Chapter 27 Siblings "The Second Miss is now with the Crown Prince."...
Zisu and her men searched the Phoenix Palace all night, looking even into the cracks in the rocks, but to no avail. This matter was the Empress's secret, and it was impossible to conduct a large-scale search elsewhere.
Right now, the best course of action is to keep Ruan Yang from being discovered by others.
At dawn, Ruan Zhuoyin was awakened by a soft rustling sound outside the tent. When she opened her eyes, she was still in a daze, her shoulders and neck aching unbearably, and there was no one beside her.
She pressed her hand against her chest, where her heart was pounding wildly for a moment, before recalling how that little brat had knocked her unconscious with a jade ruyi last night.
This was clearly beyond her expectations; how could Ruan Yang dare to do this?
Ruan Zhuoyin hummed softly, then sat up and lifted the blanket to take a look. Seeing that her clothes had been changed and the sheets were clean, she breathed a sigh of relief.
She lifted the curtain and saw Zisu helping the emperor dress and comb his hair, so she tentatively called out, "...Your Majesty."
The emperor turned around at the sound: "Ayin is awake?"
"Hmm, Your Majesty, why didn't you wake me up? It's because I haven't served you well enough."
The emperor said, "Seeing that you are sleeping so peacefully, I will not disturb you. I was able to relax yesterday, but I ended up drinking myself into unconsciousness. Last night was a disappointment, and it was my fault."
After hearing this, Ruan Zhuoyin walked to the emperor's side, then took the dragon robe from Zisu's hand and sighed with a smile: "There's plenty of time in the future, what's the big deal? Fengqi Palace isn't as lively as it used to be. During my convalescence, I only have needlework and books to pass the time every day. I can sleep whenever I'm tired."
The emperor laughed and said, "Is that so? But today is not as leisurely as before. After I finish court, please accompany me to the Funing Palace to pay our respects to the Empress Dowager."
"Go together?" Ruan Zhuoyin was somewhat surprised.
The Emperor nodded: "By the way, the Empress Dowager told me last time that she wanted to see the girl who made such a great contribution. Remember to bring Yangyang along later."
Ruan Zhuoyin: "...Yes."
After watching the emperor leave, Ruan Zhuoyin's legs gave way, and she slowly sat down, supporting herself on a round table and clutching her weak abdomen.
She said to Zisu, "Why don't you go and invite that Bodhisattva Goddess over?"
After a while, seeing that Zisu was stammering and wouldn't look up at her, Ruan Zhuoyin snorted, "What's wrong with her now? She was scared and cried last night, and she still won't see anyone this morning?"
"No, no, it's that the person... has disappeared."
Zisu knelt down and prostrated herself on the ground, saying, "Your Majesty, we have searched everywhere in Fengqi Palace, but we cannot find him, and there is no sign of anything happening outside."
Ruan Zhuoyin was already extremely annoyed, and after hearing Zisu's words, her head was spinning even more: "That brat, where could she have run off to all by herself!"
"Why did he have to disappear at this crucial moment? How am I supposed to explain this to the Empress Dowager and His Majesty?"
Zisu said, "Your Highness, please don't be angry. This is the palace, not the outside world. How could a living person just disappear like that? The palace is not a place where she can hide. Maybe...maybe she's gone."
“She is stubborn and knows our secret. Your Majesty is afraid we can’t count on her. But we are also worried about keeping her. If she is gone, there will be no evidence against her, and it will save Your Majesty the trouble of taking action.”
Ruan Zhuoyin glared at her: "You make it sound so easy. Fine, help me with my makeup first. We can't possibly break our promise to the Empress Dowager."
......
Zisu skillfully concealed Ruan Zhuoyin's haggard appearance with her makeup and used agarwood to mask the original herbal scent on her body.
Today, Ruan Zhuoyin wore an ochre-red gauze dress with peony prints. With Zisu's help, the bright sun outside the palanquin shone on her, making her shine.
Neither ostentatious nor shabby, everything is just right.
As soon as Ruan Zhuoyin stepped into Funing Palace, she saw many people as expected. The Empress Dowager had just returned from her summer retreat yesterday, and there were many people inside and outside the palace eager to curry favor with her.
May Your Majesty the Empress Dowager enjoy boundless blessings and peace.
Everyone turned to look at the late-arriving Empress, and bowed to her in greeting.
