Chapter 133 Until We Meet Again
Princess Ying'an's fainting attracted a lot of attention. Achan and Lin Sui also stood aside and watched the excitement for a while. They heard the doctor's diagnosis very clearly.
Lin Sui also whispered to A Chan, "With Princess Ying'an's temper, it's probably going to be difficult to calm her down."
Achan deeply agreed.
However, this is a matter for the Prince of Ying'an's residence and has nothing to do with others.
Soon, a carriage from the Prince of Ying'an's residence arrived, and the Prince of Ying'an helped his princess into the carriage. As the carriage drove away, the servants of the Prince of Ying'an's residence placed the coffin on another carriage, and they drove the carriage out of the city.
The so-called "collecting the body" was nothing more than giving her a coffin and finding a burial site; of course, these things wouldn't be handled personally by the prince and princess.
As for Xu Zecheng, his relatives were exiled because of his involvement, and the court officials who were on good terms with him in the past were unwilling to risk the emperor's wrath to collect his body. His body could only wait for the government to dispose of it, just like other death row inmates.
The carriage stopped outside the Prince Ying'an's residence. The prince and his wife had just heard the servants' report and had been waiting there with the family physician. When they saw that the princess was in good spirits when she got out of the carriage, the prince finally breathed a sigh of relief.
The royal physician took the princess's pulse and diagnosed her with the same ailment as the previous doctor, simply telling her to relax. He then prescribed some calming medicine for her.
After finally settling the princess in, the crown prince and his wife left the main courtyard.
The prince hadn't gone far when he stopped and said to his wife, "Mother's health is so poor, how can she endure the hardship of traveling? If it really comes to it, I will go and beg His Majesty to let Mother off the hook. I, as her elder brother, will take responsibility for the trouble caused by Xin'an; it's not Father and Mother's place to worry about it."
The Crown Prince's wife listened in silence until he finished speaking before finally opening her mouth.
"Doesn't Your Highness understand? His Majesty's punishment of the Prince and Princess is not because of Xin'an at all."
"What?" Prince Ying'an asked, his expression puzzled.
The Crown Prince's wife was initially unaware of the situation until her parents heard that the Crown Prince had been confined to his quarters and sent a message through a messenger.
She wrote to her family and told her father what had happened that day. Only after receiving her father's reply did she finally understand His Majesty's meaning.
"His Majesty is angry because the Prince and Princess not only mistook their daughter for someone else, but they also show no remorse. In fact, they are trying to shift the blame onto Xin'an in order to shirk responsibility." The Crown Princess sighed. "Your Highness, if you were just an observer, what would you think of such parents?"
The prince was stunned for a long time before he said in a strained voice, "So Your Majesty... was so angry because none of us were on Xin'an's side that day."
"Yes. If His Majesty were truly angry about Xin'an's actions, he would have sent someone to find her long ago."
"So that's how it is..."
"The prince and princess are not at fault for doing anything, but simply because His Majesty dislikes them. If the young master were to plead for them, it would only make matters worse."
The crown prince fell silent and finally stopped talking about begging His Majesty for mercy.
"There is one more matter that requires the Crown Prince's decision."
Now that things have been discussed openly, the Crown Prince's wife decided to resolve all the troubles at once.
"What's up?"
"Now that Xu Zecheng and Han Xiaotong have both been executed, the decision on Bao'er's fate rests with the young master."
Prince Ying'an's eyes flickered slightly. He could naturally sense that his wife did not want Bao'er to stay, but... he had held the child in his arms since birth and loved him all these years, so he couldn't bear to leave him.
“Bao’er doesn’t understand anything yet. Now that her parents are dead, she has nowhere to go. Why not leave her here and find a courtyard for the servants to take care of her?”
This time, the crown prince did not make a decision directly, but instead used a questioning tone.
Seeing his indecisive appearance, the Crown Prince's wife could only sigh in the end.
When she married him, it was only because he was not involved in politics and was a wealthy idler. He was also easily influenced, so what else could she expect?
"The Prince's Mansion is not short of food." The Crown Prince's wife said in a calm tone. His Majesty had ultimately left the Prince's Mansion with some dignity, so they could still make ends meet.
She then changed the subject: "Your Highness, have you ever heard the saying that children resemble their parents? Are you sure that she will be different from her parents when she grows up?"
The Crown Prince of Ying'an immediately hesitated.
The Crown Prince's wife continued, "Even if there's only a one in ten thousand chance, I wouldn't dare let her stay in the Prince's residence. Who knows if she might suddenly develop malicious intentions like her parents and harm our child?"
It's not good to make unfounded assumptions about a child, but how can we persuade the crown prince without resorting to strong medicine?
