Chapter 370 Rumors spread
This year, all shops opened very late, almost all of them opened for business after the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. Although business was slow, they tried to make as much money as they could.

Tianshangju was also open, receiving the occasional individual customers. The children of the nobility did not dare to go to restaurants due to the strict restrictions at home. If they had to go, they would go to some inconspicuous small restaurants, ordering two dishes, soup and a pot of wine. Therefore, the big restaurants did not have much business except for the vegetarian restaurant.

Ye Jiayao originally wanted to launch a vegetarian menu, but that would mean she would be competing with the Lu family’s vegetarian restaurant. After thinking about it, she decided to give up. She would just wait for another month or so until the empress dowager was buried, and the mourning period would be over.

Su Yi and Zhao Qixuan were not in a hurry to go back. They wanted to wait until the empress dowager's funeral was announced before returning to the south.

A few of them would gather at the dessert shop every now and then, and they picked a sunny day to go to Ye Jiayao's farm villa. They lived a very leisurely life.

However, the peaceful days did not last long, and a rumor suddenly spread in Jinling City.

It was said that Ye Jiayao was raped by the manager of Datonghui during her disappearance, but the Marquis of Jing'an Mansion did not dare to make it public in order to protect its reputation.

The rumors became more and more intense, and some people said that the reason why Manager Bai committed suicide in prison was that Marquis Jing'an forced him to death, because he was afraid that Manager Bai would reveal the truth.

Of course, everyone talked about it behind the scenes and would not tell anyone in front of the people in Jing'an Marquis's Mansion, but the rumor soon reached Xia Chunyu's ears.

Xia Chunyu was furious, but he couldn't say anything, fearing that his parents and Yaoyao would be furious if they heard it. He thought that rumors would fade after a while, so there was no need to take it seriously. The more he took it seriously, the more people would think he was guilty.

Ye Jiayao was kept in the dark and had no idea what was going on, and so was You Shi.

This day was the Empress Dowager's seventh day after death, and everyone went to the palace to pay tribute to the Empress Dowager.

With Mrs. You around, Ye Jiayao didn't have to worry about such things. She was developing new dishes in her small kitchen at home.

After the memorial ceremony, Youshi and Princess Yide were going to sit with the Queen. Before they left Ninghe Palace, they saw several ladies muttering in front of them.

Youshi didn't care and walked forward with Yide.

"She is really able to keep her composure after something like this happened. If it were me, I would definitely not be able to tolerate it."

"Don't air your dirty laundry in public! You can only swallow your anger and accept it."

"Could it be a false rumor?"

"Impossible, the news is absolutely reliable, everyone in the Marquis' Mansion knows it."

"Did someone from the Marquis' Mansion spread it?"

"Of course, otherwise, how would people outside know? Hey, that Steward Bai is really bold, he even dared to touch the women of Jing'an Marquis's Mansion."

"Haha, where can you find a wife who can make so much money? If she's not faithful, then so be it. As long as she has money, that's enough." Someone sneered.

Youshi and Yide both paused. Youshi looked at Yide, and Yide said, "Ignore them, they have nothing to say."

In fact, Yide had heard these rumors a long time ago and asked Xiaojing about them. Xiaojing said that it was not true. Yide naturally believed Xiaojing and Ye Jinxuan and did not take it seriously.

But Youshi was different. Jinxuan was her daughter-in-law. If Jinxuan was slandered, the reputation of the Marquis' Mansion would be damaged, which she absolutely could not tolerate.

He immediately walked over with a cold face.

"What are you talking about? Say it again if you have the courage." Yu Shi shouted majestically.

She doesn't care what rank of ministers you women are wives of. She will never tolerate anyone who wants to destroy the reputation of the Marquis' Mansion and Jinxuan's reputation.

When the ladies saw that it was Youshi, they looked frightened and embarrassed.

"No, nothing... Madam Xia, we're leaving first."

"Stop right there." Yu Shi shouted in a deep and stern voice.

"Today, if you don't make things clear, no one will be able to walk out of this door." Yu Shi was furious.

Yide could no longer bear it when she saw Youshi getting angry, so she stepped forward and scolded, "Madam Liu, Madam Wang, Madam Deng... You are people of status, position and reputation, but you are also following the gossips of the market women and making up stories and spreading rumors. Do you have any sense of propriety and shame? Let's go to the Queen to have a discussion."

No one would be afraid of just Mrs. You, but it would be a different story if Princess Yi De got involved. Everyone knew that Yi De was close to the Queen, and even the Emperor respected his elder sister. If they went to the Queen to argue, would they get anything good?
Everyone started to panic.

"Princess, Madam Xia, we also heard it from others, and we don't believe it!" Madam Liu tried to please them.

Yu Shi stared at her with a sharp gaze: "Don't try to quibble. I heard everything you said just now. If you don't explain it to me clearly today, this matter will not end."

Madam Liu really wanted to slap herself in the face. She just spoke too quickly and offended Mrs. You. "Everyone is talking about this, and we are not the only ones talking about it," Madam Deng said with a guilty conscience.

Today, Youshi was determined to find out the source of the rumor. Since it had spread all over the city, there was nothing for her to be shy about.

He immediately pulled all the ladies in front of the queen.

