Chapter 88: Hiding Anhe's Jealousy
"Otherwise, where do you think the injury on his back came from?"
Qiu Cheng suddenly realized: "So he's the scholar who survived being flogged by the Ninth Prince? Could it be that he was beaten because the Ninth Prince discovered his feelings for you? But he only received such a light beating."
"Did you persuade him?"
Qiu Cheng was once again impressed by Zhao Liangxu.
"I never expected that after knowing someone else's feelings for you, the Ninth Prince would still let that person live? Isn't he afraid that you'll actually hook up with someone else?"
Zhao Liangxu coughed twice. Sometimes she felt that Qiu Cheng was able to live well in the palace thanks to her own medical skills and family background: "How can you say that? Am I that kind of person?"
"But I think that even after being beaten, that scholar still seems to be infatuated with you. You should be careful."
After Qiu Cheng finished diagnosing Zhao Liangxu, he went back to packing up the medicinal herbs, only occasionally exchanging a few words with Zhao Liangxu.
As she spoke, she suddenly remembered something, put down the medicinal herbs in her hand, and said, "By the way, this scholar should be called Chen Qinglie, right? That explains why he looks so familiar. Didn't I see him with you before, at the teahouse?"
"If it's him, then that's truly remarkable."
Zhao Liangxu listened with curiosity and asked, "What do you mean?"
"He went through a period of hardship under the Ninth Prince, and the reason for his punishment was simply that he had offended the Ninth Prince. However, the injury he sustained has made him very popular among the people in the Imperial Academy recently, allowing him to cultivate a reputation for integrity and uprightness. As a result, he has connections with many people in the Ministry of Rites, and even my maternal grandfather knows this man. He is truly remarkable."
Zhao Liangxu wasn't particularly curious about officialdom; she only paid attention to things that interested her. Therefore, this was the first time she had heard about this, and she was quite surprised.
"He should be able to get a recommendation from the Vice Minister of Rites and secure a promising official position," Qiu Cheng said.
Isn't that a coincidence? Zhang Changfei's grandfather was the Vice Minister of Rites. It makes sense that Chen Qinglie and Zhang Changfei were on good terms.
However, he himself was quite capable, managing to make friends with so many people by leveraging his influence, and even leaving a deep impression on the Vice Minister of Rites. After all, it would have been almost impossible for him to meet a high-ranking official like the Vice Minister, who was of the third rank, based solely on his interactions with Zhang Changfei.
"He is indeed capable, but what does that have to do with me?" Zhao Liangxu asked, puzzled. Qiu Cheng shouldn't be the kind of person who would discuss other people's careers without reason.
"Of course it's related to you."
"If he is indeed recommended for an official position, he will have to attend court in the future. If Chen Qinglie obediently avoids the Ninth Prince, he should be fine. But judging from his actions at Zhilan Hall, he still has his eye on you. Be careful not to get noticed by the Ninth Prince again."
Zhao Liangxu hadn't really thought of that. After a moment's thought, she said, "He shouldn't be the kind of person who's reckless. He should have been able to sense the coldness in my tone."
Just now, it was at most a reunion between old friends. She deliberately spoke in a cold and sharp tone, without much of a polite tone. If Chen Qinglie were smart, he would know whether a career path or a vague idea is more important.
Zhao Liangxu didn't take it to heart. Seeing that Zhao Liangxu didn't seem to care much about the matter, Qiu Cheng thought that perhaps he was overthinking it.
*
Two days passed in the blink of an eye. As he had said, An He stayed in the palace for two days without returning home. Zhao Liangxu didn't have anything urgent to do to see him either, so she and Zhu Mu resumed their previous days of casually strolling around the capital.
Anhe returned to the mansion on the third day, followed by two maids. One wore a light green silk skirt, and the other wore an orange silk skirt of the same style. However, compared to the ordinary maids' skirts, the two maids' skirts were shorter and more neat, like the style of a yisa.
"Summer has passed and spring has arrived. Has Zhao Liangxu been busy these past few days?"
Chun spoke first: "Your Majesty, Princess Zhao, as usual, went out of the palace these past two days with her maids to Zhilan Hall, Qiuchen Bookstore, San Bookstore, and several safe teahouses. She also stopped at jewelry stalls and weapon shops. During that time, she had her fortune told at a fortune-telling stall. I was too far away to see the divination results clearly."
Xia added, "Princess Zhao ordered more than a dozen books from the bookstore. Because she ordered a lot of books, she had the bookstore staff deliver them to her residence. I do not yet know the specific titles. As for the weapons shop and other places, we both carefully observed the surrounding crowd and did not see any suspicious people. No one could have harmed Princess Zhao."
The two had previously accompanied Zhao Liangxu on her travels as guards, but now Anhe had them secretly follow her, not to monitor her, but to protect her.
Two men from Zhang Heye's residence had also escorted Zhao Chengxin's men into the house. It was because the two men noticed something was wrong with the servant that they subdued him before the Imperial Guards could act.
"Alright, I asked you to protect me, not to investigate every detail of the books and divination symbols. Be mindful of your limits," An He said, waving his hand.
"But..." Xia hesitated.
Anhe stopped and frowned, asking, "But what? Didn't you say there were no suspicious people?"
"Your Majesty, I don't know if that person is considered suspicious. Your Majesty has already investigated his background. He is Chen Qinglie, a translator from the Siyi Pavilion." As Xia Yi said this, Chun Yi nudged Xia Yi with her elbow.
