Ziying Pavilion.

"Sister Qinghe, change your clothes first." Pei Lingbi pointed to a palace maid to serve Qinghe and slowly stood up and said, "I'll go out and wash my hands. I'll come back to see you later."

Qing He frowned and asked, "Where is my maid?"

She brought a personal maid with her when she went out. She was there just now, so how come she disappeared when she turned around after entering the house?

Pei Lingbi narrowed her eyes and said calmly, "Oh, I asked your maid to make tea. She should be back soon... You can use my maid for now."

Qinghe pursed her lips, looked at the lavender dress, and nodded, thinking about changing it and going back early.

Pei Lingbi smiled, told the palace maids to take good care of Qinghe, and then went out, closing the door behind her.

Inside the house, the palace maid obediently helped Qinghe change her dress, and Qinghe cooperated. But gradually, she smelled the scent of incense in the house and felt a tightness in her chest.

She usually burned incense, which were all high-quality soothing incense with a light and elegant scent. Now, when she smelled this strong and pungent fragrance, she looked around the house uncomfortably.

In the corner there was a hexagonal rosewood incense table with a banana leaf pattern, and on top of it was a small cloisonné three-legged elephant trunk incense burner, with green smoke rising up and the aroma was rich and sweet.

Qinghe frowned and wanted to ask the palace maid to put out the incense, but thinking that she would soon be able to change her clothes, she endured it for the time being.

Unexpectedly, when she was changing her top, her head became more and more dizzy and her body shook twice involuntarily.

"County Lord, what's wrong with you?" the maid asked worriedly.

"This fragrance is too strong, it makes me dizzy." Qing He held his head with one hand and looked at the palace maid in confusion, "Don't you feel uncomfortable?"

The maid was very conscious and shook her head, saying, "I don't feel uncomfortable."

Qinghe bit her lip and thought, am I too delicate and sensitive?

"Hurry up and change. Help me go out for a walk after you're done."

"yes."

But before she could change her clothes, Qinghe felt weak all over, dizzy and unable to stand steadily.

The maid was startled and hurriedly helped her sit down beside the bed, "County Master, are you okay?"

Qing He was in a trance, his head resting on the bedpost, and he said weakly, "Open the window, let's get some fresh air..."

Perhaps her voice was too soft, and the maid didn't hear her. She just said, "You lie down and rest first. I will go find the princess right away."

Qinghe only felt that her eyelids were getting heavier and heavier, her body was getting hotter and hotter, and everything in front of her eyes was gradually becoming blurry and distorted.

She saw the maid run out, and saw the door close again...

——

Behind the rockery not far from Ziying Pavilion.

"Ati, what are we doing?" Xu Wenchan's eyes widened.

“Tsk——”

Tao Ti bent her waist and leaned forward.

Not long after, Pei Lingbi was seen walking out of Ziying Pavilion in a hurry with a smug look on his face.

Tao Ti's heart sank, something was definitely not right!

Xu Wenchan was also surprised, "Why is the Second Princess alone? Where is the County Master?"

Tao Ti straightened up and asked Linglong to go with her to Ziying Pavilion to find out what was going on. Then he said to Xu Wenchan, "A Chan, you keep watch outside for us. If we can't get out in a cup of tea, we must be in trouble. Go and call someone to help."

Although he didn't know what happened inside, it looked like the situation was definitely not good. Xu Wenchan nodded solemnly, "Okay, don't worry."

Tao Ti took Linglong all the way to Ziying Pavilion. It was such a big yard, but there was no one guarding it, which made people suspicious.

As soon as I walked into the yard, I saw Qinghe's maid lying on the stone table in the inner courtyard, unconscious.

Linglong stepped forward quickly, sniffed his breath, checked the back of his neck, and said seriously, "Crown Princess, he's still alive, he just got knocked unconscious."

Tao Ti frowned, "Don't worry about her for now, let's go find the county lord."

Ziying Pavilion is a two-story pavilion with more than a dozen rooms on the upper and lower floors. Tao Ti and Ling Long started searching separately.

When we searched the second floor, we heard a faint movement coming from a room.

