Chapter 46: Prince Arrives
Edited By: Mim
Xiao Linzi looked in the direction where the Crown Prince was leaving, and the question of Young Lady Chu sounded in his mind: “Look at them, are they human?”
Xiao Linzi, thought he was knowledgeable. He had been in and out of the palace like a sword and shadow, but now he didn’t know how to answer the conversation. He opened his mouth and said in amazement, “Yes, right”
Xiao Linzi didn’t know why he added a tone particle after the categorical answer.
Chu Jinyao couldn’t help turning her head, raising her neck, and looking in that direction. However, after these delays, the group had already left, and now they couldn’t even see their backs.
Chu Jinyao murmured inaudibly, “How come… is it because I am missing him badly?”
Qi Ze was obviously a spirit in the jade pendant; why did he appear in the world? She just took a closer look, and there were shadows under the people’s feet; they were indeed humans.
Why was that? Or was there really such a similar-looking person in the world?
Xiao Linzi watched Chu Jinyao lower her head; her expression seemed to be low. He observed it coldly for a while and asked tentatively, “Young Lady Chu, why do you ask like this?”
“Nothing.” Chu Jinyao shook her head. “I just think they are very strange.”
Because they behaved strangely, she dared to say that their Crown Prince was not a human being? Xiao Linzi didn’t know what to say. Because the Crown Prince was out of the palace in secret, except for a few close people, no one knew that the prince had left the border, so it was inevitable that he had to dodge a little along the way.
This Young Lady Chu may have seen the Crown Prince and group of people being evasive and sneaky, so she mistakenly thought that the prince was not a human being. Xiao Linzi reluctantly made sense of it, but then he “bah bah bah” to himself.
Did he want his life, dared to say that their prince was sneaky?
Chu Jinyao and Xiao Linzi were thoughtful, and the other’s expressions changed a little. Neither of them had the intention to take care of each other, but they were all in peace, and neither of them made the other feel suspicious. Chu Jinyao was occupied by thoughts of Qin Yi and said goodbye to Xiao Linzi, and then walked out of the garden with one foot after another.
Until Chu Jinyao stood outside the flower hall, she suddenly realized that her purse hadn’t been found yet!
Chu Jinyao sighed deeply. The loss of her belongings was so important, but now she couldn’t even feel a little bit of interest.
Linglong anxiously guarded outside the house, craned her neck to look at the people coming and going; suddenly her eyes condensed, and she quickly ran down the steps: “Young lady!”
“Linglong?”
“Young lady, did the maid find you? Where did you go?” With that said, Linglong hurriedly looked Chu Jinyao up and down until she saw that Chu Jinyao was still in the same clothes. There was nothing wrong with her expression, and she finally let out a long sigh.
Linglong had already thought about the worst situation, but fortunately, in the end it was her unreasonable worries.
Chu Jinyao said in a few words about what happened just now: “My clothes were wet, and a maid volunteered to take me to change clothes. Halfway through, I felt that something was not right, so I got out and returned. Unfortunately, when I was halfway down, I got lost, hence I was delayed until now.” Naturally, Chu Jinyao covered up Qin Yi’s affairs.
Linglong felt horrified when she heard it; she patted her heart, repeatedly saying, “It’s okay, it’s okay, it’s okay now!”
Chu Jinyao asked, “What about you? When I went out, I looked for you and hadn’t seen anyone for a long time. Where have you been?”
“The Fourth Young Lady’s maid went to the kitchen to get things and said that there was not enough maids, so she took me away. However, this slave couldn’t refuse, thinking that nothing would happen if she only left for a while. Who knew, I won’t see the lady again when she comes back.”
“Went to the kitchen to fetch things…” Chu Jinyao seemed to feel something and suddenly asked, “Who did you see when you came back?”
“I didn’t see anyone. This servant lady was so frightened that she couldn’t find the lady, so I hurried to ask people to inquire about it. The Sixth Young Lady told me that you followed a servant lady in a double-sided bun and an azurite skirt and left.”
Chu Jinyao’s eyes flashed, and she asked with some smile, “Sixth Sister?”
