When she opened her eyes and saw the time, she was startled. She hurriedly got up to change her clothes and wash her face. As she tied her clothes, she sighed in her heart. Fortunately, she didn't need to take care of her parents-in-law after she got married, and there was no one in the prince's household to care about her. Otherwise, if she slept until late in the morning on the first day of her marriage, her future days would be much better.
After Mu Mingtang finished putting on her clothes, she discovered another troublesome problem. The Jade Qilin Hall was complete with everything except for a mirror. Presumably, it was because Hsieh Hyun-chen hadn't been married when he bought the prince's residence, so there was no mistress in the bedroom. Naturally, there was no dressing table.
Without a mirror, Mu Mingtang could comb her hair, but she couldn't do this every day. Mu Mingtang remembered that there was a full set of furniture in her dowry. When there was time, she would go look for it in her dowry.
Today, she didn't have a mirror, so she could only make do. Fortunately, Hsieh Hyun-chen was unconscious, and the imperial bodyguards outside didn't let her go out. She couldn't see many people, so no one laughed at her. Mu Mingtang carelessly combed her hair and hurriedly ran to the bedroom in the west.
After a night, Hsieh Hyun-chen didn't seem to have changed. He didn't even move. However, after she wiped him clean, he looked different. Today, Hsieh Hyun-chen looked much fairer and more handsome. He also looked more like a pretty boy.
Mu Mingtang muttered in her heart as she twisted the handkerchief to wipe his face and changed his dressing. After Mu Mingtang tidied everything up, she suddenly found that she had nothing to do.
In the past, when she was running around to make a living, even when she was in the Jiang family, she was busy learning etiquette and poetry. She rarely had free time. She didn't expect that after she got married, she would live a life of waiting for food.
Mu Mingtang sat for a while, but she was too embarrassed to stare at Hsieh Hyun-chen's face. Thus, she stood up and walked around the hall, cleaning it.
She was dusting in the easternmost room when she suddenly heard a sound at the door. Mu Mingtang hurriedly ran over and opened the door, only to find that it was the two servant girls from yesterday.
The place where Mu Mingtang was to be married off was completely different from the one in Jiang Mingwei. The servant girls in the Jiang fu were wailing to the heavens and scrambling for the earth. None of them were willing to be part of the dowry. It was not easy for Mu Mingtang to let anyone live. These servant girls were like her, struggling to survive. There was no need to let them die with her. Therefore, Mu Mingtang took the initiative to tell Mrs. Jiang that there was no need to choose a dowry for her. Later, the number of dowry candidates was reduced by a lot. In the end, Mrs. Jiang only arranged for two people to follow Mu Mingtang to Prince Qiyang's Mansion as dowry maidservants.
Mu Mingtang was well aware that these two servant girls were not part of the dowry, but were sent by the Jiang family to monitor her. However, Hsieh Hyun-chen's reputation was too frightening. The two servant girls didn't even dare to enter the Jade Qilin Hall. They only dared to stand outside the hall and talk to her through the door.
Mu Mingtang stood behind the high threshold and suddenly realized that she was now like a ten-thousand-year-old tortoise. The Jade Qilin Hall was her shell. No matter how fierce the people outside were, as long as she didn't step out of this door, no one would dare to do anything to her.
Thinking of this, Mu Mingtang's entire back straightened. She straightened her face and asked, "What are you doing here?"
"This servant came to pay respects to Princess Consort, as well as … to see if Princess Consort is well and if there's anything she needs to add."
Mu Mingtang thought for a moment and nodded seriously, "I really do have something. I remember that my dowry is in the corridor room of Qing Xin Hall. Go and see if there's a small dressing table and have someone bring it in for me. "
After she finished speaking, Mu Mingtang thought of something and raised her eyebrows, "Don't think about embezzling my dowry. The dowry booklet is with me. Before I got married, I checked everything. If there's anything missing, I'll ask for it from you. "
The two maidservants looked at each other, and their eyes seemed to glance inside. "This servant will remember it. Princess Consort, did you get along well with Prince Qiyang last night? "
Mu Mingtang snorted coldly and said, "Didn't you hear last night? Don't you know if I got along well with him or not?"
