Although mother had rooted herself in the foreign land, she ought to have missed her homeland very much.
She could imagine how much effort her mother had made in order not to have her identity exposed back then.
If her mother could witness from heaven, how she had been reunited with her cousins, Lin Mengya was sure that she would be greatly comforted.
“Oh yes, did anyone create any disturbance at the Art Courtyard while I was away?”
By now, Lin Mengya had completely no scruples about the pretend Concubine De.
Moreover, given Long Tianyu’s intelligence, he might well have started to be suspicious.
The disorderly band in the Art Courtyard was Long Tianyu’s way of deceiving the mastermind behind the scenes.
Now that the situation in the palace was unstable and the real Concubine De was still in the queen’s hands, it was needful that they guard against certain things.
“How would they dare to stir up any trouble? However, it does seem strange that the people from the Art Courtyard would come over to our courtyard to probe for information once every two to three days. Later on, when the edict from the palace came, asking Concubine De to see the emperor, to their surprise, it greatly angered the emperor for some unknown reason. The emperor then passed an imperial edict for Concubine De to be locked up to reflect on her mistakes.”
As Baizhi answered Lin Mengya’s questions, there was a hint in her large bright eyes that suggested she was gloating over what happened.
After thinking it over carefully, Lin Mengya could understand why. Who was the emperor? Even when his life was uncertain when he fell unconscious, the Crown Prince and the queen held back from taking action for fear of any harm they might cause.
Moreover, he and Concubine De had been a couple for so many years. Naturally, it only required one glance to see through certain things.
At this moment, keeping Concubine De locked up in the Art Courtyard was a hint that they would be watching her closely.
Getting someone to be Concubine De’s imposter was merely a step in the queen’s ploy, so it did not really play an important role.
Now that everyone’s attention was on the Yun State pandemic, who would be thinking of the fake Concubine De in Prince Yu’s mansion?
“Miss, why don’t you pay a visit to Concubine De? It’s only reasonable given that she is your mother-in-law.”
Ms. Tian was not aware of the secret behind this.
On the other hand, the real problem between the two of them was that of common animosity between the mother- and daughter-in-law.
As someone who had been through the same situation, as well as an elder, she had to give Lin Mengya a few words of advice.
“Why do I have to pay a visit to her? Whenever I think of that Jiang Ruqin, my blood would start to boil!”
Baizhi tried to put an end to the suggestion, sounding angry and made a face.
Whoever dared to bully her master would get into trouble with her!
It was not that Ms. Tian did not love her infant, rather, there were just some things she had to do in order to preserve Lin Mengya’s good name.
“Alright, everything you say sounds reasonable. Baizhi, I know you are concerned about me. Likewise, Ms. Tian is as concerned. However, the Concubine De business may have future implications on another serious matter. Let us pay a visit to her now. You need not eat dirt, just do what you have to do. We don’t need to be her punching bag going forward.”
The sweet smile on Lin Mengya, as well as her calm voice puzzled both Baizhi and Ms. Tian.
What, what on earth was happening?
After a little preparation, Lin Mengya changed into a pomegranate-color dress.
On the hem of her skirt, there were patterns of large peonies embroidered with silver and gold threads, which made them look so real.
Her long, smooth hair was secured at the back of her head with a set of tourmaline ornament and a beautiful hair clip. She appeared elegant and graceful even in the dark of the evening.
Baiji and Baizhi carried two gold-gilded lamps as they walked ahead of the rest. The familiar scenes along the journey reminded Lin Mengya of the time she first arrived here.
Time went by in flash. One year had passed so quickly and like flowing water, there was no turning back.
She might be dressed gorgeously, but she did not have many servants following her around.
She was, in name, this fake Concubine De’s daughter-in-law. It was acceptable for her to be dressed splendidly, but she might be described as being arrogant if a lot of people clustered around.
For this reason, her three personal maids were about the only people who followed her around all the time.
Many groups of guards were stationed within the prince’s mansion, especially outside the gates of the Art Courtyard to patrol the area.
It was no wonder no one dared create a stir at the Art Courtyard. The emperor ought to have anticipated that what the queen and her supporters were like. Therefore, he had given the command for the concubine to be locked up in the Art Courtyard.
This would mean no more messengers would come by to deliver any news, which was good. In fact, it would prevent further complications on the matter.
“Open the door quickly, the princess is here to visit Concubine De.”
Just when they arrived at the gates, Baizhi had run to the door and knocked on it gently as she shouted the instruction for the people inside.
There was the sound of some movements inside. Someone even exclaimed in surprise.
It was most likely because they did not expect Princess Yu, who had just returned home, to choose to visit Concubine De at this moment.
“Creak…” A strong and stout looking woman opened the crescent door of the Art Courtyard.
She was wearing dull color clothes made of rough fabric, but she appeared to be impeccable.
After seeing that it was Lin Mengya, she bowed respectfully to her without further delay.
“Greetings to the princess. How could we trouble you to come all the way here given the timing?”
She spoke with a low voice, but there was a hint of her trying to curry favor with Lin Mengya.
