Chapter 17 Pipi Shark
The novel only says that Zong Zhengxiao saved Lu'e, and because of this, Lu'e was never bullied again, but it does not mention that Zong Zhengxiao promoted Lu'e to serve him.
Now that this situation has occurred, Rong Yin guessed that it was probably the butterfly effect brought about by his appearance.
Rong Yin thought: The book says that Lu'e admired Zong Zhengxiao very much. Now that she can see Zong Zhengxiao often, Lu'e should be very happy.
Zong Zhengxiao raised his eyebrows when he heard this and recalled the scene when he first met Lu'e.
I can't say I admire you, but I can say I am afraid of you.
After Zong Zhengxiao and Rong Yin finished their smoothies and cakes, Lu'e and another palace maid came up to clean up the dishes.
Rong Yin was curious and thought that when Lu'e saw Zong Zhengxiao, she would show the excitement of a fan seeing her idol, but she didn't expect that Lu'e didn't even dare to glance in Zong Zhengxiao's direction. Her body even stiffened when she approached Zong Zhengxiao.
Rong Yin: “?”
Rong Yin: "Why is it different from what is written in the book?"
Looking at Rong Yin's confused and surprised expression, Zong Zheng Xiao smiled silently.
The expected scene did not appear, Rong Yin was a little disappointed, and guessed that the butterfly's wings might have disturbed the plot again.
But it wasn’t a big deal, and Rong Yin didn’t dwell on it for too long.
With a full stomach, Rong Yin didn't feel like moving anymore, nor did she learn the zither. She just spent her time in Zong Zheng's carefree state.
Suddenly, he remembered something, sat up and looked up at Zong Zheng Xiao, only to find that the dark circles under Zong Zheng Xiao's eyes had disappeared without a trace and were almost invisible.
Since he came, Zong Zhengxiao has basically slept well every night and has become much more energetic.
Staring at Zong Zheng Xiao's handsome face, Rong Yin thought: The book said that Zong Zheng Xiao died of insomnia and overwork. Now that Zong Zheng Xiao no longer suffers from insomnia, he should not have died early, and Lu'e would not have been forced to commit suicide because of her repeated attempts to assassinate the new emperor and the empress.
Rong Yin's thoughts aroused another doubt in Zong Zhengxiao. In the book that Xiao Jiaoren read, who took the throne after his death? Why did Lu'e, who Xiao Jiaoren said admired him, assassinate the new emperor and empress?
Could it be that the emperor who succeeded him did something heinous? Otherwise, how could a palace maid be so unable to bear it that she tried to assassinate him several times?
Zong Zhengxiao has always been used to controlling everything. Now there is such a terrible hidden danger around him, and he didn't even notice it, which makes him very uneasy.
He wanted to continue listening to Rong Yin's thoughts and see who the "new emperor" was, but Rong Yin stopped thinking about the book and instead lowered her head to pluck the strings of her zither, completely unaware of how anxious Zong Zheng Xiao was.
Rong Yin was not good at playing the zither, and all he played were harsh noises. Zong Zheng Xiao had no choice but to hold his hand and teach him, saying with a double meaning, "You, you are really naughty."
Rong Yin snorted and said proudly in her heart: What's wrong with me being naughty? You still come here to teach me.
Zong Zhengxiao: “…”
Cannot be refuted.
Rong Yin didn't say who the new emperor was, so Zong Zhengxiao made his own guess.
According to the book, he only lived for five years, so the throne should still be inherited by someone from the Zong Zheng family. If an outsider wanted to seize power and usurp the throne, the group of meritorious officials who controlled the military power and were loyal to his family would definitely be the first to disagree.
Now three years have passed. Even if he gets married and has children in the remaining two years, the heir will only be a child, not old enough to be the queen, and will not be able to do anything bad, so his own offspring will be excluded.
I don’t know if he killed the third brother in the book, so I’ll just count him in.
The eldest brother is disabled and there is no way he can sit on the throne. He has three sons. The eldest son is eighteen years old, the second son is fourteen, and the third son is nine years old.
There is no possibility of succession from other branches of the Zong Zheng family, so the candidates can only be the children of the third and eldest brothers.
The third brother does not have the ability to govern the country, but he best meets the conditions for succession and is likely to be supported by the aristocratic families to become a puppet emperor.
But now he is a useless man and not worth worrying about.
The next ones to be eliminated are the eldest brother's children.
As long as the mermaid sees them, the truth will be revealed.
Thinking of this, Zong Zhengxiao slowly began to plan in his mind how to get the two parties to meet.
*
On this day, Zong Zhengxiao went to the study to discuss matters with the ministers. Rong Yin was swimming in the bathing pool, and the palace maids brought him smoothies as usual.
Rong Yin climbed ashore and looked at the smoothie. She felt she had no appetite, but the weather was hot and it would be a waste if it melted.
"Ah!" Rong Yin waved to Lu'e who was standing beside her.
This was the first time that Rong Yin took the initiative to call him over. Lu'e was a little excited, but she still maintained her calmness and walked forward quickly.
"Master, what do you want me to do for you?" She had heard Si Xi say that the mermaids could not understand what they were saying, but they still had to follow the rules.
Rong Yin pointed at the bowl of smoothie, then pointed at Lu'e and the palace maid beside her, and made eating gestures.
Lu'e was a little confused: "Master, do you want me to feed you?"
Lu'e has observed clearly in the past few days that the emperor spends most of his time with the mermaid and feeds the mermaid himself almost every day.
Now that the emperor is away, this kind of work has to be taken over by the palace ladies.
Lu'e knelt on the ground, picked up a spoon, scooped up a spoonful of smoothie and was about to feed it to Rong Yin, but Rong Yin shook his head, pushed the spoon back, and directly pushed it to Lu'e's lips.
Rong Yin's fingers accidentally touched the back of Lu'e's hand. The cool touch made Lu'e's heart skip a beat. She thought that the skin temperature of the mermaid was so low, it was like the smoothie that had touched her lips.
Seeing the mermaid looking at her expectantly, Lu'e suddenly had an idea and understood what Rong Yin meant.
She asked carefully, "Master, do you want to give the smoothies to the servants as a reward?"
Rong Yin did not nod, always remembering her disguise of being unable to speak. She just gently pushed Lu'e's hand, signaling her to eat quickly.
Knowing that she was right, Lu'e was happy but also moved.
Ice was scarce and expensive in summer, and only the emperor could use it at will in the palace. Even a eunuch of Si Xi's rank could only get very little ice each month, let alone a minor palace maid like her.
When she was at home, she could only use ice occasionally at her mother's place. After entering the palace, she was not even allowed to see ice in the summer.
The long-lost coolness seemed to instantly dispel all the heat in her body. Lu'e knelt down with a smile to thank Rong Yin for his gift, and shared the bowl of smoothie with other palace ladies in the hall.
Because Zong Zhengxiao was not at home, the smoothie was prepared for Rong Yin alone. The portion was not too much, and the palace ladies only had a few mouthfuls.
But this still made them ecstatic. After all, this was something that only the masters could eat. The fruits and syrup in the smoothie were of the best quality. Under normal circumstances, they would not be able to taste it even if they had money.
They enjoyed the meal and Rong Yin was also happy to watch.
Because he had read the original novel, Rong Yin had a good impression of Lu'e and knew what kind of person she was, so he subconsciously treated her closer.