Chapter 25
The person who came to the palace was Eunuch Feng from Fengyi Palace. Eunuch Feng, on the orders of the Queen, delivered Mid-Autumn Festival rewards to the Nan'an Marquis' Mansion.
The Queen was no different from any other relatives, whether visible or not. Once the imperial edict arrived, both Lu Wancheng and Liang Shi's Lu Qiaosong had to receive it despite being ill.
After not seeing Liang for many days, Lin Qingyu thought she seemed to have aged ten years, and her makeup could not hide her sickly and haggard appearance. Lu Qiaosong's eyes were sunken and his steps were unsteady. It was obvious at a glance that his foundation had been drained. Compared to the two of them, Lu Wancheng had been ill for a longer time, but he still maintained his composure. This is all thanks to the medicine Lin Qingyu prescribed for him, and it is also closely related to his good mentality.
As the only person in the Nan'an Marquis's Mansion who is related to the Queen by blood, Lu Wancheng's reward is undoubtedly the most valuable. In addition to jewelry, jade, tonic medicines, there were also two fox furs from the North, dozens of pieces of silk from the South, and several boxes of imperial snacks, which were said to be rewards for the young marquis and his wife. In comparison, the rewards given by others were obviously just for show.
After everyone received their rewards and expressed their gratitude, Eunuch Feng said, "The Queen has been thinking about the young Marquis for a long time, and specifically asked me to ask about the young Marquis's health - how is the young Marquis these days?"
Lu Wancheng smiled and said, "Thank you for your concern, everything is fine."
Eunuch Feng turned his gaze to Lin Qingyu: "This must be Young Master Lin. Speaking of which, the marriage between the young marquis and Young Master was decided by the queen, but the queen has not yet met Young Master Lin."
Lu Wancheng heard the hidden meaning of Eunuch Feng's words and the smile on his face faded slightly. Marquis Nan'an also understood what Eunuch Feng meant and winked at Liang. Liang had been in a trance ever since she fell ill. At this moment, she was in a daze with a bewildered look on her face. Nan'an Marquis had no choice but to speak up himself: "After the festival, I will order you to go to the palace to pay respects to the Queen. At that time, I will let my wife and her family go to the palace to express gratitude."
Eunuch Feng nodded with satisfaction: "That's great. Then I won't disturb the reunion of the Marquis and his family."
Nan'an Marquis said politely, "Go slowly, eunuch."
Everyone returned to the yard with their rewards. Lin Qingyu asked Hua Lu to pack up her things. It was the first time Hua Lu had seen tribute silk. She couldn't let it go as soon as she held it in her hand: "I've never seen such light material. It must be very cool to wear in summer. Tomorrow I will go to the tailor in the mansion and ask them to use this material to make new clothes for the young master."
Lu Wancheng said: "Just give it to Shaojun, I won't need it."
"Hey, why—"
Huantong hit Hualu with the back of her hand. Hualu realized something and shut her mouth awkwardly.
Lin Qingyu said: "You all should withdraw."
After being interrupted by Eunuch Feng, neither of them had any interest in continuing to appreciate the moon. Lu Wancheng is usually talkative and always smiling. Once he calms down, even if he doesn't say a word, people can tell that he is a little upset at the moment.
Lin Qingyu didn't know what was bothering him, he himself was quite annoyed. Although he regarded Lu Wancheng as a confidant, it did not mean that he could forgive this marriage. He did not forget that it was the Queen who facilitated his marriage with Lu Wancheng. Because of this, he would probably never have a good impression of the Queen, even if she genuinely cared about Lu Wancheng.
After a long silence, Lu Wancheng said, "Qingyu, I...I don't want you to enter the palace."
Lin Qingyu was puzzled: "Why?"
Lu Wancheng murmured in a low voice: "I just don't want to."
Lin Qingyu frowned: "I don't want to go to the palace to see the queen. But as long as I pass the imperial medical examination, I will enter the palace sooner or later."
Lu Wancheng seemed to be enlightened and said hesitantly, "Then can you not join the Imperial Medical Bureau?"
Lin Qingyu was silent for a while, and said in a slightly cold tone: "Are you serious?"
If this was what Lu Wancheng really meant, then their acquaintance would have been in vain.
Lu Wancheng smiled bitterly and said, "Just pretend I didn't say anything."
