Chapter 36: Moved to True Anger (3)

  "Miss, what did the young master say?"

  The flower rain handed the letter to the peony, who looked at it carefully and frowned: "Before, by the Half Moon Lake, I was afraid of being asked questions and causing trouble, so I deliberately avoided it. Who would have thought that although Prince Anping's son had gone mad, he was actually clear-headed in his heart? Will Miss agree to Princess Chang's request to see a doctor once?"

  Hua Zhe Yu lightly grasped her hand and said softly, "All along, I have been deeply appreciative of your composure and calmness in the face of danger. Previously at Half Moon Lake, if you had cried out and looked for me, you would have definitely been caught off guard. Fortunately, you trusted me so much that it allowed me to slip away easily without arousing anyone's suspicion. Thank you."

  Peony looked a bit embarrassed, "Not giving Miss trouble is the basic principle of serving Miss. Moreover, I believe that Miss is not someone who jokes with her life, and even more so believes that Miss has the ability to protect herself... Does Miss have confidence in the young master's illness?"

  "Hua Zheyu sighed, 'I do know the root of his illness. Although it's troublesome to cure, I'm not without confidence. But what I fear is that someone doesn't want the Crown Prince to be safe and sound. If I were to take action, there would definitely be a lot of trouble.'"

  "In that case, miss, you don't have to go."

  Hua Zhe smiled in the rain, "People say that a camel that has starved to death is bigger than a horse. Now, although the Anping Wangfu's power has declined, it cannot be underestimated. I am now alone and unsupported, wanting to escape the encirclement without any external help will definitely be very difficult every step of the way. People say that when you are placed in a desperate situation, then you can come back to life. Therefore, I must rescue the Anping Wang's son, as long as I pay attention to one method."

  Peony nodded, "It's good that Miss has made up her mind. So, is it settled with Madam Hong for tonight?"

  "Don't worry. Hong Yiniang has been secretly working hard, and just because she hasn't shown her hand doesn't mean she's not making a move. In fact, the wiser one is, the more they keep a low profile. Now it's my turn to make a move, and all she needs to do is sit back and watch. It's a good thing for her, isn't it? Tomorrow we'll just enjoy the show and make sure everyone gets what they want."

  It was night, in Da Cheng Garden.

  "Mother, I really didn't expect that Brother would set up such a meticulous plan and still couldn't take Seventh Sister's life. Her luck is truly great." Hua Ruo Yun sat beside Mrs. Gu with a tone of discontent.

  Gu's eyes slightly opened as she lay half-reclined on the bed, "It's precisely because that girl is becoming increasingly unpredictable that I decided to take care of her once and for all. Never mind, this time it didn't work out, but today those two maids in her room ended up like that, killing a chicken to scare the monkeys, I'm sure she'll be frightened for quite some time."

  "Will she be frightened for a while? I always feel that her smile today is terrifying, my daughter worries about what happened to Yu Meng today, and the more she provokes her, the more likely she will come up with an even more sinister plan to harm us."

  "Look at her, she doesn't have three heads or six arms. She's been quiet and hasn't dared to make a scene until now, maybe she's even trembling with fear. What's there to be afraid of? Alright, it's getting late, go to sleep. Tomorrow the Empress will come to propose the marriage, your father has agreed to let me receive her tomorrow for the sake of appearances. You'd better dress up and make a good impression on the Empress, who knows, maybe you'll even find a satisfactory husband."

  The flower-like words on her lips seemed to be in harmony, but for some reason, she felt uneasy inside, always having a kind of ominous foreboding that made her heart skip a beat, yet she didn't know what it would ultimately come to.

  The next morning, Qiner and Chun Tao woke up early. Hua Yu personally changed their medicine again. Because half of Chun Tao's face was destroyed, even if her medical skills were superb, she couldn't restore it to its original appearance. Which girl doesn't love beauty? She and Peony could only try to comfort her as much as possible, not letting her look in the mirror for the time being, hoping that she would slowly adapt and live on strongly.

  The several rough maids who disappeared yesterday came back, and Hua Yu didn't scold them, only letting them continue to be in charge of sweeping and cleaning. In the side house, a small stove was casually set up for them to cook medicine to take care of Chun Tao and Qin Er.

  After everything was arranged, it was already late in the afternoon. I barely ate a few mouthfuls of rice when Old Mother Zhou came over to invite me, saying that Her Majesty the Empress had arrived and suddenly wanted to see me, telling me to tidy up quickly and hurry to the front flower hall.

  Hua Zhe Yu had a flustered look, hastily going to change her clothes and fix her hair. Seeing that the entire Jing Ting Garden was calm and peaceful, Zhou Mama thought that Hua Ruo Meng's actions yesterday had taken effect, scaring Hua Zhe Yu so much that she didn't even dare to breathe loudly, and couldn't help but smile in satisfaction.

  "After meeting the Empress Dowager, Seventh Miss knows that it's better not to speak if possible?" Seeing Hua Zheyu come out wearing a simple and elegant pale blue dress, Zhou Mama raised her chin and said with an air of mystery.

  Hua Zhe nodded, "Of course I know. Ah, Pianyu, when you see the Empress Dowager, don't be too polite, just bring out the crab roe and shrimp cakes I prepared this morning, it's a new flavor, I think she'll like it."

  Peony had been waiting for her words and immediately went in to pour them.

  In the hall, the whole Hua family was already seated.

  At the top, it was none other than Her Majesty Queen Li Jing, dressed in elegant and luxurious attire. Beside her sat a stunningly beautiful woman with a face as lovely as a lotus flower and eyes like apricot kernels - this was Ming Fei, the younger sister of the Gu family. Below them sat Chu Mingqiu, who looked dignified and confident, followed by Hua Buque, the Gu sisters, and then the two sisters Hua Ruomeng and Hua Ruyun, both with faces as lovely as peach blossoms.

