Chapter 1551: Planning

The next day, Zhulan took a carriage into the palace. This time it was not the Queen Mother who invited her, but the Empress Dowager. The Queen Dowager was very busy. The Emperor Retired was seriously ill and needed care, and the Queen Dowager's mind was all on the Emperor Retired.

Yesterday, the female official came to deliver a message, and she reported the news to the Prince of Qin's Palace. The concubine did not come in person, but she brought her a message. Recently, the Queen has paid special attention to the Zhou family. Ever since the princes were able to leave the palace, the concubine and her son-in-law have slipped away and stayed in the Prince of Qin's Palace, refusing to go out unless invited by anyone.

Zhulan turned the bracelet on her wrist, which meant that the Queen had noticed it.

After entering the palace, Zhulan sat in a sedan chair. The weather was too cold, and she would be frozen to death if she walked to the Queen's bedroom.

Arriving at the Queen's bedroom, Zhulan breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, she was not the only one to see her. There were also several ladies with titles. Zhulan had not seen Madam Shen Hou for a long time. When she saw her this time, Madam Shen Hou looked very old. She did not look very strong and her face was very pale.

Zhulan looked around the palace and shouted, "!!"

When she came to the palace today, she was in the best condition.

Everyone greeted each other. The capital city was very big, but also very small. They had all met and talked to each other before. It was because of their relationship that they interacted the most with Zhulan. However, it was Old Madam Shen who interacted the most with Zhulan.

Old Madam Shen had a complicated look on her face. She had never thought highly of Yang back then. Who could have thought that the Zhou family would have such good fortune? The Zhou family was rising step by step, while the Shen Mansion was going downhill. Also, because her daughter married Yao Zheyu, the Shen family was not implicated on the surface, but with the change of imperial power, they were never reused again.

Old Madam Shen had a headache again. It was difficult for the daughters of the Shen family to marry. Good matches were hard to come by. In the past few years, they had been neither high nor low. The eldest son even married several daughters to students from poor families, saying that he was cultivating them, but it was too slow.

When the Queen came out, Zhulan noticed that she was wearing heavy makeup, with thick foundation covering up the complexion on her face. After not seeing the Queen for many days, the Queen had aged several years, and the damage had been done to her roots and could not be healed.

The Queen said, "Don't be shy, I just want to have a chat with you today."

She wanted to meet Lady Zhou alone, but she couldn't because the emperor was watching her every move.

Madam Shen spoke first, "I haven't seen Her Majesty for a long time, but Her Majesty is still as glorious as ever. The most blessed one is Her Majesty the Empress."

Zhulan tilted her head. It had been so long since she last saw the Empress. The exaggeration was too much. The Empress Dowager was still alive!

The Queen's face froze. She didn't dare to agree. "The most blessed person should be the Queen Mother. I can't compare to her."

Old Madam Shen was embarrassed. "Look at me. I can't control my mouth when I see the queen is happy."

The queen thought for a moment, then turned to look at Yang, "I haven't seen you for a long time, Madam. How are you doing lately?"

Zhulan replied, "I am doing well recently, I am sorry to have worried you, Your Majesty."

The Queen said, "I see that the old lady is in good spirits. I have obtained a lot of good herbs. You can take them back later."

Zhulan and others hurriedly stood up to thank him.

The Queen continued, "A few days ago, the fourth son met the young master of Zhouhou Mansion. He came back and told me that the old lady's son was well-read in poetry and had a wide range of knowledge, and he wanted to hear the young master talk about his experiences."

Zhulan felt relieved. She was afraid that the queen would try to get her son married. "There is another matter. I don't know."

The Queen smiled and said, "I just found out that the Fourth Prince wants to leave the palace. I was originally worried that he would learn bad things, but now that I know about the young master of Marquis Zhou's mansion, I am no longer afraid. I will bother him when the time comes."

Zhu Lan hurriedly said, "It is an honor for the Marquis' Mansion to have the Fourth Prince come to our house."

