Chapter 954 Bringing up old grievances?
Upon hearing him mention Jiangdu Palace, Eunuch Yu tightened his grip on his whisk.
But Yuwen Yuan himself stopped, remained silent for a moment, then waved his hand and said, "It's alright, you may leave. I need to rest."
"yes."
Eunuch Yu turned and extinguished the last candlestick. Once the entire Liangyi Hall was plunged into darkness, he slowly left the hall. The moment he closed the door, he let out a long sigh of relief, only then realizing that his back was damp and cold; he was covered in a cold sweat.
In fact, he had broken out in a cold sweat when the dancer named Sun Xianyue appeared at the banquet in Baifu Hall.
Because that person's dance moves are so much like Chu Yang's!
For a fleeting moment, Eunuch Yu almost lost consciousness, thinking that time had reversed and he had returned to the side of that handsome, ethereal, yet arrogant emperor who regarded all people as ants. However, having weathered countless storms in his life, he quickly regained his senses after the initial shock, and a question immediately arose in his mind—
Why would such a dancer appear?
More importantly, Yuwen Yuan entrusted the song and dance performances for this banquet at Baifu Palace to Han Shanggong.
Since the hawthorn cake incident, Eunuch Yu took away some of Han Shanggong's power, which also caused the emperor to neglect her for a period of time. However, she was an old servant who had been used to her since the time of the prince's residence. In addition, with the death of the Duke of Shenwu, Yuwen Yuan, a man who cherishes the past, would not only not become more indifferent to Han Shanggong because of Dong Bizheng's death, but would cherish those who were related to Dong Bizheng even more.
So soon after, Dong Yue was promoted to Minister of War, and this banquet was also organized by Han Shanggong.
However, the incident at the banquet immediately made Eunuch Yu realize that things were not as simple as they seemed.
In particular, Princess Qin, like him, was somewhat distracted when she saw Sun Xianyue's dance. Then, she was deliberately brought up in front of everyone by the Crown Princess. Just now, the Emperor asked about the Jiangdu Palace, which clearly showed that he had taken some things to heart because of what the Crown Princess had said.
Grandpa Yu turned his head and looked at the deep night sky before him. The pitch-black night had a suffocating solemnity to it.
He sighed again and slowly walked away.
The heavy night felt like a heavy stone weighing on Shang Ruyi's heart; even after washing up and lying in bed, she couldn't fall asleep for a long time.
Yesterday, the graceful figure she saw by the Wangyun Pavilion must have been Sun Xianyue practicing there. However, in her shock, she thought it was because she had thought of Chu Yang because of Chu Ruoyan that she found the person's sword dance familiar, so she left the Wangyun Pavilion without lingering.
Unexpectedly, I saw him again tonight.
Upon closer reflection, their sword dances were indeed different. Sun Xianyue's sword dance emphasized power, while Chu Yang's sword dance was light and free. However, because she hadn't seen a sword dance for so long, coupled with Sun Xianyue's flowing clothes, she couldn't help but recall everything from the past, and became somewhat lost in thought.
And then—
Was the Crown Princess doing this on purpose?
But what was her intention in doing this? Was it to humiliate herself again, just like during the Battle of Taiyuan, by performing a dance for the Turkic envoy? Or was she trying to bring up the old grievances between herself and Chu Yang?
If that's the case, then she shouldn't have stopped after saying just a few words at the banquet; she managed to escape unscathed.
Do they have other intentions?
As Shang Ruyi pondered, the image of Sun Xianyue kept churning in her mind. The image gradually blurred, seemingly transforming into another arrogant and capricious figure. Shang Ruyi painfully closed her eyes, trying to squeeze that image out of her mind and memory, but to no avail.
It seemed not to be in her mind or memory, but rather deeply etched into her life...
As if torn and entangled with her own memories, Shang Ruyi was unable to sleep peacefully that night. When she woke up in the morning, she was exhausted and felt weak all over.
While combing her hair, Tushe'er said worriedly, "Your Highness didn't sleep well."
Shang Ruyi also looked at herself in the bronze mirror, but said nothing.
Tushe'er immediately said, "But there's nothing to do today, so why don't you take another nap, Your Highness?"
Shang Ruyi didn't speak. In fact, she knew that she might not be able to fall asleep even if she lay down. Even though she had fallen asleep last night, the chaotic and unsettling dreams had kept her from finding peace. It would be better to sit quietly for a while to refresh herself.
So, after washing up and having breakfast, she sat quietly by the window. After a while, she asked someone to bring out the writing implements to practice her calligraphy.
Writing helps her calm down.
However, after writing only a few strokes, she heard voices outside. Shang Ruyi put down her pen and was about to ask what had happened when she saw Tu She'er leading several eunuchs in. They were carrying incense burners and a small jar.
The leading eunuch bowed to Shang Ruyi and said, "Greetings, Princess Qin. We are here today to clean up the termites in Qianqiu Palace."
Shang Ruyi nodded and asked, "How are you going to do it?"
The young eunuch, holding a jar in his hands, said, "This is bamboo vinegar. We use it to sprinkle on the places where termites build their nests, and we also use it to fumigate various parts of the palace to drive away termites. We've already used it in the Liangyi Hall and various parts of the inner palace this morning."
"Does this thing work?"
"Don't worry, Your Highness, termites are afraid of this."
Tushe'er, standing to the side, said, "Then you'd better be careful. Our princess has many paintings and calligraphy. If you don't take good care of them and termites stay and damage them, it will all be your fault!"
The eunuchs could only smile obsequiously and beg for forgiveness. Shang Ruyi glared at her and said, "Alright, why are you saying all this? Take them to do their work."
Tushe'er nodded and was about to lead the eunuchs away.
The head eunuch then said, "Your Highness, the smell of this bamboo vinegar fumigation is pungent and unpleasant; it's not good for anyone to stay here. Your Highness should take the young prince and seek shelter; the sun is shining brightly outside."
Hearing him say that, Shang Ruyi had no choice but to have Tu She'er pack up his paper and pen, and then had Granny Feng bring Xiao Yuanzi out.
As soon as they stepped out of Qianqiu Palace, they saw several eunuchs with their faces covered by white gauze, boiling bamboo vinegar and pouring it into a censer. Thick white smoke billowed out of the censer and soon filled the entire palace. A pungent sour smell wafted in the wind, which indeed made Shang Ruyi sneeze several times. When she turned around, she saw that Xiao Yuanzi's eyes were red and she was so aggrieved that she was about to cry in Feng Nai Niang's arms.
So they didn't dare linger any longer and hurried away.
Looking back, all I could see in the distance was the Thousand Autumns Palace shrouded in smoke...
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