"Your Majesty, why are you alone? Where is your little niece? The Empress Dowager was just praising her to us, saying that we would have the honor of meeting her today."
The Empress Dowager said, "Yes, why didn't Miss Ruan come with you?"
The Empress was speechless. She tightened the silk handkerchief in her hand and smiled, saying, "Yangyang caught a cold yesterday and said she had a terrible headache. She's lying in bed and refuses to get up now."
"Caught a cold? I was perfectly fine when I had dinner with her yesterday, how did she suddenly fall ill? Well then, I'll have my Imperial Physician Xu take a look at her in a bit."
As they were talking, the emperor finished his morning court session and also arrived at Funing Palace.
The Empress lowered her eyes: "This... Yangyang is just a minor illness, how could we dare to let His Majesty's imperial physicians examine her?"
Seeing this, the Empress Dowager reminded her, "Yes, with the Empress personally taking care of her, are you worried that the young girl's health won't improve? Alright, since it's such an unfortunate occasion today, I'll just arrange to meet her again next time."
Upon hearing this, Ruan Zhuoyin breathed a sigh of relief, seeing that the Empress Dowager had finally stopped pressing her about where Ruan Yang had gone.
The concubines and noble ladies of Fu Ning Palace had not gathered for a long time, so after taking their seats, they chatted with the Empress Dowager about everyday matters. The most talked-about topic was the recent birth of a son by Consort Li.
Ruan Zhuoyin smiled and agreed, but her heart was filled with bitterness. After a while, she stopped talking.
"Your Majesty, save me!"
Lost in thought, the cries of a palace maid came from outside Fu Ning Palace. The cries startled everyone present. Before they could react to what was happening, the maid cried and tried to break free from the guards' obstruction to run in.
"What happened?" the Empress Dowager asked, rising to her feet.
After disembarking, Ah Chou followed Ning Xian's orders and accompanied Ruan Yang all the way back to Fengqi Palace. As Lan Rong had instructed her the day before, she suddenly knelt down and sobbed, "You noble ladies, please do justice for this servant!"
Ruan Zhuoyin recognized that this was Ruan Yang's personal maid, and her weariness vanished instantly.
Lan Rong arrived shortly afterward with her entourage. After bowing to everyone, she said calmly, "It was my fault for being negligent and disturbing the enjoyment of the ladies. It's nothing serious."
"This morning, I was preparing to send some sweet porridge to Your Highness, but I never expected to find this unfamiliar maid acting suspiciously by Your Highness's bedchamber."
"No matter how much we pleaded with her, the girl wouldn't say what she was there for. We all thought she was probably a thief, so we tried to arrest her and search her, but she managed to break free and run here."
Ah Chou sobbed repeatedly, cooperating by saying, "You're lying, I'm not a thief!"
The Empress Dowager sighed and said, "Then tell me, which master do you serve? What are your intentions in hiding in the Crown Prince's bedroom in the middle of the night?"
Ah Chou rubbed her eyes: "This servant serves Miss Ruan. Last night, I risked my life to go to Taiqing Yu Palace, just to find our Miss Ruan."
"Looking for Miss Ruan Er?"
One of them sensed that there was going to be a good show, and said to the Empress in surprise, "Didn't Your Majesty just say that the Second Miss was sick and resting on her bed? How could a young lady who is not yet married go to His Highness the Crown Prince? You must be making this up!"
Ruan Zhuoyin gritted her teeth and glared at Lan Rong silently. In that instant, she cursed Ning Xian a million times in her heart.
Ah Chou cried with great grievance: "If you don't believe me, just send someone to Fengqi Palace to look for her. The Second Miss is definitely not in Fengqi Palace right now, but in Qingyu Palace."
The Empress Dowager asked, "How did you know?"
Ah Chou looked at the Emperor: "It is like this. Last night, Your Majesty had dinner with the Empress. The Second Miss was also there. Later, the Miss got a little drunk, so the Empress asked Zisu to help her back to rest."
"But when I came back with the hangover soup, I never expected that the second young lady was not drunk at all. At that time, she was still drawing her eyebrows and applying powder in front of the mirror, with a smile on her face. She looked extremely happy. When we asked her what good thing had happened, she wouldn't say and just told us to leave."
"Later, I was worried, so I secretly followed her. But I never expected that the Second Miss would go to His Highness the Crown Prince. I didn't know what to do, which is why I was so panicked, just like what Granny Lanrong said."
