Despite asking around for a long time without getting any useful information, Song Xibai wasn't annoyed.
She returned to the Empress Dowager's residence, sat with her for a while, and then got up and left.
As Song Xibai walked out of the Renshou Palace gate, he summoned Jin Xiang and instructed him to send all the palace servants from Qifeng Pavilion to the Punishment Department for separate interrogation.
Jin Xiang rubbed his head: "Interrogate what?"
"How the eldest princess met that guard, and who has been frequently visiting her during this time. The eldest princess was not originally such a bold person; someone must have said something to her to make her so reckless."
Jin Xiang accepted the order and left.
By this time, it was almost completely dark.
After a busy day without a break, Song Xibai rubbed his calves, summoned a sedan chair, and returned to Changqing Palace.
Unexpectedly, he ran into Yuan Shen when he passed by the Ganqing Gate.
Yuan Shen looked exhausted. Seeing her coming from the east, he beckoned her to board his imperial carriage.
Song Xibai hesitated: "Isn't this a bit inappropriate?"
"It's not the first time, what's there to be afraid of? The ministers have all left the palace."
Yuan Shen leaned forward and extended his hand towards her.
Song Xibai thought it made sense, so he got off his sedan chair and turned to board the imperial carriage.
Her sedan chair was drafty and cold to sit in, and it wasn't as big as the imperial carriage.
Just as she took Yuan Shen's hand, a strong force suddenly came from inside and pulled her in.
A soft gasp.
The next moment, Song Xibai lay on top of Yuan Shen.
She slapped him lightly, a little embarrassed and annoyed.
There are so many people outside!
"What are you afraid of? The curtains are blocking the view from the outside."
Yuan Shen grinned and put his arm around her waist, neither getting up himself nor letting Song Xibai get up.
There was a heater placed under the imperial carriage, so lying there was warm and comfortable.
But soon, Song Xibai's comfort level dropped.
Under the cover of night, no one could see that her face suddenly flushed.
"Get up!"
Song Xibai braced herself against the carpet, distancing herself from Yuan Shen.
"You can do this kind of thing, you can..."
Her voice, utterly suppressed, escaped from between her teeth.
Yuan Shen shrugged, looking completely innocent.
"I wasn't thinking anything, the blanket was just too hot."
Enraged, Song Xibai slapped him on the chest, then flipped over and escaped his embrace, quickly sitting down in a chair.
"Stop fooling around, I have something important to tell you."
Song Xibai grabbed Yuan Shen's arm and pulled him up.
Yuan Shen sat down next to her.
"Can't we talk about this important matter tomorrow?"
He reached out and tugged at her collar.
"Today, seeing Qingqing dressed in simple clothes yet still possessing such elegance, truly amazed me. If I weren't the Crown Prince or the Emperor, but just an ordinary commoner, living a simple, rustic life with Qingqing, it would be quite wonderful!"
Song Xibai's gaze was rather strange.
During the day, Emperor Yuan Shen personally plowed the fields, while she led the palace maids to deliver food, imitating ordinary farmers by wearing simple clothes. This was just one part of the plowing festival, usually just for show, but Yuan Shen seemed to enjoy it very much, even holding the plow and following behind the oxen, enthusiastically circling back and forth.
The accompanying officials were moved to tears, and flattery poured out of them as if it were free.
Song Xibai did not answer, and Yuan Shen did not care, only sighing.
"Life outside the palace is so much more comfortable!"
Being an emperor is exhausting!
We cannot let our guard down for even a moment.
Seeing the exhaustion on his face, Song Xibai's heart softened, and she reached out to massage his shoulders.
“You are the emperor, and you can’t just quit. You’ll just have to work hard. But once the child is raised, we can leave the palace and live in seclusion or farm. Whatever you want to do, I’ll be there for you.”
Yuan Shen's eyes lit up.
"Qingqing understands me best."
He stroked his chin and muttered to himself.
“When Zhao Yan turns eighteen, he can get involved in government affairs. I’ll be in charge for two or three years. I’ll be in my early forties then, so I’ll have another twenty years to relax.”
"Eighteen is a bit too late... how about fifteen?"
Seeing that he was exaggerating more and more, and wishing he could hand over the responsibility to Zhao Yan right now, Song Xibai couldn't help but burst out laughing.
The laughter had barely stopped when the imperial carriage came to a halt, and the voice of Eunuch Feng could be heard from outside.
"Your Majesty, Your Highness, we have arrived at Changqing Palace."
So the two of them got off the carriage one after the other, passed through the gate, and went inside.
During the short walk from the main gate to the main hall, Song Xibai briefly recounted the events of the day.
Yuan Shen's expression instantly turned cold.
"What a fine Prince Lu!"
In Yuan Shen's view, it was impossible for the King of Lu not to know all this, and it might have originally been the King of Lu's idea.
"What does Your Majesty intend to do? I'm afraid the Prince of Lu will not admit it."
Song Xibai tilted her head and asked.
"You think you can get away with it just by denying it? Humph!"
Yuan Shen stepped into the hall, turned to the west side room, and went to see the two children.
Song Xibai followed behind him.
"We probably won't get the results from Qifeng Pavilion until tomorrow. As for the First Princess... we can't keep the news from her for long either, so we need to deal with it as soon as possible."
Yuan Shen waved his hand.
"Didn't the Empress Dowager say that she would handle this matter, so we don't need to worry about it?"
“I’m doing this for the sake of the princesses’ reputation, sigh…” Song Xibai sighed, then changed her mind and said, “How about this? We’ll tell the public that the eldest princess went out of the palace with the Empress Dowager to worship Buddha in order to pray for her mother, what do you think?”
Yuan Shen nodded, said no more, and then picked up Zhao Jing and gently coaxed her.
Little did the two children know how many thrilling things had happened that day. They happily lay on the bed and played for a long time.
The next morning, just after Song Xibai finished her breakfast, Granny Fangqi came over with the seal.
"Your Majesty, after returning home, this old servant thought it over and over again and felt that I was not up to the task of being the head of the Imperial Household Department. Your Majesty should leave this position to someone more capable!"
Song Xibai was not surprised at all.
She had originally wanted to ask Granny Fangqi to move to another place, but she didn't say anything yesterday because she wanted to save face for her.
Having spent a year together, the two understood each other quite well. After thinking it over, Granny Fangqi guessed what Song Xibai meant.
And here I am, resigning first thing this morning.
Song Xibai politely tried to persuade her to stay a few more times, but Granny Fangqi remained resolute, so she had the seal put away.
After pondering for a moment, Song Xibai spoke softly.
"In that case, Granny, you should go to the Palace Attendants Bureau! The new palace maids still need your strict discipline!"
The Shanggong Bureau was, after all, the head of the four bureaus, and its name sounded better.
Granny Fangqi was filled with gratitude and solemnly knelt down to kowtow to Song Xibai.
This time, Song Xibai did not call out to her as before, but sat upright and accepted her bow.
Granny Fangqi felt a pang of sadness, knowing that she and the Empress could never go back to the way things were.
She knew that this was the last face the Imperial Concubine was giving her, and if nothing unexpected happened, the Shanggong Bureau would be her place to retire.
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