be punished
Qingyaju is hidden behind a deep pool shrouded in mist. In the bottomless water, a few small fish are swimming happily, and several water lilies are in full bloom, swaying in the clear yellow sunlight.
In the lush bamboo forest, the small courtyard with red walls and black tiles is particularly eye-catching.
Qi Qinghe had been preparing a plan in his mind all the way and had not noticed such a pleasant scene.
But she felt as if someone was staring at her, which made her tremble all over and break out in a cold sweat.
I turned around suddenly and saw the emerald green bamboo forest was silent, with the mottled shadows of the trees motionless.
It's really weird, there's not even a trace of wind at this moment, Qi Qinghe muttered, but didn't stop walking.
In the blink of an eye, he arrived at the door. On the dark red plaque, three black characters "Qingyaju" were written in a flamboyant style. The strokes were bold yet steady, very much like the style of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince.
The palace servant knocked on the door, and it quickly opened a crack. Cheng Xi poked her head out, "I've told you so many times that Your Highness doesn't like to be disturbed. How come you still can't remember? So early in the morning..."
Before she could finish her words, Cheng Xi saw the Crown Princess and started to talk, "Your Majesty, why are you here? His Highness is in the room right now, but the Imperial Concubine and Princess Shaoyao are also here. Your Majesty, please wait a moment. I will report to His Highness."
"If it's not convenient for Your Highness, I will come back later." Qi Qinghe hurriedly stopped him.
Princess Shaoyao remembered that the gentle and virtuous Princess Shaoyao, Xiao Junluo, whom she had met last night, was the Crown Prince's sister from the same mother.
The mother, son, and siblings were all gathered together, so she decided not to disturb them.
"Don't worry, Your Majesty. I will report it to you." Cheng Xi said with a smile, and retracted his head without waiting for the Your Majesty to refuse.
Qi Qinghe stood there silently, faintly hearing laughter in the house, and occasionally her name being mentioned.
After a while, the door opened and Cheng Xi quickly moved outside. "Your Majesty, please come in."
Qi Qinghe pursed her lips, signaled the two maids to stay, and she slowly walked into the house, holding up the hem of her skirt.
The prince was dressed in a pitch-black brocade robe with dark silver patterns hidden in the sleeves. He sat behind the desk, still sitting upright with his back straight.
On the clean table, there were some snacks and light rice porridge.
The Imperial Concubine and Xiao Junluo, who were sitting opposite the Crown Prince, turned around when they heard the voice.
The light blue gauze dress she wore made her look even more obedient. Qi Qinghe bowed gracefully and glanced at everyone in the room.
Fortunately, the maid stayed in the outer room, otherwise the food would not be enough.
"We are all family, why are you so polite?" The imperial concubine smiled and asked someone to come and sit down.
Xiao Junluo stood up and bowed to her. "I was in a hurry last night and didn't greet the emperor's sister-in-law. I was really presumptuous. Please forgive me."
Qi Qinghe smiled and said it was okay, then slowly sat down, pretending to be casual as he glanced at His Royal Highness the Crown Prince opposite him.
Unexpectedly, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince looked at her intently.
Qi Qinghe cleared her throat and said, "I was drunk last night and disturbed Your Highness. I was extremely frightened."
The imperial concubine's eyes wandered between the two of them, sipping her tea in silence.
"Although the wine last night was sweet, it had a strong aftertaste. It would be better for the emperor's sister-in-law to drink less." Xiao Junluo was only twelve years old now and did not understand the twists and turns between adults. He looked left and right, and seeing that his mother and brother had no intention of speaking, he took over the emperor's sister-in-law's words and explained them seriously.
As expected of the Crown Prince's sister, her tone was exactly the same as the Crown Prince's. Qi Qinghe smiled and replied, "Have Mother and Imperial Sister had their meals yet? How about I ask them to bring some food over?"
The imperial concubine looked at her little daughter helplessly, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. "I'm not busy. I just stopped by to take a look."
"Now that someone is taking care of this nerd, I feel a lot more relaxed." The imperial concubine gently held her daughter-in-law's hand. "Just sit for a while. Why don't you come and see me off."
When the imperial concubine spoke, Qi Qinghe had no choice but to respond.
His Royal Highness the Crown Prince did not utter a word from beginning to end, but just lowered his head and drank his porridge.
The Imperial Concubine and the Crown Princess walked one after the other by the pond, their pretty figures reflected in the water, tumbling with the ripples.
Xiao Junluo said that he had to study and attend classes today, so he left first.
"The Crown Prince has had this temper since he was young. He's very rigid and doesn't know how to change." The Imperial Concubine paused, casually picked up a nearby fishing bait, and sprinkled it into the water. "When he was ten years old, His Majesty praised him for being smart, thoughtful, and studious, saying he was perfect for becoming a Crown Prince."
"That year, after His Majesty praised him, he suddenly had a high fever. I stayed by his side for three days and three nights, sleepless." Speaking of the past, the imperial concubine sighed, "I'm not telling you this to make you feel sorry for him."
"His temper is innate. Since then, he's become less and less social, and it's rare for him to choose you as his principal wife." The imperial concubine suppressed her smile and said seriously, "He has no understanding of love, so it's inevitable that he will wrong you. But since you enjoy such glory, you should be more patient and not act like ordinary people, always throwing tantrums and making unreasonable demands."
