novelaction Chapter 491 People’s hearts are unpredictable
Chapter 491 People’s hearts are unpredictable
Yu Qingli took a sip of the fragrant tea and put down the teacup gracefully, with no intention of speaking first. Since the other party didn't speak, she would just wait.
Yu Zhenzhen seemed a little restless and took the initiative to speak, "I heard that my sister was unwell and went to Jiangnan. I wonder if she is feeling better now?"
"Thank you for your concern. I'm fine now."
Yu Zhenzhen looked hesitant and a little shy. After a while, she said, "That's good. I was always worried about my sister's health. Now that she has recovered, I feel relieved."
"Just speak your mind."
Yu Qingli was a little impatient. She had been talking to Murong Feng for a long time but it was just a bunch of nonsense. She didn't want to waste her time on these inquiries.
Yu Zhenzhen lowered her eyes, her long eyelashes covering her eyelids, which made her look quite pitiful. Unfortunately, Yu Qingli was not the kind of person who would sympathize with women, and besides, it was not her turn to care about the woman in front of her.
"Sister, I've been away from the palace for a while now, and a lot has happened there. First, the Emperor fell ill, then the Crown Prince became Regent, and Father couldn't decide who to support. Then, His Highness returned to the palace, but Prince Yan was nowhere to be seen. Then, the court ceremonial officer said that if someone could bring good luck to the Emperor, perhaps His Majesty would wake up. That's how I got married to His Highness the First Prince.
Yu Qingli opened her mouth, but didn't know how to answer her. Was this woman explaining to her the reason why she married Murong Feng?
But what does it have to do with her?
Seeing Yu Qingli silent, Yu Zhenzhen choked up and said, "I know that my sister will definitely blame me after knowing this, but I was helpless at the time. What's more, the King of Yan only has my sister in his heart, so even if I marry him, I won't be happy, right?"
"so……"
Yu Qingli raised her eyebrows. After talking for half a day, she became more and more confused. She had already left the Yu Mansion a long time ago. What did the marriage of the women in the mansion have to do with her?
"I heard that my sister and the King of Yan have always been on good terms. Could you please say a few good words to him? I didn't mean to deceive you, but the situation forced me to do so. What can a weak woman like me do? I also hope that when he returns this time, he won't pursue this matter."
After hearing this, Yu Qingli finally understood that they were looking for her to be a lobbyist. She had seen shameless people, but she had never seen anyone so shameless.
But speaking of it, Yu Zhenzhen and Murong Feng are really a perfect match. They both came to me at the same time to plead with Murong Yanhui. When did the relationship between me and Murong Yanhui become exposed to the public? Moreover, not only were they not surprised, they seemed to be secretly happy about it, just because they could use me.
Yu Qingli's face suddenly turned cold. "Why should I help you? This marriage is just a private matter between you and King Yan. What does it have to do with me? Besides, wouldn't it be better for you to go directly to King Yan for this matter?"
Yu Zhenzhen glanced at Yu Qingli with some embarrassment, her words stuck in her throat. A little maidservant beside her muttered, "Empress Zhenfei has already been to Anle Palace, but she wasn't even allowed to enter and was kicked out..."
"Chun Yi, shut up!" Yu Zhenzhen shouted sternly.
The little maid named Chunyi quickly shut her mouth after hearing this. This new master seemed to be someone not easy to mess with, so it was better for her to speak less.
Yu Qingli glanced at Yu Zhenzhen, then said after a moment of silence, "Since it didn't work even if you, Concubine Zhen, went there yourself, what use would it be for me, someone else, to go there?"
Yu Zhenzhen pleaded, "Sister, are you unwilling to help me? After all, I was the one who wronged you first. It's understandable that you don't want to help me, but you and I are sisters after all. I was ignorant before and offended you many times. It's understandable that you hold a grudge. But now you and I are both with the eldest prince, so we should work together. If the Prince of Yan is dissatisfied with His Highness because of me, wouldn't it hinder His Highness's future? Sister and His Highness are husband and wife, sharing honor and disgrace, so naturally, it won't end well for you!"
The more Yu Qingli listened, the more speechless she felt. She stood up from her chair impatiently and said, "I've already said that whether it's your affairs with Prince Yan or the Crown Prince, they have nothing to do with me. If you're worried about the Crown Prince's future, you can discuss this with him. Why would a woman from the harem like me get involved in the affairs of the previous dynasty?"
After hearing this, Yu Zhenzhen was stunned for a moment. She had already lowered her face and mustered up her courage to come here, but she never expected that Yu Qingli would not give her any face at all. Her face turned red and white, and she was extremely embarrassed.
"Xiluo, show the guest out!"
Yu Qingli walked towards the inner room while speaking, not giving Yu Zhenzhen any face at all.
Xiluo was not vague and respectfully but coldly asked the person to leave. When he returned to the inner hall, he saw Yu Qingli holding his forehead with an unhappy look on his face.
Xiluo stepped forward to massage Yu Qingli's shoulders, and said soothingly, "Master, don't be angry with people like that. It's not worth it."
Yu Qingli sighed, "It's strange, why did these two people who wanted to see Murong Yanhui come to me? I'm not the Princess of Yan."
