Chapter 44 Chapter 44 The palace fight has just begun? ...
Every silver ingot on the tray looks just like what is shown on TV. They are made into the shape of cute, round little ingots, stacked one on top of the other to form a small mountain. Just looking at them makes people happy.
Li Shuyao couldn't contain her excitement at all. With sparkling eyes, she stretched out her little hands and touched them again and again. She looked as if she wanted to sleep with the pile of silver ingots in her arms at night.
Liang Jiugong watched with a smile on his face, and gradually understood what was going on.
My mind suddenly flashed back to this afternoon, when the Emperor sat in his study, selecting a gift list with a serious expression, scribbles and revises, as if he was afraid that any one of them would not meet Li Shuyao's requirements...
Liang Jiugong couldn't help but sigh: It would be better to give it all in silver.
If silver is not enough, give gold. Li Shuyao will surely be even happier.
The group waited quietly until Li Shuyao had touched enough silver and withdrew her hand with reluctance, then they bowed to her, carefully walked around her, and walked into her small room in an orderly manner. They placed the trays they brought one by one on the big table in the outer room. If the table could not hold the trays, they put them on the cabinet.
Li Shuyao held onto the door frame and peeked inside.
I always feel that after all their busy work, my little house seems to have become more gorgeous in an instant.
The things were quickly put away, and the young eunuchs left the room one by one, lined up and walked to the courtyard, leaving space for Liang Jiugong and Li Shuyao to talk.
Liang Jiugong still had that smiling face, but his back was slightly hunched. He knew in his heart that he would never be able to straighten his back in front of this young lady again.
He spoke slowly and asked, "Do you still like it, girl?"
Li Shuyao nodded repeatedly, "I like it!"
After a pause, she placed her hands on her waist and bowed slightly to Eunuch Liang, "I would like to thank you very much, Eunuch."
"Hey, hey, this is not allowed." Liang Jiugong stretched out his hand to stop him.
Li Shuyao bent her knees with a determined expression and squatted slightly. "I am still a palace maid in the tea room. What can't I do?"
...What if the emperor changes his mind one day?
Li Shuyao thought very cleverly that as a palace maid, she should learn to leave some ways out for herself.
Liang Jiugong accepted her gift with a nervous look on his face, but he didn't dare to stay any longer. After giving a few more instructions, he hurried away with his men.
*
Palace of Heavenly Purity.
The emperor is still waiting for Liang Jiugong to come back and report.
The candlelight in the hall flickered, and the light was sometimes bright and sometimes dim.
The tall man sat casually in the dragon throne, his chin supported by one hand, his expression nonchalant. His eyes, like thick ink, were deep and unfathomable, with a faint light flowing in them, as if he was thinking about some extremely important issue.
When he saw Liang Jiugong coming in, his eyes quickly refocused and his body unconsciously tensed a little.
He still maintained a gentle and calm appearance and asked Liang Jiugong softly, "What's wrong?"
Liang Jiugong knew what he meant. Giving gifts was fake, and his real intention was to find out Li Shuyao's attitude.
He lowered his head while holding the whisk and answered cautiously, "Miss Li looks quite happy."
Especially after seeing the pile of silver, her little expression was so bright... Liang Jiugong even wondered if she wouldn't even want to wash her hands at night.
If someone else behaved like this, people would probably look down on her and think she was too shallow. It was just five hundred taels of silver, so why would she be so happy?
But the happy person now is Li Shuyao, Liang Jiugong feels that it is understandable...
After all, she had never seen so much silver before.
It is indeed a character and age that makes one so innocent and naive, not knowing how to hide one's thoughts.
So how did the Jiangnan Li family raise such a daughter?
Liang Jiugong was puzzled.
Completely unaware, the man behind the imperial desk relaxed his tense body the moment he finished speaking. The corners of his lips curled up slightly as he asked with interest, "Happy, how happy are you?"
He guessed: "Did he just jump up?"
"Did you clap?"
Liang Jiugong: ...
He secretly sighed that the emperor's guess about Li Shuyao's temperament was really accurate.
Although I didn't jump up and clap my hands, it was almost the same.
He bent over and recounted the entire incident of Li Shuyao touching the silver ingot again and again with uncontrollable excitement.
The words used are vivid, precise and figurative.
