At first, there were at least two letters sent back from Huaizhou every month. However, after the twelfth lunar month, no letter came at all. Although Jiang Rao wanted to know what happened over there, she had no way to find out and felt a little uneasy.
Around the twelfth lunar month, there was a lot of snow in Jinling. It snowed for more than ten days in a row. The snow was thick and the roads were difficult to travel. Emperor Zhaowu allocated ten days of rest for his court officials. He took his concubines and some trusted court officials to live in a palace very close to the hunting grounds for a while and go hunting to relieve boredom.
Although Emperor Zhaowu treated Concubine Yun indifferently during the past six months, his allowance for her treatment remained the same as before, except that he no longer visited Concubine Yun. Concubine Yun felt that she had received all the things she deserved, as if she had nothing to do but not have to serve the Emperor. She would almost wake up laughing in her dreams. Emperor Zhaowu was going to go winter hunting, and she would usually follow him, but this year she was too lazy to go. Unfortunately, Empress Jiahe wanted to show off Emperor Zhaowu's favor to her in front of her, and wrote Qin Yun's name in the list of accompanying concubines.
Concubine Yun was annoyed by Empress Jiahe's short-sightedness. Seeing that Jiang Rao was depressed, she took her with her to the palace to relax together.
As soon as Jiang Rao got off the carriage, she saw Hu Tang waving at her in front of the palace gate.
Hu Tang, dressed in red, ran to Jiang Rao in a few steps, smiling happily, "I heard that you would come, I'm so happy."
Madam Hu and Emperor Zhaowu were distant cousins, and Hu Tang could call Emperor Zhaowu "uncle". General Hu was stationed at the frontier and had no children. Emperor Zhaowu wanted to compensate him a little, and he also kept General Hu's daughter in Nanjing, so that General Hu would not dare to rebel, and he treated Hu Li and Hu Tang very well. Even though court officials often complained to him that General Ben Hu's daughter was willful and lacked discipline, he turned a blind eye and would instead bring Hu Tang along during winter hunts to let her satisfy her desire to fight and kill.
Jiang Rao was not surprised to see Hu Tang.
Hu Tang carried a bow on his back and held an arrow in his hand. He said with a hearty smile: "I will go out hunting in the next few days. Wait, I will bring you a little rabbit."
Jiang Rao was stunned for a moment.
Hu Tang had been with her for so many days that he knew Jiang Rao's personality. He realized that she couldn't stand the bloody scenes of fighting and killing. He blamed himself for a moment, put the arrow back into the quiver, and sighed, "Ah, I was wrong. I'm a little tired of hunting."
She skipped over to Jiang Rao,? ? "You have never been to this palace before, right? It is very spacious. Merlin and the mountain at the back are both very interesting. I will take you for a tour."
Jiang Rao knew that she was taking care of her. She smiled softly, then remembered something. She took Hu Tang's hand and asked, "Have you heard any news about Huaizhou from your father?"
General Hu's troops are stationed in the north and Huaizhou is in the south. Jiang Rao knew this but still asked this question. She was really desperate.
Hu Tang shook his head, looked at Jiang Rao's annoyed expression, and asked her, "Are you worried about His Highness the Ninth Prince?"
Jiang Rao sighed gloomily, "I ask almost everyone I meet."
But everyone is like Hu Tang, knowing nothing about the news.
The reason Rong Ting asked her to stay in Jinling was because he was afraid that three people would make a tiger, but in the past few months, she had stayed in Jinling with a worried look on her face and had not been able to help at all.
Her father told her that there were indeed people in the court who spoke ill of Emperor Zhaowu from time to time, but Lord Liao from the Ministry of Works suppressed the rumors firmly, and his methods were certainly more diverse and flexible than those of a girl in the harem.
She felt useless.
Jiang Rao and Hu Tang walked into the palace together. As they passed through the corridor and looked at the unfamiliar scenery, Jiang Rao's gloomy eyes brightened a little.
Maybe I can get some information here.
No matter what was happening on the side of Emperor Zhaowu or Empress Jiahe, it was easier to get information in this temporary palace than in the strictly ordered imperial palace.
Hu Tang looked at Jiang Rao worriedly and said to her: "If I hear anything, I will definitely tell you..."
Concubine Yun arrived a day earlier than Jiang Rao. Although Jiang Rao and Hu Tang both lived on the east side of the palace, their courtyards were a hundred steps apart, in two different directions, and they parted at a crossroads. Jiang Rao was led by a palace maid to Concubine Yun.
Before arriving at Concubine Yun's place, Jiang Rao brought her maids here and asked where Empress Jiahe and Emperor Zhaowu lived.
