Chapter 147 Rumors

"It's different every time. It's not like we'll just take in all the old people again." The eldest princess picked up the chopsticks and said indifferently.

The butler was a little stuck and couldn't think of what to say.

What the eldest princess said was right. Every family has a different way of treating concubines. At least, the bride is different.

The others all lowered their heads to eat and did not respond. The eldest princess asked casually, "Whose daughter is this time?"

"It's... the second young lady of the Duan family." The housekeeper suddenly remembered something and said hurriedly, "She's not a concubine, but a concubine."

The eldest princess was stunned for a while before she slowly came to her senses. She naturally knew about the Duan family, but it took her a while to remember the second Miss Duan.

"How did he get involved with the second daughter of the Duan family? Also, isn't his position as a concubine full?"

Shen Anan also looked up at the housekeeper, because she also wanted to know this question.

She knew that Duan Yingying was discussing marriage recently, but she never expected that she would be associated with Xiao Ze.

Xiao Yuan, who had been quietly picking bones from the fish on the plate, said calmly, "It was probably the day of my and An An's wedding. As for the position of concubine, didn't Zhang just vacate one a few days ago?"

There is a hole for each carrot. When the previous one is pulled out, this one will fit right in.

“…”

The eldest princess was speechless and waved her hand helplessly, "Okay, go to the storehouse to pick a gift, and join in the fun the day after tomorrow."

Since you are marrying a concubine, you still have to give her face.

The butler withdrew.

Hua Sheng immediately said, "If you want to go, you go. I won't go."

She pulled Shen An'an and said, "You don't know, every time my second cousin takes a concubine, my second cousin's wife would cry and complain to my mother. They are a very strange couple, and I am annoyed."

Ling Chenyi chuckled when he heard this.

Shen Anan suddenly remembered that the day after tomorrow seemed to be the day that Concubine Liang mentioned to let Miss Li enter as a concubine. She looked up at Xiao Yuan.

A bowl of crystal clear fish was pushed right in front of her. "Eat it quickly, it won't taste good if it gets cold."

“…”

She felt that Xiao Yuan wanted to shut her up and stop her from speaking.

The fish meat was picked very clean, softened in the mouth, fresh and delicious. Shen Anan chose to keep her mouth shut, but Xiao Yuan's speed of picking out the bones could not keep up with her speed of eating.

The eldest princess looked at the two of them in harmony, and a smile slowly appeared in her eyes.

After dinner, Shen Anan was pulled to her yard by Hua Sheng, while Xiao Yuan and Ling Chenyi went to the study to discuss things.

The eldest princess had the habit of taking a nap, so she no longer paid attention to them.

"I have regretted for a long time that I could not attend your wedding ceremony." Hua Sheng handed the dowry gift that she had prepared long ago to Shen Anan.

"Don't be mad at me."

Shen Anan handed the things to Mo Xiang and said with a smile, "Your health is the most important thing. It doesn't matter whether you go or not."

Hua Sheng's smile faded visibly, and then returned to normal, "You are right, life must go on, and only when we are alive can we have hope."

She pulled An An to sit on the couch and took out a stack of papers from somewhere, "Take a look."

Shen Anan flipped through it and knew the cause of Hua Sheng's illness. "Will the Princess see you again?"

"Yeah." Hua Sheng nodded slightly. "I've looked around but I don't see anything I like. Can you help me take a look?"

Shen Anan then looked at the scrolls carefully again. The age and family background were written next to the portraits. They all looked very decent, but their family backgrounds were not outstanding. They could only be said to be average.

"This young master of the Zhao family should be quite good. I heard from my eldest brother that his family used to be a big family, but it has fallen into decline in recent years. However, his character and talent are still acceptable."

Shen Anan pointed at a handsome man. She had some impression of this man. In his previous life, he had joined Xiao Yuan's army and was considered a prominent figure with some achievements.

The most important thing is that he has good character and is the kind of loyal and upright person that Xiao Yuan praised.

Hua Sheng glanced sideways and said with a smile, "What a coincidence, my mother and eldest brother also like him, so he will be the one."

She said it casually, as if it was as simple as buying some radishes and cabbages.

"Hua Sheng." Shen Anan called her softly.

She knew her heart knot, but secretly, she also hoped that she could let it go completely and not repeat the tragedy of her previous life.

She didn't know whether the two of them would ever meet in this life, but it would undoubtedly be very difficult and painful to persevere.

"Yeah." Hua Sheng smiled, his eyes seemed to be covered with a layer of mist, and they were sparkling.

"Don't worry. In fact, it doesn't matter to me who I marry."

Shen Anan didn't understand how those fragmentary fragments from her youth could have kept her going for so many years, and how she couldn't let go.

Once you meet the right person, you will ruin your whole life and from then on it is hard to give up. This is even more ridiculous than her previous life!

"Let's not talk about this anymore." Hua Sheng took the small statue from her hand and threw it casually on the table. "If there is a result, I tell you, don't forget to come and have a drink at the wedding."

"Um."

She suddenly wondered whether Ling Chenyi and Xiao Yuan knew what Hua Sheng was thinking, and whether there was any possibility that person would come back.