Although the prince could not forget his years of friendship with the fake county princess in a short time, he was also shocked by what they had done.
Whether Bao'er grows up to look like her father or her mother, it seems like a terrible thing.
"Then how does Madam think this matter should be handled?"
The Crown Prince's wife then revealed the plan she had already devised: "Find a family without children and let them adopt you. If the Crown Prince is reluctant, you can leave some money for them."
"But will Bao'er be able to adapt?"
"She'll adapt. It's much better to have new parents than to have parents who committed serious crimes."
"……Oh well."
Having received the prince's approval, the two had barely parted when the prince's wife instructed the servants to prepare two sets of clothes for Bao'er and send her off.
She made this decision a few days ago and had someone choose a family for her. The place was her wet nurse's hometown, a few days' journey from the capital. The family lived in the village and their life was not bad, but not too good either.
When Bao'er was carried onto the carriage, she seemed to understand something and kept trying to run down, but was stopped by the wet nurse and servants of the young master's wife.
She cried incessantly, but the Crown Prince's wife remained standing inside the door, not even glancing out to see what was happening.
As the carriage gradually drove away from the palace, the crying finally ceased.
In the future, she would send people to visit the child from time to time to make sure that Bao'er would never have the chance to leave that mountain village in his life.
You can't blame her for being heartless; it's just that Bao'er was unlucky to have such vicious parents.
The gates of the Prince's mansion closed, and the Crown Prince's wife slowly walked back. Han Xiaotong had been arrested, and some of the maids who had been with her originally had their indentures at the Prince's mansion. After they were released, they returned to the mansion.
She learned from one of the maids that Che'er had actually died long ago, because Xu Zecheng would go to the temple every year on the anniversary of Che'er's death to have a high monk perform a ritual for her.
Now that Han Xiaotong's identity has been revealed, how could the Crown Prince's wife not know that Che'er's death must be inextricably linked to those two?
Even if they die, they can't bring Che'er back to life.
She couldn't emulate that wicked couple who killed a child, so this is all she is.
What happened in the Prince's mansion was unknown to others. After leaving the execution ground, Achan and Lin Sui found a teahouse nearby, where a storyteller was telling the story of the face-changing case.
The two sat and listened for a while, and then a waiter led a couple to sit down at the table next to them.
Achan glanced at it once and then looked away, listening intently as the storyteller began by recounting how the fake county princess was exposed at His Majesty's birthday banquet and how His Majesty was furious.
When she heard something happy, she would pop a hawthorn strip into her mouth.
These hawthorn strips were provided by the teahouse; they were sweet and sour and tasted very good. After hearing this part of the story, we'll continue in the next installment. Ah Chan finished the small plate of hawthorn strips in front of her.
Then, she felt a little uncomfortable in her stomach.
Lin Suixian noticed something was wrong with her and quickly asked, "What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"
Achan nodded, looking pitiful.
"Come on, I'll take you to see a doctor." Lin Sui knew how weak A Chan was. If she ate something bad, how would she explain it to Hui Niang when they got back?
At this moment, the man sitting next to them suddenly spoke up: "If you two don't mind, I can help take a look."
Lin Sui turned her head and saw that the one who spoke was actually the doctor who had given Princess Ying'an acupuncture earlier.
"It's you?"
"Does the young lady recognize me?" the doctor asked gently.
"I just saw you administering acupuncture."
"I see." He then looked at Ah Chan, "Would you mind if I took your pulse, young lady?"
Achan recognized the other person too. She shook her head and reached out her hand.
After taking her pulse, the man said, "You didn't eat much hawthorn, so your condition isn't serious. However, you have a weak spleen and stomach, so try to avoid eating hawthorn and similar foods in the future. After you go home today, eat a light diet, and you should recover by tomorrow."
"Don't we need to prescribe any medicine?" Lin Sui was still worried.
The other person smiled and said, "I see that you have cultivation, so I can gather my inner energy in my palm and massage your stomach for about fifteen minutes. Your condition will then be relieved."
Lin Sui breathed a sigh of relief after hearing this, and then A Chan thanked the doctor, saying, "Thank you, doctor. May I ask your surname?"
She thought the other party wouldn't tell her their name, after all, this person had previously politely declined Prince Ying'an's offer.
To everyone's surprise, the man readily replied, "My name is Zhu Rong, and I live in Jiaozhou. I can barely cure some difficult and complicated diseases."
Jiaozhou? Achan was a little surprised. Are there so many people from Jiaozhou coming to the capital recently?
Then she heard the man say, "If you ever need my help in the future, you can come to Jiaozhou to find me. I am quite well-known."
