"'Sihai Tea House'...I don't think I've ever heard of it before?" Xuan Yuan Yue frowned and asked in confusion.
"I heard this is a newly opened tea shop in the capital. The owner often travels all over Lingkong and is quite proficient in tea ceremony and tea art. Although it is newly opened, it has become the largest tea shop in the entire Western Qin Kingdom in less than a month, with the most complete range of teas and the best quality. It is very popular among high-ranking officials and nobles!" The maid said with a beaming smile.
"Oh, is the manor lord really that powerful?" Xuan Yuan Yue continued sipping her tea, seemingly also sensing that the manor lord was no ordinary person.
The maid nodded, and as she was speaking, she seemed to suddenly remember something, so she recalled for a moment and said, "Oh, right. A few days ago, when I went to the tea room to pick up the new tea set, I heard from the eunuch who went out of the palace to purchase the tea that even the tea used by the Princess of Qin in the Prince of Qin's mansion is now supplied by the Sihai Tea Company!"
Upon hearing this, Xuan Yuan Yue's heart suddenly skipped a beat. She stopped what she was doing, looked up at the maid's face seriously, and asked, "Are you sure you didn't hear wrong? The Princess Consort of Qin also used tea from the Sihai Tea House?"
The maid glanced to the side, thought for a moment, and then said definitively, "I saw that the eunuch spoke with great detail, saying that in the end, it was the manor lord who personally escorted Princess Qin out. He imitated their every move, every smile, so meticulously that it didn't seem like he was just boasting. Oh, right, the eunuch also said that Princess Qin was accompanied by Miss Lu Tianjiao from Xi Qin Academy when they walked out of the Sihai Tea House that day. He also said that the two of them seemed to be at odds that day, as if they had some kind of falling out?"
"Hmph... These two scheming women are in cahoots, I wonder what they're plotting? Luckily, Uncle Qin doesn't care about either of them, otherwise... Sigh!" Xuan Yuan Yue said, letting out a soft sigh.
Unconsciously, his gaze fell once again on the enamel-painted glass teacup in his hand, looking at the delicate and exquisite three-dimensional plum blossom pattern inlaid on it, and he murmured to himself:
"'Sihai Tea House'...Didn't the Princess Consort of Qin always only favor the special teas and teaware used by the royal family of her motherland? Why would she now take a fancy to such crude goods from the streets of my Western Qin? She doesn't seem like the type to adapt to local customs at all. There must be something wrong here!"
With this thought in mind, Xuan Yuan Yue suddenly began to swirl the teacup in her hand with great interest, and said to herself with a smile, "Well, anyway, I'm getting bored to death staying in this palace. Let's go to the Sihai Tea House and join in the fun, and see what's so special about this new and famous No. 1 Tea House in Western Qin that has attracted even the usually picky Princess Qin."
Upon faintly hearing the murmurs uttered by Xuan Yuan Yue, the maid beside her exclaimed in alarm, "Princess, His Highness the Prince of Qin is not at the Prince of Qin's residence. You have no reason to leave the palace. You wouldn't... you wouldn't be thinking of sneaking out of the palace again to change clothes with me, would you?"
Xuanyuan Yue then raised her head and looked up at the maid's eyes, blinking her bright eyes at her expectantly, giving a mysterious smile that seemed both radiant and innocent.
The maid knew all too well what she was doing and what she was thinking with that malicious smile. Countless times she had risked her life to cover for her, and countless times she had been so nervous in her pretense that she had slipped up and been exposed by the Empress, her bottom nearly beaten raw by the thick board.
Upon realizing this, the maid swallowed hard, her heart trembling. She quickly knelt beside her, placing her hands on her arms, pouting, and gently shaking her as she begged, "Princess, Your Highness, please spare me! I'm terrified! I dare not impersonate you anymore! I fear I'll lose my head sooner or later!"
"Who said I wanted you to impersonate me this time? Dream on!" Xuan Yuan Yue took a final sip of tea, stood up, and strolled towards the couch, saying cheerfully.
"Thank you, Princess! Thank you, Princess!" Upon hearing this, the maidservant patted her heart and breathed a long sigh of relief, as if she had finally escaped a disaster. She then hurriedly got up and went forward to serve her carefully.
Unexpectedly, after Xuan Yuan Yue returned to the bed, she suddenly blurted out, "This time, I don't want you to pretend. I want you to go and tell the eunuch who went out of the palace to make purchases that I want to go with him to the Sihai Tea House!"
"Ah..." Upon hearing this, the maid who had just scattered the curtain in her hand froze in astonishment, her expression instantly turning somber. She slumped to the side, like a seedling about to die of drought, waiting for a drop of sweet rain, and was about to die.
"Hmph..." Xuan Yuan Yue, however, glanced at the maid's seemingly suffocating face through the gorgeous gauze curtain, chuckled softly, then retreated back into the warm bed and turned to face the inside of the couch, her heart brimming with excitement as she eagerly began to plan...
The next day at dawn, in the Yanqi Pavilion of the Qin Prince's Mansion.
