Chapter 316 The Beloved Darling (First Update)
Xiao Liulang did not sleep well at night, and the next day he got up a quarter of an hour later than usual.
In just fifteen minutes, they were told that Gu Jiao had already left.
Gu Jiao went to visit her great-aunt.
Just as the emperor would think of Consort Jing's illness when he saw that Empress Dowager Zhuang was ill, Gu Jiao also remembered that her great-aunt had stayed up all night to watch over the emperor when she saw that Consort Jing was ill. Her great-aunt was old, and staying up all night would have been very harmful to her health.
Gu Jiao possessed not only Empress Dowager Zhuang's token but also a token bestowed by the Emperor. She casually pulled out a token, stunning the guards outside the palace gates.
no.
Didn't you use the Renshou Palace token the other time?
Why did it change to Huaqing Palace today?
"Isn't that right?" Gu Jiao flipped through the cards and took out another one.
The guard took a look and almost fainted!
This is the late emperor's token!
...Uh, that piece seems to have been given to her by her great-uncle.
Gu Jiao rummaged through her pockets again and it seemed she still had some.
The guard's face turned pale. "Stop searching! Who knows what you'll find! Get in here! Get in here now!"
The guard returned the token to Gu Jiao.
Gu Jiao went to Renshou Palace.
When Eunuch Qin saw her arrive, he was surprised but also relieved: "Oh dear, Miss Gu, you've finally come. If you hadn't come, I wouldn't know what to do."
"What's wrong? Is Auntie sick?" Gu Jiao asked, noticing the worried look on Eunuch Qin's face.
Eunuch Qin sighed and nodded: "She has been ill for several days, but she has refused to make it public or let me invite Miss Gu over. The Empress Dowager said it was a minor illness and she would be fine after some rest."
At this age, even minor illnesses can be uncomfortable and dangerous.
Gu Jiao hurried to her aunt's bedroom.
Empress Dowager Zhuang had only caught a cold due to overwork, but as Gu Jiao said, at this age, an illness is not an illness, but a life-threatening one.
Empress Dowager Zhuang lay on the phoenix bed, looking emaciated, as if most of her life force had been drained away overnight.
"Aunt!" Gu Jiao stepped forward, placed the food box on the table, and then sat down by the bed to take her aunt's pulse.
Empress Dowager Zhuang glanced weakly at Gu Jiao, then at Eunuch Qin following behind Gu Jiao, rolled her eyes, and said, "Who told you to call them here?"
Eunuch Qin looked embarrassed.
Gu Jiao pulled the blanket up for her aunt and said, "It wasn't Eunuch Qin who called me; I came on my own."
Empress Dowager Zhuang: "Hmph!"
"Did you take your medicine this morning?" Gu Jiao asked.
Eunuch Qin said, "Not yet. The imperial physician instructed me to drink it after meals, but the Empress Dowager..."
Empress Dowager Zhuang gave Eunuch Qin a chilling look: "You're tired of living, aren't you?"
They even dared to complain about her!
Eunuch Qin shrugged and shrank back.
Gu Jiao said, "I brought some food."
"Yes, yes, yes!" Eunuch Qin hurried to the table, opened the food box that Gu Jiao had brought, and a familiar aroma of scallions wafted out.
It consists of millet porridge with egg drop, brown sugar glutinous rice cake, pea flour cake, and some homemade pickled dried fruit.
The pea flour cake was made by the Yao family, while the other three dishes were made by the old sacrificial wine master, and all of them only had half the amount of sugar.
Empress Dowager Zhuang originally had little appetite, but after taking a bite, she couldn't stop eating.
Gu Jiao didn't let her eat too much; she only had a few bites of each dish before Qin Gonggong took it away.
Empress Dowager Zhuang clicked her tongue resentfully: "I'm sick, and they won't even let me eat my fill!"
Gu Jiao said, "You still need to save room in your stomach to take the medicine."
She doesn't want to take medicine; she wants to eat her fill!
About 15 minutes later, Gu Jiao had the medicine brought up. Gu Jiao tasted it first and found it to be the right medicine for her symptoms, with a very mild effect.
Empress Dowager Zhuang looked visibly disapproving.
Gu Jiao took out three candied fruits.
"Originally, you could have eaten three..." Empress Dowager Zhuang pouted.
Gu Jiao then said, "These three are extra, if..."
Before she could finish speaking, Madam Zhuang picked up the medicine bowl, gulped it down, and then, under the astonished gazes of everyone, decisively took away the three candied fruits!
It rained for a while last night, which cooled things down a bit. Today the sky is clear, making it a perfect day to go for a walk outside.
