The following day, Yan Yu, supported by Fang Yun, went to Fujin's place as scheduled.
The master and servant entered the main courtyard, where they hadn't been able to pay their respects in a long time. They saw that all the flowers, plants, and trees inside had been carefully tended and maintained. The bluestone bricks on the ground had also been swept clean, and the whole courtyard exuded a thriving and prosperous atmosphere.
This was completely different from the main courtyard a few months ago. Back then, the Princess Consort had just lost the First Prince, and her heart was ashen; even the flowers, plants, and trees in the courtyard seemed to be decaying, just like the person in the story.
"With Hongshi on the way, the Princess Consort's mood is naturally different. However, soon, my child will be the most dazzling." Yan Yu thought to herself.
As soon as the mistress and servant entered the room, they saw the Fujin (principal wife) having breakfast with Hongshi. Upon seeing her, she smiled and said, "Why are you here today? Have you had breakfast yet?"
With the help of Granny Li and Fangyun, Yan Yu sat down and replied, "No, but I'm not hungry. I've been feeling unwell these past few days and haven't been able to pay my respects to my elder sister for a long time."
The princess consort smiled slightly and said, "You're not feeling well, so the greetings are unnecessary. So, is something wrong today?"
When Yan Yu heard the Fujin ask this question, she immediately said anxiously, "Yun Yuan, who is with my sister, has been missing since last night. My sister sent the maids out to look for her, but they couldn't find her. She still hasn't returned this morning. Elder sister, could you please send people to search for her everywhere? Yun Yuan has been with me the longest, and now that she's not here, I'm really worried."
The princess consort thought Yan Yu had come about the child in her womb, but she didn't expect it to be this. She said, "Perhaps she had something to do and left the manor?"
Yan Yu immediately said, "Impossible. I didn't give her any written instructions, and I haven't seen her leave the gatehouse either. Sister, this girl has been acting strangely lately. I've been taking care of my pregnancy and haven't seen her at all. I wonder what happened to her."
When the Princess Consort saw that Hongshi had almost finished eating, she waved to the wet nurse and maids who had been taking care of him, and told them to take the Fourth Prince away.
"Granny Li, go to the head nanny's place and send a few people to search around. As long as the person is still in the manor, they will definitely be found. However, avoid people and don't say anything for now," the Fujin instructed.
"Reporting to Your Highness, I saw Sister Yun go to Doctor Zhou to get medicine. I saw them with my own eyes..." Fangyun said, following the plan she had agreed upon with Yan Yu beforehand.
"How are they?" the princess asked, raising an eyebrow.
"I saw Doctor Zhou behaving inappropriately towards Sister Yun. He even gave her a packet of medicine. Sister Yun blushed with shame at that moment, and I later saw her leave Doctor Zhou's room with tears in her eyes," Fangyun said.
"How dare Zhou Zifeng! He has shown disrespect to the women of this household! Li Mama, go and summon him to see me immediately!" Upon hearing this, the Princess Consort was naturally enraged. In the inner quarters of the Fourth Prince's mansion, whether masters or maids, everyone was under her control, and she would not tolerate such disgraceful behavior. Even if two people were mutually attracted, without parental consent, a matchmaker's words, and the master's permission, these servants should not have any desires or passions.
Just then, a young eunuch hurriedly ran to the main gate and whispered a few words to the old woman guarding the gate. The old woman looked startled and immediately walked towards the main house.
"Madam, the eunuch guarding the garden reports that a woman's body has been found in Bixin Lake. They have already retrieved her body." The old woman guarding the gate was not allowed to enter the house, so she only spoke from the doorway.
Everyone inside, whether sitting or standing, heard her say that.
"Elder sister, let me go with you to see. Could it be Yun Yuan?" Yan Yu said, her expression changing, tears still falling as she spoke.
Knowing that she was "worried" about Yun Yuan, the Fujin said, "Chunliu, you take Yu'er back. Fangyun can come with me to take a look. You are too heavy-set to see anything unlucky, so you should go back and rest."
Yan Yu stood up gratefully, curtsied to the Fujin, and said, "Thank you, elder sister. I will go back and wait here. I hope it's not Yun Yuan."
Meanwhile, news of the discovery of a female corpse in Bixin Lake quickly spread throughout the Fourth Prince's inner quarters.
Xi Cha returned from investigating and reported to Lan Qin, who was sitting on the couch drawing bamboo: "Gege, it's Yun Yuan from Consort Yan's side. She looks really scary. She's completely bloated from being soaked. I also heard Fang Yun say that Yun Yuan was harassed by Doctor Zhou, which is why she couldn't stand it and jumped into the lake to commit suicide."
Nianxue was instructing Sihua to brew Lanqin the Lan's Milk Tea she had prepared when she heard Xicha reporting to Lanqin. Both of them felt a chill and accidentally tilted the teapot in their hands.
"Be careful, keep your hands steady. When serving tea to the princess, you must be steady when serving it," Nianxue said, glancing at Sihua.
"Yes, it won't happen again next time." Si Hua glanced cautiously at Nian Xue. Because of her steady work, she had finally caught Nian Xue's eye and had just been instructed to start by serving tea and water and then serving her in the room.
When Lanqin heard Xicha mention Yun Yuan, she felt a pang of unease. Although Yun Yuan was not related to her, she and Nianxue had seen her just yesterday. In that small garden, Yun Yuan, who had fallen to the ground and was unable to get up due to her knee injury, looked so helpless.
Nianxue knew that Lanqin must have remembered Yunyuan, whom she had seen yesterday, so she instructed Sihua again, put down the teapot in her hand, and walked up to Lanqin.
“Princess, such things happen in the manor, so you don’t need to worry about it. The Fujin will handle it for Yun Yuan.” Nian Xue placed a cup of milk tea on Lan Qin’s small kang (heated brick bed).
"If I had asked her again that day, would she have stopped committing suicide?" Lanqin felt a pang of self-reproach. If she had been able to let go of her prejudice against Yan Yu and asked Yun Yuan, who was already acting strangely, perhaps she wouldn't have tried to kill herself.
“No, Princess. We just ran into her by chance. Besides, we don’t know anything. It’s unbelievable that she would be so distraught after just one night,” Nianxue said.
"Cherish the tea, go and inquire again. I'm afraid Doctor Zhou has already been taken by the Fujin," Lanqin murmured.
Normally, the life or death of a maid would not matter in the vast Fourth Prince's mansion, but although Lanqin had been the mistress for a year, she was not the core of this place and was not so indifferent to the life or death of a person.
"Princess, we shouldn't have too much contact with Consort Yan. I'm really scared. Please don't go there at this time." Nianxue said, still feeling lingering fear when she thought about what happened last time.
"I know, don't worry. I reckon they won't be able to look after me this time," Lanqin said.
Life in the inner quarters is never going to be peaceful, unless you give up favor and children... Lanqin sighed silently.
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