slave like jade

Chapter 141 Relegated to Common People
Hearing that An Lirong said that something happened to Kuang Qinqin, Yu Ruyan's eyes sank, she raised her eyes and scanned the kneeling people, there was indeed no Kuang Qinqin!

Yu Ruyan couldn't help feeling anxious and worried. In her heart, Kuang Qinqin and Huaying were the two rare people who didn't harm her and gave her help during those days in the palace. Something happened to her, Yu Ruyan was very anxious.

Before Mu Lingzhi could speak, she asked An Lirong anxiously, "What happened to Aunt Kuang?"

Hearing this, An Lirong raised her head and glanced at her, suppressed the resentment in her brows, and looked around lightly, as if she couldn't open her mouth and said: "Princess, this matter...let's talk about it when we return home!"

Seeing her describe it like this, Yu Ruyan became more and more worried, but she also knew that it was really not suitable to talk about the matter in the palace in public, so she had to suppress her worries, got into the carriage, and joined the people of the palace. Swing back.

Although Mu Lingzhi didn't have much affection for the female family members of the palace, after all, he was from his back house. He was still a little worried when he heard that something had happened, so when he returned to the front hall of the palace, before he had time to sit down and have a sip of tea, he Already asked An Lirong coldly: "What happened?"

An Lirong said with a worried expression on her face: "Originally Madam An is in charge of the palace, and I can't be in charge of these things, but Madam An has been lying on the bed since her child's accident last month, and she hasn't had enough confinement yet. So this month, the affairs of the palace will be taken care of by my concubine..."

When she said these words, the expression on her face was always worried and worried. Yu Ruyan and Mu Lingzhi sat side by side at the head, looked at her for a moment, and said coldly: "After this matter of the palace This princess will take care of it, so I don’t need to bother you anymore, Concubine An will focus on the key points!”

Hearing this, An Lirong was slightly startled——

She originally wanted to ask Mu Lingzhi for credit for this matter, but she thought that although Yu Ruyan was engaged to His Highness, she was not married after all, so it would be difficult for her to take charge of the power of the palace. There is no chance to take over the power of the family.Unexpectedly, Yu Ruyan took the power of the head of the house with a single word, and she didn't feel any discomfort at all.

What she didn't know was that Yu Ruyan really wouldn't do this before she changed her job. After all, she wasn't married yet, so she wasn't even a princess in the palace, so it was hard for her to take charge of the palace, but now that she had the instructions of Concubine Xie Guifei, In addition, the palace has been in chaos for so long, and it would be impossible if it was not rectified, so Yu Ruyan unceremoniously took over the power of the family within half an hour after entering the mansion, and did not give An Lirong any leeway.

With Mu Lingzhi's love for her, not to mention the mere authority over the family, I'm afraid he would be happy to show his sincerity to Yu Ruyan for admiration, so since she opened her mouth, she is already a There is no room for change.

Immediately, An Lirong's face darkened and her expression froze, but she had to pretend to be submissive and said: "The Wangfu is in charge of the palace, but it couldn't be better."

After finishing speaking, he explained everything about Kuang Qinqin in detail.

It turned out that Kuang Qinqin had left the palace six days ago and had never seen anyone. The little girl in her yard helped her hide it at first, but on the third day, Huaying went to her yard to chat with her , I didn't see anyone, so the girl couldn't hide it and said it.But that girl only knew that she left the house quietly, as for where did she go?What are you going to do, but you don't know what to ask!

Hua Ying became anxious when she heard it, fearing that something would happen if Kuang Qinqin disappeared for so long, so she had to bring that girl to find An Lirong, and asked An Lirong to help report to the police, or let the servants of the mansion go out to look for it.

Kuang Qinqin was born in a brothel, and has no family or relatives in Dongdu.An Lirong didn't dare to report the matter to the officials without authorization, so she had to ask the servants of the mansion to search for her everywhere in the inns and hotels in the city, but two or three days passed, but there was no news at all, everyone in the mansion said She is more than auspicious.

An Lirong's face was anxious, and she brought the female relatives of the palace to the Bieyuan early in the morning, verbally saying that she was worried that Kuang Qinqin would come to invite her.

