A quarter of an hour later, Shen Xihe heard the news that Shen Yingruo had fallen into the water. She and Shen Yueshan, who had also received the news, looked at each other from afar. The banquet was almost over, so Shen Yueshan and Shen Xihe said goodbye to everyone and went to the hall where Emperor Youning summoned them.
Although a banquet was held in the palace today, Emperor Youning only attended symbolically before leaving to handle government affairs, so he arrived earlier than Shen Xihe and his daughter.
Shen Yingruo had changed her clothes and her hair was just blow-dried and was now loose. Kneeling next to her was King Zhao Xiao Changmin.
"Chong'a, A'ruo fell into the water just now and it was General Erlang who rescued her." Emperor Youning revealed a lot of profound meaning in just one simple sentence.
This dynasty is tolerant towards women. It is okay for widows to remarry, and for unmarried girls to ride horses and go outings with their men in groups of three or five. However, this dynasty is not so tolerant as to ignore physical intimacy.
"Have you found the imperial physician?" Shen Yueshan asked.
Shen Yingruo was slightly stunned. She thought that Shen Yueshan's first words would blame her for leaving the table, or ask her why she ran to the lake alone, or even why she fell into the water.
She bowed her head and replied, "The doctor said the child is fine."
If you are rescued in time and take some anti-cold medicine and be careful not to catch a cold at night, then you will be fine if you don't have sore or tight throat or lightheadedness when you wake up the next morning.
Shen Yueshan nodded: "Why did you fall into the water?"
"I was feeling a little stuffy, so I went to the lake to enjoy the breeze. I was frightened by a wild cat and fell into the water." Shen Yingruo answered truthfully.
When Shen Yueshan heard this, he turned to look at Prince Zhao Xiao Changmin, who had also changed his clothes, and asked, "Your Highness, why did you see my daughter fall into the water by such a coincidence?"
Xiao Changmin said frankly: "When the county lady was studying in the Central Palace, she became close to me. Today, I saw the county lady leaving alone, so I brought some small items from Henan Prefecture and wanted to give them to the county lady privately."
There was a eunuch holding a tray next to her. On the tray was a Bian embroidered fan. Shen Yingruo was an expert at embroidery, so this was not something out of the ordinary.
"How come there is a wild cat in this palace?" Shen Xihe turned around and asked, "Where are the clothes that the county lady changed into?"
"I have asked Liu Sanzhi to go to the Stable Office for a thorough investigation." Emperor Youning naturally knew that there could be no wild cats in the palace.
The palace maid first brought up the clothes that Shen Yingruo had changed, mainly the cloak and outer robe. Shen Xihe picked up the cloak, seemingly looking for something carefully, but in fact he approached the cloak inconspicuously. Because of the water, the smell was very faint, but Shen Xihe still felt an unusual cool breath, which was very much like catmint.
Cats love the smell of nepeta. Any cat that smells nepeta will pounce on it. No wonder the cat went straight to Shen Yingruo.
Putting down the clothes, Shen Xihe asked Shen Yingruo: "Did anyone bump into you or touch your dress today?"
Shen Yingruo had an excellent memory: "When I entered the palace, I met two palace maids and they almost fell down. I helped them up."
The palace maid walked down the stairs, carrying utensils. She couldn't see the road beneath her feet and seemed to have forgotten how many steps there were. Shen Yingruo was worried that she would fall and break the things in her hands, and her life would be in danger, so she supported her.
But she didn't expect that someone had tampered with her cloak at that time!
"I remember what the palace maid looked like." Shen Yingruo added.