There was a heater burning in the room, and the maid brought tea, water, and fruits. The two of them sat around the heater, eating and talking.

"When did you and my fourth cousin start?"

Shen Anan didn't know how to answer this question, "I got married without knowing what was going on. I don't know."

"Do you like him?"

The fruit stayed in Shen Anan's mouth for a few breaths before she slowly chewed it and swallowed it. He tilted his head to meet Hua Sheng's curious eyes, pulled up the corners of his lips to smile, and nodded.

Hua Sheng also laughed, "It is the most precious thing in the world for lovers to finally get married."

"Yes." Shen Anan picked up the teacup and held it in her palm, saying, "Just now the princess asked me to treat him well, saying that he had a hard time."

"Indeed." Hua Sheng nodded, with her slender fingers resting on the edge of the stove. "Among all the princes and princesses, my fourth cousin is the most pitiful one. He is also smart and hardworking, otherwise he would have died long ago."

"Hmm?" Shen Anan looked sideways at Hua Sheng, "What do you mean by lifeless?"

Hua Sheng said nonchalantly, "The royal family is cruel, and the means they use to harm people are beyond our imagination."

"Especially since he is a prince, countless people have been sacrificed in the struggle for power. It is no exaggeration to say that it has been a mountain of swords and a sea of ​​blood for my fourth cousin to have come this far on his own."

Shen Anan was silent for a while.

Then Hua Sheng continued, "If you had seen him coming back from the battlefield covered in blood, you would have felt very sorry for him."

But that was just a drop in the bucket of the life and death experiences I've gone through over the years, and no one can empathize with the bitterness involved.

Shen Anan in the previous life couldn't do that either.

She only complained about his countless government affairs every day, and even blamed him when he was injured. Little did she know that if she did not fight, the only thing waiting for her was death.

Now that I think about it, the fact that I was able to go crazy without restraint was also earned through his hard work.

She had never fulfilled her responsibilities as a wife, so how could she blame him?

"Cousin." Hua Sheng waved his hand in front of her eyes, "Why are you suddenly silent? What are you thinking about?"

"Nothing." Shen Anan came back to her senses and smiled, "I've heard many people mention Concubine Shu, but I've never heard him mention it. I always feel that he seems to be very taboo about Concubine Shu's death. I'm afraid that if I say something wrong in the future, it will make him unhappy. You even asked your mother."

When Hua Sheng mentioned this, his face darkened. "The Concubine Shu was an extremely gentle woman, but unfortunately she was short-lived. She passed away when my fourth cousin was very young, and at that time..."

At this point, Hua Sheng suddenly pursed his lips and stopped talking. Shen Anan frowned and looked up, "What happened at that time?"

Hua Sheng said, "I'm telling you, you better keep it to yourself and don't even ask your fourth cousin."

Shen Anan nodded.

Hua Sheng carefully glanced outside, and after making sure that no one else was around, he whispered, "I don't know much, I just know that the relationship between Concubine Shu and the Emperor's uncle wasn't very good during those two years, and then Concubine Shu suddenly died of illness for some unknown reason, and there were rumors in the palace... that Concubine Shu was impure and was sentenced to death by the Emperor's uncle."

Shen Anan looked up in shock, and Hua Sheng immediately held her wrist and shook his head at her.

"As soon as the rumor came out, it was suppressed by the emperor's uncle. At that time, several concubines died in the palace. They were all executed for gossiping behind the back. Since then, no one dared to mention this matter again."

"Even the death of Concubine Shu, no one except my fourth cousin dared to mention it in front of my uncle."

Shen Anan's mind was confused for a moment, and it took a long time for her to digest Hua Sheng's words.

She had never paid attention to these things, so she knew nothing about Xiao Yuan.

How could the death of Concubine Shu have such absurd twists and turns?

"Have you ever met Empress Shufei? What kind of person is she?" Shen Anan asked.

Hua Sheng shook his head slightly. "I was still young at that time, and I only have a vague impression of her. I remember that she was a gentle person who spoke softly and loved to hug my fourth cousin and feed him candy."

Hua Sheng said nonchalantly, "Although it has been so many years, I think Concubine Shu is definitely not that kind of person. It is because of those rumors that my fourth cousin has always suspected that there was something wrong with Concubine Shu's death."

Shen Anan frowned, immersed in her own thoughts.

So, Xiao Yuan’s resentment towards the emperor was because he suspected that the emperor was related to Concubine Shu’s death?

But if Concubine Shu really had...something wrong with her, then as an emperor, isn't it natural for him to execute an unfaithful concubine? Why did they choose to let Concubine Shu die of illness?

For Xiao Yuan? Impossible. If it was for his royal reputation, it might be more believable.

Combined with the emperor's attitude towards Xiao Yuan, Shen Anan felt that those rumors were most likely not true, and the emperor knew it very well, so he felt guilty towards Xiao Yuan and forgave him repeatedly.

So what exactly happened back then? What about Concubine Ning? What role did she play?

All the information was slowly connected together like a rope, but when she wanted to explore further, she had no clue.

What she was sure of now was that the blame that Concubine Shen had to bear must be related to the death of Concubine Shu, and Concubine Ning was most likely silenced by the Emperor because she might also have been a part of it! ! ! !