Rebirth: After Becoming the Villainess-Chapter 111: I Belong to the Prince

"Of course!"

Song Lianhe lifted her head and clenched her fist, her face a mask of righteous indignation. "The Prince has saved me from peril several times. Now that I know you are a man of great ambition, I must naturally do my utmost to assist you. Heaven and earth can witness my devotion! As for Prince Ling, he’s the competition! An outsider! Not even worth mentioning!"

Zhou Cangyan eyed her and let out a soft chuckle. "You certainly are loyal."

Song Lianhe immediately replied humbly, "This is one of my virtues I rarely display. I didn’t expect Your Highness to see it today. You truly understand me, Your Highness."

"Heh."

Zhou Cangyan chuckled enigmatically a couple of times before his laughter came to an abrupt halt.

"But from what I saw, your relationship with Prince Ling seems quite good. You were disrespectful to his face, yet he didn’t hold it against you. I’d say he’s quite taken with you."

Song Lianhe frowned in confusion. She had been perfectly polite to Zhou Junlin. ’What disrespect? No way!’

"Your Highness must be mistaken. He was clearly gritting his teeth in hatred for me. He’s probably gone back to scheme about how he’ll get his revenge!"

She then added pitifully, "If he really does come after me, you have to protect me, Your Highness."

Zhou Cangyan raised an eyebrow. "Then tell me," he said slowly, "why should I favor you?"

’He’s doing this on purpose!’

Song Lianhe took a deep breath and plastered a smile on her face. "That’s because... I’m your person, Your Highness!"

"My person..."

Zhou Cangyan looked at her, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly. "Oh?"

"Your Highness, don’t misunderstand, I didn’t mean it like that..."

Realizing her blunder a moment too late, Song Lianhe rushed to explain, but Zhou Cangyan had already picked up an official letter. "I have official business to attend to."

"Your Highness, I really didn’t mean it that way! Please don’t misunderstand..."

Just then, Manager Pang pushed the door open.

"Second Miss, here is the chilled red bean soup you asked for. I made it myself."

Song Lianhe’s attention was instantly captured by the dessert. "Thank you, Uncle Liang!"

After all, she had lived in the Prince Mansion for a few days. She didn’t put on airs, was on good terms with everyone, and had even cured Master Shen and the others of their poison. Everyone saw her as a benefactor, and the entire Prince Mansion treated her extremely well.

Pang Jiliang folded his hands before him, his expression kind and gentle as he looked at her. "Is there anything else you’d like to eat, Second Miss? I’ll have someone prepare it right away."

Song Lianhe immediately said, "Spicy chicken!"

She’d been craving it since her last stay at the Prince Qing Mansion, but she had been injured then and couldn’t eat anything spicy. All she could do was watch Shuang Ye and Ah Yu express their pity for her while they polished off every last piece of the spicy chicken.

Pang Jiliang agreed with a smile and immediately went out to arrange it.

Zhou Cangyan shot her a cool glance. "My Prince Qing Mansion’s manager... are you enjoying ordering him around?"

"How could you say that, Your Highness! I think of Uncle Liang as my own uncle. It’s a good thing when elders dote on the younger generation. It’s a sign of kindness, good for the *feng shui*!"

As she ate her red bean soup, her eyes happened to fall on the document in his hand. "The Hu Jian Bureau?" She looked up in surprise. "You really took over the Hu Jian Bureau?"

The Hu Jian Bureau and the imperial guard were both responsible for the security of Ling’an City—one internal, one external—but the former held more power.

Forcing a decorated young General to return and guard the Capital City... Emperor Cheng Xiao certainly had his motives.

Throughout history, few subjects who outshone their masters have met a good end. So for Zhou Cangyan, taking over the Hu Jian Bureau wasn’t necessarily a bad thing.

But in the original story, Zhou Cangyan had flatly refused, publicly embarrassing Emperor Cheng Xiao and earning his deep displeasure.

’So why has he agreed to it now?’

