Rebirth: After Becoming the Villainess-Chapter 172: The Plot Has Deviated, So What’s the Outcome?
Song Lianhe slept until late in the morning.
When Shuang Ye woke her, she couldn’t help but complain, "Miss! What kind of bride sleeps in so late? Even if you don’t need to pay respects to your in-laws, you can’t get up this late! You’re the mistress of the Prince Mansion now, for heaven’s sake. If you’re so lazy and listless, how will you manage the staff? Where is your dignity as the Princess Consort?"
Song Lianhe let out a laugh. "Why do I feel like you’re more nervous than I am? Zhou Cangyan and I are just a married couple in name only. What do I need this dignity for? Besides, who in the Prince Mansion doesn’t know what I’m like? Don’t worry, they’re all easy to get along with. To them, me marrying into the mansion just means setting another place at the table."
After some careful thought, she corrected herself, "No, wait. Three places."
Xuan Mei was already part of the Prince Mansion. Then there was her, Shuang Ye, and Ah Jun. That made three new mouths to feed.
After Shuang Ye helped Song Lianhe wash up and get dressed, they went to the flower hall to eat.
Along the way, all the servants and maids they encountered stopped their work and performed a standard bow, greeting her, "Greetings, Princess Consort."
Song Lianhe was still a little unused to the title "Princess Consort." Following Shuang Ye’s earlier instructions, she adopted the appropriate posture for a princess consort, smiling and nodding. She actually managed to look somewhat dignified and proper.
"Da Zhu, busy polishing the pillars?"
"Shuang’er, watering the flowers?"
"Ah, Little Doudou, you’re not even as tall as that water vat! Don’t climb on it, be careful you don’t fall in!"
"Xiao Wu, are your pants on backward again?"
Hearing her familiar and friendly tone, everyone broke into simple, good-natured smiles.
When they reached the flower hall, Song Lianhe asked casually, "Where’s Zhou Cangyan?"
"You finally thought to ask, Miss." Shuang Ye’s tone was one of utter exasperation. "The Prince was urgently summoned to the palace in the middle of the night. He’s been ordered to lead troops to Sishui to eliminate the last of the rebel army. He’s long since left the city by now."
"Rebels?"
Song Lianhe frowned in suspicion, racking her brain.
’The original novel did mention this. Before the main villain officially went into business, his biggest obstacle was Prince Yongdong’s rebel army.’
Prince Yongdong was Emperor Cheng Xiao, Zhou Yang’s, third younger brother. Back then, after the previous crown prince, Yun Shao, took the throne, he tried to hunt down and exterminate Zhou Yang, forcing him to raise an army in rebellion out of desperation.
Prince Yongdong, who was only a teenager at the time, had always followed his second older brother, charging into the fray for him and even saving Zhou Yang’s life on several occasions!
Later, when Zhou Yang finally became emperor, Prince Yongdong, as one of the founding heroes, grew increasingly wanton and arrogant, confident in his own merits. His actions became overly high-profile and eccentric. When ministers submitted memorials about it, Zhou Yang, remembering his brother’s role in helping him gain the throne, always turned a blind eye.
This continued until Prince Yongdong, during a drunken revelry, caused the death of a Dancing Girl. This finally provoked the outrage of the people of Ling’an City. To protect him, Zhou Yang had no choice but to post him to Yu State, enfeoffing him as a vassal king.
Marquis Xuan Chang and others had strongly advised against this in open court, arguing that Prince Yongdong was a cruel and radical man. They warned that once he left Ling’an City and gained the power to mobilize troops, it would be like releasing a tiger back into the mountains—he would surely become a great threat in the future!
But Zhou Yang always remembered how his third brother had single-handedly rescued him from the midst of the enemy army. If not for him, how could he be sitting on this throne today?
In the end, he went against all advice and let Prince Yongdong go.
As a result, the moment Prince Yongdong was out of the city, he immediately raised the banner of rebellion.
Only afterward did Zhou Yang realize it had all been a sham. The pretense of being an unlearned hedonist who only cared about feasting and pleasure was just a cover to deceive everyone. Even the death of the Dancing Girl was just a means to leave the Imperial City!
From then on, Prince Yongdong became Zhou Yang’s constant worry and his shame! This was also why, despite knowing that Zhou Cangyan was a rare military talent, he had recalled him to Ling’an—all because of the lesson he’d learned from Prince Yongdong’s betrayal.
