He suddenly changed his attitude and looked at Zhao Shu with a scrutinizing gaze that made Zhao Shu feel uneasy.
"What is it you need to say?"
As they spoke, they arrived at Chensong Courtyard. Bi Qiao led the maids to serve tea and snacks and then stood guard outside the door to prevent anyone from coming in and disturbing them.
"I ask you, what's the story behind Lord Xie saying today that the marriage has been arranged ahead of schedule?"
Upon hearing this, Zhao Shu immediately felt guilty. Holding her teacup, she looked down at the tea inside and refused to discuss the matter.
Undeterred by the lack of an answer, Prince Yong continued, "Speak." He spoke earnestly, "What exactly is going on? Lord Xie has actually started trying to claim kinship with me, saying that we should visit each other often in the future. Our family and the Xie family are not related."
Zhao Shu never expected that Xie Yun, the dignified head of the Xie family, would be so gossipy; it was truly an eye-opener for her.
"What did he say?" Zhao Shu tried to change the subject.
"He didn't say anything. He somehow got a pair of geese, which were of excellent quality. Today he took them to the palace to show the Emperor and asked him for an imperial edict. The Emperor didn't give one and said he would ask you instead. When he saw me in the palace, he said some strange things and asked me if I liked the pair of geese."
Zhao Shu was at a loss for words. Was she supposed to tell her own father that she was already arranging a marriage for her future daughter before she was even married herself? That would be too shameless.
Xie Yun is so unreliable! After inwardly despising Xie Yun, Zhao Shu thought for a while and then said, "Perhaps Lord Xie has been quite free lately. Besides, people get younger as they get older. Don't you think Lord Xie has aged a lot?"
“Even he is like this,” said Prince Yong.
Zhao Shu: ...
“Father, winter is coming, and the shop’s accounts need to be checked. A-Yun will be going too. Are you going? Or should we come together? We’ll be family in the future anyway.” Zhao Shu cleverly changed the subject, bringing Sun Yun into the conversation.
Prince Yong instantly lost his arrogance, glared at Zhao Shu, and then said, "I have an appointment with Lord Liu for drinks, so I won't be dining with you. Oh, by the way, I heard that Ninth Sister is ill. Why don't you go and see her?"
Zhao Shu frowned. "Who told you that?"
"It's all thanks to Lord Liu. His wife knows Jiu Niang, and she hasn't been doing well since Mr. Xiao left the capital." Prince Yong wasn't concerned about Jiu Niang; he was just making up an excuse to change the subject.
However, since she was with Zhao Shuyi, she also wanted to change the subject. Poor Prince Yong thought he had successfully diverted Zhao Shuyi's attention.
"Alright, I'll go see her. Father, aren't you going to have a drink?" Zhao Shuzhen was afraid he would suddenly remember that she hadn't told him the answer.
Prince Yong turned around and hurriedly left the mansion, heading straight for Liu Huan's residence.
After sending Prince Yong away, Zhao Shu was in a rather heavy mood. After instructing Chu Chun and others to prepare gifts, she also went to the Xiao residence.
Although Jiu Niang had no official title, she had been by Xiao Xingyuan's side for many years and was no different from others. Therefore, after Xiao Xingyuan left the capital, she lived in the Xiao residence.
However, when Zhao Shu arrived at the Xiao residence, she found that something was amiss. The atmosphere was strange, and the servants in the Xiao residence were all lifeless, without a trace of a smile on their faces.
"Princess, the servants at the Xiao residence have been replaced," Xiao Guozi whispered.
The Xiao residence was a courtyard of the Xiao family in the capital, and it wasn't very important. Naturally, Zhao Shu wouldn't pay attention to a servant in an unimportant residence. However, she was very pleased that Xiao Guozi remembered.
"Be careful."
"Yes." Xiao Guozi had been on high alert ever since he entered the manor.
When Zhao Shu met Jiu Niang, she was in the courtyard of the mansion. She looked unwell and came out to greet Zhao Shu, but she walked slowly and was covered in sweat after only a few steps.
"If you're sick, just rest well. There's no need to come out to greet you." Zhao Shu took two steps forward, reached out to help her up, and casually checked her pulse.
Although she didn't treat patients often, her pulse diagnosis was quite accurate. After a simple pulse diagnosis, Zhao Shu discovered that Jiu Niang wasn't sick at all, but poisoned.
The person who poisoned the patient was very skilled; most doctors wouldn't be able to tell and would only misdiagnose it as a common cold or other minor ailment.
However, Zhao Shu had studied in modern times for so many years, and although she was not as experienced as the doctors, she knew more common sense than them.
"It's nothing, the doctor said it's just a cold, I'll be fine in a few days. What brings you here today, Princess?" she said apologetically.
When I first met Jiu Niang, she was a spirited woman with bright eyes and a lively demeanor, but now she looks like a flower that is withering away, which is heartbreaking to see.
"Don't underestimate a cold; it can be fatal," Zhao Shu replied, pretending not to know that she had been poisoned.
Jiu Niang forced a smile and led Zhao Shu slowly back to her courtyard.
Her courtyard was very simple, even less impressive than a garden with green ivy, and it didn't look like the home of an honored guest at all.
"There's nothing to offer, Princess, please don't be offended." She instructed the maid to serve tea, but the maid remained expressionless, like a puppet.
Zhao Shu saw everything but said nothing. "I heard from Madam Liu that you were ill, so I came to see you. I didn't present my visiting card when I came. I'm the one who disturbed you."
"As for the princess, I don't know many people in the capital. The princess is a noble person, and it is already a great honor for her to come to see me. How could I dare to say that the princess is bothering me? It's just that my body is too weak, and I haven't been able to visit the princess often."
In the past, Jiu Niang would not have spoken so much, but today she spoke so succinctly that Zhao Shu was secretly puzzled.
Did something happen to her?
"When will Mr. Xiao return from his travels? Does Ninth Sister know?" Zhao Shu asked.
When asked about Xiao Xingyuan, Jiu Niang suddenly started coughing violently. Zhao Shu was startled and hurriedly ordered Chu Chun to attend to her, but her maid didn't react in time.
This was all too unusual, and Zhao Shu wanted to go back.
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