Leaving the Imperial Study Room, Su Rong went directly to find Ye Guixue.
Ye Guixue was sitting nearby in a side hall, with fruits and pastries laid out on the table. He did not touch any of them, only holding a scroll opened in his hand. Seeing her approach, he immediately stood up, "Have you finished talking to His Majesty?"
"Mmm, let’s go, let’s leave the palace," Su Rong nodded.
Ye Guixue tucked the scroll into his sleeve, dusted off his clothes, and the slightly nodded at her, "OK."
Su Rong tilted her head to look at him, "Do you always carry a scroll on you?"
"Mmm," Ye Guixue laughed, "I’m used to it."
"That’s a really good habit." To the book-averse Su Rong, this habit was not good, was it? He really wouldn’t let his hand leave the scroll, just like his elder brother.
The two left the side hall, and a eunuch handed them an umbrella.
Ye Guixue naturally took the umbrella and protected Su Rong under it. Snowflakes fell on the umbrella, making a rustling sound as they landed. The ground was lightly covered with snow, as palace maids were brushing it off, and their footprints formed shallow imprints as they walked.
When they passed by, the palace maids brushing snow aside to let them pass, glanced at them quietly, their eyes filled with admiration and praise.
After walking a certain distance, hearing some movement behind, Su Rong looked back, and saw that palace maids were carrying a ceremonial litter near the Imperial Study Room, and a lady in palace attire was helped down from it. She stopped in her tracks and looked at Ye Guixue and Su Rong.
The distance wasn’t too far, and Su Rong had a good eyesight. She saw that the lady in palace attire was exceptionally beautiful, wearing a peach blossom-colored outfit that made her incredibly dazzling and charming.
Ye Guixue naturally heard it too, and seeing Su Rong looking back, he also glanced back and said softly in her ear, "It should be Precious Imperial Concubine."
Su Rong had an epiphany, so it was Precious Imperial Concubine. Everyone in Daliang knew that the Precious Imperial Concubine was enchantingly beautiful and her favor surpassed all others in the Imperial Harem. After looking at her now, she really was extraordinarily handsome. If it weren’t for knowing her long-standing favor in the Imperial Harem, at first glance, she might be mistaken for a princess of the same age.
She tilted her head and asked, "How did you recognize her? Was it because of her distinctive presence?"
Ye Guixue smiled faintly, "It’s said that Precious Imperial Concubine loves the peach blossom color."
Su Rong nodded and retracted her gaze, following Ye Guixue as they moved forward, whispering to him at the same time, "How did she get this Precious title?"
Ye Guixue whispered back to her, "It’s said that His Majesty was smitten with her at first sight and liked her very much. When giving her the title, he specially bestowed her with ’precious’."
Su Rong said, "It seems that he really loves her very much, the rumors are true. Without such deep affection, she wouldn’t be able to raise such a disposition."
Indeed, the palace was a place that wore people down the most.
Ye Guixue nodded.
The two of them kept talking while walking away, never turning back to greet the Precious Imperial Concubine.
The Precious Imperial Concubine stood next to the ceremonial litter under an umbrella held by a palace maid, watching the young man holding an umbrella for the delicate girl walk further away. She remained silent until they passed the palace gate and disappeared from sight. She then asked, "Was that Second Young Master Ye and Lady Su Qi?"
The palace maid answered yes.
The Precious Imperial Concubine softly said, "They are indeed a perfect couple."
The palace maid reminded her softly, "Your Highness, it is cold out here, let’s go inside? His Majesty is resting right now."
Precious Imperial Concubine nodded, retracted her gaze, and with the support of her maid, she entered the Imperial Study Room.
The Emperor hadn’t stepped foot into the Inner Palace for several days. Seeing the Precious Imperial Concubine arriving, he waved her over, "Don’t stay outside in the cold, what are you doing here? Be careful not to catch a cold."
Precious Imperial Concubine gave the Emperor a playful look, "Your Majesty, you didn’t come to see me. Can’t I miss you and come here?"
The Emperor was very pleased and pulled her hand closer, chuckled, "You can, you can."
A palace maid brought ginseng soup. The Precious Imperial Concubine personally served the Emperor, "Your Majesty, I know you have been worried recently. I worry about your health. Once you finish this soup, I will leave."
