First Concubine

Chapter 77: The art of alienation (1)

 The moon is dark, the wind is high, and the breeze is blowing.

 A dark shadow quietly approached the warehouse. He looked around, looking very wary. The door to the warehouse was closed. He took out a piece of wire and stretched it into the crack of the door, and gently, gently pried open the lock inside.

Crunch—

The door made a sharp noise, and he hunched over, looking around like a frightened mouse, making sure no one noticed him before he bravely stepped into the room.

 On his back was a heavy burden.

He walked to a pile of brand-new wooden boxes and opened them one by one. Then he took out the medicine powder and scissors from the bag, sprinkled a layer of them on the box, and then dug out a few pieces of fine silk and satin from the bottom. Cut it off "Catch him!"

There was a sudden sharp shout, and his body trembled. Before he could react, he was pushed to the ground by two powerful women!

The fire instantly lit up the dark warehouse. In the light and shadow, Shui Linglong, dressed in white, stood proudly. She glanced at the man with an indifferent expression. It was unexpected but she thought it was reasonable. She had suspected someone since Wu's mother made trouble. Finally, he couldn't sit still and wanted to retaliate against her, but her Lingxiangyuan was not easy to attack. The other party could only attack the departments she managed one by one. The Zayuan and the dining room had a quarrel once, and they would not bother with it again in the short term. Only the warehouse is left.

Shui Linglong walked to the box, stretched out her hand and pinched a little powder. After sniffing it, she snorted coldly. It turned out to be phosphorus! Do you want the Prince's Mansion to burn down on its own in midsummer?

Shui Linglong looked at the man coldly: "Ayi, I didn't expect it to be you. It seems that you didn't drink enough cold water last time. Someone, bring the water tank in."

“Yes!” Mother Du agreed respectfully, and led the two rough ladies to bring in the large water tank prepared early in the morning.

Shui Linglong said without asking, "Throw it in. I feel upset. If you die, just bury it in a mass grave in the back hill."

die? A Yi was confused. His mother was a domestic slave in the house, and so was Liu Lu, but he was not! His wife had helped the old man a lot, so when the old man was still alive, he got rid of his slave status and allowed him to live in the mansion. He was a commoner and was protected by the laws of the Zhou Dynasty. The eldest lady couldn't treat him like this! He swallowed his saliva and roared: "Miss, you can't kill innocent people indiscriminately. I'm not a servant of the house! You have no right to deal with me!"

"Who said I was dealing with the servants of the mansion?" Shui Linglong shrugged and asked Xiang Zhifan, "What I was dealing with were the servants of the mansion?"

Zhifan smiled and replied: "Our Shangshu Mansion has a strict family tradition and will never produce such a treacherous slave. Tonight, a vicious thief broke into the Shangshu Mansion without permission. He will be punished according to the law. If he is beaten to death, he will be registered with the government." Just forget it.”

Shui Linglong smiled slightly: "Yeah, let me tell you, I have a kind heart, how can I be willing to be so cruel to my slave? Since he is an evil thief, let him be killed!"

All the slaves shuddered when they heard the words "a kindhearted man". It was like a fox saying, "I love vegetables and never eat meat..."

Shui Linglong clapped her hands and turned around to leave the warehouse. There was a sound of water behind her.

 She doesn't like to bargain with others, especially Ayi who knows who instigated it without asking her. What A Yi touched was Bingbing's dowry. If something went wrong with the dowry, firstly, Bingbing would be embarrassed in front of Yunli, and secondly, Bingbing would blame the person who prepared the dowry for her. Who is the one who is jealous of Bingbing and hates her?

 Look, even if she wants to let Shui Lingxi go in this life, Shui Lingxi will still have to fight with her. I really don’t understand what her own illness has to do with her? It was Shui Hangge who made up her mind to replace the Crown Princess, not her. Why didn't Shui Lingxi make trouble for Shui Hangge?

 There is indeed something wrong with the brain!

Shui Linglong raised her eyebrows lazily, thinking about what kind of gift she should give Shui Lingxi in return as she walked.

Liu Lu returned to Lingxiang Courtyard, and Ye Mao was very happy. The eldest lady likes to have many people in the house, but Ah Si and A Ji always like to flatter them randomly. The eldest lady usually doesn't let them in. She and Zhifan occasionally take turns to go out to do errands, so they can only The two of them were accompanying the eldest lady, and now Liu Lu is back, how great it is!

