Doctor Gu also pricked up his ears and listened attentively. In the past few years, he had been entrusted by the Princess to follow Wen Xiaozi outside. He wondered if things had turned upside down in the capital.
"Let's start with... why I left the capital last time," the Princess said, taking a deep breath. "The Emperor, Prince Xuan, and I are all born of the same mother. The Emperor is the eldest, and Prince Xuan is two years older than me. The three of us have been very close since childhood, and both of my elder brothers have always been very protective of me. After the Emperor ascended the throne, Prince Xuan guarded the southern border for him. My husband was originally supposed to guard the northern border for him, but in order to marry me, he willingly gave up his position as a general and stayed in the capital to take on a sinecure."
Five years ago, we discovered that Prince Rong had planted agents in the four military camps surrounding the capital and was secretly contacting the border garrison in the west. My husband, the imperial consort, sensed something amiss and, under the guise of drinking and merrymaking, secretly investigated Prince Rong's crimes. However, he was discovered by Prince Rong's men and poisoned. My husband, surnamed Xue, is quite influential in the Xue family army in the north. In my grief, I discovered I was pregnant with his posthumous child, the only heir of the Xue family. To protect this child, I secretly left the capital. Unfortunately, I was still discovered, and Yueyue was almost kidnapped as a result. If anything had happened to Yueyue, I fear I would not have survived.
After leaving Sanyang Village, I originally intended to return to my fiefdom in Yongzhou. However, Yuan Bai gave me thirty guards from the Xuanwang Mansion, so I thought it better to return to the capital than to go back to an unfamiliar place. The most dangerous place is the safest place. Besides, the Xuanwang personally returned to the capital last month to oversee things, saying he wouldn't leave until I gave birth to my child.
Madam Su asked in surprise, "The Prince Rong you mentioned, is he... the father of Xiao Youran's stepmother?"
Xiao Youran curled her lip in disdain.
What stepmother? She's just a narrow-minded, despicable woman.
In her previous life, she never returned to the Jiang family until her death. She first lived in the Su family and later married into the Duke's mansion.
Mother didn't get her dowry back either, firstly because Mother was bedridden, and secondly because the Su family was always wealthy and didn't care about the dowry that others considered worth a fortune.
As for Princess Qingping and Prince Rong? It seems they supported Prince Jin. After the emperor fell ill and became unconscious, Prince Jin ruled on behalf of the emperor. Prince Rong became the regent.
It seems the entire Jiang family has been promoted?
However, she doesn't remember any of it.
The eldest princess nodded. "I've heard a bit about Xiao Youran's outburst at the Princess's residence last month. Since you've already crossed paths, I've explained it in more detail. But Princess Qingping isn't easy to deal with; she has Prince Rong behind her. Prince Rong is our imperial uncle, a generation above us. Even if Prince Xuan came, he would have to pay his respects to him. If you encounter Princess Qingping, you'd better proceed with caution."
Madam Su smiled, "Now that the Princess has said that, my daughter and I will know how to act. The capital is a place where powerful and noble people gather. It would be fine if we didn't offend any of them. But since there are those who have already made enemies with us, we will not be polite."
The eldest princess sighed again, "The interpersonal relationships in the capital are complicated. We'll deal with each other as we encounter them in the future. I'm telling you the most important thing to remind you that the Rong Prince's Mansion is hostile to me, and they might also target you. Moreover, I've heard about your two incidents of causing trouble at the Princess's Mansion and the Yong'an Earl's Mansion. This Princess Qingping is no pushover either, so you must be careful."
Madam Su nodded, "Thank you for your guidance, Princess."
Xiao Youran suddenly asked, "Your Highness, why couldn't Prince Rong tolerate the birth of his consort's posthumous child? Could it be because his surname is Xue?"
The eldest princess nodded, "The Xue family army is the most powerful army in the northern border. Back then, the prince consort stayed in the capital to marry me, and his subordinates were extremely reluctant to let him go. They jokingly said that the prince consort should give them a few little generals, and then the Xue family army would still be around in the future!"
Therefore, it is highly likely that this posthumous child of the Xue family will one day command the Xue family army.
Are all people caught in this vortex of imperial power so imaginative?
It will take at least ten or twenty years for this baby to grow up, right?
Xiao Youran asked again, puzzled, "If that's the case, why didn't they just take action when they were in Wufeng County? Why did they kidnap Yueyue instead? And at that time, those thieves said that they specifically wanted to hand her over to the madam on that pleasure boat."
The eldest princess frowned. "You must want to cause me grief and pain, so that I will lose my child?"
She herself found it strange; indeed, if they wanted to get rid of the child in her womb, wouldn't they have just killed her directly? Why kidnap Yueyue?
"Furthermore, if they can poison you with the Dream Flower poison without you even noticing, why don't they just use other deadly poisons to kill you outright?"
The eldest princess remained silent.
Madam Su asked, "Could it be that they intend to use the young princess to blackmail Your Highness? Does Your Highness possess anything they desire?"
The eldest princess slowly shook her head, still offering no answer.
She needs to figure out the key to this slowly.
Xiao Youran racked her brains but couldn't remember what happened to the eldest princess in her previous life.
However, I heard of a courtesan who was extremely beautiful, and it was later revealed that she was of royal lineage. This courtesan initially didn't believe it, but later regained her memory, and unable to bear the humiliation, she drowned herself in the river.
So... in her previous life, Yueyue fell into the hands of that madam and couldn't escape, and even lost her memory?
Why didn't the people who captured her use her to blackmail the princess?
After they finished speaking, Doctor Gu took Xiao Youran back to her courtyard to discuss the antidote. Madam Su then settled the Princess in the west wing to rest before arranging lunch.
Xiao Youran suddenly thought, if skills could be exchanged for luck points, could she exchange them for acupuncture?
Thinking about it this way, she became excited again. "Master, the princess is a woman, you can't possibly give her acupuncture, can you?"
Doctor Gu was surprised, "Little girl, you know acupuncture?"
Xiao Youran smiled and said, "No, Master, if you teach me, I'll learn!"
Doctor Gu: ...
He knew that he, as a tool, was about to start playing his role again.
So Doctor Gu began rummaging through boxes and cabinets.
Xiao Youran took the opportunity to summon her little notebook and exchanged 300 points of luck for acupuncture, which immediately took root in her mind and heart.
But even after she had completed her transformation, she found that Old Man Gu was still tossing and turning.
Seeing Xiao Youran's impatience, Doctor Gu shouted, "Yan Jin! Where are my golden needles?!"
We can't be without such an important prop.
Yan Jin rushed in, hurriedly bowed to Xiao Youran, and then quickly rummaged through a box to find a box, which she presented to Doctor Gu.
Xiao Youran didn't like Yan Jin.
Of all the girls rescued from that temple, she was the most cunning, inciting the other girls to distrust the government.
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