Detailed Accusations
"Shut up!" Zhao Yanchuan turned around and shouted at Princess Mingyu.
Princess Mingyu shrank her neck and lowered her voice, saying, "Imperial Brother, this country bumpkin is obviously making things up! Master Su Yu is like a celestial being—how could this peasant possibly know him? And now she's slandering Master Su Yu, accusing him of an affair. It's utter nonsense!"
Zhao Yanchuan ignored Princess Mingyu's unreasonable outburst and asked Cuilan, who had just been beaten on the ground, "How do you know about what you just said? Do you have any evidence?"
"I—I haven't found any evidence yet, but I saw it with my own eyes!" Cuilan pinned all her hopes on Zhao Yanchuan and blurted out, "I came to the capital with my young master to study, hoping to enroll him in the Royal Academy of Mathematics. We went to negotiate several times, but Master Su Yu kept refusing my young master's admission. So lately, we've been waiting at the academy every day to catch Master Su Yu. Although we never managed to catch him, I did discover that Master Su Yu was secretly involved with Princess Consort Qin, Su Li!"
"You're talking nonsense! You're slandering Master Su—this princess will not forgive you!" Princess Mingyu cursed at Cuilan, raising her voice.
Cuilan shivered, thinking to herself that Princess Mingyu must like Master Su Yu and couldn't stand anyone speaking ill of him. Luckily, she hadn't run into Princess Mingyu before; otherwise, without Zhao Yanchuan here, she probably would have been beaten to death by the princess!
Thinking of this, Cuilan felt her previous frustrations melt away. She believed that fate was helping her, letting her meet the right person at the right time so she could tell the truth to the Crown Prince of Chu!
Cuilan spoke with vivid detail, and Zhao Yanchuan was half convinced. He said, "Go on."
Gaining confidence, Cuilan continued, "The courtyard my young master and I rented is one of the small houses behind Cat's Eye Alley. I've also followed my young master to Su Li's Eight Flavors Treasure Restaurant and the princess's Suxin Pavilion, so I recognize both the princess and Su Li. Several times, I saw them openly clash, so I know the princess and Princess Consort Qin don't get along."
Once, my young master and I barged into the academy to confront Master Su Yu, but saw Su Li's maid beside him; another time, I was dumping dirty water at the courtyard gate and saw Master Su Yu's carriage parked behind Eight Flavors Treasure Restaurant. Then Su Li's apprentice, the restaurant manager named Lingdang, got into Su Yu's carriage. Your Highness, I suspect Su Li sent her maid to deliver messages and secretly met Master Su Yu through Eight Flavors Treasure Restaurant! I wanted to keep looking for evidence, but I'm weak and powerless, so I couldn't compete with Princess Consort Qin. I could only bring this news to the princess and Your Highness...
After finishing her story, Cuilan knelt on the ground, feeling anxious.
Princess Mingyu was no longer shouting as she had before. Instead, she looked as if her soul had left her body, staring blankly ahead in a daze.
Zhao Yanchuan paused for a moment and said, "If you dare to deceive me, I will make sure you suffer a miserable end. Do you understand?"
Cuilan hurriedly kowtowed, saying, "Even if I had the courage of the heavens, I wouldn't dare deceive Your Highness! It's just that Master Su Yu always looks down on my young master and refuses to let him enroll, so..."
"So you hope to use my hand to get rid of Su Yu, so your young master can enter the Royal Academy of Mathematics, is that it?" Zhao Yanchuan asked.