The emperor quickly recalled the scene in his mind and tapped the dragon throne with his slender fingers, feeling a little regretful that he couldn't see it with his own eyes.
but……
There will be plenty of opportunities in the future.
He immediately asked another question: "Do you know what Guo Luoluo said to her today?"
Liang Jiugong shook his head, his expression somewhat hesitant, "This..."
While the two masters were talking, two palace maids were guarding outside the house. One of them was particularly cautious and would stand up and walk around the house from time to time.
In addition, the people he had placed in the courtyard were all taken away by Nanny Liang's men.
Therefore, we really can't find out anything.
After the emperor asked this question, he saw his expression and realized that he had taken it for granted.
He relaxed his body and fell back into the dragon throne. He didn't know what was going on in his mind, but his eyes became slightly deeper.
He waved at Liang Jiugong, signaling him to go down first.
Liang Jiugong uttered a "huh" and turned to leave the imperial study, but as he was about to leave, he remembered the emperor's previous arrangement for Madam Liang to discipline Li Shuyao...
Li Shuyao was a palace maid in the tea room before, and it was in accordance with the rules that Liang Mama, as the managing madam, came to teach her the rules.
But now, the emperor is becoming less and less willing to hide his feelings for Li Shuyao, and Li Shuyao has already fully understood the emperor's intentions.
It was a foregone conclusion that Li Shuyao would become the emperor's woman.
Isn't it a bit inappropriate to ask Madam Liang to train Li Shuyao at this time?
After all, the etiquette and rules that palace maids and concubines should follow are completely different.
When Liang Jiugong thought of this, he stopped and walked back with a conflicted expression.
The emperor was holding a memorial in one hand and was a little confused when he saw him come back.
After listening to Liang Jiugong's words, his expression froze, and then he suddenly realized, "I almost forgot about this."
He really didn't expect that Li Shuyao would still be so clever one day.
...Maybe he was just being too obvious...
Thinking of this, the emperor felt a little uncomfortable.
However, now that it had been brought to light, all the previous arrangements were no longer applicable. He thought carefully for a moment and then instructed Liang Jiugong, "Let Madam Liang return to Cining tomorrow."
He continued, "Also, the decree to confer titles on the harem has already been issued, so it's not appropriate to change it now. Ask Madam Xu to arrange to connect the several uninhabited rooms in the enclosure. Let Li Shuyao live there temporarily. When the opportunity arises in the future, I will give her a formal title."
Nanny Xu is the head nanny of the surrounding quarters.
"As for the tea room, if she has any good friends, you can let her take them away. Remember to arrange a few more people to serve her so that she won't be bored alone."
This is not the treatment a woman from an official's family should receive!
There was a rule in the harem that each official woman could only be served by one palace maid and live in a room with a width of three rooms.
It has never happened before that several rooms are connected to each other and more people are arranged to serve together.
This is simply going to squeeze out the other official women in the surrounding rooms and leave them with no place to stand!
Liang Jiugong swallowed hard, wanting to say something to remind her, but before he could finish his words, he heard the emperor continue to slowly plan: "When the time comes, we must grant her the right to enter and leave the harem as she pleases. After all, she is so close to Guo Luoluo. If she is not allowed to see her for several days, she will surely be depressed."
"As for paying respects to the Queen every day... she definitely won't be able to get up, and there's no such rule in the palace, so there's no need to ask her to go."
"...She loves to eat so much, so she has to remember to knock on the door in the imperial kitchen..."
He kept muttering and couldn't stop once he started. He was so long-winded that he didn't even act like an emperor.
Liang Jiugong lowered his head and thought with a cold face.
After a while, the emperor behind the imperial desk finished reciting the sutra. He looked straight at him with a hawk-like sharp gaze and asked in a deep voice, "Have you written everything down?"
…
Changing faces has become unexpected.
Liang Jiugong nodded stiffly, "Your Majesty, I have written it down."
"Okay, then you can go down."
“Yeah.”
*
On the other side, in front of a house with dim candlelight.
After sending away Liang Jiugong who came to deliver the message, the smile that was forced on Nanny Liang's old face instantly collapsed.
She glanced left and right, then turned and went back into the house.
The two palace maids beside her understood immediately, followed her into the house, closed the two doors on the left and right, and walked quietly to the side of Madam Liang. One of them stood behind her and massaged her shoulders, while the other squatted down and massaged her legs.
