Use her to test the reason for Shen Yueshan's disappearance, and use her to test whether Xiao Huayong is still hiding his strength. Shen Xihe and Xiao Huayong both know that Emperor Youning has never relaxed his suspicion of Xiao Huayong. The burning of the spirit tablet on the day of ancestor worship is the best evidence.
As expected, rumors reached the East Palace in the afternoon, but they were all unfavorable to Shen Xihe, such as the Crown Princess was disrespectful to the Crown Prince, the Crown Princess had no sense of shame, the Crown Princess was unfilial and unrighteous...
They all used elegant words, and the impolite words were unbearable to hear. Xiao Huayong's face turned pale when he heard it.
Shen Xihe didn't care at all. She turned her eyes to look at Xiao Huayong and said, "Your Majesty is deliberately spreading these rumors just to make you lose your patience."
Xiao Huayong stood up suddenly and walked out with big strides.
When Zhenzhu saw this, she turned around and saw Shen Xihe was indifferent. She hesitated and asked, "Crown Princess..."
"It's okay. He is the crown prince. If he really turns a deaf ear to it, it will arouse suspicion." Shen Xihe believed that Xiao Huayong knew his limits.
Xiao Huayong didn't need to expose any connections or pick a few typical people. He also didn't make trouble for slandering the Crown Princess. To deal with such servants, he didn't need to set a trap like Wang Zheng did. He could order people to drag them away and beat them to death with just one sentence of poor service.
Everyone knew that failing to serve properly was just a trumped-up charge, and the real reason for their deaths was that they couldn't control their mouths. Naturally, it would not affect Xiao Huayong's reputation, so this was the most appropriate way for him to deal with it.
Shen Xihe waited until Xiao Huayong had done everything he was supposed to do, then stood up and headed towards Concubine Rong's Fuqiu Palace.
Concubine Rong had just gotten up from her lunch break when she heard that the Crown Princess had arrived. She lazily ordered, "Peony, go and invite the Crown Princess to the side hall. Haitang, put on my makeup. Don't neglect the Crown Princess."
Although she said not to be negligent, she was in no hurry to get dressed and even compared the colors of pearl hairpins and rouge repeatedly when choosing them.
Shen Xihe waited for Concubine Rong in the side hall for half an hour. She knew that Concubine Rong had just woken up and that her lunch break was at a fixed time. She came on time. If Concubine Rong knew how to entertain guests, half an hour would be just enough for her to finish putting on her makeup at a leisurely pace.
After half an hour, Shen Xihe put down his finished tea bowl, and Shaoyao, who was serving Shen Xihe, hurried forward to continue serving.
Shen Xihe raised his eyes and glanced at her: "How many years has Lady Du been in the palace?"
Shaoyao bowed quickly and replied respectfully, "Reporting to the Crown Princess, I entered the palace when I was six years old, and it has been sixteen years now."
"You will be able to leave the palace in three years." Shen Xihe nodded slightly.
Palace maids in this dynasty could apply to leave the palace only when they reached the age of 25, but not everyone was eligible to leave the palace as soon as they turned 25. There were also some cases where they were pardoned and were able to get married early.
"I have already made a great wish to serve the Imperial Concubine for the rest of my life to repay her kindness." Shaoyao was a little nervous. Having been in the palace for more than ten years and being able to become the Imperial Concubine Rong's right-hand man, she had a keen intuition.
Shen Xihe had been waiting for a long time before finding her to ask questions, and it was not for no reason that he spoke to her.
"If that's the case, why don't you do your job properly?" Shen Xihe's eyes were light. "You've been in the palace for sixteen years. You're the right-hand man of the Imperial Concubine and a female official in the Fuqiu Palace. You should know the rules. You've slandered the master of the palace by making a small talk. I don't need to tell you what crime you've committed, right?"