Empress Jiahe's residence was next to Emperor Zhaowu's, but her aunt's residence was a little remote.
The difference between being favored and losing favor can be clearly reflected in the smallest things.
Jiang Rao could feel the oppressive feeling her aunt was living in the palace. Once she fell out of favor, the things she had obtained before became like floating clouds, which she could no longer grasp.
Her aunt always loves to compete with others in everything. Today, she is assigned to such a remote courtyard and may not be able to swallow this humiliation.
Jiang Rao was afraid that Concubine Yun would be upset, so she thought of ways to make her laugh along the way. When she was brought to Concubine Yun by a palace maid, she saw a beautiful woman with a smile on her face, holding a small piece of clothing and catching a cat.
Concubine Yun was trying to dress Shi Liu in a brightly colored dress.
seem
I'm in a good mood.
Jiang Rao finally felt at ease.
Concubine Yun dressed Shi Liu and saw Jiang Rao coming. She carried Shi Liu over and said, "Look, this is what I made for Shi Liu myself. I will make one for you in the future."
Jiang Rao looked at the small dress that Shi Liu was wearing, which was as clumsy as the stitches she used when embroidering things. Her expression showed the same resistance as Shi Liu's. She took a step back and weakly called out "Auntie".
Concubine Yun laughed and said, "I won't scare you anymore."
She sat next to Jiang Rao and said, "I noticed that you have been unhappy for the past few months, so I asked you to come here. Don't think about Huaizhou anymore. When it's time to come back, His Highness the Ninth Prince will come back naturally. There's no point in you being anxious."
Jiang Rao understood this truth in her heart.
But just figuring it out doesn’t mean you can be worry-free. This was the first time she had experienced the feeling of worrying about someone like this.
She lowered her head and said, "There has been no news from Huaizhou for more than a month."
Last month she collected a lot of medical books related to epidemics from Jinling and sent them to Huaizhou. She didn't receive a reply and she didn't know whether the books had arrived.
"I see that the emperor doesn't look worried, so nothing must have happened. Don't panic if you can't receive the letter, maybe it was lost on the way."
Jiang Rao was dejected, and Concubine Yun rubbed her head, "Don't just worry about Huaizhou, you should also worry about yourself."
Her face turned a little colder. "You keep an eye on the Queen. I went to her place to serve tea today. She seemed to want to know whether you came or not. Although I didn't let her know, this is not something that can be hidden after all. Your engagement with the Ninth Prince is hindering her path. I have fought with her for so many years and I know her personality very well. She looks generous but is actually very stingy. If she is not happy, she will endure it for a few years and will get it back in the end. I'm afraid she is thinking of ways to harm you."
…
Empress Jiahe was staying with the seventeenth prince.
The seventeenth prince was beside Empress Jiahe, watching her write a letter, and said impatiently, "Mother, it's been four months, why don't you ask General Xi to do it?"
"Some things need to be done without anyone noticing."
Empress Jiahe frowned.
If Rong Ting had died easily on the battlefield, Emperor Zhaowu might have conferred a posthumous title on him. However, thinking about the humiliation Rong Ting had caused her, she simply could not tolerate such a result. Even if Rong Ting died, she would find a way to make him die with the crime of treason, making him a sinner who would be infamous for all eternity.
She finished writing the letter and gave it to her confidant
take away.
The anxious look on the Seventeenth Prince's face did not diminish.
"This month is a little strange. General Xi's letter has not arrived yet. I am a little worried."
"Don't encourage others to be more ambitious and destroy your own prestige." Empress Jiahe glanced at him and said, "I underestimated the enemy last time. General Xi joined the army at the age of 12 and has fought on the battlefield for more than ten years. How could he be defeated by a disabled boy? Just rest assured."
The seventeenth prince pursed his lips, and Queen Jiahe called him to her, "You should think about how to get along with your father. What did you do with your father this morning? Tell your mother."
"I played a few games of chess with my father."
"Your father is in a good mood today. It doesn't matter if you win a few more games against him. It will also let him see your skills. But you must let him win the last game. Don't ruin his mood."
"That's what I do."
"My father seems to be particularly kind to me these days." The seventeenth prince took out a red jade snuff bottle from his sleeve, "Mother, this is a gift from my father."
Empress Jiahe took the small snuff bottle. The things used by Emperor Zhaowu were naturally very expensive, but she was not an unworldly person. She knew that everything in the Jinxiu Palace was valuable. She just saw the meaning behind the object and smiled with her eyes curved.