As for this Prince Yongdong, although his power had been weakened by the Court over the years, he still had a considerable number of followers. They would pop up from time to time to challenge the dynasty, right up until they were finally annihilated by Zhou Junlin.
Prince Yongdong had certainly played an indispensable role in Zhou Junlin’s eventual, successful bid to become the Crown Prince.
’But in the original story, it was Zhou Junlin who requested to lead the campaign against the rebels. This time, it should have been him too. How did it end up being Zhou Cangyan, receiving a critical mission on his wedding night?’
’So, the facts once again prove it: Zhou Cangyan has indeed taken over the male lead’s storyline from the novel.’
Song Lianhe suddenly felt a little panicked. ’If the plot is deviating, what about the outcome?’
Gazing at the table full of delicacies, she had no appetite at all.
"Where’s Uncle Liang?"
After summoning Pang Jiliang, Song Lianhe questioned him in detail, only then learning that the imperial edict had been issued during the night. Pang Jiliang had secretly asked a palace attendant he’d previously tipped off. They had originally been on their way to the Ling Prince Mansion to deliver the edict, but for some unknown reason, they changed course midway and came to the Prince Qing Mansion instead.
"Prince Yongdong’s forces are not to be underestimated. The Holy Emperor could have moved against him at any time. Why suddenly decide to reclaim Yu State now?"
"Prince Yongdong has declared himself emperor."
"What?"
Song Lianhe was stunned. ’In the original novel, Prince Yongdong was arrogant, but he never declared himself emperor, not even at the time of his death!’
"The Holy Emperor was furious when he found out. How could he tolerate such a thing? But there are very few talented generals in the city who can lead troops. Marquis Xuan Chang is elderly and has only just returned to the city, so it’s not appropriate for him to lead an army. The most suitable candidates right now are Prince Ling and our Prince." Pang Jiliang added indignantly, "Hmph, Prince Ling is the Holy Emperor’s own son, and the Holy Emperor has high hopes for him. How could he bear to send him into danger? So this thankless task fell on our Prince’s head! It ruined his own wedding day—he didn’t even get to consummate the marriage..."
’He’s calling me out,’ Song Lianhe thought.
’But none of that is important. For Prince Yongdong to dare declare himself emperor, he must have some incredible backing to be so audacious. He’s clearly not afraid of the Court sending troops!’
’Can Zhou Cangyan actually win?’
When she asked about this, Pang Jiliang’s voice filled with anger. "The Court only gave him thirty thousand troops to fight Prince Yongdong’s army of eighty thousand!"
Song Lianhe shot to her feet. "He’s sending Zhou Cangyan to his death!"
Pang Jiliang, however, spoke with a meaningful tone, "The Holy Emperor can’t be unaware of the vast disparity in numbers. But he’s even more aware that there are still fifty thousand troops in Sui Bei."
"But didn’t Zhou Cangyan already hand over his military authority?"
"In the border garrisons, how could the soldiers and generals possibly submit to a mere piece of paper from the Emperor? They only recognize the Prince and the Old Master. On the surface, the military authority was reclaimed by the Holy Emperor, but the actual power to command the troops is still in the Old Master’s hands."
"Then isn’t he afraid that Zhou Cangyan will just run off with these thirty thousand troops?"
Pang Jiliang sighed. "The Holy Emperor is naturally wary of that. That’s why General Song is also accompanying him on this campaign."
’The incident where Zhou Cangyan struck Mrs. Liu caused a huge uproar. He’s definitely made an enemy of Song Xingfeng!’
’And Song Xingfeng is backed by Zhou Junlin. No wonder Zhou Junlin didn’t have to go on the expedition himself. This campaign might even be a trap set for Zhou Cangyan!’
’An emperor’s heart is as deep and perilous as an abyss.’
The more Song Lianhe thought about it, the angrier she became. She paced back and forth in the room a few times. "Is Zhou Cangyan just going to let them bully him like this?"
Pang Jiliang said grimly, "An imperial command cannot be defied."
Just then, Song Lianhe heard Shen Fu’s voice outside. She froze. "Why didn’t Shen Fu go with him?"
’Shen Fu and the men from the Qiongqi Escort Agency are all Zhou Cangyan’s personal guards. He should have taken them with him!’
"Before the Prince left, he gave orders for Shen Fu to be left with the Princess Consort."
Song Lianhe froze completely.
’He... What does he mean by this?’
