"Manager Hu, what brings you here today?"
Hu Qing looked up abruptly and saw Xiang Yang standing in front of him, looking at him with a surprised expression.
Normally, the food delivered to the palace is delivered through the passageway leading to the imperial kitchen. That passageway is several palaces away from here, which is why Xiangyang was so surprised to see him.
If he had walked a few more steps with his head down, he would have bumped right into Xiangyang.
Hu Qing swallowed hard. "I'll go to Yonghe Palace."
"Yes, I will go to Yonghe Palace to deliver a message to Her Highness the Princess."
Hu Qing had a sudden inspiration and chose an ambiguous statement.
Jiang Shuyue still doesn't know that Hu Qing was actually Xiao Jingzhao's man.
Xiao Jingzhao owned a bank and a restaurant, and Hu Qing was the head manager of the restaurant in the capital.
Xiangyang Station is located at a fork in the road, one path leading to the inner palace and the other leading to the front hall in the direction of the Imperial Garden.
When Xiangyang heard that he was going to see the princess, he put away his smile and said, "Manager Hu, don't you know the rules of the palace?"
There are many rules in the palace, one of which is that men are not allowed to enter the inner palace without being summoned by a concubine.
Hu Qing was also aware of this rule. He glanced around and added, "Of course I know. We've just reached the intersection. A palace maid from Yonghe Palace will come out in a moment. I'll ask her to pass on a message."
Xiangyang looked around but didn't see a single palace maid.
Thinking that Hu Qing manages the entire restaurant, he must be quite busy every day.
He lowered his voice and said, "Rules are rules. We are all the master's people. I will accompany you to the gate of Yonghe Palace to find someone. Even if the master finds out, it will not be a big deal. We just need to avoid entering the gate of Yonghe Palace."
"No, Deputy Commander, you go ahead and attend to your duties. I'll wait a bit longer."
He dared not let Xiangyang see the wedding invitation; if Xiangyang knew, it would be the same as the Emperor knowing.
Although the Emperor is his former master, this matter is of utmost importance. The young lady trusts him greatly, and he cannot cause her any trouble.
Hu Qing estimated that by the time the wedding invitation was handed to the princess, Nangong Zeyue had already gone to the Jiang residence to fetch her.
By then, even if the emperor wanted to do something, it would be too late.
Thinking of this, he watched Xiangyang leave and then stood motionless in place.
About half an hour later, two palace maids came carrying pastries.
Since the wedding invitations could not be handed over to others, Hu Qing revealed his identity to the two palace maids and said that he had something to ask of the princess.
The two palace maids were from Yonghe Palace. Juxian Pavilion was famous throughout the capital, so the two palace maids naturally knew about it.
They led Hu Qing to the entrance of Yonghe Palace and went inside to deliver a message.
A moment later, an unfamiliar palace maid came out and said, "His Highness invites you in. Please come in and talk to Manager Hu."
After entering Yonghe Palace, a palace maid led him to a large hall.
"Greetings, Princess!"
"No need for formalities, Manager Hu."
"If I remember correctly, you were once my brother's man. Now you've come to the palace today with Sister Jiang to request an audience. Is there something important?"
Yonghe sat upright at the head of the table, raised his hand in a gesture of support, and asked.
Despite being a young girl, she exuded an aura that surpassed that of an adult.
"Your Highness, someone from the Jiang family has sent a wedding invitation for me to deliver to the palace." Hu Qing quickly lowered his eyelids, took out the invitation from his bosom, and presented it to the palace with both hands.
Yonghe slightly raised his chin, and a palace maid took the wedding invitation and handed it over.
Hu Qing raised his head slightly and saw that Princess Yonghe's expression changed instantly.
Hu Qing was startled; the Emperor's heart was indeed with the young lady.
"Your Highness, if there are no further instructions, I will take my leave."
Princess Yonghe thought it was inappropriate for a man from outside the palace to stay in the palace for too long, so she nodded and ordered a maid to escort Hu Qing away.
Watching Hu Qing's figure disappear at the palace gate, Princess Yonghe loosened her grip on the wedding invitation.
With trembling fingers, she opened the wedding invitation, which clearly bore the names of Jiang Shuyue and Nangong Zeyue.
No, she already belongs to the Emperor, how can she marry someone else?
What will happen if Sui Sui loses her mother?!
No, if Sui Sui ascends the throne in the future, and is not under the Empress's name, the ministers will definitely support other princes.
In an instant, countless questions flooded Yonghe's mind.
Seeing her expression change repeatedly, one of the palace maids, puzzled, stepped forward and asked, "Your Highness, is something wrong? Should I go and summon the imperial physician?"
Yonghe closed the wedding invitation and stood up: "No need, I'm not feeling unwell. Don't follow me. I'm going to the front hall to see my brother. When Changle returns, don't mention the wedding invitation, understand?"
"This servant understands."
The palace maid responded verbally, but she wasn't really sure why the princess was so nervous.
In Changle Palace and Yonghe Palace, Sui Sui's identity was no longer a secret.
The palace maids thought that Jiang Shuyue's status was due to her son, and that it would be a good ending if the emperor issued another imperial decree to make her a concubine after the emperor's wedding.
As Princess Yonghe hurriedly walked away, the palace maids gathered together and started gossiping.
"See? The princess is so worried when she finds out that Miss Jiang is marrying someone else."
"Miss Jiang, what's the matter with this? All the noble ladies in the capital are eager to enter the palace. She and the Emperor already have a child, so she will definitely be able to get the rank of concubine in the future."
A palace maid chimed in, "You all underestimate Miss Jiang. Does she care about a mere concubine? She's one of the richest women in the capital. What kind of man can't she have? She certainly wouldn't look down on the days when women in the palace compete for the emperor's favor."
"But she is already the young master's mother, so it's not appropriate for her to remarry."
The palace maid who spoke was someone who grew up in the capital.
The palace maid who had followed from Yannan curled her lip in disapproval.
"Why not? We've seen plenty of that back in Yannan. There were many cases where couples were not on good terms, the wives wrote divorce papers and gave them to the men, and the women turned around and remarried their ideal husbands."
“That’s different. Miss Jiang is the young master’s mother. She was born into the royal family and should die as a member of the royal family.”
The palace maid who came with the princess from Yannan rolled her eyes. "That's not right. Miss Jiang hasn't entered the palace yet and isn't considered a member of the royal family. According to the customs of Yannan, she naturally has the right to choose where she goes."
"This is the capital, not Yannan!"
Seeing that everyone held their own opinions and were arguing endlessly, the head palace maid frowned and said:
"Stop arguing, everyone. That's the master's business. It's disrespectful to talk about the master behind his back. Everyone, keep your mouths shut."
Seeing the head maid get angry, the other maids quickly shut up, lowered their heads, and dispersed to attend to their own tasks.
In the imperial study, Xiao Jingzhao frowned as he looked at the letter Xiang Yang had sent.
"Your Majesty need not worry. That is Mo Ziyan's petty trick. The retired emperor has enough soldiers to resist foreign enemies. To defeat Mo Ziyan, we must strike at his root and arrange a second round of probing as soon as possible to lure out the assassins hiding in the shadows."
Xiang Yang glanced at Xiao Jingzhao, whose expression was grave, and then changed his words, saying, "It's also possible that there are no people named Mo Ziyan in the delegation."
After pondering for a moment, Xiao Jingzhao decided, "We will implement the second plan and go to the western suburban camp to bring Nangong Zeyue back."
"Brother, no need."
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