Chapter 092

Although Jiashan's expression was gentle, his tone was firm.

Nanny Zheng couldn't help but look up gently, and saw that the princess's eyebrows were slightly raised, and there was a hint of sternness in her expression, which was somewhat like the demeanor of Empress Pei back then.

Madam Zheng sighed inwardly and replied softly, "I have served Your Highness and the Queen for more than ten years. I am willing to do anything for you."

After hearing this, Jiashan just lowered his head, with no expression on his face.

She said calmly, "Yes, in the blink of an eye, it has been more than ten years. I will soon be a mother. It shows how fast time flies."

"The princess has grown up," Madam Zheng smiled, and then added, whether out of joy or sorrow, "She has completely grown up."

Jiashan said nothing, but looked down at the Junshan Yinzhen tea in the cup. Seeing ripples in the tea, she said, "When Madam was serving my mother, she should have been about the same age as I am now."

Madam Zheng smiled peacefully and said, "The Queen is still older. When I followed her, she was already almost 18 years old."

"Then, was mother much more sensible than me at that time?" Jiashan gently lifted her pink cheek with one hand and looked at Nanny Zheng with wide eyes.

Madam Zheng thought for a moment and replied, "No."

"The Queen is the legitimate daughter of the family. She has been loved by her father and mother since childhood, and has an elder brother to support her," said Madam Zheng, who was slightly moved, as if she thought of the difficulties Jiashan had faced in his youth.

She paused for a moment before saying, "Sometimes, I am not as strong-willed as the princess."

Jiashan lowered his head, pulled up his clothes, and said with a smile: "I envy my mother more. Only when someone dotes on you can you do whatever you want."

After hearing this, Nanny Zheng was lost in thought for a moment.

Jiashan was unaware of this. Her eyes widened as she looked at Madam Zheng calmly, and she said casually, "It seems that my mother did not marry the Crown Prince Xiaohuai, but married my father instead. I guess that was what she wanted, too."

Madam Zheng was stunned for a moment, took a long breath, looked Jiashan straight in the eye, and said in a low voice: "What is the princess talking about?"

"Mammy," Jiashan said calmly, stirring the tea leaves in the cup, "I know everything. Why do you have to hide it from me?"

Madam Zheng remained silent for a long time before she forced a smile and said, "It's not that I'm hiding something on purpose, but the smartest thing in life is to be ignorant."

"There are many things that Your Highness doesn't need to understand so clearly." There seemed to be an indelible sadness between Nanny Zheng's brows, which had been wrinkled since she came in from Jiashan, as if she had something heavy on her mind.

Jiashan raised his eyes to look at her, chewing on her words carefully: "Is it rare to be ignorant?"

Jiashan smiled and said meaningfully, "Mammy, when you say 'many things', does that include Yuankang's eyes?"

Nanny Zheng fell silent, with a dark ink-like look in her eyes.

At this time of year, the crabapple blossoms in the outer courtyard have already blossomed, with clusters of pink and white flowers, beautiful and charming. Unfortunately, most of the crabapple blossoms will eventually flutter, some blown into the sea by the wind, and some fall into the mud.

Madam Zheng hesitated for a long time, her eyes slightly closed, and after a while, she opened them again and asked softly, "How much does the princess know?"

Jiashan put away her smile, her eyes were emotionless, and she spoke slowly, "How much I know depends on how much Madam is willing to tell me."

Nanny Zheng frowned, but before she could open her mouth, Jiashan interrupted her.

Jiashan was looking down at the magenta Liuxian dress on her body, and said slowly: "Today, I will not doubt your loyalty to me and my mother."

"You are a person who values ​​love and affection, and you treat me like your own child. I believe that you will not harm Yuankang." Jiashan's voice was clear and bright, with the subtle charm of a girl and the majesty of a princess.

Her nails were trimmed neatly and neatly. Because she was pregnant, she hadn't worn nail polish for several months, so her nails looked simple, elegant and clean.

She used her hands to intermittently fiddle with the Flowing Cloud Pendant she was wearing. The icy touch that penetrated her bones supported her as she struggled to finish her words.

Jiashan said: "Chen Banban, who was in charge of the army, told me that when Yuankang could see again, you accompanied me into the palace."

"That day, I asked you why Yuankang grew so slowly," Jiashan pulled the corner of his mouth, and there seemed to be a bit of coldness in his bright eyes. "You told me that my mother also started to grow when she was ten years old, and Yuankang was born prematurely."

"Then I will ask you one more question today," Jiashan smiled softly, but what she said made Madam Zheng particularly shocked. She asked word by word, "Why did mother give birth prematurely?"

Nanny Zheng's face turned visibly paler as Jiashan spoke.

