~ THEN FIGHT BACK ~
The Emperor drank two sips of tea before placing the teacup at the side, “You donated one hundred thousand taels of silver in Jingling City. The Jingling salt transport envoy, Li Munian, report the matter in writing to me. I heard that you had contributed greatly to our efforts. I also heard that you have taken out all the silver earned by Ni Yun Fang and Bu Xian Luo in the recent year?”
Mu Yunyao shook her head slightly and answered truthfully, “I didn’t take all of them, but I left fifty thousand silver taels behind. Thirty thousand silver taels out of that used for turnover, and fourteen thousand used to buy my grandmother and the others’ greeting gift. The rest handed over to my mother for later expenses.”
“What you said is quite detailed. No matter what, being grateful is a good thing. I should be giving you a reward. In addition, the tea leaves today are not bad. When the time comes, I’ll get the person who beat you up from the Meng family so you can fight back.”
Mu Yunyao was stunned and couldn’t move for a long time. Just as Xu Li couldn’t help but want to remind her, she suddenly stood up and kneeled on the ground with a ‘pu tong’ sound, bowing to the Emperor with exceptional respect. Her body filled with stubbornness, just like a seedling standing under the towering giant tree. Even if her head had to cover with an enormous cover, she still had to stubbornly struggle to get a sliver of an opportunity to catch her breath.
After Mu Yunyao made her salutations, she knelt on the ground, and her chest violently heaved for a moment. Then, she solemnly said, “This humble one thanks to the Emperor for presiding over justice!” If one were to listen carefully, one would notice the faint sound of her crying voice, as if she was saying how difficult it was to come to this justice.
“Yes, you may leave.”
“This humble daughter will take her to leave now.” Mu Yunyao lowered her head and bowed as she left the great hall. As she retreated, she couldn’t stop her tears from rolling down. This kind of taboo matter made her not dare to raise her head, but it was unknown if it was because she was too agitated that she couldn’t help sobbing twice. In the quiet hall, the voice was exceptionally striking.
When she left, the Emperor couldn’t help but take another sip of the tea. “There’s really nothing to say about the way tea brewed.”
Xu Li smiled at the side. Upon hearing these words, he couldn’t help but say, “Miss Mu’s skills in brewing tea have indeed improved.”
The Emperor put down the teacup and read the imperial edict. After writing a few times with a red brush, he could not help but chuckle. “She’s quite a lively girl.”
Xu Li couldn’t stop his heart from thumping. There weren’t many people who could receive such praise from the Emperor. “To be praised by the Emperor, that Miss Mu really does have such deep blessings.”
Does getting praised by him meant that her luck was great?
The Emperor couldn’t help but recall what Mu Yunyao had said before, saying that he could affect a person’s entire life with a single glance. Although he had understood this principle before, he hadn’t paid particular attention to it. Now, combined with Xu Li’s emo statements, he can’t help thinking of the words of his Imperial Older Sister, Princess Yi De:
When the Emperor wielded the Emperor’s sword, he could slaughter all living things and burn their spirits. He could also intimidate ghosts, protect the peace of society and protect the country from danger!
“Xu Li. The Grand Princess will be returning to the Palace before the Mid-Autumn Festival. Is the Palace ready?”
Xu Li quickly replied respectfully, “Reporting to the Emperor, the Grand Princess’s Yuhua Palace has always been cleaned and tidied up by people every day. Now that I’ve heard that the Grand Princess has returned to the Palace, I’ve specially repainted the pepper wall. The curtains and carpets in the hall have all been replaced with new ones. All of them are modest and elegant styles that the Grand Princess likes. The flowers, plants, trees, mountains, rivers, landscape, and pavilions in the Palace have been reorganized and refurbished.”
The Emperor listened attentively and asked a few more questions. After receiving a satisfactory answer, he added on with a smile, “I wonder if the Grand Princess is willing to stay here for a longer this time.”
