Chapter 151 Chapter 151
[Chapter 151]
Ruan Yun's eyelashes blinked fiercely, and the light in her almond-shaped eyes flickered.
The fingertips slid across the emperor's larynx, and suddenly the soft hand was grasped in Yan Shiyu's hand.
Ruan Jun hadn't recovered yet, her voice still trembling slightly, "Shen Chongyi's death was not an accident."
Yan Shiyu held her hand tighter and said in a deep voice: "Now, it can only be."
Just now she wanted to show her strength, but now in an instant, Ruan Jun had no desire to speak anymore.
She actually forgot the emperor's identity because of his sweet words to her in the past.
If the truth about Shen Chongyi is truly revealed, both the harem and the court will be affected. How could the emperor want to see such a scene?
Ruan Yun placed her hand obediently in the emperor's palm and said softly, "I understand."
Yan Shiyu lowered his dark eyes, watching Ruan Yun's long eyelashes blinking slowly, and placed a kiss on the end of her hair.
His Xiaoxiao doesn't have to do all these. He can just pave the way for her.
…
Fengyi Palace
The Queen smiled at Ruan Yun and said, "The Third Prince's first birthday banquet is coming soon. The Queen Mother's illness has not yet healed, and there have been a series of incidents in the palace. We need some fun to get rid of the bad luck."
Ruan Yun smiled slightly when she heard this, "The Third Prince is still young, and it is great that Your Majesty loves him so much. I am here to represent him. Thank you very much, Your Majesty."
The queen covered her lips with a handkerchief and said, "You are still being so polite to me."
As she spoke, the Queen couldn't help coughing twice. Ruan Yun and Ji Zhaoyi looked at each other, but neither of them spoke again.
The imperial physician said that the Empress probably didn't have much time left, and that if they wanted to persuade her, the Empress wouldn't be happy to hear it, so it was better not to say anything.
Taking the teacup handed to her by Ran Xia, the queen took a sip to suppress the urge to cough, and continued, "The emperor sent someone to tell me that the third prince's birthday should be celebrated in a grand manner. I have already ordered people to prepare it, so you should take a good rest."
Ruan Yun bowed and said obediently, "I obey your order."
The queen closed her eyes, a look of fatigue appeared on her face. "I am exhausted. You should go back to the palace first."
Her body suddenly went limp, and the queen had to gasp for breath while speaking.
Ruan Yun was very sad to see the Empress's appearance, but there was nothing she could do so she could only drag Ji Zhaoyi out.
Walking out of Fengyi Palace, Ruan Yun took the round fan from Yingning's hand and waved her white wrist, bringing gusts of cool breeze.
Ji Zhaoyi said in a gentle voice: "This place is not far from Yu Garden. If Sister Ying has time, why not go and take a look?"
Ruan Yun and Ji Zhaoyi went there together and saw that the flowers in the garden were in full bloom. They touched the most gorgeous flower on the branch.
"Recently, Concubine De has been going to Chaoxi Palace quite often."
Ji Zhaoyi held the handle of the fan in one hand and adjusted the tassel at the bottom with the other.
Ruan Yun took her hands off the flowers and said, "You and I both know best what Concubine De is thinking."
Ji Zhaoyi chuckled, "I just wonder if Concubine Xian has been persuaded by Concubine De, or if the two of them have already thought about what to do next?"
Ruan Yun turned around and stood face to face with Ji Zhaoyi. "No matter what she is thinking, she will definitely make a move on the day of the birthday banquet if she has prepared people in advance."
Ji Zhaoyi said, "Don't worry, Sister Ying. Fu Wei will send someone to guard Concubine De's place that day. If there is any movement, I will be the first to know."
Ruan Yun's lips curled up into a smile, "With you here, I feel a lot more relaxed."
Ji Zhaoyi deliberately said angrily: "So sister must tell the third prince that when he grows up, he must not forget me, his aunt."
