Leaving aside what happened in the palace, the rumors spread even more widely in and around the capital after the Ministry of Rites officials went to the palace to search through ancient texts and devise a plan for praying for rain.
Almost everyone has heard the saying that when the Goddess of Fortune sacrifices to Heaven, heavy rain will surely follow.
Some people believed it, some didn't, some just watched the spectacle; in short, all sorts of faces were revealed.
Li Lao Er and Jia Yin were of one mind and kept the news under wraps, but the old lady was getting anxious.
But while the old lady's ears were covered, those outside couldn't.
That morning, Jiayin had breakfast with her grandmother and was just about to find an excuse to sneak out and take a look.
As a result, Baozhu ran in crying.
"Sister Jiayin, boohoo, Sister Jiayin!"
Jiayin was held tightly, and when she finally got a chance to catch her breath, she quickly pulled Baozhu to find a quiet room to talk, afraid of startling her grandmother.
Baozhu realized she had been rash. After going inside and seeing that no one was there, she hugged Jiayin and started crying again.
"Sister Jiayin, waah, you'd better run away quickly! Those people outside are so mean, they're going to burn you alive while you're praying for rain!"
"Waaah, they're all ungrateful wretches! They eat the food your family found and then try to kill you! Why doesn't God strike them down with lightning!"
"Waaah, and my mother kept it from me too, she didn't tell me anything! If I hadn't secretly gone to the garden today and overheard the maids talking, I wouldn't have known. I didn't know someone wanted to harm you!"
"Come with me, I'll take you to my great-aunt's house. Her estate is in the mountains, no one can find it!"
This girl was really anxious; her words were incoherent and interspersed with sobs.
Not only that, she also grabbed Jiayin and immediately tried to escape for her life!
Jiayin was both amused and exasperated by her antics, feeling a bittersweet warmth in her heart.
Until Baozhu had cried enough and calmed down completely.
Jiayin took the plum juice that Shuiling brought in and fed Baozhu half a bowl.
"Baozhu, don't worry, these are just rumors. It's true that the court wants to pray for rain, but no one said they would burn me to death as a sacrifice to the heavens!"
"Think about it, I'm a princess, how could I be burned to death! Otherwise, if it's written in the history books, future generations will curse the Tianwu officials and the emperor to death!"
Baozhu felt cool inside her stomach, and her rationality returned somewhat.
She blinked her big eyes twice and replied, "Oh, right, I forgot you're a princess!"
But then she became worried and urged in a low voice, "No, Sister Jiayin. What if those people really want to kill you as a sacrifice to pray for rain? It's hard to say openly, but what if they do it secretly behind my back?"
"No, no, you still need to leave quickly! It's best if no one can find you!"
As she spoke, she took off her bulging embroidered bag and dumped it all over the table.
Solid gold bracelets, gold hairpins, gold ingots, silver ingots, and even small denomination banknotes—the variety was dazzling and full of jewels.
"Sister Jiayin, these are all the good things I've saved up. Take them with you. Go somewhere secluded and start a business, open a shop!"
Baozhu pushed all the things in front of Jiayin without showing the slightest reluctance.
Jiayin looked at them carefully and saw that many of these things were gifts from elders to younger generations during festivals. She knew that Baozhu had brought all her savings.
She was deeply moved and hugged Baozhu tightly. After a while, she pulled Baozhu to sit down and said...
“Baozhu, I’ll accept these things. If I feel truly in danger, I’ll leave immediately. Like you said, I’ll find a good place to do business and open a shop. When I have something good, I’ll have someone secretly send it back to you.”
"Okay!" Baozhu finally smiled, nodded emphatically, and instructed, "Especially the delicious food, Sister Jiayin, send me more."
After these words were spoken, not only Jiayin, but even Shuiling, who was guarding the door, couldn't help but smile.
In this way, the original sad atmosphere was completely swept away.
After chatting for a while, Baozhu was about to go home.
"Sister Jiayin, I'm going back. I ran away secretly. My mom said it's dangerous outside, and she won't let me go out without her!"
Jiayin immediately instructed Shuiling to pack more of the freshly baked pastries and fruits at home for Baozhu.
Baozhu hugged Jiayin's arm, her little face flushed with laughter.
As she was leaving, she was still worried and whispered, "Sister Jiayin, my mother always told me to marry into a good family, but I don't want to. I feel uncomfortable in those families because of their strict rules."
"But now I regret it. If I had married into the family of the Minister of the Six Ministries or the imperial family, would I have been able to protect you?"
“Since we were little, you have loved me like your own sister. Now I can’t help you at all, and it makes me feel bad.”
"Sister Jiayin, please wait for me for a few more years. When I am rich and powerful, I will definitely be able to protect you."
Jiayin, afraid that the girl might misunderstand, quickly stopped her, saying, "Silly girl, don't think like that. Getting married is related to how you'll live for the rest of your life, so you can't make a decision lightly. If you marry a bad person, you'll have a hard time for the rest of your life."
"Just like if you don't like eating fatty meat, but you have to eat it every day for the rest of your life, wouldn't you be very miserable? Marriage is the same. You have to find someone suitable for you, someone you like, to entrust your life to."
"As for me, I still have my father, my godfather, my uncles, and my brothers! They can definitely protect me!"
"By the time you marry into a powerful and wealthy family and then turn around to protect me, I'll probably be living a free and easy life somewhere already. There's really no need for that, understand?"
Baozhu nodded subconsciously, then blinked twice, feeling like she was being disliked...
After Baozhu was sent away, the old lady heard the news, but when she arrived, she only saw a table full of gold and silver jewelry.
Fortunately, her granddaughter returned quickly, and she grabbed her granddaughter and asked, "Didn't Baozhu come? Is something wrong?"
Jiayin spoke to her grandmother, downplaying the seriousness of the matter, "Grandma, don't even mention it. Baozhu overheard the maids talking and is afraid I'll be captured and sacrificed. She specially sent me her savings of gold and silver accumulated over the years, telling me to run away quickly. She also said she wants to marry a rich and powerful husband to protect me in the future."
The old lady was both amused and exasperated, replying, "This child really never grows up, always so innocent. But it's good, all these years of pampering her haven't been in vain. Putting aside everything else, she's eaten the most of all the good fruit in our family."
Jiayin nodded and smiled, "I took two more baskets with me when I left."
The old lady suddenly remembered the princess. Logically, Baozhu should have heard everything and come urging her granddaughter to run away. The princess couldn't possibly be unaware; how come there wasn't a single word...?
Actually, the old lady didn't know that the princess was causing a ruckus in the palace right now.
Outside the Imperial Study, Chief Steward Yi wiped away sweat with a wry smile as he stopped the Third Princess.
"Your Highness, His Majesty is indeed unwell and is resting. Please return home and come back in a few days."
"No, I must see my father! In a few more days, my sister will be burned to death. Who was it that proposed this damned rain-praying ritual? I, the princess, will chop off his head!"
"Is Father Emperor senile? How can he believe such words! Let me in, I want to see Father Emperor!"
The third princess lifted her skirt and was about to rush inside.
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