Chapter Thirty: Autumn of Many Matters (Part 2)

  Qing Sang looked at He Yan thoughtfully for a moment, then said: "This earring was given to me by my mother before she passed away, I don't know where it was bought." No matter what, Tong Xun's gift of the earring must not be told to anyone, so Qing Xie made up a lie.

  He Yan's eyes dimmed slightly as he asked in a soft voice, "If that's the case, may I request that the young lady relinquish her attachment and bestow this pendant upon me?"

  Qing Sang had already sensed that this earring must have some connection with He Yan, but no matter what, she couldn't give it to him. If one day Tong Xun or someone else saw it, who knows what kind of trouble would arise!

  Qing Sang refused, "This is a personal item of my daughter's family, how can it be casually given to the general? What use does the general have for it?"

  He Yan gripped the earring tightly and said word by word: "If General Ben must?"

  Qing raised an eyebrow and said, "General, you are renowned for your bravery and martial prowess. How could you possibly be troubled by a mere woman like Qing Sang? Moreover, the object I seek is merely this inexpensive earring. I believe that General would not stoop to such a ridiculous act."

  He Yan was left speechless by her words, his face darkening as he glared fiercely at Qing Sang. Seeing that Qing Sang looked back at him without any fear, he struggled internally for a moment before finally putting the earrings on the table and storming off in anger.

  Qing Sang saw that although he was anxious, when he put down the earrings, he didn't use force, but carefully placed them on the table, it can be seen that he cherished them extremely.

  Just as she was about to take a closer look at the earrings, her father Pu Jiayear entered the room and asked, "Saner, are you okay?"

  "Nothing, Father, I'll go back to my room first," she replied with a faint smile after burning the earrings.

  Pu Jinyan wanted to ask He Yan what she had said, but he was a gentleman and hadn't eavesdropped when he stood in the courtyard just now, so he didn't ask. If Qing Sang felt it necessary for him to know, she would tell him herself.

  Qing Sang returned to the courtyard, without heeding Xue Pan's concern about whether she wanted to eat, and went straight to her room. She stood facing the sunlight shining in through the window, carefully examining something. After a while, she discovered that one of the earrings seemed to have a "li" character on it. Taking off the other earring, she examined it closely and finally made out that there was a "shui" character inside.

  What is water chestnut? Is it a person's name or something else? Qing Sang only knows about chestnuts, but what this water chestnut thing is, I really don't know.

  These two characters are carved from other materials and then dissolved into the earrings, which are only as big as a small thumb. The shoe carvings are already vivid, and with these characters infused inside, the craftsmanship is indeed cleverly ingenious.

  It seems that this thing must have a story, but how did it end up in Tong Xuan's hands?

  Qing Sang held the earrings, looking out of the window in a daze. There were too many strange and bizarre things happening in this dynasty. The death of her elder sister had not been solved yet, and then one thing after another happened. Why was the prince stabbed? Who exactly was Zhang Fengyi? What was the relationship between the lotus flower earrings and He Yan? And Wu Niang Shu had still not been found... All these things made Qing Sang's head ache.

  Qingsang's heart couldn't help but call out: Second sister, at this time Sanger really doesn't know what to do? What should Sanger do to investigate the matter of eldest sister? And Crown Prince Tonghao...

  Thinking of Tong Hao, Qing Sang suddenly felt a pang in her heart. There's a saying that goes "you don't know what you've got until it's gone". At this moment, Qing Sang felt like she was highlighting her own emotions.

  She's not a woman of this era, and being a virtuous and talented lady is not something she can do. Perhaps when Qing Sang discovered that Tong Hao was more suitable for her, she had unknowingly poured her emotions into him. Or perhaps, when Qing Sang knew she would become the crown prince's consort, she somewhat believed in what Tan Zhao said about her "being a model for the world".

  But now, it turns out everything was an illusion

  The pain of losing Tong Hao and the regret of missing the opportunity for revenge intertwined, making Qing Sang feel as if there was a huge stone pressing on his heart.

  But everything has just begun

  In just a few days, the Crown Prince had not yet been buried, and then there was news that Xue Fangyi in the palace had given birth to a stillborn fetus with two heads, which shocked the Emperor. She was immediately banished to the Cold Palace after giving birth.

  Qing Sang listened and immediately thought that was the conjoined twins, often seen on TV talking about how to perform separation surgery, letting two small lives grow freely. In ancient times, seeing such a fetus would definitely be regarded as a monster, no wonder Xue Fangyi wanted to be imprisoned in the Cold Palace.

  Qing Sang couldn't help but feel a twinge of sympathy, but amidst the sympathy, she couldn't help but wonder if Xue Fangyi was indeed the one who harmed her elder sister Qing Yu. If it was really her, then how did Da Niang find out? And why didn't she directly tell Qing Yu, instead using those obscure and difficult-to-understand poem lines as a hint? Although the palace is full of ears and eyes, wouldn't it be more straightforward to whisper it in her ear? Why must it be so mysterious?

  Can't think it through, so I won't think about it anymore. Decided to go visit my grandmother and San Niang for a few days. Everyone has been taking care of her emotions, not letting her get entangled in those complicated formalities.

  But when she arrived at her grandmother's residence, she was rebuffed and not allowed to see her. Qingsang could only give up and leave. As soon as she turned around the camphor tree in the courtyard, she heard two maidservants who attended to her grandmother whispering behind her back: "The old lady thinks that Third Miss is a jinx and won't see her." Another maid said: "Third Miss is a good person, but unfortunately, she has bad luck and has brought death to so many people."