Mu Lingzhi returned to the mansion to take charge of the overall situation, but in her heart she didn't care about Kuang Qinqin's disappearance. In her wish, the fewer women in the palace, the better——

In fact, she just heard a report from someone saying that Mu Lingzhi and Yu Ruyan lived together in the other garden and didn't want to go back to the mansion. She was anxious, so she took the opportunity to invite him back to the mansion.

Mu Lingzhi frowned after hearing her words——

Regarding Aunt Kuang, although Mu Lingzhi usually disliked her, he had a good impression of her.

Because, not only was she born in a brothel, but she was also a concubine given to him by the eldest prince when he was the crown prince!

Because of being wary of the eldest prince, Mu Lingzhi is also very alienated from Kuang Qinqin. In addition to her indifferent temperament, she seems to be very indifferent to the matter of favor, so she is a different kind in the palace. Yuanmen lives her own life and rarely appears in front of everyone.

She has been in the mansion for several years, she has always been quiet, she can be regarded as keeping her own place, but she doesn't know why she suddenly left the mansion without seeing anyone?
The first thing in Mu Lingzhi's mind was that this matter might have something to do with the First Prince. After all, she was sent to the palace by the First Prince. In his heart, he had always regarded her as the person of the First Prince Mu Yunzhi.

He coldly ordered the copper coins: "Send more people to search around the city, and take her portrait to the city gate to see if she has left the city."

After getting the order for the copper coin, Mu Lingzhi stopped him as soon as he reached the door. His voice was indifferent: "Find her, if she is dead, find a place to bury her, and if she is still alive, there is no need to bring her back. Let her go!"

Hearing this, not only the whole body of the copper coin trembled, but also the other people in the room were stunned.

Although Mu Lingzhi's words sounded heartless, Yu Ruyan knew that he was the greatest kindness.

If other concubines of the palace disappeared without a sound, or disappeared for such a long time, and were found again, they would usually seek death directly.

Because she has been away from the mansion for such a long time, first of all, her innocence can no longer be guaranteed. You must know that besides returning to her natal family, a woman who already has a husband's family, spending a night outside without authorization is already a major matter of tarnishing her innocence. Abandoned, but in the strict rules of the official family, she would be executed directly, not to mention that she was still the prince's concubine, and she disappeared without a sound for five or six days. According to the rules, even if she was found alive, she would inevitably die in the end.

Because her innocence is not guaranteed, it is also an insult to the palace.

But Mu Lingzhi just ordered the copper money to find her and let her go, so it was already the greatest gift.

Although Yu Ruyan couldn't bear it, because she knew that Kuang Qinqin was born in a brothel, and she had no other provenance other than the palace, but Mu Lingzhi's handling was also reasonable, so she had to suppress her unbearable heart and keep silent.

After Mu Lingzhi finished giving orders, he waved An's and the others to retreat, and returned to Yunsong Courtyard with Yu Ruyan.

But Kankan hadn't settled down yet after entering the courtyard, another servant came to report, someone from the palace invited Mu Lingzhi to enter the palace to discuss matters, and it was said that it was for the altar.

Mu Lingzhi's expression was heavy, and Yu Ruyan couldn't help asking: "Your Highness, didn't the people from Dali Temple report to His Majesty the matter of the altar a few days ago? Why hasn't it been settled yet?"

Mu Lingzhi rubbed his brows and said with a headache: "Last time, Lord Wang just told us that the accident happened when the crown prince granted the seal to sacrifice to heaven. Because of the collapse of the altar, the candles that were suddenly extinguished and the clues on the collapsed altar pillars were all missing. Destroyed, no clues to be found."

"Father originally gave Dali Temple three days to find out the reason, but because the clues were destroyed, Lord Wang asked Father to give him a few more days. Father also knew that it would be difficult to find out if the clues were destroyed, so he agreed to Lord Wang's request. , give Dali Temple another five days, let them find out the truth about the altar, now it seems that Lord Wang has news this time."

After all, he hastily left.

Recalling the matter of the altar on August [-]th, it reminded Yu Ruyan of some things that day, she thought of the strange eyes of the eldest prince Mu Yunzhi, and the little stone that hit her knee, But later, because of Prince Yi's sudden appearance, coupled with the incident of the imperial concubine being poisoned, she forgot such an important matter and clue.

But when she thought of talking to Mu Lingzhi, he had already disappeared without a trace.

Yu Ruyan had no choice but to wait for him to come back and talk to him again.

