As they left the capital governor's fu, Lu Zhu and Tian Zhu did not dare to ask a single question. Jiang Ruan had treated Dong Yinger very coldly just now, as if all the feelings they had in the past did not exist at all. In the end, Dong Yinger's expression was very unsightly. She feared that from now on, she would become estranged from Jiang Ruan.
However, Jiang Ruan did not take this matter to heart at all. She had no obligation to Dong Yinger. Now, she could only help Dong Yinger think it through herself. Between Jiang Xin Zhi and Dong Yinger, she had to put Jiang Xin Zhi first.
After leaving the capital magistrate's fu, it was still early. She had not entered the palace to see Empress Dowager Yi De for a long time. A few days ago, Yang GuGu, who served the Empress Dowager, sent someone to deliver a message, telling her to go to the palace. Seeing that it was still early, she ordered the carriage to turn around and go straight to the palace.
The palace was busy with the selection of female concubines. Along the way, she saw the instructors assigning names on the register. Jiang Dan's name was also on it. Jiang Ruan smiled and walked towards the Palace of Compassionate and Peaceful.
When she walked to the corner of a long corridor, she saw a familiar figure standing in the flower bed next to the corridor. It was Princess He Yi.
Princess He Yi was followed by a few palace maids, who were leaning over to talk to another person. As she walked in, she heard Princess He Yi continuously say, "Just a lowly spawn of a lowly palace maid. Does he really think that he is a member of the royal family? Hmph, whether he can grow up safely is still unknown. Today, this Princess will hit him, so what? "
The little person who was pointed at and scolded by Princess He Yi silently lowered his head, as if he was extremely afraid, and shrank behind the palace maid. That palace maid was also timid. She kept nodding and bowing to Princess He Yi to apologize.
Jiang Ruan's gaze slightly froze. When she saw the little figure, she could not help but tremble and almost stiffen on the spot.
She rarely got emotional. At this moment, Tian Zhu and Lu Zhu saw her like this. Puzzled, she looked towards the little person.
She saw that it was only a boy of three or four years old, but he was dressed very simply. If one were to look carefully, they could see that although the material of the clothes was gorgeous, the workmanship was not very exquisite. The child's skin was delicate, and it was easy for such rough sewing to chafe the skin. The child's face was pale and he seemed to be malnourished, but he was very delicate and cute. She just tightly held onto the corner of the palace maid's clothes, her expression extremely timid.
His status wasn't low, but his expression didn't seem like that of a proper noble. Furthermore, if he really was the son of a minister, it would be too rude of him to scold and insult Princess Yi like that. Just now, Princess Yi's "son of the royal family" was heard by everyone. Dewdrop was puzzled. Could it be a young prince? But the way the little prince was treated, he couldn't even be compared to a servant of the royal family.
Jiang Ruan stared unblinkingly at that child, and it was as if there were raging waves in her heart. That child was none other than Pei 'er!
In her previous life, not long after this, she entered the palace. After she was bestowed the title of a beauty, she accidentally saw Pei 'er. At that time, the Emperor was also present, so he simply handed Pei' er over to her to raise. In the depths of the palace, it was very lonely. This child's life experience was pitiful, but he was very sensible. The mother and son depended on each other for survival, seeking joy in the midst of hardship. Now that she thought about it, it was the happiest period of time since entering the palace in her previous life.
In her mind, the last moments of her previous life, when she was made into a human swine and placed in a wooden basin, she saw with her own eyes that Li Dong had played with Pei 'er. Pei' er's mournful cries still seemed to echo in her ears. Jiang Ruan closed her eyes deeply, and when she opened them again, they were already clear and bright. In this life, Li Dong was long dead, and the Prime Minister's fu no longer existed. She did not enter the palace, so Pei 'er would not have to accept such a tragic ending.
She slowly walked forward and smiled, "What is Princess He Yi doing?"
Princess He Yi was originally scolding Xuan Pei, so naturally, she did not notice Jiang Ruan. At this moment, when she saw Jiang Ruan, she was first stunned, then a trace of resentment flashed in her eyes. Princess He Yi was dressed in red today, which was Jiang Ruan's favorite color. Princess He Yi was born with a bit of an exotic charm, and this color also made her seem a bit warm and bold. However, because Jiang Ruan was still observing the mourning period, she could not wear gorgeous clothes. Today, she was wearing a light green plain robe. The plainer the robe, the more beautiful it was, the more beautiful it was. She was delicate and beautiful, and even more, had a kind of charm that could make people move their eyes away.
