mtl008 Chapter 134 Meeting Again
Chapter 134 Meeting Again
Not long after Huanbi left with red eyes, Cui Jinxi came in with a bundle of fresh willow branches.
"My Lady, the willow trees beside the lake are too tall. I asked a nearby eunuch to help me pick them, which took some time."
"Thank you for your hard work, Aunt Jinxi. I will help you tie the willow branches."
The yellow line is difficult to find and easy to violate taboos, so they all use the red line.
The master and his two servants quickly tied up most of the willow branches, and Zhen Huan personally hung the bundled willow branches on the doors and windows.
Cui Jinxi hurriedly dipped the remaining willow branches in water and sprinkled the areas where Huanbi had been.
He was muttering something while pouring the water.
Seeing that nothing was left out, Zhen Huan felt relieved and took the group out.
"Aunt Jinxi, is there any place nearby where I can go for fun and relax?"
"Your Majesty, I just heard from the eunuch who was picking willow branches that the lotus flowers in Quyuan Fenghe are in full bloom. You can admire them from afar on the Nine-Arch Stone Bridge, or you can enjoy them by boat."
The Queen has been very worried about the issue of offspring recently, so it would be nice to go out for a walk.
The emperor loves his master very much, and Cui Jinxi feels that it is only a matter of time before she becomes pregnant with the dragon fetus.
The group of people heading towards Quyuan Fenghe were unaware that the conversation was overheard by the eunuch sweeping the roadside.
Quyuan Fenghe has both the ruggedness of the north and the delicacy of the south.
After walking across the pond embankment surrounded by flowing water, we stepped onto the nine-hole stone bridge.
As the sun rose higher, the group decided to move to the Lotus Pavilion in the north to avoid the shade.
"My Lady, there is someone in the lotus pavilion ahead."
"I remember there's a pavilion called 'Su Causeway Spring Dawn' to the northwest of the stone bridge. Let's go there and rest."
Zhen Huan saw two young eunuchs guarding outside the Lotus Pavilion in front of her, and no sign of any palace maids. She guessed that the person in the pavilion was most likely a man from outside the pavilion.
"Hongli greets Concubine Wan."
When she turned around and was about to leave, a clear young man's voice came, stopping her in her tracks.
After meeting him several times last year, Zhen Huan made a special effort to check out the Fourth Prince who had lived outside the palace for a long time.
When the emperor was still a prince, he had a conflict with his other brothers. After drinking, he favored a palace maid, and the child she gave birth to was the Fourth Prince.
Rumors that the emperor favored a palace maid were reported to the late emperor by his political enemies, who reprimanded him. He then became even more disgusted with this son who was left behind after drinking.
Zhen Huan felt some pity for the Fourth Prince, who was not favored by the Emperor.
So he laughed out loud.
"So it's the Fourth Prince. Are you here to admire the lotus flowers?"
"Reporting to Concubine Wan, the teachers who taught Hongli are going to pay their respects to the Emperor, and have given this son a day off."
"But I am stupid and afraid that I can't keep up with my teachers, so I found a quiet place to study."
As Hongli spoke, a look of embarrassment flashed across his face.
Zhen Huan's heart softened and she began to ask.
"What book is Fourth Prince reading these days?"
"Your Majesty, I'm still a little immature in poetry. My master asked me to read more poetry collections."
He had not yet grasped the essence of poetry, and every time he handed in an assignment, his teacher would shake his head.
Zhen Huan happened to like this, and entered the pavilion first without being invited by the Fourth Prince.
After reading what the Fourth Prince called his humble work, she didn't know what to say.
Each word is well written individually, but when put together it's not the same.
It's not just that he lacks skills, he has absolutely no talent at all.
The Fourth Prince, who was good at observing people's expressions, caught the embarrassment between Zhen Huan's brows and inquired carefully.
"Empress Wanpin, is there anything wrong with my poem?"
"Fourth Prince, there's nothing wrong. I have a few good poetry collections and will send them to you later."
When Huanbi was young, her master scolded her several times, saying that studying and learning to read were too hard and she insisted on doing work like sewing.
Zhen Huan didn't want to discourage the Fourth Prince who was eager to learn.
"Thank you, Madam Wanpin. I wonder if I could come to you to seek your advice in the future?"
The Fourth Prince got a lot of information about the concubines in the harem from Hongshi.
The fact that Concubine Wan was able to be promoted to a concubine without having a child shows how much her father loves her.
He also learned about a past event from an old palace maid, which made him even more determined to get close to Concubine Wan.
Only by getting close to Concubine Wan can you catch the Emperor's eye.
Zhen Huan may sympathize with the Fourth Prince, but the Emperor obviously feels that this son is a stain on him, so she would not be so tactless as to get close to him.
"Fourth Prince, you have a famous teacher to teach you. I am not very knowledgeable and I am afraid I can't be of any help."
"I have something else to do, so I won't disturb Fourth Prince from studying."
After watching the group of people walking away under the scorching sun, the Fourth Prince returned to the pavilion with squinting eyes.
Concubine Wan clearly felt pity for him, but why did she refuse his closeness?
Could it be that he was too eager for quick success and showed it too obviously?
The Fourth Prince's men had been guarding outside the Bitong Academy for several days, and had never seen Concubine Wan go out alone except to pay her respects.
He had no choice but to lie low and wait for the opportunity.
An Lingrong reported all of these to the authorities.
In his previous life, in order to welcome back Zhen Huan, who had left the palace in anger, the emperor forcibly turned her into the biological mother of the Fourth Prince.
If these two get together, they will definitely have a bright future.
Her Hongzhan is still young, and she absolutely cannot let these two get together.
"Bao Ge, tell someone to tell Taohuawu about the Fourth Prince's approach to Wanpin."
The Queen had already sensed the crisis in Zhen Huan, so she would not let the Fourth Prince help her.
The queen, who was pregnant in Taohuawu, could not sit still when she heard the news.
"Jianqiu, bring out the copied "Book of Filial Piety" and Buddhist scriptures. I need to go to the Qinzheng Palace."
During the few days he came to the garden, the emperor almost always stayed at the Bitong Academy, and the rest of the time he could only be seen in the Qinzheng Hall.
Su Peisheng saw the queen's procession coming from afar and hurried forward to greet them.
"Slave, please see the Queen."
"Eunuch Su, please excuse me. I have something to ask the Emperor. May I ask if the Emperor is available right now?"
The Queen asked gently.
Jianqiu handed over a purse at the right time.
"Eunuch Su, please take this and have some tea."
Su Peisheng thanked him, took it, turned around and went in to report.
When he saw the emperor put down the memorial, he hurried forward and reported in a low voice.
"Your Majesty, the Queen wishes to see you."
The emperor frowned and asked in a bad tone.
"She's still pregnant, what is she doing here?"
He stayed in Bitong Academy for a few more days, and the Queen kept advising him during meals, asking him to treat everyone equally for the sake of harmony in the harem.
The emperor lost his appetite due to all the nagging, and finally he rushed to Concubine Shu's room and had a bowl of cold noodles with shredded chicken to fill his stomach.
Su Peisheng replied with his head down.
"Your Majesty, the Empress didn't say anything."
He dared to stop others, but behind the queen stood the empress dowager, whom even the emperor dared not turn his face away from.
He had no choice but to come in and report honestly.
The emperor naturally took these into consideration and took a sip of tea with a sullen face.
"Let her in."
When the queen came in, the emperor had already moved to the couch on the side and was reading a book.
"I, your concubine, swear..."
"You're pregnant, so there's no need to be polite. Sit down!"
The emperor pointed to the other side of the small table.