Probably because of the sudden change of identity, Mrs. Xu stood at the gate of the palace, always a little cautious and embarrassed, as if she didn't know how to face Chu Ning for a while. It looks a bit like that.
Not to mention her, even Chu Ning was a little uncomfortable.
She is now the empress, the wife of Xiao Kezhi, and the nephew and daughter-in-law of the Duke of Lu. With such a relationship, she should be like Xiao Kezhi and call Madam Xu "auntie", but the words are on the lips, but There is always something to say.
The two looked at each other head-on, thinking about how to break the embarrassment, but Guo'er on the side suddenly took Chu Ning's hand and called out "Sister-in-law" in a low voice.
This child, when he was in front of the imperial family, never dared to call Xiao Kezhi his "cousin", but when he came to Chu Ning, he rarely called "A-sister-in-law" so naturally.
Both Chu Ning and Madam Xu were stunned, and the awkward atmosphere just now seemed to have disappeared suddenly.
"Oh, this child, there are no rules!" Mrs. Xu smiled and patted her daughter's head, looking at Chu Ning with a little more probing in her eyes, as if she wanted to see if she was still the same as before.
Chu Ning also laughed, and scooped up the brewed tea and brought it to Mrs. Xu: "Where is the rule? It's me, I met my aunt, and I haven't served tea yet."
"Hey, Your Highness, don't be too busy, I'm not a serious elder, how can I dare to let His Highness serve tea?" Madam Xu resigned, and shook Chu Ning's hand as she did in the past, "I, hey, come here today. Before, I was always worried that I didn't know how to face His Highness, but now it's better, it's the same as before. My husband and I both come from the countryside of Yanzhou, and we don't have the twists and turns in the hearts of others. The two of me are only two in this life. My wish, firstly, that Guo’er will be well, and secondly, that I hope that the saint will be well. Now that the saint has His Highness by his side, we can all feel at ease.”
Chu Ning patiently listened to her Xu Xu words, and there was an inexplicable warmth in her heart.
She has been away from her relatives for a long time, and she has rarely been so cared and loved by her elders. During the Chinese New Year, when the Duke of Lu's family found out that the prince was thinking of marrying another, they did not forget to say a good word for her in front of Xiao Kezhi, and now there is no malicious speculation about her because she has changed from the emperor's niece to the queen. This sincerity is truly invaluable.
"Thank you aunt, I will definitely serve Your Majesty with all my heart."
"That's it, I know His Highness's personality, and it is most admirable and reassuring." Madam Xu felt relaxed, and even her posture on the side of the couch loosened.
Chu Ning asked someone to send Guo'er's favorite cakes and fruits, and the three of them chatted and laughed together, but it was not too different from before.
"This child has become more and more diligent in reading and literacy recently." Madam Xu glanced at Guo'er, who was sitting at the desk beside Chu Ning's copybook, and said, "Her father said, this child It’s the same as when the Queen Mother Qiangwei was young, she can read and hyphenate. It’s a pity that her family was poor and even her father couldn’t read, and there was nowhere for women to study.”
The "Empress Dowager Wei" in her mouth is rightly said to be Xiao Kezhi's biological mother Wei Cairen, who was posthumously named Empress Dowager last year.
Chu Ning didn't know much about Xiao Kezhi's mother, so she couldn't help but pay attention: "It turns out that the Queen Mother Wei is also eager to learn, no wonder the Sage is also so diligent and hard-working, reading every day, managing politics, and never slack."
"Hey, yes, I heard from Guo'er's father that when Empress Dowager Wei was in Yanzhou, she secretly went to the schoolhouse in the village to listen to the corner for two days. Later, there was a famine, and she was busy picking grass roots every day, and she couldn't care about anything. , She saved her rations to her parents and younger brother. When she was hungry, she wrote and drew on the ground with twigs... Fortunately, she entered the palace and enjoyed a few years of good fortune. She no longer had to suffer from hunger and cold. Maybe, she would follow the palace. The female officials learned to read and draw.”
Chu Ning listened carefully, but when it came to the last sentence, she didn't answer.
She knew in her heart that the female officials in the palace who could get the official rank were all ladies from the family of officials. They could not make mistakes in their upbringing and knowledge since childhood. The poor people sold into the palace and worked as coolies in Ye Ting. Opportunity to learn to read and write.
It's just that, she wouldn't tell Madam Xu, she could only keep it in her heart.
The three of them sat in the hall for a while, until after noon, Madam Xu got up and took Guo'er to retire.
Before leaving, Guo'er sat next to Chu Ning with a smile, pulled the corner of her clothes and whispered in her ear, "Guo'er thinks that His Highness is a perfect match for His Majesty, much better than before!"
Chu Ning looked at her blushing face, her eyes lit up, and she suddenly remembered when she was on the Lishan Racecourse earlier. Could it be that Guo'er had already noticed it
She gave her another thoughtful look and shook her head with a smile.
This child is pure and kind in nature, and has a delicate mind. Although he is a little timid, he is a person who understands etiquette, and he will be able to live smoothly in the future.
"Okay, don't bother Your Highness anymore." Madam Xu looked at her daughter's closeness to Chu Ning, and pulled her with a smile.
After the two saluted, the maids took Chu Ning's gift and sent them away.
The carriage was already waiting outside Yong'an Gate in the south. After the mother and daughter got up, they slowly drove eastward.
"Madam, little lady, there seems to be the frame of the crown princess in front. Shall we stop and say hello?"
It took only a moment or two to go out, and the maid outside the car asked aloud.