Her vision began to blur, her lips trembled, and she forced herself to smile and said, "When the Queen was pregnant with the Fourth Prince, her appearance was not good..."

"Mammy." Jiashan interrupted her without thinking, frowning and said, "Aren't you ready to tell me the truth?"

"I didn't bring any maid with me today, and Dan Cui just stood guard at the gate, just to get you to tell the truth."

"The more you try to cover it up, the more it proves that my guess is correct." Jiashan clenched her hands tightly, raised her eyelids, and asked softly, "Who did it?"

Jiashan closed his eyes and spoke in a softer tone: "Father, Queen Mother, or Mother herself?"

Nanny Zheng's expression changed drastically: "Princess, please be careful with your words."

Seeing Jiashan was determined to get to the bottom of the matter, Madam Zheng finally replied with a pale face, "It's... the Queen Mother."

"The Queen Mother believed the treacherous words and gave the Empress a bowl of tonic when His Majesty was on a tour in Cangzhou. Inside..." Madam Zheng paused and said in a low voice, "there was safflower hidden."

Jiashan was shocked, and she didn't have the energy to keep calm any longer. She knew about safflower, because she had miscarried a child in her previous life. At that time, safflower accounted for the largest proportion of the abortion medicine that Gong Bixing prescribed for her.

That's used to cause abortion.

Jiashan blurted out, "I heard that my mother and the Queen Mother don't get along. How could my mother be so unsuspecting of something sent by the Queen Mother? And my father, does he know about this?"

"It was Su Yu." Nanny Zheng said slowly, "Su Yu was young at the time and was taken advantage of by someone. She served the queen and drank it. Princess, don't blame her. She knew nothing."

No wonder Su Yu was so nervous that she even turned the quilt inside out when asked about Yuan Kang's eyes. Jia Shan finally understood everything.

"As for your majesty, I don't know either." Madam Zheng lowered her voice and said, "The Queen Mother was already ill at the time. Your Majesty returned from Cangzhou, and within a few days, the Queen Mother passed away."

"Although safflower has strong medicinal properties, the queen was already seven months pregnant at the time. After a night of abdominal pain, it was not serious. Imperial Physician Gong prescribed a lot of medicine to stabilize the pregnancy, and the servants thought it was fine."

"I didn't expect that the Queen would give birth prematurely a month later. What was even more unexpected was that the Fourth Prince... would be born blind."

Jiashan hesitated for a moment, then asked slowly, "Why don't you tell father the truth?"

"Yuankang had such a hard life since he was a child because he was born blind." Jiashan even raised her voice unconsciously when she was moved. She smiled bitterly and said, "If the emperor knew that it was man-made, he would definitely pity him..."

"At that time," This was the first time that Madam Zheng interrupted Jiashan today. Her voice was calm and indifferent, but there was a sense of sadness in it. She said, "The queen has her own difficulties."

"What's the problem?" Jiashan slowly straightened his back and looked at Madam Zheng and asked, "Is it related to Crown Prince Xiaohuai?"

"Madam," Jiashan almost had no strength left, and smiled weakly, "Do father and mother really have a good relationship?"

"Why don't we go back to the original question?" Jiashan's tone became slower and slower, and the smile in the corners of his eyes became fainter and fainter. "Why did the Queen Mother remarry to the Emperor?"

"I believe what I saw. I believe the Pei family is a trustworthy family and will never betray their loyalty. My grandfather and uncle have always valued their reputations and will not break the engagement just because Empress Fu and Prince Xiaohuai are weak, let alone curry favor with the powerful." Jiashan pondered for a moment and said, "What is the hidden story behind this?"

Nanny Zheng felt depressed and could only sigh again.

She said silently: "It was not the Pei family who ruined the engagement, it was Prince Xiaohuai."

"No one in the Pei family, from Old Master Pei to the Empress, has the intention of breaking the agreement."

"When His Majesty went to the Pei family to ask for marriage, he was rejected several times. It was not until the third time that Old Master Pei told him that the Queen had already promised the Prince of Yongjiang, but because of the incident at the Fu family, the marriage was not arranged in a hurry."

Madam Zheng smiled palely and said in a faint voice, "Prince Xiaohuai was deposed because of the Fu family incident and was given the title of Prince Yongjiang instead. Prince Yongjiang is well-known for his kind nature, so Your Majesty went directly to him."

"That year, your Majesty had just gained a foothold in the court and was very much loved by the late emperor, so Prince Yongjiang made a deal with him." Nanny Zheng looked deeply at Jiashan.

Jiashan's lips twitched slightly. Although he had guessed it, he still asked persistently, "What deal?"

"Prince Yongjiang said that he could take the initiative to cancel the engagement with the Pei family, but if in the future, His Majesty is fortunate enough to ascend the throne," Madam Zheng smiled slightly, looking at the scenery outside the window as spring turned to summer, she said, "I hope he can treat the descendants of the Fu family well."

