Chapter 411 Princess

Four years passed by like the water flowing in the moat of the capital city.

In spring, willow catkins were still floating beside the bluestone road. They kept floating until the fourth year of Wenzhen.

Two years ago, Imperial Concubine Qin Yuwei gave birth to a daughter and named her Yan Jing.

In the same year, the two-year-old eldest son Yan Ning was made crown prince.

In the blink of an eye, the world has changed.

It's a day off today, and Xiao Wan is handling official business in the study of her newly rented house.

Suddenly, there was a sound of machinery coming from behind the wall behind her.

Xiao Wan didn't even turn her head, concentrating on the task at hand.

The bookshelf against the wall slowly opened to the sides, revealing a secret door. Zhao Sicheng, dressed in a bright red official robe, walked out of the secret door.

"Cough cough." He coughed a few times towards Xiao Wan's back.

Xiao Wan ignored him.

"Cough cough! Cough cough cough!"

“…”

Xiao Wan still didn't raise her head, so Zhao Sicheng had to use his killer move. He stood behind her with a serious face like an old man and said in a deep voice:

"The Minister has arrived, why is there no one to greet him?"

Upon hearing this, Xiao Wan put down her pen, turned her upper body around, and perfunctorily saluted Zhao Sicheng, dragging out her tone to match him:

"I didn't know that the Minister was coming. Please forgive me for not coming to greet you. Please don't hold it against me."

Zhao Sicheng was very pleased with what he heard. He sat down on a chair and ordered:

"Come here and give me a shoulder massage."

"Yes." Xiao Wan stood up and walked behind him, stretching out her hand——

Pinched Zhao Sicheng's left ear.

"Oh, it hurts, it hurts, my wife, I was wrong, I was wrong!"

Zhao Sicheng was pulled by the ear and stood up from the chair, grimacing.

"You don't know how many problems there were in the construction of the palace. Even the Shangshu couldn't handle it.

Thanks to my efforts, not only was the construction completed within the construction period with guaranteed quality and quantity, but I also saved the court four thousand taels of silver!

His Majesty was very happy, and after hearing the Shangshu's talk about my great achievements in flood control in recent years, he rewarded me with the position of Vice Minister of Works.

Hey, look at this assistant minister's uniform, it's different, isn't it impressive?"

Xiao Wan glared at him with a sneer and reached out to help him smooth out the wrinkles on the front of his shirt.

"Oh, you are so powerful now, my Lord Minister. You have only been promoted for three days, and you have told me about this matter three or four times. My ears are numb from hearing it."

Zhao Sicheng came closer happily and asked:

"How about this? I am now the Minister of Industry. I will go to your house to propose marriage. Your parents will not object, right?"

"Wait a moment." Xiao Wan said.

"Why?"

"Recently, there are so many things to do in the Ministry of Finance that they are piled up like a mountain. I can't finish them all. Let me finish these things first, and then we can talk about proposing marriage."

"Okay then." Zhao Sicheng pursed his lips, and Xiao Wan suddenly kissed him on the cheek.

"I'll do it as soon as possible."

Zhao Sicheng sighed, "I heard that your Minister of Revenue and Vice Minister are being used by His Majesty, unlike the former Vice Minister of Works who is a half-baked one. Wanwan, you work so hard, but I'm afraid it will be difficult for you to get promoted in the next one or two years."

Zhao Sicheng was telling the truth, and Xiao Wan didn't really care about it. She said she would finish the task at hand first.

The two of them moved past this topic, and Zhao Sicheng looked around the study.

"How about the house next door to me? Let me tell you, when I first saw the pictures at the real estate agency, I found that the structures of these two houses were somewhat mysterious.

Later, I took a look and found that there was indeed a secret passage! It looked like it was built by the previous dynasty and had been abandoned for a long time. I guess the previous owners of these two houses didn’t know about it.”

His and Xiao Wan's houses are now adjacent to each other, but their gates face two different directions, and there are two streets outside the door.

No one would have imagined that the two houses were connected by a secret passage underneath.

Zhao Sicheng sighed:

"It was better to be in the academy before, at least we had a place to stay together.

I have been in Beijing for several years, and if I hadn't discovered this house, we wouldn't even have had the chance to hold hands."

"Oh, right." Xiao Wan suddenly remembered something.

"Have you prepared the things that will be delivered tomorrow?"

"Of course!" Zhao Sicheng stood up.

"I'll go to the Imperial Censorate and tell Zhu Lan to bring it with her tomorrow."

…

The next day, at the palace.

In the inner courtyard of the harem, a three-story attic with painted corners and flying eaves rises from the ground. It is surrounded by clear waves below and colorful curtains fluttering above, which is so gorgeous and elegant.

This is Changyu Palace, the residence of Concubine Qin, the most favored concubine in the harem.

Several palace maids were busy counting the gifts and talking in low voices.

"I have only heard that your Majesty was deeply loved by His Majesty when she was in the Eastern Palace. His Majesty has been on the throne for four years, and the positions in the harem have changed from time to time. Only our Majesty has been able to sit firmly on the position of Imperial Concubine. She is really capable!"

"That's right. You should be happy to be able to work in Changyu Palace."

"Today is the little princess's second birthday. You have to be careful and don't make any mistakes."

"But with so many gifts, why hasn't the Queen come out?"

"The queen seems to be waiting for someone. Let's not ask about the master's affairs."

On the second floor of Changyu Palace, Qin Yuwei, wearing a gorgeous lotus-colored dress, was leaning against the window.

Four years have passed in a flash. That beautiful face has become less immature and more graceful, just like a blooming peony, even more stunning against the backdrop of the lotus-colored brocade.

There was a hint of worry between her brows.

"My lady, Minister Zhu is here."

Zhu Lan walked in, smiling. The palace maid following behind him carried in a box, put it on the ground and left.

Zhu Lan looked around, "Hey, where's Jing'er?"

"Who knows where he's going to play again." Qin Yuwei smiled and pulled Zhu Lan to sit down.

There were no outsiders in Changyu Palace, so Zhu Lan did not shy away from being polite and poured peach blossom wine for the two of them in a familiar manner.

“Tsk, even though it’s been a few years, I’m still a little uncomfortable with it.

I'm only twenty-two, one year younger than you, and I'm already your aunt."

Qin Yuwei smiled and said, "Well, we are all over 30 years old in our last life plus this life. You are talking like a child."

Zhu Lan laughed and retorted: "If you think so, Youyou will be so angry that she will jump to her feet when she hears it."

Seeing that Qin Yuwei seemed to have a worried look on her face, Zhu Lan asked, "What's wrong? What happened?"

At this time, a small figure in a silk skirt staggered in, followed by a palace maid.

"Your Highness, please run slower!"

Zhu Lan quickly stood up, bowed to the two-year-old child and said, "Your Highness."

The little kid raised his chubby little arms and greeted the two of them in a serious manner:

"Mother, Prime Minister Zhu, the Crown Prince just took Jing'er to play with the Queen."

Qin Yuwei asked the palace maid to leave, and only she, Yan Jing and Zhu Lan were left in the palace.

As soon as the palace maid left, two-year-old Yan Jing threw herself into Zhu Lan's arms, a big smile blooming on her rosy little face.

"Congratulations, Auntie!"

Zhu Lan hugged her and pinched her little face.

"This child is incredibly clever."

Zhu Lan said this, and stood up and opened the big box he brought with him.

"Today is Jing'er's second birthday. Let's see what good things your mother's good friends have given Jing'er—"

The box was opened and the contents were extremely varied.

Some of them are even... shocking.