Shang Shaoyan lay in bed for three days, during which time Physician Mao prescribed several doses of medicine, all of which were tonics.
At noon that day, Shang Shaoyan was reading a book when she heard that Yan Xuening wanted to see her. She flipped through the book and casually raised her eyes: "Let her in."
After Yan Xuening entered, she sat on the soft couch, staring intently at Shang Shaoyan, her expression hesitant: "Cousin..."
Shang Shaoyan smiled at her, raising an eyebrow and asking, "So, have you made up your mind?"
Yan Xuening hesitated for a moment, then smiled ingratiatingly: "Cousin, I've made up my mind. I'm willing to get to know Mr. Li. Could you please assign me a few people?"
Shang Shaoyan agreed: "Okay. How did you come to that conclusion?"
Yan Xuening blushed slightly: "That day, when my cousin went to the palace, Young Master Li came to our residence to apologize."
Shang Shaoyan looked at Yan Xuening with a teasing expression: "And then? What did he say to you?"
Yan Xuening was a little embarrassed: "He basically told me not to worry, that he would go to the palace to ask the Imperial Concubine for help, and that it wouldn't delay me. He said it was all his fault, and I was just implicated."
Shang Shaoyan: "..."
Why does it smell like green tea?
It's okay, green tea is fine too, at least she's smart, which complements Yan Xuening, that little idiot.
Shang Shaoyan thought for a moment and asked, "Have you told your aunt?"
Yan Xuening shook her head: "I want to discuss it with my cousin first before telling my mother."
Shang Shaoyan smiled and tapped her forehead from a distance: "Go and talk to her. Marriage is a matter of parental consent and matchmaker's words. My agreement alone is not enough."
Yan Xuening then left excitedly.
Shang Shaoyan stared at Yan Xuening's retreating figure, lost in thought, and suddenly thought of Qiao Xiuyu.
She remembered that day when he held her hand, his features so handsome, adding a touch of tenderness to his expression—"When you and I are both ready, we'll be together."
It seems he really does like me.
For some reason, Shang Shaoyan felt a little sad, as if it was because she couldn't repay this sincerity, or as if she didn't know if she deserved such purity.
Lost in thought, Shang Yunlan's voice rang in her ear, somewhat sarcastic: "Oh, thinking about Qiao Zhuo again?"
Shang Shaoyan snapped out of his daze and calmly replied, "Yes."
Shang Yunlan was surprised that Shang Shaoyan admitted it so readily. He was stunned for a moment, and then he keenly sensed that Shang Shaoyan was somewhat unhappy.
He thought for a moment and then brought up a topic that might please Shang Shaoyan: "I have already placed someone in the palace, right here with Consort Shu."
Shang Shaoyan had indeed forgotten the unpleasantness from earlier and eagerly asked, "Who? How did you do that?"
Shang Yunlan sighed heavily: "When you were lying down a few days ago, I chatted with Physician Mao for a bit. During the conversation, we talked about how Granny Li had a daughter who had just lost her husband and couldn't find a job. Physician Mao volunteered to recommend her to work in the laundry department. We should have waited a few more days, but yesterday, Consort Shu asked Physician Mao to inquire about your condition. After hearing about this, he personally took her with him."
As he spoke, he feigned emotion and said, "They are truly two wonderful people."
Shang Shaoyan almost burst out laughing: "You're such a social butterfly, you can get people hooked in just a few words."
Shang Yunlan blinked innocently: "They wanted to help me, so how did it become that I tricked them?"
As they said this, they both laughed.
Granny Li had no daughter; the girl was a house-born child carefully selected by Shang Shaoyan from the household. Her name was Yan Yu, and she was the older sister of Yingge, who was by Yan Xuening's side. They had been waiting for an opportunity to send her into the palace.
Shang Yunlan then specially found a royal guard whose family needed assistance and made proper arrangements for his parents, siblings, and other relatives. The man was very grateful and was willing to help Yan Yu relay a message to Ying Ge.
At present, the management of the palace is not strict. If the servants in the palace are favored by the master, they can see their family members once every half month.
In this way, Shang Shaoyan and Shang Yunlan could receive news from the palace every ten days, and if there was anything important, the guard could also help relay messages.
Now that he has placed people in the palace, Shang Shaoyan doesn't need to worry about palace affairs for the time being. Moreover, news of Consort Zhao's intention to form a marriage alliance with the Duke of Zhenguo's family is not hard to come by.
So, setting off for Shu Prefecture can be put on the agenda now—seven days later, the two former prime ministers will be heading to their exile, and Shang Shaoyan wants to go with them.
So Shang Yunlan went to see Emperor Chen in person again.
Emperor Chen was listening to music and eating grapes when Qin Ye was reviewing memorials beside him. Upon hearing that his beloved minister Shang was requesting an audience, he quickly granted permission.
Upon seeing Shang Yunlan, Emperor Chen smiled and said, "Judging from your expression, Heyang must be much better now?"
Shang Yunlan smiled and said, "Thanks to His Majesty's good fortune, Heyang is already able to get out of bed and walk around. I think he will recover in a few days."
Relieved, Emperor Chen asked, "Minister Shang, what important matter brings you to see me today?"
Shang Yunlan: "It's nothing important, just something fun for Your Majesty. A few days ago, some new painters came to the manor. One of them came from Shu Prefecture. In order to please Emperor Heyang, he painted many pictures of the local customs and culture of Shu Prefecture and made them into a booklet. I found it interesting and thought Your Majesty would like it."
These words sounded very nice, and Emperor Chen thought that Minister Shang was truly pure and unpretentious, unlike other ministers—those ministers were either trying to persuade him or thinking about begging for favors every day, unlike Minister Shang, who was the first person he thought of when there was something fun.
Although he had no expectations for the booklet, Emperor Chen was willing to give Shang Yunlan some face, so he took it and began to read it.
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