After The Scumbag Alpha Consort Chose To Lie Flat, The Princess Rebelled - Chapter 11

The matter others could not understand was something Silan herself could not quite make sense of either.

She waited until the next day, when Yun Rou came to report that the consort had improved somewhat.

Only then did Silan go to Meng Qianyan with the good news, and while she was there, she also voiced her own doubts.

“Your Highness, sending away the others is one thing. But why touch the Crown Prince’s people?” Silan asked her.

Meng Qianyan said nothing. She only calmly drank her tea. After a while, she spoke leisurely. “When will the consort be able to get up and walk around?”

“The consort has only just awakened. I’m afraid it will take some time before she can get up and move around.” Silan did not understand why Meng Qianyan had suddenly brought this up.

Meng Qianyan set down her teacup and sneered. “Has the envoy delegation left?”

“In reply to Your Highness, they left the capital five days ago.”

Meng Qianyan stopped speaking. Silan suddenly understood, and cold sweat broke out all over her body. “Your Highness. The Crown Prince’s side wants to…”

“Mm.” Meng Qianyan slowly closed her eyes, feeling exhausted in both body and heart.

Crown Prince Brother had never treated her as a younger sister.

She was merely the most useful object among the natural Crown Prince faction. Even the consort boarding her ship was the same.

The envoy delegation had left, and the matter of the political marriage alliance had been resolved.

For a sickly consort born from a poor family to suddenly die at this moment would be most suitable.

Otherwise, why had the consort fallen ill in the morning, yet the report only reached her in the evening? And it was even her own hidden guard who came injured to report it. Who had secretly stopped the people of the consort’s estate from delivering the message? Who had wanted to put her hidden guard to death?

“Your Highness, this move may chill the Eastern Palace’s heart. If it is for the sake of the consort and you become estranged from the Crown Prince, I fear it is not worth it.” Silan still wanted to advise her. “Your Highness.”

“Silan.” Meng Qianyan suddenly looked at her, her gaze extraordinarily sharp. This was not the first time Silan had seen such force from Her Highness, but it was the first time Her Highness had directed that imperial majesty at her.

Silan quickly knelt. “This subordinate has spoken too much. Please calm your anger, Your Highness.”

“Silan. Let this palace ask you. Has this palace ever betrayed the Crown Prince?”

“No.”

“Then let this palace ask you again. Has the Crown Prince ever cared about this palace?”

“This…” Silan opened her mouth. This was not easy to answer.

The Crown Prince was selfish by nature. Since childhood, he had been raised by Her Majesty’s side. To him, all his younger brothers and sisters were nothing but his servants.

Only the Sixth Princess, who had also been born of the late Empress, could receive a few scraps of the Crown Prince’s attention. And the Sixth Princess was an Omega, so she would neither compete with him for the Eastern Palace’s position nor fail to help him at suitable times.

“This palace is tired, Silan.” Meng Qianyan sighed. “In the past, this palace always felt that Mother Empress passed away early, and my maternal family was weak. Crown Prince Brother was isolated and without support in court. I was his own younger sister. If I did not help him, who else would?”

Meng Qianyan laughed self-mockingly. “Previously, the Crown Prince chose Young General Wu for me. Now, he has chosen the consort for me. The consort’s life and death are part of his calculations. And how is my own fate any different?”

Hearing this, Silan’s heart ached terribly. She regretted the advice she had just given.

Meng Qianyan rose and helped her up. “You have followed me the longest, and you are someone Mother Empress left to me. It is precisely because I trust you that I say these things to you.”

The sudden change in how she referred to herself moved Silan deeply.

“Your Highness. What are your plans?”

“Receive my fief and leave the capital.” Meng Qianyan’s heart had turned cold. “The capital’s prosperity is good, but power and desire blind the eyes and leave people unable to act freely. It would be better to leave early and be freed early. Whether it is a bitterly cold land or a place of scorching summers, it is enough if I can live a little more freely.”

Meng Qianyan’s tone carried a trace of lightness, but it could not hide the chill in her words. “In some time, it will be the New Year. Once the palace banquet is over, I will ask Imperial Mother to let me leave the capital. Imperial Mother has delayed deciding my fief for so long. I fear she is also considering this matter.”

“Your Highness, you mean… Her Majesty is hesitating too?”

“I do not dare claim to have guessed the mind of the sovereign, but it is likely eight or nine parts true. Crown Prince Brother has grown up, the Second Prince has grown up too, and Imperial Mother is gradually aging. The other princes and princesses who have come of age are also beginning to step onto the stage. Imperial Mother will be afraid too.”