"Although my lady isn't the Prince of Yan's consort yet, her words are more effective than anyone else's. Who in this palace doesn't know the prince's feelings for you? Although they've kept it a secret due to their status, if there's something he truly needs, I'm afraid my lady will have to step in!"
Yu Qingli murmured, "How did things turn out like this? Xiluo, do you think I should keep some distance from Murong Yanhui?"
"Miss!"
Xiluo couldn't help but raise her voice, "How could you have such thoughts? The reason these people are so disgusted with you is simply because they don't want to see you well. If you really alienate yourself from the prince, besides being sorry for the prince's sincerity, wouldn't you also fall into their trap?"
"Why are you more anxious about my affairs than your own? What kind of tricks are you planning? Could it be that you have been bribed by Murong Yanhui? Oh, you are his subordinate, so it is only natural for you to speak for him."
Xiluo's eyes suddenly turned red. "Miss, you really wronged me. Ever since I followed you, you have been my master. Have you never believed in me for such a long time?"
Yu Qingli knew that her words had gone too far, so she quickly reached out and grabbed Xiluo, saying, "Good Xiluo, I was just joking, don't take it seriously. You've been with me through thick and thin, so why wouldn't I trust you?"
Xiluo finally calmed down a bit, and then couldn't help asking, "Miss, I can understand why Murong Feng came to see you, but isn't Yu Zhenzhen coming to see you looking for trouble?"
Yu Qingli sneered, "I'm afraid she's doing this for others to see."
Xiluo was puzzled. "Hasn't she already married the eldest prince? Could it be that she still wants to show off in front of the prince?"
"That's not the case. Xiluo, you may not know that Chunyi, the maidservant who follows Yu Zhenzhen, was originally the Queen's right-hand man."
"Miss, what you mean is that the Queen sent someone to monitor Concubine Zhen, and Concubine Zhen came here to pretend to be serious in order to show that she was really going to marry the eldest prince."
"That's about it."
Xiluo sighed, "These people are so bored. If they really cared so much about this marriage, she would have just accepted Murong Feng's proposal. Why would she have gone to the Prince of Yan's concubine selection banquet later?"
"It's different now!"
Yu Qingli rubbed his brows and said, "Forget it, I don't want to think about it anymore. Let's serve the meal first. After lunch, I still have something to ask Xiaoliu!"
Upon hearing this, Xiluo hurried downstairs to prepare. Soon, a table of light and delicious food was placed on the table. After Yu Qingli finished her meal, she summoned Xiaoliu in.
Xiaoliu left the palace early in the morning to get new winter clothes for Yu Qingli. The Chinese New Year was approaching, and Yu Qingli had not been in the palace before, so she missed the time for making new clothes in the palace. However, she did not care much about it. As soon as she returned to the palace, Xiaoliu took Yu Qingli's size and personally delivered it to Jinxiu Villa outside the palace to prepare new clothes for Yu Qingli for the Chinese New Year.
Yu Qingli was very pleased with Xiaoliu's thoughtfulness, and as soon as Xiaoliu returned to the palace, Yu Qingli called him over.
Without waiting for Yu Qingli to ask any questions, Xiao Liu told Yu Qingli everything he had seen and heard in the palace in the past few days, which saved Yu Qingli the trouble. However, after listening to Xiao Liu's report, Yu Qingli suddenly felt that the current situation was more complicated than she had imagined.
However, what Yu Qingli wanted to know most clearly now was the emperor's coma. Xiao Liu said that Murong Shileng fell into a coma suddenly. He was having a meal with Concubine Yu in the Imperial Dragon Palace at that time. Afterwards, Murong Shileng took a nap, and he never woke up again.
The palace physician diagnosed that there was no sign of poisoning, so Concubine Yu escaped. Everyone in the palace just thought that the emperor had suddenly contracted a strange disease and fell into a coma.
Moreover, after that, other concubines did not dare to stay by Murong Shileng's side to take care of him, for fear of taking responsibility. Only Concubine Yu stood up and took the initiative to ask to take care of Murong Shileng. This won praise from all the people in the court, who said that Concubine Yu was affectionate and righteous.
Before, Yu Qingli had only heard a few things here and there about the emperor's coma, but now after listening to Xiaoliu's explanation, she discovered several suspicious points.
"Was Concubine Yu the only one present when the Emperor was unconscious?"
"My Lord, that is indeed the case. However, there were palace maids serving nearby. The palace maid on duty at the time testified that Imperial Concubine Yu ate the same meal as the Emperor from beginning to end, and she had been with His Majesty the entire time."
"So, after this incident, what is the attitude of the other palaces?"
"The Empress only visited the Emperor a few times and didn't stay, probably to avoid suspicion. Concubine Lin was almost as important as the Empress. Later, the Crown Prince took over the matter and wanted the Ministry of Justice to conduct a thorough investigation, but the Empress Dowager suppressed it."
"The Queen Mother is preventing the investigation?"
"The Queen Mother said that since the New Year is approaching, and since there is no evidence, we should not cause panic in the palace. The Crown Prince seemed to have compromised in the end and only searched for famous doctors everywhere, but did not continue the investigation."