She didn't want to offend the queen, especially since she didn't have long to live. Would the queen be willing to die? No, the more she had, the more she was reluctant to die. Not only for her son, but also for the glory of living, so the queen was quite dangerous.

Old Madam Shen's face was very stiff. She finally understood what was going on. Good guys, they were just here to serve as foils. She was still wondering why they were all elderly, and thinking that the royal family finally remembered the Shen Marquis Mansion, and she felt a breath of anger stuck in her heart.

The empress was tired, so everyone said goodbye. They all received the medicinal herbs sent by the empress, left the empress's bedroom, and got on the sedan chair one after another.

Zhulan had to admit that the Queen's move was correct. Although she had not met the Fourth Prince many times, she knew that he was a playful man. The playful Fourth Prince's association with Changzhong would not irritate the Emperor.

When Zhulan got home, she was exhausted. She hadn't worn a lady's headdress for a long time and her neck was uncomfortable from the pressure.

Qingxue came over to give Zhulan a massage, and she felt comfortable. "The herbs brought back from the palace should be stored in the warehouse."

Qingxue: "Yes."

Zhulan added, "Qizhou was hit by a snowstorm, and we are afraid of catching a cold. The Third Brother's accumulated medicinal herbs were donated during the flood, and they must be short of them now. Go and count the medicinal herbs in the warehouse, prepare some, and send them to Qizhou in a few days."

Qingxue thought of the storeroom in the mansion that was comparable to a pharmacy. The old lady especially liked to store medicinal materials. "Yes."

Zhulan felt better in her shoulder and motioned Qingxue to go and get busy. It was difficult to buy medicine now. Recently, most of the herbs for treating typhoid fever in the pharmacy had been supplied to the court. There were not many herbs left. If someone with typhoid fever at home wanted to buy medicine, they could only go to the doctor and get the medicine after the doctor prescribed a prescription. The herbs were hard to come by.

Zhulan pursed her lips. In ancient times, not only medicinal materials were hard to come by, but doctors were also hard to find, especially doctors with real skills. The court had tried its best to train them, but it was still a drop in the bucket.

In the afternoon, Changyi came back. Zhulan was puzzled, "You just had a day off yesterday, and it's only afternoon now, why are you back?"

Chang Yi rubbed his hands. It was really cold that day. "My son has been assigned to go to Pinggang to pick up envoys from various countries. He will leave tomorrow, so he came back early to pack his luggage."

"Envoys from various countries?"

Chang Yi did not hide it from his mother. Sooner or later, the news would spread. Of course, even if he did not tell her, his father would tell her. He saw it clearly. His father had never hidden anything from his mother. "I came to buy food and medicine."

Zhulan thought of the abnormality at the border, "There's a shortage of food."

Chang Yi was a little panicked. Every country was short of food, which was not a good sign. "Why did the weather change so much?"

Zhulan thought to herself that we must have really entered the mini ice age that we had speculated about. "It will be fine."

Changyi, "I hope things will be back to normal next year."

Zhulan, "......."

It’s a good idea, but it’s not possible.

Chang Yi added: "The Liu family has not returned from Zhangzhou, so they sent a few masters who prepare medicinal herbs over there."

"The Liu family uses your estate to adopt a child?"

Chang Yi thought to himself that his mother was very quick to react. "Well, she has taken in a lot of orphans and trained some smart and capable children. The Liu family will be very active next year."

Zhulan had to admit, "The Liu family is far-sighted."

Changyi was unwilling, but there was nothing he could do. It was because his son-in-law had just entered the officialdom and his official position was too low. He could only comfort himself that the Liu family was their in-laws and would not cheat their son-in-law.

Zhu Lan added: "The imperial court's control over medicinal materials is becoming increasingly strict, and now there is a serious shortage of medicinal materials. In the future, if the Liu family really builds Zhangzhou into a major medicinal material province, Young Master Liu's career will soar."

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