Chapter 275: Chapter 276: At Least You’re Sensible

In the Imperial Study Room, the Emperor had just finished with the day’s memorials when he heard that Princess Longzhu had gone to the Prince Zhao Mansion.

The Emperor asked, his interest piqued.

"What was she doing at the Prince Zhao Mansion?"

Zuo Ji answered honestly, "According to my subordinates’ report, Princess Longzhu went to see Prince Zhao. However, Princess Consort Zhao accompanied the Prince to meet with her. The three of them spoke in a room for a while, and in the end, Princess Longzhu was forcibly dragged out by Chen Guard. It appears they parted on bad terms."

The Emperor asked, "Do you know what they talked about?"

Zuo Ji shook his head. "Our men couldn’t get close, so we failed to overhear the details of their conversation."

The Emperor’s index finger tapped on the desktop.

It was a habit of his whenever he was deep in thought.

Zuo Ji didn’t dare disturb the Emperor’s thoughts and stood quietly to the side, unmoving.

After a long moment, he finally heard the Emperor speak.

"Go to the Honglu Temple and deliver a verbal edict. Summon Princess Longzhu to the palace for an audience."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Zuo Ji led his men to the Honglu Temple, but they came up empty. Princess Longzhu was not in her guest quarters at the temple at all.

Upon asking, he learned that Princess Longzhu had gone out in the morning and had yet to return. Her current whereabouts were unknown.

With no other choice, Zuo Ji could only dispatch men to search for her while he remained at the Honglu Temple to wait.

Meanwhile, after leaving the Prince Zhao Mansion, Princess Longzhu was utterly humiliated and in a foul mood.

She didn’t want to return in such a dejected state. Since it was still early, she decided to wander around the city for a while to lift her spirits.

Shangjing City was far more prosperous than the capital of Xiliang, full of novelties she had never seen before. As she explored, her enthusiasm grew.

While passing an embroidery shop, she happened to encounter the He Family matriarch, who was there to purchase fabric.

Princess Longzhu didn’t know who the He Family matriarch was, but she found her features somewhat familiar and couldn’t help but stare a bit longer.

The He Family matriarch was engrossed in selecting fabric and didn’t notice someone nearby sizing her up.

She said to the female manager of the embroidery shop,

"This material is nice, but the pattern is a bit old-fashioned. Do you have anything in a more vibrant color? I want to make a new outfit for my daughter to wear for the New Year."

In previous years, the He Family matriarch had always prepared a new outfit for her beloved daughter for the New Year.

This year was no exception.

She wanted to make a new outfit for her daughter with her own hands and send it to her.

The female manager immediately had a clerk bring over two more rolls of fabric and said with an eager smile,

"These are two new fabrics we’ve just received. Both the colors and patterns are the most fashionable in all of Shangjing City, and the material is of the highest quality. Please, take a look and see which one you prefer."

The He Family matriarch meticulously examined the two fabrics.

The female manager hadn’t been exaggerating. Both fabrics were indeed excellent.

The He Family matriarch was torn, so in the end, she decided to simply buy both.

’One outfit from each fabric. My daughter can alternate between them.’

Seeing this, the female manager couldn’t help but jest,

"Princess Consort Zhao is truly blessed to have such a doting mother."

Princess Longzhu, who had been about to leave, stopped in her tracks when she heard this.

She turned her head to look at the He Family matriarch.

’No wonder I found this woman’s face familiar.’ She realized now that the woman’s features bore a slight resemblance to Princess Consort Zhao’s.

’So this woman is Princess Consort Zhao’s mother!’

Princess Longzhu had heard that the Princess Consort came from a very common background, so her mother’s status was likely nothing special either. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

She had just been humiliated by the Princess Consort and was still seething with anger. Now, the Princess Consort’s mother had stumbled right into her path. It would be a crime against heaven itself to not seize this perfect opportunity for revenge.

Princess Longzhu exited the embroidery shop and scanned her surroundings, quickly spotting a vagrant by the side of the road.

The vagrant was sitting under the eaves of a building, his back pressed against the wall. He was trembling violently, his clothes were tattered rags, and his hair was a tangled mess. His lips were purple from the cold, and his hands were swollen, red, and festering with chilblains.

Princess Longzhu walked toward the vagrant. Her two guards, fearing for her safety, immediately followed close behind.

When she reached the vagrant, Princess Longzhu took a piece of silver from her purse and tossed it at his feet.

The moment the vagrant saw the silver, he lunged for it, trying to snatch it up.

But just then, Princess Longzhu stuck out her foot and stomped on the back of his hand, pinning it to the ground so he couldn’t pick up the silver.

The vagrant looked up, his expression a mixture of confusion and terror.

Princess Longzhu bent down slightly and asked in the official tongue of Great Zhou,

"If you want this silver, do something for me. When it’s done, I’ll give you another piece."

The vagrant asked nervously, "What is your command, milady?"

Princess Longzhu leaned in and gave him quiet instructions.

The vagrant hesitated.

Seeing this, Princess Longzhu produced another piece of silver and dangled it before his eyes.

This piece of silver was even larger than the first.

The vagrant’s eyes widened, filling with naked greed.

Princess Longzhu coaxed him.

"Once you’ve done the job, you can take this money and leave Shangjing. No one will ever find you."

After a great deal of hesitation, the vagrant finally agreed to the deal.

’It’s freezing,’ he thought. ’I don’t even have a roof over my head, and I’m barely surviving on scraps. Winter is far from over. If I can’t find shelter from the wind and cold, I’m going to freeze to death.’

’Besides, I’ve already hit rock bottom. Things can’t possibly get any worse.’

’Might as well risk it.’

Princess Longzhu’s red lips curled into a smile as brilliant as the midday sun.

"At least you’re sensible."

She lifted her foot. The vagrant immediately snatched his hand back and tucked the silver safely into his clothes.

At that moment, the He Family matriarch emerged from the embroidery shop with her maidservant.

Just as they were about to board their carriage, a vagrant suddenly rushed out from the side!

He violently shoved the maidservant out of the way, grabbed the He Family matriarch’s arm, and bellowed,

"You wretched hag! How dare you cheat on me behind my back? I’ll beat you to death, you shameless wench!"

The He Family matriarch cried out in alarm and frantically tried to shake him off.

"Who are you? I don’t even know you!"

But he clung to her like glue, and she couldn’t break free no matter how she struggled.

The maidservant dropped the bolts of fabric she was holding and tried to push the vagrant away.

"Let go of my mistress!"

The commotion attracted the attention of passersby, and a crowd of onlookers quickly gathered around them.

Princess Longzhu stood in the crowd, watching the drama unfold with an excited smile on her face.

’Since the Princess Consort won’t let me live in peace, I won’t let her live in peace either.’

’Today, I’ll see to it that the Princess Consort’s mother is publicly humiliated and her reputation dragged through the mud!’

The vagrant deliberately raised his voice and began to curse loudly.

"You’re my wife! The wife I bought for a tael of silver.

I was only gone for two years, and you went and married another man behind my back.

You shameless bitch!

How do you have the gall to show your face in public? A filthy whore like you should be thrown in a pig cage and drowned!"