Chapter 112: At the beginning of their marriage, he treated her the same way

After Lu Haozhi left, Meng Yan stood in the corridor for a while, lost in thought, before returning to the house.

Ruizhu brought over a bowl of chilled almond milk. "It's so hot, Your Majesty, you've been running around under the sun for half a day, so it's inevitable that you'll feel a bit hot. This is almond milk, freshly made in the kitchen, and it's been chilled. Your Majesty, eat this to help you cool down."

Meng Yan took the ice porcelain bowl and looked at the milky white soup in the bowl. There were a few rose petals floating in it. The red and white colors were so colorful and fragrant that it should have made her mouth water, but she had no appetite.

After taking two casual bites, the cool and sweet almond cheese slid down my throat into my stomach, and it rushed down like a cold spring, dispelling the heat and stuffiness in my body.

She put the bowl on the table and asked in a low voice, "How is Yunxiang?"

Ruizhu replied, "He was beaten with a stick and is lying in the room. Don't worry, Madam, I have applied medicine."

Meng Yan nodded. "She offended the Emperor today. It would be unreasonable for me not to punish her. But she did a good job. If she hadn't informed me in time, the situation would have gotten much worse."

If she had been even a step later in today's incident, Liang Chengbi and Lin Yanrong would have dared to let Bai Yuxin take the blame for the princess falling into the water, and even go a step further and question her for her dereliction of duty as the mistress of Changchun Palace.

By that time, he had already lost the initiative. Even if Lu Hao was determined to protect him, he would still be in a passive position.

Lu Hao is wholeheartedly protecting?

Thinking of what Lu Haozhi said and did in Ganquan Pavilion just now, Meng Yan felt a little strange in her heart.

Before he...

He treated her the same way at the beginning of their marriage.

When did he stop being like this? It was after Lin Yanrong entered the palace... No, it was after she smashed the Yangxin Palace for the first time...

Meng Yan couldn't help but think of what Lu Haozhi had said just now. Was he just saying it casually, or something else?

But how could he bring this up casually?

"Sister, I'm here."

The soft voice interrupted Meng Yan's thoughts. She looked up and saw Bai Yuxin, supported by Hongdou, walking slowly towards her.

She hurriedly ordered the maid to bring a chair over and asked Bai Yuxin to sit down. She then scolded her, "I told you to rest, why are you here again? I'll come to see you when I'm free later."

Bai Yuxin smiled weakly, her face sallow, her lips tinged with paleness. "I've already drunk the summer-heat-relief soup that my sister sent. It's made my head feel much cooler. I've also applied the plaster you sent, and it doesn't hurt anymore."

Meng Yan looked at her like this. She was such a beautiful lady, but she was tortured to this state in just a few moments. She felt distressed and even angry. "How dare Concubine Liang treat you like this without any evidence! You are from Changchun Palace. If they bully you, they are bullying me!"

Bai Yuxin smiled and shook her head, "Before my sister and the emperor went over, Concubine Liang originally punished me by making me kneel at the bottom of the steps outside Ganquan Pavilion. But Concubine Xian couldn't bear it and said the sun was too hot and she was afraid that kneeling would cause harm, so she called my sister inside."

Meng Yan's face couldn't help but darken. Outside Ganquan Pavilion was a cobblestone path, which was bumpy and uneven. Asking people to kneel on it in the middle of summer was like torture.

But then Bai Yuxin continued, "It's okay for me to suffer a little. After all, I come from a humble family and am not that pampered. But Concubine Liang is trying so hard to coax and coerce me into saying that I haven't taken good care of the princess and that I deliberately abandoned her today. She also said that if I don't confess, the blame for the princess's drowning will fall solely on me." She shook her head slowly, "How could I lie so conscientiously? I've seen how you take care of the princess every day. Not to mention her daily food and clothing, even if the princess has a headache or a fever, you'd stay by her bedside all night. To be honest, even my own mother would do the same. If I follow Concubine Liang's nonsense today, I'm afraid I'll be struck by lightning in the future."

Meng Yan felt quite touched and sighed, "I don't have any sisters in this life, only a brother. I am lucky to have a sister like you."

As she spoke, she was thinking about when to find a reason to raise Bai Yuxin's position. This promise was really too low. As long as she turned her back, someone would bully her under various pretexts.

Bai Yuxin lowered her head and smiled softly, "Sister, you're wrong again. I'm truly blessed to have a sister like you." At this point, her brows furrowed slightly as she asked, "I'm sorry, but have you sent anyone to inform the Empress Dowager? I've heard that she loves the princess very much, and I'm afraid if this gets to her ears, she might spread rumors."

These things happened one after another, catching Meng Yan off guard. She didn't think about this for a while. When Bai Yuxin reminded her, she remembered it and nodded, "You are right. It is better for me to go there in person." After saying that, she ordered people to pack up and go to Changchun Palace.

There was no conversation along the way. When the imperial concubine's ceremonial procession arrived outside the gate of Shoukang Palace, the ceremonial procession of Concubine Liang also arrived.

The two ladies got off the chariot together and smiled at each other when they saw each other.

Meng Yan is now a noble concubine, and Concubine Liang is a head shorter than her, so she naturally has to bow to her.

"Your Highness has greeted the Imperial Concubine."

Liang Chengbi bent her body slightly, but her eyes were fixed on Meng Yan, waiting for her to say no.

Meng Yan looked at her with a smile and said nothing, so she had no choice but to be polite.

Meng Yan returned a half-bow and said, "Concubine Liang is in a good mood. She just finished interrogating the people in Changchun Palace and came to the Empress Dowager. I guess she came to report the news?"

She was still angry about Bai Yuxin being wronged, so she was naturally not in a good mood when she saw Liang Chengbi.

Liang Chengbi felt relieved when she heard her domineering tone. She was still the arrogant Concubine Meng. She smiled and said, "Your Highness is such a joke. The princess fell into the water, and I was just handling the matter impartially. Is this action of yours to seek revenge?"

Meng Yan's eyes were cold, scraping her face like a knife, and she said, "So what?"

Liang Chengbi's face froze. Being stared at like that by Meng Yan, she felt a little frightened and took a step back. "Noble Concubine Meng, what are you going to do? This is broad daylight, and I haven't committed any crime. Are you planning to punish me?!"

Meng Yan's red lips curled up slightly, and it was no wonder that she asked such a question.

After all, she was the Concubine Meng who dared to smash the emperor's bedroom.

But in this life, she will never be so impulsive again.

"So you're afraid too? When you were torturing Yu Xin just now, didn't you think of fear? You're arrogant when bullying the weak, but you're timid when facing those in higher positions. Liang Chengbi, it's truly a misfortune for Prime Minister Liang to have a daughter like you."

Meng Yan said this, walked towards the steps of Shoukang Palace.

Liang Chengbi was provoking her, how could she not see it?

She wouldn't be stupid enough to make a noise or cause trouble in front of the Empress Dowager's door.