Chapter 88 Late Night Conversation
Xiao Yuan smiled, looking nonchalant, "Since you're here, why don't you go in and listen? Aren't you curious about what I'm doing here in the middle of the night?"
At the end he added, "It's better than your anxious speculation and trying to find the answer here."
…
A gentleman should not listen to others' questions. Although she is not a gentleman, she is not a villain who would peek through the crack of the door.
But she was indeed curious, and every word Xiao Yuan said hit her heart, "The Imperial Concubine is the lifeblood of the entire Shen family, so it's okay to listen."
She stepped forward to go in.
... Xiao Yuan suddenly stretched out his arm to block the door, "Forget it, it's adults' business, you'd better not get involved as a child, go back to sleep."
Shen Anan:……? ? ? ?
She glanced at Xiao Yuan's cold eyes, let out a long sigh, suppressed her anger, turned around and prepared to leave.
At this moment, the palace door was opened, and Aunt Yu came out. After bowing to Xiao Yuan, she said to Shen Anan, "Where are you going, cousin? The queen is still waiting for you."
Shen Anan frowned fiercely. She couldn't leave, nor could she stay. More importantly, Xiao Yuan was involved in the dispute over the throne, and the Shen family had always stayed out of it. She was worried that Concubine Shen and Xiao Yuan were plotting something.
"I'm going to talk to the Imperial Concubine, so it's better for you to go back and have some rest."
Xiao Yuan spoke in a calm voice, implying that he didn't intend to let Shen Anan go in and listen.
Shen Anan seemed to tilt her head, glanced coldly at Xiao Yuan, and walked towards the palace where she lived.
Aunt Yu's expression changed, but when she met Xiao Yuan's cold eyes, she lowered her head and replied "yes" in a low voice, not daring to say anything.
Aunt Yu stepped forward and opened the palace door, inviting Xiao Yuan in. Concubine Shen was half lying on the chaise longue, and a smile immediately broke out on her face when she saw Xiao Yuan.
"The Fourth Prince is here, Aunt Yu, hurry up and pour the tea."
Xiao Yuan said nothing, and sat down not far from the chaise longue. His tone was cold, "Madam, do you still remember what I said a few days ago?"
"What?" Concubine Shen saw Xiao Yuan's face darken in an instant and sat up a little straighter.
She couldn't even say she was afraid of the Emperor, but she was definitely wary of the Fourth Prince.
Xiao Yuan leaned forward, his dark eyes narrowed slightly, "It seems that the Imperial Concubine has forgotten that my threat did not work."
Concubine Shen immediately straightened up, forcing a smile on her anxious face, "What do you mean, Fourth Prince? I... don't quite understand."
Xiao Yuan looked at her coldly, "I have warned you again and again not to act on your own. What do you want to do by letting her go to meet me tonight?"
Concubine Shen felt as if her thoughts were seen through, and she felt guilty. "I...I was ill and couldn't come to meet her in person, and I was afraid that Aunt Yu would neglect me, so..."
"Noble Concubine Shen." Xiao Yuan's tone was so cold that Concubine Shen felt cold all over, "Don't treat me like a three-year-old child."
Concubine Shen lowered her head slightly, her hands tightly grasping the quilt beneath her, her beautiful face tense.
She never thought that Xiao Yuan's protection of Shen Anan had reached this extent.
The atmosphere in the room was so eerily silent that Concubine Shen felt that even her breathing was a little difficult. After a long while, she finally mustered up the courage to speak.
"This palace... also saw that the Fourth Prince had deep feelings for An An, so I wanted to bring them together. I thought you would be happy to see her, so I took the initiative."
Xiao Yuan stared at Concubine Shen calmly until she felt uncomfortable being stared at. Aunt Yu said quickly, "Yes, Fourth Prince, my queen has often spoken well of you in front of my cousin."
Xiao Yuan's penetrating eyes narrowed slightly, and the coldness faded a little. "I warn you for the last time, do not involve her in the party's court dispute, otherwise, you should know my methods."
Concubine Shen's heart stagnated, and a chill crept up her spine. "She is my niece, and the Shen family is my mother's family. I will naturally not drag them into the whirlpool. The Fourth Prince can rest assured."
She coughed violently several times and seemed a little weak. She looked very ill. Aunt Yu quickly supported her and poured her a glass of warm water to soothe her.
Xiao Yuan said nothing more and raised his finger slightly. Qing An immediately walked forward, placed the thing in his arms on the table, and opened it.
It turned out to be a vase with exquisite workmanship and extremely beautiful appearance.
Concubine Shen's pupils shrank, and she looked up at Xiao Yuan, "This vase looks familiar to me. Where did the Fourth Prince get it from?"
"It's fake," Xiao Yuan took the tea handed to him by Aunt Yu. He wanted to take a sip, but frowned because of the pungent smell and put it down.
It was far inferior to the scented tea in that woman's carriage.
"Fake?" Concubine Shen was stunned for a moment and winked at Aunt Yu. Aunt Yu hurried forward and held the vase in her arms for Concubine Shen to take a closer look.
Concubine Shen caressed it bit by bit, carefully examining it, but couldn't see any difference. She looked up and asked in confusion.
"What the Fourth Prince meant by fake is what's fake about this vase?"
