Chapter 291

Chapter 291: A Choice of Two On the carriage ride out of the palace, Song Shulan barely dared to breathe. After a long while, the carriage came to a stop. Song Shulan had no idea where they were. "What, Marquis Song fears I might do something to you?" Prince Rong glanced over. "Or is it that you now fear our mansion will drag you down with us?" "Your Highness, I... I... no, not at all." "Then why did you stay silent in the great hall?" Prince Rong suppressed the fury burning in his chest, sweeping a glare across that made Song Shulan tremble. "You truly are my fine son-in-law. I married my precious, jewel-like daughter to you, and not only did my daughter become a commoner, but my wife was implicated to her death. Song Shulan, you really do have quite the talent!" "No, that's not it! It had nothing to do with me. I had no idea Cui Zeyu and Xie Yunting were plotting such a scheme!" Song Shulan protested his innocence. "I never imagined things would come to this!" This was the truth. Song Shulan had always sought to attach himself to the Rong Prince Mansion—how could he possibly have condoned Cui Lingrong and the others harming County Princess Rongjia? Prince Rong's gaze remained fixed on Song Shulan's face. He knew Song Shulan was not lying. But today's outcome had dealt a heavy blow to the Rong Prince Mansion, and Prince Rong had to remind Song Shulan of a few things. "Just now in the great hall, I don't care what your reasons were for not speaking a single word in our defense. But I'm telling you now—even though Susu has become a commoner, she is still my daughter. As long as this mansion still stands, you must not treat her lightly!" "Yes, yes, of course. Susu and I share a bond from childhood. Even without Your Highness's reminder, I will always treat Susu well." Song Shulan gave repeated assurances. "If I hear even one complaint from Susu about being mistreated, I'll make sure you fall from the position you climbed to—and fall even harder." Facing a man who prioritized self-interest like Song Shulan, Prince Rong knew kind words were useless. Only threats worked best. Song Shulan nodded frantically. Prince Rong took a deep breath. "Also, you must remember that this matter is far from over. If you still care about your future, then between Lady Cui and Susu, you will have to make a choice." Having given Song Shulan this one chance to choose between the two, Prince Rong dismissed him from the carriage. Gazing up at the plaque of the Rong Prince Mansion, Song Shulan's steps felt heavy. What had any of this come to? By the time Prince Rong reached the main courtyard, the eunuchs had already prepared the poisoned wine and white silk cord for the Rong Prince Mansion. Prince Rong handed over a thick stack of banknotes. "I shared a marriage with the Princess Consort. Would you gentlemen grant me a few words with her?" Since the condemned would die regardless, sooner or later made no difference. The eunuchs were willing to do Prince Rong this favor—they took the banknotes and withdrew. Lady Wu and the others also retreated to the courtyard. Lady Wu gazed at the tightly shut doors and sighed inwardly. It was the failure to raise and properly instruct their children that had brought disaster upon the Rong Prince Mansion today. And as a daughter-in-law, she could hardly lecture her parents-in-law. She could only hope that after this, her young sister-in-law would stop stirring up trouble—otherwise, the last remnants of the Rong Prince Mansion's legacy would all be destroyed by Zhao Susu's hands. Inside the room, Prince Rong looked at his wife's pallid face and let out a deep sigh. "You were too impulsive today." "But if I hadn't done this, our daughter would have died." The Princess Consort's eyes were hollow, a faint air of death emanating from her. "It took me so much effort to have this daughter. I held her in the palm of my hand, willing to pluck the stars and the moon from the sky for her. But alas, I could not give her a sound body." The Princess Consort understood very well—if her daughter had borne Du Shibei a child, there would have been no Lady Mei, and no Song Shulan in the picture now. Then her daughter's life would have gone smoothly. "But you shouldn't have taken the blame for her. You are the Princess Consort. Now that something has happened to you, our mansion has fallen out of favor with the Emperor. What hope is left for the future?" Prince