’The plot is deviating drastically from the original story!’

She couldn’t help but look at Zhou Cangyan with curiosity. ’What is he planning?’

Zhou Cangyan keenly caught the slip in her words and looked up at her. "How do you know about this?"

Song Lianhe froze. ’Right, how *do* I know?!’

Meeting his sharp gaze, her eyes darted around for a moment. "Sister Cao! It was Sister Cao who secretly told me!"

Cao Ying was Cao Jin’s younger sister. Since the Holy Emperor had summoned both Zhou Cangyan and Cao Jin for an audience last night, it wasn’t strange that she would know.

Seeing that she’d gotten away with it, Song Lianhe breathed a sigh of relief and said, as if it were an afterthought, "The Hu Jian Bureau isn’t so bad. It handles fire prevention, investigates crimes, inspects the city gates, and is responsible for all the major transportation hubs in Ling’an City, not to mention overseeing the Market Department. Transportation, trade, construction, security... aren’t all of these vital to the people’s livelihood? They might seem like trivial matters, but it’s real power you’ll be wielding! Besides, the Hu Jian Bureau’s previous Commander was only a Fourth-Grade official. With Your Highness taking charge, won’t bringing him into line be a piece of cake?"

She gave him a thumbs-up. "A wise move on your part!"

From reading the book, she already knew that the old emperor didn’t actually value this younger brother of his all that much. Even as blood relatives, they had been separated at birth—how close could they really be? He had been given this cushy post simply because the Emperor didn’t want him to be too obviously idle after surrendering his military power, which would attract criticism from the court officials. That was the only reason he was made the head of the Hu Jian Bureau.

Furthermore, while the Hu Jian Bureau couldn’t mobilize the Emperor’s personal troops like the imperial guard could, the strategic locations it controlled—just as Song Lianhe had pointed out—were not to be underestimated. Many people coveted control over the Bureau.

The male lead, for instance.

Zhou Junlin had planted his own man in the Hu Jian Bureau long ago, who had risen all the way to the position of Commander. How could he possibly let Zhou Cangyan interfere now?

So, after Zhou Junlin "unintentionally" let this slip to Song Xilan, she volunteered to persuade Zhou Cangyan to give up the post.

’Thinking about it now,’ she mused, ’whether Zhou Junlin was truly "unintentional" is debatable.’ 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

As it turned out, Zhou Cangyan had developed feelings for Song Xilan after the Hairpin Flower Banquet, a fact she was well aware of.

So, she exploited the villain’s affection for her and begged him to give up the Hu Jian Bureau.

This was the only time in the entire book that Song Lianhe had felt the villain’s gentle side.

It was after this that Emperor Cheng Xiao grew warier of him. A series of butterfly effects hastened the villain’s plans, and in turn, his downfall.

Realizing all this, Song Lianhe finally understood. Because she had intervened at the Hairpin Flower Banquet, Zhou Cangyan never developed feelings for Song Xilan and therefore had no reason to refuse the Emperor’s assignment. ’So, in a way, I accidentally helped him!’

’Tsk, tsk. Oh, Song Lianhe, Song Lianhe, you clever, kind-hearted little imp. What praise would be sufficient to capture your brilliant and noble character?’

Zhou Cangyan narrowed his pale eyes, watching the play of emotions—now happy, now wistful—on her face. "And I suppose," he said slowly, "Cao Jin’s sister told you all of this as well?"

’Cao Jin might have told his sister I was taking over the Hu Jian Bureau, but he wouldn’t be so idle as to break it all down for her.’

Song Lianhe was quick to respond, shaking her head immediately. "Of course not. If I am to serve Your Highness with utmost loyalty, I must naturally consider everything from your perspective! Your Highness, you must understand my sincere devotion to you."

Zhou Cangyan’s eyes were fixed on her. Her analysis was perfectly logical; what she said mirrored his own thoughts.

Of course, he wasn’t foolish enough to believe her explanation.