The maids who serve tea belong to the second class, on the same level as Ah Si and A Ji. In the past, when Liu Lu was the first class maid, she often suppressed the people below her. Anyone who wanted to get in front of the eldest lady and flatter her had no chance. Therefore, everyone Although he didn't say it openly, he was a little afraid and jealous of Liu Lu in his heart. Now Liu Lu is back, but she is just a second-class maid. How nice!

The person with the most complicated mood is Zhi Fan. It was she who initially advised the eldest lady to be wary of Liu Lu, and it was she who took the initiative to visit Liu Lu later. People are like this. When your companion is weaker than you, you will feel pity, but once the other party shows Maybe when you exceed your potential, you won't feel so good.

Liu Lu handed over a cup of rose tea and said with a smile: "Miss, please have some tea."

"Hmm." Shui Linglong picked up the tea cup. The aroma, temperature and concentration were just right. She liked the taste. She drank a cup and handed it to Liu Lu, who filled it happily.

Zhi Fan put down the embroidery work in his hands and said with a smile: "Miss, I haven't massaged my hands today. I will massage them for you."

Shui Linglong couldn't help but think of Zhuge Yu enjoying holding her hand, and shook her head: "No."

 Zhi Fan lowered his eyes and continued his embroidery work.

Shui Linglong glanced at Zhifan calmly and said, "Did you send the things?"

Liu Lu and Ye Mao looked at Zhi Fan in surprise. Did the eldest lady ask Zhi Fan to send something?

Zhifan felt the two people's gazes on her and relaxed a little. The eldest lady usually left confidential matters to her, which showed that her position in the eldest lady's heart was unshakable. When she thought about it, there was a look on her face. He smiled and said, "Sent it. I gave you three times the amount of money. Work hard and it will be delivered in a few days."

"Hmm." Shui Linglong made a slight nasal sound. The relationship between the maids must be well balanced, so that they can neither be monolithic nor really let them get into trouble.

 According to the auspicious day calculated by Qintian, Yunli and Bingbing got married in mid-April. Seeing that the wedding was approaching, the old lady ordered people to decorate the house completely new. There were red silk on the floor and delicate flowers in the corridor. The white embroidered lanterns were torn down and replaced with big red octagonal glazed lanterns. All the servants received the wedding lanterns. I got two sets of new clothes, and the whole Shangshu Mansion was filled with joy.

At the same time, the important ministers in the court were discussing the plan to divert the water from the south to the west every day. Shui Hangge was so busy that he didn't care about the things in the house at all. It stands to reason that even if Bingbing is not his biological daughter, she is still his niece. Bingbing is proud of being the Crown Princess, but he showed unprecedented indifference towards Bingbing and the Crown Prince's wedding!

Another thing that surprised Shui Linglong was that the King of Zhenbei, who had always only held a casual position in the army, suddenly requested to participate in the deployment of the South River to the West. Kashgar was short of water, and the South to the West was urgently needed. As an important figure in Kashgar Qing, it is understandable that King Zhenbei would be involved.

Yunli rejected King Zhenbei's request in court, believing that the matter should be handled by specialized water conservancy officials.

The king of Zhenbei and several officials jointly submitted the memorial, and started a thrilling verbal battle with the prince. It was not until the emperor was dizzy that the emperor waved his hand impatiently: "Accurate! Zhuge Aiqing canonized as Nanshuixi The supervisor is responsible for tracking the progress of this project throughout the entire process.”

In the previous life, the King of Zhenbei did not pay much attention to the water flowing from the south to the west, and allowed Xun Feng to build the ditch where he wanted. As a result, there was a riot in Kashgar, and Xun Feng opened the gate to release the flood for two hours, and it was flooded for more than ten hours. In the village, Kashgar Qing surrendered unconditionally.

I don’t know why the King of Zhenbei suddenly paid attention to this matter in this generation. Did someone remind him to be careful about the project of water flowing from the south to the west? Shui Linglong thought of Guo Yan, the person who was most likely to be reborn like her.

The old lady kept the marriage between Bingbing and the prince in mind, so she sent Shui Linglong to Yao Mansion to bring Bingbing back. Shui Linglong went there several times but failed to make the old lady wish. The old lady gradually had an ominous premonition in her heart, and she called Shui Linglong went to Fushouyuan: "How can you live in someone else's house before getting married? What did Bingbing tell you?"

