"Princess, it's time for lunch." Mu Chun walked into the wooden house carrying lunch and placed the dishes on the tray on the table. Then she softly reminded Yun Qianmeng who was sitting in the inner room reading a book.
Yun Qianmeng looked out the window and saw that the sun was blazing outside. She put down the book, stood up with one hand on her waist, and slowly walked towards the outer room. She then asked Qiao Ying beside her, "The prince has been away from the capital for some time. I believe he will be near Chaocheng in a few days. I just wonder if my cousin is doing well on his way to Yicheng in the east?"
Seeing Yun Qianmeng ask this, Qiao Ying mentally calculated the time and replied cautiously, "From west to east, even at full speed, it would take dozens of days. Western Chu is in chaos right now. Besides the regular army of the three kings, there are also many bandits and robbers. I'm afraid Minister Qu won't have a safe journey."
Hearing this, Yun Qianmeng nodded silently, hiding her worries in her heart. She sighed and spoke slowly, "This is a predictable situation. How could those with bad intentions let go of such a good opportunity? But the most important thing now is to deal with the Sea King and King Chen. Those small fry can only be dealt with later. Has the person I asked you to keep an eye on before made any moves now?"
As he spoke, Yun Qianmeng had already taken a seat. She picked up the warm soup in front of her and slowly stirred it with a silver spoon. Her clear black eyes looked at the swirling soup, and there was a calmness in her eyes.
"My dear Princess, no! I'm just a little confused. Keeping her is always a hidden danger. Why doesn't Your Majesty deal with her secretly? What if she wants to..." Having said this, Qiao Ying swallowed the rest of her words for fear of eavesdropping. With Yun Qianmeng's intelligence, she must be able to guess what she meant.
Yun Qianmeng continued to stir the soup in her hand. Her calm eyes seemed to be filled with turbulent waves as the swirling soup swirled. But upon closer inspection, she felt that the scene was only floating in her eyes and did not penetrate deep into her eyes. Everything was like a mirage, making it difficult to tell the truth from the false.
Yun Qianmeng's lips curled into a faint smile before she spoke softly, "I'm confused as to why she hasn't taken action yet. She knew where Emperor Yugan and the others were hiding, so she should have spread the news immediately. But after all these days, she hasn't taken any action. I'm curious about her intentions."
Thinking of this, Yun Qianmeng frowned slightly and put down the bowl of soup in her hand. She didn't have much of an appetite in the middle of summer, and now she had a lot of things to do, and he was worried about her, so she had no desire to eat.
"Princess, please have some food. Think about the baby in your belly and eat more. Don't let the baby starve." Seeing Yun Qianmeng put down her bowl and chopsticks, Nanny Shangguan became anxious. She immediately picked up the serving chopsticks on the table, put Yun Qianmeng's favorite dishes into her bowl and plate, and persuaded Yun Qianmeng to eat more.
"Has there been any news from the Sea King's Palace?" Qu Feiqing and the others were being held hostage by Hai Quan. Even knowing that the Sea King's army was winning victory after victory, they wouldn't kill all the hostages. But if Hai Quan was defeated, the hostages would be the most in danger.
Moreover, Chu Feiyang is now sending troops to attack Hai Quan and Jiang Muchen. There is no guarantee that Hai Quan will not use Qu Feiqing and others to deal with Chu Feiyang. At that time, Chu Feiyang will probably be caught in a dilemma.
"Yangming Mountain is now impregnable. The secret guards only heard that the King of the Sea has taken the Prince of Hai away from the King of the Sea's Palace. As for the whereabouts of the hostages, no one knows. Even the Crown Prince is unknown whether he is dead or alive." Qiao Ying spoke in detail with a solemn expression on his face.
"The Crown Prince will definitely not be left alive. Even if he were to survive, I'm afraid the Sea King's scheming wouldn't allow him to. Right now, I'm extremely worried about An'er and my cousin's safety. If you send someone out again, they'll definitely find out where they're hidden." Xiahou An'er and Qu Feiqing were still women, after all. How could they have ever witnessed such a scene? Furthermore, their special identities made them perfect targets for exploitation. Hai Quan must have been prepared, hiding them where they wouldn't be easily noticed.
"Yes, Princess!" Qiao Ying saw a hint of sadness between Yun Qianmeng's brows, and immediately agreed and turned around and walked out of the wooden house.
"Princess, it's time for some lunch! You're worried about Miss Qu and the princess, but you have to take care of your own body as well. Otherwise, the prince will be worried thousands of miles away." Nanny Shangguan took the opportunity to put a bowl of warm porridge in Yun Qianmeng's hands and persuaded her to eat more.
"Has anything happened with the Empress Dowager these days? Have Butler Hong tell everyone to hide and not let the Imperial Guards discover our number to avoid unnecessary trouble." Yun Qianmeng scooped up half a spoonful of hot porridge and put it into her mouth, still instructing Nanny Shangguan.
"Don't worry, Princess. Butler Hong has already given the order. The Queen has been quiet these days, but the Queen Mother has to visit Concubine Yuande every day. The two of them always quarrel and curse each other, which is really unbecoming of the Queen Mother and Concubine." Nanny Shangguan picked up some side dishes and put them in Yun Qianmeng's bowl, reporting in a low voice, a sarcastic smile reflected in her half-closed eyes.
