The Eldest Daughter Returns: Imperial Uncle, I'm Pregnant!

Chapter 272 The Makeup Pavilion Encounters Trouble

Holding her belly, Gu Hanjiao walked quickly with Chunlu and Qiushuang towards the Third Prince's courtyard.

"Why was the Third Prince carried back out of nowhere? Have you tried to find out what happened?"

"I just learned about this from the gatekeeper. The Third Prince has been brought back, but I don't know the specifics yet. It would be best if Consort Qiu went to see for herself," Qiu Shuang said.

Upon arriving at the main courtyard, Gu Qingwan was about to enter when she was stopped at the door by an unfamiliar old woman.

"How dare you! Who do you think you are, blocking my way?" Since Gu Hanjiao became pregnant, although she didn't have as much power as Yu Xinqiu, no one in the mansion dared to stop her because of her pregnancy.

"Please don't be in a hurry, Consort. Allow me to go in and report to the Crown Princess."

"you!"

"Oh dear, why are you in such a hurry, sister? Today is the wedding day of our Third Prince. Now that the mistress has married into the family, you can no longer freely enter and leave the main courtyard as before."

The one who spoke was Consort Yu Xinqiu, who arrived a step later than Gu Hanjiao. Actually, they should have arrived together, but Yu Xinqiu was clever. She saw the old woman at the door from afar and knew that she was brought by the princess consort, so she deliberately arrived a step later.

Just then, the old woman who had gone to report returned and stood at the door, saying arrogantly, "Please come in, both concubines."

"Humph!"

Even though she was still very far along in her pregnancy, Gu Hanjiao deliberately stuck her belly out high, making people want to laugh.

Upon entering, one sees Li Qianyu standing by the bed, while the Third Prince lies on the bed, his face obscured.

"How is Heng-gege? Heng-gege!" Gu Hanjiao cried as she ran to the bedside.

"Greetings to the Crown Princess." Yu Xinqiu was a very sensible person; she knew where she should place herself now.

"You've arrived." Li Qianyu greeted the two concubines with gentle grace. She had already changed out of her everyday clothes and was not displeased by Gu Hanjiao's rudeness.

Yu Xinqiu looked up in that direction but did not step forward. Instead, she asked, "May I ask, Your Highness, how is the Third Prince doing now?"

Li Qianyu sighed, but before she could speak, she heard Gu Hanjiao scream. Li Qianyu frowned and scolded, "What are you doing! The Third Prince needs to rest, what are you yelling about!"

"I'm sorry, I was just..." Gu Hanjiao seemed startled by something and quickly stood up from the bed and took a few steps back.

"How dare you! How dare a concubine address me as such in front of the prince's wife! Where has the Gu family's upbringing gone!" The wet nurse beside Li Qianyu directly rebuked Gu Hanjiao in the face.

"What right do you have to reprimand me like that!" Gu Hanjiao was not afraid of trouble. She might be willing to suffer for high-ranking officials and nobles, but she would never do that to a servant.

"I am the wet nurse of the Crown Prince's Consort. Your Highness, do you think I am qualified?"

"Never mind, Madam Liu, Consort Gu is just confused because she's worried," Li Qianyu said.

"Hmph, hypocrite." Gu Hanjiao muttered under her breath.

Yu Xinqiu went forward without saying a word to look at the Third Prince. She saw that Xiao Yuheng's face was red and swollen, with blood streaks on it, which was quite frightening. No wonder Consort Gu screamed. If she hadn't held back, she probably would have been startled too.

"This... Your Highness, what's wrong with the Third Prince? Should we summon the imperial physician?"

"The imperial physician has already treated the Third Prince in the palace. He said it was caused by eating incompatible foods. He looks quite frightening now, but he said he'll be fine after the swelling goes down," Li Qianyu explained.

"That's good, that's good. It's good that the Third Prince is alright. The messenger said that the Third Prince was carried in, which scared me to death," Yu Xinqiu said softly, patting her chest.

