Chaos in the Chu Palace

Chapter 23
Wanhui took Mingying's hand, helped Ouyang Ruo back to the house, and said: "Mingying doesn't know the severity of what she says, so don't take it to heart, madam."

Ouyang Ruo sat in front of the dressing table and straightened her temple hair. The person in the mirror had bright eyes and a clear and beautiful face, but there was a trace of worry in those big eyes.She said slowly: "She is still young so she doesn't understand the sinister heart. My aunt is also an old man who came out of the palace. Don't you know that there is still a trace of sisterhood in the harem? Although the Hou's mansion is small, what does my aunt think?"

Wan Hui's heart trembled suddenly, and the two looked at each other and smiled wryly.

Ouyang Ruo said again: "However, what Mrs. Liu said today made me wake up a bit. Since Lord Hou made an exception to me, it's hard to guarantee that Mrs. Xu's jealous temper will not cause trouble again. Auntie will tell the servants to be careful in the future. When the concubine pays her respects every day, I can see that her complexion is not right, and she is so patient that she is afraid that she will have a fit."

Wan Hui comforted: "Madam, what are you afraid of? She won't be able to make trouble anymore. This time is different. If she makes trouble again, we have to see if Master Hou agrees."

Ouyang Ruo smiled warmly and stopped talking.

The summer weather in Chu is hot, Ouyang Ruo is most afraid of the heat and hides in Jingyun Pavilion every day.Seeing that she was afraid of the heat, Wan Hui couldn't help but said: "Since Ma'am is so afraid of heat, next time Lord Hou comes, ask him to bring a few pieces of ice from the ice cellar to Madam, and you can also make some ice bowls of sour plum soup to relieve the heat." The maidservant heard that the concubine, Mrs. Liu and Mrs. Xu have carried ice to relieve the heat these days."

Ouyang Ruo kept fanning the bamboo fan, beads of sweat dripping from her jade arms.She glanced at the shining white sunlight outside, couldn't help but groaned, leaned helplessly on the carnation made of beauty, and said, "Auntie, look at the sun outside, the ice will turn into water when you lift it up, why is it relieving the heat?" .”

While talking, Mingying suddenly ran into the house with a face full of excitement, and said happily: "Madam, look what Dexuan brought."

Ouyang Ruo gathered the clothes that had been unbuttoned at the collar and left the room with Wan Hui. When they arrived in the inner hall, they saw Dexuan commanding a few servants with sweat on his face to carry a piece of stuff to the table in the hall.The thing was about a foot square, and it was tightly wrapped with thick cotton cloth.

Before Ouyang Ruo asked, Dexuan wiped off his sweat, hurriedly came over to salute and said happily: "Madam, this is for Master Hou to ask the servant to carry a piece of ice to relieve Madam's summer heat. We have never seen ice in China before. Now it’s eye-opening.”

A servant next to him stepped forward again and said with a smile: "Your Majesty said that Madam is afraid of the heat. I will send a piece of ice every two days to make ice bowls. If there is no more in the mansion, I will send someone to the palace." Take it from the inner government."

Upon hearing this, Ouyang Ruo unknowingly stretched her brows and eyes, and hurried forward to look.Ming Ying quickly removed the cotton cloth, and a piece of crystal clear ice appeared in front of her, steaming white.

Wan Hui was very happy, and smiled at Ouyang Ruo: "Madam, you can come here for whatever you want. You see, Master Hou still misses you."

Ouyang Ruo wanted to calm down, but couldn't, so she half-covered her face and said reluctantly, "Then aunt, just knock a few pieces and make some sour plum ice bowls." After speaking, she hurried into the inner room.

Seeing her walking in a hurry, Dexuan patted his head and asked in doubt: "What's wrong with Madam? Don't you like it?" Wan Hui covered her mouth with a smile and said, "Madam doesn't like it, she's obviously shy."

Several people couldn't help snickering.

When Ouyang Ruo went back to the house, she felt her face was on fire, and she wanted to go to bed to sleep, but she couldn't.While tossing and turning, Wan Hui brought in a small white jade bowl filled with sour plum soup with a smile.

"Drink some, ma'am. To reduce the heat."

Hearing this, Ouyang Ruo was about to say no to drinking, when she suddenly saw that the soup in the jade bowl was clear with a few small ice cubes floating on it, she couldn't help taking it, and drank it all in one gulp.Sweet and sour, the icy coolness goes straight to the bottom of my heart, and the internal organs are ironed and pressed to the extreme comfort.