As long as it was a woman, when they saw someone with outstanding beauty, they would always compare, especially Princess He Yi, who Jiang Ruan did not get along with. Seeing that her attire was inferior to Jiang Ruan's, she immediately felt a burst of anger. She said, "Jiang Ruan, could it be that you want to meddle in other people's business? This matter is not for you to worry about. "
The surrounding palace maids all lowered their heads. Everyone knew that Princess He Yi and Hong 'an Princess had always been at odds, but these two princesses were not people to be trifled with.
Xuan Pei, who was originally hiding behind the palace maid, seemed to be startled by Jiang Ruan's sudden appearance. He hid behind the palace maid and stared at Jiang Ruan without blinking.
Jiang Ruan did not look at Xuan Pei, but only smiled and said, "I will naturally not care about these matters. I want to go see Imperial Grandmother." She glanced at Princess He Yi lightly and said, "These matters, Imperial Grandmother will naturally take care of."
"You-" Princess He Yi said angrily, "You dare to threaten me!" What Jiang Ruan meant was that she wanted to tell everything that had happened here to Empress Dowager Yi De. If Princess He Yi was said to be unruly because of the Emperor's love, then Empress Dowager Yi De was an existence that she had always been afraid of. This was because Empress Dowager Yi De had an eccentric temperament and was not close to others. Jiang Ruan's relationship with Empress Dowager Yi De was even closer than the relationship between her own granddaughter and Empress Dowager Yi De. Every time she thought of this, Princess He Yi was full of anger. Empress Dowager Yi De was a person who adhered to the rules. If Empress Dowager Yi De knew that she had hit and scolded Xuan Pei, she would definitely punish her severely.
"This is not a threat." Jiang Ruan smiled, "But I think that Princess is also not afraid, is it not?"
"You-" Princess He Yi could not wait to tear Jiang Ruan into pieces. In the past, according to her temperament, she would not care about anything and make a big fuss. However, ever since Imperial Concubine Chen lost her power and was banished to the Cold Palace, apart from the Empress, the remaining three concubines had begun to compete for the Emperor's favor again. In addition, a new batch of beauties was about to enter the palace. Empress Shu wanted to fight for the Emperor's favor and had constantly warned her not to cause trouble. Especially towards Jiang Ruan, she must remember not to openly clash with her.
Today, she was in a bad mood. When she passed by this place, she happened to meet the most unfavored Thirteenth Prince, Xuan Pei, who was brought out by a palace maid to bask in the sun. Xuan Pei was holding a handful of mud in his hands and accidentally fell in front of her. The mud dirtied the corner of her skirt. In a fit of anger, Princess He Yi hit Xuan Pei. Just as she was scolding him, she did not expect to meet Jiang Ruan, this malignant star.
Although she hated Jiang Ruan in her heart, Princess He Yi had learned to be more obedient after being taught a few lessons. In the end, she did not dare to continue scolding Jiang Ruan in front of her. She scolded, "Bad luck!" Then she threatened Xuan Pei, "Hmph, she can't always stay in the palace to protect you!" She then left in a huff with the palace maid.
After Princess He Yi had left, Jiang Ruan smiled and looked at the child behind the palace maid. There was a red handprint on Xuan Pei's fair face. It was obvious who had done it. Perhaps Xuan Pei had been frightened by Princess He Yi, but his eyes were filled with tears, so red that it made one's heart ache.
Lu Zhu was a person who took pity on children. She immediately squatted down in front of Xuan Pei and took out a handkerchief to wipe the dirt on his face. She asked, "Is the Little Prince alright?" She did not know which prince this was. She only felt that Xuan Pei looked pitiful and cute, so she simply called him the Little Prince.
"Thirteenth, Thirteenth Prince." Jiang Ruan replied.
"How did Miss know?" Lu Zhu asked in surprise.
Xuan Pei looked at Lu Zhu. Seeing this, the palace maid hurriedly said, "This servant sees that His Highness Thirteenth Prince seems to like Princess very much."
Jiang Ruan glanced at her coldly, and her tone suddenly turned cold. "Kneel!"
The palace maid was startled, and when she met Jiang Ruan's gaze, she felt as if she had fallen into an ice cellar. Without saying anything, she knelt down.
Lu Zhu's face was full of disdain. Just now, they had clearly seen that this palace maid was the Thirteenth Prince's personal palace maid, but she did not know how to protect her master. Not only did she let that overbearing and willful Princess He Yi take care of her own little master, she even kept bowing and fawning over him. She probably did not even put her own master in her eyes. As a personal servant, it was really a great sin.