After Mu Lingzhi left, Yu Ruyan didn't take a rest. After Brother An put away her luggage, she took her to Bihe Courtyard where Kuang Qinqin lived before it was too late.

Yu Ruyan had never been to Bihe Courtyard before, not only Bihe Courtyard, but also Huaying's Narcissus Courtyard.After all, she appeared in the palace as a maid before, except for the South Garden, where she stayed in Yunsong Courtyard, and rarely moved around in other places in the palace.

Walking along the lake embankment all the way to the north, unexpectedly came to the Ziluo Courtyard where Gu Qing'er lived.

The gate of the Ziluo Courtyard was closed tightly, with a big lock hanging on it, so the situation inside could not be seen, but just looking at the desolate scene outside the courtyard, one can imagine the situation inside.

The little girl who led the way said that after Gu's accident, Mu Lingzhi ordered people to seal the Ziluo Courtyard, because Gu's death was too tragic, and the people in the house were not afraid of being too close to the Ziluo Courtyard, and felt that it was bad luck. Therefore, even the surrounding yard became desolate.

Yu Ruyan listened silently to what the little girl was saying without saying a word, but Brother An also shivered a few times, very frightened.

She was next to Yu Ruyan, and asked fearfully: "Princess, His Highness has already sent someone to look for Aunt Kuang, so why did the princess go out of her way to come to her yard when she was not around? It's also in vain."

Brother An has always been timid, she has never seen the tragedy of Gu Qing'er's death, but she was too scared to hear what the little girl said.

Although Yu Ruyan saw Gu Qing'er's tragic death with her own eyes, she felt nothing but heartache but no fear at all. As she walked forward, she said, "Although Aunt Kuang is cold-tempered and doesn't interact with people in the house, but according to His Highness, , these years, she stayed in the mansion peacefully, nothing happened, and now she suddenly disappeared without a word, there must be something strange, so I want to go to her yard to see if I can find any clues .”

While talking, they had already passed Ziluo Courtyard, and arrived at Bihe Courtyard of Kuang Qinqin not far away.

Biheyuan is also close to the lake, because there is a large lotus planted on the lake in front of the courtyard, so the courtyard was named Biheyuan.

As the name suggests, the Bihe Courtyard is small, but the scenery inside is clean and refreshing, simple and clear at a glance. It matches Kuang Qinqin's temperament very well, and it also makes Yu Ruyan inexplicably feel a little familiar.

They had just stepped into the gate of the yard, and they accidentally disturbed a dozen pigeons that were looking for food in the yard. Yu Ruyan thought that these pigeons were wild pigeons that had gone to the yard to look for food, until she saw the pigeons in the hands of the girl in the yard. Only then did Shi He know that these pigeons were raised by Bihe Courtyard.

The girl who feeds the pigeons is Luoyue, the eldest girl who is accompanying Kuang Qinqin. When Luoyue suddenly sees Yu Ruyan and the others come in, she is shocked.

Luoyue had also seen Yu Ruyan in the mansion before, and always thought she was just a vulgar little girl cleaning the garden, but since seeing Yu Ruyan at the gate of the city with Kuang Qinqin last time, After Gao Gao appeared in front of everyone, Luoyue couldn't believe that there was such a thing in the world, that a lowly girl could turn herself into a princess.

Seeing her here suddenly now, Luoyue panicked and knelt down in the yard in fright, bowing her head to greet Yu Ruyan.

Yu Ruyan had met Luoyue a few times before, but she was not familiar with her, and she never said a word, but judging by her appearance, she was an honest girl, so she said softly, "Get up, I won't come over your master Check out the courtyard to see if there are any clues about your master's disappearance. Take me to Aunt Kuang's room to have a look."

Hearing this, Luoyue quickly got up from the ground and led Yu Ruyan to the room where Kuang Qinqin lived.

Kuang Qinqin's room was also simple and simple, except for the necessary tables, chairs, bed and stools, it was not like the rooms of other masters in the palace, full of precious and various ornaments.In her room, there was not even a Bogu shelf, but there was a desk in front of the window sill, and the bookshelf next to it was full of books.

Kuang Qinqin was born as a geisha, so it stands to reason that she should be proficient in all kinds of piano, chess, calligraphy and painting, but in her room, apart from the books stacked on the bookshelf, there are no such things as pipa, qin and Xiao, which is a bit surprising.