Ouyang Ruo drank a bowl and asked again, "Auntie, do you have any more?" Wan Hui hurriedly brought it again.Ouyang Ruo drank five or six bowls before feeling a little cooler.

Wanhui saw her drink in a fit of anger, frowned and said worriedly: "Madam, don't drink too much, be careful to hurt your spleen and stomach." Ouyang Ruo wiped his lips and said with a smile: "Auntie, look at how small the bowl is, it won't hurt after two mouthfuls." It's okay. It's okay."

Wan Hui looked at her suspiciously, and said to herself: "This plum soup is so sour, how to eat it like this..." Mumbling and walking away.

Ouyang Ruo only felt that his body was much cooler, and after sitting for a while, he felt drowsy, then lay down on the couch and fell asleep in a daze.I don't know if I drank too much ice before going to bed, so I had a dream and couldn't sleep well.Not long after, I woke up suddenly, and saw the setting sun shining golden light everywhere, it was evening.Ouyang Ruo just felt lazy all over, didn't want to get up, just covered with a thin quilt and lay on the couch in a daze.

Wan Hui came in a few times before Ouyang Ruo reluctantly got up.While she was dressing up, it seemed that someone outside was yelling and cursing a few times.Wan Hui's hand trembled, and she couldn't help tearing off some of Ouyang Ruo's long hair.

Ouyang Ruo was also surprised, and exchanged a glance with Wan Hui, Wan Hui hurriedly put the ivory carved comb in her hand and said, "Madam, wait a minute, servants go and have a look."

Ouyang Ruo hastily put on a precious moon bun, and didn't care about inserting any pearls. She only wore a long emerald hairpin, changed into a thin shirt and left the house.The shouting and cursing outside became louder and louder. Ouyang Ruo listened carefully, and it turned out that it was Mrs. Xu who seemed to be admonishing someone, mixed with soft crying.

Ouyang Ruo was walking out quickly, and when she got out of the house, Wan Hui was kneeling on the ground talking to Mrs. Xu, and a maid from Jingyun Pavilion was also kneeling beside her.Mingying was holding Ling Xiang and watching from afar.Ouyang Ruo walked over and took Ling Xiang, seeing her face full of panic, she quickly comforted her softly, and asked Mingying to carry her into the room.

Seeing Ouyang Ruo approaching, Mrs. Xu's pretty face turned cold, and she snorted heavily from her nostrils: "Sister Ouyang, you taught me a good girl. Now that the master has gained power, the girls below are also arrogant, right?"

Ouyang Ruo stepped forward, met with a courtesy first, and said under the disgust in his heart: "Sister Xu came here today, why is she so angry, tell my sister, she will definitely discipline her well."

Hearing this, Mrs. Xu stretched out her nails painted with bright red Danko, pointed at Ouyang Ruo and said angrily: "Don't call me sister, I can't bear it. I asked you if you carried the ice to yourself. I used it in a house. You don’t even look at what you are, but it’s just a broken flower and a willow from the Huadi. Hou Ye gave you three points of color, and you started a dyeing workshop. Hurry to bully me Xu Ningshuang head up."

When Ouyang Ruo heard it, she felt dizzy, and with a "buzzing" sound, she swayed a few times, and said with a pale face, "If Mrs. Xu talks like this, she has wronged me. This ice is clearly Lord Hou. I asked someone to carry it, but I did it myself."

Mrs. Xu snorted coldly: "Don't fool me. You pretend that I don't know that I asked for this ice from the Neifu a few days ago, but today the people under me went to get it and said it was on your side. If it wasn't for you I lifted it up myself, and I also used your foxy trick to coax Lord Hou to give it to you. Could it be that I have wronged you?"

Ouyang Ruo felt his blood rushing up, his white jade-like hand tightly pulled the handkerchief in his hand, his silver teeth were biting secretly, and he said coldly: "Okay! Since Mrs. Xu said so, I naturally have nothing to say. Just treat it as Mine is not. I will come to the door to apologize some other day. But what is going on with the maid who is kneeling on the ground?"

Before Mrs. Xu could speak, Wan Hui stood up and said, "Mrs. Xiangling accidentally bumped into Mrs. Xu, so..."

Mrs. Xu raised her thick and long eyebrows, and looked at Ouyang Ruo sideways: "This girl doesn't have eyes when she walks, so let me discipline her for you so that she remembers to wear eyes when she goes out." People! Tie her up and beat her!"

Mrs. Xu came prepared, and the servant girl brought a lot of them. The people below are usually afraid of her power, but now they have her order, how dare they refuse to obey?After a few strokes, the little maid Xiang Ling was tied up.