"By the way, Your Highness, today is your and the Third Prince's wedding day. Is there anything missing in the courtyard that I can help you procure?"

"Thank you, Consort Yu. Everything in the courtyard is ready. The Third Prince has also made all the necessary preparations. You need not trouble yourself."

Gu Hanjiao laughed and said, "Look, Consort Yu, you'd better not worry too much. Our Crown Princess won't appreciate it. By the way, if you may ask, what did the Third Prince accidentally eat?"

Yu Xinqiu gave an awkward smile, secretly feeling an intense dislike for Gu Hanjiao.

"We'll have to wait until the Third Prince wakes up and ask him to find out."

Seeing that the Third Prince seemed to be alright, Yu Xinqiu realized it wouldn't be appropriate for her to stay any longer. So she said, "Your Highness, since the Third Prince is unwell, I should stay and serve him. However, today is the day of Your Highness and the Third Prince's wedding, so it would be inappropriate for me to stay. Please tell me whether I should stay and take care of him."

Gu Hanjiao was startled. She didn't want to stay. The Third Prince was usually handsome and charming, but his face was swollen like a pig's head. Even with the herbal poultice, blood was still showing. It was both terrifying and disgusting.

At worst, she could bring up her pregnancy later; surely Li Qianyu wouldn't make things difficult for her.

"No need. Consort Gu should go back and rest well as she is well. Consort Yu doesn't need to stay either. I can take care of the Third Prince myself. If there is any need, I will send someone to call you."

Having said that, there was no need for the two of them to linger any longer.

As the two concubines left, Liu Mama, who was by Li Qianyu's side, couldn't help but worry about her young mistress. "Your Highness, these two don't seem like easy people to deal with."

"Heh, I knew about and witnessed it before I got married, especially Gu Hanjiao. Let's all be more careful from now on. I won't say anymore, just come with me to take care of the Third Prince."

"Sigh, today was supposed to be your special day, but this has to happen," sighed Mrs. Liu.

Gu Hanjiao returned to her courtyard, racking her brains but still couldn't figure out why the Third Prince was also having problems, since the skincare products she used for him were all fine.

"That's impossible," Gu Hanjiao muttered to herself.

"Consort, what did you say?" Chunlu was making the bed for Gu Hanjiao when she heard her speak and assumed that Gu Hanjiao needed something.

"No, I don't think the Third Prince should have been affected. Could someone have taken advantage of the situation and poisoned Brother Heng?"

"Poisoning?" Chunlu covered her mouth.

Just then, Hongqiao brought over the foot bath water. "Consort, the foot bath water is ready. Let me serve you."

Gu Hanjiao ignored Hongqiao and instead said to Chunlu, "Go and make a bowl of soup and take it to the main courtyard. Find out what Li Qianyu is up to tonight, and also quietly find out what's going on."

"But Consort, I still need to serve you."

"There are also Qiushuang and Hongqiao."

Hongqiao, who was serving nearby, glanced around and quickly said to Gu Hanjiao, "The concubine is heavily pregnant, and Sister Chunlu is someone you are used to serving. Why don't you send me to find out some information?"

Gu Hanjiao then opened her eyes and looked at Hongqiao. Hongqiao had been very active lately, but the Third Prince always came for her. Even if Hongqiao made a fool of herself, she would stay in the courtyard and could not come into the house. In addition, the Third Prince's wedding had been a recent event, so he did not come as often.

Gu Hanjiao curled her lips and sneered, "Heh, Hongqiao, by the time you find out the news, I probably won't have anything to do with you anymore."

"Please forgive me, Consort. I meant no harm; I was only thinking of you." Hongqiao quickly knelt down.

Gu Hanjiao was well aware that Hongqiao was not a well-behaved person. Ever since she brought Hongqiao into the Third Prince's residence, Hongqiao had been restless and always hanging around in front of the Third Prince. If it weren't for Gu Hanjiao keeping her in check, she probably would have started hanging around Gu Hanjiao herself.

