Chapter 004

After being reborn, there are actually many things to do in Jiashan.

The timing of her rebirth was neither good nor bad. Although her mother had passed away long ago, her father was still in good health.

Although her mortal enemy, Concubine Zhuang, had the power to assist the six palaces, she did not dare to do anything to her openly. Most importantly, Concubine Zhuang's son, Zhao Youcheng, had not yet been appointed crown prince.

As long as the position of crown prince is vacant, Jiashan has the capital to turn the tables, and the capital is huge.

After Jiashan finished undressing and having breakfast, he began to practice calligraphy in the study.

Jiashan's mother, Empress Pei, was from a large family in Jiangnan, the Pei family, which was a family of scholars. When Jiashan was young, Empress Pei often held her hand and taught her to write in the regular script of Yan Gong.

Because she was influenced by Empress Pei since she was a child, Jiashan read more books compared to ordinary women. Perhaps this is one of the reasons why she was loved by Emperor Zhanghe.

After a while, Jiashan put down her pen and said to Dancui, who had just come up, "Where is Madam Zheng? Please call her over for me."

In her previous life, Dan Cui served Jia Shan only after Su Yu and others were released from the palace. Now, the time for her to be reused has been advanced by many years, and Dan Cui is obviously a little terrified.

Hearing the princess' order, Dan Cui said in panic, "I'll go right away."

"Wait." Realizing that Dancui was in a bad mood, Jiashan looked at her slowly.

She asked, "What happened?"

The reason why Dan Cui was kept by the princess's side and used by her was because she never hid her thoughts from her master.

Now hearing Jiashan ask this, Dancui breathed a sigh of relief. If the princess hadn't asked, she wouldn't have known how to bring it up.

Dancui knelt down and replied, "I am able to fill the responsibilities of Sister Hanzhu, thanks to your kindness."

"It's just that..." Dan Cui was an honest person. She hesitated and said, "It's just that Sister Hanzhu has been..."

Jiashan looked at her knowingly and helped Dancui speak out: "Why?"

"Isn't she dissatisfied with what I did?" Jiashan narrowed his eyes and asked in a dangerous tone.

Dan Cui shook her head hurriedly: "Your Highness, you are too kind. How dare she say that?"

"Sister Hanzhu just wanted me to say a few words for her," Dancui looked at Jiashan sincerely, "She said she wanted to see you."

Jiashan's eyes were like a pool of stagnant water. She raised the corners of her mouth indifferently and asked with a smile: "Really? Is her illness cured?"

Dan Cui nodded and replied softly, "I think it will be almost fully recovered."

Jiashan's expression did not change. She picked up the silver spoon and scooped a spoonful of the steamed cheese with sugar on the table and ate it until the cold and slightly sour feeling disappeared from the tip of Jiashan's tongue.

Jiashan then said, "Let her come."

Dan Cui said happily: "Yes."

Among all the old ladies in the late emperor's harem, Hanzhu is the youngest. Suyu is already nineteen years old this year and will be released from the palace next year.

It only has a pearl, but it is only as big as the one in Jiashan.

In fact, when Hanzhu served the empress before, she was not very favored by the empress. The reason why Jiashan wanted her was purely because of a piece of candy.

At that time, the empress had just passed away, and the whole palace was in a numb and sad atmosphere. His father was still sad, and Jiashan could only depend on his two-year-old brother.

Because Hanzhu was close in age to Jiashan, she was sent to her side to talk to the eldest princess.

Both were still children. Especially Hanzhu, it was the first time she was so close to a noble girl. Seeing that the eldest princess didn't even cry because her mother had passed away, she didn't know what to say.

He could only clumsily give to Jiashan the candy that he had hidden for many days.

"Before I entered the palace, my mother told me that if I missed her, I could eat candy." Little Hanzhu looked at the little princess timidly. She wiped the sweat on her palms on the edge of her skirt before she dared to extend her white and tender palms over.

Xiao Hanzhu said: "Princess, you miss your mother, so have some candy too."

"This is the last one. I have been reluctant to eat it. Here it is for you." Xiao Hanzhu's voice was gentle and delicate.

Little Jiashan couldn't help but glance at her. She looked so small and could only smile at him in a flattering way, like a poor little insect.

Little Jiashan said nothing. She just took the candy, put it in her brother's palm and held it tightly.

