After the old lady fainted, everything calmed down.
From handling Yan Bo's funeral arrangements, to dealing with Mrs. You in the mansion, detaining and sending her away overnight, and finally inviting the imperial physician to examine the old lady, by the time all these things were over, it was already very late.
The night was quiet. In the Pinglan Courtyard.
"Lady Lan, since this servant sees that you're out of danger, this servant will take her leave and return to the palace. Please rest assured, this servant won't talk about things that shouldn't be said."
Han Bi bowed and took her leave of Lan Miao.
Lan Miao nodded and replied with a smile, "Thank you, miss, for today's matter. Please convey to His Majesty that he doesn't need to worry about me."
Han Bi agreed one by one, and then left with the palace guards.
After tonight.
Yan Bo was dead, Mrs. You had left the mansion, and the old lady had fainted. It was truly in complete chaos.
Shuang Le looked at Lan Miao with a worried face. She had a hunch about the subtle and unusual relationship between the lady and His Majesty. She said cautiously, "Madam, why don't you go to the palace with Miss Han Bi? If the old lady wakes up and really wants to beat you to death, what should we do?"
"Silly girl, what the old lady said was just out of anger. She wouldn't dare. If anything happened to me in the mansion, she would be held responsible."
Lan Miao said with a smile, her eyes already filled with weariness.
"Take good care of Shuang Xi these days. My injury is just a skin wound. Her fracture is more serious and needs someone to take care of her."
She ordered.
"Then won't you go and see Miss Xue'er? Or let Miss Xue'er come back?"
"Forget it. My wound hasn't fully healed yet. If she sees me like this, she'll be sad. In a couple of days when she comes back to the mansion on leave, my injury will have improved a lot."
Thinking of Xue'er, Lan Miao felt a pang of sourness in her heart.
Qing Zhi was still accompanying Xue'er in the palace. When they came back together, she didn't know how sad Xue'er would be.
"Don't be sad, madam. Everything is over. This servant will serve you to rest."
Shuang Le tried hard to comfort Lan Miao.
Lan Miao's eyes curved slightly. "Okay."
In the middle of the night, the bed curtains were lowered. The cold moonlight scattered through the layers of curtains like a mist, hazy and dreamy.
Lan Miao lay in bed, and the feeling of unreality came over her again.
The relationship between her and His Majesty was getting more and more complicated.
She couldn't help but think, what if His Majesty wasn't just acting on a whim?
Then how should she proceed on the road ahead?
In any case, she didn't regret what had happened in the Marquis Mansion today.
If only she could leave the Marquis Mansion.
Lan Miao slowly fell asleep.
But she didn't sleep soundly.
In her dream, the man sat alone on a high seat, his eyebrows and eyes cold. He mercilessly pronounced the death penalty on her.
In the palace.
The lights were dim.
Emperor Jingxiang sat alone on the high throne, wearing a black long gown embroidered with golden dragon patterns, floating on the golden chair carved with auspicious dragons. He hung his hands and quietly listened to Han Bi's report, then waved his hand, signaling her to retreat.
"This servant takes her leave."
Han Bi slowly backed away, and An He closed the door of the main hall.
On the wall behind the dragon chair, there were night pearls of different sizes inlaid. The pale green fluorescence intertwined with the candlelight, making Emperor Jingxiang exude a cold aura. He couldn't help but get a little angry. The lady was still too soft - hearted.
That Mrs. You deserved to be cut into a thousand pieces, and the old lady was really detestable.
However, he wasn't an unreasonable person.
After this incident, he could understand the lady's concerns and what she had to face.
He would leave those people to the lady to deal with herself. If she needed his help, he would step in.
He wanted her to be willing, and he also wanted it to be justifiable.
But he couldn't let the lady stay in the Marquis Mansion for long. She couldn't be wronged even a little.
At most, ten to fifteen days.
After thinking this through, Emperor Jingxiang called An He in a deep voice.
An He: "This servant is here."
"Now, no, early tomorrow morning, summon Lan Cengui. I want to see him."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
An He was shocked. Lan Cengui was Lady Lan's father. Usually, he didn't care about his daughter at all. He probably didn't even know what had happened to Lady Lan.
