Qianqing Palace, tea room.
"It's just a trivial matter. I can do it. Why should the deputy manager worry about it?" Little Li bent down and quickly took the brewed teapot. His young face was smiling, and then he said respectfully, "Master told me to be quick. Your Majesty is thirsty just now. I can't delay. I'll take my leave now..."
Liu Qin watched Little Lizi hurriedly walking towards the inner hall. He withdrew his hand from mid-air and his expression suddenly turned gloomy, causing the young eunuch behind him to tremble with fear. He dared not say a word and lowered his head as low as possible.
Last time, when Concubine Ping went to the imperial garden to seek favor, the emperor was furious and ordered General Manager Liang to severely punish the servant who had the audacity to accept bribes from Concubine Ping and thus informed the emperor of his whereabouts, and to rectify the atmosphere in the palace. In an instant, everyone was in danger, and all the palace maids and eunuchs working in the Qianqing Palace were thoroughly investigated by General Manager Liang.
It turned out that the audacious servant Sanyuan was actually from the lineage of his master Liu Qin.
The master had broken the three rules and promoted him from a cleaning eunuch to work in the tea room. This relationship was so clear that it was not an exaggeration to call them master and apprentice!
This caused a big trouble.
Not only did Sanyuan receive thirty beatings and lose half his life, but his master also suffered as a result.
He was ordered to reflect on his own mistakes, fined half a year's salary, demoted from the Imperial Study, and no longer served the Emperor closely... This series of punishments was too severe, causing the master to lose the Emperor's favor and his power to decline. He could no longer compete with Chief Steward Liang.
It was a complete disaster...
Not only was the master furious, but the apprentices were also upset. The master was upset and had been gloomy for many days, scolding them at every turn, but what could be done
They had no choice but to be extremely careful and serve with utmost caution.
The young eunuch was very worried and had to pray to his master to regain the emperor's heart, but now he was even more worried.
Today, things finally got better. His Majesty asked someone to brew a pot of Biluochun tea. At this time, the master was on duty in the tea room. Meeting the emperor was the most important thing, so the master softened his expression and did not care about lowering his status. He was ready to do the job of the eunuch serving tea.
He quickly soaked and tested the medicine and was about to send it to the study when Little Li, the direct disciple of Manager Liang, came in!
…
Seeing Liu Qin so angry that he was fuming and muttering the three words "Liang Jiugong" in a low voice, the young eunuch groaned in his heart. He followed Liu Qin out of the tea room like a quail, not daring to breathe.
Although Liu Qin no longer had the power to serve as a personal servant, he was still the deputy general manager of the Qianqing Palace. The place he lived in was far from being comparable to a large bunk bed. A screen was used to separate the bedroom from the table and chairs.
After returning to his residence, Liu Qin slammed the table, his face still not looking good. He gritted his teeth and said: "... Do you think you can sit back and relax after you have climbed up to the Yikun Palace and become a lackey? There will always be a time when that old thing will fall into trouble!"
The young eunuch vaguely sensed that his master and Chief Eunuch Liang were having an affair, and that it was not only the dispute over who was the most important person in front of the emperor, but was also closely related to the disputes in the harem.
Liang Zongguan secretly spoke well of Concubine Yi, but the master favored Concubine Hui and secretly passed on a lot of information. He had guessed a long time ago that the master either received benefits from the Yanxi Palace or was a member of the Nara clan...
Speculations are speculations, but we dare not verify them.
He quickly came back to his senses, opened his mouth, and cautiously agreed, only to hear Liu Qin ask: "Regarding Master Fulu's matter, have you done as I said? Did Concubine Hui have any instructions?"
Speaking of this, the young eunuch perked up and lost some of his panic: "I did everything my master said, and passed it on word for word. As for the Yanxi Palace... there are no instructions yet."
Liu Qin exhaled slowly, said "OK" softly, narrowed his eyes, and a gloomy look flashed.