  "Madam Hua indeed has a way with teaching girls, not only did she teach the two sisters Hua Zhe and Hua Yue to be knowledgeable and refined, but also the Third Miss and Eighth Miss sitting here now are elegant and virtuous. No wonder our Fourth Prince insisted on asking me to come personally propose the marriage."

  The Empress's tone was calm and gentle, first glancing at Chu Mingqiu before smiling and speaking to Hua Ruomeng.

  The flower didn't lack a humble face, "Where, where, the lower official is just following the Four Books to teach girls, if we say elegant and virtuous, the young lady of the Shoukang Palace is truly a model for us to praise."

  The Empress Dowager was clearly pleased with his flattery, and Consort Ming watched with a smile in her eyes and joy in her heart, teasingly saying: "People all say that fate is predetermined, just look at this pair, a perfect match of talent and beauty, it's really enviable."

  Her words instantly brought a room full of flattering and fawning smiles.

  Huā Ruò Mèng's heart was as sweet as honey when Chǔ Míng Qiū came to propose today. At this moment, hearing someone say so, she finally couldn't help but steal a glance at Chǔ Míng Qiū, only to find that he was also looking at her, making her heart skip a beat like a little deer, hastily shifting her gaze away, her face flushing with shyness.

  "Look at Hua San Niangzi, she's as lovely as a green onion, who can help but love her? Is there any talk of betrothal?" Empress Jing asked with a smile.

  "Go back, Your Majesty," said Gu hastily rising to her feet. "My daughter has been brought up in the inner chambers and should have been married off long ago, but she always says she wants to stay with her parents for another year or two, so the matter of her marriage has been put off."

  Empress Jing nodded in approval: "What a filial daughter. Previously, the Emperor had already agreed to find a good husband for Miss Hua San, and I also hope that in the future, Miss Hua San can often come to the palace to sit and chat."

  Gu's family and Hua Buque were overjoyed to hear this, thinking that if Hua Ruoyun could win the favor of the Empress, she would be able to enter the palace frequently, and wouldn't it be easy to bring up the marriage proposal they had been thinking about? They hastily asked Hua Ruoyun to get up and thank the Empress.

  The whole house was chatting happily when Zhou's mother led Hua Yu in and said: "Her Majesty the Empress, Seventh Young Miss has arrived."

  Hua Zhe Yu walked straight to the front of Empress Jing, bowed and said: "Hua Zhe Yu pays respects to Your Majesty, may you be well."

  The Empress was delighted to see her and immediately asked the eunuch, Shi Gonggong, who was standing behind her, to help her up. "Look, after not seeing you for several months, you've grown even taller! When your body fully develops in the future, won't you be a stunning beauty that captivates everyone?"

  Hua Zhe Yu smiled innocently and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty the Empress, for your praise. I heard that you were coming today and was delighted, but didn't know how to thank you properly, so early this morning, I personally made some crab roe shrimp cakes. Would you like to try some?"

  Shi Gonggong seemed to have a good impression of her, and immediately smiled: "The princess has recently said that she doesn't like the taste, and the food is very little. Since Seventh Miss has a kind heart, it's okay to bring the pastry up for the princess to try."

  Hua Zhe Yu didn't miss the opportunity, turned around and took the pancake from Yu Ruo's hand, first put a small plate in front of Jing Huang Hou, then one by one handed it to everyone. When she walked in front of Hua Ruo Meng, she intentionally handed it to her with both hands, smiling: "Eighth sister is very happy today, elder sister made shrimp pancakes, you must eat more."

  Originally, I would feel uncomfortable as soon as she appeared, but in front of everyone, Hua Ruo Meng still had some restraint and took the pastry with a forced smile: "Thank you, Seventh Sister, for your concern. If the pastry is delicious, I will definitely finish it all..."

  But she had only spoken half of her words when she suddenly covered her mouth and exclaimed: "What is this thing, trying to suffocate people?"

  She flung the pastry to the ground, startling everyone. The Empress Dowager, who was savoring a shrimp cake, fixed her gaze on her, "What's wrong? The pastry tastes fine, why did Eighth Miss suddenly become unwell?"

  Gu's family did not expect Hua Ruomeng to lose her composure at such a critical moment, and she hastily said: "Ruomeng, if you don't like the food, just put it aside, why be so rude?"

  She thought Hua Ruoyan would get up and apologize, but unexpectedly, Hua Ruoyan covered her mouth and suddenly stood up, pushing away Hua Zheyu and rushing outside to vomit violently. However, after vomiting for half a day, nothing came out, and only dry heaves could be heard.

  Her actions stunned everyone in the house, just a shrimp pancake, did she have to vomit like that?

  Gu's face didn't look good, Hua Ruo Meng usually loved to eat these kinds of fish and shrimp, why did she vomit like this just from smelling them?

  Empress Jing suddenly lost her appetite and told Shi Gonggong: "Go take a look at Eighth Miss, see where she's uncomfortable."

  Hua Zhe Yu's face turned pale with fright, "In the past, Eighth Sister wouldn't have been unable to eat this kind of food, I didn't expect her to have such a big reaction today, disturbing Your Ladyship's pleasure, please forgive me."

  The flower didn't lack a vertical eyebrow, "Who told you to take the initiative to send these things up? Hurry up and go help her!"

  At this time, Shi Gong had already helped Hua Ruomeng in, but his face was extremely strange. Ming Fei felt uneasy and asked: "What's wrong with Ruomeng? If she's uncomfortable somewhere, let her go back to the house to rest first."

  "Your Majesty, I advise that the proposal be delayed for now. It would be best to have the imperial physician come and take Miss Eighth's pulse first."