From Yonganmen to the east, you will always pass through Jiafumen, the main entrance of the East Palace. It is not surprising that people who meet the East Palace are not surprised. But in the past two or three months, the couple of Lu Guogong listened to Xiao Kezhi's instructions and worried about Guo'er, so they kept their daughters in seclusion, so they hadn't seen Zhao Yu'e for a long time, and it was unexpected that they met suddenly today.
Mrs. Xu thought for a while, then pulled Guo'er and said softly, "It's not easy to escape when we meet, let's just go over and say hello, okay?"
Guo'er thought of Zhao Yu'e's stern look she had seen in Lishan before, and she was still a little frightened, but she didn't refuse, she just nodded obediently, followed her mother out of the car, and rushed to the Donggong bike racks parked on the side of the road in front of her. go.
Fortunately, Zhao Yu'e, who just came out of the East Palace, didn't intend to talk to the mother and daughter. Seeing them salute, she just gave them a cold look, and after showing an alienating smile, she turned around and got into the car.
It's almost time, she left the East Palace at this time, precisely to follow Xiao Yu to leave Chang'an quietly.
At such a critical time, she should have no time to think about other things, but for some reason, when she saw the mother and daughter of the Duke of Lu's family whom she hadn't seen for a long time, she suddenly remembered what happened in Lishan.
She always felt that the marriage with the prince went unexpectedly smoothly. In addition to the pre-planning and well-thought-out response, there were always other reasons, especially later, the maid next to her once mentioned, On the night of Yuan Dynasty, Duke Lu had privately went to Feishhuang Palace to ask to see the emperor.
Lu Guogong's family had no foundation in Beijing, and she didn't care about it at all, but this matter had no reason for her to keep in mind and never forget it.
Even if they have nothing to do with the Duke of Lu, they still have a close relationship with the Chu family. If the Chu family disclosed the matter of the prince to the emperor, the mother and daughter of the Duke of Lu might have some news.
Seeing this departure, it was time to fight to the death, and the fish and the net were broken. She couldn't help but stop and suddenly turned her head to look at the mother and daughter.
"Little Lady Wei," she looked at Guo'er with a half-smiling smile, but out of the corner of the eye, she fell on Mrs. Xu's reaction, "I'm still learning to ride horses recently? Before, but I didn't teach it well?"
Guo'er was taken aback by her sudden gaze, she stared blankly at her empty wrist without any jewelry, and timidly took a half step back in the direction of her mother.
Madam Xu was also a little nervous, she quietly comforted her daughter's back, and apologized crampedly: "No no, Your Highness is superb in riding, but Guo'er is timid, and it is really condescending to ask His Highness to teach, and His Highness must not take it for granted... "
Zhao Yu'e's expression of nervousness and overwhelm fell into Zhao Yu'e's eyes, which made her more and more guess what the mother and daughter must know.
She slowly put away her smile, snorted softly, stepped directly into the carriage, and left with the maid and the maid.
Mrs. Xu looked at the carriage that was gradually going away, and felt uneasy in her heart. She always felt that something was going to happen, and she patted her daughter with a lingering fear: "Okay, come back, let's go around from other places, don't worry. Come here again."
Guo'er was stunned, without saying a word, and let her mother lead her back to the car. It was not until the carriage started to travel again that she suddenly said, "Mother, Lady Zhao—His Royal Highness Crown Princess, she didn't wear any jewelry today..."
In the past, Zhao Yu'e paid the most attention to her outfits. Whenever she went out, she always wore heavy makeup and luxurious clothes. Today, although her dresses are still as delicate, there are hardly any hairpins on her wrists, necks, or even between her buns.
After being reminded like this, Mrs. Xu couldn't help but think deeply.
A lady who loves to dress up, suddenly travels in a car without wearing jewelry, and she doesn't know what to do...
Thinking of the conspiracy between the Zhao family and the crown prince that she had heard in Lishan, her heart tightened, and after thinking for a long time, she instructed the driver outside to pay attention to the carriages and horses in the East Palace, and then asked the closest maid to rush back to the Taiji Palace. Report the situation to the Temple of Nectar.
…
Near Pingkangfang, Zhao Yu'e's carriage slowly passed through the hustle and bustle of the crowd.
As the carriage swayed, she took off her luxurious clothes and replaced them with the cloth skirts worn by ordinary street women. Taking advantage of the fact that no one was around, she quickly got off the carriage, stepped onto another small and simple carriage, and drove away again. The roadway merged into the stream of carriages and horses, and the previous luxurious and spacious car was heading towards the Buddhist temple in the south.
"Madam, Mrs. Lu Guogong did let the maid go back to the palace." After the maid Chunyan followed her into the carriage, she whispered what she had just seen.
The carriage drove in the direction of Chunmingmen in the east. In addition to Chunmingmen, he went to Chang'an City, and then went south, and after meeting Xiao Yu, he joined the main force of the Bozhou Army who had quietly lurked near Gyeonggi.
But somehow, the uneasy void in her heart widened.
"Isn't there any news from my brother this month?"
Chun Yan's face was also a little dignified, and she shook her head: "No, the general said earlier that long-distance communication is not safe enough. After the matter is settled, there will be no hope of coming, so there is no news."
These words are good, but the more this time, the more Zhao Yu'e feels that something is wrong. If the emperor really knew about their plot, what would he do? If all of this today is just a pre-planned situation, and they have already become turtles in the urn, how should she deal with it
People like Xiao Yu are unreliable no matter what...
"Ma'am, it's the gate of the city." The driver outside whispered to the inside.
Zhao Yu'e didn't speak, she gritted her teeth, struggled repeatedly in her heart, and suddenly said, "Stop, bring the mother and daughter of the Wei family, hurry up!"