta Yun has told me that it was you who fed it those black

beans."

Really? Could a horse speak? Yun Shang was shocked and paused for a while. Ta Yun had

accompanied Prince Jing for a very long time, so it was unsurprising that Prince Jing could connect

with Ta Yun. Yun Shang didn't intend to conceal her involvement from Prince Jing. So she was not

afraid of admitting that. She said with a smile, "I don't like being schemed against. If I make too many

enemies, I will live a life of trepidation and keep worrying that I will be murdered by my enemy one day.

Uncle, you brought these troubles on me. You should handle them for me."

Prince Jing nodded and replied, "You're right. I will deal with Cangyang Yu'er and Jing Wenxi. I will From NôvelDrama.Org.

make Jing Wenxi suffer. As for Cangyang Yu'er, she is still useful."

"Really?" On hearing this, Yun Shang smiled. She had no idea what Prince Jing was going to do, but

she was excited about what was going to happen.

When Yun Shang and Prince Jing arrived in the evening, the bonfire party had already begun. They

found a place to sit and watched the song and dance performances. The maid brought them a dish of

roasted mutton. The smell was so appetizing that Yun Shang was salivating.

Prince Jing took the dish from the maid. His action made Yun Shang stare at Prince Jing for a while.

Prince Jing sliced up the roasted mutton with a knife and passed it to Yun Shang. Yun Shang was

pleased and thanked the Prince with a sweet smile before she bowed her head and proceeded to eat.

By the time it became dark, the party had become boisterous. When Cangyang Yu'er saw Prince Jing

sliced up the mutton for Yun Shang, she was enraged. Feeling the anger radiating off Cangyang Yu'er,

Prince Qingsu whispered something in her ear. Subsequently, Cangyang Yu'er calmed down.

Yun Shang perceived this but she ignored Cangyang Yu'er.

Nothing special happened that night. When the party reached its peak, Yun Shang called for Qian Yin

and ordered something. Then Qian Yin left the party. A while later, Prince Qingsu left the party secretly.

Not long after, the Grand Councilor also left with an excuse.

Yun Shang looked around, stood up and went to the Emperor. "Father, just now a guard came to report

that my sister is feeling unwell. Would you like to see her now?"

Since the Emperor knew Hua Jing had born an unknown man's baby, he thought badly of her. But he

knew he had to wait to punish Hua Jing. So when he heard Yun Shang say that Hua Jing was unwell,

he rose to his feet and said, "Let's go then."

The Emperor, supported by Yun Shang withdrew from the party. They passed through a garden and

walked into a bamboo forest. Some muffled voices came from the distance at the time. Yun Shang

frowned and arrested her step with hesitation. She pricked her ears and listened attentively for a while

before she whispered in the Emperor's ear, "Father, it sounds like the Grand Councilor is speaking."

She paused for a moment and continued, "The other voice sounds like Prince Qingsu of the State of

Yelang."

The Emperor's eyes gleamed with anger. On seeing this, Yun Shang said gently, "Father, do we go

there to greet Prince Qingsu and the Grand Councilor?"

The Emperor said with a cold smile, "No. Let's take a detour and avoid them."

Yun Shang smiled slightly. She knew she was right. She had guessed that the Emperor wouldn't go to

greet them in such circumstances and that after this, the Emperor would suspect the relations between

the Grand Councilor who held a high position in the State and Prince Qingsu who had always planned

to conquer the State of Ning. Even if the Grand Councilor and Prince Qingsu were not talking about

national affairs, the Emperor would suspect them.

When the Emperor and Yun Shang reached the room, they found Hua Jing sleeping. The physician

standing by instantly stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty!"

The Emperor nodded and pointed to Hua Jing. "How is she?"

The physician replied, "Your Majesty, she caused a huge disturbance a short while ago. Now that she

is tired, she has fallen asleep."

Yun Shang smiled and fixed her eyes upon the bed on which Hua Jing lay. Yun Shang deliberately

asked the Emperor to visit Hua Jing for two reasons. First, she wanted the Emperor to see that the

Grand Councilor and Prince Qingsu had a private meeting. Second, when the Emperor sees Hua Jing,

he would dislike her more and more. The physician had told the Emperor that Hua Jing was all right. So

the Emperor knew that Hua Jing was feigning madness. If Hua Jing kept acting the fool, the Emperor's

aversion to her would increase.

The Emperor turned and left the room emotionlessly. He didn't return to the party. He said coolly, "I'm

exhausted. I will rest now."

Yun Shang nodded and walked the Emperor to his room. Halfway to the bedroom, the Emperor said,

"Shang'er, you are much smarter than your elder sister. I shouldn't worry about you. I have officially

announced that you will marry Prince Jing. But you haven't had a wedding ceremony until now, so you

are not a real couple. Now the envoys of the State of Yelang and the State of Xia are here. You should

be on guard because these two men are hard to deal with."

Yun Shang paused for a while. 'These two men? Beside Prince Qingsu of the State of Yelang, does

father allude to the seventh Prince of the State of Xia who looks gaunt and weak?'

Yun Shang thought for a while. Recently, Prince Qingsu had made many secret plots. Yun Shang had

to deal with him so she had ignored the Prince of the State of Xia. The Prince of Xia always looked

genial and urbane. He didn't look like a bad guy. What's more, compared with Prince Qingsu, he looked

guileless.

But when the Emperor mentioned the Prince of the State of Xia, Yun Shang felt surprised. The seventh

Prince of the State of Xia looked too guileless to get any attention from others. If he pretended to be so,

he must be a capable man. 'It is time for me to conduct a thorough investigation of the Prince of the

State of Xia.'