Linglong didn’t know why: “Yes, what’s the matter?”
Chu Jinyao shook her head and exhaled, “It’s nothing, but it will be a lively experience at home. It is estimated that Chaoyun Courtyard will be able to completely change people this time.”
“Young lady, you mean…”
“When you go out, don’t mention these things.” Chu Jinyao said, “I know who is innocent and who is not clean today. Come here!. “
Linglong stretched out her ears, Chu Jinyao said something lowly, and Linglong was immediately shocked: “Ah, young lady, this!”
Chu Jinyao motioned for Linglong not to say more; she said, “Don’t say anything; just go and find it secretly. Stare carefully at the people next to Chu Jinmiao.”
Linglong responded quickly; even though she tried to restrain her expression, she still couldn’t hide her panic.
Chu Jinyao adjusted the skirt and walked into the flower hall with a calm expression. When the ladies in the flower hall saw Chu Jinyao, they all said, ” Fifth Young Lady Chu, you went out to change your clothes. Why did you go so long but didn’t change your clothes?”
Chu Jinyao smiled and said, “I lost my way in the garden, and the lady who showed me the way was so playful that she ran out of sight. I walked around for a long time and finally found it. Fortunately, after this tossing, the water marks on the dress are all dry, so there is no need to change clothes.”
“That’s it…” The ladies thoughtfully looked at Chu Jinyao’s dress and found that although Chu Jinyao’s skirt was covered with dust, her clothes were neat and tidy. They looked at it and didn’t think there was anything wrong, so they looked away indifferently.
Even the County Princess just asked. Hearing that the maid who gave Chu Jinyao directions ran away by herself, she said angrily, “These damned people; I will report to my mother and let my mother punish them severely!”
After the County Princess finished cursing, she later remembered: “By the way, didn’t your sisters go out looking for you? Why are you back, but they haven’t come back?”
“Oh, they haven’t come back yet.” Chu Jinyao smiled intentionally, “I have been walking for so long, but I didn’t see them.”
As she was talking, there was a noise from the door, and Chu Jinmiao opened the door curtain with a look of misfortune. Her face was very ugly, and she kept cursing at the Sixth Young Lady in her heart, but when she looked up, she saw Chu Jinyao smiling and standing there leisurely.
Chu Jinmiao was taken aback, almost hitting the ground with what was in her hand.
But this was not over yet. Chu Jinyao smiled and asked leisurely, “Fourth Sister, Third Sister, where have you been?”
Chu Jinmiao pulled her face, turned her head, and said nothing. At this time, Sixth Sister also bent over and came in. Chu Jinyao stepped forward and smiled and said to Sixth sSister, “I heard that Sixth Sister specially point out the way for my maid to help her find me.”
Sixth Young Lady’s eyes flashed, but she still had a weak and calm expression. Chu Jinyao looked into her eyes and slowly said, “Then I really thank you for this, Sixth Sister.”
After speaking, Chu Jinyao didn’t want to look at these people anymore, turned, and walked outside. The ladies around didn’t think there was anything, but the faces of the three of them were really strange and couldn’t help asking, “What’s the matter?”
Chu Jinmiao put her hands in the warmer and turned her face slightly, while the Sixth Young Lady behaved as if she hadn’t heard it and still looked indifferent.
Today’s banquet was carried out in such an orderly manner that, until the guests were almost gone, the day’s disturbance finally appeared.
At this time, the Old Princess Consort’s warm pavilion was very quiet. She leaned on the pillow and said slowly, “Is everyone here?”
Lanze replied in a low voice, “The few people who were serving today have been detained in the wood house.”
“Okay. Call the few guests over.”
Chu Jinyao had received the news a long time ago that the Old Princess Consort had something to say to her privately. Chu Jinyao knew and when the time came, she was led by the maid, avoiding the crowd, and went to the Old Princess Consort.