Jiang Ruan said indifferently, "Is this how you take care of His Highness Thirteenth Prince?"
The palace maid's body trembled, and she fiercely kowtowed. "Princess, spare my life. This servant will not dare to do it again. This servant knows her mistake. Princess, spare my life."
Lu Zhu's eyes widened in curiosity. She was so afraid of Jiang Ruan, as if Jiang Ruan was a very scary person.
"I will not punish you." Jiang Ruan said indifferently, "It's just that from today onwards, if His Highness Thirteenth Prince has any mishaps, you don't need to live anymore. If there is one palm print on his body, there will be a thousand on yours. If he suffers one injury, you will suffer the same injury a thousand times. "
Her tone was flat, but the palace maid shivered for no reason. She felt as if she had heard a voice from the depths of hell. She was startled for a moment before she understood. She fiercely kowtowed a few more times to Jiang Ruan. "This servant thanks Princess for the punishment."
Jiang Ruan looked at the child who had been peeking at her. Xuan Pei stared at her and shyly smiled at her. His watery black eyes almost made her heart soften. She wanted to step forward and embrace him — just like in her past life. But in the end, she only took out a small blue porcelain bottle from her bosom. It was the elixir that Xiao Shao had given her when Jiang Quan had beaten her previously. She stuffed the bottle into Xuan Pei's hands and instructed the palace maid, "Remember to apply this to His Highness once a day." She paused, then added, "Remember what I said."
The palace maid hurriedly nodded. In her heart, she was puzzled and rejoiced. She did not know why Hong 'an Junzhu was so heartbroken about His Highness. But if she was sincere, she did not do anything particularly intimate with His Highness.
The same doubts existed in Tian Zhu and Lu Zhu's hearts, but Jiang Ruan did not give them time to speculate. She said to the palace maid, "Take His Highness back."
The palace maid hurriedly bowed to Jiang Ruan and left with Xuan Pei. Xuan Pei was led away by the palace maid by the hand. He could not help but turn back to look at Jiang Ruan. His small figure seemed particularly pitiful.
"Since you are helping him, why are you so cold to him?" A low male voice came from behind.
Jiang Ruan turned her head. Liu Min was dressed in a blue official's robe. She did not know how long he had been standing there.
Tian Zhu frowned slightly. She was a martial artist, and Liu Min's concealment skills were not very good. She had long discovered Liu Min, but he had not come out for a long time. She had thought that it was some eunuch or palace maid eavesdropping. She had not expected it to be Liu Min. The relationship between Liu Min and Jiang Ruan was subtle. Tian Zhu naturally sided with her Young Master, so Liu Min was not very welcome.
When Liu Min saw Jiang Ruan turn around, he was slightly stunned. He had always seen Jiang Ruan in bright red clothes, and she was in high spirits. But today, for the first time, she was wearing a green robe. Liu Min himself loved green. Moreover, when Jiang Ruan wore it, it was the same color as him.
Liu Min did not know what he was thinking until Jiang Ruan said, "It was just a matter of convenience. There is no need to talk about feelings."
This meant that she had helped the Thirteenth Prince, Xuan Pei, out of trouble today. She had done it unintentionally. When she saw Xuan Pei again in the future, there would not be any special feelings between them. Such words were a little too cold. Moreover, when Liu Min saw that scene, he had already determined that Hong 'an Junzhu was a kind person who was cold on the outside but warm on the inside. He only thought that Jiang Ruan had said those words out of shyness.
He said, "Not everyone is willing to offend Junzhu He Yi for the sake of an unfavored prince. Even if it was just a matter of convenience, Hong 'an Junzhu is still very righteous. "
Liu Min had long heard of Xuan Pei's status in the palace. The Thirteenth Prince was born of a lowly background. His birth mother was only a palace maid whom the emperor had unintentionally visited. Moreover, she had died on the day she gave birth to the Thirteenth Prince. The palace had practically abandoned him as he grew up. It was natural for him to grow up with such a timid appearance. The servants in the palace were not very respectful to the Thirteenth Prince, and even bullied and humiliated him in secret. He did not expect that today, Jiang Ruan would stand up for the Thirteenth Prince, whom she had never met before. Liu Min had the loftiness of a scholar in his bones, and he greatly appreciated Jiang Ruan's actions. Jiang Ruan smiled slightly, "Grand Tutor Liu thinks too highly of me. However, the Thirteenth Prince is still my brother in name. Even if he is a bastard son in the fu, he cannot be casually beaten or scolded. Commoners are like this, so the imperial family must pay even more attention to the rules. "
The Thirteenth Prince was considered a bastard son, so he was beaten and scolded in the palace. In the Jiang fu, when Zhao Mei was still around, Jiang Chao and Jiang Su Su were also bastard sons, but their lives were even more comfortable than hers, the di daughter. People were so different from each other. Thinking of this, Jiang Ruan's eyes darkened.
