In her fury, Princess Yin Yue slapped Wei Yu.
But who was Wei Yu?
Though she held no official rank or title, her status was the highest. Doted upon since childhood, she had never been slapped before. A mere scratch on her skin would have caused her family immense worry.
Humiliation and rage surged through her. Wei Yu slapped back, "You dare hit me? My parents never hit me, who do you think you are?"
Wei Yu knew no martial arts. Pampered as she was, even her face-washing cloths were wrung by maids. How much strength could her hands possess?
She felt she had used great force, her hand stinging from the impact, yet only five red finger marks appeared on Princess Yin Yue's face, likely to vanish soon.
Wei Yu grew even angrier. Her face throbbed fiercely, burning as if it would prevent her from leaving the house for days.
The first lunar month was a time for frequent social visits. Being unable to go out then was truly bad luck!
"You dare hit me?!" Princess Yin Yue retorted. As a high-ranking princess, she was not only doted upon but also revered by her people. Her pride was no less than Wei Yu's, perhaps even greater.
But she forgot, this was Da Sheng.
"What if I hit you?" Wei Yu sneered. "You don't even know who you slept with, yet you put on a lewd performance in front of so many people. A princess, you don't even look and let someone... You ruined my plans, and you have the nerve to yell at me here?"
Wei Yu was young, with a round face, appearing innocent and harmless. When these vulgar curses came from her lips, even Princess Yin Yue was taken aback.
Wei Yu was not only angered by the slap but even more so by her failed plan.
She should have known better than to cooperate with the foolish Princess Yin Yue. Had the original plan succeeded, Xiao Yun would have already been entangled with Feng Jiang Duo. This golden opportunity was ruined by this stupid and promiscuous woman!
Princess Yin Yue knew she was in the wrong. Hiding in the rockery cave, she had assumed the person entering would be Xiao Yun. Furthermore, that person was under the influence of aphrodisiacs. Upon entering, he couldn't resist embracing and kissing her, fumbling with her clothes. Who else could it be but Xiao Yun?
Who knew that after a while, before they could proceed, the person suddenly fainted? She had to improvise, mimicking a woman's moans and a man's heavy breaths to deceive those outside.
And it turned out this person was not Xiao Yun!
Princess Yin Yue was so enraged she felt like spitting blood, but she was never one to admit fault. She sneered at Wei Yu, "The reason I made a mistake is because you failed in your task! You handled everything beforehand. Look at Prince Ding'an, he's completely fine. Who are the people around you? Useless, all of them! Even you are useless!"
Wei Yu was both angry and in pain, but she knew she couldn't defeat Princess Yin Yue. Their status was equally noble, and if they truly fought, no one would dare intervene. She could only bear the beating.
Wei Yu clutched her face, looking at Princess Yin Yue. The innocent expression was gone, replaced by a venomous glint in her eyes.
"Whether the people around me are good or not is not for Your Highness to worry about. Your Highness should consider whether His Highness Prince Qi is willing to marry you as his consort! His Highness Prince Qi is the future Crown Prince. If Your Highness marries him, you will be the Crown Princess, and later the Empress. Ah, truly congratulations!"
Wei Yu put on an innocent smile, but her tone was filled with mockery.
A prince vying for the throne could not marry a foreign princess as his principal wife. The heir to Da Sheng's throne could not have foreign blood.
Prince Qi should have known this.
If he were to marry Princess Yin Yue, she could only be a secondary consort.
Princess Yin Yue naturally understood this.
She sneered, "Wei Yu, we'll see!"
Princess Yin Yue now had a better plan. Since Prince Qi was a strong contender for the throne, she would go along with it and marry Prince Qi, helping him ascend the throne. What if she was only a secondary consort? Did Wei Yu think she wanted to be Empress? She wanted to be the Empress Regnant!
Originally, she could have married the old emperor directly, but he was too old, and he already had several grown sons.
Moreover, entering the deep palace would restrict her movements.
Those who achieve great things need not only military power but also substantial financial support.
Once Prince Qi ascended the throne, she would find an opportunity to confiscate Prince Ding'an's mansion. By then, all the Xiao family's assets would be hers!
Princess Yin Yue suddenly felt this mistake was perfect.
Before, if she had proposed marrying a prince, they would have refused, as who wouldn't want to be the future emperor?
But now, it was different. She and Prince Qi had already had intimate contact. Prince Qi couldn't deny it. However, she couldn't be the principal consort. If Prince Qi had a consort from the Xia Kingdom, the old emperor would automatically disqualify him.
She needed to reconsider this matter.