She was about to hit her with the handkerchief, but in the end, the handkerchief just lightly swept across the back of Ji Zhaoyi's hand. "Why, isn't it enough that you have a little princess?"
Ji Zhaoyi fanned Ruan Yun and said, "I am indeed happy to have Xin'er here. Having many children also makes things more lively."
Speaking of the little princess, Ruan Yun's almond-shaped eyes swept around, "Have you told the little princess about Shen Chongyi?"
Ji Zhaoyi was stunned for a moment, then shook his head and said:
"no."
She showed a bit of bitterness on her face, "Xin'er is afraid of Shen Chongyi because what Shen Chongyi did in the past is different from what the emperor taught her. She is a smart child with a simple mind, so she can't accept that her mother is like this."
"I'm afraid Xin'er will be upset if I tell her. Let's wait until she's older."
Ruan Yun held Ji Zhaoyi's hand and said, "It's okay. Don't worry about it. Just take it one step at a time."
Ji Zhaoyi smiled and said, "I understand."
It was getting late, and after the two came out of Yu Garden, Ruan Yun went straight back to Linxuan Palace.
She first went to the side hall to take a look at the sleeping Dongdong. Ruan Jun's eyes were full of tenderness as she touched the sleeping little face.
When they walked out of the side hall, Ruan Yun leaned slightly to the side. Tingxu quickly understood what the queen meant and said to the wet nurse who served the third prince, "Come here. The queen has something to say to you."
The wet nurses looked at each other, not knowing what the noble concubine meant.
But the Royal Concubine was considerate of the servants, and since they had done nothing wrong, she would not make things difficult for them.
One person was left behind to look after the third prince, while the others followed Tingxu into the main hall.
Ruan Jun sat at the head of the table, her almond-shaped eyes slightly curved and seemingly gentle, "You have done a great job in taking care of the Third Prince, and I should reward you well."
The nurses smiled happily and said, "Thank you, Madam."
Ying Ning stuffed a bag of silver into the hands of several people. Ruan Yun said softly, "In half a month, it will be the third prince's first birthday banquet. There will be many people on that day, so you must keep an eye on the third prince."
The nurse in the front said quickly: "Don't worry, Madam, we will take good care of the Third Prince."
Ruan Yun raised her hand and said, "Don't be nervous. I'm just a little worried, so I need to give you some more instructions."
The wet nurses understood what the empress meant, and left with smiles on their faces after receiving the reward.
Ying Ning stepped forward to help Ruan Yun up, lifted the pearl curtain and walked into the inner hall. "The wet nurses have always served the Third Prince. The Queen has been very kind to them. I think they will know what to do and what not to do."
After Ruan Yun sat down, she heard Ying Ning say, "I am afraid that some of them have ulterior motives, but I have not noticed it."
Ying Ning smiled and said, "Don't worry, Madam. These people were personally selected by Eunuch Wei under the order of the Emperor. They have clean backgrounds and there will be no mistakes."
Ruan Yun did not continue to talk about the wet nurse, and asked, "Has anyone come to Linxuan Palace recently?"
Tingxu also glanced at Yingning, and Yingning's smile faded. "I didn't see it. Chunqing, who was able to get out of Xuan Palace, also sent people to watch the dog hole. No one passed anything in, and no one went out."
Ruan Yun's fingertips touched the warm teacup, and after a long while she said, "This is the best."
Dongdong is about to turn one year old. By then, all the officials in the court and the country, both civil and military, will know Dongdong's name.
The eldest prince used to be the prince that the emperor cared about the most, and Concubine De often went to Chaoxi Palace. She and Concubine Xian had no friendship before, so why did she go there so often at this time?
Even Ruan Yun sent people to inquire privately, and they all said that it was Concubine De who went to Chaoxi Palace because the Empress Dowager had asked her to do so.
But Ruan Yun had no idea what exactly happened.
She just needs to protect her movements. If she can let Concubine De show her true face in front of the emperor, that would be the best situation.
