"Little Gongzi, this is our princess's stuff. You must keep it safe and not let anyone else take it." Hongqiao handed a bag of bird's nest to Little Gongzi. He was the young shop assistant who had been caught red-handed by Cuiling that day for not tending the fire for Nian's bird's nest.
"No need, Miss Hongqiao. Checking on Princess Fucha's fire is just a side thing, there's no need to give me money." Xiao Gongzi was grateful to Hongqiao for giving Steward Wu the ointment that day, and it just so happened that she asked him to deliver it, which was equivalent to doing him a favor. Therefore, he naturally refused to accept Hongqiao's money at this moment.
“Take it. Our princess never likes to trouble others. She won’t feel at ease if you don’t take it. Little Gongzi, the princess is weak and relies entirely on this bird’s nest and blood clam to nourish her body. Please be careful. Consort Nian’s things are also being stewed here. Are you able to manage?” Hongqiao asked with concern.
"It's not that busy, just watching the stove. It might be a bit busier before lunch," Xiao Gongzi said.
“Alright, then I’ll leave it to you. Our princess also eats bird’s nest before lunch and snow frog after her afternoon nap,” Hongqiao said. “This is our princess’s medicine cabinet, so please be careful.”
Xiao Gongzi borrowed the jar, looked at it, and said, "How come it's exactly the same as Consort Nian's jar? It's easy to confuse them."
Hongqiao exclaimed in surprise, "Ah, Consort Nian's medicine pot looks like this too? What should we do then?"
Xiao Gongzi said, "Well, if the medicine pots are the same, they're easy to get confused. But there's no need to change them. How about this, we'll make a mark on your princess's medicine pot so I won't get them mixed up."
Upon hearing this, Hongqiao's heart skipped a beat, but she quickly calmed down and said, "That's fine then, but it's best not to make a very obvious mark, just one that you can recognize at a glance. Our princess doesn't want to attract too much attention. Our princess doesn't want people to gossip and say that she's like the concubine."
Xiao Gongzi nodded and said, "Okay, let's carve a little mark on the mouth of this medicine pot so I can tell at a glance."
Hongqiao nodded, and then the two of them made a small cut on the rim of Fucha's medicine pot with a knife. It was barely noticeable unless you looked closely. But Xiao Gongzi, knowing the difference, could tell at a glance which pot belonged to which.
"Alright, is that alright now?" Hongqiao said. "Don't get it wrong. You've experienced Consort Nian's temper before. If you make another mistake, she won't let you off easily. Our Princess doesn't care. Do you understand?"
"Thank you for reminding me, sister. I understand now. I won't make a mistake. I can tell at a glance that this is Princess Fucha's medicine pot," said Xiao Gongzi.
“Alright, I’ll come and put the things in myself every day. You just need to keep an eye on the fire for me,” Hongqiao said.
Xiao Gongzi naturally had no choice but to agree.
After giving these instructions, Hongqiao left the kitchen and headed towards Chunhui Courtyard. She had only taken a few steps when she heard someone call out behind her.
"Hongqiao, I haven't seen you for several days. Why haven't you come to see Baizhi all this time?" It turned out to be Cuiling. She had just gone to the kitchen to bring some fresh persimmons and apples for Madam Nian.
“These past few days, Lady Fucha has been plotting against the Fourth Prince. I haven’t figured out her plan yet, so I haven’t been over these past few days,” Hongqiao quickly whispered to Cuiling.
"Oh, what were you and Xiao Gongzi talking about over there? Why did you talk for so long?" Cui Ling asked, puzzled, after seeing Hong Qiao and the little eunuch talking for so long.
“It’s all because of Lady Fucha’s bird’s nest soup. She saw Consort Nian drinking it and wanted to learn too. So, she insisted that I stew it for her. From now on, it will be stewed together with Consort Nian’s bird’s nest soup. That little Gongzi will be in charge of watching the fire. You know, he was so careless last time. I just had to tell him what to do!” Hongqiao said.
Cui Ling said knowingly, "That kid messed up our concubine's bird's nest soup like that last time. If he dares to be careless again this time, he'll be in big trouble."
After chatting with Cuiling for a while, Hongqiao and Cuiling each went to their respective masters' courtyards.
When Hongqiao returned to Fucha's room, she saw that Fucha had laid out all her jewelry and was examining it one by one.
"Princess, it's all taken care of. Little Gongzi has marked the spot under our medicine jars," Hongqiao said.
"Yes. Hongqiao, the plan has begun. We must succeed this time. My plan is flawless. As long as we do it step by step, she will not notice anything and will surely die a violent death!" Fucha Shi recalled being plotted against in her previous life, and the resentment in her heart still seemed unable to subside. After her rebirth, she vaguely remembered the events of her previous life, and finally remembered that it was Nian Shi, and only Nian Shi could have done it.
"Master, what are you doing?" Hongqiao asked in confusion when she saw Fucha take out all her jewelry.
"Take them all and give them away. Give them to that little Gongzi, Steward Wu, and even the people in the kitchen. They're obliged to help you, so I want them all to greet you with smiles and not dare say a bad word. Only if you can come and go freely in the kitchen without attracting attention can you secretly switch the jars everywhere," said Lady Fucha.
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