But since Xia had already spoken, it caught Anhe's attention.
"How could it be him? Did he see Zhao Liangxu?"
Anhe's voice was somewhat cold.
"That person went to Zhilan Hall to ask for medicine. He spoke a few words with Princess Zhao and then left. He was originally an insignificant person, but Chun was observant and chatted with her subordinates a bit more. Because she saw Chen Qinglie quickly spot Princess Zhao and take the initiative to greet her, it seemed a bit deliberate."
Chun, who was listening to Xia's report from the side, felt a headache coming on. Wasn't it agreed that the two of them would only talk about this person in private? Why did she tell the Ninth Prince directly?
If the Ninth Prince becomes suspicious because of this, and even speculates about something that didn't happen, wouldn't the two of them be the biggest sinners?
Spring waited anxiously for Anhe's reaction, but no fury came. Instead, the voice that followed was as cold as a blade, scraping against their backs.
"Him?" An He raised his voice ambiguously, then asked, "How did Zhao Liangxu behave?"
He only cared about Zhao Liangxu's reaction.
Before Xia could speak, Chun interrupted, "Princess Zhao only exchanged a few words with this person. I saw that Chen Qinglie's expression froze after hearing Princess Zhao's words, so he must have given up."
Anhe hesitated, then said, "Oh?"
Xia realized he had said something out of turn, and lowered his head, sweating profusely.
"Alright, you two can leave now."
Anhe remained silent for a moment, surprisingly calm to the two, neither angry nor upset, but simply dismissed them.
An He's face was calm, and the emotions in his eyes were unreadable.
After he entered the study, he pushed open the door and closed it, only to hear Zhao Liangxu's voice behind him.
“I knew Eunuch An would come back at this time.”
Anhe turned around and saw Zhao Liangxu lying comfortably on the daybed, with several books on the table and one open in her hand, clearly reading it.
"You're quite impolite. You could spend an entire day in our study and we wouldn't even know."
Zhao Liangxu replied without even raising her head, "This is the study where Eunuch An said I could touch anything, so I can come and go as I please. Why do I need to inform Eunuch An?"
After Anhe sat back down at her desk, she didn't reply to Zhao Liangxu, but just watched her silently.
Zhao Liangxu hadn't heard An He speak for a long time, so she looked up at him.
He immediately met An He's silent eyes, staring at Zhao Liangxu with his dark pupils.
"Does Eunuch An have anything to say?" Zhao Liangxu noticed his strange mood and asked.
Judging from his appearance, he clearly has something on his mind.
Anhe said, "Come here and sit on my lap."
Zhao Liangxu was puzzled, but this was a rare request from An He, and since it was a request he made voluntarily, she certainly couldn't refuse.
Zhao Liangxu put down her book, looked at An He curiously, and walked closer to An He step by step.
Anhe's eyes followed Zhao Liangxu's every move.
Zhao Liangxu asked, "Why has Eunuch An been so quiet today?"
She walked over to Anhe, but instead of sitting down, she leaned on the table to express her question.
What do you think we should say?
"For example... first criticize my lazy posture, then bring a blanket to cover me, and while you're at it, have someone outside bring fresh fruit to put on the table on the daybed?"
Those eyes, filled with dark beads, curved slightly at Zhao Liangxu's words.
"You're quite outspoken, and you know how to enjoy yourself."
Anhe grabbed Zhao Liangxu's wrist and pulled her into his arms.
Zhao Liangxu sat sideways, tightly gripping Anhe, her only support.
"Eunuch An is truly extraordinary today."
She teased, then asked, "So what exactly is wrong, Eunuch An? You look unwell, yet perfectly normal. I can't guess."
An He was now very close to Zhao Liangxu, so close that Zhao Liangxu could hardly see his expression. So she leaned back to create a little distance so she could see him clearly.
Anhe noticed this and tightened his grip on her waist.
"Tell us who you've met these past few days."
A soft voice rang in Zhao Liangxu's ears, like a harmless little snake gently coiling its cold body around its master's finger, asking for something.
"Eunuch An wants to know what happened to me these past two days. They were just two ordinary days, and they were rather boring without Eunuch An by my side."
Anhe tightened his grip, urging Zhao Liangxu on.
Zhao Liangxu's lips curved into a smile as she meticulously recounted to Anhe, "After waking up the morning before yesterday, I first met with the servant in your courtyard, and then I met with Zhumu, asking Hongzhu and Cuinian from my household to go to the shop to buy some flower seeds..."
"You know that's not what I wanted to ask. I heard you've been out of the manor these past few days. Did you meet any interesting people?"
Anhe interrupted her.
Zhao Liangxu nodded with a slight smile: "Eunuch An is really anxious. Alright, alright, I'll just tell you who I met outside."
"Then I went to a bookstore, chatted with the familiar shopkeeper for a while, bought some books, and also went to Jiuxiang Teahouse, Mingzhuzhai and some small stalls. I even chatted with a fortune teller for a bit. The fortune teller had premature gray hair and looked very charlatan."
Anhe listened silently, but was already losing focus.
"...That's all. Apart from Qiu Cheng, I don't know the names of the others."
Zhao Liangxu seemed oblivious and continued to speak with a smile.
Anhe pursed her lips, feeling a chill in her heart.
She didn't say the person's name. Why did she deliberately hide it?
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Author's Note: Hey, Eunuch An is so petty!
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