First Concubine

Chapter 281 Extra: A loving mother and a filial son (5)

Sister Nan made American ginseng and chicken soup. After making the soup, she took the food box and went to Zhuge Yu's study. She sat on a chair in the study and waited, yawning repeatedly as she waited, but Zhuge Yu still hadn't left the secret room. Finally, she couldn't resist the sleepiness and fell asleep on the table. Brother Hong entered the house, covered his sister's body with a blanket, and then gently carried his sister back to her bedroom.

On the 21st, Mrs. Yao’s birthday, Shui Linglong took Xun Yi out of the palace to the Yao Mansion. The carriage was about to arrive. Shui Linglong opened the curtain and looked outside, and saw a carriage parked at the door of Yao Mansion. Fang's mother sent a woman up, and the woman's upper body had already gotten into the carriage. Shui Linglong only saw a light blue peony embroidered dress. Mrs. Fang is a confidant of Mrs. Yao. If it weren't for a very important person, such as Xun Yi, Mrs. Yao would not let Mrs. Fang send people to the gate, so she wouldn't know who that woman is.

Shui Linglong and Xun Yi walked into the Qingzhu Courtyard. Mrs. Yao smiled and welcomed them to the main seat, and ordered Fang's mother to serve tea. Shui Linglong looked at Mrs. Yao and said with a warm smile: "I see that you are strong and in good spirits. In this way, I can safely reply to the Queen Mother."

Mrs. Yao said kindly: "Thank you to the Empress Dowager and the Concubine for taking care of me. There are still a few stupid boys in the family who are not talented enough. I can't let go of them, so they have been wasting them all!"

Xun Yi smiled and said: "The old lady wants to be as blessed as the East Sea and live as long as the Southern Mountains!"

With one sentence, Mrs. Yao was so excited that she said, "By the Emperor's good words, I will live another hundred years and live a perfect life!"

 Everyone in the room laughed. Not long after, Fang's mother served the West Lake Dragon Well. Shui Linglong held the tea in her hands and said with a smile: "It's the old lady's birthday. The Queen Mother's body is not suitable for leaving the palace, so she asked me to bring the congratulatory gift."

As soon as she finished speaking, Liu Lu walked up to Old Mrs. Yao holding three brocade boxes. These were the congratulatory gifts chosen by Yao Xin, Shui Linglong and Xun Yi for Old Mrs. Yao. Old Mrs. Yao stood up and said to Shui Linglong and Xun Yi Saluting, "Thank you, Your Majesty, the Queen Mother and the Dowager Princess for your grace,"

Xun Yi hurriedly helped Mrs. Yao up and said, "Today is a family banquet. Mrs. Yao, please stop being so polite."

Mrs. Yao patted Xun Yi's hand and said respectfully: "Your Majesty, your grace!"

Xun Yi was upset. He clearly regarded her as a relative, but she had to deliberately emphasize the distinction between monarch and minister. Mrs. Yao felt Xun Yi's displeasure and felt a little cold in her heart. Could it be that she had done something wrong to make the little emperor unhappy? Shui Linglong calmly handed a cup of tea to Xun Yi's hand, "My birthday is great, old lady, please don't be polite to Yi'er."

Xun Yi's slightly frowned brows relaxed, "What the mother and concubine said is absolutely true. Today I will listen to the old lady."

Mrs. Yao took a deep look at Shui Linglong, then smiled and nodded to Xun Yi, "It's an honor for me."

A few people chatted for a while, and Xun Yi felt bored, so he planned to go for a walk outside.

Mrs. Yao looked at Shui Linglong and smiled kindly: "I have planted some top-quality peonies in my backyard. I wonder if the concubine would be interested in seeing them?"

Shui Linglong blinked, "Okay."

Mrs. Yao glanced at Liu Lu and told Fang's mother: "Thank you for your hard work, Ms. Liu. Please take Ms. Liu for tea."

Shui Linglong nodded to Liu Lu, and Liu Lu and Fang’s mother went to Xinuang Pavilion to have tea. Shui Linglong and Mrs. Yao went to the backyard full of peonies. Without any outsiders, Mrs. Yao asked straight to the point: "What do you think of the draft?" As if she felt that her question was too abrupt, Mrs. Yao smiled openly and said: "That's it. , the new emperor's draft, all unmarried women have to participate, but I don't want my great-granddaughter to enter the palace. If the concubine really agrees to the emperor's draft, please let the concubine reveal the news, so I can quickly help Sister Hui. Family affairs."

This was said so well that even Shui Linglong didn't understand the mystery for a while. Shui Linglong said: "This matter has not yet been decided. Of course, Sister Hui is seventeen this year, and she has reached the age to discuss marriage."

A trace of disappointment flashed across Old Mrs. Yao's eyes. Although it was caught quickly by Shui Linglong, Shui Linglong was slightly surprised. Didn't Old Mrs. Yao like Xun Yi's draft?

Mrs. Yao lowered her eyes, took a sip of tea, and had an impeccable smile on her face again, "Speaking of Sister Hui's marriage, I dare to discuss the matter with the concubine today."