Nanny Liang was holding a cup of hot tea in her hand, and her expression was not very good.
She lowered her eyes and thought for a moment, then asked in a quiet tone, "Have you found out where Li Shuyao, the person Eunuch Liang was talking about, came from?"
The two palace maids looked at each other from a distance. The maid who was massaging her shoulders said, "Speak to Madam, we have already found out."
"I heard he's from Jiangnan, a member of the Five Banners of the Han Army. Upon entering the palace, he was assigned to the outer circle of the Palace of Heavenly Purity. He's been relatively unknown until a few months ago, when a young mistress named Guo Luoluo appeared in the outer chambers. Then, he started to make a name for himself."
"She seems to be very close to that Miss Guo Luoluo. As for how she entered the Palace of Heavenly Purity, I can't find out. I only know that it was arranged by Eunuch Liang himself."
As soon as she finished speaking, the maid who was massaging her legs said, "Since it was arranged by Eunuch Liang, could it be that Eunuch Liang was deliberately trying to flatter her?"
Nanny Liang didn't say anything.
The maid who was massaging his shoulders shook her head. "Eunuch Liang is already the Grand Administrator of the Palace of Heavenly Purity. There's no further advancement for him, so why would he need to do something like this?"
"That's true." The palace maid who was massaging her legs nodded thoughtfully.
Nanny Liang listened to them quietly, raised her eyelids, and asked, "Anything else?"
"Also, what Miss Wuya told you..."
Nanny Liang suddenly lowered her eyes to look at her, "What girl are you talking about?"
The maid who was beating her legs trembled violently, pinched her palms with her fingertips, and answered cautiously: "I just said something wrong, please don't blame me, there is no girl."
"Madam, coming to the Qing Palace to train the palace maids was the Emperor's order. What does it have to do with anyone else?"
Nanny Liang then withdrew her gaze, picked up the tea and took another sip, then said, "Leave."
"I have to ask for my leave from the Emperor tomorrow."
The two palace maids heaved a sigh of relief and quickly tiptoed out of the room.
Leaving Madam Liang sitting there for a long time, she finally snorted, "Interesting."
*
Li Shuyao still didn't know what she had avoided by chance.
After she got up the next day, she first sent Tian Jiarou to check on Wu Yalianchu's recent movements.
Tian Jiarou came back quickly after checking.
When she came back, Li Shuyao was chatting with Yueshu in her room while eating the snacks Yueshu brought. They were salted green plums with mint leaves, which tasted refreshing, sweet and sour.
She has been here for so long, but has she ever eaten any mint-related snacks?
I don’t know whether mint existed in the Qing Dynasty itself, or whether it was a private setting in this novel.
Li Shuyao thought about it seriously for a while, but couldn't figure it out, so she simply concentrated on eating the green plums in the small plate.
After eating a few, I was still discussing with Yueshu whether we could make some other snacks with mint leaves. If not, mint-flavored milk tea would be okay, right?
You can also use malt syrup to make some mint candy, which is perfect for refreshing the mind.
While listening to her fantasy, Yueshu looked down at the small jar she brought with her and counted them. She found that there were twenty-eight green plums in the jar. In just a short while, the two of them had eaten twenty of them.
In the jar, which was the same size as a wine jug, only eight lonely green plums were left floating up and down.
After Li Shuyao finished speaking, she saw that Yue Shu did not respond for a long time, so she moved closer to take a look.
Then he said thoughtfully, "How about we each take one and leave six for Jiarou?"
Yueshu shook her head. "You and I have already eaten ten each. You still want to eat one more, leaving only six for Jiarou. Will Jiarou be unhappy if she finds out?"
Li Shuyao thought about it and agreed. Jiarou only had eight, which was less than the two of them.
She was still greedy and wanted one more... If she were Jiarou, she would also be unhappy.
So he covered the jar obediently and moved it to the other end of the table, determined to keep it out of sight and out of mind.
They talked for a few more words, and seeing Tian Jiarou running back sweating profusely, the two of them immediately stood up, one of them reached out to help her, and the other hurried to the copper basin in the corner, wrung out a piece of clean cotton cloth, and handed it to Tian Jiarou to wipe the sweat off her face.
Tian Jiarou took the cotton cloth from Yueshu's hand and said thank you first.