"Empress, you know very well what kind of person Jinxuan is, and you also know why she suffered. She was locked up in a dark place, suffering and being wronged. After being rescued with great difficulty, she still has to endure such slander. It really hurts me to think about it." Yu Shi cried while wiping her tears.

Yide also said: "I thought that rumors would stop at wise people, but now it seems that we have to deal with these gossipers. Queen, you have to do justice for Jinxuan."

The Queen knew why Ye Jiayao was kidnapped. Prince Yu was involved, but unfortunately there was no evidence and it could not be brought to the table. Ye Jiayao had helped the Crown Prince and herself a lot, so it was inevitable that she would be hated. In addition, she was backed by the Marquis of Jing'an and the Prince of Helian, and was the Crown Prince's biggest help. For various reasons, the Queen could not sit idly by.

He then glanced majestically at the trembling ladies below.

He snorted coldly, "Very good, very good! A wife of the Minister of Rites, a wife of the Grand Secretary of Longyuan Pavilion, a wife of the Censor of the Censorate... You are all doing very well! The Empress Dowager has not yet been buried, and instead of mourning, you have the mind to gossip?"

Everyone was terrified and said in unison: "I know my crime, please forgive me, Queen."

"Since you said you heard it from others, then tell the truth. Where did you hear these nonsense from?" the queen pressed.

No one dared to hide the truth and they all exposed the person who spread the rumor.

The queen acted swiftly and immediately summoned all these people into the palace. One group of people accused another, and finally even Zhou was exposed, and more than a few people betrayed her.

You was so angry that she was shaking and wished she could strangle Zhou to death.

Yide's eyes were fixed on several ladies who were on good terms with Prince Yu's concubine Lin, and she whispered to the queen for a while. The queen nodded, knowing what was going on. It seemed that Prince Yu's mansion was behind this again. This was a godsend! There was nothing he could do to Prince Yu, but if he could find Lin's fault and accuse Prince Yu of not managing his family well, even the emperor would have a problem with Prince Yu.

He then took those ladies away for questioning one by one, hinting to his subordinates that they must find Lin before anything could count.

The ladies were summoned for questioning by the Queen. The ministers could no longer sit still. They did not know what their wives had done wrong and became anxious. They were about to leave the palace, but then turned back and waited outside to find out the news.

This alarmed the emperor again.

The emperor hurried to Chaoyang Palace. As soon as he entered the palace, he saw a large group of people kneeling below. The empress came forward to greet him. Yide and Youshi followed behind, looking angry and sad.

"Queen, what happened?" asked the emperor.

"Your Majesty, please move aside and allow me to report." said the Queen.

The emperor and the empress went to the back hall to talk. After a moment, the eunuch summoned Yi De and You Shi to come in.

The emperor's expression was not good either. He sighed and said, "I already know about this matter. It concerns Ye Jinxuan's innocence and the reputation of Jing'an Marquis's Mansion. I will definitely give you justice."

You quickly knelt down and thanked him profusely.

Coincidentally, a palace maid came to report that she had already confessed everything. It was under the instructions of Prince Yu's concubine Lin and Princess Liuli. They also deliberately won over the third lady of the Marquis's Mansion to stir up trouble in order to increase their credibility.

The emperor flew into a rage when he heard this: "It's Liuli again. How come she has a hand in everything? Can't she just be quiet for a few days?"

The Queen said calmly, "Liuli is a stubborn child. She is probably being used by someone."

Yide immediately understood what the Queen meant and said, "I heard that after Liuli moved out of the Marquis' Mansion, Lin often went to see her."

Youshi was not stupid either. She cried and said, "Liuli doesn't have such a good relationship with people that she can mobilize so many people to slander Jinxuan. But I don't understand why Lin Shi wants to deal with Jinxuan? Jinxuan has no grudge against her..."

Why do you want to deal with Jinxuan? This question lingered in the emperor's mind. The emperor didn't know the grudge between Lin and Ye Jiayao. He habitually thought about the problem from the perspective of the situation in the court. It was said to be a fight between women, but there were often mysteries hidden in it.

Ye Jinxuan is the daughter-in-law of Jing'an Marquis Mansion, and Lin is the concubine of Prince Yu. Although she is a concubine, her status in Prince Yu Mansion is far better than that of the main wife, A Ruan. Could it be that Prince Yu Mansion wants to take this opportunity to suppress Jing'an Marquis Mansion?

But this method is really too despicable. What kind of ability is it to let a woman take action?
The more the emperor thought about it, the angrier he got. He said angrily, "Lin is so despicable, and Liu Li Ning is stubborn and unyielding. If we don't teach her a lesson, she will become even more lawless. Queen, this matter is left to you to handle. You can do whatever you want. Draw up a list of the accomplices and ask their families to take them back. No matter what rank they are, all of them will be demoted by one level. How can you be an official if you can't even discipline your own wife?"

With the emperor's oral order, the queen felt relieved.

Ye Jiayao was happily busy at home. The dishes she made today were all very successful, and even Xia Chunyu, a high-end foodie, praised them highly.

She never expected that a big turmoil would be stirred up in the palace because of her, and she never expected that a group of officials who had worked hard to climb to their current positions would be knocked down overnight because of her.

(End of this chapter)