Tao Ti and Ling Long looked at each other and hurried towards the room.

The door was locked from the inside. At Tao Ti's signal, Linglong kicked it open.

There was a loud bang and the door was kicked half open. The man who was taking off his clothes in the room was frightened and screamed.

Behind the peony screen, shadows were looming and a sweet aroma wafted into the air.

Tao Ti smelled the fragrance, suppressed her disgust, and rushed in with Linglong, "Qinghe!"

Inside, I saw Qinghe with a pale face, lying on the bed in a daze, his shirt was a little messy, but still intact and he hadn't taken it off.

The man next to her had a naked, skinny upper body, his pants were half-undone, and his face was flushed. Although he was drunk, he was not completely unconscious and he still knew to put on his pants quickly.

Without Tao Ti saying anything, Linglong walked straight forward and dragged the man to the ground in no time.

Tao Ti quickly picked up Qing He from the bed and patted her cheek, "Qing He, wake up."

Hearing her call, Qing He opened his eyes in a daze and murmured, "Cousin, cousin... incense... incense burner..."

"Linglong, there may be something wrong with the incense burner. Please collect the incense ash first and we will take it back for analysis." Tao Ti calmly instructed, "The most urgent thing now is to take Qinghe away."

"Yes." Linglong said, raised her hand and chopped the man unconscious, then took out a handkerchief, took out some incense ashes from the incense burner and put them in the pot.

Looking at the man who had fainted on the ground, Linglong asked, "Crown Princess, what should we do with this man?"

Tao Ti had some impression of this man. He seemed to be a boy from the Zhou family?

In an instant, countless speculations flashed through her mind, and the more she thought about it, the more disgusted she felt.

Just as she was considering how to punish this obscene man, there was a muffled "bang" sound from the door.

Tao Ti and Ling Long were both stunned.

Linglong looked alert and went out to check. When she came back, she was dragging an unconscious woman with disheveled hair behind her.

Taoti, "???"

This dress, this hair accessory...

She bent down and lifted up the woman's face, dumbfounded, Pei Lingbi?

Who is this good man who does good deeds without leaving his name and actually packs this stuff and delivers it to my door?

Now is not the time to think about this. Tao Ti looked at the unconscious Pei Lingbi, then at the man who had been knocked unconscious, and immediately an idea popped up in her mind, "Linglong, come, put them both on the bed."

Linglong understood immediately.

The master and servant lifted Pei Lingbi and Zhou Shaohui onto the bed together, put them in an embrace, and covered them with a quilt.

After the arrangement was completed, Tao Ti clapped her hands and snorted, "To harm others will eventually harm yourself."

Pei Lingbi is not a good person, and this Zhou family boy is also a dirty bastard with bad intentions. Since they like to play such malicious tricks, let them reap what they sow! Let's get together and harm each other!

After dealing with it, Tao Ti and Ling Long quickly carried Qing He away.

Xu Wenchan saw them coming out and immediately went forward. Looking at the groggy Qinghe, she asked in shock, "My God, what happened to the county lord?"

Tao Ti said, "Now is not the time to explain, let's go back to my yard first."

As soon as they left, the palace maids followed them, bringing the doctor, the prime minister's wife Liu and others to Ziying Pavilion.

"The county lady suddenly said she was not feeling well. Doctor, you must take a good look at her."

"The county lord is on the second floor."

The group went upstairs and saw that the door was ajar. They called twice, but there was no movement inside.

The palace maid plucked up her courage, reached out and pushed the door. The door creaked, then fell to the ground with a bang.

Palace maid, "???

The doctor and Liu's men shouted, "!!!"

Everyone felt something was wrong and walked in cautiously.

There was a sweet and rich fragrance in the room. In front of the black lacquered and screwed bedstead behind the screen, a light green curtain was hanging down, and on the ground were two pairs of shoes, a pair of black soap boots, and a pair of bright red beaded embroidered shoes.

Everyone's expression changed.

The Prime Minister's wife, Liu's heart was beating fast. She was a little nervous and expectant. She just kept a straight face and ordered the maid, "Go and take a look."

