C95
The capital was getting hotter and hotter, and the empty ground was painted with a layer of the blazing sun's rays. The cage was extremely restless, and it was very common to hear of a family's children facing the sun playing around and dying from the heat.
Xue Ronghua's body was covered with a thin layer of pink rosewood, but she still felt a burning sensation on her face that turned into a drop of sweat flowing down. Little Zhui stood at the side and fanned her with all her might, she was also sweating profusely.
Xue Ronghua received the fan, and handed it over to her, "Fan yourself. It's really too hot today."
"Miss, I'll go to the kitchen later and bring a bowl of iced green bean sand here to relieve the heat."
"Give me an extra bowl," Xue Ronghua picked up the handkerchief and wiped her sweat, "Prince Duan will come as well."
"Does Prince Duan still want to come over in such a hot day?"
"His skin is deep and his flesh is thick, so it can't be exposed to the sun," Xue Ronghua pursed her lips and smiled, "Just go and get a bowl of it, and bring over some small snacks like a jujube paste mountain medicine cake."
I don't want the Ice Sour Wine. I just need a jug of Ice Cream." A hearty laughter came from outside the door. Chu Zongge, dressed in a buddhist robe and holding a folding fan, walked over with a smile.
"Then we won't give it to him," Xue Ronghua said snappily as she rolled her eyes. "We'll keep it for ourselves."
Little Zhui secretly laughed and quickly went down.
Chu Zongge placed the bottle on the table, as if he was offering a treasure. "Don't you want to drink Ice Cream Wine?
Xue Ronghua laughed, "If you want to drink it, drink it yourself. This wine is so cold, it's bad for the stomach."
"Are you a woman or are you supposed to look out for your body?" Chu Zongge put down his fan and poured himself a cup, "I'm fine now."
Xue Ronghua curiously opened his fan, "You always hold this fan, I really don't know what treasure is inside." All she saw on the snow-white fan was a line of cursive script: "In the middle of a lake."
Xue Ronghua curled her lips and said: "Holding this kind of sentence in your hand, makes you seem petty."
"It's just a fan. If I had to worry about so many things, wouldn't that be too much of a burden?"
"Why don't you take out some of the Three Friends of the Winter of the Year's fans?"
"The drawing of bare flowers and plants is boring, it's better to write poems," Chu Zongge looked at her solemnly. "Another one, the word Ying Ying often reminds me of your smiling face."
Xue Ronghua was startled, she raised her sleeves to cover her face, ".."
"Now that the matters of the Prince Jin have been resolved, you can discuss the marriage with me, right?" Chu Zongge affectionately pulled her hand.
"How can the matters with the Prince Jin be resolved? The Empress Chen and the Crown Prince are still in the middle of the Changchun Palace blowing. We don't even know what the things the Noble Consort Kang has given him are .."
"Why would you care about such trifling matters?" Chu Zongge lightly kissed her lustrous white, jade-like fingers. "I just want to hold hands and live together forever."
Xue Ronghua retracted her hand with a blush, "If this is known to me for a long period of time, how could it be possible for it to happen in the future? Don't be anxious."
"How can I not be anxious?" Chu Zongge's smile carried a hint of pleading, "A quasi wangfei is always outside the palace and not in my residence.
"It's not like you're in a hurry to marry me back," Xue Ronghua said as she reached out to stroke his head. "I'm already a cooked duck, I can't fly anywhere else."
Suddenly, a gust of cold wind blew in from outside the window, seemingly responding to their words. Xue Ronghua's sleeves fluttered in the wind like a butterfly.
Chu Zongge watched her silent face without batting an eyelid, and slowly walked closer.
"Miss, the cold green bean sand is here."
Chu Zongge immediately went back to his original position and smiled calmly.
"Why are you laughing so strangely?" Xue Ronghua took a spoonful of the Icy Jade Sands from Little Zhui's hands and gulped it down anxiously.
"Can't you even smile in your Prime Minister's Mansion?" Chu Zongge curled his lips, "Then after I enter the Prince Duan Palace, wouldn't I have to keep a gloomy face?"
"This matter hasn't been settled yet."
While the two of them were arguing and teasing each other, Little Zhui whispered into their ears, "Miss, an order has come from the palace, saying that Consort Hua is already four months old, please enter the palace to take care of it."
"Why is it that this Consort Hua always wants to find me to enter the palace? I have never given birth to a child, so how should I take care of her?"
Chu Zongge asked curiously: "Does Consort Hua always look for you to enter the palace?"
"This is the third time. The second time, I was sick, so I didn't go."
Little Zhui laughed: "Consort Hua has no one to rely on in the palace, you must be trying to curry favor with Miss."
Little Zhui did not understand the reason, so she could only reply with a smile.
Chu Zongge said: "Very well, why don't you follow me into the palace tomorrow?"
Xue Ronghua nodded, "Is Zhu Tong still well with you?"
"It's pretty good. Take everything seriously, but you don't really like going out to play."
Xue Ronghua was curious, "She is very unruly, she wants to barge into every place she goes, why don't she play when she's already in the palace."
"How can you casually play around in the palace?" Chu Zongge said with a smile.
They had originally wanted to set up a Hundred Blossom Banquet in the spring. However, they didn't expect that there would be a rebellion of the Prince Chen, and when summer arrived, they would meet with heat. It seemed that the banquet of the lotus flower would have to be cancelled.