Mu Mingtang's words made the two servant girls blush. They didn't dare to get close, but they also didn't dare to not do the task that Princess Consort Jiang gave them. They could only stay far away and eavesdrop. However, what kind of place was this? The main hall of the Prince's Mansion was built so that outsiders could hear what was going on inside? It was obviously impossible.
The two servant girls listened for a long time but didn't hear anything. They saw that there was no big movement inside. It seemed that the fake Second Miss was still alive. The two servant girls were relieved for the time being and went back to their rooms to sleep.
Early this morning, they went to the entrance of Jade Qilin Hall. In the courtyard, there were guards every five steps on the walkway. Every door was heavily guarded. The two servant girls were afraid of the real soldiers on both sides, but they were more afraid of Prince Qiyang inside the hall.
They dawdled for a long time until they found that Mu Mingtang hadn't moved for a long time. They were scared and thought that something had happened to Mu Mingtang, so they pulled each other to knock on the door. They moved to the door with trembling legs and stomachs. They didn't dare to knock at the door. What if they woke up the ferocious beast inside? The servant girls had to tentatively call out Mu Mingtang's name. Fortunately, Mu Mingtang opened the door soon.
Knowing that Mu Mingtang was still alive, the two servant girls were undoubtedly relieved. Then they quietly looked at Mu Mingtang and found that she was full of energy. Her cheeks were rosy and her eyes were beautiful without makeup. She didn't look like … she had been tortured all night.
She slept next to Prince Qiyang, but she wasn't afraid?
The servant girls didn't know whether they were disappointed or relieved. They couldn't help but want to see the situation in the room. Mu Mingtang noticed that their eyes were drifting back. She smiled and generously stepped aside, "Why don't you come in and see?"
The servant girls didn't dare to. As soon as Mu Mingtang showed the hall behind her, the two servant girls hurriedly retreated as if there was a ferocious beast in the room. One of the servant girls was so scared that she stepped on her skirt when she retreated and fell.
She fell and made a loud noise. Just then, something seemed to fall in the hall. The two servant girls trembled and ran back in panic. Mu Mingtang looked at the two who were scared out of their wits and laughed. She deliberately shouted, "Don't forget to move my dressing table."
The two servant girls didn't look back. She didn't know if they heard her or not. Mu Mingtang curled her lips and sneered, "Cowards."
She was about to close the door when the soldiers came to deliver food. Two rows of twelve soldiers came just to deliver food. When they saw Mu Mingtang, they were obviously relieved. The leader of the soldiers put the food box at the door and immediately said, "Princess, now that Prince Qiyang is married, it's not convenient for us to enter the hall. In the future, we'll leave the washing and feeding of Prince Qiyang to Princess."
After the soldiers finished speaking, they didn't wait for Mu Mingtang to ask. They turned around and left. Look at how fast they retreated. It was much faster than when they came.
Mu Mingtang sighed. She actually just wanted to ask about the daily menu. In the future, she would also eat with Hsieh Hyun-chen. In any case, he should at least arrange some of her favorite dishes for her.
Mu Mingtang was speechless. She could only accept her fate and carry the food box into the room. In just a short time, Mu Mingtang found that many people in Prince Qiyang's Mansion were happy after she married. At least the soldiers who delivered the three meals a day no longer had deep hatred. It seemed that they took turns to deliver and feed the meals.
How afraid were they of Hsieh Hyun-chen?
Mu Mingtang sat in the bedchamber with the liquid food and looked at Hsieh Hyun-chen's face. She couldn't understand why the people outside were so scared, "He's obviously a good-looking boy toy. What's there to be afraid of?"
Mu Mingtang shook her head and didn't think anymore. She lowered her head and slowly blew on the porridge.
Previously, when Granny Zhou was seriously ill, she couldn't chew at all and could only drink liquid food every day. In order to let Granny Zhou eat more, Mu Mingtang tried to make better porridge, so she did a lot of research on porridge. Today, she blew on the porridge and suddenly made a sound of surprise.