Yu Ruyan walked slowly to the bookshelf in front of the window sill, glanced at the books on the shelf, and couldn't help being slightly taken aback.

The books on the bookshelf, except for a few few notebooks, are all medical books and books on various herbs.

Did Kuang Qinqin know medical skills?

Thinking of this, Yu Ruyan couldn't help but turned around and asked Luoyue casually: "Has Auntie studied medicine?"

Luoyue replied in a low voice: "I don't know, I just know that my aunt usually likes to look through these books, but I don't know if she understands medical skills or not."

Yu Ruyan felt that she was asking too much, if she didn't know medical skills, why would she read these boring medical books? !

She turned to Kuang Qinqin's dressing table, and opened her dressing box, which was half full of tiaras and jewelry, and Yu Ruyan opened her wardrobe, which also contained clothes for the four seasons.

She turned her head and asked Luoyue: "When your master left, did you take anything with you?"

Luoyue said with a confused face: "The master was feeding the pigeons in the yard at that time, suddenly his expression changed, and then he rushed away without saying a word. The servant chased after her and asked her where she was going, but she only let her go. The servant girl is back, don't follow her..."

Yu Ruyan walked around the room, and when she returned to the yard, the group of pigeons that had been frightened away flew back again, one after another with their heads down, pecking at the broken corn kernels on the ground. .

She picked up the food box hanging under the eaves, sprinkled a handful of corn kernels on the ground, and asked Luo Yue: "How long has your master been raising this pigeon?"

Luoyue followed her side with a low eyebrow, and said: "The slaves have been raised by the master since they started following the master. Usually the master feeds these pigeons, and the slaves never interfere."

Yu Ruyan quietly looked at the pigeons in the yard for a while, and led An Ge out without saying anything.

On the way back, seeing Yu Ruyan walking silently, An Ge couldn't help asking curiously: "Master, did you find anything after walking this far?"

Normally, Yu Ruyan would tell An Ge about anything, but today Yu Ruyan was in deep thought, just walked with frowning, without saying a word.It took a long time before he said in a muffled voice: "Don't go back yet, just walk around with me to relax."

Brother An knew that she was in a bad mood, so he didn't say anything more, and quietly accompanied Yu Ruyan as he walked around the palace aimlessly.

Unknowingly, she walked in front of another courtyard, Yu Ruyan looked at the number plate on the courtyard gate, frowned, and was about to turn around to leave, but almost bumped into an oncoming person.

Chen Ma was carrying a food box in her hand, and was rushing towards the Yingchun Courtyard when she bumped into Yu Ruyan by accident.

Looking at each other, both of them were stunned for a moment.

In the end, it was Yu Ruyan who came to her senses first. She hadn't seen her for half a year, and Chen Ma's black hair was all white. Feeling pity in her heart, she couldn't help saying in a warm voice, "Chen Ma, long time no see. How have you been?"

Although I have heard people say that the girl who lived with them in the small garden bungalow was the princess of His Highness, but seeing Yu Ruyan appearing in front of her suddenly today, Chen Ma still couldn't react and was stunned for a long time Then his face turned pale and he quickly knelt down, bowed his head respectfully to Yu Ruyan and said: "This old slave kowtowed to see the princess, and I mistakenly identified the princess before, please forgive me!"

Yu Ruyan still remembers that when she first met Chen Ma, although she was dressed in the clothes of a servant, she had a pretty face and a very good spirit, but now her head is full of white hair, her expression is much more lethargic, and her eyes are cloudy .

Taking two steps forward to pull Chen Ma up with her own hands, Yu Ruyan smiled and said: "What Chen Ma said, I was in this mansion before, thanks to Chen Ma's care for me, you and I don't have to be separated."

Seeing that she is still as close to her as she used to be with her current status, Mama Chen felt hot in her heart, but when she thought of the nasty things her daughter had done, she felt ashamed to see her, and immediately stood in front of Yu Ruyan with hesitation , looking very embarrassed.

Yu Ruyan knew exactly what she was thinking, looked at the food box beside her, and knew that she was delivering food to Chen Yanfei, so she said: "Mother Chen, don't be restrained, I'm just walking around here casually , you go to work first." After that, he took An Ge away slowly.

