The eldest daughter's scheming, the crown prince's exclusive favor to the venomous concubi

Xiao Cui wanted to say more, but saw that Jian Yue had already lain down, and the weariness between his brows was obvious. She had no choice but to leave, sighing repeatedly.

After Xiao Cui left, Jian Yue's expression gradually relaxed. Living with a mask on all day was truly unbearable, especially today. The prince's aggressive gaze left her nowhere to hide, forcing her to tear her true nature apart and be seen through.

This was the first time she had been exposed for acting in front of others, and the first time she had given up resisting. It was also the first time she had been treated with such vile words and actions. Compared to the petty tricks of the Qilin Pavilion Master before, it was nothing.

Jian Yue suddenly compared the two of them and couldn't help but chuckle.

One was the head of the Qilin Pavilion, a man of noble status, who met her under the guise of a womanizer. The other, clearly a noble young master, engaged in despicable behavior that even a rogue would find repulsive.

These two are simply natural extremes, each with two sides, making them a mystery to everyone who sees them.

As she pondered, she found it strange that the Crown Prince was not the arrogant and domineering person she had heard rumors about. How could he have lost his position as Crown Prince? And why would Marquis Qingyan dislike him? He was simply biding his time and hiding his true strength.

However, this doesn't make sense. If Bai Jianan was struggling in the Qingyan Marquis's mansion, how could he be so arrogant and domineering? Wouldn't that be pushing himself into a position of certain defeat?

Furthermore, although there are many wolves and tigers in the capital, the Grand Princess has an emperor brother who can cover his own body and make him even more powerful. He doesn't need to pretend like this; such pretentious behavior is simply superfluous.

If there's absolutely no need for it, why is he pretending like this?

And what about the master of the Qilin Pavilion? If he really did it because of beautiful women, how could he have developed the Qilin Pavilion to such an extent? It just doesn't make sense.

Thinking of this, Jian Yue suddenly felt a little flustered.

The leader of the Qilin Pavilion has a far-reaching vision. She can't see through him, can't guess his intentions, and can't beat him or fight him. So, is she really making the right decision by trying to negotiate with a tiger?

And that young master, with his wolf-like eyes, she still can't forget them, and his domineering aura that appears and disappears, which burns her until she's dizzy.

Both sides were so fierce, and what about Jian Yue? Everything behind her seemed so insignificant; she couldn't move at all, nor dared to move.

Can we really defeat him?

Jian Yue was filled with trepidation and was somewhat hesitant to accept the challenge.

Her marriage to the heir of the Marquis of Qingyan was now a done deal. He was powerful and brooked no argument. Could she really escape unscathed? And what was the true nature of this young master?

The night was still hard to sleep, so Jian Yue got up, tidied herself up, put on some simple clothes, and left the Qiu residence along the back wall.

Hua Xiangrong never expected that Jian Yue would come over in the evening after they had just met in the afternoon, and that she looked very unwell.

As Hua Xiangrong had wine and snacks brought over, she said with a smile, "What's wrong? You look so uneasy? Did you see that young master today and get frightened by his unprecedentedly ugly appearance?"

Jian Yue chuckled and shook her head, raising her wine cup and downing it in one gulp. A faint pink blush immediately spread across her cheeks. With hazy eyes, she asked, "Sister Hua, have you investigated this Prince Qingyan?"

Hua Xiangrong was taken aback upon hearing this, then raised an eyebrow: "What? You've actually become interested in this young master?"

Jian Yue shook her head, looking at the wine glass and said, "I was just thinking that knowing yourself and your enemy will ensure victory in every battle. Moreover, I observe that this young master is different from the rumors. I always feel that this marriage, which seems to be led by Qiu Zhenzhou, is actually being pushed behind the scenes by the young master."

Upon hearing this, Hua Xiangrong sat down and said, "You mean, this marriage is a bit strange?"

Jian Yue nodded: "The Grand Princess agreed to Qiu Zhenzhou's request so easily? This is clearly a bad deal. No matter how beautiful I am, my status as a legitimate daughter is stolen, unlike Qiu Lingfeng, who is a legitimate daughter."

"Between the two of us, isn't it obvious that either of us is in cahoots with the Qiu family? Yet the Grand Princess agreed, the Heir Apparent even visited the residence, and they didn't even utter a single word of pretense. The deal was done just like that. Don't you think there's something fishy going on?"

Upon hearing this, Hua Xiangrong leaned on the table, her eyes darting around, and said, "What you said makes sense! But what if that young master is really a womanizer and just wants to see this woman who is even more beautiful than Qiu Lingfeng? If he falls for her at first sight, and the princess can't stop him, wouldn't that make perfect sense?"

Jian Yue smiled, looked at Hua Xiangrong, and pointed to her own face, saying, "Look at this face, how different is it from Qiu Lingfeng's? Even if they are evenly matched, the choice should naturally be Qiu Lingfeng, after all, she is the true legitimate daughter, isn't she?"

Hua Xiangrong pondered for a moment and nodded in agreement: "That's true. Now is a time to compare who has the best father. If the looks are similar, you will naturally choose the one with the most advantages. So, you are not the best choice."

