Chapter 600 - 600 Untitled
600 Untitled
What about your life? Will you give it to him too?
Nangong Li did not say this. He felt that his mother had gone crazy. She had abandoned her dignity for a man who did not love her.
“Mother, you’ll regret it.” After Nangong Li finished speaking, he walked out of the room with a burning face.
The Queen looked at the hand that had hit her son. Her hand was trembling uncontrollably, but there was no turning back. “I won’t regret it… I definitely won’t!”
The Empress’s maternal family’s Red Lingzhi was gifted by an esteemed guest to the Old Master on his eightieth birthday. He had spent a lot of effort to find it for him. The old man had always regarded it as a treasure and did not eat it until he died.
Yan Jiuchao benefited.
The Queen took the risk of disobeying the imperial edict and personally went to her maternal family. Since the Queen had asked for it herself, there was nothing her maternal family wouldn’t give her.
After obtaining the Red Lingzhi, the Queen boarded the carriage to the State Preceptor Hall.
The State Preceptor was very surprised to see the grounded Queen. He was so shocked that he did not know what to say when he heard her ask for the engraving technique of the Wordless Heavenly Book.
“Your Highness… why do you need an engraving technique? Are you going to write some secret letter?” The State Preceptor asked in confusion.
The Queen said, “I have my own uses. You don’t have to ask. Just give it to me.”
The engraving technique and the pill formula were both the cornerstone treasures of the State Preceptor Hall. Not to mention the Queen, even if the Emperor personally asked, he could not easily hand them over.
The State Preceptor hesitated.
The Queen glanced at him from the corner of her eye and said, “Why? Can’t I get anything from you now?”
The State Preceptor said, “That’s not what I meant…”
“Then go get it!” The Queen said coldly.
The State Preceptor opened his mouth and looked at the Queen in shock. He stood up and returned to his bedchamber, handing her the booklet containing the engraving technique.
The Queen took the booklet and left without looking back.
Nangong Li walked out from behind the screen. “How is it? Did I say anything wrong? She’s already obsessed with a man.”
The State Preceptor turned to him and frowned. “That’s your father.”
It was not certain if he was his biological father or not. Of course, Nangong Li did not say this to the State Preceptor.
The State Preceptor said, “Then why do you still want me to give her the real engraving technique? Aren’t you worried that she’ll detoxify Yan Jiuchao and leave a huge problem for you?”
Nangong Li looked at the Queen’s back and said, “I want Mother to see if she can really move that man with her sincerity.”
“What if he’s really moved?” The State Preceptor asked.
Nangong Li smiled faintly. “Isn’t that just nice? My father will return to my mother’s side and continue to plan for her. My mother won’t have to worry about not being able to ascend to the throne.”
From a long-term perspective, the Queen’s deal was very cost-effective. Yan Jiuchao was Prince Yan’s eldest son, and the two of them had an indelible bloodline. Instead of rejecting him, it was better to generously accept him.
Whether Yan Jiuchao accepted her favor or not, as long as Prince Yan did, the Queen would win. However, was his father really so easily tempted?
This was a family matter of the Queen Manor, and it was not good for the State Preceptor to interfere. He only told Nangong Li to be careful and not fall into that family’s trap.
“I know my limits,” Nangong Li said.
That night, the Queen Manor brought the Red Lingzhi and the engraving technique to the Ziwei Pavilion. When she entered Ziwei Pavilion, the three little black eggs had just finished harming the small flowerbed in the manor. They wore big red flowers on their heads and returned fragrantly!
The Queen’s heart ached, but she had no choice but to squeeze out a gentle smile. “Dabao, Er’bao, Xiaobao.”
The three little black eggs looked at her in confusion.
The Queen wanted to say, “I’m your grandmother.” But she couldn’t say anything. She was still so young and beautiful. How could she have a grandson?! She was still hoping to give birth to another child for the Prince Consort!
The three little black eggs looked at each other and ran away!
The Queen heaved a sigh of relief. It was fine with Yan Jiuchao, but she really didn’t know how to get along with these little fellows. However, the Prince Consort seemed to dote on them very much. She had to find an opportunity to rope them in later.
The three little black eggs ran into their mother’s room in one go and give the flowers to their mother. Then, the three of them lay on the door and secretly looked out through the crack.
Prince Yan was sitting quietly in the courtyard.
The Queen walked over and handed the brocade box containing the Red Lingzhi and the engraving technique to him. “Look, is this what Chao’er needs?”
Prince Yan opened the brocade box and took a closer look. He said, “It’s the Red Lingzhi and the engraving technique. Thank you.”
