On the 6th of May, Yu Shu blended into the large team of worshiping ancestors and set off from the capital to Huazhen Garden. In order to deceive people, the Prefect gave her the position of a ceremonial supervisor, which meant that she didn't have to do anything serious but was in charge of nitpicking.
They arrived in the evening, but there was some trouble in arranging accommodation. Normally, Yu Shu was an official of the Celestial Commissioner, so she should stay with several colleagues. However, all the Celestial Commissioner's team were men, and she was the only female official. They stayed together in pairs, so she was ignored. When everyone packed up for dinner, no one found a place for her to stay. There were so many nobles in the garden who needed to flatter and serve them, so no one cared about her.
Yu Shu knew that it was not a solution to wait like this, so she could only go to the Prefect. He brought her here, so he couldn't let her sleep on the floor. However, she didn't go far in the garden and unexpectedly met Liu Tan, oh yes, she should call him Crown Prince now.
At the corner of the corridor, the Crown Prince was surrounded by people and came over. A row of lanterns under the eaves shone brightly. Yu Shu saw a yellow robe in front of her and quickly stepped back to the side of the aisle. After hesitating for a moment, she bowed to him.
At first, the Crown Prince did not notice her. He only glanced at her inattentively and saw that she was wearing a grey leather hat. After walking over, he suddenly stopped and turned his head to look. The group of people behind him also stopped.
"… Yu Shu?"
Yu Shu pursed her lips and looked up. "Your Highness, it's me." In the past, when Liu Tan hadn't become the Crown Prince, he would always call her Lianfang. He was very amiable and approachable. But after a lapse of only three months, he had changed to calling her by her name. It was because he was not the same as before, and also because Xue Rui had disappeared, so he didn't need to draw her to his side anymore.
The Crown Prince's eyes fell on her plain face. He smiled slightly. "I almost didn't recognize you. Why are you here?"
Yu Shu figured out his current state of mind and replied respectfully, "I am the supervisor of ceremonies for this year's ancestral worship ceremony."
The Crown Prince nodded. He looked down and saw the bundle hanging on her arm. The corner of his mouth raised again. "Is there not enough room?"
Yu Shu could only awkwardly admit it. He turned his head and ordered a steward behind him, "Take Official Yu to a more spacious place to stay." The eunuch nodded his head and bowed as he walked out to show her the way.
"Thank you, Your Highness."
The Crown Prince waved his hand, turned around, and hurriedly left with his men. This year, the Qing Emperor could not make an appearance at the ancestral worship ceremony, so he would host it instead. How could he not take advantage of such a rare opportunity? With so many things to do, him stopping to say a few words to Yu Shu was already giving her a lot of face.
Yu Shu watched as he was escorted away. Her expression did not change at all. She turned her head and cupped her hands at the unknown eunuch. "Thank you, eunuch."
"No problem, no problem. Official Yu, let me carry your things for you."
In the end, this eunuch led her around the garden for an hour but still couldn't find a suitable place to put her. In the end, it was Yu Shu who thought of the small courtyard she had stayed in last year when she was a vessel bearer. She looked all the way there.
It was a courtyard with a front courtyard and a back courtyard. There were six rooms in total. When Yu Shu came over, the vessel bearers had already chosen their rooms to stay in. Xin Liu was very surprised to see her here and was about to jump over in joy. He was pinned to the spot by Yu Shu's gaze. With a fierce expression, he said to the group of boys and girls —
"I am this year's supervisor of ceremonies. I will live with you all these days and supervise your etiquette. You better not cause trouble under my eyes. If I kick you out, I don't care which family you are from. "
Yu Shu's reputation was well-known. The people in Taishi's Study all knew who she was. In addition, there was a chief eunuch carrying a bag behind her. With just a few words, they were all subdued. Then, she naturally let the two girls stay in the same room and gave her a room to herself. Don't ask why she didn't just stay with Xin Liu. What dignity would there be?
.....
Zhu Muzhao walked out of Emperor Zhao Qing's bedroom with his hands behind his back. He walked down the steps alone. The palace maids and eunuchs who were guarding along the way bowed to him to send him off. He walked away without looking sideways. When he reached the long door, Ren Qiming was already waiting there.
"Taishu," Ren Qiming lowered his head and followed behind him. He asked softly, "Has the emperor woken up?"
Zhu Muzhao shook his head and gave a short sigh. The Emperor's health was deteriorating day by day and had already reached the point where his illness was beyond cure. A while ago, he was still clear-headed for a moment and a half every day and was able to say a few words to other people, but these two days, it was difficult for him to even wake up. He could only surround the temporary imperial residence tightly and temporarily prevent the news from leaking. He had to at least get through the ancestral worship ceremony.
