Chapter 54: Doing Business

A flash of undisguisable astonishment passed through Jiang Yang’s eyes, followed by a helpless yet resigned smile as she said, “I thought I had hidden it flawlessly, but it turns out I still couldn’t deceive you and mother.”

“No, Yang’er, you hid it very well. You’ve fooled me for so many years. If it weren’t for mother, I wouldn’t have known that you’ve been wronging yourself for so many years for my sake,” Jiang Qingzhou smiled softly, her fingers habitually tapping lightly on the table, her eyes gentle and kind. “If mother hadn’t told me, I wouldn’t have known that you were so intelligent, guessing our years of planning so clearly just from some clues.”

Jiang Yang shrugged, pretending to be relaxed as she said, “What good is being smart? There’s always someone better. You still saw through me. But there’s one thing I don’t understand.”

Jiang Qingzhou’s thin lips parted slightly: “How did mother and I know that you knew?”

“Yes,” Jiang Yang nodded.

“It’s simple,” Jiang Qingzhou said. “Since you’ve already met Fu Yue, you probably know that I haven’t been with him recently.”

“Just because of this, you concluded that I knew everything?” Jiang Yang laughed. “Elder sister, you’re really overestimating me.”

“If it were just that, it wouldn’t have been enough to make our astute mother suspicious,” Jiang Qingzhou’s eyebrows lifted slightly, revealing a hint of a smile, then continued, “Actually, Yang’er, you couldn’t keep your composure. After leaving Fu Yue’s place, you unexpectedly went to pay respects to father, chatting about this and that. Usually, you wouldn’t go to father’s quarters to pay respects for no reason. Father found it strange but was happy, so this morning when my husband Yuan Qing went to pay respects, he praised you for being sensible. Yuan Qing told me when he came back, I found it strange, so I told mother, and that’s when we started to guess that you already knew.”

Jiang Yang pressed her lips together in disappointment: “So that’s how it was. If I had known, I should have pretended not to know anything.”

I don’t believe it! She doesn’t believe it! Jiang Yang outwardly showed a sense of disappointment at being exposed, but inwardly she was screaming.

Although Jiang Qingzhou said she had also been fooled by her disguise, and it was all thanks to their mother Jiang Shui Pingcai who realized that her years of being a prodigal were all an act.

This family was full of drama queens, each hiding deeper than the other.

She clearly saw the pride and satisfaction in Jiang Qingzhou’s eyes when she exposed her disguise earlier, though she had tried her best to conceal it, it was still keenly noticed by her.

If Jiang Qingzhou had really been fooled by her from the beginning, she should have shown at least a bit of surprise, but there wasn’t even a trace in her eyes, as if she had known all along.

Jiang Yang had reason to suspect that Jiang Qingzhou had actually known for a long time, and had just been quietly watching her act. She didn’t care whether her siblings were really smarter or more talented than her, what Jiang Qingzhou really cared about was whether she had a say, like imperial power tactics, step by step quietly pressuring her subordinates, just to test how far she could retreat for Jiang Qingzhou, how obedient she could be.

Jiang Qingzhou wasn’t seeking to break all the flowers in the courtyard, leaving only herself to bloom alone, but to command a garden full of fragrance.

Now that her years of disguise had been actively exposed by Jiang Qingzhou, it meant that Jiang Qingzhou had included her in her inner circle. As long as she didn’t rebel or cause any major trouble, her life would truly be stable.

When the Jiang family successfully rebelled in the future, she could even get a position as a idle prince, bearing the title of royal relative. Even if she was incompetent, no one would dare to say anything against her.

However, it had to be said that if Jiang Qingzhou became the emperor, she would indeed be more suitable than the old thing currently on the throne. She was meticulous in her thinking, extremely deep, born to swim freely in the vortex of power.

As for herself, well, a salted fish had its own way of survival.

“Now that you’re aware, you can no longer stay uninvolved as before,” Jiang Qingzhou’s expression suddenly became solemn. “I’ve returned from Yingchuan and have persuaded the Shen clan to conspire with mother for the great cause. We will raise troops soon. The imperial power is now like a strong bow at the end of its draw. Floods, droughts, and famines have already caused the people to lament. Now, with the troops of Lingnan in my hands, plus the Yingchuan Shen clan, father’s family the Luoqi Liu clan, the Qin clan, and the various forces mother has gathered over the years during her travels, as long as we raise our arms, we will surely receive a hundred responses, and take the imperial capital directly.”

As Jiang Qingzhou said this, her eyes burned with vigorous ambition and desire. The overwhelming power burned away the gentle and elegant demeanor in her eyes like a raging fire, leaving only the greed of a beast, with wild ambition written all over her face.

“Mother and elder sister both have great ambitions. I have no talent, I only wish for you to fulfill your desires soon,” Jiang Yang saw this and only wanted to retreat.

“Yang’er, you don’t need to be so modest when you’ve been able to disguise yourself under my nose for so many years,” Jiang Qingzhou said slowly. “I have a task for you.”

*

Back in Snowfall Residence, Jiang Yang collapsed on the bed, exhausted. Chi Mei casually tossed aside the white plum blossom that Qin shi had given him, took off his shoes and socks, and gently crawled to her side. He tenderly cradled her head on his lap, his long fingers gently massaging her temples.

Jiang Yang narrowed her eyes in comfort, this was the epitome of tender loving care. She spoke about how Jiang Qingzhou had seen through her disguise, but cleverly concealed the most important part about the rebellion. It was too significant a matter, she didn’t dare reveal it to anyone, even though she knew Chi Mei was loyal to her, she didn’t dare, fearing he might let it slip.

“I never thought Ah Yang’s sister was such a person,” Chi Mei frowned after hearing Jiang Yang’s words.

Looking at the white plum blossom he had casually tossed aside, Chi Mei muttered softly, “I don’t know what my brother likes about such a scheming person. And that Qin shi, I originally thought he was a bad man with many tricks up his sleeve because I saw how much my brother disliked him, thinking he was blocking my brother’s position as the main husband. But when I met him today… he was different from what I imagined, he was very kind to me.”

Jiang Yang chuckled softly. Qin shi didn’t know that Chi Mei was Fu Yue’s brother, so naturally he treated him like an ordinary relative at Jiang Qingzhou’s indication.

But Fu Yue was his love rival, so Qin shi’s attitude towards Chi Mei and Fu Yue was naturally completely different.

As for Fu Yue, when leaving Cold Moon Pavilion, Jiang Yang had asked Jiang Qingzhou about her feelings for Fu Yue.

When Fu Yue was mentioned, a rare tenderness appeared on Jiang Qingzhou’s face, a tenderness that was never shown when she looked at Qin shi. But after all, she was a career-oriented woman and a native of this female-dominated society. Love was only an embellishment in her life, plus Jiang Qingzhou had Qin shi by her side, a helpful assistant who was almost flawless.

Jiang Qingzhou’s exact words were: “Yuan Qing is virtuous and gentle. We’ve been husband and wife since we were young. Since he married me, he’s managed our household, given birth to two sons, and been filial to our parents. No matter how good Fu Yue is, I can’t abandon Yuan Qing for him.”

At this point, Jiang Yang understood that Fu Yue would never be able to become the main husband in this lifetime.