Chu Jinmiao, the Third Young Lady, and the Sixth Young Lady were not spared and were invited one by one. Today’s matter involved the Changxing Marquis Mansion and Huailing Mansion. The Old Princess Consort did not want to cause trouble, so only Madam Zhao was invited. Sitting in the warm pavilion, Madam Zhao saw a few of her own ladies standing underneath, almost fidgeting: “What have you done today? You even alarmed the Old Princess Consort?”
Chu Jinyao was very calm; she remained still, her eyes dropped slightly, and she didn’t talk.
The Princess Consort was also sitting on one side, and when she saw this, she said, “Don’t worry, Marchioness, let the servants clarify the ins and outs of the matter first.”
However, the ladies involved today are all girls, and it was not good for anyone to speak. A maid beside the Old Princess Consort gave a vague outline, but all the clan wives who were in charge of hosting and were in charge of the prefecture understood, even if the maid said it hesitatingly.
When the Princess Consort heard about the part of her son, her face was already very unsightly. She glanced at Chu Jinyao without a trace patiently and said nothing.
After listening, Madam Zhao was almost unable to sit still. Whether it was Chu Jinmiao deliberately making the game or Chu Jinyao suspected to have an appointment with Shizi, this made her face as a mother bleak. Madam Zhao cried: “Mother pitied you for being lonely at home, and then let you be a guest at the palace. But after you came out, did you just mess around like this?”
However, no matter how embarrassed Madam Zhao is, they still remembered that they were still in someone else’s home. No matter what the truth of the matter was, what they had to do now was to cover up the matter and keep the face of Marquis Changxing. So, Madam Zhao reluctantly smiled and said to the Old Princess Consort and the Princess Consort: “The ladies in our family are fooling around and let the Old Princess Consort and Princess Consort laugh at them. Even in your house, they don’t change the problem of playing around. They are the ones who are making trouble today. They unexpectedly made the Old Princess Consort and the Princess Consort worried. I really feel sorry.”
Playing around? The Princess Consort was unconvinced; no matter what tricks these ladies did, there was someone in her house who could be bought and made small actions, which made the Princess extremely angry. What’s more, these women also touched the reverse scale of the princess.
They dared to target her son; they were so bold!
The Princess Consort immediately put down the tea cup; she did not deliberately restrain herself, and the porcelain cup knocked on the table with loud noises. The Princess Consort tensed her face and said, “The ladies in the Marquis Mansion are lively and noisy. I shouldn’t have said anything as an outsider. However, a family always has to be somewhat decent. It’s okay to love to play but should also have a limit.”
The words were extremely ugly, and Madam Zhao couldn’t hold back her face at the time. Chu Jinyao naturally heard that the Princess Consort was alluding to her. Chu Jinyao became so angry that she had been framed by others today and finally escaped halfway through, and now she is still being run by the Princess Consort. Was it true that the children of one’s own family are gold and the others are stones?
Chu Jinyao didn’t want to be a study companion of this kind of family. After hearing this, she completely dispelled her scruples and forced her back: “Forgive me for talking; I really don’t understand what the princess is talking about my family; we sisters came to your house as guests. During the dinner, my clothes were wet by the housemaid. I came out to change clothes, but I was lost by this maid. I am still confused now. I don’t know what happened; the princess is now speaking of our sisters staying within our limits; what do you really mean?”
If the Princess in charge of the palace are all such confused people, then being the study companion of such a house is not appropriate.
Madam Zhao hurriedly scolded Chu Jinyao, but Chu Jinyao remained unmoved and stubbornly finished speaking. The Princess Consort never expected that a little lady would dare to confront her, and her face was now stretched.
It was the Old Princess Consort who came to the rescue at the right time: “Today’s matter is that our palace is ineffective in governing, and this is our fault first. Since you are called together, it is to solve the problem, not to misunderstand each other and let the two sides renew the gap.”
The Old Consort took the initiative to step back and admit that the palace was in charge of the people. Chu Jinyao was not a person who had no eyesight and immediately followed the steps and said, “Yes, Old Princess Consort.”
Chu Jinmiao was called here, and her heart was already cold. She thought that she was completely finished, but Chu Jinmiao didn’t expect that Chu Jinyao would dare to confront the Princess Consort face-to-face, which made Chu Jinmiao see another ray of light.
