Chapter 8: The Words of Tan Zhao

  "Miss, you've finally woken up!" Yinger Xuepan exclaimed with joy as Qing Sang slowly opened her eyes.

  "Snow bowl..." Qing Sang gradually saw clearly the situation around him.

  "Miss, you really scared everyone to death. The old lady has been sighing and groaning for the past two days, until Master Taichong came to take a look, only then did she feel at ease." Xuepen said while wiping away her tears. She had served Qing Sang since she was young, if anything happened to Qing Sang, her own life would also be miserable.

  Qing Sang struggled to get up, scaring Xue Pen into hastily going forward to support him.

  Xue Pan took a soft cushion and propped up Qing Sang who was half leaning against the headboard, then went to get a cup of water and fed it to Qing Sang.

  "Snow Basin, how many days have I slept?" Qing Sang asked dazedly, pressing his temples with his hand.

  She remembered being trapped in the Bamboo Forest Cave with Seventh Prince Tong, and was later rescued by Crown Prince Tong Feng. After returning to the temple, she was scolded by her grandmother, and afterwards things became a bit fuzzy.

  "It's been two days. Miss, on that day you went looking for Young Master and lost his trail, and didn't return until the next day at midnight." Xue Pan said.

  Qing Sang suddenly remembered Tang, and hastily asked: "Is the Seventh Highness all right? Is he seriously injured? Has the fever subsided? Has he woken up?"

  Xue Yan heard this and suddenly burst out laughing, saying: "Don't worry, Miss, the Seventh Prince is fine, just that his hand was severed and needs some time to heal. He was sent back to the palace yesterday."

  Qing Sang finally put her mind at ease and asked again: "Since that's the case, then it's for the best. But, what was this little girl laughing about just now?"

  Xue Yan smiled and said: "Miss's question is very similar to the one asked by the Crown Prince, so I couldn't help but laugh."

  "Your Highness, the Crown Prince?" Qing Sang asked in puzzlement.

  "That day, the young lady fainted, and everyone was caught off guard. Only the Crown Prince was quick-witted and held the young lady, asking a doctor to come. Later, seeing that the young lady had taken medicine but still hadn't woken up, he came several times to ask me, 'Is your young lady all right? Is she seriously ill? Has she woken up?' Until Master Tanyou returned from his travels and examined her, saying that the young lady was weak due to exhaustion and catching a chill after recovering from an illness, but there was no serious harm. Only then did he return to the palace today." Xuepen spoke in a gentle tone, causing Qing Sang to lose her composure.

  The crown prince treated her like this, why was that? Qing Sang had only lived fifteen years in this life, but she was also a grown woman who had experienced love and affection in her past life. She was more sensitive to emotional matters than girls of the same age, and at this moment, she felt confused and disordered in her heart.

  "Xiang'er, my dear granddaughter, you've finally woken up." Just as Qing Sang was spacing out, she heard her grandmother push open the door and come in, hobbling over to sit on the edge of the bed, holding her hand and calling out excitedly in a loud and enthusiastic voice.

  Qing Sang didn't know why Old Lady was so happy, and thought that it wouldn't be because she woke up and got excited to this extent. So he asked: "I don't know what made Grandmother so happy?"

  The old lady didn't expect Qing Sang to ask this, and she felt a little embarrassed, so she said with a smile: "My son is foolish because of his illness, and he's happy that you're awake and well."

  Qingsang knew she was lying, but after all, it was her own grandmother, and it wasn't good to point it out, so she said lightly: "Sang'er has worried Grandmother!"

  "It doesn't matter, as long as you're fine. The latest chapter of 'The Great River Flows East' is out. Wait for two more days and we'll head back to the manor. You rest well, I should go chant some scriptures too." The old lady patted her hand and left.

  Qing Sang looked at the old lady's hunched back, slowly recalling that day's events. Although she knew in her heart that the old lady had not really hit her, even so, in times of crisis, the old lady's desire to protect her family and grandson was evident, and as a granddaughter, she could be sacrificed at any time. Thinking this way, her heart felt a chill.

