mtl008 Chapter 233 Consort Li's Summoning
Chapter 233 Consort Li's Summoning
Before Mu Qing could even be happy, Wang Chi pushed open the door and said loudly, "No, I don't agree. It's not safe for Mu Qing, a girl, to go out alone."
"Father," Mu Qing called softly.
Song Jiaojiao just stared at Wang Chi quietly, making him feel guilty.
"Jiaojiao," Wang hesitated before speaking, afraid that he might say something wrong and upset Song Jiaojiao.
"Alright, your daughter is all grown up now. Besides, you still have your brother, don't you? Instead of stopping us here, you should explain things to your brother and give him some advice."
Song Jiaojiao refuted Wang Chi's opinion without hesitation. He hadn't cared for the child for so many years, and now he was rebelling against it, as if he was afraid the child would become too close to him.
"Muqing, Muxue, you should go back and rest first!" Song Jiaojiao was afraid that Wang Chi would say something bad, which would make the children, who were already not close to him, even more distant.
"Alright, Father, Mother, you should get some rest too." After saying that, Mu Qing took Mu Xue downstairs.
After the two sisters left, Wang Chi immediately squatted down in front of Jiao Jiao.
"Jiaojiao, our daughter is all grown up now, I'm worried about her going out like this."
Wang Chi looked like a pitiful little dog, with drooping ears and his eyes staring straight at his master.
“If you’re worried, go tell me yourself. What’s the use of telling me?” Song Jiaojiao wasn’t buying it at all.
"I'm not close enough with them yet!" Wang Chi said guiltily, scratching his head.
"You know, you immediately said you disagreed. Aren't you afraid your daughter won't want to see you again?"
"hey-hey!"
Song Jiaojiao found it amusing to look at Wang Chi's silly and simple-minded appearance.
"Alright, Mu Qing is all grown up now and has her own ideas. If you're worried, then send more skilled fighters to protect her safety."
Song Jiaojiao understood that even if she didn't let Mu Qing go, even if Mu Qing listened now, he would still find an opportunity to go later. Since it was bound to happen sooner or later, why say things that the child didn't want to hear? The fledgling bird would eventually leave its mother's embrace and soar alone in the vast sky.
Wang Chi remained silent. "Sigh, I'll just have to send it to Mu Qing through a few trusted people tomorrow."
The next day, the sky was overcast.
Just as Song Jiaojiao and Wang Chi finished their breakfast, a eunuch arrived.
“General Zhenbei, this servant is from Consort Li’s palace. I have come today to invite Lady Huide to the palace.”
"May I ask, sir, what business does Consort Li have with my eldest daughter-in-law in the palace?" Wang Yan was puzzled. Song Jiaojiao was just a country woman who had only been in the capital for a little over a month. Why would Consort Li want to invite Jiaojiao?
"This..." the eunuch drawled. Wang Yan immediately understood and quickly gave his attendant a purse to the eunuch.
The eunuch weighed it in his hand, then put it in his pocket with satisfaction.
"Her Majesty is very interested in life outside. She heard that Lady Huide came from another place, so she asked me to invite Lady Huide into the palace for a chat. General, rest assured, I guarantee that Lady Huide will be sent back safely before dark," the eunuch explained with a smile.
"I see. Someone, go and invite the eldest young mistress here."
"Please have some tea, sir, and wait a moment," Wang Yan said politely.
His attendant, quite perceptive, went down to the lady's courtyard; this matter still needed to be discussed with her.
"Madam, the master has sent someone to say that Consort Li wants the eldest young mistress to come to the palace!" a maidservant said as she entered.
Lady Cheng'en and Granny Rong exchanged a glance. She couldn't understand why Consort Li would seek out Song Jiaojiao.
"Did they say what it was about?" Madam Cheng'en asked anxiously.
"They said they were going to the palace for a chat," the maid replied, head bowed.
Why would they specifically seek out Jiaojiao to chat for no reason? I suspect they have ulterior motives.
"Muzhi, go to the eldest young mistress's place and accompany her to the palace. Since Jiaojiao has been bestowed a title this time, she hasn't yet gone to thank the Empress. Go and inform the treasury to prepare generous gifts, as I need to go to the palace."
Lady Chengen thought about it for a while, but she was still worried. In the end, she decided to go in herself so that she could get the news as soon as possible if anything unexpected happened. Of course, it would be best if everything went smoothly.
And so, the two carriages left the general's mansion and arrived at the palace gate.
Song Jiaojiao was invited by Consort Li. After getting off the carriage, she entered the palace. Lady Cheng'en handed over her nameplate and then had to wait for the Empress's summons.
Following the palace maid who led the way, they arrived at Youke Garden. Just as they were about to enter, Rong Momo was stopped.
"Her Majesty only invited Lady Huide," the palace maid at the door said haughtily.
"Granny Rong, wait for me outside," Song Jiaojiao said softly. It seemed that the visitor was up to no good. Having watched so many palace dramas, Song Jiaojiao knew that she was likely to be made to suffer today.
As the palace maids entered, Song Jiaojiao was led into the courtyard.
"You wait here, I'll go announce it." The palace maid looked down on Song Jiaojiao, thinking she was just a lowly servant who was lucky; otherwise, she would never have been able to come to the palace in her entire life.
Once the palace maid went in, she never came out again. Half an hour passed. There was no sun in the sky today, and a north wind was blowing, the cold wind was biting. Even Song Jiaojiao, who was usually in good health, could not stand it. She rubbed her frozen hands and hid them inside her cloak.
The tightly closed door was finally opened.
"Lady Huide, Her Majesty requests your presence."
The newcomer spoke politely, unlike the previous palace maid.
"Please lead the way, Auntie."
Song Jiaojiao followed her aunt inside. "Your Majesty, Lady Huide has arrived."
After her aunt finished speaking, she stood behind Consort Li. Song Jiaojiao thought of the concubines and consorts on TV. They loved to make people bow and pretend they couldn't see her. It would take half an hour for them to bow. No one could stand it.
Song Jiaojiao immediately performed a deep bow, kneeling on the ground, "Greetings to Consort Li, may Consort Li live a thousand years!"
Consort Li, who originally intended to make things difficult for Song Jiaojiao, saw that even half an hour of kneeling like this wouldn't be too tiring. Besides, her main purpose today was to test whether Song Jiaojiao still remembered those things, so there was no need to offend the General's Mansion.
"Get up quickly, come, sit here. Shuiyun, quickly help Madam Huide." Shuiyun rushed forward upon hearing this.
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
"Madam Huide, I heard you're from Shu Prefecture?"
"Yes, Your Highness." Song Jiaojiao didn't know what Consort Li was up to. She had just made her wait outside the door for half an hour, but now she was being treated with such courtesy.
"I've heard that there are many high mountains in Shu Prefecture, but unfortunately I've never left the capital, so I can't imagine how high they are," Consort Li said wistfully, her face full of longing, like a naive young girl.
“Your Majesty, there are many large, continuous mountains at the border of Shu Prefecture and Mo Prefecture. Where I grew up, it was mostly hilly, and the mountains were relatively small,” Song Jiaojiao said cautiously.
"So, you've been to Mozhou?" Consort Li's eyes lit up instantly, as if they held the stars in the sky.
"Your Majesty, before coming to the capital, I was traveling south."
Consort Li was startled, but her expression remained unchanged.
How could she not know about this? What were the people monitoring her doing? How come there was no news about something so important?