At the other end of the mansion, Marquis Nan'an severely reprimanded Liang in front of the servants. Lu Niantao stood guard at the door, waiting for Marquis Nan'an to come out of the room, and thought about saying a few good words for Liang. Nan'an Marquis said coldly: "You'd better persuade your mother to behave like a marquis' wife. Otherwise... humph."
Lu Niantao's heart sank suddenly.
It is understandable that Marquis Nan'an is so dissatisfied. As a father, he was naturally heartbroken when his sons met with accidents one after another. But life must go on, and the glory of the Lu family still depends on him. Liang was his legal wife and had an imperial decree. He could leave the household affairs to his concubines and daughter-in-law, but outside, he still needed Liang to support him.
Lu Niantao knew this truth. She tried her best to persuade Liang to cheer up, but Liang was discouraged: "I only have Qiao Song as a son. Now that he is childless, what else can I expect?"
"But isn't that also the case with my eldest brother? No matter if those concubines give birth to children in the future, or if father adopts children from the royal family, you are still the legitimate mother. How can there be no hope?"
Liang said sadly, "What's the use of a legitimate mother! Haven't I been good enough to Lu Wancheng over the years? He still turned against me!"
Lu Niantao said anxiously: "Then you still have a daughter like me!"
"My daughter..." Liang smiled bitterly, "She will get married sooner or later, so I can't rely on her."
"That depends on who she marries." Lu Niantao's eyes flashed with some calculations, "Have you ever heard of these two lines of poetry: 'Sisters and brothers are all in high positions, but it is a pity that the family is honored. Therefore, parents all over the world would rather have a daughter than a son.' If a daughter marries well, it will bring honor to the family - you see, isn't the current queen an example?"
Liang was stunned with tears in her eyes. The Queen... She has always dared not speak out against the Queen. The queen's sister was the original wife of the Marquis of Nan'an, so naturally he didn't pay much attention to her as his second wife, and her two children were not taken seriously either. The reward given today is not even one-tenth of what Lu Wancheng gave. For so many years, she has been holding a grudge in her heart. But she is the Empress of the Central Palace, and her family is the Duke of Wen, who is in his heyday. She can only try to please him.
"You're right." Liang straightened her back. "I can't go on like this. Mother will find a good marriage for you. Let's see who dares to look down on the three of us!"
Lu Niantao has already reached the marriageable age, and Liang has been keeping an eye on her for the past two years. Many of the high-ranking families in the capital were related by marriage, and the ladies of honor knew each other. If she wants to find a good marriage for Lu Niantao, she can no longer lock herself up in the mansion. She must move around. Going to the palace to thank the queen might be an opportunity.
The next day, Liang’s illness was “cured”. She submitted a letter to the palace, and after getting the queen's approval, she sent someone to pass a message to Lanfeng Pavilion, asking Lin Qingyu to prepare to enter the palace with her.
Lin Qingyu just thought it was ridiculous: "I am a man, but I can enter and leave the harem. It is unprecedented."
"You can't say that." Lu Wancheng, who was lying on the bed, said, "Those imperial doctors who treat the concubines can also enter and leave the harem."
Lin Qingyu glanced at him and said, "You are really good at talking."
Lu Wancheng said faintly: "Qingyu, I want to go with you."
Lin Qingyu thought he wanted to see his aunt, and said, "There will be a chance in the future."
The masters in the palace are so noble that sick people are not allowed to enter the palace to prevent them from bringing the disease into the palace.
Lin Qingyu usually dressed very simply, but she had to wear fancy clothes when she went to the palace to express her gratitude. Lu Wancheng watched Huantong tie the jade belt around his waist and felt that he could hold that waist with his own hands - of course, using his original hands.
Lin Qingyu finished getting dressed. The grand and gorgeous clothes did not look bulky at all on him. Instead, they gave him a sense of being unworldly. The more Lu Wancheng looked at him, the more uneasy he felt. When Lin Qingyu was about to go out, he couldn't help but blurt out: "Qingyu, why don't you not go. Just say you have a sudden illness..."
"I have no objection, but can you give me a reason?" Lin Qingyu had always known that Lu Wancheng was hiding something from her.
Lu Wancheng paused and said, "I don't want the prince to see you."
"Why?"
After a while of wanting to say something but stopping himself, Lu Wancheng pretended to be relaxed and said, "That's because you are too beautiful. I'm afraid that you will be favored by the greasy prince. Oh, besides the prince, you have to be careful of the emperor too. Old men like young and beautiful ones..."