"Princess, Butler Hong requests to see you." As the two were talking, Yingxia lifted the bead curtain and walked in.
"Please ask him to come in." After eating half a bowl of porridge, Yun Qianmeng shook her head and returned the bowl to Nanny Shangguan. She then picked up a silk handkerchief to wipe the corners of her mouth and instructed Yingxia.
Yingxia nodded, then turned around and left the outer room, inviting Butler Hong, who was waiting outside, in.
"Your servant greets the princess." Butler Hong came trotting over, a layer of sweat already on his head, and a letter tightly clenched in his hand.
"What happened?" Yun Qianmeng's gaze had already turned to the letter. Her heart skipped a beat, as if something bad had happened.
"Please read this, Princess." Butler Hong stood up and respectfully handed the letter in his hand to Yun Qianmeng, then stood aside and said nothing more.
Yun Qianmeng took the sweat-soaked letter and scanned the details with a sharp gaze. Her brow furrowed sharply, and she raised her head to look at Butler Hong. She spoke in a firm tone, "Although the Rong family is a merchant family, Old Lady Chen is a noble person, and Rong Yunhe is upright. They would never do such a thing. Someone must have taken this opportunity to frame the Rong family."
Steward Hong nodded as he noticed Yun Qianmeng's unusually confident tone, then continued, "News has come in from Jiangnan: local people are vomiting and have even lost dozens of lives after consuming the food donated by the Rong family. I'm afraid the impeachment memorial has already been submitted to the Emperor."
Yun Qianmeng listened carefully to Butler Hong's report. At the same time, she tore up the letter she had just read and tossed it into the copper basin Mu Chun had brought for her to wash her hands, letting the fragments sink. Then she stood up and walked to the window, gazing out at the scorching sun, her expression calm and composed.
"Princess, do you want to ask for help for the Rong family..." Nanny Shangguan and Butler Hong looked at each other. Nanny Shangguan walked behind Yun Qianmeng and asked in a low voice.
Yun Qianmeng simply shook her head and slowly said, "Butler Hong, have someone investigate who is responsible for framing the Rong family. I will not be going before His Majesty until the truth is revealed."
If he rashly went to plead for mercy, he would confirm the Rong family's guilt and harm Rong Yunhe instead.
Furthermore, if this was a deliberate frame-up by Emperor Yugan, then by running over to him, Yun Qianmeng would only be giving him a chance to blackmail her. Now that she had the Red Book of Certificates, Yun Qianmeng had to think twice and make more plans. Otherwise, if someone got the secret out, not only would she be in danger, but everyone connected to her would also be implicated.
"Yes, Princess, don't worry!" With that, Butler Hong turned and left.
"Your servant greets Princess Chu. The Emperor has something important to ask you." However, before Yun Qianmeng could breathe a sigh of relief, Eunuch Yu walked quickly to the wooden house and spoke through the wooden window to invite Yun Qianmeng to the wooden house where the Emperor and Empress were temporarily staying.
"I wonder what the emperor wants? I'm feeling unwell and I'm afraid it's not appropriate for me to see you." Yun Qianmeng looked at Eunuch Yu's fake smile and spoke indifferently.
Eunuch Yu seemed to have anticipated Yun Qianmeng's refusal, his smile remaining unwavering. He quickly continued, "Prime Minister Yun has just come to the valley to report to the Emperor on important matters at court. The Emperor, sympathetic to the fact that Prime Minister Yun and the Princess have not seen each other for a long time, ordered this servant to come and fetch the Princess. Please follow me quickly and don't keep the Emperor waiting."
As he spoke, Eunuch Yu led several guards behind him and stepped onto the steps in front of the wooden house, as if to force his way in.
Little did they know that Qiao Ying had left guards to protect Yun Qianmeng before leaving. When several guards saw that Eunuch Yu and others wanted to force their way in, they stood in front of the stairs without showing any weakness and refused to give in at all.
Seeing this, Eunuch Yu's eyes flashed with dissatisfaction, and he immediately asked, "What are you doing, Princess?"
Yun Qianmeng stood motionless by the window, watching the commotion outside, her expression unchanged. Upon hearing Eunuch Yu's question, she spoke calmly, "I'm not feeling well, and there should always be some distance between me and the Emperor. Your Majesty is so kind, so why don't you ask me to tell the Emperor to invite my father to join me in the wooden house where I'm staying temporarily?"
After she finished speaking, Yun Qianmeng's face showed a trace of fatigue. Seeing this, Nanny Shangguan and others immediately helped her sit back at the table.
Eunuch Yu hadn't expected Princess Chu to be so aggressive. He frowned slightly, his mind racing. Finally, he grasped the key point and said, "Princess, please come with me. The Emperor has summoned you for other matters."
"If it's an important matter of state, I only regret that I'm just a woman and can't participate in state affairs to help the emperor share his worries! If it's a matter of the harem, the empress dowager and the queen are here. When is it my turn to show off my strength? Please go back, eunuch!" Little did he know that Yun Qianmeng was not moved by any persuasion and rejected Eunuch Yu's request with just two sentences, which made Eunuch Yu feel very troubled. He had never thought that this delicate and weak Princess Chu could be so difficult to get along with.
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