Chapter 24 Did the Crown Prince File a Complaint?
"What's wrong? Is Grandmother unwell?"
Shen Ruoli asked nervously.
Granny Liu chuckled and shook her head. "Her Majesty the Empress Dowager is in good health."
"What happened?"
"Last night, His Highness the Crown Prince came to Shou Kang Palace to pay his respects to the Empress Dowager."
"That's what Granny Liu said."
Shen Ruoli's heart skipped a beat. "What did he say?"
Recalling his previous life, Xie Xuanyin didn't go to pay his respects to Empress Dowager Shen after returning from Tianzhao Temple...
That bastard had a gloomy face before leaving last night and said some really nasty things.
When he went to Shou Kang Palace, he must have said a lot of bad things about the Empress Dowager.
Moreover, Xie Xuanyin and Empress Dowager Shen were not particularly close.
After all, Empress Dowager Shen was not Xie Yuanhe's biological mother!
Seeing that Shen Ruoli was extremely nervous, Liu Mama smiled and comforted her, "Princess Consort, don't be nervous! His Highness the Crown Prince didn't say anything unpleasant. It's just that the Empress Dowager is not feeling well and hasn't slept all night."
"That's why I instructed my servant to come and invite you over as soon as it was light."
Although Granny Liu was trying to comfort her, Shen Ruoli always felt that there was something more to her words!
Her anxiety not only didn't subside, but actually intensified.
So, Shen Ruoli didn't even bother with breakfast. After washing up, she hurriedly went to Shou Kang Palace.
Sure enough, as soon as I entered the hall, I heard Empress Dowager Shen sighing.
Shen Ruoli's eyes narrowed, and she quickly entered the hall.
"Royal Grandmother!"
"Li'er is here."
Empress Dowager Shen leaned back on the chaise longue and closed the book in her hand.
She reached out her hand to Shen Ruoli.
Shen Ruoli stepped forward and nestled beside her, "It's been a few days since I last saw you, Grandmother, you look even younger! I'm afraid that in a few more days, Grandmother will really become a seventeen or eighteen-year-old girl!"
Empress Dowager Shen was amused by her words.
His expression, which had been somewhat serious and melancholy, had softened considerably.
"You silly girl, you haven't become more mature since you got married, instead you've become even more talkative."
Empress Dowager Shen poked her forehead.
Shen Ruoli laughed and rolled into her arms.
"How old are you? You're still acting like a child."
Empress Dowager Shen sighed helplessly, "You are the future Empress! If you continue to be so naive, how can I rest easy about you in the future?"
Shen Ruoli raised her head and said, "With my grandmother here, I am just a child."
Granny Liu laughed from the side, but as she laughed, her eyes welled up with tears.
She turned her back and silently wiped away her tears.
Her movements were subtle, but Shen Ruoli still caught a glimpse of them.
She sat up straight. "Grandmother, did the Crown Prince come last night? Did he complain about me?"
"No, that's not true!"
Empress Dowager Shen shook her head. "When Yin'er came over, he not only didn't complain about you, but he also said many good things about you! Yin'er also said that you knelt for a long time at Tianzhao Temple and prayed for a peace charm for me?"
Shen Ruoli quickly took out a peace charm.
"Yes! I'll tie it on for Grandmother."
"You're so thoughtful."
Empress Dowager Shen smiled.
But that smile, no matter how you look at it, seems somewhat melancholic.
"I am getting old, and I don't know how long this amulet will protect me."
Shen Ruoli paused slightly.
She always felt that Empress Dowager Shen was acting strangely today!
Not only Empress Dowager Shen, but also Granny Liu was acting strangely, and all the palace servants in Shou Kang Palace were acting strangely!
The once warm and inviting Shou Kang Palace is now filled with a faint sense of sorrow.
Could it be...
Is something really wrong with Empress Dowager Shen, but she's deliberately keeping it from her?
At that time, Granny Liu only said that there was bad news, but no matter how much she pressed her for details, Granny Liu would give vague answers and change the subject, eventually changing the topic altogether.
Chen Ruoli harbored doubts.
"Grandmother, this amulet is incredibly effective! It will surely ensure that you live to be two hundred years old!"
"Then I'll become an old monster."
Empress Dowager Shen chuckled. "By the way, the Crown Prince said you also prayed for peace charms for the Emperor and Empress?"
I don't understand why Xie Xuanyin said those things to Empress Dowager Shen.
Shen Ruoli frowned slightly, but still answered truthfully, "Grandmother, the Empress Dowager's birthday is coming up in a few days."
"As you know, my mother has never liked me! So no matter what I offer her as a token of respect, she probably won't like it! Besides, what good things doesn't my mother have? I might as well go to Tianzhao Temple and ask for a peace charm."
"Um."
Empress Dowager Shen nodded, without interrupting her.
Shen Ruoli continued, "I've long heard that the peace charms from Tianzhao Temple are the most effective."
"I had planned to go to the palace with the Crown Prince last night. But the Crown Prince said it was late and he must be tired from the journey, so he told me to rest and not to come along."
She just didn't expect that Xie Xuanyin would come to pay his respects to Empress Dowager Shen so late last night.
Empress Dowager Shen has always been accustomed to going to bed early.
Could it be that Xie Xuanyin woke him up?
Seeing her slightly haggard face, Shen Ruoli felt a pang of heartache.
"In the dead of winter, it gets dark early and light late, and the nights are dark, cold, and long. Grandmother, please be careful to keep warm at night and don't catch a cold."
"I know everything. Just take good care of yourself."
Empress Dowager Shen patted the back of her hand with a kind smile.
This girl grew up under her care, and she's even closer to her than her own granddaughter.
"I summoned you here today to inquire about your relationship with the Crown Prince."
Speaking of serious matters, Empress Dowager Shen sighed again, "I watched the Crown Prince grow up! That child has always been aloof and indifferent to everything."
"I was quite surprised to hear that you encountered bandits in Tianzhao Mountain and that he personally came to bring you back to the capital."
Shen Ruoli blushed slightly, "Grandmother, I didn't expect this either."
"It seems that child cares about you."
Empress Dowager Shen looked pleased.
When the marriage was arranged for them, Xie Xuanyin strongly opposed it, and Empress Sun was even more opposed.
Even as the Empress Dowager, she had to bite the bullet and grant the marriage!
She thought Shen Ruoli's days in the Crown Prince's residence were not easy, especially a few days ago when she heard that Xie Xuanyin had dropped Shen Ruoli under the city wall, intending to kill her!
Empress Dowager Shen was both worried and anxious. She wanted to protect Shen Ruoli, but she was afraid that it would backfire.
She knew Xie Xuanyin's personality all too well!
Therefore, Empress Dowager Shen could only worry in secret and feel a pang of anxiety for Shen Ruoli.
I never expected Xie Xuanyin's attitude to change so quickly in just a few days...
"Li'er."
As someone with experience, Empress Dowager Shen put away her smile and said, "There are no absolutes in matters of men and women! The Crown Prince is no ordinary person. You must be more careful in everything you do, and don't be as stubborn as you used to be."
Shen Ruoli knew that when the Empress Dowager called her stubborn, she meant that she was still obsessed with Xie Xuansong.
"And the Empress's side too."
Before she could speak, Empress Dowager Shen continued, "Even if you two, mother and daughter-in-law, don't get along, you must consider the Crown Prince and the Empress..."
Before Empress Dowager Shen could finish speaking, a soft laugh came from the doorway, "The Crown Princess has come to pay her respects to the Empress Dowager so early, which shows how filial she is!"
Upon hearing this voice, Shen Ruoli froze instantly!
—It's Empress Sun!
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