Today, Emperor Zhaowu awarded the Seventeenth Prince with a snuff bottle, as if letting her see the day when Emperor Zhaowu would pass the throne to the Seventeenth Prince in the future.
Previously, she was jealous of Qin Yun's favor and disdained his spoiled nature. Now that the tide has turned to her, she has become even more arrogant. She grabbed the red jade snuff bottle in her hand, raised her chin, and said to the Seventeenth Prince proudly and confidently: "Don't cause any trouble in front of your father. He will definitely give you more rewards in the future."
The seventeenth prince listened to the pleasant voice of Queen Jiahe and said to her, "Mother, I went outside the palace this morning."
Empress Jiahe frowned and was about to ask why he went there when she heard the Seventeenth Prince say, "I saw the carriage of the Ning'an Marquis's Mansion."
Empress Jiahe's eyes lit up and she sneered, "I guessed she would come. Qin Yun is out of favor now and has no children. Isn't she counting on her little niece to entertain her?"
She smiled, her expression suddenly turned cold, "Now that she is here, there is no need to ask Mr. Bai to hang around outside her shop every day. Send someone to find Mr. Bai."
The seventeenth prince was undecided and asked, "Can it really be accomplished?"
Empress Jiahe said slowly, "Mr. Bai has a pair of beautiful eyes."
Empress Jiahe could not understand why a legitimate daughter of an old man from an old man's family would fall for Rong Ting, a cripple, as she could easily marry any good man.
After thinking it over, the only explanation was that she fell in love with Rong Ting's face, just like Emperor Zhaowu fell in love with his biological mother at first sight.
Since she is a color lover, Rong Ting is not the only good-looking person in the world.
Bai Yushu was well-known for his handsomeness. Although in her opinion, his looks were still inferior to Rong Ting's, he was in good health, which was much better than a disabled person who could not walk. What's more, his eyes are charming and tender when he looks at people. As long as Jiang Rao is a lustful person, she will definitely not be able to resist the tenderness in his eyes.
For a young girl, if she happens to meet such a handsome man a few times, she might start to feel that this is true fate.
Queen Jiahe smiled leisurely.
Once she puts out the bait, and Jiang Rao takes the bait, she will definitely publicize her unchaste deeds and make her be cursed by others, so as to avenge her for stopping her from doing good things and making her suffer.
…
During the few days that Jiang Rao stayed in the palace, Hu Tang often came to see her. She knew that Jiang Rao did not like scenes of killing, so she never talked about hunting scenes in front of her. Instead, when she saw the small clothes that Concubine Yun gave to Shi Liu and the clumsy stitches, she inexplicably developed blind confidence in her own embroidery skills.
Hu Tang often came to Jiang Rao with needle and thread to help her embroider things.
Hu Tang didn't come the whole day. When dusk fell, Jiang Rao was about to find someone to look for her, but Hu Tang came in, covered in snow, shivering and with her teeth chattering.
Jiang Rao hurriedly went to the stove to get fire.
Hu Tang's frozen body softened a little, but he was still shivering. He said to Jiang Rao, "Guess what I heard when I was sleeping on the tree in Meilin just now?"
The Plum Grove in the palace is a place where both male and female members of the family can go. Jiang Rao wanted to know the news about Huaizhou from others. Bai Li often went there, but today, because he failed to wait for Hu Tang and stayed in the yard waiting for her, he did not go there.
She shook her head and said she couldn't guess.
Hu Tang asked her, "Have you heard of the name Bai Yushu? He is a famous handsome man in the capital."
"I just climbed up the tree to avoid my mother's attempt to catch me and take me home. I wanted to get down quickly when no one was around, but who would have thought that he would suddenly stand under the plum tree for two or three hours, causing me to freeze on the tree for another afternoon. This man is really amazing. His posture of looking up at the plum blossoms has not changed much. I was so scared that I thought he was looking at me."
Hu Tang hugged her arms, but couldn't warm up for a while. Her face was red from the cold. Jiang Rao handed her a cup of hot tea and said, "Maybe you are just a plum blossom lover, and you are just appreciating plum blossoms in the snow."
Hu Tang immediately turned his gaze towards Jiang Rao, "What's important is not that he was admiring the plum blossoms, but that I heard him muttering your name under the tree."
Jiang Rao was slightly stunned, Hu Tang said again:? ? "He asked the servant to go and see if you had come. It was obvious that he was waiting for you under the Merlin tree."
"Wait for me?" Jiang Rao felt a little strange, "I don't know him at all."
Hu Tang put down his tea, leaned close to Jiang Rao's ear, and whispered, "I overheard his conversation with his servant. He was sent by the Queen to seduce you and have sex with you."