However, after only two steps, Chen Ma knelt down for her again, and said in a crying voice: "Princess, can you...can you show mercy based on the old slave's friendship with the concubine, so that I don't worry about it?" Yan Fei's grounding, let her out."

Turning around after hearing the words, Yu Ruyan looked at the poor woman lying on the ground, and couldn't help but think of Chen Yanfei who used despicable means to climb onto Mu Lingzhi's bed, and he drove her out of the palace. At that time, Chen Ma was also so pitiful pleaded with her.

Sighing secretly, Yu Ruyan sighed: "Mother Chen, do you still remember that when I met you and Uncle Chen on the first day I went to the bungalow in the South Garden, Uncle Chen told you at that time to keep Yan Fei in check?" Some things, so as not to cause trouble for her in the future, but now that I think about it, Uncle Chen knows this daughter very well, she really is not a cheap lamp, and has caused you and this palace to endure a lot of trouble."

Chen Ma's whole body trembled when she heard the words, her face was filled with shame, her head was lowered even lower, and her voice was full of helplessness and regret: "The princess is right, she is like this now, it's all because of old slaves teaching daughters badly. When her brother left In the end, I left her alone as a child. I really depended on her too much, which caused her to be so greedy and unscrupulous. Everything is the fault of this old slave. Please forgive her this time and let her out. "

Chen Ma knew in her heart that Chen Yanfei had done something wrong, but she couldn't help but tolerate her, she kept saying that it was her fault, and begged Yu Ruyan to lift Chen Yanfei's restraint.

When Chen Ma knelt down to plead for mercy, Yu Ruyan's gaze caught sight of a figure passing by the half-opened corner door of the Yingchun Courtyard, and her heart sank slightly.

Although Chen Yanfei was fined by Mu Lingzhi and grounded for half a year, the servants in her courtyard can still come in and out normally, so the corner door is usually open.

Yu Ruyan sharp-eyed saw who was in the corner gate, and she didn't make a sound, but said to Chen Ma: "The matter of confinement was punished by His Highness, and I have no right to intervene. Besides, Chen Yanfei's temperament made her feel uncomfortable." It's good to be locked up for a few days, Mama Chen doesn't need to beg me anymore, I'd better persuade her to let her take it easy so as not to suffer more in the future."

When she said these words, she kept her eyes fixed on the corner door. Sure enough, as soon as she finished speaking, a figure flashed there, and Chen Yanfei was so angry that she walked out of the corner door. : "Who asked you to beg her? She has always hated His Royal Highness's favor on me. She wished that I would die, and I was grounded because of her. Now you come to beg her? You are so stupid, go back quickly, don't give me here. I am ashamed."

Chen Yanfei reprimanded Chen Ma unceremoniously in front of Yu Ruyan, and did not even say "mother" from the beginning to the end. That arrogant and vicious attitude really made people look sideways.

Yu Ruyan watched coldly, ignoring the disrespect in her words, but Chen Ma reacted, and hurriedly pulled Chen Yanfei to kneel down to Yu Ruyan, and said anxiously: "You haven't lifted the restraint yet, How can you leave the yard without permission? Hurry up and confess your mistake to the princess, and ask her to forgive you."

After being reminded by Chen Ma, Chen Yanfei finally realized that she broke the boundary on impulse, and couldn't help but panic, fearing that Yu Ruyan would punish her for a few more months because of this matter, it would kill her !
After finally looking forward to His Highness's return, she was shut up in the courtyard every day without seeing Tianyan. How could she, who was determined to win favor, bear it?

But she was born to hate Yu Ruyan to death in her heart, and she was afraid in her heart, but she refused to admit defeat on the surface, and she refused to kneel down to Yu Ruyan, and said stubbornly: "I am not afraid of her, I have my own way to let His Highness relieve me Her feet are grounded, so you don't need to beg her here to shame her!"

Yu Ruyan couldn't help but sneered, and said coldly: "Yes, you have a lot of ideas, why, do you want to drug His Highness again, pretending to be me to confuse him?"

After finishing speaking, he ordered coldly: "Aunt Chen, who has no respect for elders, committed crimes against her superiors, demoted her to a commoner, and sent her to the labor room to do hard labor."

As soon as these words came out, Chen Yanfei was completely dumbfounded!

(End of this chapter)