Hong Qiao is still useful for now, but Gu Hanjiao doesn't want to stay any longer. She wants to use Gu Hanjiao to climb into the Third Prince's bed. Such a person will never give up, and staying with her will only bring trouble sooner or later.

“Hongqiao.” Gu Hanjiao stepped forward to help her up. “Don’t be afraid. I know you’re doing this for my own good, but there are more important things for you to do right now.”

Hongqiao wiped away her tears and asked, "What does the concubine need me to do? I will do my utmost, even at the cost of my life."

"It's not that serious. As you know, our current situation isn't that optimistic. With Consort Yu being so wealthy and powerful, and especially now that the Crown Prince's wife has married into the family, things will only get more difficult for us in the future."

"Why should the concubine belittle herself? Once the little master is born, the concubine will have time to deal with the prince's wife and Concubine Yu."

Gu Hanjiao nodded, took Hongqiao's hand and said, "So we can only endure it. Didn't you say you knew where my mother hid the silver? Now go and help me find the silver."

Hongqiao was stunned. So this was what Consort Gu was planning. She suddenly panicked. She had indeed gone with Doctor Zheng a few times, but she had only waited outside the courtyard and did not know the exact location of the hiding place.

What I told the Second Miss before was mostly to save my own life, and I wanted to follow her into the Third Prince's residence.

At first, she was very nervous and had already prepared her answer for when the second young lady asked. However, she hadn't heard the second young lady mention her for a long time, so she had let her guard down. Why was she suddenly asked about it now? What should she do?

Gu Hanjiao earnestly instructed, "Don't take too much yet, just enough. Don't worry, once our lives get better, I will definitely ask the Third Prince to grant you a title."

Hongqiao was overjoyed. If that were the case, it would be even better. She knew her own status. She wasn't even qualified to be a concubine. It would require the Third Prince to be willing to give her face.

Since the concubine said so, it means she is allowed to become the Third Prince's concubine. The Third Prince is so handsome and gentle, so if she could submit to him, she would be incredibly rich.

"Please rest assured, Consort, Hongqiao will definitely handle things well."

Hongqiao had forgotten what she had been worried about. Only one thought remained in her mind: Consort Gu had promised to let her become the Third Prince's concubine. Just thinking about serving such a heavenly figure as the Third Prince made Hongqiao feel like she was floating on air.

“That Hongqiao has no good intentions at all. We shouldn’t have brought her here in the first place!” Chunlu said, feeling sorry for her concubine.

"Don't rush, she will soon play her due role, so please be patient."

After returning home, Gu Qingwan had the people who went to investigate bring over the skincare products she had collected from various residences. She studied them carefully and then had Baoqin bring over the ones she had bought from the cosmetics store before for comparison. It was obvious that this one had a rather pungent smell.

So it really is a problem with the cosmetics store. But how could someone as cautious as Gu Hanjiao let her most profitable cosmetics store run into trouble?

"Siqi, have Ningyi investigate whether there's been any problem with the Makeup Pavilion recently. Shishu, go to our rouge shop and talk to Madam Li, tell her to prepare our new products. If there's a problem with the Makeup Pavilion, we'll soon have a surge of customers coming to our shop."

"Yes!"

After Gu Qingwan had made all the arrangements and everyone had left, Xiao Jingchen seemed a little unhappy. He suddenly picked her up.

"Hey, Your Highness, what are you doing? The servants are still here!"

Baoqin and the others smiled, lowered their heads, and tactfully retreated.

"It's alright, Baoqin has a good eye, the princess has trained her very well."

"What nonsense are you talking about? You haven't even washed up yet, what are you doing making a fuss about?"

Xiao Jingchen placed her on the bed and buried his face in her shoulder, saying in a muffled voice, "Why did you send people out to investigate instead of using my people? Are my people not as useful as Ning Yi and Ning Er?"