Two days passed quickly. Chu Chun and the others packed several large boxes of things and put them all on the carriage. Green Ivy counted them and there were more than a dozen carriages in total.
Huo Danlan and Huo Guxian's luggage was escorted by the Huo family. A doctor named Lou also came along the way, but Zhao Shu did not go to see him. She was sitting leisurely on the chaise lounge reading a medical book in her hand.
Medical books of this era were extremely rare and could not be bought by ordinary people. There were not many prescriptions or records of pharmacology in the books. As Zhao Shu read, she took notes on the side. The characters written with a brush were thick, but she wrote very carefully.
Shengxia was serving Zhao Shu when she saw Xiao Zhuzi come in from outside. She quickly made a shushing gesture, as Zhao Shu disliked being disturbed while reading.
Xiao Zhuzi slowed down and stood quietly with Sheng Xia, waiting for Zhao Shu. Both of them knew that the princess loved to read when she had nothing to do, and most of the books were not for young ladies from noble families, such as history books, medical books, and some travelogues. As for books like "Biographies of Exemplary Women," "Rules for Women," and "Admonitions for Women," she had never touched them. These books had been gathering dust in her study.
There used to be female tutors, but they were persuaded by others, like painters, to leave because they thought the princess was stubborn and clumsy. They never hired a new female tutor after that, so the Empress Dowager must have given up.
However, judging from the princess's current momentum, she can become self-taught even without a teacher.
Zhao Shu was completely unaware that the two women had been silently praising her in their hearts. After writing the last character, she looked up and asked, "How is it?"
"Princess, His Highness Prince Duan has found Chu Yang. Upon seeing that Chu Yang was indeed a man, he almost killed Chu Yang with a knife. Fortunately, our people rescued him in time, and Chu Yang was spared. However, he was slashed on the face, and he will probably have a scar for the rest of his life."
Zhao Shu put down her pen, feeling a mix of guilt and unease. She hadn't expected to be disfigured. For someone as beautiful as Chu Yang, disfigurement would be a good thing, but who could say for sure? Chu Yang was particularly concerned about her appearance.
After thinking for a moment, he said, "Give him more money and let him go far away. Has the household registration been settled?"
"Liu Changshi has already taken care of everything. He comes from a scholarly family and can be exempted from military service. That's fair to him," Xiao Zhuzi replied.
“It’s almost time. Tell Consort Zhang the news. The Empress Dowager will be leaving the palace soon. Let’s meet her at the palace gate. Have you heard anything from Sun Liu?” Zhao Shu said, then remembered something and said to Sheng Xia, “Go and call Xiao Guozi.”
Sheng Xia hurriedly bowed and withdrew, leaving only Xiao Zhuzi. "It seems that Miss Sun Liu just entered the manor. When she saw Young Master Huo, she went to get him some candy. She was talking with Miss Huo. I was just here to report this matter."
Zhao Shu nodded and said, "Go ahead."
Xiao Zhuzi withdrew to attend to his business. A short while later, Xiao Guozi and Sheng Xia arrived together, and Xiao Guozi bowed first, saying, "Princess."
"Hand Yang Quan over to Elder Hai. As for the matter of Prince Duan hiding weapons in our mansion, I will write a letter and you can send it to Lord Wei." After saying that, she glanced at the clean and tidy room, took out the letter she had already written, handed it to Xiao Guozi, and left without looking back.
As soon as they stepped out the door, they saw Sun Yun and Huo Danlan walking towards them, each holding one of Huo Guxian's hands. Upon seeing Zhao Shu, Sun Yun quickly let go of Huo Guxian's hand and ran to her, saying, "You! You didn't even tell me that such a cute boy had come to the manor, so I didn't bring any gifts. I don't care, you have to deliver this greeting gift for me."
Huo Guxian hurriedly bowed politely, still behaving like a little adult. "Sister Sun, you are too polite. I have already received your gift. It was I who was impolite for not preparing a gift for you."
Sun Yun asked in confusion, "When did I give you a gift?"
"Sister Sun just gave Xian some candy." Huo Guxian said in a serious tone, looking incredibly cute, making Zhao Shu's heart flutter.
Sun Yun was speechless. "What kind of greeting gift is that? I'll have the princess give you a better one tomorrow."
Seeing that Sun Yun and Huo Guxian were going on and on about the gift, Huo Danlan quickly stopped them, saying, "Let's not keep the Empress Dowager waiting any longer, let's go."
The group arrived at the front hall, where Bi Qiao and Granny Zhuang had selected maids, servants, and household guards to accompany them, as well as Zhang Liu and most of the manor soldiers. Only a few manor soldiers remained to guard the gate, and everything else had been stored away and locked.
Zhao Shu glanced at the entourage, a large group of people waiting in front of the hall. Among them, standing with Granny Zhuang and the others, was Fei Peng. It had been a long time since she had seen Fei Peng. He seemed to be thinner than before and had grown taller. "Have you seen your brother?"
Now that Fei Chi is the plaintiff in the imperial examination fraud case, she must be under excellent protection and has never come to the Yongwang Mansion, not even to deliver a letter. It is unknown whether the imperial examination fraud case can be resolved until the truth is revealed. It is likely that several parties are still fighting, and she is too short-sighted to know the dangers and battles involved.
Fei Peng nodded. "I've met him. I saw him at Yipinju yesterday. He's doing very well and asked me to... I'll give his regards to the Princess."
Even now, he still stutters a little when he says the word "slave," as he is quite ashamed to utter it. Zhao Shu is not one to make things difficult for people. If Fei Chi could rise to prominence, Fei Peng would naturally not work as her accountant for the rest of his life. So she smiled and said, "You are an accountant, which is equivalent to a staff member. You don't need to call yourself a slave."
Fei Peng's face flushed red, and he was even more grateful to Zhao Shu. Zhao Shu, however, did not look at him at this moment. She said a few words and then led her people out of the mansion in a grand procession.
The moment the main gate closed, Zhao Shu felt as if her fate had been completely changed. Many past events lingered in her mind, but she was no longer as resentful as before. Things had to be done step by step, and she still had a lot of time.
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