Chapter 209 Teamwork Mind Map
"The army from the capital has already marched south, and His Highness is preparing to go on the expedition. We just need to take care of ourselves and not hold His Highness back."
The doctor told me your fever has subsided; you should rest and recover carefully.
If you need anything, just send someone to find me, and I'll arrange it if I can.
After all, you're the only person His Highness truly loves.
After saying that, Shen Pingting reached out and pulled the blanket over Huaiqing, covering him up.
Then he got up to leave, but after thinking for a moment, he said:
"I'll come see you again this afternoon when I'm free."
After saying that, he left with his men.
Once Chen Pingting had walked away, Huaiqing closed her eyes, and her breathing quickly became steady and quiet.
The servants inside stepped forward, lowered the curtains, and then turned and stepped aside.
Huaiqing, who was in the dim light of the bed curtains, suddenly opened his eyes and raised his right hand from under the covers.
He opened his sweaty hand, revealing a small note inside.
Huai Qing quickly opened it and glanced at it; it read:
I know your identity. Can we join forces?
This is what Pingting slipped into his hand just now.
Huaiqing stuffed the note into his mouth, chewed it, and swallowed it.
My mind is racing with thoughts...
Had he given himself away? Had the First Prince sent Shen Pingting to test him?
Huaiqing then shook his head.
If the eldest prince knew that he was Wei Ningyan's man, then according to his temperament, he should have gone to the Yellow Springs with Wei Ningyan yesterday.
Could it be that Shen Pingting discovered her identity and came to test her?
But why would she do that?
Huaiqing went through Shen Pingting's personal information in her mind and finally realized that she was also a pitiful person.
Could it be that seeing the Crown Prince's situation is about to collapse, he is preparing to surrender to the Crown Prince, just like himself?
After this thought crossed his mind, Huaiqing was half-believing and half-doubting.
After much deliberation, he decided that if the enemy didn't move, he wouldn't move either, since Shen Pingting was probably more anxious than he was right now.
Let's see what she says when she comes over this afternoon.
After thinking about all this, Huaiqing suddenly felt her eyelids become very heavy and gradually fell asleep again.
After her afternoon nap, Shen Pingting brought people to visit Huaiqing again.
This time, Huaiqing is much better and can get up.
In front of the servants around them, the two could only communicate by exchanging secret codes.
“I am fine now, thank you for making this trip, Aunt Shen.”
"You're too kind. We're both in the inner quarters now, in the same situation, so it's only right that we help each other."
Huaiqing understood; she said her situation was the same as hers.
"Auntie is joking."
Your aunt comes from the Shen family, has the support of Consort Shu in the palace, and the eldest prince also trusts you greatly.
I am but a male concubine of humble origin, naturally incomparable to your concubine.
Shen Pinting naturally understood.
Huaiqing said that she was originally from the Shen family and was deeply trusted by Consort Shu and the First Prince, so why should she join forces with him?
So he smiled faintly and said, "My mother is just a concubine in the Shen family, and I am just a concubine's daughter."
The Shen family is so large that we are often not in control of our own destiny within it.
In many ways, people from backgrounds like yours live with less freedom.
So, Shen Pinting wasn't there voluntarily?
Huaiqing thought to himself.
Then Shen Pingting continued, "I originally planned to marry someone else and become his wife."
Then we'll plan to bring my birth mother and aunt out of the village and take good care of her in her old age.
Unfortunately, things didn't go as planned. After going with the eldest prince, she rarely saw her concubine anymore.
Huaiqing understood; her aunt was in the Shen family, and she had no choice.
He replied, "I envy you for having a birth mother. I've never known who my birth mother is since I was a child."
Shen Pinting turned to look at him and said:
"Regardless of the past, we are now both in the Crown Prince's backyard."
You're actually a bit more favored than I am.
"I'm always worrying and busy."
Huaiqing knew this meant that regardless of their backgrounds, the two were now in the same situation.
It seems they really want to cooperate.