The young eunuch scratched his head, hesitating for a long while, and finally asked in a puzzled voice: "Master, Master Fulu clearly didn't say anything to surpass the eldest prince, why did you do this?"
He racked his brains but couldn't figure out what benefit could come from making up this story, other than causing a fight between Concubine Hui and Concubine Yi, and discord between the eldest prince and the fifth prince.
Even if Concubine Hui is better, Concubine Yi is favored by the emperor, so it is inevitable that she will suffer serious damage. Who can get away with it
Could it be that the master hated Concubine Yi because of the chief steward
…I can’t.
"Why are you talking so much? Put away your curiosity, or you'll lose your life." Liu Qin paused, glared at him sternly, rubbed his hands, exhaled a breath of hot air, and then said impatiently, "We have our own intentions! Go, go, bring some water, and help the master wash his feet... If the water is cold, you'll be caned."
*****
Pingpin had no idea that the deputy general manager of the Qianqing Palace was implicated by her, nor did she know that the eunuch Sanyuan who bribed her was beaten with thirty boards. At this moment, her face was even uglier than Liu Qin's.
The head maid Zhu Chai trembled all over and whispered, "My mother is still in the mansion. I thought she was seriously ill, but I never thought that the master would come to see me in person... He said, he said, Your Majesty should follow the lead of the Yikun Palace, help pass on the message, and help Hesheli out of the predicament. Don't have any thoughts that you shouldn't have."
She stood up suddenly and slapped Zhu Chai hard in the face. She was in disbelief and had a ferocious look on her face, as if she had heard a funny joke: "Teaming up with Concubine Yi and following her lead? My uncle actually warned me about this? Say it again?!"
Zhu Chai knelt on the ground with a swish. She didn't dare to cover her face. She just kept kowtowing with red eyes and a crying tone: "Your Majesty, please calm down. Your Majesty, please calm down. I dare not deceive you!"
She didn't expect that when she returned home to visit her relatives, she would find out such news...
Pingpin fell down on the couch and took a long time to recover. She felt extremely sick and nauseous, as if she had eaten a fly.
Is my uncle getting senile and confused
When will the Hesheli clan rely on that bitch Yiguo Luoluo to lend a hand to their plight? ! As long as the clan members make progress and the uncle works hard for the court, with the prince around, it will be enough to change the emperor's opinion. Wouldn't it be easy to restore the throne
Not to mention that she and Concubine Yi had already formed a big grudge, which could not be easily resolved.
Because of Concubine Yi, her originally secure position as a concubine was reduced to that of a royal concubine. Later, she was punished to copy Buddhist scriptures. Her impulsive attempt to win favor also caused misunderstanding and disgust from the emperor. She was ridiculed countless times by the concubines and almost became a joke in the harem.
Whenever she thought of these things, Pingpin's eyes turned red with hatred and her heart bled.
The emperor never even looked at her, but he supported that bitch countless times.
As a noble lady of the Hesheli clan and the younger sister of Empress Yuan, it would be better to kill her than to ask her to follow the orders of the Yikun Palace!
Her emotions fluctuated violently for a long time. Pingpin twisted her face, broke her nails, and kept muttering, "Dream..."
"Follow your orders? Haha, absolutely impossible." She cast a poisonous gaze on Zhu Chai and said slowly, "If there is any news coming from Yikun Palace, just stop it. As for my uncle—"
As she spoke, Pingpin closed her eyes, revealed a sarcastic smile, and said word by word: "My uncle is getting old and confused. He doesn't care about feelings, so why should I care? I agree, but what news will be passed on in the future depends on my mood. Go down! I want to be alone."
******
Yikun Palace.
"Have you anticipated the reaction of Chuxiu Palace?" The lingering fruity aroma filled the inner room. Ruizhu poured a cup of steaming sweet fruit tea and whispered, "… The palace gates have been closed these days. It's not an exaggeration to say that there is a lot of panic. Our people wanted to pass on the message, but they couldn't find a way."