On the second day, Hanzhu, along with Suyu, Nanny Zheng and others, were assigned to Fengyang Pavilion to take care of the eldest princess.

Nearly twenty years later, even Nanny Zheng returned to her hometown to retire, and the people around Jiashan came and went, but only Hanzhu stayed by her side.

Unfortunately, no matter how long she stayed with me, she was ultimately defeated by a man.

When Jiashan thought of Zhan Shaoying's words, "Your Highness's personal maid climbed into my bed, but you just wanted me to treat her decently," he felt that those twenty years were just an irony.

How did they expect her to react?

Should he cry and beg Zhan Shaoying to come back, or kill Hanzhu in his bed in a rage?

The corners of Jiashan's lips slightly raised, and she touched her chest——

The heart-wrenching pain here seems to be just yesterday.

And she will never let things happen again!

Shaoding, Hanzhu and Dancui walked in together and greeted Jiashan.

Jiashan's gaze hesitated for a few seconds before falling on Hanzhu.

Hanzhu was also a beauty, or rather, all the women in the palace were beautiful. But in the past, when they were next to the empresses, they were always outshined.

Hanzhu bent down and kowtowed to Jiashan respectfully. Compared to her frail self many years ago, she was much more confident now, and said in a clear voice: "Your servant greets His Highness."

Jiashan stopped looking at her and said, "Get up."

Hanzhu then stood up obediently.

Jiashan had not planned to see Hanzhu so early. He had no idea how to deal with her. When he saw Hanzhu today, he suddenly remembered the child she had aborted.

Zhan Shaoying didn't know the whole story about the child, but Hanzhu, who was by her side, knew it very well.

But in the end, Hanzhu used the child to dig out her heart!

Jiashan's gaze lingered on Hanzhu's carefully dressed face.

She had a fair complexion and a slender figure, and looked exactly like the kind of person that every man in the world would be most willing to pity.

Jiashan's eyes flickered, and he smiled, "I originally thought that feelings in smooth circumstances might not be so reliable, so I have always relied on you."

"Now that I think about it, you just gave me a piece of candy at that time." Jiashan stared at the dried ink on the tip of the brush.

She slowly stood up, picked up the scissors, and began to trim the new branches in the jade porcelain vase.

Hanzhu and Dancui both stood there in silence, watching the dying yellow leaves being ruthlessly cut off by Jiashan.

Hanzhu's heart skipped a beat. She said, "I will always be with Your Highness."

"Hmm." Jiashan seemed uninterested.

She suddenly turned the scissors around, with the sharp blade facing Hanzhu. Jiashan was still unaware, as if the scissors were just a small toy in her hand, and she quietly approached Hanzhu a few steps.

Hanzhu's face turned pale. She bit her lip and forced a smile.

"Su Yu asked me for mercy, and I promised her that I would let her leave the palace next year." Jia Shan stared at the layer of sweat on Han Zhu's forehead, and she smiled nonchalantly, "Strange, why are you shaking, are you afraid of me?"

Hanzhu's gaze finally shifted from the scissors in Jiashan's hand to her bright and beautiful face.

The eldest princess had skin as white as snow, and her smiling eyes seemed to have seen through everything.

Hanzhu was panicking. She stuttered and replied, "Your Highness, Your Highness, you are joking. I am not afraid."

"Maybe the heatwave from last time hasn't subsided yet. I feel a little dizzy."

Jiashan said: "Since you are not well, you should rest more."

"I originally wanted you to take over Su Yu's job and help me manage the hairpins." Jia Shan looked at Han Zhu tenderly, and she gently stroked Han Zhu's cheek with one hand.

The eldest princess's hands were as cold as a snake. Hanzhu shuddered uncontrollably.

Jiashan pinched her cheek lightly as if he didn't notice, and said with a smile: "Since you are still not feeling well, I can only let Dancui do this."

"You should take good care of yourself during this period." Jiashan finally put down the scissors. She patted Hanzhu's shoulder lightly with the hand that had just trimmed the branches.

Another bean-sized bead of sweat appeared on Hanzhu's forehead.

Her cheeks were pale. "Yes, I will follow your orders."

"Go down and have a rest." Jiashan turned slightly, but his eyes were still on Hanzhu.

Hanzhu didn't dare to wipe the sweat off her face. She bowed deeply to Jiashan before leaving.

Jiashan's expression became increasingly cold as Hanzhu's figure gradually shrank.