She sniffed carefully and then tasted it herself. Sure enough, she found that there was something added in it. It seemed to be some kind of herbal medicine with a medicinal smell.
Mu Mingtang didn't dare to give Hsieh Hyun-chen food with medicine in it. She immediately took the porridge and went outside to ask someone. As soon as she went out, she was stopped by a guard with a sword. The guard didn't even look at her and said coldly, "Princess, please wait. His Majesty has ordered that you only need to stay in the hall to take care of Prince Qiyang. You don't need to worry about anything else."
Sure enough, she couldn't take a single step out. However, Mu Mingtang didn't need to go outside. She picked up the bowl and gestured to the guard, asking, "Why is there a strange smell in Prince Qiyang's food? Prince Qiyang is seriously ill. How dare you treat him badly? "
Even the Emperor didn't dare to admit the crime of treating Prince Qiyang badly, let alone a guard. The guard quickly took a step back and cupped his fist, saying, "This humble one doesn't dare. Princess, you don't know that Prince Qiyang's food is specially prepared by the Imperial Physician Bureau. This year, Prince Qiyang refused to take medicine, so the Imperial Physician Bureau had to mix the medicine into his porridge. He can't miss it every day. "
"Oh?" Mu Mingtang looked down at the bowl and suddenly asked, "What will happen if he misses it?"
The guard's face suddenly became serious. He glanced at Mu Mingtang coldly and said stiffly, "This humble one advises Princess not to be lazy. Prince Qiyang has to eat three medicinal meals a day. Otherwise, Prince Qiyang will go crazy. At that time, it's useless to do anything. You can only wait for Prince Qiyang to faint. Princess and Prince Qiyang live together. If Prince Qiyang goes crazy, Princess will be the first one to get hurt. This humble one advises Princess not to take any chances. "
After the guard finished speaking, he paused and continued, "When the medicinal meals were delivered this morning, Princess and Prince Qiyang didn't get up. This humble one didn't want to disturb them, so we had to remove them. The medicine in the morning has been added to today's porridge. This porridge is very expensive. Princess should go back and feed it to Prince Qiyang as soon as possible. "
Such a small bowl of porridge actually had so many secrets. Mu Mingtang replied with an "oh" and asked, "What was added to the porridge? Why is it so magical?"
The guard lowered his head and no longer looked at Mu Mingtang, "It's about the secret recipe of the Imperial Academy of Medicine. This humble one doesn't know."
Mu Mingtang still wanted to ask something, but seeing the guard's stubborn look, she didn't think he would answer. Mu Mingtang sighed and turned to walk into the room. When she walked to the door, she suddenly turned around and asked, "All medicine is poisonous. I'm not sick. There are no herbs in my food, right?"
The guard was originally worried, but when he heard her question, he slowly relaxed his shoulders, "Princess, don't worry. There are people who make medicinal meals for Prince Qiyang. Your food is made from another stove."
"That's good." Mu Mingtang nodded and turned to close one of the palace doors. She smiled lightly at the guard captain. "Thank you, guard captain."
Mu Mingtang was just like her name. Her eyebrows were curved, her almond-shaped eyes seemed to be hooked, and her red lips were tender and charming. She was as bright and beautiful as a begonia in spring. When she looked back and smiled, it was really as if the ice and snow in spring had melted and the flowers had bloomed ten miles away in an instant.
The guard knew that this woman was the target of his guard, but he still couldn't help being a little distracted. In this moment of distraction, Mu Mingtang had already closed the other door and disappeared behind the expensive and ostentatious purple carved wooden door.
The guard immediately withdrew his attention and was secretly vigilant. Not to mention that she was Princess Qiyang, she was the Prince's woman, so other men couldn't look at her.
After Mu Mingtang returned to the room, she hid behind the door and sniffed again. The winding and hard smell at the tip of her nose seemed to be stronger.
It turned out that he had doubled the amount of herbs. No wonder she could smell it. Mu Mingtang had a special ability since she was young. It wasn't very useful, but she could inexplicably find valuable things when she went shopping. If two stones were placed in front of her, she could strangely feel which one was valuable.
