Chapter 720 Something Happened at the Princess's Residence?
Just as A Shuang left and the steward went to report to Fu Wenqing, Li Sanqi's personal maid was also reporting to her what had happened at the gate of the mansion.
"Princess, why did you allow your husband to replace the steward of the manor, and why did you condone the steward treating the people of the Qiao family like this?"
"The one who came to deliver the invitation is Miss A-Shuang, who serves Old Madam Qiao!"
“You have already developed a rift with the old lady because of Zhuxi and Wenxiu’s matter. Now the old lady is offering you a way out and taking the initiative to make amends.”
"Why don't you let me step forward to help Miss A-Shuang out of this predicament and also show the Qiao family your attitude?"
"Now that things have escalated to this point, I'm afraid the Qiao family will only become more distant from you."
Li Sanqi sat at his desk, drawing intently.
She did not respond to the lady-in-waiting's words, but continued writing.
After a short while, when she had finished the last stroke, she smiled with satisfaction, put down her pen, and beckoned to the female official.
"Xiuwen, come and see, does my drawing look like the real thing?"
As Li Sanqi spoke, he admired the painting to himself, saying, "I think this one is about 80% lifelike."
"I feel like something's missing!"
She crossed one arm and pinched her chin with the other, appearing deep in thought.
The female official moved behind the desk and looked at the countless portraits on it, feeling utterly helpless.
After Wenxiu died, the princess fell ill and was bedridden for half a month before she was able to get out of bed.
As soon as she got out of bed, the princess went back to the study to paint portraits of Wenxiu.
He painted one picture after another, and then another.
I don't even know how many I've painted yet.
Not only that, the princess also changed the names of all the people who served her closely.
Because of a deceased Wenxiu, she became Xiuwen, Emerald became Xiuxiu, Glaze became Wenwen, and there are also people called Xiuer, Wener, Axiu, and Awen.
For the sake of a deceased Wenxiu, the princess stopped leaving her home, stopped entering the palace, stopped seeing people, and stopped caring about anything else.
She entrusted all matters in the mansion to the prince consort and always claimed to be ill in public.
She genuinely didn't understand the point of the princess doing this!
Today, she finally heard that someone from the Qiao family had come, and she thought that the princess could finally have some contact with the outside world and perhaps cheer up a little.
As a result, the princess seemed indifferent, ignoring everything and allowing the newly appointed gatekeeper to humiliate the people of the Qiao family.
She also allowed the new steward to treat her as if she didn't exist, and he only recognized the prince consort as his master.
Seeing that Xiuwen hadn't replied for a while, Li Sanqi frowned and asked, "You still haven't answered me. Does my drawing look like Wenxiu?"
Xiuwen sighed silently, put on a smile, and said in a tone that sounded like a child, "It's so similar. It's exactly like Miss Wenxiu."
"Really?" Li Sanqi held up the painting, looking at it from left to right, and after a long while shook his head in dissatisfaction. "It seems to be lacking a bit of spirit."
"Yes! It lacks a bit of spirit!"
"Wenxiu's eyes sparkled when she received the reward!"
"When she talks about her aspirations for her retirement, she becomes vibrant and cheerful!"
"Wenxiu is very simple. She likes money and likes to save money. Her biggest dream is to retire peacefully!"
"She was rescued by the old lady from a group of assassins, so she doesn't like fighting, killing, intrigue, or deceit at all."
"It's all my fault!"
"I shouldn't have been so willful as to take her away from the old lady."
"Otherwise, she wouldn't have been caught in such a dilemma and ultimately lost her life!"
"It was me who killed her!"
As she spoke, Li Sanqi involuntarily hugged the painting to her chest and began to sob.
Xiuwen was at a loss for what to do.
Even after all this time, the princess still can't forget Wenxiu!
When the servants saw this, they couldn't help but be moved by the princess's deep affection for Wenxiu, and they couldn't help but feel happy for Wenxiu.
If the princess could still remember them after their deaths, they could die in peace.
Once the princess starts crying, it's not something that can be stopped in a short time.
The princess also disliked having someone watching her cry from inside the house.
So when Xiuwen saw Li Sanqi start crying, she quietly slipped out and thoughtfully closed the door behind her.
Little did they know, the moment the door closed, Li Sanqi raised his head, wiped away the tears on his face with a stern expression, and there was not a trace of sorrow in his eyes.
***
The Qiao family mansion in the southern part of the city.
When Qiao Qinghe saw Ah Shuang return with a gloomy face, she immediately asked in surprise, "Why do you look so pale?"
"Didn't I tell you to deliver the invitations? What could possibly go wrong?"
Ah Shuang was depressed all the way home, and although she had calmed down by the time she got back, Qiao Qinghe still noticed it.
She quickly forced a smile. "Madam, I'm so useless. I can't even send out a single invitation."
"I'm sorry to disappoint you."
Qiao Qinghe twitched her lips; she could tell at a glance that this girl was extremely aggrieved.
"Alright, if you don't want to laugh, then stop. Your laugh looks worse than a cry."
"Tell me, what exactly happened?"
Ah Shuang hurriedly and angrily recounted the story of sending out invitations.
The invitations to the first few families, including the Marquis of Enping, the Marquis of Yongning, and the Duke of Jin, were all sent out smoothly.
That kind of thing just had to happen at Princess Huaiyang's residence.
Although she knew that, apart from the matter of Zhuxi and Wenxiu, their household had not had any contact with the princess's residence for more than two months.
But surely the two governments shouldn't become enemies just like that?
Why is it that the gatekeeper of the princess's residence is unwilling to even announce it?
After recounting what had happened, A-Shuang also expressed her indignation.
Qiao Qinghe ignored A Shuang's complaints and ordered in a serious tone, "Tell me again what happened to you in the Princess's residence from beginning to end, in detail."
"Don't miss anything. Tell me in detail what the servants, stewards, and managers of the princess's residence said and the expressions they made."
Seeing Qiao Qinghe's sudden change in expression, A Shuang quickly recalled the events carefully once more.
Finally, she asked hesitantly, "Madam, have you noticed anything amiss?"
Qiao Qinghe took a deep breath, slowly exhaled, and then said in a deep voice, "I'm afraid something has happened at the Princess's residence."
Ah Shuang was shocked, "How could this be?"
Qiao Qinghe said in a solemn tone, "The steward of the princess's residence is a new one, and he has mentioned the prince consort several times, so it is clear that this person is the prince consort's man."
"The servant was only asked to go in and announce the news, but he was beaten in public by the steward and was also punished with twenty strokes of the cane and a six-month salary deduction."
"It is clear that low-level servants like the young servants have no say at all."
"And the stewards and stewards in power were all the son-in-law's men."
A Shuang looked at Qiao Qinghe in shock, "So, the old lady means that the princess's residence has already fallen into the control of the prince consort?"
Qiao Qinghe nodded slightly: "I'm afraid so."
Ah Shuang stared in astonishment, her mouth agape. "No wonder that steward said something like 'a new emperor, a new court.'"
"This isn't just about the stewards and servants. It's also implying that the prince consort has sidelined the princess and replaced the stewards and managers in the mansion, isn't it?"
Ah Shuang grew increasingly alarmed as she thought about it, "A fictional princess... not allowing the princess to have contact with outsiders..."
"This, this... Could it be that the princess has been imprisoned by her husband?"
A-Shuang asked incredulously, "This can't be true, can it? How could the prince consort dare to do this?"
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