Yijuan cloud

Chapter 21
Two servant girls came over to escort Hui Xin away.

Hui Xin cried into the inner room: "Miss, wake up and help me to beg the prince for mercy. I am not failing in my heart. Miss -"

Prince Yi looked slightly impatient.

Mrs. Xu hurriedly reprimanded in a low voice: "Why don't you take me down quickly? How can you cry and make a fuss? You still don't admit that you are wrong. The master is still asleep, and making such noises shows that it is of no use!"

After Huixin left, the room became quiet for a moment. Mrs. Xu looked a little uncomfortable and said aggrievedly: "There are many people around me, but there are always a few. Even if the people around Sister Cao don't pay attention, they should have some impression. Shouldn't they still Did Jean say something one by one? Can’t you still hear the voice? Besides, there are witnesses to what the people in my house were doing at that time and where they were. "

Prince Yi said: "Madam, even if you don't say it, anyone with a discerning eye will know it. There are many people in the house. Except for those who come as dowries, the slaves are all newly selected from various places. It is not known what their character is. Maybe it is because the master has scolded and beaten them. There are also evil intentions."

"It's just that I injured my foot and was negligent for a while, so something like this went wrong."

"Madam has no foresight. How could she have predicted this? This matter is all caused by a bad servant. Madam must not blame herself anymore." The prince said warmly.

"Your Majesty—" Mrs. Xu called out with emotion, but due to the presence of a room full of servants, she still tried her best to endure the excitement for a while, faintly showing her joy.

People had long heard that the Xu family fell in love with Prince Yi at first sight when she was still in her boudoir. Prime Minister Xu asked the emperor for a decree for his beloved daughter. The emperor agreed and married Cao Yingshan as his concubine.

Unlike Cao Yingshan's reluctance, Xu treated the prince with joy.

A heart full of joy can most easily turn into a heart full of resentment.

I stared down at the floor tiles, thinking about everything that had happened in the past few days.

I couldn't help but feel angry, why was the prince so sure that it had nothing to do with the Xu family?

When it was getting dark, Cao Yingshan came to her senses, shedding tears without saying a word, looking straight at the tent roof, and whispered: "I hate him! I hate them! Her heart is so cruel."

I wiped away her tears and said softly: "Miss, don't think like that. The prince ordered people to check carefully, and Huixin also recognized everyone one by one. They were not people in the princess's room. Besides, murdering the princess is such a big deal. It’s not a trivial matter, and I don’t believe the princess would do such a thing.”

Cao Yingshan turned to look at me, raised her hand and pushed me away. Her hand was weak, but her move made my heart sink, and I lowered my hand and stood beside the bed.

She said in a hoarse voice: "Get out! I don't want a slave like you who eats inside and outside! Call Huixin!"

I looked at her and said, "Miss, I forgot, Huixin has been tied up and is under guard."

Cao Yingshan's lips were trembling, and she glared at me with tears in her eyes: "You dogs... they are all dogs... how dare you bully me like this."

She said, breathing hard.

I knelt down and said, "Miss, if you want to scold or cry, just scold and cry. Once you get out of this door, you can't scold or cry anymore. Although the princess is the most suspicious person, This servant has many doubts about this matter. Let’s talk about the porridge delivery person first. Even if you and Huixin didn’t pay attention, there must be something in your mind. Why can’t you find it?”

"Also, if the princess has the intention to harm you, how can she be so arrogant and leave evidence? Even if she is dissatisfied with you, she has many tricks and it is not worth resorting to. Besides, everything depends on evidence, and we have no real evidence. , you can’t doubt the princess. At the very least, you can’t do it on face.”

Cao Yingshan sobbed: "How come I don't understand what you said? But you don't think about it, who is she? Her father is the right prime minister, a great hero who supported the emperor's accession to the throne, and who am I? Even Cao Wenqing is confused. She often looks down on me, why wouldn't she dare to be a dignified princess?"

"I just didn't expect her to be so cruel... No matter what my mother and I were like in the Cao family, Mrs. Cao never did such a thing! Now the prince doesn't dare to offend her and blindly favors her. I, Cao Yingshan, am not afraid, anyway. Even if I die once, no matter how hard I try, I will seek an explanation for myself!"

After she finished speaking and was silent for a while, I said: "What's the result? You have a life, where is Aunt You? Where is Mr. Cao? Although you are in the palace, standing behind you is the entire Cao family. This can only be It’s an unsolved case, and the days ahead will be long, and we have to get on with it.”

The sky was fading little by little, and Cao Yingshan was lying quietly, her face gradually becoming blurry. Just when my knees started to feel numb, I heard her say: "Go out."

After instructing the little maid to deliver the medicine, I walked towards Shang Ye's small room.

Two maids who were on duty at night were sitting on the steps talking. When they saw me coming, they shouted: "It's getting dark and the door has to be locked. Girls, please go back and rest!"

