Chapter 3: Grandma, didn't you say that my eldest brother is not doing well? What about the accompanying study quota?
As the days passed, Cui Xiao's face became rosier. Although he was still thin, he was full of energy.
The light in those peach blossom eyes grew brighter and brighter, and occasionally she would get out of bed and stroll around the yard.
There was more and more laughter and joy in Qixia Courtyard, dispelling the previous silence.
However, Yanshou Hall deep in the Marquis's mansion was getting colder day by day.
Old Madam Zhou twisted the Buddhist beads faster and faster, her nails digging into the rosewood beads, leaving deep marks.
The trusted maid she sent to Qixia Courtyard to "visit the patient" came back with an uglier and uglier expression.
"Madam... the Crown Prince... the Crown Prince looks better today. He's even playing shuttlecock in the yard! He's chatting and laughing with that young doctor named Hu..."
The old woman's voice trembled.
"Bang!" The Buddhist beads fell heavily to the ground, and the red sandalwood beads rolled all over the floor.
Old Madam Zhou squeezed out this word from between her teeth, her face so gloomy that water could drip out of it.
Cui Xiao's improvement was like a loud slap in the face on the chessboard she had carefully arranged.
What frightened her even more was that young doctor, Hu Qing, whose origins were unknown! How much did he know? That poison...did he really not notice it at all?
The atmosphere in Yanshou Hall was as oppressive as the dead silence before a storm.
The second house also got the news. Cui Xiao's cousin Cui Jun, the grandson that the old lady had high hopes for, was even more restless and ran to his grandmother to cry.
"Grandma! Didn't you say...didn't you say that my eldest brother...he wouldn't get better? This place for a study companion..."
"What are you panicking about?"
Mrs. Zhou interrupted him harshly, her cloudy old eyes flashing with a cold light like a venomous snake.
"His life was saved, but can his body withstand the torture? Is it easy to be a companion in the palace?
That's the job of serving the prince and his grandson! Who would dare to employ a sickly person who keeps calling in the imperial physician every few days?
His Majesty the Emperor wouldn't want a medicine jar to be an eyesore in front of the prince!"
She took a deep breath, picked up the scattered Buddhist beads again, and twisted them one by one, her voice filled with a deep chill.
"Just wait... this study partner must belong to my grandson, Sun Jun'er! No one can take it away from him!"
Just as Mrs. Zhou suppressed her anger and prepared to use her own tricks to ensure that the number of companions was firmly in the hands of the second wife,
A golden imperial edict suddenly hit the Weiyuan Marquis Mansion without any warning.
It was a clear and sunny day.
The central door of the Marquis's mansion was wide open, and the incense table was set high.
Cui Yan, dressed in court robes, led all the men in the mansion to kneel in the front yard to receive the imperial edict. Old Madam Zhou was also supported by her maid and sat on a specially placed brocade stool beside her.
His face had his usual reserved and dignified expression, but the fingers that were twisting the Buddhist beads were slightly tense.
The eunuch's shrill, high-pitched voice echoed in the courtyard.
"...Your Majesty Weiyuan, Cui Yan's eldest son, Cui Xiao, is intelligent, studious, and of virtuous character... and has been specially selected to enter the Hongwen Academy to serve as the prince's tutor and accompany the Third Prince... I decree this!"
"Your Majesty, Cui Yan, accepts your command and expresses gratitude! Long live the Emperor!"
Cui Yan's voice was loud and he kowtowed heavily with uncontrollable excitement.
However, the entire front yard fell into an eerie silence. Everyone was stunned, their eyes involuntarily cast towards Yanshou Hall - Cui Xiao?
The prince who was lying on his deathbed a few days ago? Being a study companion for the prince? This...
The reserve on Mrs. Zhou's face froze instantly, as if she was wearing a stiff mask.
She suddenly stood up from the brocade stool, her movements were so fast that she didn't look like an old woman at all. Her cloudy eyes were fixed on the bright yellow imperial edict.
It was like it was burning a hole through it! Impossible! This was absolutely impossible!
Why would the emperor choose a "sickly child" as his study companion?! Why was Cui Xiao's name even passed up?!
She clearly... clearly had already made arrangements, and the one who should have handed it over should have been Cui Jun!
In this moment of suffocating silence——
"Your Majesty, Cui Xiao! Thank you for your grace! Long live the Emperor!"
A clear, powerful voice, with the youthful vigor and vitality, suddenly broke the silence in the front yard like an arrow piercing the clouds and tearing the silk!
At the flower-draped gate leading to the inner courtyard, a young man wearing a moon-white brocade robe and a jade belt around his waist rushed out like a gust of wind!
His figure was as straight as a bamboo shoot sprouting in spring. Although his face was still a little pale from a serious illness, his cheeks were already showing a healthy blush.
Those iconic peach blossom eyes were shining brightly, and there was a familiar smile at the corner of his mouth, with a little pride and cunning. Who else could it be but Cui Xiao?
He ran to the incense table in a few steps, lifted his robe and knelt down with quick movements, and kowtowed in a polite and loud voice to express his gratitude.
With that spirit and agility, where is there any trace of a sickly person or a medically ill person?
Cui Yan looked at his lively and energetic son, his eyes instantly turned red and his lips trembled with excitement.
And Madam Zhou——
“You…you…”
She pointed at Cui Xiao, who was kneeling on the ground with his back straight and a bright smile, and her fingers trembled like dead leaves in the wind.
A strange hoarse sound came from his throat, and his wrinkled old face first turned red, and then turned into a terrifying gray.
"Click... click... click click..."
The red sandalwood Buddhist beads in her hand, which she always carried with her and symbolized her supreme authority and compassion, could no longer be twisted. The knot broke, and the round, cold beads fell to the ground like raindrops that had broken off the string.
They jumped and rolled all over the smooth bluestone tiles, making crisp and chaotic sounds, just like the chess game she had carefully planned, which completely collapsed and shattered at this moment!
The servants in the courtyard were silent as a mouse, and even the eunuch who delivered the decree was so frightened that he forgot the polite words after announcing the decree.
He stared in amazement at the thrilling scene unfolding in the deep mansion of the marquis.
Cui Xiao kowtowed and stood up with a smile, even brushing off the non-existent dust on his knees. Then, he turned to the pale and shaky Madam Zhou.
He bowed politely, his voice clear and bright, carrying the youthful vigor that seemed to penetrate all gloom:
"Grandson pays his respects to Grandmother! Thanks to Grandmother's blessings, my illness has been completely cured! I will live up to Your Majesty's grace and serve the Third Prince well!"
His sparkling peach blossom eyes clearly reflected the old lady's distraught and horrified face.
The smile deepened, with a barely perceptible edge that belonged to a winner.
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