Empress Chen let out a faint sigh, rubbing the lotus flowers in his hands, "You guys stay at the crown prince's mansion all day, has the crown prince been reading properly for the past few days?"
The servants exchanged glances and said in unison, "The Crown Prince loves to learn."
When the Empress Chen heard this, he knew that they had not told the truth. The Crown Prince must have gone to play, "Then, will he still bring the dancers into the house?"
"No, no." The servants quickly shook their heads. This was the truth. The crown prince had been scolded by the empress a few times, but had not brought any dancers with him.
"Alright, all of you leave first." Empress Chen took a sip of tea. Although he did not read much, he did correct a bad habit of hers.
"Empress," the head eunuch asked, "The palace maids from Yongle Palace request an audience, does the Empress wish to see them?"
"Yongle Palace is the palace where the Consort Hua resides, so she should be Miss Ru Yan," The corners of the Empress Chen's lips curled up into a faint smile, "Let her in."
A palace maid in a pink-purple palace dress bowed her head as she entered, bowing respectfully. "Your servant greets the esteemed empress."
"Get up," The Empress Chen smiled sweetly. "Did Miss Ru Yan come over to tell me something good?"
Ru Yan's eyes flashed with a trace of craftiness as she bit her lips and said, "Consort Hua's womb is already four months old. Her younger sister, the quasi wangfei of Prince Duan will come to visit her tomorrow."
"The two sisters don't have a good relationship with each other. I really don't know who they are taking care of each other in public," the Empress Chen smirked, "Will the quasi wangfei be staying in the palace for the time being?"
"Yes, the Emperor specifically allowed the quasi wangfei to stay in the Yongle Palace to take care of the Consort Hua."
"That's good," Empress Chen nodded in satisfaction. "Four months is when his pregnancy is unstable, Consort Hua and her sister must be careful."
Ru Yan immediately understood in her heart: "This servant understands."
"You have come here a few times, but I have never had a good look at you," the Empress Chen said as he lifted his eyes slightly, "Raise your head."
Ru Yan was startled, she closed her lips and forced out a fitting smile, looking at her with shyness in her eyes.
Empress Chen squinted his eyes. Indeed, he was a new maid, his snow white and smooth face looked even better than Consort Hua's. Although his appearance was not stunning, he was still pretty.
"A beauty like you is the best amongst the palace maids," Empress Chen pretended to sigh regretfully. "This is also the fault of the Consort Hua. As the master of a house, I actually didn't recommend you to the emperor. It seems like she is still too narrow-minded."
When Ru Yan heard the empress's praise, she was extremely pleased and her words carried a tinge of grievance. "When Consort Hua served the emperor, she didn't even let me near.
"You don't have a way, but I do have a way," The gentle smile on Empress Chen's lips was bewitching, "You just need to do your job properly for me."
Ru Yan laughed crazily in joy: "This servant understands, this servant will do everything the empress says for you."
"Don't worry," the Empress Chen winked at her. "I can get his to come here and you can be called Ruyu from now on."
Ru Yan lowered her head and laughed, as her face slightly flushed red.
Xue Ronghua had always been against entering the palace, even though Xinyang Hall was a good place to stay. When she entered the palace in the past, she was afraid that if she met the Prince Jin and the Noble Consort Kang, he would have to talk to them for a few times. Now that she entered the palace, she would have to interact with the Crown Prince of Empress Chen, Xue Liuhua and the Emperor.
"Miss, don't be nervous," Little Zhui laughed, "You have saved the life of the capital, this is the place where you have left your glorious past."
Xue Ronghua did not know whether to laugh or cry, "The place I am fighting against is the Xuanwu Sect, this is the imperial garden."
"No matter where it is, it is Miss's fearless witness," Little Zhui said as she held her arm and laughed, "My family's Miss is truly amazing, they all say that Miss's soul is still in Mu Langhua's body."
Xue Ronghua was startled, but laughed without saying a word.
"However," Little Zhui uncomfortably curled her lips, "Although that Mu Langhua is a brave warrior, her reputation is very bad. I heard that she was killed in her own palace by the Emperor of Great Qi because of the disarray of her harem."
Xue Ronghua's heart sank, and she secretly gripped her sleeves: "You also believe in this?"
"This was passed over by someone from the Great Qi. I only heard it from the rumors."
"Seeing is believing," Xue Ronghua smiled as she scratched her nose, "Without evidence, you cannot wrongly accuse others."
Little Zhui nodded as if she understood something.
"Stay in the Xinyang Hall and I'll head there myself."
Little Zhui was puzzled: "Why did Miss not allow me to go with you? She also did not let me in last time."
Xue Ronghua coaxed gently, "Consort Hua, with your dragon embryo, you have to be careful in everything you do, lest there are too many of you."
"Then I'll stay in Xinyang Hall and play with Zhu Tong."
Xue Ronghua laughed: "It's also been a few months since you've seen each other, so it's better to talk about it yourselves."
After walking a few steps into the palace, he entered into a cool place. The cool breeze blew gently, making him feel extremely comfortable, and the name "Eternal Joy" resonated well. Even on such a difficult day as a hot summer day, resting in the palace would allow for a long and happy day.
Ru Yan went to the entrance of the palace and greeted her: "Quasi Royal Concubine, the Empress has already prepared tea and food and has been waiting inside for a long time."
Xue Ronghua nodded her head to show respect, but when she entered the door, she saw Xue Liuhua's pale white face.
"You're here." Xue Liuhua forced out a small smile, and then started crying.