Chapter 155: Joining the Game
The Queen approached Minglan again, her voice low, her eyes sharp, and with a hint of temptation, "Minglan, you held the blood edict in your hand, carried the military order, and went to Yuzhou alone. This courage and wisdom are beyond the reach of ordinary women. You not only saved me and His Majesty from danger, but also paved a smooth path for His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. This kindness, how can it be offset by a princess title? You only need to stand by my side and accompany me, and there will be a place for you in the court. The first time I saw you, I knew that you were different from other ladies in the imperial court. You are a girl who can do great things!"
Minglan knew that she could not refuse. She looked up at the Queen, with gratitude and joy in her eyes, and said softly but firmly: "Minglan will remember your kindness and trust in my heart. In this case, Minglan is willing to assist your Majesty with my humble efforts." Minglan
's heart sank when she heard this. The Queen's tone was calm, but Minglan knew that the words seemed calm on the surface, but in fact they were full of turmoil. Today, she also saw the Queen's methods and her greed for power, which forced Minglan to make a careful decision.
"Your Majesty, Minglan is ashamed to accept it." Minglan bowed slightly, with a little excitement and joy in her tone, "In this case, Minglan is willing to assist your Majesty with my humble efforts and work together for national affairs."
The Queen got the answer she wanted, and a barely perceptible smile appeared on the corner of her mouth, which then turned into a sad look. The Queen patted Minglan's hand and straightened her body. The feeling of oppression suddenly disappeared, and Minglan also showed just the right amount of sadness at the right time.
The ladies of honor also entered the palace to pay their respects one after another, and Minglan saw that Princess Pingning had also arrived.
Princess Pingning saw that Minglan had arrived before her, so she sat next to the Queen. Her eyes flashed, and she still walked forward to salute the two of them.
Minglan was not yet able to adapt to her identity as the Princess of the Protectorate, and subconsciously wanted to avoid Princess Pingning's salute. The Queen grabbed Minglan's hand on the side. Minglan remembered her identity and what the Queen had said to her before, so she relaxed her body and calmly accepted Princess Pingning's salute. The other ladies of honor also came to salute one by one, and the Queen nodded with satisfaction. She wanted to give Minglan a face today.
After everyone finished their greetings, the Queen kept Princess Pingning by her side to talk.
"Don't be too sad, mother. You should take care of yourself." Princess Pingning comforted the Queen.
The Queen looked at the Princess with relief, "It's okay. I just felt sad when I thought of Your Majesty. I couldn't help it..." As she spoke, she wiped her tears again. Minglan handed the Queen a handkerchief and applauded the Queen's skill in changing her expression.
Princess Pingning also cried with them. The mother and daughter almost cried with their heads in their arms. Minglan blinked a few times and also picked up the handkerchief to press the corners of her eyes. She couldn't help but join in. For a moment, the crying in the palace was resounding, and everyone's face was full of sorrow.
After a long period of mourning, the Queen finally stopped crying and said to Princess Pingning in a soft voice: "Your Majesty is passing away, and the announcement of the spring examination results may have to be delayed for a while, but for Yuanruo, it is just a matter of time. With his talent, he will definitely be on the list. You and I have a deep mother-daughter relationship, and Yuanruo is my grandson. When he enters the official career, he will undoubtedly be a great help to me."
Princess Pingning's heart moved slightly when she heard this, and she keenly caught the meaning of the Queen's unwillingness to give up power easily in her words. She quickly responded: "Your son will obey your will in everything, and Yuanruo will definitely follow your lead and assist you wholeheartedly." The Queen was very pleased with Princess Pingning's obedience when she heard this, and nodded slightly to show her appreciation.
In a place where the queen could not easily notice, Princess Pingning and Minglan on the other side quietly exchanged a look, which contained complex and subtle emotions. Both of them were helpless.
When leaving the palace, Minglan and Princess Pingning walked side by side. The two of them could not directly discuss the queen's thoughts in the palace. They talked about some irrelevant palace walls and were deliberately avoiding it. However, under this surface of indifference, the thoughts of the two were as clear as a mirror.
"The flowers in this palace are really prosperous, I wonder if they can survive this changeable weather." Minglan whispered softly, but her eyes intentionally or unintentionally swept across the entire imperial city, as if looking for some answers.
Upon hearing this, Princess Pingning raised a faint smile and replied, "Flowers bloom and fall at their own time. As long as we follow nature and seize the opportunity, and let the flowers bloom in the right season, they will bloom beautifully. Gardeners will not let the flowers suffer from wind and rain." Her voice was light, but it contained some subtle meaning.
Minglan glanced at Princess Pingning beside her calmly, a hint of understanding flashed in her eyes, but she continued to speak, "The plum blossoms are proud of the snow and frost, and they stick to the loneliness of winter; the lotus flowers are unstained by the mud, and they maintain their purity without being stained by dust; the chrysanthemums are proud of the frost and bloom, standing unyieldingly on the branches. These flowers maintain their individuality and stick to their beliefs, so that they can push away the clouds and see the sun, and usher in their own world. They don't need gardeners to shelter them from the wind and rain, they can withstand the rain and wind, and wait for the clouds to clear and see the bright moon."
Princess Pingning was surprised by Minglan's words. After savoring them, she admired Minglan's strong character in her heart, and felt that Minglan was a good candidate to be the Qi family's head wife.
"The princess still knows more about flowers!" The two looked at each other and tacitly stopped talking.
After leaving the palace, they saw Xiao Qin standing beside the carriage, looking coldly in one direction. Minglan and Princess Pingning followed her gaze and saw Ningyuan Hou talking to Gu Tingye. Ningyuan Hou tried to persuade them, but Gu Tingye looked impatient.
"It used to be said that the wife of Ningyuan Marquis was a very kind-hearted person and a rare good stepmother. Since Marquis Gu personally stopped those rumors, the reputation of the wife of Ningyuan Marquis has become worse. In the past, the wife of the Marquis often went out, but in the past two years, she has not been seen often."
Princess Pingning intended to tell Minglan these secrets of the noble families to let her understand the power of them, but she didn't know that Minglan knew more about this than she did.
"How can someone really value other people's children more than their own children? It's just that they have other intentions, or they are pretending to be good and hiding it."
Minglan talked to the princess, but her eyes were always on Xiao Qinshi. Minglan felt that Xiao Qinshi was a little pitiful, and she hated her for letting Gu Tingye hear so much suffering.
The princess agreed with Minglan's words, nodded, and said: "The government is too clever, I'm afraid it will be a failure again. Gu Tingye is the prince's confidant, and now he has been appointed as the general of the country. Marquis Gu has always felt guilty about this, and now that his son has made progress, he will not let him go out again. I heard that Marquis Gu's eldest son is weak and has no son to inherit, so the title will eventually fall on Gu Tingye's head."