The Queen said gently, “We’re husband and wife. Why are you so polite?”
Prince Yan’s expression was very cold. He did not reply.
The Queen was a little embarrassed. She looked around and found nothing to say. “Ziwei Pavilion is still too small. Why don’t you move back to your original courtyard first? I’ll find a bigger courtyard for Chao’er and the others.”
“There’s no need,” Prince Yan said. “I’m a criminal to begin with. This place is very good.”
The Queen paused and reached out to hold his hand on the table. Prince Yan calmly took his hand away. Her arm froze in midair and she lowered it in disappointment. “You still don’t believe me, do you? You still think that I forced you back then and you still blame me for not telling you the truth.”
Prince Yan did not answer her. Instead, he stood up indifferently. “It’s getting late. You should go back and rest first.” With that, he took the brocade box and turned to enter the room.
The colder he was to the Queen, the more indignant she was. There was nothing to cherish about something that was easy to obtain. It was more suitable for her to control a man like the Prince Consort. She could have the world at her fingertips. She did not believe that she could not obtain a man’s heart!
After that, the Queen came to Ziwei Pavilion even more frequently.
Not only was she meticulous about the Prince Consort, but she was also very concerned about Yan Jiuchao. It was even thanks to the two of them that Yu Wan’s treatment in the Queen Manor had increased by several levels. Not only was she not able to eat for free, but she was also given a monthly salary.
The servants had only changed the way they addressed Yan Jiuchao and Yu Wan. They were no longer Prince Yan and Princely Heir Consort, but Young Master and Young Madam. Nangong Li had suddenly become the Second Young Master, and the Little Commandery Princess had also become the Second Miss.
In the past, when rare things came to the manor, the first portion would always be sent to Nangong Li and the Little Commandery Princess’ room. But now, they were all sent to the Ziwei Pavilion. The ones left behind by the Ziwei Pavilion were sent to the siblings.
The Little Commandery Princess had never suffered such grievances in her life. She was furious. “Mother is too biased! My brother and I are the ones from the Nangong family! The bastard child of my father and another woman! What right do they have to ride on our heads?!”
In less than half a day, Yu Wan heard these words.
Yu Wan watched the commotion and cried in front of the Queen. “… Boohoo, I can’t stay anymore. Sister called my husband a bastard…”
That night, the Little Commandery Princess was grounded.
This matter naturally could not escape Nangong Li’s ears. When Nangong Li went to visit his sister, the Little Commandery Princess was already crying. Although she was not his biological sister, she was still his sister whom he had doted on for many years. Nangong Li could not help but feel sorry for her.
The Little Commandery Princess threw herself into his arms and cried, “Brother, quickly chase those annoying people out! I don’t want them to stay in the manor anymore… I hate them to death… Mother punished me for them… Mother is too much…”
Even though Nangong Li had long guessed that the Queen would be biased, he did not expect that she would wrong her children so much. Thinking about it carefully, it was not impossible. How many crazy things had her mother done for his father all these years?
In the past, she had always put their father first. However, no one shared their father’s love with them, so they did not feel aggrieved.
Nangong Li patted his sister’s back and said with a cold expression, “Don’t worry, I’ll chase them out.”
He had not endured for nothing these days. He had long been secretly plotting. He was just short of an opportunity to fall out. He did not expect the opportunity to come so quickly.
He comforted his sister. When he walked out of the White Cloud Pavilion, he happened to meet a pageboy who came back from buying. The pageboy held a few sticks of sparkling candied hawthorn in his hand.
“Your Highness!” The pageboy bowed to Nangong Li.
Nangong Li looked at the candied hawthorn in his hand and asked, “Who did you buy it for?”
The pageboy replied, “Your Highness, I bought it for the little masters of Ziwei Pavilion. The Queen heard that they like the candied hawthorn from that old shop, so she specially asked me to go there.”
When Nangong Li saw that he was holding many sticks in his hand, his eyes flashed and he said, “Send a few sticks to my courtyard first.”
“Ah, Your Highness… also eats this?” The pageboy was stunned. He realized that he had said too much and quickly lowered his head. “Yes! I’ll send it over now!”
To go to Ziwei Pavilion, they would pass by Nangong Li’s courtyard. It was only a few more steps. The pageboy and Nangong Li returned to the courtyard.
“Put it on the table,” Nangong Li said.
The pageboy placed a few sticks of candied hawthorn on the plate on the table.
Nangong Li took advantage of his carelessness and took out a bottle of poison from his drawer, dripping it on the remaining sticks of candied hawthorn. He was fast, so the pageboy did not notice his movements. He left with the candied hawthorn that had been drugged.