The heat blurred that extremely bright face. Yun Xiu picked up the teacup and took a sip, saying calmly: "Hesheli hates me so much, how can she follow the path designed by Soetu? Pretending to obey but secretly disobeying is in line with her nature."
Under extreme circumstances, it is common to get stuck in a dead end, not to mention that Pingpin has suffered setbacks again and again since entering the palace, and her state of mind is no longer calm and peaceful.
Yun Xiu will look at her with new eyes only because she can endure humiliation and bear heavy burdens.
"I have helped you with this favor and delivered the message. I care deeply about it. As for whether it is useful..." She smiled lightly and said calmly, "Every grievance has its perpetrator and every debt has its creditor. The Hesheli clan cannot blame me."
Join forces
Little Hesheli felt disgusted, could it be that she didn't feel disgusted
Yunxiu still remembers how Pingpin designed Yinqi to fall into the water, and she has never forgotten it at all.
Gradually, the unfinished words disappeared in the air: "Since she is jumping happily, let her continue to jump. Ruizhu, ask the kitchen to prepare a few dishes of food, and bring the account books that Yongshou Palace sent..."
Yun Xiu smiled and said, "I can't be lazy anymore since the Imperial Concubine has entrusted me with this."
Seeing that the Empress was in high spirits, Ruizhu also laughed, quickly responded, and turned to leave.
At this moment, Nanny Dong came in through the curtain, bowed, and looked slightly solemn: "Your Majesty, Concubine Hui wants to meet the young masters of the Nara clan, saying that they want to accompany the eldest prince in his riding and archery. As soon as the eldest prince asked, the emperor quickly nodded."
After taking a breath, she continued, "I don't know what Concubine Hui planned. She went to the Grand Empress Dowager in a flash and said that there are many more distinguished guests in the palace now, all of them are brave young men. She also took the opportunity to propose an idea to let the eldest prince bring his cousin from his mother's family to perform in front of the two empresses. In addition to adding to the fun, it will also add to the festive atmosphere of the New Year... The Grand Empress Dowager is old and likes excitement and children. She immediately approved Concubine Hui's proposal."
The young master of Nara clan and the nephew of Concubine Hui.
Yun Xiu was silent for a moment, rubbed his temple, and asked, "Such a big fuss, is it related to Fu Lu?"
"Your Highness is right." Nanny Dong sighed, anger flashing in her eyes. "I don't know where this rumor came from, saying that when Master Fulu is a few years older, he will definitely be braver than the eldest prince. Concubine Hui exaggerated a few words in the Cining Palace, saying that Master Fulu has been practicing martial arts since he was a child. Her nephew was eager to try after hearing about it and wanted to compete with Master Fulu!"
"What a man who has practiced martial arts since childhood, even braver than the eldest prince." Yun Xiu frowned, almost laughing out of anger, "How old is her nephew, how old is Fulu, she doesn't care about her face anymore? The Empress Dowager actually agrees?"
"One is ten years old, the other is eight years old, and the youngest is about six years old..." Nanny Dong replied softly, "The Empress Dowager did not agree. She only said that the competition was cancelled, but she has not yet met the Fifth Prince's study partner."
With Concubine Hui's instigation, if the Empress Dowager wanted to see her, I'm sure the Cining Palace would send someone over soon.
Yunxiu frowned tightly.
After a while, she said, "Tell my sister-in-law to bring Fulu to the palace immediately."
*****
It was the first time that Fulu entered the Cining Palace. He was still fearless. He held Yunxiu's hand tightly and looked left and right without any fear at all.
The Empress Dowager fell in love with this lively kid as soon as she saw him.
"Fulu, Fulu, he is a blessed child." The Queen Mother beside him said cheerfully, waved at him, and asked with a smile, "Some people say that if Fulu is a few years older, he will be braver than Yinzhi! Is this true?"
The eldest prince curled his lips secretly, and Concubine Hui smiled slightly, and was about to continue the conversation -
Fulu raised his little head, held his head high and said, "Of course it's true!"