Ask the Nine Ministers

Chapter 177 Embarrassment
In the afternoon, Xue Sui received a message from Wen Jia's messenger.

Empress Dowager Chengqing urgently summoned Wenjia to the palace, not only bestowing upon her the title of Princess Protector of the Nation, but also rewarding her with a great deal of jewelry and ornaments. She also specially invited her to stay in the palace for a short while, ordering her to explain the illustrated medical classic.

Clearly, the Empress Dowager already knew that the medicine manual was written by Wen Jia. Although she did not reveal it, her attitude towards Wen Jia was noticeably much closer.

Before embroidering the medicine manual, Xue Sui had already explained its contents to Wen Jia in detail. It would not be difficult to fool the Empress Dowager, so she was not worried about Wen Jia.

However, there was no movement from Ruijin Hall.

There is still no news as to how Emperor Chongzhao will handle the incident at Cixi Palace.

Xue Sui could only patiently wait...

And so they waited until night fell.

Xiao Zhao gently lowered the curtain, and a faint, sweet fragrance filled the room.

As usual, Xue Sui practiced calligraphy for a while before putting down his brush. Served by two maids, he bathed, changed his clothes, and prepared to rest.

A delicate fragrance filled the room. Xue Sui, her hair loose, gazed at her plain gauze undergarment reflected in the bronze mirror. Suddenly, she recalled Li Zhao's words about "the budding of love." Her fingertips unconsciously traced the edge of the mirror as she frowned in thought.

Lingyu leisurely preened her feathers on the windowsill, and the room was quiet and still.

"Miss, the moon has risen. I'll go make your bed right away," Xiao Zhao said softly.

Xue Sui responded softly, then suddenly gave her an order.
"Go and open the window a little to let the moonlight in..."

Seeing that the girl seemed to have something on her mind, Xiao Zhao silently walked to the wooden beam.

"Then let me fetch a cloak for you, young lady."

Xue Sui nodded slightly.

A whole day has passed, and Li Zhao has not sent a single word.

Xue Sui couldn't help but feel uneasy.

I wonder if the symptoms of the Love Silk Gu in his body have been relieved?

She pondered for a moment, put on her coat, and slowly walked towards the antique display shelf in the outer room.

That was where she usually stored her medicines, the various porcelain items neatly arranged. She reached down and took the third celadon jar, slipping her hand inside…

The pills are all there...

She paused, summoning Ruyi.

"Have you taken care of what I asked you to do?"

Ruyi was in the kitchen learning how to make osmanthus candy from Aunt Liu. Her little face was flushed from the firelight. When the girl asked her a question, she nodded hurriedly.

"Replying to Miss, everything has been taken care of. I have already sent a message to His Highness the Crown Prince, informing him that you will not be able to go."

"Anything else?" Xue Sui asked again.

"And..." Ruyi asked, looking bewildered, "Miss, what else?"

Xue Sui stared at her: "Did you deliver the medicine I asked you to?"

Ruyi shook her head in puzzlement: "When did you instruct me to deliver the medicine, Miss?"

Xue Sui raised his hand to rub his forehead and sighed helplessly.

"Didn't I tell you that Lingyu's favorite food is millet mixed with pine nuts, which is in the third celadon jar? Don't you understand?"

Ruyi: "I understand! This servant fed Lingyu."

Xue Sui: "..."

As Xue Sui remained silent, he suddenly realized what was happening, exclaimed "Ah!" and begged for mercy with a mournful face.

"Oh no, I misunderstood. I saw the third celadon jar, which contained millet, and just picked it up to feed Lingyu... I didn't realize you were referring to the third celadon jar on the antique shelf, nor did I think it was for delivering medicine to the Crown Prince..."

As she spoke, she stretched out her palm in front of Xue Sui, opening it wide...

"Miss, I am stupid, please hit me."

Then he closed his eyes and turned his head, looking like he was accepting punishment.

Xue Sui remained silent.

With Li Huan present, she couldn't speak too bluntly.

Because Li Huan was meticulous and overly shrewd, Xue Sui, just in case, did indeed put millet mixed with pine nuts in the third jar of bird feed.

Ruyi is a simple-minded girl; she only thought about replying to Li Zhao, but she didn't understand the other meaning behind Xue Sui's words.

Although things weren't handled perfectly, at least nothing went wrong.

Ruyi waited for a long time, but didn't hear the girl say anything. She opened her eyes again tremblingly and asked in a low voice, "Miss, is it too late to send it now? Is the Crown Prince alright?"

Xue Sui remained silent and did not answer.

This is the medicine that Senior Sister Yuheng gave her to suppress the tangled emotions she felt.

Only two pills remain.

Yuheng said that this medicine can only temporarily suppress the symptoms, and is not an antidote.

Perhaps it was because she was too cold-hearted and indifferent, never having experienced that bone-deep, heart-wrenching feeling. Compared to Ping Le and Li Zhao, her constitution seemed far too strong… As she pondered this, she suddenly felt agitated, a tightness in her chest, as if countless restless insects were swarming inside her, making it hard for her to breathe…

Whatever you say comes.

