Gan Qiongying never expected that the information Li Hua gave out was completely false from the beginning, and that the list was of no use whatsoever. She also didn't know that Li Hua had already resolutely chosen to stand on her side.
Gan Qiongying finished her bath with great satisfaction, feeling refreshed. She was still thinking about the roast duck and didn't pay much attention to Li Hua changing her clothes. She went straight to the roast duck on the table.
As expected of Phoenix Tower's signature dish, it lived up to its reputation. Gan Qiongying even felt that she would never get tired of eating it every day.
Gan Qiongying ate happily, and because she had come up with several good ideas that didn't cost any money, she smiled especially brightly. She was already beautiful, and her smile made her even more charming. Li Hua couldn't help but keep looking at her.
Even if what Gan Qiongying was about to do didn't cause Li Hua any loss, it was still a form of exploitation, and she couldn't help but feel guilty.
When they went to sleep that night, she took the initiative to snuggle up to Li Hua and nestled into his arms very obediently. Li Hua hugged Gan Qiongying tightly almost without hesitation.
The soft moonlight streamed through the window, and the night breeze gently caressed the gauze curtains. There was no gap between them. They had both been busy all day, and now, holding each other in their arms, they felt incredibly at ease.
Both were preoccupied with their own thoughts, but both slept soundly through the night.
The next morning, Li Hua went out to work as usual, and Gan Qiongying saw Li Hua off at the door as always, and asked Manyue to gather the rest of the people in the main hall.
The sooner you get it done, the sooner you can have peace of mind!
Most of those people were useless and could be left to Li Hua, but Gan Qiongying still felt it was necessary to meet Fan Xi.
After yesterday, Fan Xi's seductive appearance seemed to have suddenly disappeared. Standing in front of Gan Qiongying now, she truly possessed the dignified bearing of the son of the Martial Manor Master.
“Greetings, Princess,” Fan Xi said, his usual carefree demeanor vanishing as he immediately knelt and performed a deep bow. “May Your Highness be well.”
Gan Qiongying waved her hand, indicating that there was no need for formalities, and then gestured to Manyue with her eyes.
Full Moon stepped forward and said to the outside of the hall, "Come in."
Several servants worked together to carry a large wooden box, which kicked up a cloud of dust when it was placed on the ground, indicating that it had been there for a long time.
Fan Xi was also drawn to the box. He recognized it at a glance as the one he used when he was a child. He used to hide in this box when he played with his fellow disciples in the martial arts school. He couldn't believe it. He hesitated and took a step forward, but tears kept falling. He knelt down in front of the box with a thud.
“The wooden box was already damaged,” Manyue said. “The princess asked skilled craftsmen to piece it together, and also ordered people to search the courtyard for some relatively intact items and bring them back, including the ashes of your parents.”
Fan Xi gently stroked the box, brushing away the dust. After opening the box, he saw two memorial tablets and a wooden box inside. He finally broke down, burying his head in the box, his body trembling uncontrollably, and sobs escaping from it.
Manyue glanced at Gan Qiongying, and after receiving a response, continued, "When we arrived at Wuzhuang, the two elders were already..."
Manyue wanted to say that he was inhuman, but seeing how grief-stricken Fanxi was, she couldn't bear to say it. Instead, she said, "The princess has already chosen a burial site in the suburbs for the two elders. There are several good ones. You can choose one to be buried here today when you leave the mansion, so as to fulfill your filial duty as a son."
Fan Xi, clutching the box, her face covered in mud, spoke incoherently from emotion: "Thank you, Princess, thank you, Princess..."
Gan Qiongying was also moved by the scene, and her voice softened: "From now on, you will work with the prince consort. First, you need to have a proper job to keep your identity a secret. When I need to employ you in the future, I will contact you."
Previously, Fan Xi's biggest concern was his parents' remains and memorial tablets. Now that he has them, Gan Qiongying is worried that he will take the opportunity to escape and is even more worried that he will not cooperate with the plan. So she made a promise.
"Your enemies, the Fan family," Gan Qiongying looked up, meeting Fan Xi's gaze to make her seem more credible, "I will take care of them for you."
This is not an exaggeration. Gan Qiongying cannot reach out to the old witch, but Gan Li's people can still think of ways to make her half-dead, even if they can't kill her. As long as Fan Xi believes in them, that's enough.
Fan Xi suddenly stopped crying. His eyes gradually turned bloodshot as he recalled the scene when Wu Zhuang was wiped out. He then knelt down and kowtowed several times.
"Princess," Fan Xi almost roared, his eyes filled with determination. His forehead was already bleeding from the banging of his head. "Fan Xi's life belongs to the princess. From now on, whatever the princess asks Fan Xi to do, Fan Xi will do his best!"
"Get up quickly." Gan Qiongying couldn't bear to see this bloody scene, but she still maintained her composed manner of speaking: "You must take care of your health first, otherwise how can you serve me?"
After seeing Fan Xi off, Gan Qiongying met with several other people she deemed useful, using a combination of kindness and strictness, with kindness making up the majority of the meeting.
Ding Doudou longed to read and write, so Gan Qiongying promised to hire a tutor for him. Upon hearing this, Fengwu also wanted to go with Ding Doudou.
Gan Qiongying didn't care about the other male concubines at first, but before she left, she noticed that there was a monk standing in the crowd.
Upon seeing the man's appearance, Gan Qiongying recalled that part of her memory about him.
This is Liaoyuan, the senior brother of the young monk Dingzhen.
When the temple was on the verge of collapse, Duanrong tried her best, but still failed to get Dingzhen into the princess's residence. In an effort to keep her there, she even promised to build a temple for Dingzhen, but Dingzhen refused to agree.
In a fit of anger, Princess Duanrong brought back the senior brother of the young monk Dingzhen.
Princess Duanrong used to grant his every wish, but when he repeatedly ran into obstacles and was refused money each time, he became flustered and began to doubt whether Princess Duanrong was still as infatuated with him as before. However, he never had the chance to go to the front yard. He was proud and arrogant and used to Princess Duanrong's flattery, so he would not easily bow down for money.
Most of the people in the backyard didn't associate with him, partly because they were afraid of being beaten, and partly because Liaoyuan was really unlikable, and Liaoyuan didn't care.
Liaoyuan has fair skin and has been a vegetarian and martial arts practitioner for many years. Even when he is wearing monk's robes, you can tell that he has a good figure. His eyes are droopy at the corners, which adds to his innocent look. His eyes are very clear, and he seems to pursue nothing. In fact, he is attached to everything in the mortal world and cannot achieve a state of being free from desires and having a pure mind.
Man Yue read out the list outside the palace, "Liao Yuan, please stay and guard the backyard. Another day, you will leave the mansion with the prince consort and be sent back to Dingchen Mountain."
Liao Yuan paused, the joy on his face from the impending meeting with the princess vanishing instantly. He couldn't believe the princess was asking him to return to Dingchen Mountain! He looked bewildered, but because he was a monk and had always been proud and arrogant, he couldn't bring himself to ask to stay.
Gan Qiongying went through her memories several times but couldn't recall Dingzhen's appearance at all. Princess Duanrong would definitely not have gone to such great lengths to bring back Dingzhen's senior brother. Gan Qiongying would definitely find an opportunity to meet him and see what this little monk Dingzhen was capable of.
But it's not the right time yet, so let's just put it aside for later.
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