Chapter 9 — Champion Flower Queen

21 I hugged the old hen Hoa Queen and walked to the hallway. The tabby cat was sitting on the wall licking its fur. I waved at it. It immediately jumped down and rubbed against my ankle.
“Tieu Hoa.”
I squatted and patted its head.
"Tell me, have the person wearing a red shirt in Thai Boc Temple met any strangers these past few days?"
“Did you say any strange words?”
The tabby cat tilted its head. His ears twitched slightly, seemingly remembering. A moment later, it said:
“Then a skinny guy came looking for him.”
“The two of you talked in the room for a long time.”
"I was outside the window, hearing that thin person mention 'lady', 'intention', and also said 'if you bring her in, everything belongs to you'..."
"The red-shirted official didn't say anything, but he also didn't continue to scold people."
My heart immediately sank. Put her in the door, everything belongs to me. I thought about this sentence three times and finally understood. It turns out that Tien Trinh suddenly changed his attitude towards me because there were detractors. The person who came up with this idea, out of 10, was his wife or his strategist. Those bastards wanted me to use my identity as a concubine to enter the Tien Trinh palace. At that time, my ability, personality, and ability to treat horses, choose horses, and tame horses will all become Tien Trinh's. Our merits will also fall on the head of the Thai Boc Tu Khanh. He didn't need to lose face to invite me back, but he could hold both me and my bravery in the palm of his hand. Hit two birds with one stone. Truly cruel. Qian Trinh wants to accept me as his concubine? I squinted my eyes. Okay. Let's see if you destroy my reputation first, or if I pull you out of that chair first. 22 Even though the ladies in the capital don't like me, the noble ladies love to come see me. Among them, Miss Hoang Tam of Vinh An Ba palace was the most enthusiastic person. She sent cards three times. Each time the tone was more earnest than the last. I felt confused, so I asked Xuan Hanh:
“Are I and this Miss Hoang Tam very close?”
Xuan Hanh thought for a moment.
“Maybe there is no relationship.”
“We've only talked a few times at other people's house parties.”
“The young lady once criticized her for speaking too sweetly and artificially.”
“Does Vinh An Ba Palace have any playboys?”
“Never heard of it.”
“But…”
Xuan Hanh lowered her voice.
“Vinh An Ba palace and Dinh Bac Hau palace are in-laws.”
“The eldest daughter of the Hoang family married the Liu Ngu family of the Dinh Bac Hau palace.”