Papa Mu laughed and said that Mu Mingtang had the nose of a treasure-hunting mouse. She was born to gather wealth.
Mu Mingtang didn't know if she was a treasure-hunting mouse or not, but her intuition was very accurate. She had always believed in her intuition. If it wasn't for this ability, she didn't know how many times she would have died on the road.
Now, her intuition told her that this bowl of medicine wasn't right. Mu Mingtang poured it into the flower pot without thinking. Fortunately, there were two people in Jade Qilin Hall. Mu Mingtang planned to feed Hsieh Hyun-chen the bowl of porridge in her bowl and eat the other dishes. Although it wasn't much, it was better than drinking the medicinal porridge with unknown ingredients.
When Mu Mingtang tried to feed him the porridge, Hsieh Hyun-chen seemed to resist and wouldn't open his mouth no matter what. Mu Mingtang tried several times and a lot of the porridge flowed out. Mu Mingtang was helpless. She gently wiped the grains of rice from his mouth and said, "Your Highness Prince Qiyang, don't worry. I'm probably the person in the world who wants you to live well the most. If something happens to you, I'll be the first to die. I won't harm you. "
After Mu Mingtang said that, she felt that it was ridiculous. He was unconscious. How could he hear her? However, she didn't know if it was a coincidence or not, but Hsieh Hyun-chen slowly relaxed his teeth. Mu Mingtang was delighted and quickly fed him the porridge.
After finishing the bowl of porridge, Hsieh Hyun-chen seemed to have exhausted all his energy. His body relaxed and he fell into a deep sleep.
There was nothing that their Princess Consort didn't dare to do. As long as she didn't cause trouble, they had to worry about whether Mu Mingtang was up to any tricks.
At night, Mu Mingtang brought in the food box and found that Hsieh Hyun-chen had already fallen asleep. He could now wake up for about four hours a day. Although it wasn't long, he was much more energetic when he woke up because of the nourishing food. At least he wouldn't fall asleep while sitting.
Now he could sit up on his own, but he still needed someone to help him walk. Moreover, he needed to stop and rest after a few steps. Mu Mingtang was very patient and never rushed him.
Perhaps because he had just woken up in the afternoon, Hsieh Hyun-chen was still sleeping. Mu Mingtang knelt by the bed and gently called him, "Your Highness, it's time for dinner."
She called several times, but Hsieh Hyun-chen didn't respond. Mu Mingtang thought that he wanted to sleep for a while, so she put down the food box and went to the Eastern Hall to light the lamps.
Because Hsieh Hyun-chen had woken up, Mu Mingtang didn't dare to open the door or open the windows. The sky was still bright outside, but the room was already a bit dark. Mu Mingtang lit the lamps from the easternmost side and lit up the Jade Qilin Hall one by one.
When Hsieh Hyun-chen woke up, he didn't see a familiar figure when he opened his eyes. He subconsciously felt that it was a stranger. He slowly propped himself up and sat up. His movements weren't small, but even after a while, the hall was still empty.
Hsieh Hyun-chen's heart suddenly turned cold.
She left?
Hsieh Hyun-chen didn't know why he suddenly felt a sense of desolation. He already knew that she was going to leave, didn't he? When he woke up, he found that Mu Mingtang wasn't sleeping next to him. Hsieh Hyun-chen didn't feel anything about it. He even felt that it was good that they weren't involved.
The two of them were husband and wife in name, but they were actually just tenants living together. There were no filial children even by the bedside for a long time, let alone a strange couple. Hsieh Hyun-chen never expected that Mu Mingtang would stay by his side the entire time.
She stayed with him for a few days and helped him unlock his shackles. She had already done enough. Now she secretly left, so that she wouldn't be implicated by him for the rest of her life. It could be considered the last good deed he would do in his life.
Hsieh Hyun-chen understood everything logically, but his heart was empty. This kind of development, this kind of ending. He was abandoned by the whole world. Everyone stood on the opposite side of him, guarded against him, and doubted him.