"Is everything you said true?" the Empress Dowager asked.
A Chou looked at Zi Su standing next to the Empress: "This concerns the young lady's reputation, so I dare not speak recklessly. Besides, I wasn't the only one who saw it last night. Even Sister Zi Su and many people in Fengqi Palace know that the second young lady was not drunk."
Ruan Zhuoyin turned her head: "Zisu, what she said..."
The emperor suddenly interrupted the debate, his voice booming over the crowd: "You mean, Ruan Yang is now with the Crown Prince?"
Ah Chou remained silent, yet his silence spoke volumes.
A lone man and woman, staying out all night, both young and full of vigor. At an age when they are still naive about matters of the heart, what they will do is hardly surprising.
When Ruan Zhuoyin heard the emperor call him Ruan Yang instead of the affectionate reduplicated name he used to use, she knew that it would be very difficult to salvage Ruan Yang's image in the emperor's heart.
A father and son are father and son after all. No matter how irreconcilable they are, a man will not take care of a woman who is not related to him by blood.
Even if the woman did nothing wrong.
Ruan Yang is now accused of deceiving the emperor. No matter how much the emperor pity her in the past, he will probably find it difficult to calm down in the short term.
The Emperor looked at Ruan Zhuoyin: "What is the Empress's opinion on this matter?"
Ruan Zhuoyin came to her senses and slowly knelt down: "Your Majesty, I knew nothing about this. I was with you all night. If what A Chou said is true, then Yangyang has committed a grave offense of defiling the harem, and I will not tolerate it..."
The emperor glanced coldly at Ruan Zhuoyin, and after a long while, he suddenly laughed and said, "Why is everyone so quiet? Speaking of which, it's been a long time since I visited the Crown Prince. Eunuch Wang, prepare the carriage for Qingyu Palace."
The sandalwood prayer beads in the emperor's hand made a crackling sound as he casually flicked them. This fleeting sound, like a burning firecracker, stung Ruan Zhuoyin's delicate heart.
...
Lan Rong was relieved to see the large group of people following the emperor. Before leaving, she caught a glimpse of A Chou kneeling motionless on the ground.
"I'm leaving. This is none of your business."
Ruan Xi stared at the crack in the floor, her vision slowly blurring. She stood up and gritted her teeth, saying, "What exactly do you want? What will happen to Ruan Yang?"
Lan Rong frowned. She hadn't expected Ruan Xi to care about her younger sister's life or death. Ning Xian would naturally not let Ruan Yang die at someone else's hands, but she deliberately said, "It's hard to say, but there's a high chance she'll die."
Upon hearing this, Ruan Xi scoffed, "Death? Ning Xian isn't going to protect her?"
Lan Rong said, "That depends on His Majesty's will. What good can come of a woman who is promiscuous and doesn't know how to behave?"
"So, you can't guarantee her safe escape; you're only concerned with whether your own plan succeeds?"
Lan Rong remained silent.
Ruan Xi walked up to Lan Rong and said, "Ning Xian is willing to risk losing Ruan Yang completely in order to ruin the Ruan family's plan to keep her by his side and suffer with him?"
"It was clearly Ning Xian who resorted to any means necessary to frame her! Does Ning Xian just not want her to be happy?"
"To be precise, it's because I can't stand seeing her happy with other people."
After Lan Rong finished speaking, she raised an eyebrow and asked, "Look at you, do you really want to see her happy? Aren't you selfish?"
She quietly walked to Ruanxi's side, stroked Ruanxi's ugly face, and whispered, "Actually, if you hadn't tried to climb into His Highness's bed back then, none of this would have happened."
"For example, your innocent sister will not be entangled with His Highness, will not lose her memory, and will not actively seek pleasure under the body of the enemy who almost wiped out her entire clan. Including you, you will still be the carefree young lady of the Ruan family at this moment, without having your appearance ruined or being controlled by others."
Lan Rong said, "This is all retribution for your Ruan family."
"you....."
Ruan Xi wanted to retort, but a breath caught in her throat.
She really didn't want to see Ruan Yang have an easy time.
Lan Rong glanced at her lightly and shook her head, saying, "You're just crocodile tears. I advise you to stick to your path and go all the way. Otherwise, if His Highness finds out you have ulterior motives, who knows if he'll even leave you with a whole corpse."
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