  Qing Sang only then realized that he had been staying in the courtyard for days, closing his eyes and covering his ears to such an extent that all these people thought of him as a jinx.

  Feeling extremely wronged in one's heart, yet unable to express it

  Walked gloomily to his father Pu Ji Nian's courtyard, saw the study door not closed, walked over and took a look, saw his father frowning deeply, closing his eyes, half-reclining on the couch.

  She quietly went in and took a thin quilt from the small cabinet to cover her father with it.

  Pu Ji Nian was startled and opened his eyes to see his daughter Qing Sang. He sat up straight and said, "I'm getting old, my spirit is not as vigorous as before."

  Qing Fu laughed and said: "Dad is in his prime, how can he say such things?" With Pu Jiayuan's age, in modern times, it would be considered young and strong. Unfortunately, the ancients' lifespan was generally short, so at this age, they would feel old.

  But, Qing Sang took a closer look at her father and saw that there were already many white hairs on both sides of his temples, and there were also wrinkles between his eyebrows. Her father had been busy with court affairs all day, and in recent years, there had been many changes in the family, so he must be tired too. Thinking of this, Qing Sang suddenly felt heartache and couldn't help but say: "Father is always busy, but you should also pay attention to your body."

  Pu Jiannian lovingly pulled his daughter's hand and said softly, "As for your father, my body is still fine, but it's you, Sang'er, I don't know how to spend the rest of my days!"

  Qing Sang lowered her head and asked: "Father, do you also think that daughters are inauspicious like grandmother and everyone else?"

  Pu Ji Nian's heart skipped a beat as he said, "San Er, don't listen to those people's nonsense. Life and death are predetermined, what does it have to do with you?"

  Qing Sang was deeply moved, and tears welled up in her eyes. In this era, Pu Ji Nian could be so open-minded and dote on her like this, it truly made Qing Sang feel warm inside.

  He couldn't help but call out "Dad" with overwhelming gratitude, and the tears he had been holding back for days finally fell.

  Pu Ji Nian saw this and felt even more heartbroken, pulling out his sleeve to wipe away Qing Sang's tears.

  The two of them poured out their hearts to each other for a while.

  Pu Ji Nian reminded Qing Sang: "Sang Er, recently the imperial court is not peaceful, and there are many rumors in the streets. In these days, it's better for you to stay within the mansion and go out less."

  Qingsang nodded cleverly, but still couldn't help asking: "Did you hear that Xue Fangyi had an accident?"

  Pu Ji Nian sighed and said: "Matters within the court and palace are not supposed to be told to you, but as your father, I know you're clever and cautious, so it's alright to tell you."

  The green mulberry tree is quiet and peaceful, come and listen

  The most important thing in the palace recently is the funeral of the crown prince. Unexpectedly, Xue Fangyi suddenly had a miscarriage and gave birth to a strange creature prematurely. The strange fetus was born without any signs of life. When the emperor went to see it, he was shocked and his face changed color. In his great anger, he ordered Xue Fangyi, who had just given birth, to be thrown into the cold palace and demoted to a concubine.

  Qing Sang thought to himself, having just lost his most beloved son and being eager to welcome a new life, but unexpectedly not only did he fail to get what he wanted, but instead got an unusual child. This ancient superstition held that giving birth to such a child would surely invite gossip from others.

  Indeed, Pu Ji Nian said: "The people in the palace all say that our dynasty has provoked evil spirits and offended the heavenly will, which is why things have been so unlucky. The crown prince was stabbed, and the concubines gave birth to monstrous children. It's probably a sign of great disaster." The emperor heard this and was deeply worried. He intended to wait until after the mourning period for the crown prince was over, then go to Ling Mountain to offer sacrifices to heaven and pray for blessings for our great dynasty. But unexpectedly, the northern barbarians sent an envoy, saying that they had encountered their king's long-lost son in the capital city, and wanted us to find him. However, we couldn't find him at the moment, and they said that our dynasty was intentionally stalling, wanting to use the prince as leverage against the northern barbarian tribe, and clamoring for war. The emperor was already worried, and now he encountered this unreasonable matter, which made him even more anxious and uneasy. We, as his subjects, couldn't share his worries, and it's a shame." Pu Ji Nian finished speaking, hung his head low and sighed repeatedly.

  Qing Sang thought to herself, with internal and external troubles, the Emperor was indeed going to be worried sick. But all these things couldn't be solved in a short while. Seeing her father's dejected appearance, she softly comforted him with a few words.

  The father and daughter were having a heart-to-heart conversation when they saw Uncle Xiang leading a public official rushing over.

  The old man saw Pu Ji Nian bowing and said: "His Majesty asks Mr. Pu to enter the palace quickly."

  Pu Ji Nian hastily got down and put on his boots, Qing Sang quickly squatted down to help.

  Pu Jiannian asked while dressing: "What happened?"

  The duke didn't say much, just a sentence: "You'll know when you enter the palace"

  Pu Ji Nian hastily finished dressing and followed the public servant as he walked quickly. (Recommended update, two chapters a day, today's extra chapter is a gift to everyone. If you think Ge Zi's writing suits your taste, please move your fingers and give Ge Zi a vote (^__^* Hehe... Ge Zi's face is really thick-skinned, but this is also Ge Zi's motivation, thank you)