If we're going to cooperate, we need to show some sincerity.
So Huaiqing spoke up: "Yes, in the current situation, we must support each other and not distract the Crown Prince."
However, since you, Aunt Shen, hold absolute power in the inner quarters, and I have no official status, I'm afraid I can't help you much.
On the contrary, I need my aunt to take care of me more.
Seeing that Huai Qing had agreed, Shen Pinting nodded calmly.
"Of course. If you need anything, just send someone to me."
"Then thank you very much, Aunt Chen."
After Shen Pingting left, Huaiqing lay on the couch again, pondering the matter of military defense plans.
It seems the only way is to get Shen Pinting involved to transfer the person away.
After taking this defense map, I will need to personally deliver it to the army that is suppressing the rebellion.
The opportunity soon arrived. That night, the eldest prince summoned Huaiqing to serve him.
Huaiqing took the opportunity to check the guard situation in the study.
The following morning, Huaiqing went to visit Shen Pinting.
After Huaiqing left, Shen Pinting looked at the note that appeared on the pastry and remained silent for a moment.
Then he began to figure out how to do it.
Two days later, Huaiqing went to serve the eldest prince again, and the person accompanying him this time was a maid with an unfamiliar face.
But in the darkness of night, no one looked closely at the maid's face.
As usual, Huaiqing satisfied the eldest prince's physical needs.
Seeing that the eldest prince had fallen asleep on the soft couch, Huaiqing reached out and nudged him, calling out "Your Highness" twice.
Seeing that he was indeed drugged by her, she put on her clothes and got up.
He skillfully opened the mechanism, accessed the hidden compartment, and took the defense map, placing it on his person.
Then he pushed open the door and swaggered out.
The moment he pushed open the door, he smelled a floral fragrance and quickly covered his mouth and nose, just like the maid.
The area was surrounded by soldiers on duty, all with their eyes open, but they seemed not to see the two of them at all.
The two hurried out of the courtyard of the First Prince's study and returned to the inner quarters.
The inner quarters were now Shen Pinting's territory, so sending Huaiqing away was an easy task.
Huaiqing galloped away on horseback into the night.
...
The army sent to quell the rebellion in the capital set off smoothly and encountered the Crown Prince's forces in the southern region.
The two armies faced each other, smoke filled the air, and a major battle was about to break out.
However, on the very night they set up camp, someone suddenly came knocking on the door of the Zuo Xiaowei camp in the dead of night.
General Lei Ming of the Left Valiant Guard sent Pei Yanchi to investigate.
A short while later, Pei Yanchi returned, accompanied by another person.
The man looked travel-worn, but he wore a hood that completely covered his face.
After Pei Yanchi brought the person in, Lei Ming dismissed the others.
The man removed his hood, revealing his true face; he was none other than Huai Qing, the eldest prince's bedmate.
Huaiqing took out a drawing from his pocket and handed it to Pei Yanchi.
"This is a military deployment map of the First Prince, which the First Princess Consort asked me to send over. Please take a look, Your Highness."
Lei Ming looked at the defense map, then at Huai Qing's disheveled appearance, and asked with some doubt:
"Where did these blueprints come from?"
“This servant was following the orders of the Crown Prince’s wife and stole it from the Crown Prince.”
Lei Ming was unaware of the affair between the Crown Prince and his wife, but Pei Yanchi knew everything about it.
He then turned and asked, "Where is your eldest prince's wife?"
Why did you come out alone in such a disheveled state?
Huaiqing's face darkened upon hearing this, and she looked as if she was about to cry.
"The Crown Prince has always been wary of his wife. Since preparations for the war began, she has been confined to the backyard and unable to come out."
Seven days ago, upon hearing that a large army from the capital had set out to quell the rebellion, the Crown Princess sent someone to find me and asked me to steal the military deployment map.
She gave me her contact information and instructed me to make sure the map was delivered to the General.
At this point, Huaiqing finally couldn't stop her tears from flowing.
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