Hearing the angry rebuke behind her, she smiled contemptuously and then retorted in a loud and powerful voice, "If the general insists on giving in to Lady Liu, he may let Lady Liu manage the household. Chen Yu will return to Cheng Garden now."
After saying that, she turned and walked away. Cuiwei and Jiu'er led the way, while Rong Mama and Cuizhu brought up the rear. They were so imposing that no one dared to stop them.
Bai Yehua lost his composure. With Imperial Physician Wen right beside him, how could he possibly favor his concubine over his wife and let his concubine run the household in front of outsiders?
Even though Liu Yao'er tugged at his sleeve and tried her best to dissuade him, he changed his mind and loudly ordered: "Kill Hua Zheng with a stick immediately!"
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Bai Yehua set off for the expedition. Before leaving, he left Shen Yu with a message: "You must ensure the safety of Yao'er and her child. I will also bring my master back safely."
After offering tea to Madam Bai, Chen Yu hurriedly took Cui Wei to the Peony Garden to examine Liu Yao'er's pulse, as the safety of Liu Yao'er and her child was related to Master Mu's life or death.
Before the two reached the Peony Garden, Rong Mama rushed over to report: "Miss, Liu Xiaoniang has taken two personal maids and left through the back gate, heading towards the east city. Cuizhu and Jiu'er are secretly following them."
Shen Yu was alarmed. On the very first day of her marriage, her concubine had run away. Wouldn't that be embarrassing for her, the first wife?
"Cuiwei, prepare the carriage and go after Liu Xiaoniang."
The Bai family's carriage came to a stop outside the city. Ma Wen stepped forward and reported, "Madam, the road ahead is blocked, and many carriages have stopped."
Chen Yu then got out of the carriage and looked around. There were more than a dozen carriages parked on the road and dozens of people resting in the woods by the roadside.
She walked straight ahead and, as expected, saw Liu Yao'er's sedan chair. She parted the curtain and saw Liu Yao'er with a furious expression, giving her a fierce glare without saying a word.
Judging from the situation, the baby in her womb seemed to be fine. She lifted the curtain and continued walking forward, only to find that the carriage at the very front was actually from the Prince Yan's residence.
Jade, with her rosy cheeks, came over to greet her. After a few days apart, Jade had gained some weight and looked much better. It seemed that Red Jade had treated Jade well.
"Miss Chenyu, Consort Yu's carriage wheel is broken and is being repaired. Would you like to come into the sedan chair and have a word with Consort Yu?"
She instantly beamed with joy and nodded repeatedly. Hongyu then parted the curtain and peeked out, saying, "To think I'd run into Sister Yu here! Please come in and sit down."
The two had not seen each other for six or seven days. Holding hands, they hurriedly greeted each other: "Sister Yu, you must have had a hard time. You must not have slept a wink last night."
Shen Yu nodded, took out a sachet and put it into Hong Yu's sleeve, and said in a deep voice, "This is a sachet that I obtained at Putuo Temple the day before yesterday. It can ward off evil spirits and be carried with you. Last night, thanks to Hong Yu's help, I led a group to the gate of a fragrant garden to watch. Bai Yehua was afraid of losing face, so he did not dare to let Liu Yao'er enter through the main gate."
Hongyu covered her face and laughed, then her face darkened. These days, the Emperor saw her every day, and although he hadn't overstepped his bounds, Prince Yan no longer spoke to her and even avoided meeting her. So be it. With the Emperor's favor, all the royal relatives and nobles in the capital fawned over her, and last night they even joined her in watching Bai Yehua make a fool of himself.
She had intended to get up at noon, as the Emperor had sent word that he would come to her residence to play chess. However, Liu Yu sent a secret letter instructing her to intercept Liu Yao'er's carriage. She had no choice but to ask the Emperor to accompany her to the Zuo family to admire the flowers.
She held Chen Yu's hand tightly, wanting to understand Liu Yu's intentions, but... Liu Yu repeatedly told her not to let it slip, so she had to swallow her words and change her words, saying, "Sister Yu, Hongyu got a pair of hairpins, and I'll give one of these to you."
After saying that, she took out a gold hairpin.
Shen Yu was stunned. The hairpin in front of her was a rare treasure - the iridescent glass auspicious cloud gold hairpin, which was said to have been left by the Empress Dowager. There was only one pair in the world.
Could it be that the Emperor bestowed this treasure upon Hongyu? This greatly worried Shenyu, who hurriedly asked Hongyu, "What is the Emperor's relationship with you? What will happen to Prince Yan?"
Hongyu lowered her eyes and smiled bitterly, revealing her helplessness and sorrow. She inserted the gold hairpin into Chenyu's hair and said urgently, "Sister Yu, please take Liu Yao'er back quickly. If my carriage is not repaired soon, the queue will stretch all the way to the west of the city."
As Shen Yu nodded, another question arose in her mind: How did Hong Yu know that she was going to intercept Liu Yao'er?
Before she could ask, Cuizhu rushed over to report, "Miss, Miss Liu got out of the sedan chair and is walking towards the Zuo family. Our people are following her, but they dare not pull her away."
Shen Yu hurriedly jumped off the carriage and chased after Liu Yao'er with all her might. However, she was filled with anxiety. Liu Yao'er's pregnancy was already unstable and she had been bleeding. If she continued to cause trouble, she was afraid that the baby in her womb would be in danger. She was even more afraid that Bai Yehua would resent her because of this, which would be bad for her father!
She chased after them, blocking Liu Yao'er and her two maids. Cuiwei and Cuizhu followed, completely blocking their path.
"The general ordered you to rest and recuperate in the Peony Garden, yet you went out on your own?"
After saying that, she angrily pointed at the two maids beside Liu Xiaoniang and scolded them, "You two knew about this but didn't report it, and even followed Liu Xiaoniang to escape. Why don't you help Liu Xiaoniang back right now!"
"Today is Madam Zuo's birthday. What's wrong with me going back to see my mother?"
As she spoke, Liu Yao'er was arrogant and contemptuous, clearly not taking Chen Yu seriously.
In fact, Liu Yao'er was originally Madam Zuo's biological daughter. However, because Madam Zuo remarried into the Zuo family, she asked Liu Yao'er to conceal her true identity and recognize Master Zuo as her godfather so that the mother and daughter could visit each other often.
Today, Liu Yao'er's real purpose in returning to the Zuo family is... to discuss with Madam Zuo how to deal with Chen Yu.
Shen Yu would never let Liu Yao'er return to the Zuo family. As the eldest daughter-in-law of the Bai family, how could she establish her authority in the Bai family if she couldn't even control a concubine?
At this moment, Hongyu came over and took her arm, pretending to comfort her, "Sister Yu, the Emperor invited me to the Zuo family to admire the flowers today. I'll bring Liu Xiaoniang along so we can look after each other on the way. Can you rest assured, Sister Yu?"
Upon hearing this, Liu Yao'er became timid.
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