Emperor Zhaojing was pondering his next move and hadn't noticed the sachet at Xie Jingrun's waist until he touched it for the fifth time.
Emperor Zhaojing peeked over and, upon seeing the roughly embroidered sachet hanging from his waist, his lips twitched. "Where did you pick this up from?"
Xie Jingrun paused in his chess game. "Where do you think I could find such a beautiful sachet?"
Emperor Zhaojing was drinking tea when he heard this and couldn't help but spit out a mouthful of tea.
Fortunately, Xie Jingrun reacted quickly and dodged to the side, otherwise he would have been sprayed with tea stains all over his face.
His expression was rather unpleasant. He threw down the chess piece in his hand, no longer in the mood to play with him.
"I'm going back now." He stood up and walked out.
Emperor Zhaojing hurriedly said, "We haven't finished playing yet."
"I'm not going any further," Xie Jingrun said before leaving the room.
Emperor Zhaojing: "..."
After a long while, he came to his senses and looked at Haifu beside him, "Did I say something wrong?"
Haifu wanted to laugh but dared not, and shook his head, "This old servant doesn't think you've said anything wrong."
"Then why is this kid angry?" Emperor Zhaojing wondered.
Haifu paused for a moment, then said, "I guess it's that sachet..."
Emperor Zhaojing then remembered, "That sachet was so ugly, yet he said it was beautiful. Is there something wrong with his eyesight?"
Haifu coughed lightly and guessed, "Perhaps... that sachet was a gift from Princess Qingqing."
Upon hearing this, Emperor Zhaojing suddenly realized, "No wonder he treasures it so much. I wouldn't take that sachet even if you paid me. How can he treasure it so much? Has he never seen a sachet before, or what?"
Hai Fu was sweating profusely; he didn't know how to respond to those words.
Fortunately, Emperor Zhaojing didn't expect him to speak, and said to himself, "This kid is really poisoned by Rong Qingqing." After saying that, he sighed.
...
A few days later, Xiao Zhen put on the sachet that Rong Qingqing had embroidered herself and returned to Suzhou with a satisfied heart.
Once the first month of the lunar calendar was over, Emperor Zhaojing announced his abdication and passed the throne to his fifth son, Feng Xingxiu, also known as Xie Jingrun.
With the new emperor's ascension to the throne, there were many things to reform. During this time, Xie Jingrun was busy with state affairs and hardly left the palace, allowing Rong Qingqing to enjoy a period of peace and quiet.
On this day, an uninvited guest arrived at the Prince's mansion.
After listening to Steward Hong's report, Rong Qingqing went to the front hall.
As soon as I got outside the door, I heard coughing coming from inside.
Seeing her approach, Hua Yin hurriedly covered her lips with a handkerchief and stood up. "Sister Qingqing...cough cough!"
Rong Qingqing frowned. "Miss Hua, we don't seem to know each other very well. You can just call me Princess."
Upon hearing this, Hua Yin felt somewhat embarrassed. "It was my rudeness."
"It's nothing." Rong Qingqing stepped inside. "Miss Hua, please have a seat."
Hua Yin then sat back down.
Rong Qingqing took her seat in the main seat and asked, "May I ask what brings Miss Hua to see me today?"
Hua Yin pressed a handkerchief to her mouth, coughed twice, then lowered her eyelashes and said softly, "My cousin has been on the throne for over a month, but he is still unmarried, resulting in an empty harem. The ministers are submitting petitions every day, urging him to marry the empress as soon as possible. I heard that the ministers all hope that he will marry the prime minister's daughter, Shangguan Yanran. Has the princess heard about this?"
Rong Qingqing glanced at her and said, "Miss Hua is really well-informed, unlike me, who stays at home all day and is completely out of touch with the world."
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