Liu Tan had gotten a great bargain this time. If he hadn't been tricked by Yun Hua, he wouldn't have had the chance to become the Crown Prince.
"The Crown Prince came just now, but I sent him away." Zhu Muzhao was worried and warned him, "Keep a close eye on him these two days. Find more things for him to do. Don't let him come here."
Ren Qiming nodded and said, "The imperial envoy that was sent to Ning Dong City to denounce the crime has not sent back any news. I did a divination last night, and it was all ominous."
"What I want is an ominous omen," Zhu Muzhao said to himself. "Xue Lingnan will never think that Ceng Minzhi is one of us." The assistant minister of the Ministry of War, Ceng Minzhi, was the imperial envoy personally appointed by the Crown Prince.
As they spoke, the two of them returned to Ming Yu Tower by the lake. This was where the Great Advisor stayed. It was also the best place to view the entire Huazhen Garden. In comparison, although the Crown Prince's Mian Xiu Garden was the most spacious and grand, it was not as comfortable and pleasant as this place.
After dinner, Zhu Muzhao remembered Yu Shu. He asked Dai Qiang, the Black Robed Guard who was in charge of watching them, "Where is she?"
Dai Qiang reported Yu Shu's every move after she entered the garden. When Zhu Muzhao heard that she had actually shamelessly ran to fight for the room with the person holding the instrument, he couldn't help but laugh. "She is very adaptable." Although he sent someone to watch her, he didn't let anyone make things convenient for her. He wanted her to suffer. He didn't expect that she didn't suffer at all.
This wouldn't do. He had to find another opportunity to grind her temper. He had to make her beg him.
*
*
*
During the day, people from the Ministry of Rites came to teach the six people holding the instrument basic etiquette. Yu Shu had someone bring a reclining chair from the Reception Hall to a shady spot under the corridor. She brewed a pot of tea and compared it to the others who were holding heavy bronze instruments and basking in the sun, she felt very comfortable.
Xin Liu's resentful eyes floated over from time to time, but Yu Shu pretended not to see it. The air in Huazhen Garden was very good, especially in the morning. The sun was bright and the air was fresh. After taking a few breaths, one would feel refreshed and refreshed. No wonder the emperor moved here to recuperate.
"Official Yu." Official Wang of the Ministry of Rites wandered over to Yu Shu's side and greeted her with a smile. At this time last year, he was also in charge of teaching the people holding the instrument. He and Yu Shu had some friendship, so she stood up and offered her seat. Official Wang waved his hand and sat down on the stone slab to the side. He looked at the people with her.
"Time passes so quickly. In the blink of an eye, another year has passed."
Yu Shu nodded and also felt a bit emotional, "At that time, I was the same as them and suffered a lot."
Official Wang looked at the young people who began to stagger after standing for a while and shook his head, "They don't have your steadiness. Ai, the descendants of the Yi Xue Family are getting worse with each generation."
Yu Shu deeply agreed. The two chatted and the morning passed by without them noticing. The young people from the aristocratic families were so tired that they were sweating profusely and couldn't even lift their hands. During lunch, everyone sat at the same table. A bold youth complained to Yu Shu, "I really don't understand. Isn't it just holding something? Do they need to practice so hard? Official Wang is clearly deliberately making things difficult for us. Help us talk to them and don't make us stand stupidly in the afternoon. "
"Yes, yes, help us talk to them." The others all agreed. Only Xin Liu buried his head in eating and didn't join in. ,
Yu Shu swept her gaze across them and put down her bowl and chopsticks. She said to them, "Okay, I'll help you talk to them. Is there anyone who doesn't want to practice because of the suffering?"
"Me!" "Me, me." "And me."
Four people stood up at once, two men and two women. Only Xin Liu and a boy who was hesitating and not moving was left. They saw Yu Shu smile at them. She suddenly pulled a long face and pointed at the door of the dining hall. She said in a low voice, "The four of you, get out. There's no need to eat. All of you stand in the yard. When Official Wang comes, I will help you ask for mercy and let you all go home and not suffer."
The four were all dumbfounded. Xin Liu lowered his head and laughed. He thought to himself, this group of idiots, did they think that the lotus room was easy to talk to?
"What are you standing there for? Get out." Yu Shu frowned and scolded them, scaring them. They pushed and shoved out the door and obediently went to stand under the sun as punishment. They couldn't be blamed for being timid. In reality, Yu Shu's words were the law in Kun Ling Agency. With the prestige she had accumulated over the past year, who wouldn't be afraid when she put on a stern face?
When everyone had gone out, Xin Liu snorted. "An opportunity that others yearn for but can't get, and they snatched it effortlessly. They deserve it."