The vase was just painted in ordinary colors, not a masterpiece, and the material was just average at best. Concubine Shen felt familiar with it, but she couldn't tell what the vase was imitating.
Where had she seen him before?
Xiao Yuan fixed his eyes on the vase and said, "The mark is at the bottom."
Aunt Yu quickly turned the vase over and saw the pattern printed on the bottom of the vase. "This is..."
Concubine Shen frowned and looked at it carefully for a while before looking up in surprise, "It's the Zhang family's mark. This vase is from the Zhang family?"
She immediately stepped back. You know, the Zhang family is now imprisoned in prison. The emperor hates them so much that they have almost no chance of turning things around. If she gets the Zhang family's things at this time, wouldn't she be courting death?
Xiao Yuan glanced at Concubine Shen and said calmly, "I specially asked someone to make a replica of the vase, and the original one came from the Zhang family shop. That one piece is very valuable and has already been given away by the Zhang family."
Concubine Shen didn't understand Xiao Yuan's intention for a moment, "What does the Fourth Prince want me to do?"
Xiao Yuan glanced at the greasy tea and slowly stood up. "Your Highness, think about it carefully. You must have seen exquisite items in the palace."
Concubine Shen was shocked.
The finest treasure is in the palace?
"The Fourth Prince is saying that someone in the palace is connected to the Zhang family?"
Xiao Yuan nodded slightly. Concubine Shen didn't need to check and immediately guessed who had the treasure. The Fourth Prince was going to take action against Concubine Ning and her son.
"There will be no peace in the palace in the next few days. Try to get her out of the palace as soon as possible."
Concubine Shen came back to her senses and nodded slightly, "Don't worry, Fourth Prince. I will let An An return home when I feel better."
Xiao Yuan did not wait any longer. The night was as dark as ink. The master and servant shuttled back and forth in the imperial concubine's palace for a while and then disappeared into the palace wall.
Aunt Yu came back and reported, "My lady, the person is gone."
Concubine Shen held onto the armrest of the chaise longue and relaxed, “I never thought that his power has reached the point where he can come and go freely in the palace.”
Aunt Yu frowned and said after a long while, "My queen, the fourth prince is so protective of my cousin, is your plan..."
Before she finished speaking, Concubine Shen glared at her fiercely, "The reason why I am constrained and threatened by him is because I have no one to rely on. If An An marries him, do you think he will do anything to me, his aunt from his mother's family?"
"When it's done, I'm still helping him. Even for An An's sake, he won't do anything to me."
The difficulties to be faced afterwards are nothing. If Shen Anan cannot take the position of the Fourth Prince's Consort, everything will be in vain.
"Then... do you want me to invite my cousin here?"
Concubine Shen fixed her gaze on the vase, her sharp eyes narrowed slightly, "No need, let her have a good rest."
"Yes." Aunt Yu agreed and went over to carefully put the vase away.
Concubine Shen said, "Go to the Imperial Study tomorrow and tell them that I am very ill and want to see the Emperor."
——
Shen Anan returned to the bedroom, and after changing her clothes and washing up, she did not get on the bed, but sat in front of the window lattice to enjoy the cool breeze.
The wind inside the palace was not as strong as the wind outside, perhaps because it was blocked by the square palace walls.
Mo Xiang put a cloak on her and handed her a cup of hot tea. "Miss, do you miss the mansion?"
Shen Anan nodded, leaning her arms on the window frame, looking at the scenery in the courtyard. The glazed lamp illuminated every place, and every place was luxurious.
"This is the rich and magnificent place that the Imperial Concubine described to my grandmother."
Mo Xiang pursed her lips and followed Shen Anan's gaze to look outside, "It looks good, but... why do I always feel a little creepy?"
"I think so too." Shen Anan nodded.
She had no good feelings towards Concubine Shen, because everything today was what she had wanted regardless of her family's obstruction. It was just like her in her previous life, no matter what situation she ended up in, it was all her own fault.
But grandma is old.
Although she always expressed her disapproval when she mentioned Concubine Shen, saying that she had severed the mother-daughter relationship with her long ago, Shen Anan knew that she was always concerned about her young daughter in her heart.
Grandmother never asked about her condition in the palace, but father would mention it almost every time he wrote. Every time she learned that Concubine Shen was ill, she would sit in the yard and remain silent for a long time.
Shen Anan didn't feel sorry for Concubine Shen, nor did she want to stay in the palace, but she also didn't want Concubine Shen to be killed in this deep palace.
Winter is the most difficult season for the old woman as she has to protect her grandmother.
"Daliang was founded only a hundred years ago, and no less than twenty concubines have died in this palace. How could it not be eerie?"
A cold and calm voice suddenly sounded outside the window, and Shen Anan was so scared that his hair stood up, and he stood up with a start.
She turned her head to call Mo Xiang, but saw that she had fallen to the ground, apparently fainted.
"I thought you were very brave, but it turns out you are afraid sometimes."
The window frame was pushed open, revealing a tall figure. The man's stern face seemed to blend into the night, which made people feel scared.
Shen Anan's face immediately darkened, and he stroked his chest with his fingers for a long time before he managed to calm his breathing.
"What are you doing?"
It was the dead of night. Was he trying to scare someone to death?
"I happened to pass by and heard you raise your doubts, so I helped you solve them."
Shen Anan was so angry that she laughed, "I don't need you to mind my business!!!"
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