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Old Chief stroked his beard and solemnly said, "Alright, alright. Some things shouldn't be said. After all, Little Marquis has passed away, and discussing him is quite inappropriate. However, we can't let an innocent person bear the blame just because of this either. Actually, this inkstone... was indeed broken by Xiao Heng! He was mischievous in his childhood and broke this inkstone. He was afraid to tell Princess Xinyang, so he secretly took it to the Imperial Academy and asked me to repair it... Yes, I was the one who glued it back together! If you don't believe it..."
Don't believe it? Shall they go underground and ask Little Marquis for confirmation?
The managers all had vivid images in their minds and shivered simultaneously. They dared not speak anymore!
Old Chief waved his hand, saying, "Alright, I will personally explain the matter of the inkstone to Princess Xinyang. I won't make things difficult for you."
At this point, the managers finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Even though they had never served Little Marquis, they knew that Old Chief was Little Marquis's teacher. Since he took responsibility, they had nothing to worry about.
The storm had passed.
Chancellor Han had hoped to encounter Princess Xinyang, but she never arrived at the Literary Splendor Pavilion till the end, leaving him feeling somewhat disappointed when they left.
After leaving the Literary Splendor Pavilion, Xiao Liulang looked at Old Chief with mixed feelings, "Master’s mouth is really..."
Old Chief waved his hand, "As excellent as always, I know!"
Xiao Liulang: "..."
As long as you're happy.
……
On the other hand, Gu Jiao entered the palace.
She had become a regular visitor to the Renshou Palace. She didn't even need to have her token checked anymore; she could just have her face scanned by the palace guards and then enter the palace.
She was going to deliver some candied fruits to Grandaunt. Recently, Granduncle improved a type of candied fruit, making it even sweeter while containing less sugar. Grandaunt could now have an extra piece every day.
While walking toward the Renshou Palace, she suddenly heard someone calling her.
"Young Miss Gu!"
It was the voice of Rui Wangfei.
Gu Jiao hadn't seen Rui Wangfei in a while. Mainly because they encountered an assassination attempt on their way back from visiting Imperial Concubine Dowager Jing in the nunnery, and Rui Wang, frightened by the incident, didn’t allow Rui Wangfei to go outside for two months.
"I knew it was you!" Rui Wangfei walked over, affectionately linking arms with Gu Jiao. "You seem to have grown taller again! Unlike me, who can only gain weight."
Gu Jiao looked at her slightly plump figure and said, "You're not fat."
It was true. Rui Wangfei used to be too thin, and now she looked normal.
Rui Wangfei said, "Only you and His Third Highness say that! The grannies won't let me eat too much, fearing that the baby will grow too big and make delivery difficult."
Gu Jiao nodded in agreement. In an era with limited medical advancements, giving birth naturally was the common practice, and it was the best choice to avoid overeating while still ensuring proper nutrition.
Looking at Rui Wangfei's complexion, Gu Jiao could tell that the grannies had taken extremely good care of her.
Rui Wangfei sighed, "I've been indoors for too long. I didn't even know that Imperial Concubine Dowager Jing had passed away. His Third Highness probably kept it from me to prevent me from getting upset and affecting the baby."
The truth of Imperial Concubine Dowager Jing's death was kept tightly sealed, and Gu Jiao wasn't sure if Rui Wang had heard anything.
"How have you been recently?" Rui Wangfei asked.
"I’m fine." Gu Jiao replied.
Rui Wangfei sighed, "Why didn’t you come to the prince’s residence to see me? You don't know how bored I've been these past two months."
Gu Jiao looked at Rui Wangfei's large belly and said, "You’re still bored even with the company of your baby?"
Rui Wangfei and Yao Shi had the same due date, in the early half of the tenth month. Rui Wangfei was over seven months pregnant.
Her belly seemed slightly larger than Yao Shi's.
At the mention of the baby in her womb, Rui Wangfei showed a touch of maternal tenderness, "I don't know if it's a son or a daughter, but I want to give His Third Highness a son! If it's a son, he'll be the first imperial grandson for the Emperor. The Emperor will surely be delighted!"
Others wouldn't dare to say such things, but Rui Wangfei had a straightforward personality and she also trusted Gu Jiao deeply, so she spoke without reservation.
Just as Gu Jiao was about to use a stethoscope to listen to the baby's heartbeat, a woman's scream came from behind a nearby artificial rockery.
"What— Mmp—"
Rui Wangfei was about to speak, but Gu Jiao quickly covered her mouth in alert!
There was clearly a trace of an expert's aura in the place where the woman's scream came from. After Gu Jiao covered Rui Wangfei's mouth, she gave her a signal with her eyes.
Rui Wangfei widened her eyes and nodded.
They were in a small path between the Renshou Palace and the Kunning Palace. The surrounding scenery was good, with plenty of cover, which was conducive to concealing their figures. It was precisely for this reason that the other party chose this location.
Gu Jiao was temporarily unsure of what the other party intended to do, but she knew that if she were to leave with Rui Wangfei now, no matter which way they went, they would be seen by the people behind the rockery.
Gu Jiao decisively pulled Rui Wangfei gently behind a large tree.
Rui Wangfei took Gu Jiao's hand and used her fingertip to write on her palm: ‘Shouldn't we go and see what's happening?’
Gu Jiao shook her head and also wrote in her palm: ‘There's an expert there.’ After a pause, she added: ‘He doesn't have a killing intent.’
In other words, that expert didn't intend to kill that woman.
Rui Wangfei nodded thoughtfully.
The rockery was directly opposite the large tree, about twenty steps away. Both of them held their breaths.
Gu Jiao was capable of concealing her aura very well, but Rui Wangfei couldn't do it for the time being. She could only try to slow down her breathing as much as possible. However, perhaps the woman's breath was too nervous and rapid, which inadvertently suppressed Rui Wangfei's breath, preventing the expert from noticing her.
Faint voices from behind the rockery could be heard.
"It’s you? You... What are you doing here? What did you do to Chunying?"
Upon hearing this name, Rui Wangfei's temples throbbed.
Noticing her reaction, Gu Jiao looked at her in confusion.
She took Gu Jiao's hand and wrote on her palm: ‘Chunying is the Crown Princess's personal court lady.’
Gu Jiao raised an eyebrow, so the woman speaking was...
Both the woman and the expert lowered their voices, sounding different from their usual tones, making it difficult to determine if they were the people Gu Jiao suspected in her heart.
But there was no hurry, as they would eventually come out from behind the rockery.
The sound of conversation continued.
"It was just a press on her sleeping acupoint. It will automatically be undone after half an hour."
Gu Jiao: Hmm, she wants to learn that too.
Press the sleeping acupoint of her husband, and then do this and that.
The expert had a male voice.
The woman said, "I think you've gone mad. This is the imperial palace! In broad daylight... aren't you afraid of being discovered?"
Her voice sounded somewhat indignant.
The expert sneered, "Who told you to avoid me every time? See now, I can only resort to this plan."
"Don't come any closer!"
The woman shouted sternly.
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