After a busy day, Hua Zhi finished her meal and walked out of the house. She looked up at the golden-red sunset in the sky and secretly exclaimed, "It's beautiful."
Bao Xia chased out and put the cloak on the young lady, muttering, "It's still cold at this time of year, don't be careless."
Hua Zhi obediently let her tie her cloak, and turned to say to Nanny Su who was following behind her: "The weather is nice, and it's rare for you to come here, let's all go out for a walk and get some fresh air."
Nanny Su knelt down and bowed, then went into the house to call other people. She did not interfere with the young lady's decision just because she respected her.
The eldest girl in their family doesn't need these.
It was the first time that the masters and servants of the Hua family went out after two days at the farm. Although the maids were usually steady, they were still young after all. They looked around curiously. Dongzi was afraid that something might happen, so he took people to follow behind to protect them.
It was only early spring and the land had just thawed. There was no green to be seen at a glance, and naturally there was no scenery to speak of. But even so, everyone was in high spirits.
It has been a long time since they felt this relaxed. All these days, the strings in their hearts have been tense, and they dared not relax for a moment. Now in this empty and somewhat desolate place, they seem to have let go of all that.
Listening to the chattering of the maids behind her, Hua Zhi walked towards the sunset. She thought, when this place is covered with green, and things on the farm are on track, maybe she could ask the girls who have been bored at home for months to come and stay for a few days.
The sound of horse hooves came from far away. Dongzi and others quickly ran over to protect the girl behind them, looking vigilantly in the direction where the sound came from. Hua Zhi felt somewhat satisfied. It seemed that she had really learned something from the martial arts classes in the past few months.
She also looked in that direction. She was more worried than the guards and maids around her. Since there were people arranged by Mr. Lu around her, ordinary people could not get in. And now the other party was not stopped, so those who came were their own people.
In the setting sun, a man riding on a tall horse slowly approached. Against the light, Hua Zhi could not see his expression clearly. Out of politeness, she smiled slightly.
But she didn't know how beautiful her smile was against the backdrop of the setting sun. That sense of security, that feeling as if it was supposed to be this way, made Gu Yanxi feel as if this person appeared here just to wait for him to return. After a day of blood and corpses, his heart finally gradually thawed.
Lin Ying hadn't seen Hua Zhi for some time, and now he kept snuggling into her arms. Hua Zhi patted his big head, and looked up along his fur at the motionless man. Their eyes met, and neither of them looked away.
Hua Zhi's usual calmness completely calmed Gu Yanxi's turbulent emotions. He dismounted, patted Lin Ying's back, and let it go and play on its own.
"Did you handle the matter at the manor smoothly?"
"Very good." Compared to things in the capital, the process was as smooth as the left hand touching the right hand. Hua Zhi swallowed the words kindly.
Gu Yanxi curled the corners of his lips slightly and walked forward first. Knowing that he had something to say, Hua Zhi signaled the others to stop and followed.
Baoxia was anxious to follow. It would be fine if they were at home, but they were outside and if someone saw them, the young lady's reputation would be ruined. Yingchun held her back and looked at Nanny Su.
Nanny Su frowned and thought for a while, "We won't get too close, but we have to follow."
This was exactly what they wanted, so they immediately followed at a close distance, just as the guards had followed them before.
The atmosphere was silent but not stagnant. Gu Yanxi slightly tilted his head and looked at the person walking behind him. He slowly slowed down his pace and waited for the person to come closer. He liked to walk side by side with Azhi. Although Azhi would abide by the rules at the beginning, she would always forget after walking a few steps. For her, it seemed that walking side by side was the norm that she was used to.
Sure enough, after a while, the distance between the two had changed from one step to half a step.
"Peony will stay in the palace for a while."
"kindness."
"She stretched her neck so much today that she still couldn't get the meal you brought her. She was very unhappy."
"… I think there will be no shortage of food and drink for her in the palace."
"There's no comparison." No matter how delicious the food in the palace is, it just tastes the same when it's lukewarm. The food in the Hua family has its own flavor even when it's cold.
Gu Yanxi stopped and turned around, his eyes falling on the group of people who were following him from a distance. Perhaps because the people who cook in the palace are only thinking about power and wealth, there is a rotten smell in the food.
Hua Zhi followed his gaze and her eyes became a little gentler.
"The boss colluded with the Heavenly Master to present the golden elixir to the emperor, and the emperor has been eating it for two months."
Hua Zhi suddenly realized, that's why. No wonder Mr. Lu was so furious. It turned out to be because of this matter. Although the golden elixir was not a good thing, it was not a big deal to only eat it for two months. As far as she knew in history, the only thing that many emperors did in their lives was to make and eat elixirs, waiting for immortality. Although they died in the end, they lived for decades before dying. Two months was nothing.
"Peony said that the ratio of that elixir is several times that of ordinary golden elixirs. It is aimed at the life of the emperor's uncle."
Hua Zhi was slightly stunned, and then she understood the unfinished meaning of his words. The emperor was nearly fifty years old, and according to the life span of the emperors of the Daqing Dynasty, he didn't have many years left to live. If he did anything else with the golden elixir...
How cruel! The Heavenly Family is truly heartless.
"Peony said that this golden elixir is too overbearing. Even if her master is here, it will be difficult to repair the damaged foundation." Gu Yanxi turned around and looked at the sunset in the sky. "Outsiders only think that the emperor's delay in appointing a crown prince has led to the current situation, but few people know that the emperor's uncle hopes to appoint the eldest prince as the crown prince more than anyone else. He is the eldest son he taught hand in hand, but no matter how he taught him over the years, he even used other sons as whetstones, but the eldest son never made an inch of progress, and even got worse year by year. No matter how anxious the emperor's uncle is, he can't appoint such a waste as the crown prince. When he was completely disappointed and moved his eyes away from his eldest son, he found that the other grown-up sons had grown into wolves."
Hua Zhi listened to these secrets that she shouldn't have heard, and looked at this empty place that was really suitable for talking and remained silent. She knew that Mr. Lu only needed an audience.
"I only handed over the most insignificant evidence that implicated the eldest son. I didn't tell my uncle that the second son had his hand in the northern border, or that the third son might have had a hand in Yan's affairs. He only has a few sons, and I can't let him lose three of them at once."
The sun set, and the sunset glow gradually disappeared. The sky suddenly lost its previous brightness. Gu Yanxi looked at the woman who had remained silent all the time. "Everyone thinks that the emperor is the most noble person in the world, but I think the emperor is the most pitiful person in the world. He has nothing but royal power."