She said to Dan Cui indifferently, "Go to the storehouse and get the Shezhou inkstone that the King of Wei gave me before, and then ask Madam Zheng to come over."

Dan Cui said quickly, "Yes."

Jiashan then sat back at the table and wrote a letter. When Madam Zheng arrived, Jiashan had just finished writing.

Seeing Madam Zheng coming, Jiashan told the others to leave. She smiled and said, "There are two things that I can only rest assured if Madam Zheng does them personally."

Madam Zheng said naturally, "Your Highness has ordered me to obey your orders, and I will obey your orders even if I die."

"It's not a matter of life or death," Jiashan saw that Madam Zheng looked a little agitated, and hurriedly said to comfort her, "My cousin from the Pei family has just passed the imperial examination and won the second place. I would like to ask Madam to find someone to deliver this piece of Shezhou inkstone to the Pei Mansion as my gift."

When Madam Zheng heard this, she was overjoyed: "Really?"

But after a moment, Madam Zheng said to herself again: "It must be true. Only the eldest son can have such good fortune!"

Jiashan curled his lips and snorted, "I don't know how proud he will be."

"The young master should be proud." Nanny Zheng smiled from ear to ear.

Although Jiashan didn't mention it, she was actually very happy in her heart. Although she and her cousin sometimes disagreed, they were almost the same age and had always been close, so she was willing to give away this famous inkstone.

She said, "He has been jealous of this piece of Shezhou inkstone for a long time. If it weren't for the fact that even my father praised him during the imperial examination, I would not have been willing to give it to him."

Jiashan wrapped up the valuable Shezhou inkstone on the table and also put the letter he had just written in it.

"Besides, there is one more thing I have to ask you, nanny." Compared with his joy just now, Jiashan's expression became obviously indifferent.

She leaned back and gently leaned on the mahogany chair, her eyes seemingly nonchalant.

Madam Zheng was surprised and asked, "Your Highness, please tell me."

"These days, help me pay attention to the movement of Hanzhu." Jiashan twisted a broken melon seed in her hand. She twisted the shell of the melon seed away, revealing the kernel of the melon seed that had taken off its coat.

She looked at Madam Zheng in silence for a moment, then suddenly said, "I want to know if she has been in contact with Chengqian Palace all these years."

Chengqian Palace is the palace where the emperor's concubines lived, and most of them were the bedrooms of the noble concubines. Today, Chengqian Palace is the residence of Concubine Zhuang, who is in a tantrum with Jiashan.

Madam Zheng was shocked, and her body trembled faintly: "Hanzhu...Hanzhu can't be connected with that place, right?"

Jiashan smiled sweetly, as if she no longer cared about who Hanzhu was involved with. She said, "Whether it will happen or not, we will know after a while."

"Please be careful, Madam." Jiashan said, "Please keep this a secret until the result of this matter comes out. Otherwise, it will hurt people's feelings."

Madam Zheng understood, and she sighed faintly, "I understand."

After sending Madam Zheng away, Jiashan sat upright in front of the window, her cheek in her hand, her beautiful eyes wide open, her sharp jawline and elegant neck forming a stubborn curve.

She is like a red plum blossom in a snowy day with biting cold wind, gorgeous and yet sacred and inviolable.

Jiashan had asked herself this question countless times: she had been the most generous to Hanzhu. Why could people's feelings change so suddenly?

Today, seeing Hanzhu looking guilty, Jiashan finally understood.

Perhaps everything since that candy was a complete hoax.

She believed it for so many years in vain. Now thinking about it, it just made things ridiculous.

Jiashan's mouth corners curled up foolishly.

That day, when Zhan Yue finished his duty and came out of the palace, the bright sun was not as scorching as it had been a few days before. It rained last night, and as the saying goes, "an autumn rain brings a chill", I'm sure that in a few days, the strong autumn atmosphere will sweep over.

The autumn wind is clear, the moon is bright, the fallen leaves gather and scatter, the crows roost and are startled. When will we meet again? It is embarrassing at this time and night!

I wonder if there will be something like mint mung bean soup to drink in autumn?

Thinking of this, Zhan Yue's steps became a little lighter.

He slowly stepped into the Anguo Mansion. However, the main hall, which was originally bustling, suddenly became very quiet because of his arrival.

There was a distinct sense of awkwardness and weirdness in the atmosphere.

