Chapter 28
The senior palace maid Yunzhi prostrated herself on the ground, her chest pressed against the ground, and spoke intermittently from her throat: "Reply...Reply to Her Majesty...Speak...Speak..."
"Speak louder!" Cihe was furious and scolded, "Didn't you have breakfast this morning? Who are you telling this to?"
Yunzhi was so scared that she trembled all over. She simply made up her mind, closed her eyes, and said one by one: "Your Majesty, please forgive me! What I heard in the teahouse was that Concubine Cihe's mother's family supported the emperor in the past, so the emperor would not pursue anything Concubine Cihe did. It was said that although Yuan Shi did not enter the official career, his financial resources were enough to buy half of Qingzhao State. The emperor had to look at Yuan Shi's face, so no matter what Concubine Cihe did, the emperor would turn a blind eye."
"How dare you!" Cihe stared at them with all her might, her expression extremely distorted, her voice distorted: "How dare you! These unruly people dare to talk about the royal family! They dare to talk about the current emperor!"
"I, Yuan Shi, have always been diligent and conscientious. Who on earth is spreading rumors and going against me, Yuan Shi?" She shouted in a loud voice: "Catch them! Catch them all!"
"Reply...Reply to your Majesty, it is difficult to trace the source of the rumors outside. The people are spreading them. I am afraid that it will be difficult to catch them."
"What? I can't do anything about these troublemakers? You mean, I have to swallow my anger and face the faces of those troublemakers?" Cihe glared at Yunzhi, who had never raised her head, and the more she looked at him, the angrier she became. She kicked Yunzhi several meters away and said, "I'll give you another chance to speak again."
Yunzhi covered her chest and knelt down again: "My lady, I will check it out right away."
"You'd better find out for me, otherwise, go stay in the flower garden in the back house!"
Yunzhi was already sweating profusely. The flowerbed in the back room was filled with human blood, and she didn't want to become a pile of fertilizer there. So, she looked sinister and promised solemnly: "My lady, I will find out the source and report it to you."
"That's more like it."
At this moment, Cihe's anger had subsided a little.
However, the emperor has seldom come to Cihe Hall recently. I wonder if he has also believed the slander of those unruly people. Thinking of this, she sat back on the jade stool and leaned sideways, lost in thought: Yuan Shi’s rumors are getting more and more intense, and they can’t be suppressed. This is not a good sign. Now we have to let Yu’er marry the daughter of the prime minister’s mansion as soon as possible, give birth to the emperor’s grandson, and let the emperor appoint a prince as soon as possible.
After making up her mind, she brushed her hair with her fingertips and smiled meaningfully. She called Cuilan, the head maid, into the palace and headed straight to the third prince's palace.
These days, she was in a very gloomy mood because of these rumors. Now that she had thought everything through, the Imperial Garden along the way was half as beautiful as usual.
The maids and eunuchs who met along the way bowed their heads and saluted, and Concubine Cihe also smiled. After Cihe left, the frightened maids and eunuchs kept looking back: What kind of festive day is today? Has the queen changed her temper?
Soon, they arrived at the Third Prince's Palace.
At this time, under the bright yellow curtain, Yu was leaning on a low couch with golden nanmu carved with cloud patterns, the sandalwood fragrance was wafting from the purple clay hollow stove, and the carved pit table was filled with wine, fruits and melons. He crossed his legs and flirted with the palace maids in the hall, his expression full of satisfaction. The bright yellow Shu brocade cushion was crowded, but he was holding the women on both sides, but he was still balanced.
One of the palace maids flirted with him and leaned gently against him, not only stroking his face, but also holding a grape with her orchid finger. The two of them played for a long time. The third prince had already opened his mouth halfway, waiting to taste the grape carefully, but he didn't know that a crowd of people had already knelt outside the door, making loud noises.
Just as the maid was about to put the grapes into the Third Prince's mouth, Cuilan, the senior maid beside Imperial Concubine Cihe, saw that the Empress looked strange, and quickly cleared her throat and said, "Imperial Concubine Cihe has arrived."
The people in the palace were obviously stunned, especially the Third Prince. Seeing his mother's face livid, he paused and quickly signaled the maids to leave. The maids were all smart and left the bed in an instant. Concubine Cihe took note of their faces one by one. Seeing them bow and leave on their own, she held back her anger, glared at them, and said nothing. It was too embarrassing.
At this time, the Third Prince also stood up from the couch and came forward with a smile: "Mother, why did you come in without notifying me today?"
Cihe said, "Why? I have to inform you in advance when I come to your place, so that your girls can leave early?"
The Third Prince took over Cuilan's work with foresight, supported Cihe's arm, and led her to the hall to sit down: "Mother, look at what you said, I was just asking. If I had known that mother was coming, I would have sent these vulgar fans away in advance."
"A vulgar fan?" Cihe's tone was slightly higher, very dissatisfied: "You also know that she is a vulgar fan, why did you bring her into the palace? Did you do what I asked you to do? How long has it been? Did you go to the Prime Minister's Mansion to build a relationship with Bai Tiao?"
When the matter was mentioned, the Third Prince was furious and immediately challenged: "If it weren't for the fact that Yuzhi was ignorant and causing trouble everywhere, would I have lost my good impression of him?"
Thinking of the way Bai Tiao looked at him, it was like looking at a piece of wood, without any emotion. So, he was even more dissatisfied: "I am a prince, why do I always have to go to the minister's house and let people know, it's so embarrassing."
"Face? You lost face because you couldn't marry Bai Tiao! What's the use of this face now? Can it make your father look at you more, or can it make you the crown prince?"