"Grandma, let me accompany you for a walk in the Imperial Garden," Gu Jiao said to Empress Dowager Zhuang.
Empress Dowager Zhuang was too lazy to move.
Gu Jiao: "I'll come see you again tomorrow."
Empress Dowager Zhuang: Deal.
The group went to the Imperial Garden.
Gu Jiao really liked riding in Empress Dowager Zhuang's phoenix palanquin, but Empress Dowager Zhuang found it boring and refused to ride in it. So a very strange scene appeared in the palace - Empress Dowager Zhuang was slowly walking ahead, supported by Eunuch Qin's arm, while Gu Jiao sat on Empress Dowager Zhuang's phoenix palanquin and followed along with a look of enjoyment, her little head swaying back and forth.
All the palace servants: "..."
The group arrived at the Imperial Garden.
There is a pavilion in the Imperial Garden, as well as a large area of shade.
Empress Dowager Zhuang and Gu Jiao looked towards the shady spot at the same time. Eunuch Qin understood and quickly had someone bring over tables and chairs. After Empress Dowager Zhuang and Gu Jiao sat down, Eunuch Qin set out tea, fresh fruits, and snacks on the table.
The snacks were for Gu Jiao.
Gu Jiao was at the age where she was growing and got hungry quickly.
Gu Jiao picked up a piece of osmanthus cake and ate it very seriously.
As she ate, she started sweating. Empress Dowager Zhuang gave a signal to a palace maid, who quickly took a fan and came behind Gu Jiao, gently fanning her.
A gentle breeze carries the fragrance of the garden.
The scenery was the same, but because of the different people, Empress Dowager Zhuang had a different state of mind.
Eunuch Qin watched Gu Jiao munching on her snacks, then glanced at Empress Dowager Zhuang, who was quietly sipping her tea.
What does the Empress Dowager need?
It's really just about spending time together.
Miss Gu doesn't need to do anything; just staying by the Empress Dowager's side will make the Empress Dowager very happy.
It was at this moment that Empress Dowager Zhuang no longer loathed the deep palace.
However, peaceful moments are always short-lived, and Empress Dowager Zhuang's leisure was soon disturbed by an uninvited guest.
"From afar, I thought it looked like the Empress Dowager, and when I came closer, it really was her!"
That's right, the uninvited guest was the emperor.
Empress Dowager Zhuang's face instantly darkened.
The emperor strode over and bowed to Empress Dowager Zhuang, saying, "Your son greets Your Majesty."
You big bastard!
Empress Dowager Zhuang rolled her eyes rapidly!
I don't want this annoying guy to interrupt my wonderful time with Jiaojiao!
The emperor was not alone; Prince Ning was also by his side.
Prince Ning also bowed to Empress Dowager Zhuang: "Greetings, Your Majesty."
Empress Dowager Zhuang finally showed some kindness towards Prince Ning.
"Mmm," she replied.
Eunuch Qin and the others bowed to the two of them.
"Greetings, Your Majesty."
"Greetings, Your Highness Prince Ning."
Prince Ning then looked at Gu Jiao, who was standing next to Empress Dowager Zhuang.
Gu Jiao was halfway through her snack, with crumbs still clinging to her lips. She casually raised her head and nodded to the Emperor and Prince Ning in greeting: "Your Majesty, Prince Ning."
Her expression was aloof, but the drool at the corner of her mouth was so eye-catching that it made her look somewhat adorably mature for her age.
Prince Ning wanted to laugh.
The Emperor didn't seem to mind that Gu Jiao didn't kneel before the Emperor and Prince Ning, and Prince Ning naturally didn't mind either.
"Eat your food," Empress Dowager Zhuang said to Gu Jiao.
"Oh." Gu Jiao buried her head and continued eating.
When Gu Jiao accurately called out the name of Prince Ning, neither Empress Dowager Zhuang nor the Emperor expected that the two had met before. They assumed that she only learned of Prince Ning's identity by hearing the palace servants perform the ceremony.
The emperor ignored the disdain on Empress Dowager Zhuang's face and walked over to sit down on the other side of Gu Jiao, which happened to be facing Empress Dowager Zhuang.
Empress Dowager Zhuang didn't even want to give him a glance.
The Emperor looked at the pastries on the plate and said, "What's so good about osmanthus cake? Are the cooks at Renshou Palace so negligent? If Your Majesty needs cooks, I can send a few over to you."
After saying this, without waiting for Empress Dowager Zhuang to refute, he immediately said to Gu Jiao, "I have a new chef from Jiangnan who makes lotus flower pastries that are extremely delicious, even better than this."