Chu Jinyao actually destroyed the Great Wall by herself and offended the Princess Consort. This is because Chu Jinyao didn’t cherish the opportunity. If this is the case, then can’t we blame her for pushing it?
Chu Jinmiao made up her mind and pretended to say casually, “Fifth Sister, you have been out for a long time, and we all thought something was wrong with you, so we couldn’t help looking for you outside. Fortunately, although you got lost, you finally got back. Here is your pouch; did it fall when you got lost?”
In a few words, Chu Jinmiao characterized her behaviour as worry. No matter how much the Princess Consort and the Old Princess Consort knew, she could not let go. Anyway, she didn’t leave any conclusive evidence, did she?
On the contrary, Chu Jinyao, her purse, is still missing.
When Madam Zhao heard this, her eyelids picked up uncontrollably. She hurriedly looked down at Chu Jinyao’s belt and found that the place where she hung her purse was indeed empty.
When the Princess Consort heard this, the doubts in her heart rose again. She had asked the County Princess a long time ago, knowing when Chu Jinyao would go out and when she would return. The garden is only that big in total. Even if she gets lost, can she really get lost for so long?
The Princess Consort couldn’t help asking, “Fifth Young Lady, it’s not that I talk too much, but I really want to ask one more question: why did you walk so long when you got lost in the garden?”
“I lost my way at first, but I was still in a hurry. Later, thanks to a little servant guy showing the way, I walked out. But when I came back, I found my purse was lost while walking, so I quickly turned back and looked for it. As a result, in desperation, I could only go back the same way.”
“A servant boy showed the way?” Chu Jinmiao also heard something wrong, nevermind the Princess Consort. Chu Jinmiao pretended to be innocent and ignorant and deliberately asked, “What a coincidence. Thanks to this little boy for showing you the way; we must thank him. By the way, Fifth Sister, what was the name of this little boy?”
Chu Jinyao was a little bit troubled. This person only said his surname. Chu Jinyao really didn’t know the other party’s name. Chu Jinyao had to say truthfully, “I don’t know his name; I only know his surname is Lin.”
The Princess Consort frowned: “There is no servant named Lin in the garden, not even the housekeeper.”
“No?” Chu Jinyao asked in surprise.
Chu Jinmiao cocked her mouth in a gloat; even if she couldn’t be a study companion, she wouldn’t let Chu Jinyao get it. It just so happened that God helped her; Chu Jinyao actually told the flaws by herself.
The scene was very embarrassing for a while. The Princess Consort was very sure that there was no one named Lin in the palace garden, and the Old Princess Consort couldn’t say anything about this. At this time, the Old Princess Consort was also whispering to herself; could it be that this lady was really lying? She was in the garden; was she acting otherwise?
When Madam Zhao heard this, she immediately felt that this was Chu Jinyao’s lie, and now she couldn’t justify it. Madam Zhao quickly said, “This child, you always speak upside down. You must be the one who remembers the wrong thing. Why don’t you just apologize to the Princess Consort?”
Chu Jinyao bit her lip secretly; what crime did she commit? Why should she make amends? What was the difference between Madam Zhao’s words and pressing her head to make her admit her mistake? Chu Jinyao didn’t speak, but her attitude was clear. She refused.
The scene became more of stalemate now, and the Princess Consort thought about it more suspiciously, and now Chu Jinyao’s eyes changed. But the Old Princess Consort really couldn’t stand it. She was about to come out and wade into the muddy water. Suddenly, a maid deliberately raised her greetings outside the house: “The Shizi is here.”
The Shizi wass here?
The Princess Consort looked when Lin Xiyuan walked in. He glanced at the people in the room and had already guessed the situation in his heart.
“Greetings to grandmother and mother, Marchioness and Chu ladies.”
When the Princess Consort saw him, she simply said, “Yuan’er, you were also present during today’s affairs. Tell us what’s going on.”