The imperial concubine said it so clearly, and her words at the end were already a warning. If you refuse, you may accidentally fall into the pool.
Even if Qi Qinghe wanted to refuse, she had no way to speak.
After a while, she slowly raised her head, her eyes red, and the mist in her deer-like eyes dissipated in an instant. She looked directly into the eyes of the Imperial Concubine, a rare sight. "I have only one request."
"Your Majesty always considers His Highness, and I am deeply touched." Qi Qinghe paused and continued, "My mother raised me since I was a child. As she grows older, her health is becoming increasingly strained. I beg Your Majesty to grant me permission to visit you more often."
The image of the smiling woman in my mind became clearer and clearer.
The imperial concubine's expression softened for a moment. "It's rare that you have such a heart. I agree with you. I will speak to the Queen myself."
The ripples in the pond have calmed down, reflecting half of the bamboo forest.
Qi Qinghe walked back while muttering to himself.
His Highness has no idea about love, but does this innocent little girl understand it?
Thinking of this, she gently kicked the pebble at her feet.
The pebble flew into the pond in the blink of an eye, stirring up waves.
After venting his anger, Qi Qinghe hurried towards the bedroom.
The prince in the palace had finished his meal and was already flipping through the memorials, writing something with a pen.
Qi Qinghe fell silent the moment he entered the room. When he turned back to come back in the afternoon, he was stopped by His Highness.
"You come here so early in the morning, but do you have something to say?" Xiao Junbai saw that she looked like a turtle, moving towards him in small steps, with her head lowered and not daring to raise it.
Forget it, since I'm here, I'll get hurt whether I stick my head out or not.
Qi Qinghe gritted her teeth and looked up suddenly. "I was drunk last night and felt extremely guilty for disturbing Your Highness. I wonder if I was rude last night and caused trouble for Your Highness?"
He blurted out the remarks he had prepared long ago.
Last night… Recalling everything that happened last night, Xiao Junbai seemed to have returned to that time when he felt uncomfortable all over. He stopped writing and coughed lightly, "Did I cause any trouble?"
"The country has its laws, and the palace has its rules. If you are rude once, there is no guarantee that there won't be a next time. Since this is your first offense, I will punish you by making you copy a book ten times within five days. Don't be lazy or cunning. Do you agree?" This was the result of Xiao Junbai's careful consideration last night.
His wife was, after all, a young girl. She could not bear a punishment that was too severe, nor was she afraid of a punishment that was too light. Copying books was the best thing for her.
Qi Qinghe was stunned. Copying books?
Although she could read and understood a little, she had never read any books.
If it's just copying books, that's fine, but if it's memorizing them, it would be like the sky is falling.
"Thank you for your consideration, Your Highness. I will take this as a warning and never make the same mistake again." She agreed obediently.
The book they copied was the Tao Te Ching, which was neither too thick nor too thin. Cheng Xi brought the book and some blank books and carried them into Mingcheng Palace by several palace maids.
"All the orders given by His Highness are here. If Your Majesty has any instructions, please call me." Cheng Xi bent down and was about to leave the hall.
Qi Qinghe called out to him.
"Yesterday, His Highness said that I would be in charge of the East Palace. Let's go and take a look now."
The account book delivered yesterday is still lying on the desk.
She took the lunch box back intact, picked up two snacks at random to fill her stomach, and went straight to the warehouse with Chengxi.
It is called a warehouse, but in fact it is an uninhabited side hall with tight security.
The guards, dressed in silver-grey armor, had long swords hanging from their waists. Their eyes were as sharp and detailed as those of hawks, scanning every corner.
Even the Crown Princess needs to show her identity token before entering.
On the left are rows of treasure chests reaching the ceiling, and to the right are large red boxes.
The accompanying palace maids opened all the boxes and caskets.
Qi Qinghe held the account book in his hand, not touching a single page, his eyes wide open with disbelief.
Gold, silver, jewelry, rare treasures, and precious medicinal materials are all available.
She had never seen so much gold, silver and treasure.
Is this the Crown Prince’s family background? So wealthy.
"This box was given by His Majesty as a reward for your birthday last year, and this box was given by Mr. Song from the Ministry of Revenue this year..." Cheng Xi explained to the Empress one by one.
The origin of each box and each item is clear.
Qi Qinghe suddenly came back to his senses and looked through the account book according to Cheng Xi's words.
When she came to the box of rare medicinal materials, she stopped. Ganoderma lucidum, snow lotus, ginseng and deer antlers were piled up like a small hill.
"This plant..." Qi Qinghe couldn't finish the words.
So what if she had it? Her uncle and aunt probably wouldn't allow such a good thing to be given to her mother.
Cheng Xi waited quietly for a moment, but didn't hear anything from the Empress. She guessed that the Empress might be reluctant to say goodbye, "Don't worry, Your Majesty. His Highness has ordered that the storehouse be at Your Majesty's disposal."
"Forget it." Qi Qinghe waved his hand and put the matter aside for the time being.
It took nearly an hour to count the items in the huge warehouse.
She rubbed her belly, threw the account book aside, collapsed on the bed and sighed. Being a housekeeper was indeed not an easy job.
There is also that half box of Tao Te Ching and blank books, which does not allow me a moment of leisure.
Qi Qinghe wailed and covered her face with the pillow, wishing that none of this had happened. When she opened her eyes again, she could go back to her mother and act like a spoiled child to her.
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