Jian Yue frowned: "I can't figure it out either, but I feel there's something strange about it."

Hua Xiangrong thought for a moment and said, "The matter of the Marquis of Qingyan's heir is not difficult to investigate, but he is just like a commoner, lecherous, perverted, unrestrained, arrogant, and most importantly, ugly and self-righteous. Beyond that, we can't find a single thing about him, it's like..."

Jian Yue squinted and continued, "It's as if someone had erased it beforehand; the whole person was predetermined."

Hua Xiangrong squinted at this moment, and after a while, she suddenly stood up, slammed her hand on the table and said, "Why think so much? Even if he really has something wrong with you, it has nothing to do with you. You are not really going to marry him. The day of your wedding will be the day the Qiu family falls into trouble. At that time, you, Shangguan Jianyue, will have nothing to do with that damned young master."

Instead of wasting time on this, you should be thinking about how to deal with the Master of the Qilin Pavilion.

Upon hearing this, Jian Yue's head throbbed even more. The Pavilion Master of Qilin Pavilion was indeed not to be trifled with, but it seemed that the young master was no pushover either. Could her scheme to deceive everyone really work?

At this point, Hua Xiangrong suddenly leaned closer to Jian Yue and asked, "Do you know who was chasing the person who broke into our house that day?"

Jian Yue shook her head, and then Hua Xiangrong said, "The Golden Armor Guards of the Crown Prince's Palace."

Murong Chuan's people? Jian Yue was stunned. In a daze, she saw that handsome young man in black clothes again. He looked at her with gentle affection, holding her hand and promising to grow old together. And then, a steel spear pierced her heart and lungs, causing excruciating pain.

She gripped the wine glass tighter, then lowered her eyes and asked, "And then?"

Hua Xiangrong glared at him and said, "What do you mean, 'then'? Don't you think that Qilin Pavilion is incredibly audacious to even patronize the Crown Prince's business?"

Jian Yue smiled and said indifferently, "The Qilin Pavilion is renowned throughout the six kingdoms, but he is just a crown prince of Yue. How can we not touch him?"

Hua Xiangrong shook her head: "But you should know that Yue is not just a single country. Among the six countries, Yue is the most prosperous and has the strongest military. Moreover, the Yue royal family has an immeasurable amount of mysterious military power."

Do you know why the golden-armored guards of the Crown Prince's residence chased him that day? Because he had stolen the blood-red coral bestowed upon him by the Emperor from the Crown Prince's residence.

"Crimson coral?"

Jian Yue frowned: "Blood-red coral? It's just an ornamental item, why is it worth making such a fuss about?"

She had seen that blood-red coral in her previous life, but it was just a small trinket in her room. Judging from Murong Chuan's usual demeanor, he didn't seem to value her much, otherwise he wouldn't have given it to her. Why would the Qilin Pavilion be willing to make a move?

Hua Xiangrong smiled slightly, her face full of mystery: "Little Yueyue, why don't you think about whether there are ordinary things in the Crown Prince's mansion? Do you know what that blood-red coral represents? That thing is not something that ordinary people can possess."

Jian Yue fell silent, looked up at Hua Xiangrong, and gestured for her to continue. Hua Xiangrong shook her head and said, "After I returned from your place today, that lecherous Second Prince came over. Through some subtle questioning, I learned that the blood-red coral is said to be a symbol of the throne. If the Emperor wants to pass the throne to a prince, he will definitely give the blood-red coral to that prince at his coming-of-age ceremony. And that blood-red coral seems to be able to activate that armored divine weapon that the Emperor personally controls."

"Ironclad Divine Weapons?"

Jian Yue frowned. She had never heard Murong Chuan mention any ironclad divine weapon. Moreover, the Shangguan family was a family of military generals, and they had never heard of such a so-called ironclad divine weapon.

Hua Xiangrong clicked her tongue as she spoke, "The Second Prince said that the Qilin Pavilion touched the Crown Prince's Crimson Coral, and the world is about to descend into chaos. It is said that the Ironclad Divine Army listens to no one but the one who holds the Crimson Coral."

Upon hearing this, Jian Yue said, "If that's really the case, then why hasn't the Crown Prince made any move for so long? He could have used that blood-red coral to capture the other princes. It's not like he doesn't have the guts to do something like holding the emperor hostage to command the princes."

Hua Xiangrong smiled again: "If it were really that easy, would the Emperor hand over this symbolic thing to anyone other than himself? Even his preferred heir apparent would probably want to become the number one person in the world as soon as possible! Just like you said, if the Crown Prince could really activate this armored divine weapon, the Emperor would probably have already replaced him by now."

Jian Yue smiled, a playful look in her eyes: "So, what secrets does this crimson coral hold that even the Crown Prince can't grasp?"

If that's the case, then when Murong Chuan gave this thing to her in his previous life as a so-called token of love, he must have had other purposes.

Hua Xiangrong chuckled and snorted, "Whether it is true or not, we don't know. Only the Qilin Pavilion can probably find out the secrets of the royal family. Otherwise, how could they have stolen that blood-red coral by such a coincidence, and with the Pavilion Master himself taking action?"