 Instinct told Shui Linglong that Mrs. Yao swallowed some words before mentioning Sister Hui's marriage. It was like a section suddenly cut during a movie. Shui Linglong smiled elegantly and said, "Old Mrs. Yao, please tell me."

Mrs. Yao was slightly shocked when she saw the deep meaning flashing in Shui Linglong's eyes. She had concealed it so well, but the concubine still seemed to feel something. She remembered the person's warning, and it was so precise.

"Is it difficult to say it?" Seeing that Mrs. Yao was thinking for a long time, Shui Linglong asked aloud.

Mrs. Yao touched the peony beside her with an impeccable smile, "What I want to mention is the marriage between Sister Hui and Brother Hong. I don't know if the concubine will agree to it."

Sister Hui and Brother Hong are nominal cousins, but Sister Hui is not Zhuge Xi’s biological child, and Zhuge Yu is not Leng Youru’s biological child. The two are not closely related by blood. From a genetic point of view, they can They are married; in terms of family status, they are evenly matched. No matter how this marriage seems to match, a cold light still flashed across Shui Linglong's eyes, "It's okay to talk about what the old lady said to the Ai family, but don't spread it out. The Ai family married Zhenbei in the early years. The king is now the late emperor's concubine, how can the Ai family be the master of the prince of Zhenbei?"

But I added something in my mind: Are you afraid that Zhuge Yu will overthrow Xun Yi one day? If this is true, Brother Hong, as the eldest son of Zhuge Yu, will be the crown prince. If Sister Hui is really married, won't she become the crown prince? In that case, the harem will still belong to the women of the Yao family. Soon, Shui Linglong thought of Sister Mi again. It was time for Sister Mi to discuss marriage at the age of sixteen.

Mrs. Yao smiled faintly and said, "There is something else that I would like to ask your Majesty for advice."

Shui Linglong said slowly: "Old lady, please speak."

Mrs. Yao seemed to be wearing an elegant mask, her smile always warmed the heart, but it was not difficult for Shui Linglong to see the age and vicissitudes shown under the thick makeup. Shui Linglong felt that she did not have much time left. , she should be recuperating at home when she is so weak, why on earth is she holding a birthday party with such fanfare?

Mrs. Yao said: "I would like to ask the Queen Mother, when will the power of orthodoxy be returned to the Queen Mother?"

Shui Linglong's eyes sharpened, and her probing eyes fell on Old Taijun Yao's face, "Does Old Taijun think that the Ai family has emptied the power of the Queen Mother?"

Mrs. Yao's chest began to rise and fall violently, and her face turned an unhealthy blush, "Isn't it true? The late emperor loved you. Even though you were pregnant with King Zhenbei's child, he still accepted you as his concubine regardless of past suspicions, but you are ungrateful. You have been in close contact with King Zhenbei for so many years, don’t tell me that you two are innocent and have done nothing!”

Shui Linglong frowned suspiciously. Since she was about to die, weren't she afraid that she would be punished for the crime of disrespect? "Old lady, you know what happened back then better than anyone else. If the late emperor had not exchanged the life of my mother-in-law and the fetus in her belly, how could I have signed the divorce letter and left the palace? Why do you have the nerve to ask me to be grateful? He broke up Why should I be grateful to him for my wonderful marriage?”

Old Taijun Yao became more and more excited, and her tone became more and more heavy after repression, "So, you have actually held a grudge against the late emperor all these years! No wonder you forcibly raised the emperor under your knees and let the emperor and the queen mother be separated for so many years! You are retaliating against the late emperor for breaking up you and Zhuge Yu!"

Shui Linglong's face turned green with anger, "Nangong Xue, the Ai family respects you as Bingbing's godmother, and also respects you as the queen mother's grandmother, so they treat you with great courtesy, but this does not mean that the Ai family has to be pointed at by you. Scold! Why didn't you ask your good granddaughter why the emperor was kept in my palace? It was she who refused to give me freedom! She used the emperor's decree to force me to accept the emperor, and she used Bodhisattva to force me to stay. The palace! She said that if I dare to leave the palace, she will immediately break the engagement with the Mei family and prevent me from getting the bodhi seed! Are you really unaware of this or are you pretending not to be aware of it?

Of course Old Mrs. Yao knew about it, but she did not show the slightest guilt because of it. Instead, she became more and more confident, "Now that the Bodhisattva is in hand, you still don't leave the palace, huh! In my opinion, you are just greedy for power! You just can't let go of the concubine. Sir! Maybe you want to collude with Zhuge Yu and cooperate with others to overthrow my great-grandson's empire!"

"Nangong Xue!" Shui Linglong has never thought that Mrs. Yao is so hateful. She and Zhuge Yu have paid for Xun Yi for more than ten years. Their hearts can be seen from the sun and the moon. How can this hateful old lady slander them like this? ? "You think I'm an eyesore, and I think you're disgusting! If you really want to get rid of me from the palace, let the Queen Mother issue an order to let you go! What's the point of getting angry at me? Anyone who wants to take this Princess can take it! I don’t care! I just want to take my son out of the palace and stay away from all your troubles!”

After saying this in a cold voice, Shui Linglong turned around and planned to leave. When she looked up, she saw Xun Yi standing at the door at some point.

 “Yier…”

 (End of this chapter)