Be kind to the descendants of the Fu family.

Who are the descendants of the Fu family?

Fu Xiao, Fu Shiyu, Princess Ruyang counts as half, and the other half... is her husband Zhan Yue.

No wonder the emperor, though dissatisfied with Zhan Yue's illegitimate birth, still agreed to her marriage with Zhan Yue. No wonder Zhan Yue, at such a young age, could hold a high position and command military power.

Even if he has his own abilities, he probably cannot do without the promise his father made to Prince Xiaohuai.

Jiashan felt mixed emotions. She loosened her tightly clenched hands, and a little cold sweat broke out in her palms.

She said, "I never thought that Yanqing and I would both be loved by Prince Xiaohuai."

If Prince Xiaohuai had not taken the initiative to cancel the engagement, Empress Pei would not be Empress Pei, and there would be no Jiashan. If Emperor Zhanghe had not given his face to Prince Xiaohuai, Zhan Yanqing would most likely not have been able to marry her.

Madam Zheng said, "Life is always like this. If you pull one thing, the whole body will be affected. If you pull one thing, two things will come out. If you pull two things, three things will come out. Princess, don't worry about it."

Jiashan smiled.

Madam Zheng opened the teapot and saw that there were only some tea leaves left in it, so she said, "I will go to the kitchen and boil some tea, and then I will tell the rest of the story to the princess."

Jiashan was feeling emotional, so he responded without any defense: "Okay."

While Nanny Zheng was making tea, Jiashan continued to sort out his thoughts.

What's the rest of the story?

The most important thing is just the "traitor" and "the Empress's difficulties" mentioned by Nanny Zheng.

Through Feng Wanhua, she probably already knew who the "traitor" was, most likely the Princess of Qin. What about the difficulty? Could it be what she thought it was?

After thinking about it for a long time, Jiashan soon became uneasy and quietly stood up and paced around the room.

While he was thinking, Dan Cui, who was guarding the door, suddenly rushed in hurriedly.

Although Dancui was a bit lively, she listened to Jiashan's instructions very much. If he asked her to guard the entrance of the courtyard, she would never enter the courtyard without permission, unless something serious happened.

Jiashan asked hurriedly: "What's wrong?"

Dan Cui was jogging along, her face flushed. She panted and said, "The room... the room has a fire. I saw a big smoke."

Aunt Zheng just said she was going to the kitchen to make tea!

Jiashan's face suddenly changed, and she almost stepped on the edge of her skirt. She said, "Quickly call someone to put out the fire."

In order to avoid causing Madam Zheng to worry, Jiashan deliberately drove away the guards outside the courtyard and did not bring any extra people with him. Therefore, the maids and servants came a little slower.

Although the smoke was thick, the fire was not big at best. It was just a case of much ado about nothing.

After half a cup of tea, the fire was out.

Jiashan was pregnant, so the maids didn't dare let her get close to them to avoid any mistakes. Dancui helped her and went to sit in the side yard. Before putting out the fire, Jiashan told them that Madam Zheng was still inside, and it didn't matter if the house burned down, they had to rescue the people.

But I haven't received any news.

Jiashan paced around the room anxiously until the fire was completely out. Then the newly brought in green clothes bowed his head and reported: "Your Highness, the fire is out. Please be at ease."

Jiashan had no time to care about other things and asked directly: "How is Madam?"

Lu Yi didn't dare to look up at her, and stammered, "Mammy... is gone, Your Highness... please accept my condolences."

Jiashan's legs went weak and he almost fell to the ground. Fortunately, Dancui was prepared and held Jiashan's arm firmly.

Jiashan's whole body suddenly turned cold, and his face looked weak and sad.

Nanny Zheng was the person who had spent the longest time with her over the years, and had accompanied her through the most difficult period when Empress Pei passed away.

Once as loving as a grandmother.

Is Nanny Zheng gone?

She couldn't believe it, and she pinched her palms tightly, her body shaking.

At this moment, she had no logic at all and could only ask subconsciously, "The fire was not serious, so how could people lose their lives? Who was the person in charge of extinguishing the fire? Let him come to see me! Can't he tell which is more important, human life or the house?"

"Your Highness," Lu Yi was frightened by Jia Shan's dignified posture and kept her head down, not daring to raise it. She whispered, "It has nothing to do with the fire. Mammy... committed suicide."

"When we entered the room, we saw Madam Zheng hanging from the beam." Lu Yi's voice was even and she said softly, "When Guard Zhu rescued her, she was already dead."

Jiashan was stunned for a moment, and had not yet had time to wipe the tears from his snow-white face.

The wind from the corridor blew it against my face and it felt icy cold.