Sensing a flash of hostility from Jiang Ruan, Liu Min was somewhat surprised. However, he recalled that when Jiang Ruan had been wrongly accused of poisoning Old Jiang Madame and imprisoned, her biological father, Jiang Quan, had not visited her even once. At that time, he had been anxious, so he had gone to look for the Emperor. Liu Min could still remember the way the Emperor looked at him. The Emperor looked at him half-jokingly, half-seriously, "Beloved Official Liu, since you care so much about Hong 'an Junzhu, how about we give her to you?"
At that time, Liu Min had panicked and refused without a second thought. Later, when he thought about this matter again, he could not help but ponder deeply. It seemed that ever since he knew that the person was Jiang Ruan, Liu Min would think of this special woman from time to time. Even the Crown Prince would occasionally see him and ask, "Grand Tutor, you have no appetite all day. Do you have a sweetheart?"
Now that he saw Jiang Ruan standing in front of him, a sour feeling welled up in Liu Min's heart. He could not tell what this feeling was. He said somewhat hesitantly, "This official admires Junzhu very much."
"Grand Tutor Liu overpraises me." Jiang Ruan's attitude was still gentle, but she also rejected people from a thousand miles away. Liu Min suddenly felt a trace of disappointment in himself. He was able to write magnificent essays and come up with outstanding national policies, but he did not know how to converse with this woman who had once been his bosom friend. It seemed that no matter how much he spoke, Jiang Ruan's attitude was still indifferent.
Lu Zhu's eyes turned and looked at Liu Min. She thought to herself, this person is a Grand Tutor, why does he have the image of a bookworm? Silly and silly.
Tian Zhu frowned. Her young master did not like Liu Min getting close to Jiang Ruan. She was very clear about this. The Embroidered Uniform Guards were still hoping for a Young Madam, how could they let a Grand Tutor snatch her away? Moreover, from the perspective of a personal maid, Jiang Ruan's temperament was definitely not one that a Grand Tutor who only knew about national policies and essays could grasp. How could Grand Tutor Liu, who did not even have the strength to truss a chicken, protect Jiang Ruan? Tian Zhu said in a low voice, "Miss, the hour has passed for a long time. The Empress Dowager … "
Jiang Ruan nodded and smiled at Liu Min, "Grand Tutor Liu, I still have to go to the Palace of Compassionate and Peaceful, so I will take my leave first."
A trace of disappointment flashed in Liu Min's eyes as he said, "In that case, farewell."
Jiang Ruan turned and followed Tian Zhu in the opposite direction. Liu Min stood behind her for a moment before he patted his head in annoyance and left gloomily.
When they arrived at the Palace of Compassionate and Peaceful, GuGu Yang breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Jiang Ruan. She looked inside and said, "The Empress Dowager is not very happy today. Junzhu, please comfort her."
"I know." Jiang Ruan nodded. Entering the room, she saw Empress Dowager Yi De leaning on the warm and thick Nine Children Continuous Fortune Couch, her long ruby armor scraping against the edge of the couch. The edge of the couch was made of agarwood, and when the armor scraped against it, it made a slight screeching sound. Empress Dowager Yi De frowned tightly and looked depressed.
Jiang Ruan smiled and walked over, her steps extremely light. Empress Dowager Yi De heard the sound and turned around. When she saw Jiang Ruan, she was slightly stunned, as if she had fallen into a distant memory. Unconsciously, she said softly, "Yuan Rong …"
"Imperial Grandmother." Jiang Ruan opened her mouth.
Seemingly awakened by Jiang Ruan's words, Empress Dowager Yi De abruptly returned to her senses and helplessly patted her forehead, "I'm really old, and my eyes are blurred."
On the small table in front of her was a painting. The painting was of an endless grassland and desert, and a setting sun slowly descended from the sky, illuminating the entire painting with its blood-red glow. In the distance, a group of camels leisurely passed by, and it seemed that the sound of camel bells could be heard.
Jiang Ruan raised her eyebrows slightly. The painting was actually of the Southern Frontier?
Empress Dowager Yi De noticed Jiang Ruan's gaze and sighed, as if she was extremely tired and no longer had the strength to speak. She only said, "Hong An, sit with me for a while."
Jiang Ruan gently replied, "Yes."
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