  The next day, Qing Sang's spirit was a bit better, so he asked the old lady and returned to the Pu Mansion before two days had passed.

  She was thinking on the way back to Qingyang Road, this old lady is really strange, although she said she was happy with herself before, but it seems that she didn't have the same tenderness and care as now. Since she woke up, the old lady smiled with joy when she saw her, and even fed her some nourishing food personally. When Qingyang mentioned going back to the mansion today, she agreed immediately. To be honest, Qingyang was really surprised by the favor. But in her heart, she felt that the old lady's unusual changes were related to the prince.

  Back in the mansion, Old Lady got off the carriage first. Just as Qing Sang was about to get out of the carriage curtain, she heard Old Lady say to Father and Madame Liu, "You two follow me to the room, I have something to tell you."

  Father and mother hurriedly followed them.

  Qingsang Yu Xuepan supported her down from the carriage, took the hand of her younger brother Jia Bao, and walked with her mother Wang Shi towards the inner courtyard.

  "Sister, sister, you slept for several days, and Brother Tong Hao was worried. He said that if he couldn't wake you up again, he would punish Li Lang, and even asked the imperial physician to come and wake you up. Sister, you sleep a lot!" Baobao said with a childish tone while eating the small snacks her mother had prepared for her, still thinking that Qing Sang was just sleeping soundly those few days.

  "Who is Tong Hao?" Wang peeled an apricot kernel and placed it in a small dish in front of Jia Bao, asking curiously.

  "Jiabao, from now on, you must never address the Crown Prince by his name, but instead refer to him as 'Your Highness'!" Qing Sang rebuked in a low voice.

  "What? The prince?" Wang was even more curious, "When did you get to know the prince?"

  "It originated from our family treasure." Qing Sang said in a low voice.

  Xiao Jia Bao looked at Wang Shi with his innocent and mischievous big eyes, proudly stuffing nuts into his mouth while recounting how he met the prince.

  Although Jiabao's account was not very coherent, he had a good memory and could give a general idea, so Wang basically understood as well.

  "If so, then it's also a good thing." Wang thought about his own family's future.

  Qing Sang was coughing up melon seeds and hadn't said a word.

  "What's going on?" Jiabao looked at his mother in confusion.

  "It means that our family's treasure may become a high-ranking official in the future." Madam Wang fondly stroked Xiaobao's small round face.

  Qing Sang heard this and felt that her mother's words were quite inappropriate, but she didn't refute them. She only slightly furrowed her brow.

  Jiabao blinked twice and said: "Master Tangzhao also said so, saying that I can be a general in the future."

  "Really? I've also heard that this fortune teller can foretell one's fate accurately!" Madam Wang's face lit up with joy upon hearing this.

  "Master Tongzhao also gave his sister a face reading and calculated her eight characters," said Jia Bao.

  Qing Sang heard this and suddenly had an idea, and asked her mother before she could: "What did Master Tan Zhao say?"

  Jiabao looked at Qing Sang and said: "Grandma doesn't let me listen, tells me to go out and play."

  Qing Sang Zheng Jue felt disappointed, and then heard Jia Bao say: "But I just pretended to run outside the house, in fact, I hid behind the screen." As he spoke, he revealed a mischievous smile.

  "You little scamp, quickly tell me what you've heard?" Qing Sang smiled with pursed lips and scratched Jia Bao's nose, asking.

  "I remember Master Tangzhao saying that my sister is not a person of this dynasty..." Jiabao tilted his head, his eyes gazing up at the sky, recalling the days before I bought the Milky Way galaxy.

  Qing Sang was shocked, could it be that Master Tang Zhao knew she had crossed over?

  "Afterwards, the words were too profound and I couldn't understand them, so I didn't remember. But in the end, Master Tangzhao said 'This girl will surely become a model for the world in the future'. Then I heard my grandmother was very happy and asked several times 'Is it really so?'". After finishing speaking, Jia Bao ignored the shock on Qing Sang's and his mother's faces, and just grabbed a handful of dried fruit to play with.