The maid stepped forward nervously, lifted a corner of the curtain, took a look, and her eyes suddenly widened, "Ah——"

She stepped back as if she had seen a ghost, her legs went weak, and she fell to the ground.

Liu took a glance and snorted in her heart, this little palace maid is quite good at acting.

But then I heard the palace maid hesitantly say, "How could it be, how could it be...a princess?!"

Liu was shocked and strode forward to open the curtain.

When she saw this, her eyes widened, her face suddenly turned pale, and she almost fainted.

………

The night was getting darker, and there were neither stars nor moon in the pitch-black sky.

The East Palace and the Purple Sky Hall were brightly lit.

Gu Feng, who had not been seen for over a month, finally came back, and brought back two pieces of bad news -

First, Madam Gu fell ill due to the unbearable heat and is now staying in Qinzhou to recuperate, which may delay her for some time.

Second, King Mu, his wife, and three princes "died of illness" in Luoyang prison.

The summer breeze blew in from the window. Gu Feng, who was dressed in black, clasped his fists and said in a deep voice, "I was negligent in supervising the matter of Prince Mu's Mansion, which affected your highness's plan."

Pei Yan stroked the jade ring on his hand and said calmly, "Uncle Feng, don't blame yourself."

Gu Feng still buried his head, his voice rough, "The King Mu's family died just like that. All the sufferings Your Highness went through in Luoyang were in vain."

Pei Yan stepped forward to help him and said gently, "It's okay."

Gu Feng stood up, his tough face still showing deep guilt.

Pei Yan's dark eyes were cold as he said slowly, "The Zhou family acted quickly, were brave, and were cruel. Although they escaped this time, they still suffered a heavy loss... Those who supported them openly or secretly, seeing King Mu end up like this, couldn't help but feel grief for the loss of the rabbit."

His handsome face curled up into a smile, and he said slowly, "People's hearts are hard to unite and easy to disperse."

Gu Feng was stunned for a moment, then he suddenly understood.

Pei Yan walked over and patted Gu Feng on the shoulder. Just as he was about to ask him to play a game of chess with him, he heard hurried footsteps coming from outside.

Gu Feng's eyes darkened and he swiftly hid behind the screen.

Outside, Fu Xirui's eunuch hat was crooked, and he panted and called out, "Your Highness, it's bad, something has happened!"

Pei Yan frowned, "What's wrong?"

Fu Xirui said, "The Crown Princess and the others have returned to the palace! They are now in Your Majesty's Zichen Palace with Princess Jingyang. The Empress and His Royal Highness the Third Prince are also there! I heard that Princess Jingyang had a stern face all the way to Zichen Palace, and the Qinghe County Lord was crying... I don't know exactly what happened, but judging from the situation, it seems not good."

Pei Yan's eyes narrowed, and he said in a deep voice, "Where's the Crown Princess? Is she okay?"

"The Crown Princess seems to be fine, and has been staying by the Qinghe County Lord's side to comfort him."

Pei Yan had a gloomy face and was about to get up when he heard two night owl calls outside the window.

He pursed his lips and said to Fu Xirui, "Go and prepare the sedan chair first."

Fu Xirui responded and went on with his work.

Gu Feng walked out slowly from behind the screen, went to the window, and opened it.

A dark figure flashed in swiftly, knelt on the ground, and said respectfully, "Your Highness, Master Feng."

Pei Yan's face was as cold as jade, his eyes narrowed, "What's going on?"

The black shadow briefly recounted what happened at Zhuyuan Villa.

Pei Yan's expression lightened up when he heard that Tao Ti was fine.

Gu Feng raised his eyebrows when he heard this. This imperial palace was indeed the dirtiest place in the world. It looked bright and beautiful, but in reality, anything evil could be done there.

"The Crown Princess is quite thoughtful." Gu Feng commented.

"She may be the lucky star of loneliness."

When Pei Yan mentioned Tao Ti, his eyes softened, his thin lips slightly raised, and he smiled playfully, "So what if the matter of Prince Mu's Mansion has been settled? Isn't the Zhou family giving us another handle? My aunt is not someone you can easily mess with."