An Eight-year-old Princess

Chapter 188 Unexpected Findings (Part One)

Yun Shang was shocked. There was an army from another state in the State of Ning. But no one

knew?

"An army consists of at least ten thousand soldiers. And if they have a bigger plan, I assume this

number would be much bigger than that. But how did such a large group of people enter the State of

Ning without drawing any attention?"

Xiao Yuanshan looked at the horizon with vacant eyes. "Break the whole into parts. They might have

disguised themselves as ordinary people or businessmen when crossing the border. Judging from the

size of their camps, I think there are at least a hundred thousand soldiers. It is a plan that has been

deliberately prepared over a long period. Even if they arrived in smaller groups, it would take several

years for them to enter the State of Ning considering their number."

A hundred thousand?

Yun Shang's face gradually grew solemn. If it were an elite force, a hundred thousand soldiers would

be capable of wreaking havoc, including overthrowing a nation.

No wonder conspiracies against Prince Jing had emerged more frequently in recent days. Maybe they

were ready to make their move. As Prince Jing was their primary threat, they needed to get rid of him

first. Yun Shang couldn't imagine the fate of Ning if Prince Jing wasn't around to defend it against such

an intricate and well-planned conspiracy.

"Grandfather, Prince Jing was abducted. We have to find him now. Shall we tell His Majesty about this

army?" Yun Shang went blank and asked Xiao Yuanshan.

At the sight of her worried expression, Xiao Yuanshan patted her shoulder and smiled. "Shang'er, don't

worry. Now that I know about their plan, we can always find a way out. Calm down. I'll talk to His

Majesty. Your priority is to look for Prince Jing. Besides, I know you have deployed some people in the

State of Ning and in other states. It's time for them to play their part. I'm sure you will make it work."

Yun Shang gradually calmed down. Grandfather was right. She shouldn't panic now. "I will not let you

down, Grandfather. I'll think about it and confer with you soon."

After that, Yun Shang returned to Qingxin Palace and locked herself in the inner Hall. Qian Yin and Qin

Yi saw her sketching and writing on parchment, but they didn't understand the content.

A hundred thousand. Even if they had entered Ning in small groups, it would take them a long time.

These soldiers would also need someone to coordinate with them from inside Ning. According to Yun

Shang, that person must have high social status in Ning. Otherwise, it would be impossible to move a

hundred thousand soldiers without being noticed. Someone had concealed the movement of all these

people very carefully.

Ning Ye was the first suspect who came to Yun Shang's mind.

Based on the information the Princess currently had, someone had definitely been posing as Ning Ye

for years. She couldn't guess why an impostor had been planted in Shun Qing Mansion before. Even

though Prince Shun Qing was a part of the Royal family, he had no real power. His son, Ning Ye had

nothing special except his tittle as well. But now, Ning Ye seemed to have been the perfect choice to

help them hide the whereabouts of the foreign army.

Although Ning Ye had no real power, he maintained a good relationship with many government officials.

And those officials trusted him implicitly because Ning Ye was not a powerful person. If he gave bribes

every now and then, it was highly plausible that these officials would feel indebted enough to help him

with a favor.

Yun Shang recalled that a short while ago, Wang Jinhuan was investigating Ning Ye. Maybe Prince

Jing had noticed something strange about Ning Ye and asked Wang Jinhuan to do so?

This assumption drove her to leave the Palace and visit Wang's Mansion at once.

As Yun Shang had been there before, the chamberlain recognized her immediately. He welcomed the

Princess with a smile. Yun Shang didn't have to wait for too long in the living-room before Lady Wang

entered to greet her. "Your presence has honored our home, Your Highness. Are you here to see

Jinyan, Your Highness?"

Yun Shang wanted to explain that she was here to see Wang Jinhuan, but it occurred to her that, even

though she was a Princess, as an unmarried woman, it would be inappropriate to visit an unmarried

man in his house. So she smiled politely and said, "Yes, I haven't seen her in days, so I snuck out

today to meet her."