Yueshu walked over and poured her a cup of tea, handing it to her, indicating that she should drink some tea to replenish some water after wiping the sweat off her face.
Tian Jiarou thanked him again.
Li Shuyao: "..."
She looked around and couldn't find anything she could do, so she just stood beside Tian Jiarou, holding her arm.
When Tian Jiarou tilted her head back to drink tea, she stood cautiously beside him, stretched out her hand and held it loosely.
After Tian Jiarou finished her tea, she reached out to take the teacup, but Yueshu moved so quickly that she took away not only the teacup, but also the cotton cloth that Tian Jiarou had been holding and used to wipe the sweat off her face.
He walked back to the copper basin, rubbed the cotton cloth clean, wrung out the water, and hung it on the rack.
He walked back, poured Tian Jiarou another cup of tea, and handed her a stool so that she could sit down and talk.
Li Shuyao: "..."
She felt that she couldn't be outdone by Yue Shu, so she quickly walked back and pushed the small jar that Yue Shu brought in front of Tian Jiarou, saying softly, "This is what we left specially for you. Come and try it, it's delicious."
As soon as he finished speaking, he suddenly felt guilty and put his hands behind his back, "It's true, we two didn't pay attention when we were eating just now, and we ate a little too much."
There are twenty-eight pearls in total. If they are divided equally, each person should get nine, and the ownership of the remaining pearl should be decided through a game.
If Qingyao were here, we wouldn't have to worry so much. Seven pills per person would be enough.
But Qingyao is not here now.
While Jiarou was out getting information, the two of them quietly ate a few more...
Li Shuyao felt very guilty.
After saying that, he added to Tian Jiarou: "But it's okay, there will be more next time. I will remember to give you two more next time, okay?"
Tian Jiarou could hardly hold back her laughter. She pushed the jar back towards Li Shuyao and said, "I don't really like eating these. Let's split it up, ladies."
What little girl doesn’t like these sweet and sour snacks?
She must be being stubborn again.
Li Shuyao didn't believe it at all and pushed the jar back. "No, you must eat these plums today."
Tian Jiarou subconsciously wanted to push it back, but when she heard Li Shuyao say the word "plum", she looked down at the jar and asked, "Green plum?"
Li Shuyao nodded, "Yes."
Tian Jiarou thought for a moment and asked Li Shuyao, "How many did you say you ate just now?"
Li Shuyao stretched out her two index fingers and made a "ten" gesture, "Ten."
Tian Jiarou looked at the jar, then at her, and said slowly: "Green plums are cold in nature. Although they can quench thirst, strengthen the spleen and aid digestion, eating too much can easily hurt the stomach. Miss, you usually..."
She wanted to ask about Li Shuyao's physical condition.
Before she could finish her question, Li Shuyao interrupted her hurriedly, "My stomach is fine. No matter how much I eat, I won't have any indigestion or pain. Don't worry."
This is a unique appetite certified by Lingluo.
Li Shuyao doesn't allow anyone to question it.
Otherwise, it will be even more difficult to eat delicious food in the future.
Tian Jiarou was half-believing and half-doubting, but then she changed her mind and thought that Miss Guo Luoluo and Miss Lingluo would not harm her, so she put her mind at ease.
He lowered his head and poured out all the green plums in the jar, eating them one by one.
Li Shuyao and Yueshu waited quietly for her to finish eating. When they saw that the sweat on her forehead had stopped, they asked her about Wu Yalianchu's recent situation.
Before she spoke, Tian Jiarou glanced at Yue Shu beside her and said softly, "After Miss Yue Shu left, I heard that Wu Ya had fallen seriously ill and had been ill for more than half a month without any improvement. Coincidentally, her family had some connections in the Imperial Household Department, so they probably secretly used some money to send her out of the palace to recuperate for a few days before she returned."
"Not long after she returned, she was transferred to the Yanxi Palace by the Imperial Household Department."
"Yanxi Palace?" Li Shuyao thought for a moment, then recalled the "poisoning case" from a while ago. She asked Tian Jiarou, "Is it the Yanxi Palace that belonged to Concubine Nala?"
Tian Jiarou: “Yes.”
"Ah?" Li Shuyao instantly frowned her pretty face.
As for Concubine Nara, that would be difficult to deal with.