…
Chaoxi Palace
As Concubine De came more often, the palace maids in Chaoxi Palace also got used to it.
Concubine Xian was sewing the purse in her hand. She looked up at Concubine De and asked, "Why are you here again?"
The smile on Concubine De's lips widened, and she said, "It's lonely in the deep palace, I came to see what my sister is doing."
Concubine Xian paused for a moment, then quickly resumed her own actions, "It's just to kill time."
De Fei has been used to Xian Fei's behavior recently, so she is not annoyed when she hears such words. "My sister hasn't been to see the Queen Mother for a long time. The Queen Mother misses her very much, so I have to do it for her. Look, the Queen Mother misses her, so she asks me to visit her every day, which adds to her fun."
Concubine Xian heard the Queen Mother's name not long ago, and a stitch in the embroidery in her hand became crooked. She watched quietly for a long time before she cut the silk thread, untied it and started embroidering again.
Seeing Concubine Xian's absent-minded look, Concubine De smiled even more. "My sister has not been by the Queen Mother's side these days. When I was chatting with her to relieve her boredom, I learned that after the Third Prince's first birthday banquet, the Queen Mother will return to Mount Putuo."
Seeing that Concubine Xian was still the same as usual and was about to say nothing, she seemed to suddenly remember something and raised her eyebrows and said, "I forgot to tell you that you probably don't know that you haven't left the palace for a while. The Queen Mother gave the Emperor a letter. After the letter was delivered to the Purple Palace, the Emperor ordered people to prepare for the Queen Mother's return to Mount Putuo. I think everything is almost ready."
Concubine Xian tightly grasped the embroidery string, her fingertips turning white from pinching it, and said hoarsely, "Do you know something?"
The smile on Concubine De's face deepened, "Of course I know. If I didn't know, my visit to my sister's place would have been in vain."
After that, Concubine De told Concubine Xian the news she had heard, half true and half false, "It's because I heard that the Queen Mother mentioned my sister's name in the letter."
"Ouch." Concubine De quickly covered her lips with a handkerchief, "It's my fault. I shouldn't have said this to my sister."
Standing up, without looking at Concubine Xian's expression, Concubine De said calmly, "The eldest prince is about to finish school, and I have to go back to the palace. If my sister has figured it out--"
She paused for a moment, but never looked at Concubine Xian. "Why don't you go to Jingzhang Palace to find me?"
Concubine Xian was sitting on the couch, with a needle tip almost embedded in her palm, but she didn't notice it until the palace maid who came in to serve tea saw her and screamed to bring Concubine Xian back to her senses.
Yinli was worried outside. The Queen Mother had been distant and cold to her earlier. Yinli knew why when the Queen Mother stopped visiting her.
She didn't dare to appear beside the Empress. Having followed the Empress for so many years, she naturally thought about the Empress in her heart.
Every step the Queen Mother takes is made with Your Majesty in mind. It’s just that Your Majesty cannot understand it now, but she will surely understand it in the future.
Yinli had just finished comforting herself in her heart when the sound of a teacup breaking was suddenly heard in the inner hall.
Without caring whether this would displease Concubine Xian, Yinli hurried into the inner hall.
Seeing that Concubine Xian's eyes were red and her emotions were turbulent, she was about to step forward when Concubine Xian coldly shouted, "Get out!"
Yinli did not leave, but called softly: "My Queen..."
Concubine Xian pointed at Yinli's nose and said, "Why, you have been by my side for so many years, and now that I have lost my value, you are here to ridicule me?"
Yinli was stunned, with a hurt look in her eyes, and she murmured "Xianfei".
But Concubine Xian was furious. She picked up the cup in her hand and smashed it on Yinli, "Get out!"
Hearing the footsteps behind her, Concubine Xian finally shed tears.
Why, why did you bring her into the palace, harm her to such an extent, and then let her go back to Putuo Mountain!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
