Rebirth: The Journey of an Heiress novel Chapter 363

Chapter 363: Chapter 360: No Smoke Without Fire_1

Tonight, word spread that the Li Mansion sought to marry their youngest son to the Lord of Gaoyi. By tomorrow morning, Li Mao would have his wife send a card to the Central Palace requesting an audience.

They intended to spread the news that his wife went to the palace to ask for an imperial decree for their youngest son’s marriage. They wanted to see if Bai Qingyan would approach him. If not, it meant that Bai Qingyan didn’t have the letters between him and the Second Prince, and was just bluffing.

Thinking about those letters gave Li Mao a headache.

In those days, he was trying to win the Second Prince’s trust. This was why he agreed to the demand of the Second Prince’s counselor to exchange handwritten letters with the Second Prince. This way, both held secrets over the other, ensuring mutual fear of betrayal.

Later, he instigated the Second Prince to force the throne, originally thinking he could rise to power in one step. Who knew... he would still fail!

He had thoroughly searched the Second Prince’s residence, but those letters were never found. Now, these letters had become his weakness.

He still needed to find a way to locate those letters, destroy them, and eliminate future concerns.

·

After Bai Qingyan finished practicing with her red-tasseled silver spear, she was drenched in sweat.

Chun Tao helped Bai Qingyan bathe and change clothes. After squeezing the water from Bai Qingyan’s hair, she noticed Bai Qingyan wasn’t planning to rest, but sat reading under the lamp. Chun Tao quietly retreated to make some tea for Bai Qingyan.

Barely had Chun Tao left when a nimble shadow leaped down from the beam and, seeing Bai Qingyan’s silhouette on the window lattice, quickly stepped to the window, pressing his back against the wall. In a low voice, he said, "Under orders from the Second Miss, this subordinate reports the movements of the Left Prime Minister."

The newcomer was a Hidden Guard assigned to Bai Qingyan by the Eldest Princess. Under Bai Qingyan’s command, the Hidden Guard was stationed by Bai Jinxiu’s side, doing her bidding. However, in the mind of the Hidden Guard, only the one holding the command token was the true master.

Hence, they addressed Bai Qingyan as their master.

Bai Qingyan looked up, her hand tightening on the book spine. She lightly pushed the wooden window open a bit, her calm eyes looking at the speaker.

A golden beam of light shone through the window, landing on the cobblestone floor below. The lamplight inside cast shadows, causing Bai Qingyan’s countenance to flicker between light and dark. Despite the calm exterior, her eyes hid a sharp gleam.

Seeing this, the Hidden Guard knelt to the ground, speaking quickly and softly, "Under orders from the Second Miss, we have surrounded the Left Prime Minister’s residence. Second Miss had said if there was any movement from the Left Prime Minister’s residence, I should report directly to you. Tonight, over thirty people left the Left Prime Minister’s residence, dispersing to the capital’s pleasure districts and taverns, spreading rumors about seeking the Lord of Gaoyi’s hand for the Left Prime Minister’s youngest son, unavoidably revealing their identities."

She listened quietly, her expression unchanged, but her gaze grew deeper.

So, this was Li Mao testing her?

Li Mao’s youngest son, Li Mingtang, was quite a character. The kind of scoundrel... but not all scoundrels were the same!

There were scoundrels like Lu Yuanpeng, who, despite causing trouble, conducted themselves with some sense of limits.

And then there were those like Li Mingtang, who was immersed in debauchery, disregarding any moral boundary, daring even to lay hands on Li Mao’s concubine.

Li Mao adored his youngest son. When the incident occurred, he used a strip of white silk to end the concubine’s life, covering up the matter airtight.

Afterward, Li Mingtang spent his days immersed in the pleasure quarters, infamously intending to marry a third-class courtesan from the brothel Warm Spring Pavilion.

Li Mao’s wife would not allow it. Li Mingtang then refused to attend the imperial examination, making Warm Spring Pavilion his home, often staying overnight and sometimes even calling multiple courtesans to his bed when in the mood.

Li Mingtang never showed his identity outwardly, but the third-class courtesan from Warm Spring Pavilion couldn’t resist boasting that the son of the Left Prime Minister wished to marry her.