The remaining man luckily escaped and didn't dare to argue. He copied Xin Liu's behavior just now and buried his head in his food, trying to pretend that he didn't exist. The four people stood outside for the entire afternoon and finally waited for Official Wang to come. In turn, they wanted Official Wang to help them plead with Yu Shu.
Official Wang didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He found Yu Shu who was taking an afternoon nap in her room. After asking about the situation, he scolded them with a stern face. He first let them go back to their rooms to drink water and rest for an hour. When it was cooler in the afternoon, he let them come out to practice the formation. None of them were sloppy or disobedient.
Like this, two days passed. On the afternoon of the third day, Official Wang seemed to suddenly remember that there was a person called Yu Shu and sent someone to find her. Yu Shu straightened her clothes and was brought to Ming Yu Lou.
Zhu Muzhao saw that she was wearing casual clothes and slightly frowned. "Why didn't you say to change your clothes? Forget it, it's too late. Let's go."
Yu Shu followed him in a daze. Halfway there, she suddenly realized that he was taking her to see the Emperor. She quickly made a draft in her mind, thinking about what to say when she saw the Emperor. How to explain that the 《Fairy Woman's Liu Ren Book》 was fake. Official Wang didn't specifically warn her, so he wanted her to speak the truth. But if she spoke the truth, wouldn't the Emperor take his anger out on her? Or would he slap her on the head again?
Zhu Muzhao turned his head to look at her. Feeling her nervousness, he said, "Don't be afraid. When you see the Emperor, just answer whatever he asks you."
Yu Shu nodded and the uneasiness in her heart disappeared a bit. From the southern courtyard to the northern courtyard, they arrived outside the temporary imperial residence. There were imperial guards on both sides of the road. The palace maids and eunuchs standing side by side in the corridor were like statues. The surroundings were gloomy. Yu Shu felt depressed and unconsciously lightened her footsteps.
She followed behind Zhu Muzhao and entered the bedchamber unimpeded. She smelled a pungent scent. She furrowed her brows and quietly raised her head to look at the layers of curtains not far away. She knew that Emperor Zhao Qing was behind them.
"Wait." Zhu Muzhao turned his head and spoke to her. He walked forward alone. The expressionless palace maid lifted the curtains to let him in. Without waiting for Yu Shu's gaze to look inside, she lowered the curtains again.
"Emperor, it's this subject." She heard Zhu Muzhao speak in a low voice and then there was a rustling sound. She pricked up her ears and could tell that it was Emperor Zhao Qing's voice, but she couldn't clearly hear what he was saying.
"Yes, this subject knows. You don't have to worry. Everything has been arranged … Yes, this subject has brought her here." Zhu Muzhao replied softly and then there was another rustling sound. This time, he was silent for a while before he spoke to the outside of the curtains, "Yu Nuyu, His Majesty is asking you if the Death Judgement Technique can calculate the date of his death."
Yu Shu's heart skipped a beat. She knelt down without thinking. The Emperor didn't mention this to her on the way here. How was she supposed to answer? Separated by a few curtains, she couldn't see the expression of the person behind the curtains. Should she say yes or no?
"Yu Nuyu, His Majesty is asking you a question." Zhu Muzhao urged.
Yu Shu gritted her teeth and bowed to answer, "This subject is incompetent. Please forgive me, His Majesty."
There was a dead silence behind the curtains. Just when Yu Shu thought that Emperor Zhao Qing would ask someone to drag her out if she answered wrongly, Zhu Muzhao spoke, "His Majesty, you are the Son of Heaven. You bear the mandate of heaven. She is just a mortal. How would she dare to recklessly calculate your lifespan? Please don't make things difficult for her."
After he finished speaking, Yu Shu seemed to hear a weak sigh. Emperor Zhao Qing didn't say anything else. Zhu Muzhao stayed inside for a while longer before he quietly retreated out. When he turned around, he saw her kneeling on the ground and staring at him. He raised his hand and signaled for her to follow him out.
Yu Shu secretly patted her chest to calm down. She was secretly puzzled. She originally had a stomach full of words, but she couldn't express them. She didn't know if Emperor Zhao Qing was muddle-headed from his illness or if the Emperor had pleaded on her behalf before, but he actually didn't ask her about the whereabouts of Yun Hua and the Book of Mystery Women.
"You were quite clever just now." Zhu Muzhao suddenly praised her when he left the temporary imperial residence. Without waiting for Yu Shu to say a few words of modesty, he suddenly stopped and turned around to look at her. He said faintly, "His Majesty's death will be in a few days. Do you know what this means?"
She was stunned. She opened her mouth, but what she heard was his voice.
"When the former emperor dies, the new emperor succeeds."
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