Shui Linglong pretended to be confused and said: "I have been there several times, and the third princess is always there. The third princess likes Bingbing, so I can't ask too many questions."

is that so? The third princess is the biological sister of the prince. She has a good relationship with the third princess. The chance of rescuing Shui Chenxiang from the cold palace in the future is higher. The old lady kept comforting herself until the day before the wedding. The old lady finally couldn't sit still and went there in person. Yao Mansion picked up Bingbing, but was told that Bingbing left early in the morning.

left?

 Where did you go?

 Did Bingbing regret her marriage?

The old lady returned to the house anxiously, pacing back and forth in the room, thinking about the causes and consequences of the whole thing all the time. First, she wrote an apology letter to the Wei family and expressed that she wanted Bingbing to be the crown prince. Meaning, they sent Bingbing to the capital and received the Queen's decree at Shangshu Mansion.

 What went wrong here?

 A flash of inspiration made the old lady's eyebrows jump!

letter!

　　That’s right, it’s faith!

Neither Wei nor her second son replied any letters to her, they just sent Bingbing to the capital! She thought that her second son and the Wei family had forgiven her before agreeing to let Bingbing enter the capital. But now that she thought about it carefully, they didn't even say a word of forgiveness!

 They have no intention of forgiving her at all, they are just using her!

"Hurry...quickly...call the lord over here!" The old lady was so angry that her blood surged, and her eyes were filled with stars.

Mother Wang hurriedly walked out. The old lady slumped down on the soft couch, with every hair standing on end from head to toe. If the second son did not forgive her, but Bingbing became the princess, then Shui Chenxiang would leave the cold palace. It’s a complete idiot’s dream!

Not long after, Mrs. Wang ran into the house sweating profusely, her face as ugly as if she had a layer of toner on her face: "Old... old... old lady... eldest gentleman... he is busy with official duties and can't get away!"

 He is in the house, but he can't get out? !

 My son is...blaming her!

Huge pressure came overwhelmingly. The old lady felt that the world was spinning, her head was heavy and her feet were light-headed. Then she felt a severe pain in her back. She didn’t know what she hit. All the sounds around her seemed to become completely silent for an instant. The old lady closed her eyes...

"Old Madam! Old Madam! Old Madam, what's wrong with you?" Mother Wang looked at the old lady who suddenly fell to the ground, and was shocked. It was... so fast?

 The prince's wedding was celebrated by the whole country.

The Royal Forest Army escorted the wedding procession from the Prince's Mansion to the newly built Shuifu Mansion in the capital. Yunli was dressed in a bright red auspicious suit specially made by the Shanggong Bureau. He was handsome and graceful with jade trees facing the wind. He wandered past on the street, with a smile on his face all the time. With an elegant smile, he is used to being the center of attention and is also used to wearing an impeccable mask.

In order not to marry him, she actually plotted against everyone and replaced her with her cousin. He really wanted to ask himself where he lost to Zhuge Yu?

In the wedding room, Bingbing changed into the princess's auspicious dress and a small phoenix crown on her head, looking at Wei and Shui Linglong with a smile on her face. When the old lady fell ill, Shui Linglong came to congratulate Bingbing on behalf of Shangshu Mansion, and gave Bingbing the dowry prepared by Shangshu Mansion, which Bingbing deserved.

A thin layer of mist formed in Mrs. Wei's eyes. Because she was leaving in a hurry, her children were still in Taizhou. She and her husband moved here first, so Shui Linglong was the only relative in the house. Wei and Shui Linglong were very honest with each other through several letters. Shui Linglong bluntly stated that she did not want to marry into the royal family, while Wei expressed her intention to seek justice for her dead father, brother and children. Second Master Mu had only a vague idea that this was the secret between the two women.

Mrs. Wei smiled and said to Bingbing: "Let's go to the palace first. I heard that I will go to the palace to see the emperor later. She will kowtow and bow nine times without even having time to rest."

Bingbing glanced at Shui Linglong, smiled broadly and said, "Okay."

After Bingbing left, Mrs. Wei got straight to the point: "Bingbing likes His Royal Highness the Crown Prince very much. He is mentioned in every letter she writes to me."

Shui Linglong's eyes flashed and she smiled lightly: "Bingbing is extremely smart and beautiful. His Royal Highness will one day discover how good Bingbing is." He did not deny anything!