Will the lingering poison of love ultimately backfire on her?

Xue Sui closed his eyes slightly, calmed himself down, took one pill, and then handed the other pill to Ruyi.

"Don't make a mistake this time."

Ruyi nodded vigorously, "This servant understands."
-
The next day, sunlight shone through the thin clouds, casting a golden glow; it was another sunny day.

Xue Sui got up early and went to Yingyue Residence to visit Xue Yuechen.

Yingyueju was bustling with activity.

Xue Yuechen leaned against the soft couch, her hand gently stroking her lower abdomen, her eyes filled with tenderness and love.

Concubine Zhang and Madam Zhou sat to one side, while two concubines carefully attended to them.

"If the princess's next pregnancy results in a son, it will be the greatest joy for the royal family, and the prince will be overjoyed!"

Madam Zhou twisted the handkerchief in her hands, her tone tinged with bitterness. She spoke auspicious words, but her eyes betrayed her envy.

Xue Yuechen smiled faintly, but before she could answer, she saw Xue Sui lift the curtain and enter.

She quickly sat up and warmly invited Xue Sui to sit down.

"I was just thinking about you, and here you are. What a coincidence."

Xue Sui glanced around at everyone, smiled, and bowed: "Congratulations, sister. But the first three months are the most crucial, so please take care of yourself and don't overwork yourself."

Upon hearing this, everyone looked somewhat displeased.

Doesn't this mean they're disturbing the princess?
Xue Yuechen was pregnant and couldn't hide her joy, so she didn't notice the atmosphere in the room.

"The imperial physician said the pregnancy is stable, so sister need not worry."

"That's true, but we can't be careless. My sister's belly is very precious right now."

As Xue Sui spoke, he sat down with an even more assertive posture than Xue Yuechen.

She casually picked up the steaming cup of tea, her gaze seemingly drifting over the jade bracelet on Consort Zhang's wrist—a gift from Li Huan, of exceptional quality.

I've heard that this Consort Zhang was once Li Huan's favorite, but I wonder how much sincerity he had for her.

The group chatted casually for a while, and the atmosphere seemed harmonious, but each person had their own plans.

Xue Sui did not utter another word.

She only sat down next to Xue Yuechen after Consort Zhang and the others had taken their leave.

"Sister, I want to go back to the Xue residence."

Xue Yuechen's fingertips trembled slightly, and tea spilled from the teacup in her hand.

"But is Grandmother unwell?"

"Grandmother is well, but..." Xue Sui recounted the story of the Prince of Wei's marriage proposal, and then sighed, "Ninth Sister is simple-minded by nature. If she really marries into the Prince of Wei's mansion, I'm afraid she will repeat the same mistake as Fourth Sister."

Xue Yuechen gripped the handkerchief tightly, a shadow appearing in her eyes.

How could she not know that this was a scheme by the Xiao family?
But her father had always been an opportunist, her grandmother was getting old, and she, as the princess, was no longer up to the task...

Xue Yuechen pressed her delicate hand against her still-flat belly, pondered for a moment, and said, "It's been quite a while since I've visited my grandmother, father, and mother. I'll go back with you tomorrow."

Xue Sui was taken aback. "Sister, you're only recently pregnant, so it's best not to overexert yourself."

Xue Yuechen waved her hand with a smile and said, "With so many people serving me and you by my side, what's so tiring about it? It just so happens that the Prince instructed me to take good care of my sister."

Xue Sui lowered his eyes, subtly concealing the mockery within.

Li Huan was hardly taking care of her.

That night in the Lotus Fragrance Pavilion, he subtly probed her, clearly showing his suspicion of her and the Crown Prince...

Xue Sui asked, "Sister, tell me the truth, but the Prince doesn't trust me and ordered you to keep an eye on me?"

Xue Yuechen was taken aback, her expression slightly embarrassed, and she quickly softened her tone.

"His Highness is only worried that you, my sister, are too naive and might be taken advantage of. The turmoil at Cixi Palace has not yet subsided, and you are caught in the middle. If someone with ulterior motives seizes on you, it could bring you trouble... Please don't take it to heart, sister..."

Xue Sui nodded slightly and said nothing more.

Fearing that she might be unhappy, Xue Yuechen quickly took her hand and comforted and explained with kind words, her words full of concern. Only then did Xue Sui manage to show a slight smile.

"Sister, please don't say that. I know you're thinking of me. I was just joking with you. I'm so grateful to you and brother-in-law for taking such good care of me. How could I possibly have any ill feelings towards you..."

As he was speaking, there was a sudden noise outside.

Xue Yuechen frowned and told Emerald to go out and see what had happened.

Before long, Emerald rushed back, snorting with dissatisfaction.

"Your Highness, that shameless Princess Ruihe is here again. This time she brought a lot of gifts, saying she wants to give them to the Prince and Princess."