Lu Tianjiao had already gotten up early, washed and dressed, and walked out of the house to stand gracefully on the stone steps at the door. She gently looked up at the pavilions and waterside terraces in front of her. The garden was full of prosperity, with purple and red flowers in full bloom. It was a beautiful spring day that could not be contained. However, there was no one to appreciate it, and time had let it go. She could only watch it fade away day by day. Who could understand her lonely and sad feelings?
He sighed deeply, then slowly walked down the stone steps, quietly stopped and sat down by the pond in the courtyard. He thoughtfully picked up his sleeve and began to play with and tease the fish in the pond.
Looking up casually, Lu Tianjiao caught a glimpse of a maid from Shaohua Pavilion returning to the manor from the morning market. She entered through a small door, acting furtively, glancing around furtively. She was clutching something in her hand, seemingly a letter, and hurried towards Mei Xiyuan's Shaohua Pavilion. Lu Tianjiao pondered for a moment, then a question arose in his mind:
"Isn't that the maid who's in charge of getting tea from Sihai Tea House for Mei Xiyuan? Why is she acting so suspiciously today? Could it be... could it be that news has already come from Sihai Tea House?... No, I have to go and see."
So she quickly got up and followed him.
Inside the Shaohua Pavilion courtyard, spring was in full bloom, the air filled with the intoxicating fragrance of flowers, and wisps of incense smoke rose from the room.
However, Mei Xiyuan got up in a daze, and Zhao Mama was helping her to do her makeup.
Since making that deal with Tuoba Ze, and simultaneously informing his elder brother Mei Zhixuan of Yi Shangyun's whereabouts, Mei Xiyuan has been constantly uneasy. Her insomnia has become increasingly severe, and even when she manages to fall asleep at night, she is quickly awakened by nightmares.
Several days had passed since Tuoba Ze agreed to the deal, and her nerves were becoming increasingly tense, anxious, and uneasy each day.
As he pondered, he unconsciously let out a long, heavy sigh: "Alas..."
Just then, Granny Zhao suddenly broke off a white hair while combing it, and quickly hid it away.
However, despite the subtlety of the movement, which was almost imperceptible, it was still noticed by Mei Xiyuan, who was at a loss.
Looking at the unfamiliar, bitter face reflected in the mirror, she said with utter helplessness, "Granny, stop hiding it. Some things, no matter how you try to hide them, you can't hide them. Everything is already etched on everyone's truest face, painted in their destiny. In the end, no one can escape it!"
Upon hearing this, Granny Zhao stopped what she was doing and advised her with heartache, "Since Your Highness has made a decision, you should simply stick to it. If you are always so soft-hearted and indecisive, in the end, you will be the one who suffers."
Upon hearing this, Mei Xiyuan frowned deeply, suddenly turned around, grabbed Zhao Mama's hand, and complained bitterly:
"How could I, the Princess Consort, not want to be ruthless just once? She hasn't even done anything yet, and from the moment she was born, she has already taken away everything that I, the Princess Consort, should have had. But I, the Princess Consort, am unwilling, unwilling! I, the Princess Consort, am born of a noble family, raised with a silver spoon in my mouth. How am I any less than that wretched girl who wanders among the common people, eating chaff and wild vegetables every day, and reeking of poverty? Yet she not only wants to take away my position as the legitimate princess of the wealthy and powerful Dongning Kingdom, known throughout the entire Lingkong Continent, but she also wants to take away my husband. If that's the case, if His Highness were to actually... then her future might even... I, the Princess Consort, will not allow it, I absolutely will not allow it..."
Clearly enraged and trembling, Mei Xiyuan grew increasingly agitated as she spoke, until finally her entire face contorted in a ferocious expression.
But then she suddenly lowered her voice, tears streaming down her face, and said in a conflicted and painful voice, "But, but she is also the bloodline of the Empress Dowager! Why is she the bloodline of the Empress Dowager? If she weren't the only bloodline left by the Empress Dowager in this world, I wouldn't even blink an eye at such a vixen who dares to so brazenly provoke me. I would crush her to pieces as easily as crushing an ant. I wouldn't be in this dilemma and reluctance. But she just..."
Seeing Mei Xiyuan's complicated emotions and helpless state, unable to even speak, Zhao Mama helped her sit up straight. While continuing to decorate her already styled hair, she looked at her pitiful reflection in the mirror and said:
"The princess has always had excellent taste, why don't she choose the right earrings for this outfit herself today!"
Seeing that Mei Xiyuan seemed to have calmed down a little, although she was still awkward, she reached out and started rummaging through the jewelry box. Zhao Mama then said, "However, in my opinion, the attitude of the Sihai Tea House that day seemed to be that they were determined to get this deal. If they really bring that girl back, I wonder what Your Highness plans to do with her?"
Clearly, Mei Xiyuan still hadn't made up her mind completely. As she was pondering this, she saw a maid come in, and Zhao Mama quickly wiped away her tears. Mei Xiyuan also quieted down and sat down.
As soon as the maid entered, she bowed respectfully and presented the secret letter in her hand, saying, "Your Highness, news came from the Sihai Tea House this morning!"
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