Wasn't he supposed to be beaten to death? Why did this powerful cousin love him so much?

No sooner had Xie Jue left than Jiang Sese heard from Fu Wenzhao about Chen Jinghuan being sent to the training camp.

Jiang Sese thought to herself, "This is a good thing."

Jiang Sese was originally worried that Chen Jinghuan would cause trouble, but after Chen Jinghuan left, Jiang Sese felt that there was nothing to worry about.

In high spirits, Jiang Sese took some time to visit the estate outside the city. The journey was uneventful; after all, the guards of the Duke of Dingguo's mansion were not to be underestimated. Moreover, she now had the powerful backing of Xie Jue and Fu Chong, and it was easy to find shelter under their protection. There were not many people who could afford to offend these two families.

Jiang Sese spent half a day relaxing at the estate, handling some trivial matters reported by the estate manager. Looking at the newly planted fruit tree saplings, she felt quite pleased with herself and accomplished.

On the way back to the city, a few small vendors began to appear along the roadside, hawking seasonal fruits or crude bamboo trinkets.

Just as Jiang Sese was leaning against the soft pillows, pondering what to eat for dinner, a murmur of conversation drifted in through the not-so-soundproof car window.

"...Have you heard? This year's floods are really strange."

"Exactly! Brother, you've hit the nail on the head! I've been hearing gossip too. Think about it, when did this flood start? It just so happened that it occurred right when the Duke of Dingguo's newly adopted daughter was at the height of her fame!"

"Hiss, now that you mention it..." The man gasped.

"I heard that woman's origins are unknown, but that face... tsk tsk, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say she's stunningly beautiful. Who is Lord Xie? He's the upright and just official of our Great Yong Dynasty. I've heard he's always been averse to women, so how come he's suddenly become so passionate? Don't you find it strange?"

"Oh dear! Now that you mention it... could it be... that we've attracted some unclean spirit? A fox spirit? Or some kind of demon? Something that's here to wreak havoc on the world? Otherwise, how could this flood have come at such a convenient time? Was it waiting for her to climb the social ladder before it struck?"

"Shh! Keep your voice down! You can't say that!"

"However... the celestial signs are a warning, and there's resentment among the people, isn't that true? I've heard that nursery rhymes have already started circulating in Jiangnan..."

"A beautiful woman floats on the water, the river surges."

"A year of misfortune will befall the prime minister."

Jiang Sese, sitting in the carriage, was dumbfounded. Although she was worried that this water situation might be related to her transmigrating into the book, she really hadn't done anything!

Natural disasters, geological and climatic problems were unfairly attributed to her; she was accused of being a monster who brought disaster to the country. She was playing with old feudal prejudices to perfection.

Jiang Sese's relaxed and carefree expression vanished instantly, and she frowned.

She's not one to shirk responsibility, but she did nothing wrong, and she didn't want to transmigrate into the book herself, so why should she take the blame?

Hongdou, sitting next to her, turned deathly pale. "Girl! How dare these people utter such vile words! I'll..."

"Red Bean!" Jiang Sese stopped Red Bean from getting up in time.

Hongdou was stunned by Jiang Sese's gaze and tone, and stopped what she was doing, but her chest was still heaving violently, and her eyes were filled with undisguised worry: "Miss! They..."

Jiang Sese's eyes remained calm as she slowly shook her head. "They just mentioned that there are already nursery rhymes about me in Jiangnan, but how long does it take to get from Jiangnan to the capital?"

Xie Jue had just left.

If this nursery rhyme had already spread in Jiangnan, Xie Jue couldn't possibly be unaware of it, much less remain silent about it.

The only explanation is that Xie Jue was unaware of this matter, and the news only spread within a small circle in the capital after Xie Jue left.

Hongdou was also jolted awake by Jiang Sese's words, her expression uneasy: "Miss, are you saying you have someone in the capital...?"

Someone is trying to take advantage of the natural disaster to nail the girl to the pillar of shame as a demon and a source of trouble, not only to ruin her reputation but also to take her life, and may even implicate Xie Jue and the Duke of Dingguo's mansion!

Hongdou immediately said, "Miss, shouldn't we quickly ask Young Master Fu for help?"

Jiang Sese pondered in silence for a moment, her mind flashing through countless tropes of palace intrigue and court politics from books.

If she were to ask someone from the Duke of Dingguo's mansion to intervene now, all they could do would be arrest those who were spreading rumors. And then what?

The person who spread such rumors is despicable; they clearly intend to kill her.