  Qingsang grasped her younger brother and said seriously, "Jiabao, from now on, you must never mention this to anyone else. Otherwise, in the future, you will never see Father, Mother, and sister again. You must remember this in your heart and absolutely not mention it to anyone."

  Jiabao had never seen his sister so serious before. When he heard her say something about not being able to see their father or mother, he burst into tears.

  Wang was heartbroken for her son, and after hugging him, she slightly blamed Qing Sang for being too serious.

  "Mother, do you know that if this matter is leaked to someone with ulterior motives, it will surely bring catastrophic disaster to the Pu family."

  Wang knew that his daughter was thoughtful and what she said was also true, so he also warned Jia Bao not to reveal this conversation, and Jia Bao nodded in tears.

  At this time, Qing Sang already knew why her grandmother was so happy. After Qing Yu's death, she thought that the Pu family had no hope, but she did not expect that Master Tan Zhao would reveal such a heavenly secret. Adding to that, the Crown Prince's various actions towards her, her grandmother must have been completely convinced. At the same time, she also understood that her grandmother must have interpreted the phrase "not a person of this dynasty" as not being a person from the current palace, but rather someone from the next dynasty after the Crown Prince ascends to the throne. Otherwise, her grandmother would have thought of her as an evil spirit by now. However, it's also possible that she was overthinking, how could Master Tan Zhao know that she was a time-traveler? Jia Bao was young and didn't listen carefully, maybe he just meant that she wasn't a person from the current palace.

  As soon as Grandmother arrived at the mansion, she looked for Father and Eldest Sister, probably also because of this matter. If you want to get close to the Crown Prince, you still need to rely on Eldest Sister's father, Prime Minister Liu.

  Qing Sang thought that she felt suffocated and couldn't breathe, why the women of this era had no autonomy to speak of, they could only be manipulated by others, as a sacrifice for the family's interests.

  Deep in the night, Qing Sang was tossing and turning, unable to fall asleep. She quietly got dressed and went for a walk in the courtyard, just as she saw her father's study with lights on, so she walked over and knocked on the door.

  "Qingsang, why haven't you slept yet?" Pu Jinye asked in surprise as he opened the door to find Qingsang.

  "Is Father busy with official business?" Qingsang asked concernedly without giving a direct answer.

  "As a father, I feel suffocated and cannot sleep at ease for the time being." sighed Pu Jinyan.

  "Is it because of Grandmother's request that Liu Gong arranged for me to marry the Crown Prince, which has been weighing on your mind?" Qing Sang directly spoke out what was on her mind.

  Pu Ji Nian's face showed panic, and he hastily said: "Sang Er, this matter must not be spread, how did you know about it?"

  "Father, don't ask me how I knew, just tell me what's on your mind. Do you also want our daughter to marry into the royal family and bring glory to our door? Have you ever thought about Qingyu?" Qingsang asked her father at this time, only wanting to vent the distress in her heart, without regard for seniority or respect.

  But Pu Jinye didn't seem unhappy, only feeling a pang in his heart. He muttered to himself: "You know, I loved you and Yu'er the most. If it weren't for your grandfather's persistent requests for Yu'er to enter the palace back then, I wouldn't have been willing to let her go either. The palace is full of undercurrents, and my innocent Yu'er just disappeared like that without a word." By this point, Pu Jinye was already sobbing uncontrollably.

  Qing Sang knew his true feelings and intentions, but being in this era, there were too many helplessness.

  "Hold back the tears that were about to burst out, Qing Sang said slowly: 'Father is tired, rest early.'"

  Having finished speaking, he bowed and withdrew.

  As the cool night breeze blew, Qing Sang felt even colder all over her body. The tears in her eyes could no longer be held back and fell down one after another.

  Just as the old lady of the Pu Mansion was secretly planning for Qing Sang to marry the crown prince, news suddenly came from the imperial court that Pu Jiayuan had been demoted due to offending the emperor's authority. (Download this book by entering or searching "book name + Ha Shi Ba") You can search for "Shu Nu Hua Guan Lu Ha Shi Ba" on Baidu to find the latest updates of this book!