Zhan Yue narrowed his eyes slightly, and the attendant Liu Qi who followed behind him even opened his mouth to make a prophecy.

It was Zhan Yue's eldest sister-in-law, Lady Zhang, the wife of the Prince of Anguo, who came out to smooth things over and said, "The Fourth Master is back?"

Zhan Yue didn't want to respond to them, so he just nodded casually, but Zhang continued, "Today is so happy. My nephew Wenchang from my mother's side has passed the imperial examinations twice. After all, he is a close relative, and the old ancestor and the prince said that we should call Wenchang to celebrate."

Zhan Yue tilted his head slightly, revealing his clear and smooth jawline. He said with a half-smile, "Grandma is old. Since my eldest sister-in-law is in charge of the family, it is natural for her to make the arrangements."

"I was on duty in the palace all night last night. I'm tired, so I won't be there tonight." Zhan Yue's face was pale, and even though the lights in the room were dim, his eyes were as bright as the stars in the night sky.

He said, "Congratulations to Wenchang for me."

Zhang's expression remained unchanged. She smiled and said, "I understand. After all, the Fourth Master is a favorite of His Majesty. I will explain it clearly to the Prince."

There was something fishy in her words, and Liu Qi couldn't help but get angry.

Zhan Yue disagreed and signaled Liu Qi not to speak.

He moved his right hand seemingly unintentionally, and Zhang took a step back. Zhan Yue held a sword in his hand. That sword symbolized the power and authority of the Jinwu Guard.

He was protesting to her!

Zhang gritted her teeth and was about to get her revenge, but Zhan Yue had already picked up the curtain and walked towards the backyard without looking back.

After a while, the sound of people talking slowly began to resound in the main hall.

"The Fu family is now nothing more than a poor family. I wonder what he is so proud of. Does he really think he has a grandpa who is a marquis?" A slightly rough male voice mocked, "So what if he is the Jinwu Guard? Let's see how long he can get away with it."

Another older woman said: "He really is, the older he gets, the more he looks like the Marquis of Yongding."

After saying this, he sighed, whether out of envy or hatred: "Whether it's the women or the men in the Fu family, they always have faces that are envied by both humans and gods."

"No wonder even though Fu Shiyu has reached that point, the old Duke is still determined to marry her."

"Tsk." The man who spoke first glanced at Zhang's face, signaling the woman to stop talking nonsense, and even more so not to mention the three words "Fu Shiyu" in the Anguo Mansion.

The man sneered: "What's the use of a man being good-looking?"

The woman came back to her senses at this time. Seeing Zhang's uneasy expression, she knew she had said something wrong, so she smiled and flattered him, "I heard from the old man. His Majesty summoned the Duke to the study a few days ago and asked about Ying'er's marriage."

Zhang's face really warmed up. She smiled and said, "Yes. I don't know what good fortune Ying-er will have."

The woman smiled and said, "Madam, you are too modest. Ying'er is now working in the Ministry of Public Administration, which is a very luxurious place."

"I heard from Concubine Duan that His Majesty has been worried about the eldest princess' marriage recently. I guess Ying'er is likely to marry a princess." The woman said softly.

Zhang smiled and curled her eyes, but still said, "What the sixth brother's wife said is all things that have not yet come to light. I dare not respond to you."

The woman then smiled and chatted with Zhang again.

The front yard was so lively, but Zhan Yue was lying alone on the bed.

He changed into a plain cloth and rested his hands idly behind his head.

Zhan Yue looked more like his mother, with delicate and beautiful features. As he had just finished bathing, Zhan Yue's hair was slightly damp, and he still had a faint scent of grass soap on him.

I don't know what he was thinking, but his handsome profile had a hint of intimacy and tenderness.

Liu Qi stepped forward and knocked on the door gently: "Fourth Master, the old lady wants you to come over."

Zhan Yue replied loudly: "I'll be there later."

Liu Qi waited in the outer hall at the door, waiting for Zhan Yue.

After a while, Zhan Yue put on a coat.

It started raining heavily outside at some point. Zhan Yue came out of the house with an umbrella. Seeing that Liu Qi had nothing in his hands, he gave him another paper umbrella.

The autumn rain is like thousands of silver threads.

Zhan Yue walked with an umbrella. The rain curtain looked like smoke and fog, as if it was a blindfold, separating Zhan Yue and the people around him into two distinct worlds.

He walked leisurely in his own world, his figure was lonely and deserted.