Chuanwen was overjoyed and had Grandma take the little princess back while she went to stroll around the Imperial Garden.
Although it's winter, there are still a few pots of chrysanthemums blooming, and it's a sunny day. When the sun comes out, it still makes people feel warm and cozy.
Chuanwen was sitting by the pond feeding the fish when he noticed that Zheng Yan's brows were furrowed, so he asked him what was wrong.
Zheng Yan, who was still struggling with the idea that Chuanwen treated him like a brother, smiled slightly and said it was nothing. He then asked Chuanwen if he wanted to go fishing, saying that the fish he caught could be taken to the small kitchen in the Empress's palace for a special meal.
Chuanwen immediately became interested upon hearing this. She wanted to eat squirrel-shaped mandarin fish, so she asked someone to bring her a fishing rod and fished while basking in the sun.
Speaking of food, Chuanwen thought of Er Gou's braised pork again. She hadn't had it in a long time. The Empress had made it a few times, but it wasn't as good as Er Gou's. She had dreamed several times that Er Gou brought her a pot of steaming braised pork.
I wonder if Er Gou will come to the capital during the New Year? I'll have to ask Sister Yue when she leaves the palace.
While thinking about the delicious braised pork, Chuanwen had already caught two large grass carp to Zheng Yan's surprise.
Having prepared to fish for fish but failing, Zheng Yan, who had taken matters into his own hands, was now completely useless, feeling both surprised and a little disappointed.
Chuanwen chuckled. She wasn't just a good-for-nothing who only knew how to eat! Although she had always only wanted to be a good-for-nothing.
Just as Chuanwen was about to pack up his fishing rod and happily head back for a meal, he overheard two palace maids passing by whispering something. He couldn't make out the details, but he did catch the words "cold palace" and "ghost."
Upon seeing Chuanwen, the two palace maids immediately stopped their discussion, greeted him, and tried to leave quickly, but Chuanwen stopped them and asked what they had been talking about.
It is said that Wen was favored by the emperor and empress and was considered a minor celebrity in the palace. The two palace maids dared not neglect him and carefully told him the gossip they had heard.
"I heard that recently, faint singing and sighing can be heard coming from the Cold Palace every night."
"A while ago, three concubines were blown up in the Cold Palace. One of them was a talented singer, and her singing could often be heard coming from the Cold Palace. Everyone said... everyone said that the concubine felt she had died unjustly, and her ghost would come out to sing every night, seeking revenge!"
The two palace maids sounded a little scared, but they still kindly advised Chuanwen not to go near the Cold Palace recently.
Zheng Yan glanced at Chuanwen's bright eyes and knew that she hadn't listened to the two palace maids' advice at all.
However, Chuanwen did not heed the advice of the two men not because she wanted to wander around the Cold Palace, but because she did not really believe in ghosts. She felt that most likely it was just people pretending to be ghosts, and her gossipy soul began to burn!
Chuanwen dismissed the two palace maids, packed her things, and headed back to the Empress's palace. On the way, she began to peruse the script.
[One of those three concubines who were killed in the bombing was actually a very fond singer! Isn't the Star Worship Cult committing a terrible sin? They killed perfectly good people!]
Chuanwen clicked his tongue.
[Oh...but the one singing so late at night isn't the vengeful spirit of that concubine, it's...Hu Nuan'er! That vicious female supporting character who was better off than me in the original story!]
Chuanwen had almost forgotten about this person, but now that he's brought her up again, he's very interested in digging deeper. After digging, he learned that Hu Nuan'er had been taken to the Cold Palace by Consort Shu.
[Hu Nuan'er is unwilling to spend her life in the cold palace, so she wants to try her luck with some prince, hahaha! She pretended to sprain her ankle in the middle of the night to attract the Sixth Prince, but she scared him half to death! Now she's hiding under the wall every night singing, hoping to attract some passing prince with her voice... hahaha... which prince would be wandering around the cold palace in the middle of the night for no reason?!]
Chuanwen relentlessly mocked them, her words echoing wherever she went. Zheng Yan, who followed behind, wanted to remind Chuanwen to tone it down, as he had seen several guards shrug their shoulders, but he couldn't say anything and could only listen helplessly from behind.
[Pfft! There really is one!]
Chuanwen was stunned for a moment, then his lips curled into a wide grin. [Once, the Eighth Prince's little rabbit went missing and was taken to the Cold Palace. The Eighth Prince, thinking it was a ghost as the palace servants had described, picked up several stones and started smashing them over his head. If Hu Nuan'er hadn't run away quickly, she probably would have been badly injured!]
[Hu Nuan'er was singing peacefully when she was suddenly hit with a series of blows. She was alright, but the Eighth Prince was so frightened when he got back that he fell ill!]
Hahahahaha
Before Chuanwen even arrived, the Empress heard his laughter. When Chuanwen finally came, the Empress wondered whose gossip he had been digging up, but Chuanwen had already focused his attention on the extra meal.
Even after the meal, Chuanwen kept thinking about Er Gou's braised pork, which made the Empress itch with longing.
In the afternoon, the emperor came to the empress's palace. When the empress saw him sighing, she asked him what was wrong. The emperor then talked about his sons.
Two were imprisoned, two were confined to their homes, and there was also the Crown Prince and Xiao Ba. As a result, the Crown Prince, on whom he had placed high hopes, only knew how to farm, and Xiao Ba had recently fallen ill. The Emperor felt that he was a particularly unsuccessful father.
Hearing the news from the sidelines, he was quite moved: "Although he was a failure as a father, he was quite good as an emperor. Under your rule, the Great Jin Dynasty, while not to the point that every household left their doors unlocked at night, was certainly prosperous and flourishing."
The emperor, feeling frustrated, was deeply moved by Chuanwen's heartfelt words!
Despite always undermining him and mocking him, Chuanwen actually had such high hopes for him! This was the most comforting thing he had heard in a long time!
If the emperor knew the word "pua," he would understand that his current feelings could be described using that word.
However, the turning point in Chuanwen's story, though late, finally arrived. [Otherwise, he wouldn't have let his hair grow so long he'd practically run away from home!]
Moved to tears, the emperor cried out, "Guards, quickly remove this man from my residence!"
However, when the princes were mentioned, Chuanwen thought of the story about Hu Nuan'er and the Eighth Prince that he had uncovered that morning, and he made a few simple comments in his mind. The Emperor and Empress were taken aback when they heard this.
The Empress then realized what she had been laughing about when the messenger returned that morning; it seemed the Eighth Prince had been frightened. Thinking about it, it made sense; the Eighth Prince was only twelve years old and easily frightened. To think he'd encountered a ghost in the middle of the night—it was no wonder he was terrified. She decided to have someone perform a ritual to call back the Eighth Prince's soul.
The Emperor's thinking is a bit different from the Empress's. You might think the Eighth Prince is timid, yet he still rushed up and smashed things; you might think he's brave, yet he got so scared that he fell ill. Hopefully, his son won't grow up to be another oddball.
As the sun gradually disappeared beyond the palace walls and night fell, Hu Nuan'er sat in a pavilion in the Cold Palace, gazing at the moon and sighing. Why was she so unlucky?
Singing can get you smashed! Don't let her catch that bastard! If she does, I'll skin him alive and pull out his tendons!
Because she ran too fast, Hu Nuan'er didn't see the person who hit her. She felt resentful and raised her hand to touch her forehead. When she touched the red and swollen area, she gasped in pain.
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