It was like he was no longer a person, but a mindless animal that only knew how to kill.
Hsieh Hyun-chen sat on the bed for a long time without moving. His eyes were calm and indifferent, like a barren desert. Mu Mingtang came back after lighting the lantern. Seeing Hsieh Hyun-chen sitting motionless, she asked curiously, "Wangye, what are you looking at?"
Hsieh Hyun-chen's eyes moved. He looked back at her in surprise, "You didn't leave?"
"Yes." Mu Mingtang was confused by the question, "It's dark, I'll go light the lantern. Where can I go? "
Hsieh Hyun-chen looked at her. His eyes were deep and complicated, as if they contained many meanings. But in the end, he looked away and didn't say a word.
Mu Mingtang was used to Hsieh Hyun-chen's strange temper. She put down the lantern and went to the table to open the food boxes, "Today I had them stew bone soup. Whatever you eat will be nourished. Bone soup is the best for your legs. It's a pity that Wangye can't go out in the light now. Otherwise, I'll take you outside to bask in the sun. "
Mu Mingtang prepared the dishes and brought them to Hsieh Hyun-chen as usual. Although Hsieh Hyun-chen had been awake for a long time, he still recuperated if he could. His meals were all taken care of by Mu Mingtang. Mu Mingtang didn't think much of it. When she fed him the soup, Hsieh Hyun-chen quietly drank it. After feeding him for a while, Mu Mingtang found that something was wrong with Hsieh Hyun-chen today.
He seemed to have something on his mind. He was so quiet, unlike his usual self.
Mu Mingtang didn't mention it. After the soup was finished, she put the bowl and spoon back into the food boxes. Then she asked, "Wangye, when you woke up today, did you think I left?"
"No."
He said no, so Mu Mingtang didn't want to force it. She could only tactfully say, "Don't worry, I'm now tied to the same boat as you. We're bound together for good or ill. I won't leave. What's more, there are so many guards outside. Even if I really wanted to, I can't escape now. "
Hsieh Hyun-chen turned his head to look at the lights in the hall. The seven main halls of Jade Qilin Hall were connected. Although there were many barriers in between, one could faintly see that the lights extended all the way to the easternmost study. Hsieh Hyun-chen's eyes reflected the flickering candlelight. After a while, he asked, "There's no one in the other rooms. Why are you lighting the lamps?"
"Lighting the lamps makes it feel like home. Although there's no one in the other rooms, this is the main hall of the Prince's Estate. It should have some prestige."
"The prestige of the Prince's Estate?" Hsieh Hyun-chen laughed and said, "Why bother? It's just a waste of time."
"That won't do. Although I'm just a Wangfei without much prestige, I still have to show off. What's more, I don't have much to do all day. I'll just walk around the hall a few more times. It'll be like exercising my body. "
Hsieh Hyun-chen fell silent. After a while, he leaned against the pillow and said, "If you hadn't married me, you wouldn't have been unable to even leave the house. It was the previous Emperor's decree that I was imprisoned. It's fine if I'm locked up, but you have nothing to do with these matters. There's really no need to waste your life with me. After a few days, when the patrols outside have relaxed, you can leave quietly. "
"You're saying this again." This time, Mu Mingtang was truly a bit angry. "Why do you always send me away? Am I such an eyesore to you? "
"Don't try to argue with me. I won't fall for it. Let's talk about the facts. The Jiang family has brought you quite a bit of dowry. You can choose some gold and silver that can be easily sold and take it with you. If you're afraid of being discovered in the future, then take it from the Prince's Estate's storehouse. Although I've become an empty shell these past few years, I still have some savings. It won't be a problem to guarantee that you won't have to worry about food and clothing for the rest of your life. "
"Why?" Mu Mingtang stubbornly asked, "We've already gone through the wedding ceremony and are officially husband and wife. You want me to leave my husband's family. Either my husband dies as a widow and I remarry with a dowry, or I'll be abandoned by my husband and have nothing to do with him. Your Highness, you're perfectly fine now. If you're not remarrying, then you're going to divorce me? "
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