Wearing a veil on her head, she glanced at the mansion from the corner of her eye and saw that it was not decorated at all.
She pinched Mammy's arm hard, and Mammy winced and hissed in pain.
"Concubine Du, there's still a long time to go. Don't worry. Things will change over time. Who knows, tomorrow it might be Concubine Du's turn."
Mammy whispered to comfort him,
Du Jiaojiao responded with a "Yeah."
Following the guidance of the steward of the Ninth Prince's Mansion, everyone headed towards the most prestigious courtyard in the mansion.
When Du Jiaojiao was helped by the old woman to sit on the couch, a faint smell of mold and damp came to her nose.
The strange movements of the servants in the room made Du Jiaojiao suspicious.
Through the gap in the veil, she saw a soft light gray quilt on the bed below her.
My heart skipped a beat.
She raised her hand and pulled off the veil on her head, glancing at the layout of the room, although she had already prepared herself mentally.
But when she was really in it, she felt so ashamed and angry that she burst into tears.
There wasn't a single decent ornament in the house.
There wasn't even a trace of red festive decorations. The house looked like it had been abandoned for years and had only been cleaned up two days ago.
Du Jiaojiao's eyes turned red and tears fell one by one.
She stood up and was about to question him.
Being grabbed by the old woman, the nanny advised earnestly, "Concubine Du, none of this matters. The palace and the Yong'an Marquis' Mansion will stand up for you for the grievances you suffered today."
"You just need to be a virtuous and dignified concubine. If you do that, who in Chang'an won't praise you in the future?"
Du Jiaojiao felt that what the nanny said made sense, and her anger subsided a little.
In the Orchid Fragrance Garden, the nanny stepped forward and replied, "Your Highness, Aunt Yun."
"Have you settled everyone?"
"Your Highness, yes."
"Is there still a commotion over there?"
The nanny shook her head, and Qin Zongzhi waved his hand and asked the nanny to leave.
"Don't you want to take a look?" Zhao Yunzhu picked up the teapot, added another cup of tea for him, and asked jokingly.
Qin Zongzhi's eyes were filled with doting. "Father said he was going to marry a concubine to the Ninth Prince's residence, but he didn't say it was for me, Qin Zongzhi. Anyway, the person has been sent there, and it has nothing to do with me from now on."
After hearing his sophistry, Zhao Yunzhu inexplicably felt that it made some sense.
"Aren't you going to the palace to visit the emperor?"
There has been no news from the palace these days. Although Qin Zongzhi has not entered the palace, he has been with her every day. Zhao Yunzhu can still clearly sense that Qin Zongzhi is in a heavy mood.
"The Empress Dowager doesn't want me to visit my father."
Qin Zongzhi raised his eyes and glanced at the high sky, with a hint of helplessness all over his body.
Zhao Yunzhu didn't ask any further questions.
On the second day, the palace eunuchs came to the Ninth Prince's residence and invited Qin Zongzhi and Du Jiaojiao to the palace to express their gratitude.
Zhao Yunzhu dressed him personally, a look of worry on her face. "If the palace asks about this, you'll probably be punished."
Qin Zongzhi didn't care at all and pinched her soft cheek, "Don't worry, my father is ill, I'm afraid the queen has asked someone to come today."
Zhao Yunzhu saw him out.
Du Jiaojiao, the new concubine, wore light makeup today, a light purple court dress, and a head full of red, gold and emerald hair. She stood in the front hall waiting for the Ninth Prince to come.
From afar, I saw a beautiful couple, holding hands, chatting and laughing, strolling towards me.
Du Jiaojiao felt that this scene was particularly jarring.
The palms hidden in her sleeves were clenched tightly, and her fingertips dug deeply into her palms, but her eyebrows did not change at all.
"Your Highness, Aunt Yun."
Du Jiaojiao took a deep breath, thinking of the nanny's repeated instructions. With a kind smile on her face, she bowed gracefully.