Jiang Rao was completely stunned.
"real?"
"Of course it's true."
Jiang Rao laughed in anger, "Who do you think I am?"
She doesn't follow the rules very much, but she won't do anything shady either.
"Who said it wasn't? It's a despicable move." Hu Tang warmed up his body, walked to Jiang Rao and held her arm, "But I'm curious about how good-looking Bai Yushu is, so he has the reputation of being a handsome man. I only saw the top of his head in the tree, but the hairpin is more complicated and beautiful than the one I use."
"Go and take a look?" Hu Tang whispered in her ear.
Jiang Rao had nothing to do, so she thought about it and decided that she couldn't let Bai Yushu always be waiting there expectantly.
She is upright and has nothing to fear from others, and is not afraid of what others may say.
But when the flies fly right in front of my eyes, I always have to wave my hands to swat them away, otherwise they will fly around in circles, which is really annoying.
"Let's go and take a look." Jiang Rao said.
But as she walked out, she suddenly had another idea in her mind.
"When does he stay in the Plum Garden?" She stopped and asked Hu Tang beside her.
"From his impatient and irritable tone, it seemed that he was there all the time except at mealtime."
"Then just go into Merlin at mealtime. There is an attic in Merlin. Wait inside first. Then you can watch him from afar without having to deal with him face to face."
Hu Tang nodded. "It's almost time for lunch. Do you want to ask a maid to go to the plum garden and take a look?"
But Jiang Rao did not order anyone to leave.
Hu Tang is impatient. Once she has decided on something, she wants to do it. Otherwise, she will be anxious as if there is an itch in her heart that she can't scratch. She pulled Jiang Rao's hand and said, "Don't you want to go over and take a look?"
"Don't think I'm talking nonsense. Bai Yushu has really been under the Merlin tree, waiting for you to show up." She pursed her lips, afraid that Jiang Rao would not believe her.
"Of course I believe you, I just thought of something fun." Jiang Rao winked at Hu Tang, "Don't go today, I'll find someone to keep an eye on him first, to see if he plans to do anything else besides waiting for me in Merlin."
Knowing what she knew about the ruthlessness of Empress Jiahe, she shouldn't have just asked this guy named Bai Yushu to simply wait under the plum tree for her to appear.
She had to find out first.
It's a good time to hang Bai Yu's books out for a few days.
Since he wanted to seduce her to have an affair, he might as well freeze to death under the tree first...
After sending a maid to investigate for a few days and seeing that Bai Yushu did not do anything unusual except waiting under the plum tree, Jiang Rao boldly took Hu Tang with her and waited in the pavilion in the Plum Garden early. She asked people to guard the pavilion. Once they entered the pavilion, they were not allowed to let anyone else in. She held the sleeve stove in her hand and stood by the window on the top floor, glancing outside from time to time.
When Hu Tang saw the figure appearing in the snow, his eyes lit up, "Is this Bai Yushu?"
She stared at the figure for a long time and said with emotion: "No wonder people always tell everyone that the young master of the Bai family is good-looking. He is indeed good-looking."
Jiang Rao glanced at it casually, then looked away, not showing much interest. "I don't think it's that good-looking."
Hu Tang raised his eyes and glanced at her. "Don't compare him with His Highness the Ninth Prince. Compare him with the servant behind him. Do you think he is better looking immediately?"
"His servant..." Jiang Rao glanced down a little more after hearing this, but unlike what Hu Tang said, she did not think Bai Yushu was good-looking. Instead, she felt strange and said to Hu Tang, "Tang'er, don't you think that his servant is too ugly?"
When wealthy families choose maids and servants, most of them prefer those with good looks so that they will not lose face for their masters when they take them out.
And the servant boy beside Bai Yushu...even if she had no ill will and her eyes were not disparaging at all, she could only say that the servant boy's appearance was not even ordinary.
Not only is he ugly, but he's also a bit short.
His master is made to look extremely handsome.
Jiang Rao frowned.
If she couldn't notice this change, it would be better. After she noticed it, looking at Bai Yushu's movement of looking up at the plum tree and the thin clothes that just showed off his slender figure, she would feel that everything was deliberate.
Jiang Rao muttered, "I've heard that Lord Bai's son is in poor health and even the best doctors have difficulty treating him. Seeing how thinly he is dressed in the snow, I feel sympathy for those doctors."
Hu Tang looked at her with questioning eyes. Jiang Rao said, "No matter how good your medical skills are, you can't cure a disobedient patient."
Jiang Rao waved her hand and called Ming Shao in, and gave her a few instructions.
