Cui Yu was a little confused. "I don't know either. Let's go to the nearby prefectures and cities to have a look."
Having served the old lady for most of her life, she really didn’t know where to go.
"Why do you have to go around? Isn't it better to stay at home? You should have saved quite a bit over the years." Yuan Cuiyu said.
Aunt Cuiyu smiled sadly, "My nephews are already married, who would be willing to take me in? Besides, I haven't saved anything in all these years. I've used it all to build houses for them, marry them off and have children."
"You've given them all your money, but they're still not willing to support you?" Yuan Cuiyu asked in confusion.
"It's not that I don't want to, but I have hands and feet. When I gave them the money, I didn't intend to ask them to return it. Now that I'm in trouble, how can I go back and let them support me? Their life is not easy either."
Yuan Cuiyu thought for a moment and said, "Well, I'm in need of someone who knows me well anyway. If you're willing, you can stay here."
Zi'an was startled, then he took Yuan Cuiyu's hand and said, "Mother, let me talk to you."
She pulled Yuan Cuiyu into the wooden house and made her position clear, "Mother, if you need help, I can let Xiao Sun come back to serve you, but I don't agree to keep her."
"Do you think she will betray me? Or harm me?" Yuan Cuiyu asked.
Zi'an said: "I don't know, but it's right to be careful."
"I know what you're worried about, but there's no need to worry. I know Cuiyu very well. She's different from Lanyu. Although she's made things difficult for me before, she's also been merciful to me. After this, you saved her family's life. She should cherish this opportunity. The Xiangfu has already fallen. What else can she do?"
Zi'an said: "No matter what, there are people who need help now. There is no need to use the people around the old lady."
"It's okay, don't worry." Yuan Cuiyu patted her hands.
Seeing that she was determined to do so, Zi'an had no choice but to hope that after going through all this, Cui Yu would no longer have any bad thoughts.
When Aunt Cuiyu heard that Zi'an had no objection to her staying, she immediately knelt down and kowtowed, tears of regret on her face, "I kowtow to thank the county lady and the eldest lady for their kindness."
Zi'an looked at her, "Aunt Cuiyu, I don't really agree with you staying, but mother insisted. She said that you are different from Lanyu and you won't hurt her. I hope you won't let her down."
Aunt Cuiyu said with tears in her eyes: "Don't worry, Miss, I will not hurt the county lady. If the county lady hadn't taken me in, I wouldn't know where to go. I will cherish the opportunity the county lady has given me."
Zi'an said: "I hope so!"
At noon, Prince An's men arrived. There were thirteen people in total, two maids, and the rest were guards. From their actions, one could tell that they were all trained fighters, even the maids were not simple.
Prince An accompanied him but did not come in. He waited in the carriage outside the mansion gate.
Zi'an went out and lifted the curtain, "Your Majesty, won't you come in?"
Prince An was wearing a green robe today, with a white crown and feather scarf on his head, which made him look more elegant. He smiled and said, "No, I will go in when it's time."
"There's nothing wrong with friends meeting and chatting." Zi'an felt that he was being too polite.
Prince An shook his head. "It's okay for friends to meet and talk, but she and I are not friends, nor do we want to be just friends. So, I will wait until she is ready before I go to see her."
"Then how long are you going to wait?" Zi'an thought it would be better to just go after her boldly. Of course, she used modern thinking.
"I will know." Prince An said confidently.
Zi'an heard him say this and did not force him, "Okay, in that case, I will thank the prince on behalf of my mother."
Prince An stretched out his hand and pressed it down, "Don't thank me. I do things for my woman, and no one needs to say thank you."
Hearing such a domineering answer, Zi'an felt relieved and bowed, "Your Majesty, please wait here."
After Zi'an left Tingyuxuan, he went to Prince Liang's Mansion.
However, he was told that Prince Liang was urgently summoned to the palace by the Queen and had gone in early in the morning and had not returned yet.
Zi'an's heart skipped a beat. Could it be that the Queen was planning to let Prince Liang give up on treatment
Thinking of this, she said to the servants in the mansion: "I'll wait here for him to come back."
Su Qing also came to see Prince Liang. When he heard Prince Liang enter the palace, he smiled and said, "Could it be that the Queen Mother saw that he had sent away the women in the palace and wanted to find him another batch?"
Su Qing, Xiao Tuo and others were unaware of Prince Liang's hidden illness, and naturally they did not know that the Queen had found such a large group of women in the mansion to cover up her tracks.
Zi'an thought of Yi'er, whom they had talked about before, and asked, "Does the King of Liang have a crush on someone? Is it the girl named Yi'er?"
"Yes, Yi'er, but it's useless to like her. He never said it, and I don't know whether Yi'er is married or not!" Su Qing said.
"Tell me about Yi'er." Zi'an said.
Su Qing sat down and said, "There's nothing much to say. Even if he likes her, the Queen will definitely not let him marry Yi'er."
"Why?" Zi'an was very surprised.
"How could the Queen be willing to let the Prince of Liang marry a commoner? And a woman from Xiliang at that."
"A girl from the southwest? Yi'er is a girl from the southwest?" Zi'an was surprised.
"yes."
The Southwest Kingdom is not the Southern Kingdom where King Nan Huai is located. The Southwest Kingdom is a grassland country that has risen rapidly in recent years. It is a bit like the Mongolia that Zi'an is familiar with.
If she was a woman from outside the borders and a commoner, the Queen Mother would definitely not agree.
It’s a pity that King Liang’s deep love is wasted.
"How did they know each other?" Zi'an asked.
"I don't know the details, but I heard that Yi'er once saved King Liang's life. However, she doesn't seem to know King Liang's identity either."
"Is that so?" Zi'an asked, "Besides these, what else do you know?"
"I don't know. Why do you want to know other people's love affairs so much? If you have the time, you might as well persuade Liu Liu. She is almost dying because of Xiao Tuo." Su Qing sighed.
Zi'an was startled and remembered that he hadn't seen Liu Liu for a long time. He hadn't seen her since she started treating King Liang.
"What's wrong with her?" Zi'an asked quickly.
"She will be nineteen next month. Her grandmother is arranging a marriage for her, but she refuses to get married and is now on a hunger strike in the mansion." Su Qing said.
"No wonder. Where is Xiao Tuo's bull? Have you told her about Liu Liu's situation?"
Su Qing said angrily: "Why didn't he say that? But he said that he didn't want to get married and he didn't like Liu Liu."
Zi'an didn't expect Xiao Tuo to react like this, and couldn't help feeling disappointed, but he also understood that love can never be forced. If Xiao Tuo really didn't like Liu Liu, but forced him to marry Liu Liu, it would be unfair to him.
But what puzzled her was that no one had told the old lady that the so-called deadline was ridiculous
Oh, forget it. I'd better not say it so absolutely. Ever since I met the Empress Dowager, and then thought about my own experiences of traveling through time, which one of them is not ridiculous
(End of this chapter)