Chapter 16: Stay low and weak

"Were you stopped?"

Qiu Xuan quickly turned around to ask for details, but she forgot that her hair was still in Zhe Mei's hand. The force she exerted broke several strands of her hair.

"Madam, please forgive me, Madam, please forgive me."

Qiu Xuan waved his hand to indicate that he was fine.

He became more careful in picking plum blossoms.

Qiu Xuan then asked Gan Tang, "What exactly is going on?"

"The caravan's errand boy brought it back. He said there were a lot more eunuchs and masked male mages at the city gate this morning. They seemed to be looking for something." Gan Tang handed the wax-sealed letter to Qiu Xuan and continued, "The shopkeeper was worried about ruining Madam's plans, so he quietly sent your letter back."

"Madam, he is not afraid of ruining your business, he is obviously afraid of getting into trouble." Zhemei interrupted.

"You said you were asking for trouble, so there's no reason for others to take risks for me." Qiu Xuan smiled bitterly and put the letter into her dressing table.

The eldest princess told her that her family was still in the north, so Qiu Xuan thought of writing letters to each of the settlements in the north that received prisoners.

Although the hope was slim, it was the only thing she could do at the moment.

"Madam, don't be sad. Good things will come to those who are lucky. Your family will definitely be fine." Zhemei comforted.

"Yes, yes." Gan Tang agreed, "Don't be sad, madam. I'll go ask other caravans."

"Not yet." Qiu Xuan said after thinking for a moment.

The eunuchs and mages dared to block the city gates, and they must have been instructed by the witches and sorcerers. The caravan had no idea what they were looking for, so they were definitely unwilling to take any risks.

"I'll think of another way. How is the old lady?"

After Ji Tiao left yesterday, the old lady fell ill. When Qiu Xuan was keeping vigil for her, she advised Qiu Xuan to accept her fate and said a lot of things that Qiu Xuan could not understand.

"Don't worry, Madam. The imperial physician said that the old lady has liver qi stagnation and will be fine after more rest."

I just don't know what she is worried about, which makes me feel uneasy.

"After I come back, I will go to serve my mother." She replaced the sandalwood hairpin in Zhemei's hand with the green jade hairpin given to her by the eldest princess.

Outside the corner gate, Xu Qi had already prepared the carriage.

"Madam..." Gan Tang stared at Qiu Xuan with his big eyes, wanting to say something but stopping himself.

"I need to rest for a while. You can sit outside." Qiu Xuan knew what she was thinking and reminded her, "But you are not allowed to shout."

Gan Tang covered his mouth and nodded repeatedly.

The carriage moved forward steadily. Gan Tang was like an excited oriole, chirping non-stop but not disturbing anyone. Qiu Xuan leaned against the pillow and closed his eyes to rest. When he opened his eyes again, he had already arrived at the Princess's Mansion.

Because the post had been hastily delivered last night, there was a problem with the concierge's handover. Qiu Xuan had no choice but to wait outside for the servants to come in and ask for the household order.

The main gate and the corner gate of the princess's house were very close to each other, and only a noise was heard coming from the main gate.

"Gan Tang, come in." Qiu Xuan didn't want to get involved, so she quickly asked Gan Tang to leave.

Coming out from the main gate were the Second Prince and Ji Zhuang.

"Whose carriage is that?" Ji Zhuang rode up and saw the carriage parked under a tree. He pointed his whip at a servant and said, "Go over and ask."

Jiang Jinhan took a look and saw the curtain of the car window swaying gently, allowing him to vaguely see a figure.

"I'll go first, you can do whatever you want." He rode away on his horse.

"Hey, Your Highness is quite impatient." Ji Zhuang hurriedly rode up and followed, "Let's go, everyone hurry up and catch up!"

"Madam, is that a witch?" Gan Tang held Qiu Xuan's arm tremblingly.

"It's my younger brother, Ji Zhuang."

