books44 Chapter 231 It's easy to defend against a spear in the open, but hard to guard against an arrow
Chapter 231 It's easy to defend against a spear in the open, but hard to guard against an arrow
After this incident, the emperor lost interest and left early. Once the emperor left, the ministers also departed.
By the time the Right Chancellor left the palace gates, Song Jiaojiao and the others had already left. Luckily, they knew where Song Jiaojiao was.
Laughter filled the General's Mansion. The Emperor's reward had arrived, and the eldest young mistress had unexpectedly received a reward and even a title.
Lady Cheng'en was very pleased and liked her daughter-in-law even more, so she rewarded the servants in her household once again.
In the study of the General's Mansion, Wang Yan called Wang Chi and Wang Hefan in.
"Chi'er, I'm afraid Jiaojiao's bestowal of an official title is not a good thing," Wang Yan analyzed seriously.
"This time I will not go to the north again after returning to the capital. His Majesty has not yet decided on the general to go to the north, and we do not know who it will be."
"Grandfather, what does this have to do with Mother being granted an official title?" Wang Hefan asked, puzzled.
“Silly child, your merits are too great. The more you gain now, the more you will lose later. It’s not that your grandfather is reluctant to give up the position of General of the North, but that we have made many enemies over the years. When the tree falls, the monkeys scatter.”
Wang Yan was very worried. Without him in the army, he was afraid that Wang Chi would be plotted against.
"Father, don't worry, I'll be careful. They won't dare to do it openly," Wang Chi reassured him.
"It's easy to defend against a spear in the open, but hard to guard against an arrow in the dark!"
Song Jiaojiao didn't understand the thoughts of Wang Yan and his two grandsons; she was currently trying on the official robes of a Shuyi.
"Wow! When Mom puts on this outfit, she looks completely different, just like the magistrate we met on the road."
Mu Xue spoke excitedly, her eyes filled with admiration for Song Jiaojiao.
"Of course, now Mother is a third-rank concubine, even the prefect has to bow to her," Mu Qing explained with a smile.
"Alright, you've seen it all. Mother, go change your clothes first. You can't just take this out like this." Song Jiaojiao said with a smile. Now that she's been publicly acknowledged by the Emperor, it's impossible for her to divorce Wang Chi.
Fortunately, Wang Chi is Song Jiaojiao's type. As long as he doesn't do anything reckless, they can make it work.
Thinking of the figure she had seen that morning, Song Jiaojiao felt her blood rush to her head, and her cheeks flushed red in the dead of winter.
………………
"Madam, there's something I think I should tell you," said Rong Mama as she helped Madam Chengen change her clothes.
"What is it?" Madam Cheng'en looked at Rong Momo through the bronze mirror.
"At today's banquet, the eldest young mistress went to change her clothes. On her way back, she passed by the Dark Fragrance Pavilion and happened to see the palace maid from today being murdered. It was a eunuch with a leg problem who killed her. After the eunuch left, the eldest young mistress went closer to look at the palace maid. At that time, the palace maid was holding a sachet in her hand, which looked like it belonged to the Empress."
As soon as Rong Momo finished speaking, Madam Chengen turned around and looked at her, saying seriously.
"Are you sure you can see clearly that the sachet in the palace maid's hand is from the Empress?"
"This servant is absolutely certain that I did not see it wrong!" Rong Mama thought carefully and nodded to confirm.
"This was definitely not done by the Empress. Not only was the Empress the sole host of today's banquet, but if anything happened, she would be the first to be suspected. This is clearly a frame-up." Lady Cheng'en thought for a moment, and realized that the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard did seem to have given something to the Emperor today.
"You haven't told anyone else about this, have you?" Madam Cheng'en asked.
"Besides the eldest young mistress, I've only told you this."
"That's good. This is not something we can get involved in. Since the Emperor hasn't said anything, it's unlikely that the Empress did it."
Lady Cheng'en gave her instructions.
"Don't worry, Madam, I know what's important."
Lady Cheng'en nodded with a heavy heart. She trusted Rong Mama, who had been with her for many years. Thinking of the eunuch with bad legs that Rong Mama had mentioned, she suddenly remembered that a few years ago when she entered the palace, she had met a eunuch with bad legs next to Consort Li. This person did not often move around in the palace, so it was hard for anyone to think of him.
The more Lady Cheng'en thought about it, the more she felt this way. The Second Prince wasn't injured, so it seemed that Consort Li was the biggest beneficiary. If the Emperor had taken it seriously, this matter wouldn't have been so easily forgotten.
She just couldn't understand why Consort Li hadn't said anything more after the Emperor had so leniently brushed this matter aside. Could it be that she had misunderstood?
Lady Chengen had no idea that it wasn't Consort Li who wanted to give up, but rather that she had seen Song Jiaojiao, the only eyewitness who had witnessed her cooperating with the bandits.
Originally, Song Jiaojiao was not part of her plan at all. Who told her to be so blind and see something she shouldn't have? If she hadn't completely forgotten about it over the years, she would have disappeared from the world long ago.
Unexpectedly, she was so lucky that even after marrying into a rural family, she still had the opportunity to return to the capital.
When Consort Li returned to the palace, she dismissed all the servants, leaving only her trusted confidants.
He suddenly pushed the teapot off the octagonal table, saying, "You wretched woman, you're really lucky to be alive."
The confidante thought that Consort Li was referring to the Empress, and stepped forward to say, "Your Majesty, it's just that the Empress is too lucky to have escaped this."
Consort Li did not speak, but glared at her fiercely.
"Go and send a message to my father, telling him to come see me."
Consort Li said fiercely, and news came from the person who was watching Song Jiaojiao that the person seemed to have regained her memory.
If this is discovered, all her years of hard work will be ruined, and her son will never have the chance to hold that position.
"It seems that the dead are still the safest," Consort Li thought to herself.
Unaware of the impending danger, Song Jiaojiao was currently keeping watch with Mu Qing and Mu Xue.
On the first day of the Lunar New Year, everyone puts on new clothes and relaxes after a busy year.
The streets were filled with shouts and cheers, and long lines followed the dragon and lion dances, creating a joyous and lively scene.
Song Jiaojiao got up early in the morning. She had promised last night to take Mu Xue out for a trip. After Song Jiaojiao finished washing up, Mu Qing and Mu Xue arrived.
It's a good time to have breakfast together. Eating glutinous rice balls in the new year symbolizes family reunion.
After breakfast, Song Jiaojiao and Wang Chi took Mu Qing and the others out to watch the dragon parade and guess the lanterns. Although it was the same every year, they never got tired of it.
Wang Chi was overjoyed; his smile stretched almost to his ears. He hadn't stopped smiling since he left the house.
After so many years, he finally got to go shopping and have fun with Jiaojiao again. These were the days he had been dreaming about in the frontier.
The Right Chancellor wanted to visit the General's Mansion early in the morning, but when he saw the bustling scene on the street, he realized that today was the first day of the Lunar New Year.
First of all, they don't accept guests on the first day of the Lunar New Year, and even if you were to go with all your might, you might not even get to see anyone.
The Right Chancellor did go to the General's Mansion, but only from the outside; he didn't go inside. He thought that waiting outside might allow him to see anyone, but unfortunately, his wish was not fulfilled. Who knew that Song Jiaojiao and the others had left early in the morning and had already been strolling around the streets for half an hour by this time.