Prime Minister Xia then remembered that he had not brought Xia Lin back with him, but he was not worried and said, "Let him stay in the palace for a few days. Concubine Mei likes him anyway."
Concubine Mei did like Xia Lin. In the past, Xia Lin had been summoned by Concubine Mei to stay in the palace for a short time. Xia Lin had a simple personality and almost everyone disliked him.
The old lady nodded, "That's fine. This child is still likable. Let's keep him with Mei Fei for a few more days. It will also help him to play around with the Third Prince and improve their relationship."
Madam Linglong didn't focus her attention on Xia Lin, but was only thinking about Chen Er.
Ever since Chen Er was framed last time, he had come to find her and threatened her, demanding that she pay a certain amount of silver before the matter would be settled.
She already felt disgusted with Chen Er's greed. If it weren't for...
So, this time it was a perfect way to kill two birds with one stone, getting rid of Yuan and killing Chen Er.
The old lady said to Cuiyu, "Go to Xiazhi Garden and tell Yuan to come and pay her respects to me early tomorrow morning."
"Yes!" Cuiyu replied.
"Mother, why is this?" Prime Minister Xia asked in confusion. His mother never wanted to see Yuan, and she was not happy when she came to pay her respects.
The old lady glanced at her calmly and said, "Since she came to pay her respects to me, I will naturally give her a job to do, so that we can know her whereabouts. This way, when your daughter-in-law makes plans, we will have the initiative in our hands."
Prime Minister Xia suddenly realized, "Mother is really thoughtful."
The old lady snorted, "Do you think you can implicate Yuan Shi with her? You should calm down and don't get confused and make the wrong decision."
Madam Linglong really couldn't like her mother-in-law. She was actually very annoyed with her over the years, but in this mansion, she still held the highest say.
Fortunately, she doesn't have to wait too long. Once she becomes the prince's mother-in-law, everything will change.
Prime Minister Xia was awakened by the old lady, and his heart began to calm down slowly. Everything that had happened in the past few days had made him confused and at a loss for what to do. Now thinking back on everything he had done in the past few days, he knew that he was overwhelmed by anger and humiliation. Fortunately, nothing happened today, otherwise he would have really fallen into Xia Zian's hands.
Cuiyu went to Xiazhi Garden to inform Yuanshi, asking her to resume her morning and evening visits to pay her respects to the old lady the next day.
After Cuiyu left, Yuan looked at Zi'an and said calmly, "Since they can't bite you now, they have no choice but to start with me."
Zi'an said worriedly, "Mother, please be careful."
Yuan smiled and said, "I used to hide and endure because I wanted to live a quiet life. Now, my daughter is gone. What else do I have to be afraid of? It's just a life anyway. Take it if you want it, if you really have the ability."
When Zi'an heard Yuan say this, he knew that she already had a plan to deal with it. Indeed, a smart woman like Yuan would either not fight back, or if she did, her fightback would definitely be unexpected.
Zi'an was very fortunate to have such a brave and reckless ally. What she feared most was meeting someone who was too timid to get involved in anything. In that case, she would be exhausted and might not be able to take care of everything.
Yuan stood by the window, looking at a blooming oleander in the yard.
She suddenly turned around and asked, "Linlin was abandoned in the palace like this? I heard that your father has returned. Could it be that he doesn't know that Linlin is in trouble?"
Zi'an sneered, "Does he care? Before Linlin died, there were fingerprints on his cheek. He told me that he was very afraid of his father. Who hit him? He was just a child. Is it a big deal? He probably thought Linlin stayed in the palace to play."
"We can't leave him alone in the palace, Zi'an, is there any solution?" Yuan asked.
Zi'an had never thought that Prime Minister Xia would forget Xia Lin when he left the palace. He thought that since he brought Xia Lin into the palace, he would have to bring him out, and if he couldn't find him, he would order people to look for him.
But I didn't expect that he would come back alone like this.
Zi'an thought for a moment and said, "How about this, I'll go find the Regent and see if he can help me."
Yuan sighed softly, "I'm sorry for wronging you. Linlin has always been very kind to Zi'an. I can't just watch him wander around the palace alone."
"He died for me..." Zi'an's voice choked slightly, unable to continue, and turned around and said, "I'll change my clothes and go over now."
Madam Yang wanted to go with Zi'an, but Zi'an said to her, "When I go out in the future, Madam Yang will help me look after my mother and Xiaosun so that I don't have to worry about anything."
"But it's dark now, and you're going to the palace alone, this..." Nanny Yang was mainly afraid of gossip. After all, there was already enough dirty water on her.
Although Nanny Yang didn't say it, Zi'an knew what she was worried about and said, "Nanny, don't worry about me. I have nothing to lose."
Nanny Yang nodded, "Indeed, go ahead."
Zi'an went out at night and requisitioned the carriage from the mansion.
The coachman knew that she was not favored in the mansion, so he was unwilling to send Zi'an out at night, and she did not bring a maid with her.
Zi'an didn't beg him. He led the horse out of the stable, mounted it, and rode away.
The driver looked at her in shock. When did the young lady learn to ride a horse? Judging from her posture when she mounted the horse, she was very skilled.
Zi'an came to the Regent's Palace and asked to see Murong Jie, but the people in the palace told Zi'an that Murong Jie had gone out and had not returned yet.
Zi'an was secretly surprised. He went out last night and hasn't come back yet tonight
I remember that when he left, Ni Rong was wearing armor...
She asked the concierge, "When will the prince come back?"
The concierge shook his head. "It's hard to say, but if he goes out like this, he usually won't be back for three to five days."
After three or five days, Linlin's body had begun to stink. The palace seemed to be uninhabited and no one usually went there. It was unknown how many days had passed before Linlin was found.
Zi'an mounted his horse and left, feeling melancholy and not knowing what to do.
It is impossible for her to enter the palace and bring back Linlin's body now. Only the regent can do this.
However, if the Regent takes several days to come back, we cannot wait.
For the first time, I felt that it is impossible to be without connections in this era.
She thought of someone, but she didn't know what the other person's attitude was. If it was really as the Regent said, he would definitely help.
However, that day he didn't seem to care much about his mother. He didn't even look at the painting. He just asked casually if she was okay.
After asking people along the way, she arrived at the gate of Prince An's Mansion. She hesitated for a moment, not knowing whether she should go in.
Just when he was undecided, he saw two people riding horses towards him. Zi'an led the horse and stepped aside. When he looked closely, he found that it was Prince An and a woman.
The woman was about twenty-six or twenty-seven years old, with a bright face. She was wearing a green satin dress embroidered with chrysanthemums. She looked a little dull, pretty and charming, and even had a somewhat cynical and charming look.
She rode along with Prince An. When the horse reached Zi'an, it stopped. The woman whipped the horse, and the horse raised its head and neighed. Zi'an remained calm and motionless, slowly raising his head.
(End of this chapter)