Liu Tiep? I raised my eyebrows. It turned out that Hoang Tam was the younger sister of Liu Tiep's wife. But the problem comes again. Although Liu Tiep is the son of Dinh Bac Hau, he also has two biological brothers. The title is thousands of miles away from him. The property that can be divided later is not worth much in the eyes of an earl's palace. She is the eldest daughter of Vinh An Ba palace. Even if she cannot climb high, why is she willing to marry a young man who only knows how to fight cocks and handle dogs? Therefore, when Hoang Tam sent the card for the fourth time, I agreed. After entering the Hoang family's house, looking at the ancient and old objects, the outdated decorations and the dumbfounded expressions of the servants, we immediately understood. It turned out that Vinh An Ba palace was even more miserable than Vinh Xuong Ba palace. Then I met Hoang Thi, Liu Tiep's wife, who was also the head of the Vinh An Ba palace. The first thing I noticed was not her gentle, dignified smile, but the little dog in her arms. The dog was in Hoang Thi's hand, staring at me. The small nose continuously sniffed. I also looked at it. Others saw how enthusiastic and friendly Hoang Thi was with me. And I listen to the mutterings in the dog's head. Halfway through the cup of tea, my hand holding the cup stopped. I bowed my head and sipped tea, hiding the cold smile at the corner of my lips. Sure enough, Hoang Thi wasted her time inviting me here because she had a conspiracy. The mind is cruel. The trick is ridiculously clumsy. 23 I put down the tea cup, smiled and praised Hoang Thi:
“The lady raised this dog very well.”
“Slick hair, looks extremely smart.”
Hoang Thi smiled gently. The dog in her arms was proudly wagging its tail.
“Master said this sister will sleep after drinking tea.”
“After she falls asleep, I will give it to Master Tien.”
“Then the Fifth Master will completely lose hope…”
Old man money. Tien Trinh? Everything immediately came together. It turns out they are waiting for us here. The mind is truly cruel. If you want to use a one-time plan to solve me forever, you also have to see if you have the courage or not.
“Why doesn't Miss Lam drink tea?”
Hoang Thi asked softly, her voice was as sweet as honey. I look at the cup of tea in my hand. The tea water is clear, the tea leaves bloom beautifully. Just looking at the outside, it's really delicious tea. I raised my head and stared at Hoang Thi without beating around the bush.
“Why do you keep reminding me to drink tea?”
At first, I really wanted to make plans and make the other party pay the price. But this is someone else's territory. I am not familiar with this place, it will be very difficult to act, there is little turning space, and it is extremely dangerous. Therefore, we gave up that idea. Definitely make a big deal of it publicly. I brought the teacup to my nose to smell it, then my face suddenly changed and I placed the cup firmly on the table.
“There is definitely a problem with this tea.”
The whole room immediately fell silent. All eyes are looking towards us. Even the dog in Hoang Thi's lap raised its ears. I hear it mutter:
“It's done, it's done.”
“It's been discovered.”
After about two breaths, Hoang Thi found her voice again. She reluctantly smiled.
“What do you mean by that, sister?”
“This tea is brewed right in front of you.”
“Water is…”
She said a bunch of freshly boiled water and premium tea leaves. I didn't fall into the trap at all, directly pushed the tea cup forward.
“There is something added to the tea.”
“If you say there's no problem, then take a sip and show me.”
Hoang Thi's throat choked. She stared at the tea cup, her hands stiffly on her knees, not moving at all. I smiled and took another bite.
“Or let Miss Tam drink it?”

Hoang Tam sitting next to him immediately turned pale. The little girl was only about fifteen or sixteen years old and had never experienced trouble. When faced with an unexpected situation, how can you be able to improvise? She instinctively looked towards her sister. But in front of so many people, all the guests in the room were watching, she could only grit her teeth and accept the cup of tea. As expected, her leg suddenly twisted. The tea cup couldn't hold steady, it fell to the ground and broke, spilling all the tea.
“I… I didn't mean to…”
Hoang Tam spoke incoherently, his ears red as blood. Looking at that appearance, I understood clearly. This girl is innocent, but not completely innocent. On behalf of my sister, she sent me an invitation to come. During the banquet, he continued to chime in. Saying things like "Sister Lam is so awesome, how did you win against Brother Luu?" She participates in everything. Now being put on the grill, it's completely on your own. I curled my lips, took a handkerchief from my sleeve and gave it to her.
“Third Miss, be careful.”
“Are you burned?”
Hoang Tam's hand receiving the towel trembled. She didn't dare raise her head to look at me. At this moment, Hoang Thi's face was extremely ugly. The tea has been spilled, there is no more evidence. But my last two sentences fell on the ears of everyone present. The story of the Hoang family plotting against the guests at the banquet, putting drugs in the tea of an unmarried lady, certainly cannot be hidden. Hoang Thi will not suffer any substantive punishment. Anyway, the tea was spilled, there is no evidence. But reputation is like water that has been thrown away. Cannot be recovered. Especially Hoang Tam. This little lady is in the process of getting married. After such an incident, which family would dare to marry a daughter-in-law who "will leave someone else if she doesn't like her"? Even if she was just an accomplice, it was enough to make the matchmaker take a detour. This is exactly what we want. The two Hoang Thi sisters achieved nothing, but instead exposed their dirty hearts in front of everyone, damaging their reputation. As for Liu Tiep. His wife drugged an unmarried girl. Regardless of whether he was innocent or not, outsiders only thought that he couldn't lose and asked his wife to take revenge on me.