Emperor Jingxiang didn't know what he was thinking about, but the corner of his lips curled up.
A faint smile appeared at the corners of his eyes.
"Isn't Kai Yun coming soon?"
"Your Majesty, at the end of this month, the eldest princess will return to the capital with the heir of the principality to pay homage. By then, the palace will surely be bustling." An He smiled.
A faint light flashed in Emperor Jingxiang's eyes. "It's good to be bustling. Hasn't the jade carving that the empress dowager asked the lady to make been finished yet?"
Hearing Emperor Jingxiang mention the matter of Lady Lan's jade carving, An He thought for a while and said, "At that time, the empress dowager said it was a birthday gift. The time limit hasn't expired yet. Lady Lan has a lot of things to do. I'm afraid she hasn't prepared it yet."
"Not prepared yet? That's also a good thing."
Emperor Jingxiang's smile was full of meaning.
Hearing what His Majesty said, An He roughly guessed what Emperor Jingxiang wanted to do. He continued, "Your Majesty, the eldest princess is very fond of jade and spices. This time when she returns, she will surely bring her perfume - blending masters and jade - carving masters with her. Your Majesty might as well first summon capable people and strange scholars who are specialized in these fields into the palace. By then, they can also relieve the princess's fatigue."
"Good."
Emperor Jingxiang approved of his suggestion. "When the time is right, let the empress dowager issue an imperial edict."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
An He slowly backed out.
The night grew darker.
The moonlight gradually faded, and the dawn was faintly emerging.
The day after Mrs. You was sent away.
Xue'er and Qing Zhi returned from the palace.
"Mother, how are you? Does your wound still hurt?" Xue'er's eyes were red - rimmed. As soon as she came back, she threw herself into Lan Miao's arms.
Lan Miao held back her tears and gently stroked Xue'er's little head, then touched her cheek. "It's okay. Mother is fine. It's your Sister Shuang Xi who is a bit seriously injured. You can go and see her later."
"Okay..."
Xue'er carefully "examined" Lan Miao again. Her big eyes stared intently. After confirming that there was nothing wrong, she finally felt relieved.
"Mother, did Second Aunt leave?" Xue'er asked curiously.
A trace of helplessness flashed in Lan Miao's eyes. "Second Aunt has gone to a very far place. She probably won't come back."
Temporarily sparing Mrs. You's life didn't mean that Mrs. You could really live for a long time. The excuse on the surface was just to warn the You family and comfort Qing Zhi.
But there was no need to explain these secrets to Xue'er in detail.
Xue'er let out an "oh...".
There was a bit of disappointment in her eyes, but there was no sign of happiness. Lan Miao also thought she should give Xue'er time. There was no need to force her to distinguish right from wrong.
She was still too young to understand the strife and struggles among relatives.
Lan Miao hugged her tightly in her arms.
After a while, Xue'er lowered her little head, looking a bit hesitant. "Mother, I have a lot of secrets to tell you..."
"If Xue'er has her own little secrets, she doesn't have to tell them." Lan Miao encouraged her.
"But one of the secrets is about Mother. Xue'er is afraid that you'll be deceived. Xue'er will tell you quietly." There was no one else in the room they were in, but Xue'er gently leaned close to Lan Miao's ear, as if she was afraid that someone would hear.
"..."
After listening to what Xue'er said, Lan Miao felt deeply speechless about His Majesty.
At the same time, she was very gratified with Xue'er.
Sure enough, she was her贴心小棉袄.
"Xue'er, His Majesty is the Son of Heaven. You must obey what he says and the promises he makes. If His Majesty asks you to keep a secret in the future, you mustn't tell Mother."
"Really?"
Xue'er widened her eyes. After getting Lan Miao's affirmative answer, she nodded again. "Xue'er remembers."
"Then Xue'er go and see Sister Shuang Xi."
"Okay."
When Xue'er went to the side courtyard to see Shuang Xi, Qing Zhi came. It was Huixiang who led her in. Her elder sister Huizhu had been punished along with Mrs. You.
"Aunt, is my mother... a bad person?"
Qing Zhi rushed into Lan Miao's arms and cried out of breath.
But Lan Miao was destined not to be able to answer this question.