Lin Xiyuan didn’t say anything but looked at the Old Princess Consort: “Grandmother, this is…”
Someone from the Old Princess Consort beat her leg and she slowly said, “The Fifth Young Lady from the Chu family has lost her way in the garden. We were talking about her.”
The Princess Consort then said, “Yuan’er, have you passed the garden today?”
Lin Xiyuan knew what was going on when he heard it. His mother was thinking about it! Lin Xiyuan was a little embarrassed and took the initiative to take a step back and said to Chu Jinyao, “Today, the palace’s control of the people was not good, which caused Fifth Cousin trouble. This kind of leading the wrong way thing will not happen again next time.”
Lin Xiyuan’s attitude surprised everyone, and the Princess Consort shouted loudly, “Yuan’er!”
“Mother, don’t say it.” Lin Xiyuan also raised his voice slightly and suppressed the words of the Princess Consort, “I don’t blame Fifth Cousin for what happened today; it’s all our own negligence.”
Now the Old Princess Consort was a little surprised, and the Princess Consort frowned and said, “We don’t have any servants surnamed Lin at all; why are you?” It’s the same as drinking the ecstasy soup?
When Lin Xiyuan heard this, he frowned and had to take a step forward and whisper, “Mother!”
His voice was low, and the seriousness in his tone didn’t seem to be fake. The Princess Consort was startled. Lin Xiyuan approached, and he said something to the Princess Consort.
Several ladies from the Chu family, including Madam Zhao, watched the Princess Consort’s face turn from anger to shock and finally revealed a little joy. They were surprised at this scene, and they couldn’t think of what the Shizi said, which made the Princess Consort’s face change.
The Princess Consort looked at Chu Jinyao now; her doubts were swept away, but she couldn’t hold back her face. She replied somewhat slyly: “I misunderstood. I didn’t expect the people in the house to be so careless that they led the Fifth Young Lady astray. I will punish them severely afterwards.”
Chu Jinyao herself was surprised when the change came so suddenly. After the reaction, she didn’t have the arrogance of the Princess Consort, so she went down to bow and said, ” It’s alright, Princess Consort.”
It was amazing to make the dignified Princess Consort bow her head. Chu Jinmiao’s face suddenly changed; how could this be? The Princess Consort was obviously suspicious; why did she change her attitude in an instant?
At this time, Lin Xiyuan walked up to the Old Princess Consort and said a few words quietly. The Old Princess Consort also showed a look of shock.
There were only a few reasons why the Princess Consort could willingly admit her mistakes. The Princess Consort finally realized that it was she who had speculated and wronged good people, just because of Lin Xiyuan’s words.
Lin Xiyuan said that the Crown Prince was also in the garden today when Chu Jinyao lost her way. She was sent back by Gonggong Lin, who was next to the prince.
This was enough. The things that Chu Jinyao had lost, the whereabouts that no one could proved, disappeared in front of the absolute right to speak. The gonggong next to the prince testified so that even if the gonggong was not even present, it was enough to sit down and let all malicious speculations fall apart.
Only Lin Xiyuan, the Princess Consort, and the Old Princess Consortes knew the reason. The people of the Chu family only saw the aloof palace master suddenly change her mouth and apologized to Chu Jinyao, convinced of Chu Jinyao’s innocence. When they were surprised, they also felt weird.
How could that be possible?
Sixth Young Lady was slightly surprised. She thought that she could at least defeat Chu Jinyao today, but the result seemed to be counterproductive. And Chu Jinmiao’s molars were about to be crushed; she had worked so hard for so long, but she had been fetching water from a bamboo basket, all of came to nothing? But the Third Young Lady grumbled her eyes and made up her mind to switch camps and take refuge in Chu Jinyao.
Madam Zhao was stunned for a while. She glanced at Chu Jinyao suspiciously, still suspicious of the matter, but the Princess Consort took the initiative to soften her figure; Madam Zhao would not waste this opportunity, and she still promised in a lively manner.
The Princess Consort and Madam Zhao exchanged a lot of decent words.
In the end, the Princess Consort said, “Today is just a farce. It’s good to end it. These daughters of Madam Zhao are really worry-free. I hope that in a few days, Madam Zhao will bring her daughters to come and stay for a few more days.”