He acted like a human trafficker trying to abduct children and take them home.
Empress Dowager Zhuang said irritably, "Jiaojiao doesn't like lotus flower pastries!"
Upon hearing this form of address, Prince Ning glanced at Gu Jiao in surprise.
The emperor continued to coax Gu Jiao, "There are other pastries too. The chef's pastries are delicious. See what Jingkong and the others like to eat, and bring some back for them as well."
These words struck a chord with Gu Jiao.
Gu Jiao herself wasn't particularly fond of food, but her younger brothers were all avid foodies.
Empress Dowager Zhuang, overwhelmed with a sense of crisis, resorted to her ultimate weapon: "I am ill, Jiaojiao must cure me!"
The emperor said, "What a coincidence, I'm injured, the little divine physician has come at just the right time. Oh, and Eunuch Wei, I wonder how his arm is."
Eunuch Wei: My arm is perfectly fine...
The emperor glared at him.
With a strong will to survive, Eunuch Wei said, "Ouch! It hurts so much!"
Gu Jiao: "..."
Prince Ning: "..."
Empress Dowager Zhuang: "..."
The Emperor and Empress Dowager Zhuang exuded a murderous aura throughout the Imperial Garden, as if they were about to draw their swords against each other at any moment!
Gu Jiao glanced at her great-aunt, then at the emperor: "Uh... how about we play rock-paper-scissors?"
ha.
Everyone laughed.
Girl, you're too naive. Do you even know who these two are? One is the supreme ruler of Zhao Kingdom, and the other is an uncrowned overlord with immense power. Would they really play rock-paper-scissors with you?
Hehehe!
The next second, everyone was proven wrong.
Two top figures from the Zhao Kingdom actually rolled up their sleeves and started playing rock-paper-scissors in the Imperial Garden.
The result is self-evident.
Empress Dowager Zhuang is guaranteed to win.
The emperor gritted his teeth: "Three-three-three, best two out of three!"
The emperor gritted his teeth again: "555, best of five!"
Empress Dowager Zhuang looked at him with concern, as if he were mentally challenged: "I have already won three games against you in a row."
The emperor, who felt as if he had been struck by a thousand arrows: "..."
The title of "Number One Gambling God of Bishui Hutong" wasn't given lightly; even in a simple game like rock-paper-scissors, Empress Dowager Zhuang never lost.
"Hmph!" Empress Dowager Zhuang led Gu Jiao back to Renshou Palace with a triumphant air.
The emperor's lips twitched violently.
"Ahem!" Prince Ning cleared his throat and asked, "Father, who is that Miss Gu...?"
"She is my benefactor," the emperor sighed, still regretting his loss to Empress Dowager Zhuang. "She cured my illness, and I was also saved by her during this assassination attempt. And..."
The emperor paused for a moment and said, "The glutinous rice mortar and the bellows were also made by her."
A look of surprise flashed across Prince Ning's handsome face: "Ah...it's her? So, she's the daughter of the Marquis of Ding'an?"
Some things were unknown to the common people, but they had spread throughout the palace. Although Prince Ning had long since established a separate residence outside the palace, he frequently entered and exited the palace and was still quite familiar with the fact that Gu Jinyu had taken credit for the real Miss Gu's work.
Prince Ning suddenly realized, "I saw her at the accident site. She was saving a patient and almost got caught in the blast while trying to save one. Commander Gu stepped forward to help. No wonder she and Commander Gu seemed so familiar with each other; they are siblings. I heard she grew up among the common people, but I never imagined she had such abilities."
The emperor said, "I have asked her where she learned her teacher, and I wanted to ask her teacher to come out of seclusion, but unfortunately her teacher has passed away."
Prince Ning sighed with regret.
"By the way, how's the investigation going?" the emperor asked.
The Emperor asked Prince Ning about the assassination of Princess Rui. He had come to the palace today to report the results to his father. He said, "Your subject has investigated and found that she is not a hostage from Chen."
"Not him?" The emperor was skeptical.
Prince Ning nodded: "The hostage prince of Chen has just lost a great general and dares not cause trouble again in such a short time. He and his men have been staying in the palace very quietly these past few days."
The emperor's gaze turned cold: "If he's not a hostage from Chen, then there's only one possibility."
Prince Ning looked at him: "Father suspects..."
The emperor said coldly, "Is there any need to doubt? It's obviously her! I know she's your grandmother and your great-aunt, and you're somewhat biased towards her, but no one else could have done this!"
Prince Ning was caught between the Emperor and Empress Dowager Zhuang, which was quite a difficult situation. Among so many princes in the palace, only his position was so awkward: "Prince Rui is on good terms with me and is also quite favored by the Empress Dowager."