“Although the Grand Princess doesn’t stay in the Palace often, she still has her heart set on the Emperor.”
The Emperor shook his head, “In the end, some things are different. I am now the noble Son of Heaven, but my Imperial Older Sister is worried about getting infected by my power. She has lived in the Palace for many years, but she is reluctant to return to the Palace. If it weren’t for me sending a few letters this time, she wouldn’t be willing to come back.”
Xu Li didn’t dare to reply. Grand Princess Yi De held a particular position in the Emperor’s heart. A single wrong word from him might attract the Emperor’s displeasure.
The Emperor paused for a moment, as if he had thought of something, and continued, “... I wasn’t favored when I was a prince, and I even got targeted by a few Imperial Brothers due to my inferior birth. At that time, as long as Imperial Older Sister found out, she will definitely help me fight back. Moreover, Imperial Older Sister was ruthless. She chose places that were painful and hard to leave marks. Every single time, it would cause the people who bully me to howl and cry incessantly. After that, the Imperial Father’s health was not good at all, and disputes gradually arose. Life became more difficult, and then …”
Xu Li lowered his head and couldn’t help but break out in a cold sweat. The things that the Emperor had said were the secrets of the Imperial Family. As an attendant, he couldn’t allow listening to it.
Fortunately, the Emperor seemed to have noticed something wrong, and he swallowed the following words directly. He didn’t know why, when he saw Mu Yunyao’s expression while she left in the end, it actually made him think back to those remarkably arduous days. The days when he and his Imperial Older Sister had used their own strength to fight against the flood and the sky, surrounded by enemies. The crowd surrounded him like wolves, standing alone and trembling in fear......
“Xu Li. The Grand Princess Residence needs to take good care of this as well.” This time, Imperial Older Sister returned to the Palace seemed to have received some advice from the esteemed monk, wanting to find a girl to write it down in the name of her lost daughter and saying that she will not be able to stay in Capital longer.
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
On the other side, Mu Yunyao followed the young eunuch who led the way out of the Palace. Jin Lan and Jin Qiao hurriedly came over, and the nervousness in their eyes eased up. “Miss.”
Mu Yunyao smiled at them, her eyes still slightly red. Qi Mama, who stood by the side, silently took in her expression and prepared to return to report it to the Eldest Madam.
A young eunuch who was leading the way bowed to Mu Yunyao. “Miss Mu, you have already left the Palace. This servant will return to report to Eunuch Li.”
Mu Yunyao indicated for Jin Lan to send over the black purse, smiled, and nodded as she said her thanks, “Thank you for guiding me twice, Eunuch.”
The young eunuch was surprised to receive the money, and his actions were unnatural as he placed it in his sleeves, “Take care, Miss Mu.”
Mu Yunyao got on the carriage and headed towards the Su residence.
The young eunuch who led the way returned to the Palace and found an opportunity to meet Li De after a while. “Eunuch Li, this was given to me by Miss Mu. How could I use it in the Palace? I wanted to use it to honor you.” They are the lowly servants, so they could not leave the Palace, nor did they leave any money behind to use.
Li De took the purse and opened it. Inside was a fifty-tael banknote, and after he finished looking at it, he threw it back into the young eunuch’s arms, “Since Miss Mu gave it to you, then you should keep it. Now you can’t spend it, but you’ll naturally have the chance to leave the Palace in the future.”
“Thank you, Eunuch Li.”
“En, since you have received my benefits, the next time you lead the way, be a little more respectful.”
“Yes, thank you for your advice, Eunuch Li.” Next time? Could it be that Miss Mu will often enter the Palace? When Li De returned to his room, he saw his master Xu Li resting by the side. He hurriedly stepped forward with a face full of smiles as he held Xu Li’s shoulder. “Master, do you think that Miss Mu Mu will really dare to fight back the young lady of the Meng Family?”
Heck yeah she’s coming back. She isn’t done wreak... err... beautifying the palace (???). 😅😅😅
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