Ouyang Ruo turned pale with anger, Wan Hui hurriedly stepped forward to support her and said repeatedly: "Ma'am, don't be angry."

Mrs. Xu was very proud when she saw her beautiful face turned pale and pale, and her nurses and maids pressed Xiang Ling to the ground and beat her hard.Immediately, the whole yard was filled with her miserable screams.

Ouyang Ruo heard her cries, anxious and angry, and said bitterly to Xu: "Mrs. Xu, you still have to look at the owner when you beat a dog. Could it be that you can be the master of this Jingyun Pavilion?" ? My servant offended you, so let me compensate you. Why are you beating her for no reason? She is a child of one and a half years old, only eleven or twelve years old. If you continue beating like this, aren't you afraid of killing someone?"

Wan Hui was so anxious that she could only rush forward to be beaten for her.

Mrs. Xu was not angry at this time, she took a handkerchief and dusted her skirt, and sneered with her blood-red rouge lips: "There is such a maid as the master. This beating is for you Understand your identity well, don't go beyond the bounds."

Hearing this, Ouyang Ruo smiled angrily, walked up to her step by step, stared at her delicately made-up face and said word by word: "Identity?! Madam Xu probably forgot, you and I are both hou It's just my concubine, concubine Ji and concubine Ji, may I ask Mrs. Xu in what way is Ouyang Ruo's status lower than yours? In terms of status, I am the eldest daughter of the eldest daughter of the Ouyang family. You are just the daughter of Xu Shilang's concubine, Sitting on an equal footing with you still deems my status low."

After hearing this, Mrs. Xu jumped up angrily, and fell on Ouyang Ruo's face with a "slap", and immediately five paw prints appeared on Ouyang Ruo's snow-white face.

The maids on both sides rushed forward to pull her, and Wan Hui even stepped forward to protect Ouyang Ruo, and said anxiously: "Don't talk about it, Ma'am, wait until the princess comes to judge. This is a slap for nothing, it's really..."

Ouyang Ruo took a slap but didn't make a fuss, just stared at Xu with hatred.Mrs. Xu yelled: "You fox, you were so fascinated by the Emperor Hua in the Hua Palace, and now you are here to fascinate Lord Hou, do you think I don't know your origin? Dare to be so arrogant and domineering. Someone will beat that girl to death, whoever told you to stop, hit him quickly."

Xiang Ling's screams became louder and shriller, blood flowed from her back, and the blood color was blurred, and finally her voice gradually dropped.The beating mother also showed unbearable expression.When Ouyang Ruo looked back, his anger was instantly extinguished, and he was so anxious that he didn't know what to do.

Wan Hui kept wiping her tears and cried: "Madam, save Xiang Ling quickly, if you keep beating her, she will die."

Ouyang Ruo thought about it, suddenly pinched her, and whispered something in her ear, Wan Hui hurriedly ran to the inner hall.Ouyang Ruo was dizzy and had to hold on so as not to faint on the ground.Xu's distance from her was also staring at her with hatred.

After a while, a group of people suddenly came outside the door, first of all was Mrs. Liu, she threw off the maid who was supporting her, and hurried forward and said: "Is it all reversed? Don't you know the house rules of the Hou's house? Dare you?" Execution without permission, if the princess finds out, I will drive you out of the mansion one by one."

The nanny holding the board hurriedly stopped.Seeing that they stopped, Ouyang Ruo hurried forward to help Xiang Ling up.Before he got there, he suddenly felt dizzy and almost passed out.

Wan Hui followed Mrs. Liu, saw this and ran forward to support Ouyang Ruo, and shouted to the maidservants next to her: "Hurry up and help Mrs. Liu in, and carry Xiang Ling in. Hurry up!"

Mrs. Liu glared at Mrs. Xu sternly and said angrily: "Sister Xu, what you did is too much. In the past, it was fine if you made a fuss, but now you are going to kill someone, even though it is just a servant's life." , but you also know Lord Hou's temper, if that person is killed by you, you should think about the consequences yourself." After speaking, he hurriedly followed into the room.

Xu's face suddenly became ugly when she heard it, and when she thought of Chu Huotian's strict order, she couldn't help but feel chills, and hurriedly called the maidservant to go back.Ouyang Ruo only felt that his feet seemed to be stepping on cotton, his eyes were dim, and he couldn't breathe.Blurry figures floated in front of him.She opened her mouth to speak, but couldn't utter a single word.The chest became more and more stuffy, as if someone was shaking her body and calling her constantly.

In the end, everything went dark and I didn't know anything.

(End of this chapter)