"Fortunately, that prince is leaving. Is that the Fourth Prince?"

"It's His Royal Highness the Second Prince." What are Jiang Jinhan and the witch doing here?

"Mrs. Qiu, please come in."

The doorman led Xu Qi and parked the carriage into the mansion.

Qiuxuan got off the car and saw that it was Xu Sheren who came to greet her.

"How are you?" Qiu Xuan bowed quickly.

Xu Sheren returned the greeting neatly, "Please follow me."

The two of them walked through the layers of corridors in the Princess's Mansion. There were not many people in the Mansion, and it was very quiet along the way, with only the occasional meow of a cat.

"Time flies," Xu Sheren sighed suddenly. "Last night I dreamed of the days when I was teaching His Highness Ningjia. When I opened my eyes, I was worried about how I would explain to the Queen if His Highness Ningjia still couldn't play the music properly."

Xu Sheren murmured, "In the blink of an eye, you have all grown up."

"His Highness Ningjia plays the piano very well too," Qiu Xuan said.

"I just don't know if she's in the mood to play the zither right now," Xu Sheren turned his head to look at Qiu Xuan, "Are you in the mood to play the zither right now?"

Without waiting for Qiu Xuan to answer, she continued, "If you still have questions about piano melodies, feel free to come to me."

"you……"

"We are here. Please go in by yourself. Your Highness is bored. Please pay attention."

The eldest princess was more than just annoyed. When Qiu Xuan came in, she was furious at the maid.

"This tea was sent from Sichuan. The old trees only produce a few ounces a year. If you give them such precious tea, wouldn't that be a waste of natural resources?"

"Greetings, Princess."

"What are you talking about?" The eldest princess raised her sleeves and pointed at the maid: "Get out of here! Don't get in my way!"

The maid was so panicked that she almost bumped into Qiu Xuan when she was leaving.

"I'm so angry." The eldest princess sat back down and glared at Qiu Xuan again, "You're here to get me angry too, right?"

What good can come from someone knocking on your door and delivering a note in the middle of the night?

"Your Highness, please forgive me." Qiu Xuan handed Ji Yao's confession to the eldest princess.

The eldest princess laughed when she first saw it.

"Young people nowadays just run away and leave nothing to be desired."

When she saw the back, she frowned.

"No wonder." The princess threw the letter on the table. "No wonder Ji Zhuang came this morning and asked for the Northern Army's token. It turns out someone is missing."

She sneered, "If you send good kids to live like they're in jail, some of them would have run away long ago."

"What Ji Zhuang wants is the command of the city gate captain?"

"Yes, how did you know?" asked the eldest princess.

Qiu Xuan explained to the princess what happened that morning, omitting the part about the letter she had someone send.

"The merchants don't know what the witches are investigating, and I'm afraid everyone is in danger."

"Just because someone's missing, you've mobilized so many troops." The eldest princess clenched her fists in anger. "I think he's just pretending to be looking for someone, and really wants to take advantage of this opportunity to insert new talents into the Northern Army."

"Don't worry about it." The princess waved her hand. "I'll have a discussion with him at court tomorrow."

"Your Highness..." Qiu Xuan said softly, "When Ji Yao took the mage away yesterday, the princess and I were there."

Qiu Xuan didn't even dare to raise her head after she finished speaking. She only heard the eldest princess clenching her fists until they creaked, and she squeezed out a few words from between her teeth after a while.

"You are such a troublesome thing. I really want to throw you out."

"Princess Feifei didn't get off the car, and we all dressed plainly that day. I thought if the shamans found out about our whereabouts, we would just say I was alone and hide the princess away."

"You? Do you think you can hold up the sky?" The eldest princess sighed, "I'm afraid that when the time comes, that evil person will make a fuss about you again, bring up the Queen's matter again, and spread evil rumors to Your Majesty again."

"By then, not only you, not the Yunyang Marquisate, but even the Fourth Prince and I will be implicated."