If any ordinary vendor who is arrested succumbs to torture and causes trouble, the small matter will immediately escalate into a city-wide uproar, playing right into the enemy's trap.

Once she understood, Jiang Sese immediately said, "No! We can't let the Duke of Dingguo's mansion get involved!"

Hongdou was taken aback: "Girl? Why? Are we just going to let them defile us like this?"

"Precisely because we can't let them slander us, we can't just arrest them directly! Imagine what would happen if the people from the Duke of Dingguo's mansion went and aggressively arrested those gossiping peddlers, even beat them up and locked them up?"

Hongdou instinctively replied, "Of course, it's to make an example of them, so they won't dare to talk nonsense again!"

Jiang Sese remained remarkably calm: "That's how it appears on the surface. But those who spread rumors behind the scenes want exactly this effect; they'd love to make things escalate!"

Hongdou's face turned pale, and she broke out in a cold sweat: "Girl, then... then what should we do? Are we just... just do nothing and let the rumors spread?" Wouldn't that be even worse?

"The enemy is in the shadows, we are in the light. They want to kill us with rumors, a soft knife; a head-on confrontation plays right into their hands. What we must do is use their strength against them!"

When Fu Chong saw Jiang Sese enter the study with a serious expression, he knew something was wrong.

Jiang Sese didn't beat around the bush and told them everything she had overheard on the street.

Fu Chong's first reaction after hearing the whole story was indeed furious, and he immediately ordered people to arrest those who were spreading rumors.

"Godfather, wait!" Jiang Sese quickly called out to stop him.

Fu Chong frowned, looking at her with displeasure. He thought that since she was a woman, she was too soft-hearted: "Sese, they've been defecating on our heads. Shouldn't we arrest and kill them as an example to others? Are we just going to let them spread rumors and ruin your reputation and the honor of my Duke Dingguo's mansion?!"

For any aristocratic family, reputation is of paramount importance. Of course, some families with poor reputations simply give up and abandon all hope.

Like the Xie family, the Fu family cherishes and values ​​their reputation highly.

If it weren't for the Fu family's good reputation, Xie Jue wouldn't have thought of having Jiang Sese recognize Fu Chong as her godfather.

Right now, these people are attacking more than just Jiang Sese.

If Jiang Sese's reputation as a vixen is confirmed, what will the Duke of Dingguo's mansion become?

Therefore, Fu Chong was very anxious, extremely anxious!

Jiang Sese quickly explained, "Father, please calm down! I'm not being soft-hearted. It's precisely because the enemy is so malicious that we can't do as they want!"

Jiang Sese explained her analysis to Fu Chong in a clear and organized manner.

Fu Chongchu was initially angry, but as he listened to Jiang Sese's calm and insightful analysis, the anger in his eyes was gradually replaced by surprise and deep thought.

Fu Chong looked at Jiang Sese with a scrutinizing gaze. This girl, whom he initially thought was just obedient and sensible, actually had such keen insight and a calm mind when faced with such a vicious frame-up!

Most people would have panicked immediately and just wanted to shut up those who were talking nonsense.

It's simply impossible to remain that calm.

"You... can think so far ahead?" Fu Chong's tone softened.

He said that Xie Junheng didn't seem like the kind of person who would be tempted by beauty.

Fu Chong thought for a moment, then asked cautiously, "So, in your opinion, how should we deal with this? We can't just sit idly by and let the rumors spread even further, can we?"

Seeing that Fu Chong had taken her words to heart, Jiang Sese felt slightly relieved and a sly smile appeared on her face: "Godfather, if they can spread rumors, so can we!"

"Spreading rumors? Tell me the details." Fu Chong couldn't help but become interested.

"Since they're attacking me for having an unknown origin, then we'll make that unknown origin legitimate."

Jiang Sese said confidently, "Godfather, think about it, why did you take me in as your goddaughter in the first place? Wasn't it because you felt I was lonely and pitiful, and that I suited your taste? Isn't that fate in itself?"

Fu Chong nodded: "Not bad."

Jiang Sese smiled and said, "Then let's add some spice to this destiny!"

Jiang Sese lowered her voice and explained her plan in detail.

Fu Chong's eyes lit up, and he clapped his hands and laughed, "Brilliant! Brilliant indeed! Se Se! Your mind works really fast! That's a good idea!"

Fu Chong thought about it more and more and it seemed feasible.

"Okay! That's settled then! I'll have someone get it done right away!"

Fu Chong immediately summoned his trusted steward and gave him instructions.