The Madam Zhao quickly declined: “Don’t dare, Princess.” But Madam Zhao was overjoyed in her heart. According to the Princess Consort, today’s affairs had not affected matters in the slightest, and the companion would still be from their house?
The Princess Consort said some more words, and only then did the maid send the Chu family out.
Seeing this, Lin Xiyuan stood up and said, “Grandmother, mother, there is still something outside; I will go out first.”
When the Princess Consort heard it, she knew it well and naturally said, “Hurry up, we won’t keep you.”
The Chu family got up and walked out, and Chu Jinyao followed silently. When going out, Lin Xiyuan took advantage of people’s attention and quietly said to her, “Wait a moment, I have something for you.”
Chu Jinyao moved in her heart and looked around, deliberately slowing down, a few steps behind.
Behind Lin Xiyuan was a cluster of vines. Although the vines had all withered in the twelfth lunar month of winter, it was no problem to block the line of sight. Lin Xiyuan saw no one noticed, so he took out a purse from his sleeve and put it in Chu Jinyao’s hand.
“This is the Lin… well, I don’t know how to call him, nothing else; that’s the person.” Lin Xiyuan couldn’t say that it was Gonggong Lin, and it was not easy to be called a servant, so he had to foolishly say, “he found your purse and asked me to pass it to you.”
Chu Jinyao saw her own things suddenly, and the big rock in her heart finally fell to the ground. She didn’t bother to think about whether what Lin Xiyuan said was true or false. She didn’t care about etiquette and quickly took the purse from Lin Xiyuan, as if Lin Xiyuan would regret it in the next instant. Lin Xiyuan was helpless and felt a little funny in his heart.
He wouldn’t steal it from her.
Chu Jinyao felt at ease when she took the things into her own hands. She looked at Lin Xiyuan vigilantly, fearing that the other party would take it away, and said, “Shizi, the carriage is already outside. I will leave first.”
“Yeah.” Lin Xiyuan retracted his hand, and when Chu Jinyao took the purse, her fingertips inevitably touched his palm. Until now, this cool touch seemed to stay on his palm. Lin Xiyuan squeezed his palms without moving expression and watched Chu Jinyao turn around and leave. After she took two steps, Lin Xiyuan couldn’t help but whisper, “Be careful in the future.”
Chu Jinyao was surprised when she heard these words; Shizi actually asked her? But the person in front of her had already looked back. Chu Jinyao was afraid of another setback, so she didn’t care to respond; she picked up her skirt slightly and ran forward.
Lin Xiyuan stood for a while, worried about being noticed, and had to leave. He avoided the guards all the way to the outside of the house and respectfully bowed at the other person.
“His Royal Highness.”
“Yeah.” Qin Yi nodded lightly and turned around with his glazed eyes floated on Lin Xiyuan. “Is your family issue done?”
“Your Highness, it has been settled.” Lin Xiyuan didn’t understand why the Crown Prince suddenly cared about his family affairs and specifically asked him to go back and take care of his own affairs before coming out.
In the blink of an eye, Lin Xiyuan had already turned a lot of speculations in his heart, but in the end, Lin Xiyuan lowered his eyebrows and said, “Thank you, the prince is sympathetic, and let me see the elders in time.”
“Yeah.” Qin Yi still replied with carelessness. He suddenly asked, “What about the thing?”
Lin Xiyuan frowned: “What?”
“Xiao Linzi told me that he and a young lady were looking for something in the garden for a long time. Did you find the thing?”
It turned out that it was this matter, Lin Xiyuan said: “Your Royal Highness remembered that it was my younger maternal cousin who lost a little thing by mistake. I have found it and returned it to her.”
“That’s good.” Qin Yi nodded; his face was calm, but he was thinking, “what cousin, which cousin is Chu Jinyao?”
And Lin Xiyuan was also thinking, “what’s the matter with the Crown Prince and the purse of Fifth Cousin? Why did it matter to him, and he still said, ‘That’s good’”?