This doesn't sound quite right.
Achan's gaze shifted slightly as she looked at the woman in blue sitting next to the man, who was looking at her.
The other person's eyes seemed somewhat familiar, and their beautiful face wore a gentle smile as they nodded slightly to her.
Achan suddenly remembered that in the stories told by Yu Dajia, there seemed to be a divine doctor.
She didn't ask for details at the time, assuming that someone known as a miracle doctor must be at least seventy years old. After all, famous doctors in the capital all had white beards.
Who would have thought that the divine physician of Jiaozhou was different from others?
She winked twice at the woman in blue, and the woman returned the wink twice.
Okay, now I know why Dr. Zhu was so enthusiastic towards her.
"Doctor Zhu, you've come all the way from Jiaozhou to the capital, is there something you need to do?" Achan asked casually as she struck up a conversation with him.
Zhu Rong replied calmly, "I originally came to look for someone, but I happened to run into my friend on the road."
He wasn't lying to Achan; they really did meet on the road. However, by then, Yu Dajia had already changed his appearance.
But he still recognized him.
"That really is fate."
“That’s exactly right,” Zhu Rongshen agreed.
Achan then asked, "Will Doctor Zhu stay in the capital for a while longer?"
Zhu Rong shook her head: "The matter in the capital is settled, and we will be returning in the next couple of days."
"I see... Then I wish you both a safe journey."
Thank you.
Achan looked at the woman beside Zhu Rong and said to her, "If you two come to the capital again in the future, you can come to Changpingfang to find me, and I will treat you to a meal."
"Okay, until we meet again," the woman replied softly.
The four said goodbye in front of the teahouse; two went to the left and two went to the right.
After walking a distance, Achan said to Lin Sui, "The sunshine is really nice today."
Lin Sui looked up at the sky and replied, "It's pretty good."
When the two returned to Changpingfang, Achan's stomach was not as uncomfortable as before. However, Lin Sui still remembered Zhu Rong's words and had Achan lie on her side on the couch while he massaged her stomach.
After almost fifteen minutes, the uncomfortable feeling disappeared. Just as Achan was about to say something, she suddenly heard a commotion in front of her.
The two exchanged a glance and hurried forward. The sound came from Mr. Lü's antique shop next door.
The usually gentle and mild-mannered Mr. Lü suddenly became quite fierce, grabbing a broom and chasing a man and a woman out of the shop.
After the two men left, Boss Lü stood at the door and threw a broom at the man. He dodged it and said with a livid face, "Lü Ruhui, what are you doing now?"
"Lord Liu, you must be getting old and forgetful. Let me kindly remind you that I told you on the day of our divorce that you should never appear in front of me for the rest of your life, lest I lose my temper and spread the news of your secret rendezvous with your wife's sister to everyone."
The man opposite him had veins bulging on his forehead: "Shut up! You're utterly absurd! She's your own sister, what good does it do you to slander her like this!"
Boss Lü sneered: "Slander? Haven't you met privately, or haven't you discussed the divorce with me?"
"Nonsense!" The man seemed quite angry; his hands, hanging at his sides, were trembling.
Boss Lü didn't care at all about the growing crowd of onlookers around him: "Whether it's nonsense or not, you know perfectly well. Oh, right, what else was there?"
Boss Lü's gaze shifted, landing on the woman in green standing beside the man who bore an eight-tenths resemblance to her. She said with a half-smile, "I remember someone saying that it's fortunate my womb didn't produce any offspring for the Liu family. This separation has saved a lot of trouble. Don't you think so, sister?"
The content of those few words was so brilliant that Achan and Lin Sui wished they could crane their necks even further.
At this moment, the somewhat disheveled woman in green tidied herself up slightly and spoke up: "Elder sister, so many years have passed, and you still like to falsely accuse others. You stole my marriage back then, and now that you're not happy, you're trying to use me to cover up your shame?"
Unfortunately, I am no longer eighteen years old. Brother Liu and I were childhood sweethearts. We had not seen each other for many years, but we bumped into each other at the teahouse and only exchanged a few words. Yet, in your mouth, it has become an affair.
We did talk about divorce, but it wasn't because of me. Shouldn't you know the truth? You can't have children, and you mistreat the adopted children in the family. That's why Brother Liu couldn't take it anymore and asked me to pass on a message to Father.
The onlookers, who had initially felt sorry for Boss Lü after hearing his words, began to look at him with strange eyes after hearing the woman's words.
It's one thing to be unable to have children, but to mistreat adopted children is simply too cruel.
Achan and Lin Sui were also wavering, wanting to see what would happen next, but Hui Niang, who had returned from outside, pressed them back down.
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