The Emperor patted her hand, "There’s no rush, stay and chat with me for a bit."
Imperial Concubine Zhen chuckled, "Didn’t Your Majesty just finish talking with your niece?"
Upon mentioning Su Rong, the Emperor’s smile faded, and he asked her, "Did you see Su Rong just now?" 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶
Imperial Concubine Zhen nodded, "Unfortunately, I arrived late, barely catching a glimpse of her sharing an umbrella with the Second Young Master from the Ye Xiang Residence of Nanchu. From afar, they were like a perfectly matched pair, very pleasing to the eyes."
The Emperor asked, "You think so too?"
"What do you mean by ’I think so too’?" Imperial Concubine Zhen was puzzled, "Who else shares this view? Is it you, Your Majesty?"
The Emperor sighed, "The Nanchu King has always been unsatisfied with me. I suppose my cousin must have resented me too. Jiangning County is only a thousand miles away from the Capital City. She lived under my reign for seven years, yet I remained ignorant of her existence until her death. Her daughter continued to live for another eight years, until she came to the Capital City this year, only then did I become aware of her. If only I had known sooner..."
He didn’t complete his sentence, but Imperial Concubine Zhen understood. If he had known earlier, he might have been able to favor and control her, and she might have been more inclined towards him. As it is now, Su Rong had grown into a character difficult to manipulate.
Imperial Concubine Zhen comforted him in a gentle voice, "Your Majesty, don’t worry. You must take care of your health, I am counting on you. She’s the daughter of my older sister, she won’t bring harm to the state of Daliang."
"That is true." The Emperor pulled her into his embrace, patting her on the shoulder, "I understand."
After leaving the Imperial Palace, Su Rong and Ye Guixue got into a carriage.
Su Rong said to Ye Guixue, "We’ll drop you off at the Duke Residence first."
Ye Guixue looked at her, reluctantly replied, "It’s natural that I should drop you off at Shen Residence first. I am a man, and you are a lady, I should be taking care of you in such minor matters."
Su Rong blinked, "Alright."
It’s rare for him not to indulge her.
She smiled, praising him, "This is a good sign."
Ye Guixue chuckled.
The carriage returned to Shen Residence without incident. After alighting from the carriage, Su Rong waved to Ye Guixue. He handed her the umbrella and waved back.
After bidding farewell at the entrance, Su Rong walked inside with the umbrella. She went to report her safe return to Lady Shen and talked with her for a while. Not seeing Su Xingze around, Su Rong asked, "Auntie, did my brother go to keep Zhou Gu company at the Duke Residence again?"
"Indeed." Lady Shen chuckled, "The two of them get along as if they were brothers."
Su Rong yawned, just as she was about to respond, Lady Shen noticed her yawn and urged, "You must be tired. You should rest. Now that Rui’an King has you assisting in such a major investigation, he obviously relies on you. You likely only have this half-day to rest. Starting tomorrow, you will have to assist him and be busy."
Su Rong nodded, stood up, "Then I’ll leave first."
Lady Shen waved her off, urging her to rest.
Back in her own courtyard, after bathing, Su Rong was just about to go to bed when she saw that Su Xingze had returned. She had no choice but to sit by the fireplace and wait for him to enter.
Upon crossing the threshold, Su Xingze noticed Su Rong sitting by the fireplace with a copper pot - filled by a maid with morning tea - on the fire, the room filled with the scent of jujube tea.
He undid his cloak, looked Su Rong up and down, and asked about what he was most concerned about, "Are you hurt?"
"No." Su Rong shook her head.
Seeing her looking well and seeming fine, not appearing to be injured, Su Xingze relaxed. He sat down on the opposite side of the fire with her and asked in a low voice, "What happened? Why did you leave the city at night and not return until now?"
Of course, Su Rong wouldn’t hide anything from him and briefly explained to him the situation.
After hearing everything, Su Xingze sucked in a breath of shock, "Twelve hundred boxes of gold, and you only left two hundred? If this...if this gets discovered or the news leaks..."
"It’s concealed for Crown Prince. The news won’t leak out, we’re all on the same side." Su Rong explained, "I originally intended to let Rui’an King take care of this matter on his own, without expecting the cunning old fox to drag me in this as well. It’s better this way. I now have a legitimate reason to help the Crown Prince clean house and remove obstacles."
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