Chapter 30 Internal and External Dilemma

When the maids heard the scream, they quickly lifted her bed curtains. Seeing this scene, some of the timid ones fainted out of fright.

Princess Gao was also extremely frightened. She was pale and dazed for the whole day.

Xiao Fuyu was indignant, thinking that no one in the capital would dare to be so presumptuous towards the princess's mansion. It must be that Ling Tianshui knew that she had a new horse last time and was using the same trick again to harass her. So, she picked up the whip and went to the Changhua Palace to seek justice.

Su Wan hurriedly stopped her. Princess Gaoguo also believed that this incident might not have been caused by the Changhua Palace. Even if it was, the Lingling County Master's group dared to act in this way, implying that they could easily enter and exit the princess's residence and even hold the lives of mother and daughter in their hands. With a sword hanging precariously over their heads, this matter should not be made public.

Qian Deng originally just wanted to know about Xiao Fuyu's dispute with Ling Tianshui over the horse that day, but he was shocked to hear that someone had broken into the princess's mansion at night, chopped off Princess Changyi's horse's head and stuffed it into Princess Gaoguo's bed.

After hearing the mother and daughter's reactions, she couldn't help but feel helpless. No wonder Xiao Fuyu came over and roared that day. It turned out that the Princess Mansion had such a huge misunderstanding about the Changhua Palace.

She said to Su Wan, "Aunt, please tell your princess later that this matter has absolutely nothing to do with my Changhua Palace or Ling Tianshui. As the princess of the imperial court, I would never instruct anyone to do such a thing that violates the law."

Su Wan nodded in agreement, then looked at her hesitantly before continuing, "Originally, the princess and the county lord had agreed that the marriage was imminent, and when the crown prince came to the palace to discuss it, they would briefly mention the matter and ask him to mediate..."

Qiandeng naturally knew that she was being discreet for the sake of the respected one. This mother and daughter must be discussing how to criticize the Changhua Palace in front of the prince, and they were bound to throw dirty water on her.

"Who knew that only Luqi came to the Crown Prince's residence, saying that there was an urgent matter at the border and that the Crown Prince could not come for the next few days. She instructed that the wedding date would be discussed later. But what was there to discuss? The new Secretary of the Eastern Palace and the Chief Secretary of the Princess's Residence informed us that these were turbulent times and the court was extremely busy. The Emperor and Empress had to attend to the court in Chang'an, and the Crown Prince had to travel to the Huihe and the various protectorates to comfort the people. These were matters of great importance to the family and the country, and to the world. As for the wedding date, they would be postponed until after the Crown Prince had inspected the northwestern border."

In this case, postponing the wedding date was not only the Crown Prince's idea, but also the Emperor and Empress' idea.

Qian Deng naturally thought of the thin piece of paper she had presented to the Empress at Jianfu Temple that day. She silently glanced at Cui Fufeng, who was not far away. Although she didn't know what it was, she was sure it had touched the Empress's heart, and Xiao Fuyu's marriage to the Crown Prince would be in jeopardy.

If she could think of this, how could Princess Gao and Xiao Fuyu not know it?

The mother and daughter, both trapped inside and outside, sat in the palace, holding hands and comforting each other. Xiao Fuyu was calmer than her mother, and was confident in the bond she had shared with the Crown Prince since childhood. "Don't worry, mother. As the Crown Prince, Ah Yan naturally has to focus on state affairs."

"What do you know? Procrastination is the key to success. Delay will lead to unexpected events, especially since we are facing so many problems now..." Princess Gao looked into the bed curtain with lingering fear, as if she could still see the horse's head with its eyes open.

"Oh, mother, stop looking, or you'll have nightmares again tonight." Xiao Fuyu pulled her out of the hall and ordered Su Wan to move the princess's residence to the Feiyun Pavilion with high walls and deep courtyards, while he accompanied his mother to the garden to relax.

Su Wan led the maids to move all the princess's daily necessities to Feiyun Tower. As a result, when they sorted them out, they found that many of the princess's favorite jewelry were missing, so they hurried to report to the princess.

The weather in Mengchun is pleasant, the spring grass grows, and the flowers and trees are lush.

Princess Gao walked to the edge of the rippling pool, took a look at the waves, and immediately pressed her forehead, breathing rapidly, and leaned against the rockery in a dizzy state.

"Mom, what's wrong?" Xiao Fuyu hurriedly supported her and sat down on the rocks nearby.

"I can't breathe. In my dream... in my dream I fell into water like this!" Princess Gao pointed at the pool, her voice trembling and muffled, as if the water had covered her mouth and nose, making her sink in it and unable to struggle.

Xiao Fuyu hurriedly helped her away from the water and sat down with Xiaoxuan next to her.

Su Wan stepped forward to report the theft of jewelry and wanted to have a thorough inventory with the maid to see what was lost.

Princess Gao was feeling frustrated and scolded, "If it's gone, it's gone. You can't even save your life. What's the point of having these things? No need to count them!"

Su Wan didn't dare disobey and quickly nodded in agreement. She was wondering how to explain this to the princess and the governor when she heard the princess say, "Call a few more people to block the canal and fill in all the pools in the garden!"

Su Wan looked at the vast expanse of water in the backyard and hesitated. "Princess, it's spring now, and most of the people are busy working in the fields. I'm afraid we'll have to wait a month or two until the busy farming season ends before we can find enough people..."

"One or two months?" Princess Gao shouted angrily, "What if something happens to me within one or two months?"

Su Wan quickly knelt down and said, "Princess, you are blessed by nature, so why worry about ominous dreams? Just rest more and don't play around by the pond. I think..."

Before he could finish his words, Princess Gao, who was already furious, stood up and kicked him.

Su Wan was caught off guard and didn't dare to dodge. She was kicked in the shoulder by her and immediately fell off the platform by the water and into the pond. She could only struggle around and scream for help.

Hearing this, Qian Deng couldn't help but feel worried. But when he saw Aunt Su Wan standing in front of him, he felt relieved and said, "Fortunately, Aunt Su Wan can swim, so nothing happened."

Su Wan's eyes were slightly red, and she shook her head, saying, "I grew up in the Forbidden City, how could I swim? Fortunately, the weather was still cold that day, and I was wearing a soft, thick silk-padded jacket. The material didn't absorb water, so a large bulge formed in it, suspending me half-submerged and half-floating in the water, preventing me from sinking immediately. The princess glared at me, and then, apparently her anger subsided, she left in a huff. The people around her hurriedly pulled me ashore, otherwise..."

Otherwise, her life would be in danger.

Qian Deng pondered and asked, "So that's why you went to the Jin family to transfer workers, but were rejected, and the princess became even more angry because of this?"

"Yes, the princess was restless for two days. She said that whenever she closed her eyes, she either drowned or saw a bloody horse's head. She woke up several times every night. Our princess was also very worried. She knelt and kowtowed at the Da Ci'en Temple and pricked her fingertips with blood to draw a talisman for the princess, asking her to carry it with her... Who would have thought that just when the princess had finally recovered and was out enjoying the spring breeze, something bad would happen..."

Qian Deng turned to look at Xiao Fuyu, who was not far away, and pursed her lips silently. Even though they were such an arrogant and domineering mother and daughter, the love they had for each other was no different from that of an ordinary family.

Aunt Su Wan wiped her tears and said, "After the princess's accident, our county lady has been extremely sad these past few days. In addition, she believes that the murderer is in the county lady's mansion, so her emotions may be a little extreme. I hope the county lady will not mind and will take good care of Cui Shaoqing."

Qian Deng agreed and said, "Don't worry, aunt. This matter is of great importance. I will do my best."