There was no trace of his former expression left.
"Concubine Du." Zhao Yunzhu was about to return the greeting, but was stopped by Qin Zongzhi.
"From now on, Aunt Yun won't have to greet you. Concubine Du should stay out of the house if she has nothing to do. Just stay in your own courtyard."
Qin Zongzhi's attitude was firm and his tone was cold and hard.
Du Jiaojiao's body stiffened and her expression was lost.
The nanny beside her gently nudged the distracted Du Jiaojiao, who had just come to her senses. She smiled faintly and replied, "Your Highness, I'll take note of this."
Qin Zongzhi and Du Jiaojiao went into the palace, and Zhao Yunzhu returned to Lanxiang Garden.
Aunt Hua's smile was almost overflowing from her eyes.
"Mammy, you are smiling so happily, did you get some benefit?"
Zhao Yunzhu was in a rare good mood today and made a joke.
Aunt Hua bowed and pulled Zhao Yunzhu into the house to talk.
"Madam Yun, the restaurant is making money. I've agreed with the manager to send the restaurant's profits to the mansion every three months and check the accounts while I'm there."
After Qin Zongzhi entered the palace, he did not leave until the palace gate was about to be locked.
Du Jiaojiao followed Qin Zongzhi closely with a shy look on her face.
Qin Zongzhi's face turned ashen, his brows furrowed, and he didn't remember at all that someone was following him.
After leaving the palace and getting on his horse, he was about to leave when the nanny beside the carriage cautiously stepped forward to stop him, "Your Highness, please wait for Concubine Du."
"Get lost! When did this prince need a lecture from an ignorant old man like you?"
He kicked the nanny away and rode away on his horse.
Du Jiaojiao saw Mammy fall to the ground from a distance and quickly stepped forward, looking anxious, "Mammy, Mammy, are you okay?"
The nanny covered her abdomen with both hands. Even though her face turned pale with pain, she coaxed Concubine Du, "Concubine Du, I am fine. Let's go back first."
Du Jiaojiao and the two maids behind her helped the nanny onto the carriage.
After the nanny forced herself to return home, she lay on the bed and fell asleep.
When Qin Zongzhi came back, Zhao Yunzhu had already washed up and gone to rest.
"Yunzhu."
Qin Zongzhi entered the room, took off his coat, and warmed himself in the charcoal basin before getting on the couch and holding her in his arms.
Zhao Yunzhu noticed that he looked depressed and asked worriedly, "What's wrong?"
She turned around, looked straight at her, raised her hand and gently rubbed his eyebrows, trying to wipe away the sadness on her eyebrows.
"I saw my father today, but he's in a coma and hasn't regained consciousness yet. The imperial physician said he's in great danger..."
"I was in a bad mood, and the queen invited me over to talk—"
When mentioning the queen, a hint of murderous intent flashed across Qin Zong's eyes.
Zhao Yunzhu listened quietly. When he didn't continue for a while, she asked, "What happened next?"
Qin Zongzhi closed his eyes and buried his head in her arms, like a wronged kitten.
"The queen drugged the tea, and Du Jiaojiao took advantage of it—and took advantage of me."
His body trembled slightly, and there was a hint of grievance in his voice.
Zhao Yunzhu's heart sank, as if a ball of cotton was blocking his chest.
I opened my mouth, but couldn't utter a word.
Qin Zongzhi didn't dare to look up at Zhao Yunzhu, for fear of seeing disappointment in her eyes.
After taking a few deep breaths, Qin Zongzhi hugged the person in his arms tightly, fearing that Zhao Yunzhu would slip away if he was not careful.
The two hugged each other in silence all night.
It was not until the sky was slightly bright outside that Qin Zongzhi got up and left quietly.
Zhao Yunzhu, who was pretending to be asleep, heard the sound of the door closing. She opened her eyes, which were filled with tears.
My vision gradually blurred and my tears wet the soft pillow.
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