Rong shook his head. "Enough. There's no use dwelling on this now. We shared a marriage, you and I. Is there anything you wish to entrust to me? I'll see it done." The Princess Consort looked up, speaking word by word. "I want the Cui siblings to die a miserable death!" "Very well, I've noted it. Anything else?" Prince Rong asked. "Susu is no longer a County Mistress. She will surely be looked down upon by the Jiangyuan Marquis Mansion. I hope she can learn from this setback. She is no match for Lady Cui—please, Your Highness, have her keep a low profile. If action must be taken, let it be you who acts. Unless the Cui family is destroyed, Susu's remaining years will be difficult. I could shield her once, but no one else will take the blame for her again." The Princess Consort knew clearly that after she was gone, no one would devote themselves wholly to her daughter. Prince Rong nodded again. "Very well, I promise you this too." "As for the affairs of the mansion—Lady Wu is steady and composed. Let her manage the household from now on." The Princess Consort went on to discuss many matters concerning the mansion. It was not until dusk approached and the eunuch urged them from the doorway that Prince Rong finally opened the door and came out. The Princess Consort chose the poisoned wine. One cup down, and the searing pain tore through her entrails. Outside, Lady Wu and the others kept their heads lowered, not daring to speak. Only after the eunuch confirmed that the Princess Consort had breathed her last did the Rong Prince Mansion hang white mourning cloths. But since the Princess Consort had been executed by Imperial Order, the Emperor decreed that no grand funeral be held—only a hasty, subdued affair. Meanwhile, when Song Shulan returned to the Jiangyuan Marquis Mansion, he was summoned to Shouan Tang. Old Madame Song heard about what happened today and nearly fainted. "How... how could this be?" Song Shulan could only sigh. "Who would have thought Lady Cui would hate Susu so much, setting up this scheme with Cui Zeyu and the others, driving Princess Consort Rong to her death." Old Madame Song took a deep breath and slowly closed her eyes. "We should have realized this earlier. Lady Cui seemed to have a good temper, but she married here from Suzhou and managed to maintain a good reputation in Bianjing all this time—that shows she's no small talent. She's been scheming and striving for half her life; how could she possibly allow someone else to take what's hers?" Song Shulan regretted it too. "If only I had spoken to her from the very beginning." "My son, you still don't understand. It's not about speaking or not speaking. It's that two tigers cannot share one mountain. If you wanted to marry County Princess Rongjia, you should have found a pretext to divorce Lady Cui first, and only then could you rest easy." Old Madame Song was exhausted just talking about it. "Now County Princess Rongjia... Zhao Susu has been reduced to a commoner, and she's caused Princess Consort Rong's death. Will the Rong Prince Mansion let us off easily?" Song Shulan relayed Prince Rong's threat. "Choose one of the two?" Old Madame Song was troubled. If it were from the very beginning, Old Madame Song would have chosen Zhao Susu without hesitation. Even if Cui Zeyu had some ability, it wouldn't have mattered, because Cui Zeyu would never sincerely support the Jiangyuan Marquis Mansion. But things were different now. Princess Consort Rong was dead, and Prince Rong's young son would most likely not be adopted under the Emperor's name, so the Rong Prince Mansion would only decline further. Meanwhile, Cui Zeyu was a favored figure before the Emperor, and Cui Lingrong herself was quite capable, able to manage the affairs of the Marquis Mansion well. From the perspective of the three children, keeping Lady Cui was also the better choice. But a starved camel is still bigger than a horse. The Rong Prince Mansion might have lost its influence, but Prince Rong still held real power in his hands. If Prince Rong were to suppress Song Shulan and the Jiangyuan Marquis Mansion because of this, that would be equally troublesome. Before, they couldn't have both sides; now, they still couldn't. Mother and son sighed at the same time. Finally, Old Madame Song said, "You need to think this through. This time, you can't have both—you must make a choice. It was our greed before that led to today's outcome."