She is the biological mother of the emperor's eldest son. Among the seven concubines who were initially conferred titles, although her status was not as high as that of Concubine An, she would become the first of the four concubines in "Hui Yi De Rong" in just four years.
He is the one who dares to openly and secretly instigate the eldest prince to fight for power with His Royal Highness the Crown Prince.
She was already very powerful in history, and in the novel she is a ruthless character who should not be underestimated.
Furthermore, in order to give her a golden finger, the original author also secretly set Nalan Mingzhu, who had nothing to do with her in history, as her uncle. [1]
Obviously one is from the Ulanara clan and the other is from the Yehenara clan...
In short, it's outrageous.
Li Shuyao began to recall the contents of the original book with a bitter face - after the original owner "Li Shuyao" died, Uya became Qingyao's best friend. Although she was targeted and framed by other concubines in the harem at the Dragon Boat Festival banquet, she did not suffer any other hardships and tortures except for being sent to the Ministry of Punishment only once.
She followed Qingyao to the harem smoothly and became Qingyao's first-class personal maid.
The emperor in the original novel liked Qingyao very much and would turn over her card from time to time, which also led to Uya having many opportunities to show up in front of the emperor.
But the emperor never fell in love with her.
Wu Ya had no choice but to find another way and used words to test Qingyao's thoughts.
As for Qingyao, her best sister, Li Shuyao, had died because of bed climbing, and now she considered Wu Yashi her best friend. How could she watch her follow in Li Shuyao's footsteps? So without a second thought, she rejected Wu Yashi's proposal.
After several unsuccessful attempts, Uya realized that she could not find a way out in the Yikun Palace.
So he quietly set his sights on several other concubines in the harem.
At that time, Concubine Hui and Concubine Rong were in favor and looked down on her. Concubine An was cold and arrogant and disdained to use such means. Concubine Xi, Concubine Duan and Concubine Jing were not favored by the emperor and could not help her even if they wanted to.
Not to mention those noble people who are always there and have agreed to it.
Uya could only ask for help from Concubine Tong, now known as Empress Tong.
——She can’t ask the Queen for help, right?
It just so happened that at that time, Concubine Tong also disliked Concubine Yi who was always entangled with her cousin the emperor, so she agreed without even thinking about it.
Later, Uya, through some unknown method, became pregnant after one attempt. Knowing she couldn't protect the child, she took the initiative to offer it in exchange with Concubine Tong. This is how she successfully earned the position of noble lady after giving birth to the fourth child...
After finishing the recollection, Li Shuyao felt tired.
The plot has gone awry again.
In the original novel, it was Concubine Tong who colluded with Uya, but now she has become Concubine Nara.
This means that Li Shuyao will no longer be able to use her familiarity with the plot to avoid anything.
Li Shuyao sighed deeply, then lay on the table, tilting her head back. She asked Tian Jiarou with a tired expression, "So what happened after she went to the Yanxi Palace..."
Tian Jiarou shook her head, her expression becoming serious. "Because it involves the harem, I can't find out anything."
"Oh, I understand. Thank you for your hard work." Li Shuyao didn't care.
After all... she would be afraid if Tian Jiarou could find out.
She supported herself with her hands and tried to get up from the table.
At this moment, Tian Jiarou suddenly spoke again, "However, I have also heard one thing. The day that Miss Wuya returned home to recuperate was exactly the day when something happened in Madam Liang's family. Moreover, they both returned to the palace one after the other, only one day apart."
"Madame Liang came back first. After she came back, she asked Madame Lin for the list of all the palace maids inside and outside the Qianqing Palace."
"Madame Lin thought she was preparing to train the palace maids, so she gave it to her without noticing."
"Thinking back on it, Nanny Lin felt something was amiss, because the Emperor had clearly only instructed her to help train the maids in the Qianqing Palace. When did he ask her to help with the maids outside the palace as well?"
"Also, Madam Lin also found out that during the time when the young lady was under house arrest, Madam Liang sent someone to privately inquire about your situation."
As soon as Tian Jiarou finished speaking, Li Shuyao was shocked. She was so shocked that she couldn't control the strength of her hands, and she fell back onto the table with a "bang".
At the same time, her delicate and pretty little face was full of disbelief.
She hasn't even entered the harem yet, and a palace fight about her has already begun?
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