Proud Feather

Chapter 64 Seeking a meeting
After the emperor left, Yongchun Palace became quiet again.

"Mother." Pang Yu called softly, "Please drink the medicine first!"

Concubine Tian Shu remained silent as Cai Zhi helped her drink the medicine. Medicine was meant to nourish her, and since her attempt to regain her favor had failed, she still needed to take care of her body.

"Your Majesty," Caizhi handed over the candied fruit and said distressedly, "You are so injured and so haggard, how could His Majesty..."

"Shut up!" Concubine Tian Shu shouted coldly, "How dare you harbor resentment against His Majesty?"

"I was wrong." Caizhi knelt down quickly. "I spoke carelessly. Please punish me, Your Majesty."

Concubine Tian Shu said calmly, "I know you feel unfair for me, but you shouldn't blame His Majesty anyway. Let it go today, but don't do it again next time."

"Yes." Caizhi bowed her head and admitted her mistake. "I will remember this and will never make the same mistake again."

Concubine Tian Shu nodded in satisfaction: "Get up! Remember, there are some things that you should never say."

Caizhi understood: "I understand."

Concubine Tian Shu rinsed her mouth to remove the bitter taste, sent Caizhi out to guard the gate, and then said to Pang Yu, "Today is really not a good day. You made this trip, but you got nothing."

Pang Yu replied, "My mother's affairs are my husband's affairs. I will naturally do my best for my husband's affairs. How can I say it's hard work?"

After she finished speaking, she sighed regretfully, "Everything was planned well, but who knew this mistake would happen? It's all in vain."

Seeing her stroking her belly, Concubine Tian Shu asked with concern, "Is the little prince okay? Are you feeling unwell?"

Pang Yu smiled and said, "Don't worry, mother. I don't feel any discomfort. I think the child should be able to stay."

She and Chu He have been married for three years. In fact, she was pregnant in the first year, but she was still ignorant at that time. One day, she suddenly saw blood and found out that she had a miscarriage.

Pang Yu felt very guilty that she didn't even know she was pregnant. She had been very careful since then, but there was no news until this year when she became pregnant again.

"That's good." Concubine Shu smiled. "You were too young at the time, so it's no wonder you couldn't hold the baby steady. Now that you've grown well, the child will surely be safe and healthy."

The imperial physician said the same thing, and Pang Yu nodded with a smile.

After talking about the child, Pang Yu turned the topic back to the topic, with a puzzled look on his face: "Mother, what do you think happened to A Ling? Did she really not mean it?"

In fact, Concubine Tian Shu was also unsure. She asked, "How did she get here? Was it just a coincidence that we met on the road?"

"That should be it," Pang Yu thought back. "I ran into Ah Ling on the way to the palace. She happened to be returning, so I casually invited her... And it's my fault for being nosy. Why would I ask her to do something out of the blue?"

Concubine Shu pondered, "She's been living outside the palace for the past two days, so she probably doesn't know about our arrangements. Calculating the time, it's almost time for her to return to the palace today."

"I thought so too. I thought it would be better for Mother to have her as a witness. I didn't expect her to be so capable of such mischief."

Concubine Tian Shu thought about the whole thing from beginning to end, but she couldn't think of any loopholes. She could only sigh helplessly, "It's just bad luck for us that she happened to catch up with us."

Pang Yu was annoyed. "As we thought, His Majesty should have lifted Mother's confinement order today and asked you to take charge of the palace affairs. Now, the virtuous concubine has taken advantage of you. You have to worry more and prevent her from taking advantage of the opportunity to get into Yongchun Palace."

"That's fine. It won't be that easy for her to get involved." Concubine Tian Shu was very confident and gave a warning. "After all, the palace affairs are just a supplement. The most important thing is what's happening outside. I heard that the Wei family is involved. You must be prepared and cut off the connection immediately if the situation gets bad."

Pang Yu was also very confident when talking about this: "Don't worry, we are keeping an eye on it! Just relying on the few remnants of the Eastern Palace, you want to drag us down with you? Dream on!" The few remnants of the Eastern Palace... Concubine Shu thought of the past and said softly: "It's better to be on guard. The team of the Eastern Palace was decided when the Empress was still alive..."
-
Because of "mental fatigue", Chu Ling rested in the palace for two days.

Before he knew it, it was the end of October. The ground was covered with yellow leaves, and winter had arrived. Chu Ling sat by the pond, drinking tea and admiring the scenery, and couldn't help but think of Uehara Castle.

Winter in Shangyuan City was the hardest. Not only was it cold and supplies scarce, but the Western Wei often took advantage of this opportunity to raid the valley. Later, when the Northern Hu invaded from the south, life was even more difficult, and each time they had no choice but to endure a bitter resistance.

She really didn't want to go through this kind of life again. She had to cut off its source while there was still time...

"Princess." She was in a daze when Zheng Qiu came over to report, "Mr. Gao, the Minister of the Dali Temple, requests an audience."

Chu Ling came back to his senses and asked curiously, "What day is it today? He actually asked to see me?"

Zheng Qiu replied, "Master Gao came from Huaide Hall."

Huaide Hall, where the Crown Prince's body rests. Without His Majesty's order, the Crown Prince's coffin has not yet been placed in the cemetery.

Chu Ling didn't want to move, so he said, "Please ask him to come!"

"Yes."

Gao Mian was brought into the Nanming Palace and met the princess who was brewing tea around the fire.

Seeing Chu Ling's leisurely demeanor gave him a sour taste in his teeth. Zhang Ji was so self-assured, Lin Wenyu was slippery, and even the princess seemed relaxed. Could it be that he was the only one so overwhelmed?

"It's cold today, Mr. Gao, you're wearing thin clothes!" Chu Ling said with a smile, "Sit down and have some hot tea! If you fall down, who will investigate the case?"

Gao Mian curled his lips, thanked Her Royal Highness the Princess, and sat down. A heater was placed in front of him. It was quite comfortable.

"Master Gao has come from Huaide Hall. I think there has been some progress?" Chu Ling asked.

"..." Gao Mian replied, "It's not really progress."

Chu Ling was surprised: "If I remember correctly, the deadline given by my father is almost up, and Lord Gao has not made any progress. Is he ready to surrender his position?"

Gao Mian was convinced he was being mocked, so he could only honestly report, "I'm asking to see the princess because the deadline is approaching and I'm here to ask for help."

Since he was so frank, Chu Ling couldn't bully him any further. She asked, "What do you want help with? I remember you were investigating the Eastern Palace. Didn't you find anything?"

Gao Mian said, "I have investigated the Crown Prince's whereabouts, but I have yet to find any solid evidence to pinpoint the possible poisoner. I recall that the Princess took the poison ingredients from the Dali Temple last time, and a city-wide search ensued... May I ask, Princess, have you found the source of the poison?"

Chu Ling chuckled softly, and Gao Mian saw from her expression that she meant "you're not that stupid." He felt a little relieved, and then he heard her say, "Yes, I do know where the poison came from."

Gao Mian was delighted: "Princess..."

"But why should I tell you?" Chu Ling interrupted him, leaning back in her chair and looking at him with a smile. "Mr. Gao did contribute to the Tian family incident, but you also benefited from it. Mr. Gao wouldn't want to take credit for it from me, would he?"

Gao Mian was silent.

He understood what the princess meant. In the case of the prince's poisoning, he had not yet demonstrated sufficient ability. If he wanted to ask the princess for help, he had to prove his worth first.