"Oh?" The Queen Mother's voice was filled with curiosity. "Who is it?"
"The Empress Dowager should have heard of her too. She is the Prime Minister's adopted daughter, Song Shiwei." Xiao Lingyu opened her thin lips slightly.
Song Shiwei...
The Queen Mother suddenly realized, "The wife of Marquis Anle has mentioned this to me several times, but how did you know that Song Shiwei was good at making incense?"
Xiao Lingyu said calmly, "Earlier at the Anle Marquis's residence, she smelled that the spices on her grandson's carriage were damp, so she gave her grandson a piece of incense stone, which she found quite good."
The Queen Mother nodded slightly. Xiao Lingyu only heard her groan, not knowing what was happening behind the curtain. "Has there been any result regarding the Lu Daizong incident?"
Xiao Lingyu shook his head: "The people in Anle Marquis's residence are investigating one by one, but there are no clues yet." He paused and added: "But don't worry, Grandmother, I will definitely get to the bottom of it and bring the real culprit to justice."
"That's very good." The soft rustling sound behind the gauze curtain suddenly increased, and the Queen Mother's voice also became a little urgent: "Tomorrow, bring Song Shiwei to me to see."
"By the way, I heard Jiang Zhiyu is back too? Bring her to see me tomorrow."
Xiao Lingyu was stunned, but didn't say much. He just replied "yes" in a deep voice.
After coming out of the Cining Palace, Xiao Lingyu did not rush back to the East Palace, but strolled in the Imperial Garden.
Snowflakes started floating in the sky at some point, falling down one after another, quickly dyeing the sky and the earth a pure white.
Xiao Lingyu stood quietly in the snow, the breeze gently blowing his hair. He stared into the distance with an empty look in his eyes.
Yesterday morning, the day after Song Shiwei sent the visiting invitation, she went to the Eastern Palace alone at 9:00 am.
"Your Highness," Song Shiwei took out a few boxes and handed them to the attendant beside her. "That day, I only had that kind of incense stone with me. I was afraid that Your Highness would not have enough, so I thought of sending some more."
Song Shiwei smiled lightly and tried his best to act calm and composed.
Although this move is a bit out of line, Xiao Lingyu is her only way to get close to the Queen Mother, and she must seize it!
The attendants opened the boxes one by one and showed them to Xiao Lingyu. Xiao Lingyu glanced at them briefly and asked them to put them away. She looked at Song Shiwei and said in a cold voice, "Thank you, Miss Song."
Seeing him accept it, Song Shiwei secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
"Your Highness can throw the white one directly into the incense burner, but the red one needs to be soaked in warm water first. After it melts, let it dry and finally light it..."
Song Shiwei explained in detail how to use each type of incense stone. The attendants holding the brocade box nodded frequently. When she stopped, Xiao Lingyu said, "Thank you, Miss Song. It seems that Miss Song has a deep understanding of incense making."
Song Shiwei chuckled softly, "Your Highness, I am too kind to praise you. I am just showing off my skills in front of an expert."
Fearing that Xiao Lingyu would start to drive them away after this wave of commercial exaggeration was over, Song Shiwei tried to speak naturally, "I once heard the wife of the Marquis of Anle say that the Empress Dowager seemed to have trouble sleeping these past few days, so I made some calming incense."
As she spoke, she took out another brocade box and said, "I wonder if Your Highness the Crown Prince could present this calming incense to the Empress Dowager on my behalf?"
Hearing this, Xiao Lingyu raised his eyes and scanned her whole body with a scrutinizing gaze.
Song Shiwei's heart was beating very fast, as restless as a turbulent lake. She tried her best to suppress her inner tension, and there was worry in her eyes.
Xiao Lingyu sneered in his heart.
Was Song Shiwei's goal to get me to deliver the calming incense on her behalf? Of course not. Her real purpose was to see the Queen Mother. She was just afraid that I would refuse, so she came up with this compromise excuse.
Xiao Lingyu lowered his eyes and said, "I never pass things on for others."
Song Shiwei's fingers trembled slightly, and his lost expression could no longer be concealed.
A trace of contempt flashed in Xiao Lingyu's eyes. "However, I can mention it to the Queen Mother. Bento." He glanced at the brocade box beside him and said, "Miss Song gave me the Lone Fragrance Stone as a thank you gift."
Song Shi was stunned for a moment, and joy suddenly filled his heart.
She suppressed her excitement and said in a calm voice, "Thank you, Your Highness."
Xiao Lingyu picked up the teacup and took a sip: "Don't be in such a hurry to thank me. I can't guarantee whether the Queen Mother will see you or not."
Song Shiwei bowed slightly.
"Crack", the sound of breaking branches brought Xiao Lingyu back to his senses. Xiao Lingyu frowned and walked towards the source of the sound.
The sound of footsteps on the snow was very clear, and the noise in the woods gradually became louder.
Xiao Lingyu's face was tense and cold, and he asked loudly, "Who is here?"
The sounds in the woods suddenly stopped.
After waiting for a long time, no one came out. Xiao Lingyu sneered: "If you still don't come out, I will call someone."
A panicked male voice suddenly rang out from the woods: "Don't call anyone, it's me, my royal brother!"
A hint of surprise flashed across Xiao Lingyu's eyes.
This sound...
He stood there with an unhappy look on his face. After a long while, two people came out of the woods.
The Fourth Prince's clothes were disheveled and his face was flushed. Even though it was snowing, there was a thin layer of sweat on his forehead.
The woman behind him had wrinkled clothes and bite marks could be clearly seen on her neck.
Xiao Lingyu had never seen this woman before, so she must be a maid from some palace.
Xiao Lingyu closed his eyes slightly.
I had previously thought that it was just some daring guard having an affair with a palace maid, but I didn't expect it was him.
The Fourth Prince lowered his eyes slightly, feeling the chill at this moment, his body trembling slightly: "Royal Brother..."
Xiao Lingyu's voice was icy: "If I remember correctly, you have just been released from house arrest, right? You really haven't changed your bad habits."
His cold words pierced the Fourth Prince's eardrums, and his face felt hot.
Xiao Lingyu has always been gentle to others, and he must be extremely angry to say such words.
The Fourth Prince's face turned pale as he begged for mercy: "Royal brother, please, forgive me this time. Please don't tell Father. Last time, Father caught me and put me under house arrest. If he finds out again this time, he will definitely not let me off easily."
Seeing that Xiao Lingyu's expression remained unmoved, the Fourth Prince reached out a hand, grasped his sleeve, and shook it gently, just like when they were little: "Royal brother, please, now only you know, as long as you don't say it, Father will definitely not find out."
Xiao Lingyu frowned, took a deep breath, and stared at the trembling woman beside him with a sharp gaze: "Who is she?"
The Fourth Prince, who had just been begging for mercy, suddenly became like a quail, shrinking his head and not daring to say a word.
Realizing that this woman might not be a palace maid as he thought, Xiao Lingyu looked at him deeply, turned around and was about to leave.
"Hey, Royal Brother," the Fourth Prince hurriedly stopped him, almost slipping but not caring, and said directly: "Yes, this is the person that Second Brother intended to give to Father."
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