Lady Wang responded. "I'll send for Jinyan right now."

Yun Shang nodded. Since Lady Wang had mentioned Wang Jinyan, Yun Shang started to chat about

Wang Jinyan's marriage. "I heard that Lady Wang is looking for an ideal husband for Jinyan?"

Lady Wang froze. She knew that Yun Shang and Jinyan had become quite close recently, so maybe

Jinyan had told the Princess about this. But Lady Wang wasn't sure if Princess Yun Shang was here to

convince her. So she smiled cautiously. "Yes, Your Highness. Jinyan will be 17 years old soon and it's

time for her to get married, or she would be laughed at. But she doesn't seem to care. What's worse,

she even asked His Majesty to allow her to join the army, which startled me. As a young lady, she

knows nothing about embroidery and a lot about horse-riding and martial arts. How is she supposed to

find a good husband this way? She is my daughter, so I have to plan ahead for her."

Yun Shang smiled. "It is time for Jinyan to consider such a matter. But I suppose Lady Wang must

know a lot about the respectable families in the Imperial City. I'm also certain that you've heard of the

complex relationships within these families. Jinyan, however, is a straightforward and innocent person.

She might not be able to live a happy life even if she manages to save herself from schemes in that

kind of environment."

Lady Wang didn't expect such a frank talk. After a long silence, she sighed. "I shouldn't have spoiled

her."

"Actually I find her frankness to be quite unique in the Imperial City. But it also means that we need to

be more careful when considering her marriage. With all due respect, Lady Wang, I think with the

power and influence of your family, it won't hurt for Jinyan to marry someone from an ordinary family. I

can see that Lady Wang and Lord Wang love her dearly. So why not find a decent man from a simpler

family who would love her as much as you do?" Yun Shang asked with a big smile. NôvelDrama.Org: owner of this content.

Lady Wang nodded after thinking for a while. "You are right, Your Highness."

"Shang'er...

Shang'er..." A joyful voice called from outside. Yun Shang looked toward the door and saw Wang

Jinyan rush in. Upon seeing Lady Wang, she stopped, coughed in embarrassment, and hid the rapture

on her face. She grinned at Lady Wang. "Mother..."

Lady Wang nodded. "Her Highness is here to see you. You don't have to practice embroidery today. Go

and have some fun."

Embroidery? Yun Shang raised an eyebrow and looked at Wang Jinyan. Wang Jinyan rejoiced at the

news and gave Lady Wang a big hug. "You are the best, Mother!" But she drew her hand back with a

hiss.

Lady Wang frowned and took Wang Jinyan's hand. At a closer look, she saw the holes caused by the

needle. Some were still bleeding. Lady Wang immediately felt protective towards her daughter. "Look at

you. How come?"

Wang Jinyan pouted and withdrew her hand. "The needle for embroidery is most difficult to handle,

much more troublesome than my pike. It just won't listen to me. I want it to make flowers, but all it has

done is hurt my hand."

Lady Wang sighed. "You don't have to learn that anymore. Go and have fun with Her Highness." Then

she curtsied to Yun Shang and exited.

Yun Shang teased Wang Jinyan. "I didn't know that you would surrender to a small needle."

Wang Jinyan wasn't embarrassed at all. "What's the big deal? It's nothing special anyway. What I'm

good at, such as horse-riding and archery, is even more challenging for other girls in the Imperial City."

Yun Shang couldn't help laughing, but she didn't forget the purpose of her visit. "Where is your brother?

I need to see him urgently."

Wang Jinyan knew that when Yun Shang used words like urgently, the situation must be critical. But

still, she teased Yun Shang. "I thought you are here for me. You've broken my heart. All right, I'll take

you to see my brother."

Yun Shang patted her hand and said, "Naughty."

As Wang Jinyan said, she wasn't the only one suffering these days. Wang Jinhuan was living an even

more pathetic life. In order to convince him to get married soon, Lady Wang had collected portraits of

all the ladies of the right age to send to Wang Jinhuan.