“Everyone says this palace is Imperial Mother’s most beloved child. Yet ever since Crown Prince Brother married the Grand Tutor’s legitimate daughter, this child supposedly most beloved by Her Majesty was also placed among the candidates to become a marriage-alliance princess.”

“Beloved? Heh. Crown Prince Brother feared that his own younger sister becoming a marriage-alliance princess would make him lose all face, so he chose a poor-born consort for this palace. If Imperial Mother truly loved me, how could she have bestowed this marriage?”

From beginning to end, no one had ever asked her.

The consort had been dissatisfied and had treated her like an enemy. What about her? She had likewise been arranged into one marriage after another.

The brave and invincible young general. The newly titled top scholar, a talented woman from a humble family.

Beneath such a dazzling, flower-filled exterior, who knew what poisonous medicine meant to harm people was hidden inside?

“Your Highness!” Silan’s heart ached unbearably. “No matter what decision Your Highness makes, this subordinate will follow Your Highness in life and death!”

“There is no hurry for now. We will make plans after the palace banquet.” Meng Qianyan thought of another matter. “Once the consort wakes, urge her to transplant the seedlings. Perhaps this palace will have to bring this thing to my fief and fight a turnaround battle with it.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Another day and night passed before Gu Xianyu finally woke. She could even get up and walk a few steps. In the entire consort’s estate, Xiu’an was the happiest of all. His little life had been saved; he would not have to be buried with her.

Gu Xianyu slowly paced to the flower room. She wanted to see her seeds.

Gold One had been ordered to guard this place. Aside from the consort and the people sent by the princess’s residence, no one else was allowed inside.

Xiu’an wanted to follow Gu Xianyu in to take a look, but even that was not allowed. Chief Administrator Jin held a blade to his neck and frightened him away.

“Consort, when can these seedlings be planted?” Chief Administrator Jin then said, “Registrar Silan has already come to urge us for several days. Can they be planted sooner?”

“Yes.” Gu Xianyu looked around. Their growth was all very good. Finally, she saw the winter plum she had brought back. It had already been transplanted.

It was just that these past few days, she had not used her spiritual energy to nourish it, so the winter plum’s growth had become somewhat dispirited.

“Consort, everything inside here was built according to your instructions. Is something unsuitable?”

“No.” Gu Xianyu sighed and pointed at the winter plum. “The climate is wrong.”

She picked up the winter plum and held it in her arms. The temperature here was suitable for breeding chili pepper seedlings, but it was not suitable for winter plum growth.

She could only take the winter plum away first. Before leaving, she said to Gold One, “Call Silan to come transplant the seedlings. If anything happens, call me again.”

“Yes, Consort!” Gold One did not know exactly what use these things had, but she knew that Silan’s attitude largely represented Her Highness’s intentions. Since Silan had been urging them so urgently, it was clear this thing was extremely important to Her Highness.

Silan found trustworthy old farmers from the estates and brought them over to take away the chili pepper seedlings from the consort’s estate. Before leaving, one old farmer saw the flower room’s facilities and could not help marveling.

“As expected of the consort’s estate’s flower room. It’s so warm in here. No wonder the seedlings could succeed. That makes sense too. The noble masters’ flowers bloom in every season, so there must be plenty of work put into these flower rooms.”

Silan did not tell him that the consort had actually succeeded in raising the seedlings in a side courtyard of the princess’s residence.

“Old Ding, let me ask you. Can other seedlings be raised in a flower room?”

“They can, yes. But the weather outside still isn’t right. Even if the seedlings are raised, they can’t be planted outside.”

Silan came to a realization. Then she pointed at the chili pepper seedlings in Old Ding’s arms. “Can this be planted?”

“I don’t know. This old farmer has never planted it before. Weren’t you the one who told this old farmer to come?”

Silan fell silent for a moment. “I will be right back. Wait here.”

Silan ran to the consort’s residence and saw only the consort still fiddling with that rather familiar-looking winter plum.

“Consort.”

Gu Xianyu turned and saw her. “What is it?”

“Consort, the weather outside is currently freezing. Can the red fruit seedlings truly be planted?”

Gu Xianyu nodded lightly. “Yes. Just plant them. Every seven days, I will go tend them once. That will be enough.”

Silan had never heard of such a thing before. Her heart was shocked, but none of it showed on her face. After leaving with Old Ding, she hurried back to the princess’s residence to report the matter.