Lin Qingyu: “…”
Seeing Lin Qingyu's expression of "I don't trust you", Lu Wancheng chuckled and said, "Qingyu, I am really scared."
Lin Qingyu was silent for a moment, and said patiently: "After the Mid-Autumn Festival, it is the royal autumn hunt. The Crown Prince and the other princes should be accompanying the emperor in the hunting grounds, so I won't run into them."
Hearing this, Lu Wancheng felt relieved: "Are you sure?"
"Yeah." He remembered it clearly that his father would accompany him during the autumn hunting every year.
Lu Wancheng breathed a sigh of relief: "Then go ahead and try to impress the queen, and then come back early."
Lin Qingyu and Liang's mother and daughter entered the palace together in a carriage. It is not difficult to see that Liang and Lu Niantao have both dressed up carefully. Liang had shaken off her past decadence and was now dressed in the imperial robes, looking graceful and elegant; Lu Niantao was wearing a water blue silk dress, looking like a lotus emerging from the water, fresh and charming.
The carriage had to stop at the palace gate and the rest of the way had to be walked. Lin Qingyu looked up at the tall plaque in front of the palace gate - a year ago, he would never have imagined that the first time he entered the palace would be as the male wife of a marquis.
The three followed the eunuch who led the way to Fengyi Palace. Eunuch Feng greeted them with a whisk in his hand: "Madam, young master, the young lady is here. Please follow me in."
In the main hall of Fengyi Palace, Lin Qingyu met the current queen mother of Dayu, Queen Wen.
Empress Wen was of similar age to Liang, and although she was no longer young, her domineering aura as the mother of the country was unmatched by others. She gave the three of them seats, exchanged some indifferent greetings with Liang, and then turned her attention to Lin Qingyu.
With such appearance and temperament, although he was born in an ordinary family, he was worthy of her sister's only son.
Queen Wen said, "I heard that since you married into the Marquis's Mansion, the Prime Minister's health has improved a lot. It's worth it that I, the Queen, specially asked the Emperor to grant you marriage."
It seems like such a great gift.
Lin Qingyu felt disgusted, but he also knew that the palace was different from the marquisate, so now he could only endure it in front of the queen.
Queen Wen asked again, "Are you the one who is taking care of Wan Cheng's health now?"
Lin Qingyu smelled the special incense made by Fengyi Palace and said, "Yes."
Empress Wen nodded approvingly: "As expected, he is the son of Judge Lin."
Empress Wen could not stop talking about Lu Wancheng. Apart from the initial politeness, she did not say another word to the Liang mother and daughter. The mother and daughter were treated coldly, but they still had to keep a respectful smile on their faces.
As they were talking, Eunuch Feng came in and reported, "Your Majesty, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is coming in the direction of Fengyi Palace. He must be here to pay his respects to you."
Lin Qingyu frowned slightly - why did the prince appear in Fengyi Palace at this time?
Empress Wen had the same question: "Didn't the Crown Prince go with the Emperor on the autumn hunt?"
Eunuch Feng said, "The Emperor accidentally caught a cold and returned home early."
Although the prince was born to Concubine Chen, the queen was his legal mother after all. After returning from an outing, he would first pay his respects to Fengyi Palace.
Lin Qingyu was not afraid of meeting the prince, but if Lu Wancheng didn't want him to meet him, then he would just refuse to meet him.
Lin Qingyu stood up and said, "Since the prince has arrived, we will take our leave first."
Lu Niantao opened her mouth as if she wanted to say something. Queen Wen nodded in agreement and asked Eunuch Feng to escort them out of Fengyi Palace.
Lin Qingyu came out of Fengyi Palace and saw a young man wearing a jade crown and a black robe with a dragon pattern walking towards him from afar. He immediately quickened his pace. Lu Niantao, who was traveling with him, said, "Sister-in-law, why are you in such a hurry to leave? The prince is right in front of us. If we don't go and greet him, wouldn't it be impolite?"
Lin Qingyu said coldly: "You are an unmarried girl, and you took the initiative to pay your respects to the prince. Is that polite?"
Lu Niantao was speechless, her face flushed red, but her feet seemed to have taken root, unwilling to take another step. As a result of her delay, the Crown Prince had already arrived in front of them. Lin Qingyu could only follow Eunuch Feng and bow: "Greetings to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."
The prince is handsome and elegant, and he is also the crown prince of a country with a noble status. It is no wonder that Lu Niantao has such thoughts.
