After breakfast, Qingyan sat obediently on the armchair in the main hall, listening to Eshuo ramble on about the affairs of noblewomen.
Qingyan was taken aback. It turned out that in the Qing Dynasty, the higher the official rank of the husband's principal wife, the more preferential treatment she would receive.
At this moment, she was very suspicious of the Empress Dowager's intentions in sending the imperial physician.
She rested her chin on her hand, leaned against the handle, and had an unusually serious expression.
"Little darling, how many of these ledgers are genuine?" E Shuo knew very well that many of these ledgers had been tampered with.
He was capable of facing all kinds of enemies on the battlefield, but he was overwhelmed by these ledgers.
"One-third!" Qingyan glanced at it and found that many of the figures were deliberately falsified. If one only looked at the final accounts, no matter how shrewd a person was, they would not be able to spot the flaws.
The details are different; anyone who wrote them carefully will have noticed the discrepancy.
"What?!" E Shuo exclaimed in surprise.
The accountants at the old house were basically the people Fei Yanggu trusted most. If they were to betray him collectively, it would be a heavy blow to Fei Yanggu.
"Is Ah Hun surprised? We hardly ever stay in the mansion, and those people are basically unrestrained. Mother... probably disagrees with Father." Qingyan didn't think that the elegant Jue Luo clan would be completely unaware of Qingya's behavior.
She just didn't want to talk about it.
Fei Yanggu often comes back, so the head accountant will probably notice some problems. How could Father not be alert?
Is he going to take this opportunity to clean up those parasites one by one?
“Ah Hun, we probably never thought about why Father would entrust this matter to the three of us siblings!” Qingyan asked in return.
Before Eshuo could answer, Sulan came in from outside. The Empress Dowager had sent her trusted imperial physician to examine Jueluo's pulse.
Qingyan winked at Eshuo. They were right; the Empress Dowager trusted Physician Peng, whom Kangxi had sent.
Just a few days ago, Lady Gioro had entered the palace to pay her respects. Originally, the Empress Dowager was preparing to discuss Qingya's marriage with her again. At this crucial moment, Lady Gioro fell into a coma.
"Please come in quickly." Qingyan smiled wryly, knowing that things might have to be handled later.
“Little darling, we can’t talk too much about Qingya’s affairs. The Empress Dowager will favor the Borjigit clan on certain issues,” Eshuo said helplessly.
She nodded obediently, not intending to confront the people sent by the Empress Dowager directly.
When the imperial physician walked in, Qing Yanmin noticed that his eyes were unfocused and he looked around the hall as soon as he entered.
She sat upright in the high seat, waiting for the imperial physician to enter.
Physician Huo was a trusted confidant of the Empress Dowager for many years. During Emperor Taizong's reign, his father was on the Empress Dowager's side, and the deaths of Consort Chen and Consort Dong'e were more or less related to them.
"Princess Ulanara, the Empress Dowager has sent me to examine the Lady's pulse." Physician Huo looked up and saw that Qingyan was wearing a light blue dress, with only a jade lotus hairpin holding her hair in place, and no other jewelry.
Qingyan nodded. The imperial physician in front of her was only around 40 years old, and she had never heard of his specialties.
"Ah Hun, I think something's wrong!" Qingyan was very perceptive and noticed something was amiss. She quickly pulled Eshuo into the hall, while Sulan and the others went to the inner chamber to serve them.
“Little Darling…” The brother and sister exchanged a glance and saw a warning in each other’s eyes.
Qingyan gave a wry smile. She could tell at a glance that the imperial physician was definitely problematic.
"Ah Hun, is the Empress Dowager preparing weapons against us, or is she trying to control us?" Qingyan asked E'shuo.
Eshuo knew more details about the affairs of the outer court than Qingyan did.
"The latter?!" Qingya is going to Khorchin for a marriage alliance. In the Empress Dowager's mind, they are probably allied with Khorchin.
A struggle for the throne?!
The word suddenly popped into Qingyan's mind. She remembered reading a modern commentary that said the Empress Dowager was planning to add weight to the Khorchin's influence by placing it beside Yinreng. On the one hand, Yinreng didn't have a mother, and on the other hand, Kangxi had a better relationship with Yinreng in the deep palace.
However, she had to make two preparations: in case something happened to Yin, she would have to choose one of the princes as a backup.
Yin is just a backup plan!
The image of "胤" (yìn) being the same as "老虎" (lǐyǎn) appeared in her mind, and she couldn't help but react.
"Ah Hun, that imperial physician must be here to test us!" Qingyan was a little flustered. To be honest, she didn't like the imperial physicians always relying on their masters. She was about to come and ask questions.
In an instant, E Shuo became alert. Some people with a strong aura of men appeared around the courtyard. He was secretly anxious. Who sent those people?
Is it the Empress Dowager? Or the current Empress? Or the Fourth Prince?
The moment Qingyan sensed the change in E'shuo's body, she instantly activated the space's defense system. The people sent by Si Si would never have this murderous aura, and a chill ran down her spine.
A look of terror appeared in her eyes. E Shuo pulled her into his arms and patted her back.
"Little darling, relax. You absolutely cannot let those people see through our disguise!" E'shuo could not send a signal to the shadow guards at the old residence. The imperial dragon was something that the shadow guards of the officials' residences could not withstand.
Qingyan nestled on his shoulder, biting her small handkerchief, and whimpered like a wounded animal.
Her terrified look broke his heart.
If he were more capable, would the Empress Dowager have stopped making things difficult for Xiao Guai?
"Ah Hun, let's bring Father back." Qingyan took a deep breath, allowing her tense emotions to gradually relax.
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