20demayo Chapter 248: Little Sister Enters the Palace
Chapter 248: Little Sister Enters the Palace
When mentioning County Master Zhao Ning, the second sister's face darkened.
Si Muyan was curious: "I noticed that you have a good impression of His Royal Highness Prince Ning, but you don't like Prince Ning's fiancée very much?"
The second sister then recounted what happened at the flower viewing banquet: "I just think it's a shame that someone like His Royal Highness Prince Ning couldn't find a wife who shared the same ideals."
Si Muyan said, "Nothing in the world is perfect. Besides, Princess Zhao Ning may be a little spoiled. I don't think she is a deep-minded person. She is quite simple. Marrying into the Ning Wang Mansion, she will not have the pressure of the elders, and she does not need her husband to work hard to make achievements to fulfill her dignity. This is a good match."
The second sister wanted to say something, but didn't want to talk about other people's affairs. Seeing the books on Si Muyan's desk, she asked.
"What kind of storybook have you been reading recently? I haven't even heard you say it."
Mother You smiled and said, "Second Miss, you don't know, but the eldest Miss has been very diligent recently and has stopped reading storybooks a long time ago."
"really?"
The second sister was curious and reached out to take the book to read.
"Let me see what good book you're reading... about... postpartum care for sows? This..."
All the mothers and maids in the room looked up in astonishment, obviously not understanding what kind of book this was.
The second sister's mouth twitched. "The titles of these book titles are quite strange..."
But she turned two pages and found that it was indeed about sow giving birth.
She couldn't help but ask, "Sister, do you want to raise pigs?"
Si Muyan yawned. "Before, I only read about poultry breeding and pathology. I'm tired of those books. They're so boring. I didn't expect there are books about pig, cattle, and sheep breeding. I want to take a look. But, second sister, what do you think about me raising a few pigs at home?"
The second sister put the book down, and after enduring for dozens of seconds, she didn't say no. She forced a smile and said, "Big sister, I'll go see Xiaoxia."
Mother You was completely dumbfounded. After her second sister went out, she hurried over to look at the book, and it was indeed about postpartum care for sows.
It was clearly in the afternoon that I saw the girl reading "Legends for Women".
Si Muyan smiled and said, "My dream is to go to a farm and grow all kinds of vegetables, fruits, and raise lots of chickens, ducks, and geese. My little sister is very business-minded. I come up with ideas, and she implements them. Isn't that wonderful?"
Mother You didn’t understand, was the girl crazy, or was she crazy?
Si Muyan sighed regretfully again: "But my younger sister is not interested in this, what a pity!"
Mother You thought to herself, it’s a good thing that the third girl didn’t go crazy with you.
A lady should act like a lady, marry a good husband in the future, have a few children and take care of household chores. This is what a woman should do.
……
The Empress Dowager in the palace was indeed getting worse. Shao Qin didn't remember her. Seeing the haggard old woman on the bed, she was a little scared. It was only after her younger sister coaxed and persuaded her that Shao Qin agreed to stay for a while longer.
My younger sister, on the other hand, was very attentive. As long as the empress dowager was awake, she would stay by her side and feed her medicine.
Occasionally, when the Empress Dowager was awake and able to speak, my younger sister would pick up interesting stories to tell her.
The Emperor came to visit the Empress Dowager. Seeing my younger sister like this, he smiled and said, "Wan'er is the most considerate."
The younger sister looked innocent, her eyes curved as she said, "Uncle, it's only natural for Wan'er to serve her grandmother."
The emperor laughed heartily, and my younger sister laughed too, but she felt a little heavy in her heart.
When she entered the palace, Mother Tian was not allowed to follow her in. Only the not-so-sensible little maid Ginkgo followed her.
There are too many restrictions in the palace, and it is basically impossible for her to do anything she wants.
She had only seen the emperor once today in so many days, and she pretended to be intimate and addressed him as uncle, because there were really more than one person in the room, so how could she seduce him?
But it was also an opportunity. While the emperor was talking to Shao Qin, he met with Eunuch Chong.
"My uncle, the Emperor, is so busy every day, and he still has to take time to visit the Empress Dowager. Eunuch, please serve him carefully and don't let him get too tired."
Eunuch Chong bowed hurriedly and replied, "The county lady is right. I understand. Your Majesty is diligent, and I and the others who serve him dare not be uncommitted. We will persuade Your Majesty to rest...at the pond near the North Palace and the Central Palace."
The latter part of the sentence was said in a low voice so that only the two of them could hear it.
The younger sister thought about it for a moment and then nodded to show that she understood.
The Queen Mother was only awake for a short time each day, sleeping most of the time, especially in the evening and afternoon, when she would rarely wake up. Shao Qin liked to play by herself, and since there were so many maids in the palace, she didn't need her younger sister to accompany her all the time.
The younger sister was bored at noon and saw that the entire Bei Palace was quiet, so she simply took Ginkgo and left the Empress Dowager's Palace, saying that she wanted to go for a stroll in the Imperial Garden.
The palace maid hurriedly said, "It's the midday sun, so be careful not to get sunburned. Stay in the North Palace area, don't go too far."
The maiden wanted to follow, but the younger sister chased her away: "Don't follow me, it's okay for me to take Ginkgo with me, we'll be back soon after."
We went straight to the junction of the North Palace and the Central Palace. It was a secluded place with two abandoned palaces next to it, which seemed like the cold palace in the past.
A small stream gurgled through the area, bringing a touch of coolness on summer afternoons. Cicadas chirped in the trees, but this place was far from the palace, so there were no palace servants to clean up the cicadas.
The little sister thought about it, then took off her thin outer coat, her shoes and socks, and went into the water to play.
Ginkgo was a little scared and whispered, "Girl, why don't you just play on the shore and not go into the water?"
The younger sister laughed and said, "It's such shallow water, what are you afraid of? Besides, it's so hot out, so I need to cool down in the water."
As she spoke, she picked up the water and splashed it on Ginkgo. Ginkgo was amused and laughed out loud. She also bent down and gently splashed the water on the county lady.
It wasn't too much, just a few drops of water splashed on the two of them, but it dried up quickly in such a hot day.
After lunch in the Qinzheng Hall, the Emperor looked at the thick pile of memorials on the table with a frown on his face. "It's all about insignificant things all day long. What are those people in the cabinet doing for a living?"
Eunuch Wu was the emperor's closest eunuch. He stood by and watched the emperor's heart, without saying a word.
It was the eunuch Zhong who served him tea, but perhaps the tea was a little hot, which made the emperor even more restless. He threw a tea bowl and it happened to hit the eunuch Zhong on the head.
Eunuch Chong did not bother to wipe it off, but knelt down to apologize: "I am at fault, please punish me, Your Majesty."
The emperor took a deep breath. He usually kept his emotions to himself, but today he was acting a bit rashly. He opened his eyes and looked at the man kneeling before him, begging for mercy. He wouldn't trust anyone except Eunuch Wu.
This eunuch Zhong was diligent in serving him, so it seemed that he shouldn't take his anger out on him.
But, who does he belong to?
The emperor looked down at him and asked, "Who did you talk to yesterday?"
Eunuch Chong's heart tightened, and when he looked up, he was bewildered: "Your Majesty... I... spoke to the county lady in Shoukang Palace..."