Chapter 104: Chapter 100: Prince or Princess?

The Princess saw that Pan Jiaojiao’s expression was not joking but rather serious and realized that there indeed was a problem between Pan Jiaojiao and Song Yun, and it wasn’t a minor one.

She wanted to inquire further, but her daughter wouldn’t speak.

The Princess had no choice but to hand over all the trinkets Song Yun had sent to curry favor with her daughter.

Pan Jiaojiao looked at the things the Princess handed over, roughly counted them, and was secretly shocked.

Although she initially intended for her mother to get close to Song Yun, this closeness was too outrageous.

The Princess met her daughter’s gaze with an embarrassed smile. She hadn’t noticed it before, but upon sorting through today, she realized without knowing it, she had received so many things from the Song Family girl.

The Princess was embarrassed for accepting so many things from the younger generation, but Pan Jiaojiao couldn’t help but think conspiratorially, wondering what Song Yun’s intention was in giving her mother so many things behind her back. If Song Yun was also closely involved with her mother, then wouldn’t Prince Jing Mansion…

“Someone, find an empty room and place this pile of things there, and no one is allowed to touch them!”

The Princess didn’t understand why Pan Jiaojiao seemed as if facing a formidable enemy, “Jiaojiao, what are you doing?”

Pan Jiaojiao didn’t know how to explain it to her mother. Was she supposed to say she suspected Song Yun of framing Prince Jing Mansion? She hadn’t any concrete evidence… what if it was all a misunderstanding?

Pan Jiaojiao knew her mother well, she could say her personality was half inherited from the Princess, impulsive and protective, disregarding the consequences once agitated.

If the Princess knew Song Yun might be using Prince Jing Mansion and herself, who knew how furious the Princess would be.

Song Yun, being an illegitimate daughter, had a difficult life already. If she then suffered the difficulties from the Princess of Prince Jing Mansion, it would only be tougher. After all, Song Yun did save her; even though she now sensed some subtleties in Song Yun, she couldn’t convict someone based merely on speculation.

So, before verifying the details, Pan Jiaojiao didn’t plan to tell the Princess about her suspicions.

She only said she wanted to verify some things and would naturally inform the Princess when she had the answers, asking her to be patient.

This unusually composed demeanor strangely made the Princess comply with Pan Jiaojiao, without the slightest opposition.

When the Princess later realized, she merely sighed, “Jiaojiao has grown up!”

Meanwhile, Pan Jiaojiao still felt unsettled after receiving all the things Song Yun sent from the Princess’s hands; she felt there was something she had overlooked.

Until she saw a very familiar handkerchief on a maid in the Mansion.

That handkerchief looked like the one she and Song Yun bought while shopping, but it couldn’t be ruled out as a coincidence.

Out of caution, Pan Jiaojiao casually inquired, “Where did this handkerchief come from?”

The little maid saw the Commandery Princess took everything Song Yun sent to the Princess and thought she was discovered too, immediately admitted taking things from Song Yun and seized the chance to pledge allegiance, promising she had no deceit or concealment!

Pan Jiaojiao then realized what she had overlooked, Song Yun used to give her maids gifts in her presence.

She once thought it kindness from Song Yun, but now it seemed it was recruiting her people right before her eyes!

If that was the case, who knew how many of Song Yun’s things were mixed into the Mansion; if Song Yun wanted to plant something in Prince Jing Mansion, wouldn’t it be too easy?

But anything conspicuously related to Song Yun surely wouldn’t pose a problem.

There must be something else she hasn’t discovered.

Pan Jiaojiao decided to find her father.

Indeed she wanted to prove herself, but she also needed to act within her limits.

After some thinking, she found many suspicious points about Song Yun; assuming Song Yun as the culprit, many issues arose, but she couldn’t link them together, so she opted to seek help from her father.

“Dad! Help!! Someone wants to undermine Prince Jing Mansion!!!”

Now, Pan Jiaojiao genuinely affirmed Song Yun’s ulterior motives with her not-so-smart brain.

Shen Jingxian lay in the palace, flipping through travel notes about the West, still unaware that she had awakened a foolish young girl.

“Does Your Highness really want to meet Song Yun?”

Song Yan, reading alongside Shen Jingxian, seemed casual, yet she had planned this question for so long that the pages in front of her hadn’t been turned for quite a while.

“Of course, why not.”

Shen Jingxian spoke naturally, as if meeting Song Yun was not about interrogating a suspect but like a leisure trip, wanting to see, and thus went to see.

However, Song Yan had to ponder her response repeatedly.

Though she always dismissed Song Yun’s shabby tricks, it was undeniable that her younger sister had a knack for winning hearts.

Even if the Princess and Song Yun had conflicts in the past, people change, especially their hearts.

Should the Princess, after meeting Song Yun, choose to trust Song Yun and begin suspecting her, what could she do to escape this crisis?

Song Yan was accustomed to considering all consequences both pros and cons before undertaking any matter, simulating every possibility, yet this situation involving the Princess changed that consideration.

Song Yan’s heart told her not to speculate, but her mind couldn’t stop.

While caught in this emotional and rational tug-of-war, suddenly a warm finger pressed against Song Yan’s forehead, not forcefully but enough to bring her thoughts back to reality.

“Sister Song Yan.”

“I didn’t abandon you when life was in peril, why would I change my mind after meeting Song Yun once?”

Song Yan, having her thoughts exposed, was uncharacteristically embarrassed and, feigning nonchalance, pretended not to understand, “What is Your Highness talking about.”

Typically, if I pretend ignorance, the awkward one becomes others.

Shen Jingxian hummed a tune in a good mood, “I am talking about… looking forward to the day after tomorrow～”

She had long wanted to experience firsthand the scene of catching in the act, having once been anxious for the female lead from behind a book, now she could… catch them face-to-face!

Shen Jingxian had even prepared her lines.

“Green mouth! Smash her pot!!”

The more Shen Jingxian thought, the more excited she became, making the air in Yi Fen Palace unusually bright.

Soon, the day Shen Jingxian anticipated arrived.

After notifying the Emperor and Empress, she took her token, led the Hidden Guards concealed in numerous places, and with the overt escort of 10.8 Imperial Guards, exited the palace gates.

This time she was going to catch someone in the act, no need to be discreet; on the contrary, the more ostentatious, the better.

If not for considering the Princess’s identity, Shen Jingxian would’ve brought along a brass band, knocking and shouting along the way, “The Princess is here to catch in the act, interested parties come quickly!”

But Pan Jiaojiao, just two days away, appeared more haggard.

Shen Jingxian assumed the child was frightened by conspiracy theories yet didn’t know the reason Pan Jiaojiao couldn’t sleep at night was…

“How can I inherit Prince Jing Mansion.”

“Could a woman be a Prince?”

No, women don’t call themselves “Prince”… “Young Master” corresponds “Old Lady,” so if she inherits the Mansion, wouldn’t she be called…

“House Mistress?”

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