The prince looked down at them, his eyes passed Liang and Lu Niantao, and landed on Lin Qingyu: "Who are you, how can you enter and leave the harem?"
Eunuch Feng said, "Your Highness, this man is the young master of Nan'an Prefecture, Lin, the son of Lin Yuanpan."
"Young Master," the prince narrowed his eyes, "that male wife?"
"Exactly."
The prince said with great interest, "Look up."
Lin Qingyu: “…”
"Didn't you hear me talking to you?"
Can't hear you, get out.
Lin Qingyu took a deep breath, lowered his eyelashes, and slowly raised his head.
When the prince saw the teardrop mole at the corner of his eye, his pupils suddenly shrank and his breathing became rapid.
Eunuch Feng had been in the palace for many years and was used to observing people's expressions. He reminded them in a low voice: "Prince, the Queen is still waiting for you in there."
The prince finally woke up from his dream. He realized his own gaffe, but his eyes were still firmly locked on Lin Qingyu: "What's your name?"
"...Lin Qingyu."
"Lin Qingyu." The prince curled his lips and said with a smile, "I will remember you." After that, he turned and entered Fengyi Palace.
Lin Qingyu suddenly felt that there was nothing greasy about Lu Wancheng's words, "Qingyu, you are all my desire."
After returning to the mansion, Lin Qingyu changed out of her gorgeous clothes and found Lu Wancheng in the bedroom. Lu Wancheng seemed to have been holding back his sleepiness for a long time. He yawned and said, "Are you back? Hey, why did you change your clothes? I haven't seen enough..."
"I saw the prince in the palace today."
Lu Wancheng was stunned, and his sleepiness disappeared completely: "How could it be?"
Lin Qingyu told him everything about Fengyi Palace. As Lu Wancheng listened, his eyes gradually became gloomy. He leaned back and whispered, "...Fuck."
Lin Qingyu frowned: "Will there be any problem? The prince..."
Lu Wancheng pondered for a long time and asked, "Is it greasy?"
Lin Qingyu nodded: "A little bit."
Lu Wancheng smiled as usual: "We've already seen it, there's nothing we can do. Doctor Lin, just do what you want to do, and let others worry about the rest."
At night, Lin Qingyu heard a low cough in his light sleep. He opened his eyes and saw a candlelight behind the screen. He got off the couch, walked around the screen, and saw Lu Wancheng sitting at the table in his pajamas and coat, coughing and writing something. Seeing him coming, I said, "Did I wake you up? Sorry, I couldn't help it... cough."
Lin Qingyu poured him a glass of warm water: "It's so late, why don't you sleep? What are you doing?"
Lu Wancheng stopped writing, put his fist to his lips and coughed twice, saying, "I'm thinking about something."
Lin Qingyu looked down and saw a few names and two strange symbols written on the rice paper: [Northern Territory], Xiao Cheng & Shen Huaishi (?), Xiao Jie & the little eunuch, Xiao Li (X) & the queen.
"Xiao Cheng, Xiao Jie, and Xiao Li are the names of the three princes." Lin Qingyu lowered his voice, "Wan Cheng, what on earth are you thinking about?"
Seeing Lin Qingyu's solemn expression, Lu Wancheng smiled and said, "Just write casually, don't worry about it." As he said that, he folded the rice paper in half and burned it over the candle flame.
Lin Qingyu's intuition told him that Lu Wancheng was not just writing casually, he... was targeting a few princes.
Why.
Lu Wancheng never left the house, and even though the queen was his aunt, he had never had any disputes with the forces in the palace. Could it be for the Nan'an Marquis Mansion?
Marquis Nan'an was an important official of the previous dynasty. He was highly regarded by the emperor because he never participated in party struggles. As long as he behaves himself, is loyal to the emperor, and will be loyal to the prince in the future, the Nan'an Marquisate will be able to continue its prosperity. There was no need for Lu Wancheng to do anything.
That is because...
Lin Qingyu asked softly: "——Is it for me?"
Lu Wancheng was silent for a moment, and said half-truthfully, "Yes, you see how good I am to you. I am almost dead but I still worry about you for the last time." He held his cheek with one hand and unconsciously turned the pen with the other hand. He smiled at Lin Qingyu in the candlelight, "So this autumn, you have to be gentle to me and stop being so mean to me, okay?"
The ink stains flew out from the pen tip. Lin Qingyu looked at the dark spots on her pajamas, and she couldn't describe the feeling in her heart.
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