By now, everyone in the mansion knew that this lady from Liuxin Courtyard was the real mistress here.
Regardless of Concubine De’s prestige, she was after all a guest.
Those servants who were more intelligent would have thought that they’d better fawn on this mistress.
“I have come to pay my respects to the concubine. Has she gone to bed?”
Having been through all that happened in the Nation of Lintian, Lin Mengya’s character seemed to have become even more gentle and agreeable.
She was also less harsh and stern with the servants.
Lin Mengya’s gentle voice was so gentle and flowy like water that the old maid guarding by the door was overwhelmed by her tenderness.
“No, she’s not gone to sleep yet. I just heard some noise which sounded like someone fighting and rolling around. The concubine has offended the emperor and the prince was still upset about her, so apart from Jingyue, who is the concubine’s personal maid, no one else dared to go into her room, lest bad luck should come upon the person.”
The old maid spoke in a manner to please Lin Mengya and Lin Mengya naturally understood the situation.
If the lady living inside was indeed the real Concubine De, she would have the image of a loving mother, who was well respected by her children.
Now, however, neither she nor the emperor would be kind to an imposter who had ulterior motives.
Having lost the emperor’s protection and the son’s attention, who among the servants in the mansion would still treat her with respect and fear like before?
Acting as the situation dictated had always been a behavior that got everyone’s hackles up.
“Erm, thanks a lot. I’ll go in to take a look.”
She smiled slightly. It was obvious from her face that she was making an effort to maintain peace.
The witty old maid retreated to let them in. The four of them headed towards the main room of the Art Courtyard.
During April when flowers in bloom were beautiful and fragrant, so was the scene in the mansion brilliant with all kinds of flowers and plants.
However, this was the only place with withered branches scattered all over the ground. It was as if the bitter winter had yet to pass.
Nevertheless, the scene was fitting with the situation here.
“Who’s that outside? Is my courtyard a place for you to make a racket as and when you like? Get lost from my sight quickly!”
Before they approached the room, they could hear through the heavy curtain of the room, a voice filled with anger, yelling, and scolding.
Baiji and Baishao stopped in their tracks and watched Lin Mengya in silence.
With a flash in her eyes, Lin Mengya bent one of her knees in a polite bow.
“Your daughter-in-law is here to pay respect to you, Mother. Please forgive me for not being able to come to visit you for the past days because I followed the prince on his trip out.”
There was no way the servants of the courtyard could go to sleep because of the commotion created by Concubine De.
For this reason, many of them witnessed how Lin Mengya paid her respect to the concubine.
No one had expected Lin Mengya to behave so respectfully towards Concubine De, who had not left her room for an entire half month. Could it be that the princess was unaware of the fact that Concubine De had been under house arrest?
“Snort! So it’s you, my good daughter-in-law. How dare you still come to see me without feeling any shame! You tricked my son and made the emperor hate me. What are you here for?”
Concubine De had blamed all these on her.
Lin Mengya felt like mocking Concubine De, but she managed to maintain a steady tone of voice.
“Mother, it was because of an order from the emperor that the prince and I had to make a trip out in haste, so we didn’t have time to report to you. As for why the emperor detested and rejected you, I feel that you’ve been at the emperor’s service for many years so naturally, you would know his character best. I believe it’s because the emperor was afraid that you would be affected by his illness. It’s not really because he detested and rejected you.”
Lin Mengya sounded confident when she spoke. There was no hint of irritation or impatience in her voice.
Lin Mengya’s answer was so perfect that Concubine De was unable to find fault or make things difficult for her.
However, she must be so angry in her heart by now.
There was a moment of silence before she opened her mouth to speak in a cold voice, saying, “In that case, come in then, lest people accuse me of making things difficult for you.”
Lin Mengya could not help but laugh grimly to herself when at the concubine’s eccentric behavior.
It was no wonder that the emperor quickly saw through her.
The real Concubine De came from a noble family and therefore, was not just a useless woman with good looks.
Not only was the queen’s ways vicious, but she also had relatives from outside who were backing her up and she even colluded with the Candle Dragon Cult.
For so many years, Concubine De was able to be worldly-wise and played safe, and was even able to protect herself and her child safely.
There was no way for an imposter to match up to such wisdom and capability.
As Lin Mengya pondered over this, they continued walking, and soon, the four of them arrived at the inner chamber.
An intense fragrance that came from burning incense filled the entire room, and the incense was of the expensive kind. Strings of beads were hung from the ceiling as a curtain that separated the room into two spaces.
Lin Mengya kept her head low as she entered with her three maids and together, they greeted the concubine with a bow.
“Greetings to Concubine De, Mother. Hope you are doing well.”
As Lin Mengya made a series of bows, the beads and hair clips on her head made crispy sounds as they collided from her movement.
The pale white light indoors fell on Lin Mengya’s pomegranate-color dress, which finally brought some life and color to this place.
The rich and gorgeous gown on Lin Mengya’s body made the people in the room burn with jealousy.
“You may rise. You’ve indeed picked up your manners after your return this time.”