Yang Hua is now three months pregnant and should be resting at home, but Consort Kong has given her other instructions, so she has no choice but to come.
She picked up a bowl of black chicken soup, supporting the bottom of the bowl with one hand and holding a spoon in the other, scooping up a spoonful of soup and putting it in her mouth. Suddenly, her left hand wobbled, "Ah!" The entire bowl of chicken soup spilled onto Hongyu's long dress.
"Sister Hongyu, get up quickly, are you alright? You're not burned."
"It's alright, I'll go change my clothes," Hongyu said, getting up and leaving.
She arrived at the dressing room, and just as she was about to push the door open, she stopped. Remembering how Yang Hua had urged her to drink tea, she became wary and refused to touch a drop. She figured that Yang Hua, realizing his plan wasn't working, had deliberately soiled her clothes.
Remembering that Shen Yu had almost been violated by a lecherous thief in the Zuo family's dressing room, she became very wary and turned to look around, only to find it completely silent.
She pushed open the dressing room door and peeked inside. The room was luxuriously furnished. Although there was a clothes rack by the door, the surrounding area was filled with exquisitely carved tables and chairs, clearly indicating that it was a high-class guest room.
She stepped out of the front door and pushed open the door to the side. There was a clothes rack by the door, and no fancy tables or chairs around. It seemed that this was the real dressing room.
Looking up, she saw a wooden sign for guest rooms hanging on the door. She cautiously stepped inside, when suddenly someone darted out from behind the door.
"ah!"
"Sister Hongyu, don't be afraid."
Hongyu looked closely and saw that it was Wang Baozhu.
Wang Baozhu pulled Hongyu aside and whispered, "The guards stopped me and told me to wait for my sister in this guest room, but this guest room is clearly a dressing room. I heard someone come in, so I hid behind the door."
Hongyu nodded, realizing that this was a trap set by Yang Hua. If she wasn't mistaken, the Ancient Locust King would come to rest soon.
Why not use this trap to save herself, thus conveniently fulfilling Wang Baozhu's wish? Hearing footsteps outside, she hurriedly instructed Wang Baozhu to wait for Gu Huai Wang in the adjacent dressing room. She quietly closed the door and peeked through the crack.
Two maids passed by, their footsteps stopping in the dressing room next door, and then there was no more sound.
About half an hour later, a man's loud laughter rang out in the courtyard, "I am not drunk, I do not need to rest."
“King of the Ancient Locust Tree, slow down. My master wants you to rest for a while. He will take you to the entertainment district later, and then we will go to the night market after dark.”
"Alright, alright, remember to invite Hongyu too."
As the footsteps grew closer, Hongyu instinctively pressed down hard against the door, fearing that the Ancient Locust King would come in.
Bang……
Bang!
The door next to them opened twice, followed by the butler's voice, "You four stand guard at the door and switch them over. How can the Ancient Locust King take a nap in the dressing room?"
"yes."
Hongyu breathed a sigh of relief, lifted her oil-stained long skirt, and sat down on the ground.
A moment later, footsteps sounded outside again, and Hongyu quickly stood up and hid behind the door.
"Young master... you are drunk. This servant will help you back to your room to rest."
"No, what about Hongyu?"
When Songhua saw that the maid refused to answer, he burst open the door to the dressing room. Because he was drunk, he was unsteady on his feet and fell to the ground.
Two maids rushed in and helped him up. "Quickly take the young master back to Donghua Pavilion. Princess Yanghua will be here soon. If she sees Young Master Songhua here, she will definitely punish us."
"Wait, where did that maid in the orange dress go?"
"Let me go! Where is Hongyu? Tell me!"
Hearing Songhua's shouts, Hongyu came out from behind the door and blocked the entrance. "Brother Songhua, Hongyu is alright."
Song Hua squinted at her, broke free from the two maids' support, and rushed over to hug Hong Yu. At the same time, she choked out, "Hong Yu, just now I saw King Gu Huai leave drunk, and I was afraid... afraid he would hurt you... so I followed him."
"Hongyu heard the voice of the Ancient Locust King, so she hid in her room and dared not go out. Fortunately, Brother Songhua was thinking of Hongyu." As Hongyu spoke, she wrapped her arms around Songhua's waist and snuggled into his embrace, not forgetting to playfully complain to him:
“Brother Songhua, Hongyu went to the orphanage yesterday but couldn’t find you. Why are you going there with Miss Qianqiu today?”
Just then, a man's howling came from next door, and a woman's moans could be faintly heard.
The two locked eyes, their cheeks instantly turning bright red with embarrassment.
Fortunately, there was a sound in the courtyard. Consort Kong hurriedly went over, then retreated back to the dressing room and stood frozen at the door.
Seeing Songhua with tears in his eyes, tightly embracing a woman, Consort Kong couldn't help but shake her head and ask in a trembling voice, "Brother Songhua has fallen in love with a maid?"
"A maid?" Yang Hua asked in surprise, walking over and pulling Hongyu away. Upon seeing that it was Hongyu, he exclaimed in astonishment, "What are you doing here?"
Yang Hua was puzzled and frightened. He tried to break open the door to the guest room, but when he heard the ancient locust king's cries becoming more and more ferocious, he was so frightened that he retreated behind Consort Kong.
Consort Kong glared at Hongyu, "Speak! Who is the woman in the room?"
Hongyu lowered her head, glancing out of the corner of her eye. Behind Consort Kong stood people from the Prince of Xiang's residence, the Kong family, and the Mu family. They'd already finished lunch, and the Prince of Xiang had invited people from these three powerful families—wasn't it just to confirm the marital relationship between her and Prince Guhuai?
She shook her head repeatedly, feigning panic, and was about to reply when Songhua shielded her behind her.
Song Hua swayed unsteadily, already drunk. It's said that alcohol emboldens, and that's certainly true. He glared at Consort Kong and said in a dramatic, measured tone:
"Why did Her Highness come to the Prince of Xiang's residence at this particular time? Why did she mistake Hongyu for a maid? Hongyu was just in the dressing room to change clothes; it's perfectly normal for her to be here. Why are you so surprised, sister? Also, who is the woman in the guest room?"
Snap!
The Prince of Xiang rushed over and slapped Song Hua across the face, shouting angrily, "You scoundrel! How dare you talk back to the Imperial Concubine! Get out of here! Guards, the young master is drunk. Help him back to his room to rest."
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