Prince Rui is a member of Prince Ning's lineage, so Empress Dowager Zhuang has no reason to target the couple.
The Emperor coldly snorted: "Have you forgotten how close the Third Prince and his wife are to Consort Jing? She's just jealous of Consort Jing! She can't stand anyone being kind to Consort Jing!"
Prince Ning shook his head: "My grandmother would not do that."
The emperor said calmly, "Have you forgotten how she poisoned Aheng back then? If the palace servants hadn't discovered it early, Aheng would already be dead."
The emperor never spoke ill of Empress Dowager Zhuang in front of the crown prince, but he had no such reservations in front of Prince Ning.
Prince Ning understood perfectly well that this was both a sign of high regard and a test.
The emperor was testing his feelings, as well as his filial piety and loyalty.
Prince Ning insisted, "It is not the Empress Dowager, I can confirm that."
The emperor was displeased: "How do you prove it?"
Prince Ning cupped his hands in greeting: "Because when my third sister-in-law was assassinated, the daughter of the Marquis of Ding'an was also there, and she almost died from the assassin's arrow. My grandmother loves her so much, she wouldn't let anyone harm her."
The emperor frowned and looked at Prince Ning: "Why didn't you say so yesterday?"
Prince Ning said with shame, "Your subject was unaware of her relationship with the Empress Dowager and the Emperor. I thought she was just an ordinary female physician, nothing special."
No matter how deep the emperor's prejudice against Empress Dowager Zhuang was, he had to admit that Empress Dowager Zhuang genuinely loved the young physician.
She wouldn't choose to assassinate the doctor while he was present.
But if it wasn't the hostage from Chen State, nor Empress Dowager Zhuang, then who could it be?
Who would target Princess Rui?
Thinking of something, Prince Ning said, "Father, since the Little Divine Doctor's identity is so special, could it be that the assassin yesterday wasn't after Third Brother's wife, but after her?"
Were we going there because of the little miracle doctor?
The emperor's expression instantly turned cold, so cold it was almost frightening, even more so than when Prince Ning told him about the assassination attempt on Princess Rui.
Prince Ning was secretly shocked. Was the daughter of the Marquis of Ding'an so important to his father? More important than his own daughter-in-law and unborn grandson?
Gu Jiao had lunch at Renshou Palace before leaving.
Before leaving, Gu Jiao asked Empress Dowager Zhuang, "Grandma, have you ever heard of Xianleju?"
Empress Dowager Zhuang frowned and thought for a moment: "I can't remember."
Empress Dowager Zhuang's memory has been restored, but only most of it has been restored; some memories are still missing.
Therefore, Empress Dowager Zhuang could not guarantee that she had not heard of it before, or that she had heard of it but forgot it.
"Does Jiaojiao want to inquire about this?" Empress Dowager Zhuang asked.
Gu Jiao said, "No, I was just asking casually. Aunt, you don't need to inquire." To avoid alerting the enemy.
The fact that Xianleju knew about the Chen people's assassination attempt on the emperor indicates that Yuantang had dealings with Xianleju. Yuantang was very familiar with the emperor's whereabouts, and he must have had spies in the palace.
Whether Yuan Tang arranged the eyeliner herself or through Xianleju is unknown.
Once things calm down, she will visit Xianleju again.
Gu Jiao returned to the clinic.
Liu Yisheng was also there.
"He's been waiting for a long time," Xiao Sanzi whispered. "He came all the way here just for you."
"Understood." Gu Jiao nodded and called Liu Yisheng into the consultation room.
Liu Yisheng said, "I'm not here to ask for medical advice or medicine. I'm here to tell you that yesterday's assassination attempt had nothing to do with Yuan Tang."
"Okay." Gu Jiao nodded.
Liu Yisheng was stunned: "You... how do you know it has nothing to do with him without asking me? Evidence? Proof?"
Gu Jiao said "Oh," and then added, "You said it has nothing to do with him, and I believe you."
That's all. No evidence or explanation is needed.
Liu Yisheng suddenly choked up.
I trust you.
He never heard those words again after the Liu family was destroyed.
"Why?"
Why believe him? Why never doubt him?
Gu Jiao didn't say anything.
He got up to leave, but after he had walked out, he stopped and said, "You, be careful."
As Gu Jiao watched his departing figure, she thought of the dream of returning to the Marquis's mansion.
Why do I believe you...?
Because I only gave you a bowl of water, yet you collected my body and buried my bones.
Liu Yisheng's Dream: Chapter 178, "Pitiful Father".
(End of this chapter)
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