Mrs. Wei nodded: "If you hadn't manipulated Bingbing into becoming Mrs. Yao's goddaughter, I think there would have been several concubines who entered the palace together this time."

Because Bingbing and the Yao family were tied together, Queen Yao stopped other people's thoughts. At least until Bingbing gave birth to her eldest son, there would be no other concubines in the house. But Wei did not say thank you!

The cooperative relationship between Wei and Shui Linglong is like two people who fall in love with an orange at the same time. Fortunately, one only wants the peel and the other only wants the pulp, so there is no need to fight over who gets more or less.

If Mrs. Wei pretends to say some polite words, Shui Linglong doesn't like to hear it, so that's fine: "Compared to most people, Bingbing is indeed lucky. As I walked along the street, the crying flower I don’t know how many wealthy ladies are embarrassed!”

 It’s a joke, but the meaning is true. There is no need to thank anyone, but Mrs. Wei, please remember clearly who gave Bingbing such luck. It is not true that the Shangshu Mansion does not have a daughter.

Wei's face changed slightly when she heard this, and she soon smiled again. Her eyes were less inquisitive and more sincere: "Bingbing's temperament is still a little simpler. I hope you will get to know Bingbing more in the future and teach her some manners." Way to go, here I am, thank you.”

After saying that, he stood up and went down towards the water.

Shui Linglong sidestepped and gave her another gift with a bright smile: "Second Aunt said something serious. Bingbing is the Crown Princess. It's too late for me to rely on her, so how can I teach her? It's just gossip between sisters to kill boredom. It’s just time.”

Every word she spoke was very gentle and humble, but Wei clearly felt a strength from it that no one could match. The girl in front of her always liked to take the initiative in her own hands, which showed that she seriously lacked trust and security. Wei Shi didn't say anything after seeing through it, and just smiled and said: "Well, you and Bingbing are similar in age, and they are sisters. We really should move around more. What happened back then..." After a pause, the smile gradually faded, "I still hope you can understand. ”

Shui Linglong raised her eyebrows!

Wei said: "My father and brother did not die in a mudslide, but in the hands of a princess. The princess fell in love with your second uncle, but your second uncle insisted on marrying me, and that's how I got married. The princess was the mastermind behind the death of my father and brother and the tragic death of my fetus, and the old lady and your father were the accomplices. I was just avenging my tragic death, without Bingbing knowing..."

Shui Linglong said calmly: "I know."

Not long after, outsiders reported that the prince had arrived.

 Wei and Shui Linglong sent Bingbing off to the sedan chair.

Before leaving, Yunli looked at Shui Linglong: "Has your wedding date been set?"

Shui Linglong didn't look at him, lowered her eyebrows and said, "I've decided to return to His Highness the Crown Prince."

Yunli held his hand and said, "What's the date? I'm going to have a wedding drink too." There was a hint of joking in that voice.

Shui Linglong frowned slightly, and Yun Li seemed a little aggressive: "I will send an invitation to His Highness at that time, and His Highness and the Crown Princess are welcome to come and watch the ceremony."

Yun Li's eyes flashed with sadness, and after a while, he said slowly: "Okay."

I wanted to leave, but suddenly I said, "If you change your mind..."

Shui Linglong interrupted him: "Even if you change your mind, please give His Highness the Crown Prince's blessing!" After a pause, he said, "Find another period of flowers and a full moon."

"It means it can be everyone except me..." Yunli smiled bitterly.

Bingbing sat down in the sedan chair and opened a gap in the curtain with her slender fingers. The prince's back was facing her. She couldn't see his expression clearly. She couldn't hear his voice because of the loud gongs and drums. Only his slightly trembling fists made her understand. , this man endured it very hard.

Bingbing remembered what her mother said to her last night, "Daughter, this is your own choice, so there is nothing against it. It is better for the prince to pretend to be someone than to pretend not to be, because this person can never become his." Woman, if you can't win his heart, you can't win it from anyone. The status and status of the women behind you are not as good as yours. If you don't have the heart of the prince, what are you afraid of? So, don't be jealous of Shui Linglong, and don't deliberately drive a wedge between Shui Linglong and the prince. Even if the prince no longer loves her, the next one may not love you. Instead of risking the prince falling in love with another concubine, it is better... to let nature take its course, even if Shui Linglong occupies the prince's heart for the rest of his life. "

 (End of this chapter)