Hu Tang was listening at the side, and suddenly had a new understanding of Jiang Rao.
I always feel that she looks delicate and weak, but why does she sometimes have such dark thoughts?
…
In the middle of winter, Bai Yushu, wearing plain white clothes, stood under a plum tree, holding a fan and waiting. He looked up at the plum blossoms, which were so elegant and beautiful that they looked like a painting, as if he would ascend to heaven in the next second.
But he had been waiting in the corridor for so long that his body was frozen, and Jiang Rao had not come out once, so he couldn't help feeling a little impatient.
Just when he was about to ask the servant beside him whether the news from the Queen was true or false, he heard a voice calling from behind.
"This young master."
Bai Yushu looked back and was overjoyed to see the person coming.
Although he had never met Jiang Rao, he knew what the maidservants beside her looked like. Seeing Ming Shao was like seeing Jiang Rao. He smiled slightly and asked knowingly, "Who are you?"
"The maidservant beside the fourth young lady in the Ning'an Marquis's mansion." Ming Shao glanced at the ugly servant following behind Bai Yushu. Thinking about what Jiang Rao had told her, she couldn't help but feel disgusted with Bai Yushu. She said, "The young lady asked me to come over to ask you something."
Bai Yushu knew that his efforts in freezing these days had not been in vain. He fanned himself with joy, smiled faintly and nodded repeatedly, as if he knew everything. "What do you want to ask? Just ask it."
His tone was gentle.
Ming Shao coughed, as if she was a little reluctant, but she said what Jiang Rao had taught her, "The young lady asked me to ask, which shop does the powder you use come from?"
Bai Yushu paused, as if he didn't hear clearly, "What?"
"The young lady asked me to ask you, sir, which shop does the powder you use come from?" Ming Shao saw that he was hard of hearing, so she simply raised her voice, "Sir, can you please tell us?"
Bai Yushu's face changed.
"Just... just want to know what powder I used?"
Others in the Plum Garden looked over here. Bai Yushu suddenly realized something and became anxious. "No, I'm not wearing any makeup. I was born like this."
He has always been proud of his appearance, and he only touches up a little before going out. How can that be considered putting on powder?
This maidservant is also problematic. Just ask, why is she so loud? If others could see through him, wouldn't they laugh at him for being unmanly?
Ming Shao snorted, "If you don't want to tell me, then don't tell me. Girls like us can tell at a glance whether you put on makeup or not."
Bai Yushu's face turned red with embarrassment. "I've been standing here for four whole days, and your daughter only saw the powder on my face?"
He was shivering with cold and looked a little pitiful, which confirmed what he said about standing here for three or four days.
"Ah, girl, it's rare to see someone standing in the snow for three or four days in such cold weather and wearing so little."
Bai Yushu breathed a sigh of relief, waved his fan, and became graceful again.
"If you have a good mind, either dress warmly or stay indoors."
Bai Yushu was going crazy, "I'm not crazy!"
“Tsk.”
Ming Shao followed Jiang Rao's instructions step by step, and finally confessed, "My girl knows who sent you here. Mr. Bai, please focus on the right things and don't bother me again. Otherwise, I will beat you up every time I see you."
Bai Yushu knew that the Queen had no chance of letting him come. He had thought that Jiang Rao was beautiful, and the Queen arranged for him to do such a thing, so he would not suffer any loss. He did not expect that not only could he not even see her, but a maid was sent out to ridicule him. He secretly hated Jiang Rao for being difficult to approach. He was already furious, but his face still looked pitiful. He bit his lip, "I... Although I was coerced, everything I did was from the heart."
How should she deal with this? Jiang Rao had never taught Ming Shao how to do it, so she simply turned around and ran away. Bai Yushuo was not giving up. He looked at the direction Ming Shao ran back and knew where Jiang Rao was. He raised his face and looked up with resentment and melancholy.
He raised his head hoping that Jiang Rao would look at him.
He knew how popular his face was, and when he went to brothels, he was the most sought-after customer among the girls there.
When she sees the look of his face, perhaps she will have other ideas.
Jiang Rao was paying attention to the movements below, and naturally saw Bai Yushu looking up at her.
She frowned in disgust and closed the window.
After closing the window, I shivered with a chill.
"I really don't want to see this person again."
Jiang Rao had a look of annoyance on her face as she complained to Hu Tang in a low voice.
The image of Bai Yushu folding his arms and looking pitiful just now kept flashing in her mind, and she shook her head in disgust.
Suddenly stopped.
She seemed to have seen this kind of pitiful and weak demeanor in someone before...
I have seen it not just once or twice, but it seems very familiar to me.
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