I smiled and said, "I'm here to see my sisters, say a few words and then leave. It's been a long night. Let the two nuns drink a few sips of plum wine to moisten their mouths and relieve their boredom."

I took out a porcelain bottle of plum wine from my sleeve, and the two maids took it with a smile and said, "Hurry up, girl. The door is locked in front and it will be troublesome."

I responded and quickly walked into the night room at the end. It was small and dark inside, with only a small window left, and Huixin was sobbing.After seeing clearly that it was me, she stood up and held my hand tightly, and said anxiously: "Miss, are you awake? Did the prince say when to let me go? I'm scared to death here, Duo'er, please help me." Miss, tell the prince, I have never failed to do my best in serving you since I was little."

I whispered: "You have been with her since you were a child, and you don't know her temper? Now even if you wake up and have strength, your heart is full of grievances, how can you care about you? I'm afraid I won't be able to do it tonight. Let’s see again tomorrow. I was just scolded by her, and she couldn’t swallow it for a while. We are slaves. Although our lives are not our own, we still have a mouth and a pair of hands. , you have to take care of yourself in everything. I'm going out early today, so you can tell me about the situation when I'm not around."

It turns out that not long after I left the palace, the prince sent someone to invite Cao Yingshan to stay with him in the study.

He said that he heard that Cao Yingshan was good at writing and could write poems and couplets, so he asked her to come over and read with her.

It was around lunch time that Cao Yingshan came back.

Although I held an umbrella on the road, I couldn't help but feel the sun was shining brightly, so I took a shower and changed clothes when I got back.

The maid who delivered the ice porridge came just as Cao Yingshan was changing her clothes.

At that time, several other slaves in the courtyard were either busy packing away bathing utensils or preparing lunch. It was drying in the courtyard and no one was around.

Huixin, on the other hand, was busy dressing Cao Yingshan and didn't pay much attention to anyone.

After listening to Huixin's words, I had several thoughts in my mind. The prince invited Cao Yingshan to accompany him in the study. This favor was really eye-catching. Could it be that Mrs. Xu was so angry that she wanted to kill Cao Yingshan?

I thought: "Huixin, no matter who asks you again, just say: I have seen everyone around the princess, and they are not porridge delivery people. When that person came to deliver porridge, he was sneaky and looked... It looks tight! Maybe someone from outside sneaked in."

Word still spread.

Aunt You came to the palace to visit, and Prince Yi accompanied her. This made Aunt You's face shine, and she kept saluting and making polite remarks to Prince Yi.

But when Aunt You asked about how her daughter had been harmed, King Yi still used the same rhetoric as before, blindly protecting Xu in her words without any doubt.

Aunt You's expression changed on the spot. Although it hindered the identity of the prince, she still said: "For no reason, who has such a big hatred against Yingshan and insists on her life? She is the prince's concubine after all. Others Who has the courage?"

Prince Yi nodded and said, "What my aunt said is that this matter is indeed strange."

Aunt You looked full of complaints, but she didn't dare to say anything more.

But Aunt You has always been narrow-minded and unwilling to suffer. She went back angrily, probably because she complained a lot in front of Mr. Cao.

Mr. Cao has always been a man of strong temperament and is famous for his daring speech and remonstrance.

A few days later, after a morning court meeting, he actually had a public dispute with Prince Yi.

It happened that all the officials were leaving the palace in groups. Seeing the excitement, they stopped one after another. Although they tried to persuade them, they all said they should listen to what was going on first and then judge.

As a result, the whole capital soon talked about it.

Princess Yi became jealous because of her competition for favor and wanted to harm the concubine. However, King Yi favored the Xu family and did not dare to deal with it. He was clearly using his power to bully the Cao family officials.

Rumors are flying everywhere, and Prince Yi is also so worried that he cannot go anywhere. In the past few days, he has only gone to the study when he came back from outside. He can't even eat.

Such a commotion actually alarmed even the emperor.

After returning from the palace, Prince Yi invited Xu and Cao Yingshan over.

In just a few days, he had gone through countless vicissitudes, and his beautiful eyes were full of exhaustion. After a while, he said: "Brother Huang wants me to deal with it impartially and to give an explanation to Princess Side. I know that this matter has nothing to do with the Princess. I believe it." Princess, I can’t stop Youyou’s mouth.”

"Yingshan, I know you are suspicious, but based on my repeated verifications, it is indeed not the princess who did it. This incident has caused such a big uproar, which has damaged not only the reputation of our palace, but also the reputation of your family. The family’s reputation, for now, is all we can do is let the rumors stop.”

He softened his voice and said: "I have requested the imperial brother's order to follow the army to conquer the Tatars and serve in the Xuanfu. I will raise food and pay for the sergeants and serve as a reserve. I will come back after the Tatars are expelled."

(End of this chapter)