The Third Prince did not answer, but sat on the stool without saying a word. Cihe also slowed down her tone, "Son, your mother is doing this for your own good. You only need to marry the daughter of the Prime Minister's Mansion and give birth to a grandson as soon as possible. By then, you can do whatever you want with Bai Tiao. Why can't you figure it out?"
The third prince's eyes lit up:
Yes, after marrying her, why can't he do whatever he wants with her? When he thought of Bai Tiao's noble attitude and the pleasure she was enjoying under him, he felt a desire to conquer her.
So he looked at Cihe with a more determined look in his eyes.
After all, he was her son. Cihe saw that the Third Prince seemed to be planning something, and she knew that the Third Prince had taken her words to heart. So, she added fuel to the fire: "Bai Tiao is like her mother, she has been aloof since she was a child. But what does it matter if she is aloof? A woman will eventually get married, and her husband is her heaven. When the time comes, you can do whatever you want. If you don't like her aloof behavior, don't you have many ways to make her change?"
The third prince raised his lips and snorted, "Mother is right. How could I not have thought of this? It doesn't matter if I lose face now. As long as I marry her, I can control her as I please."
"My son is very smart and understood it immediately." Cihe smiled with relief and said, "If my son is not qualified to be the crown prince, who else can take on this important responsibility?"
Although the Third Prince did not respond, his expression was enough to show that he agreed with Cihe's words.
The two men discussed the matter in the hall, but they didn't know that their plan had already been overheard by Feng Huanhuan in the corner.
Feng Huanhuan suppressed her laughter and looked at Han Fengci: "They are indeed mother and son. It's hard to tell how kind and gentle the Third Prince is." Then she continued: "Why do they always keep pestering Sister Bai? Do they have to marry Sister Bai? There are so many powerful people in the capital, why are they the only ones who are hurt by Sister Bai?"
She really couldn't figure it out. Han Fengci thought for a moment and said, "Maybe it has something to do with the Left Prime Minister."
Feng Huanhuan stared in amazement: "Could it be that Concubine Cihe and the Left Prime Minister are colluding?"
Han Fengci nodded: "I can guarantee that the relationship between Concubine Cihe and Prime Minister Zuo is not that simple."
After all, the Fuzhou corruption case is related to Boyu.
At present, I am afraid that Bo Yu does not have the brains to do that. And the Imperial Concubine Cihe has lived in the deep palace for a long time, and if she wants to get things done, she must go through an intermediary. And the Imperial Concubine Cihe is more cautious, and the person she can trust must be the Third Prince Bo Yu who is free to leave the palace.
Feng Huanhuan frowned.
At this time, a voice of gnashing teeth came from Ciheci: "That Liu Qinqin, I will definitely give her a lesson!"
The third prince said: "But Liu Huaide is deeply trusted by my father, so it would be difficult to touch Liu Qinqin."
Cihe chuckled twice: "Doesn't she want to enter the palace? It's not impossible to give her a hand."
"Mother, do you really think so?" The Third Prince was a little surprised, and then said, "If Liu Qinqin enters the palace, she will definitely cause trouble for you."
Imperial Concubine Cihe's eyes were shining: "I know your father well. How could Liu Qinqin's appearance catch his eye? What if... an accident?"
The Third Prince understood instantly, his eyes sparkling, "If it's an accident, Father will be so sick that he won't be able to sleep, and he will be secretly executed!"
Concubine Cihe was very pleased.
Patting the Third Prince's head, he spoke lovingly, "My son has really grown up. He will definitely relieve your father's worries in the future."
Feng Huanhuan in the corner rolled her eyes up to the sky. If she hadn't suddenly decided to squat in the corner today, she would have never seen how Concubine Cihe and the Third Prince get along in private. It was really jaw-dropping.
When the two saw that Ci had said almost everything, they left quietly.
Today was a small gain. Feng Huanhuan said to Han Fengci, "With the Liu Qinqin incident, I'm afraid Cihe will be too busy to keep an eye on Sister Bai."
Han Fengci smiled and said, "Yeah."
Feng Huanhuan didn't understand why Han Fengci always stared at her and smiled, so she raised her eyebrows and asked, "Why are you staring at me and smiling?"
Han Fengci laughed softly: "Huan'er always likes to squat in the corner, very cute."
Feng Huanhuan glared at me: "Do you think I want to? It's because Sister Bai's matter is bothering me."
"I thought Huan'er would not call me these days because she has the company of Princess Lan Yue."
Feng Huanhuan felt a little jealous when she heard this, so her eyes lit up and she asked, "Why? Are you afraid that I won't look for you?"
Han Fengci nodded: "Huan'er is very happy to be with Princess Lan Yue every day."
"Hey, Princess Moon and I haven't seen each other for a long time, so of course we have to be happy for a few days."
Han Fengci looked up at the sky. It was still early. He looked at her again, "Are you going back to Huanxin Garden or to find Princess Lanyue?"
He was looking at her, his deep eyes filled with tender affection, as if saying to her: I will always be here as long as you need me.
She was instantly overwhelmed. Han Fengci needs me! She thought.
Although she was a little hesitant, she still chose Han Fengci.
The two of them went shopping in the street market together, had some snacks, drank some iced fruit drinks, walked under the bridge, climbed up the promenade, and strolled back and forth in the crowded East Street Nine Market.
The girl's delicate hands kept grasping Han Fengci's sleeves, and her little mouth kept chattering. Occasionally seeing some exquisite little things, Feng Huanhuan would silently say in her heart:
Sister Moon, I'm sorry, please don't blame me. Han Fengci is the person you want to spend your life with, he is more important, hehe.
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