The little heroine investigates a mysterious case

The next day, the General's Mansion sent an invitation. Of course, Zhao Xuan said she was not feeling well and did not attend the banquet. Ever since Gu Zhanghua learned that Qin Shao led his troops to besiege the Zhao Mansion and forced Zhao Cheng to commit suicide, he had been brooding over what Qin Shao had done and naturally did not want to get close to the General's Mansion. So he went with the flow and said that the princess was sick and in a bad mood, so he had to stay in the mansion to accompany the princess and did not attend the banquet.

The most distinguished guest was not invited, but the scheduled garden flower viewing and dinner were still to be held as scheduled.

Wu Yulan was worried that the guests would look down on her, thinking that she, the general's second wife, was unable to invite the virtuous king and his wife, which would be embarrassing for both herself and the general.

So at the banquet, Wu Yulan announced to everyone that the virtuous prince's wife was ill and that the virtuous prince's beloved wife needed personal care. It wasn't that she couldn't invite the virtuous prince and his wife, it was that they loved each other so much!

Everyone then understood the reason. The first person to express strong concern for Zhao Xuan's health was the twelfth lady of the Zhen Palace. She was still thinking about the incident when the virtuous princess bravely rescued the cat Qiqi, and she had not yet repaid her gratitude. So she suggested to set a date with Wu Yulan to visit together.

Seeing that the virtuous prince and his wife were very popular, Wu Yulan had some ideas. The next day, she handed a sign to meet Concubine Xiao Shufei to express her concern for the virtuous prince and his wife.

Xiao Aiyue hadn't seen her son for several days and was worried that Tian Shiliu's illness might be transmitted to her son. She immediately decided to take the lead and lead everyone to visit the sick at Prince Xian's mansion tomorrow.

This was truly a pleasant surprise. Wu Yulan had already achieved her goal by thinking that she could win the favor of Concubine Shu. Unexpectedly, she could also use Concubine Shu's favor to establish a good relationship with the virtuous prince and his wife. It was really a win-win situation.

Here, Xiao Aiyue, Wu Yulan, and the Twelfth Madam were all actively preparing gifts for visiting the patient. It was not until a large group of carriages and entourage were about to arrive at Prince Xian's Mansion that Zhao Xuan and Gu Zhanghua received the news.

Zhao Xuan, who was lying on the bed pretending to be sick, pulled back the quilt and stared at Qing'e who was standing in front of the bed in amazement.

"What did you say? The Concubine Shu is here? She's almost at the door?"

Qing'e said cheerfully, "Not only is Consort Shu here, but General Qin Shao's wife and daughter, and the twelve ladies of the Zhen Palace are all here!"

Zhao Xuan pounded the bed with her fist. "Why so sudden? Why didn't you tell me in advance?"

Qing'e kindly pointed out, "Princess, your words are a bit out of line. The Concubine Shu is your mother-in-law, equivalent to your own mother. When you were ill, your mother condescended to visit you and even helped you arrange for so many prominent ladies to come visit you. You should be grateful, but why are you so anxious? And you're blaming them for not telling you in advance?"

After being lectured by Qing'e, Zhao Xuan couldn't say a word of what was on her mind and her face turned red.

Qing'e touched Zhao Xuan's forehead and asked in confusion, "She doesn't have a fever..."

When the time came, Zhao Xuan waved at Qing'e with an unfazed look.

"Okay, you're right! Go get ready to receive the guests!"

Qing'e nodded: "Then I will prepare it right away!"

After Qing'e left, only Zhao Xuan, Chunlan, Qiuju and others were left. Zhao Xuan turned over and got down from the ground, starting to walk back and forth.

"What do you say I should do? I won't talk about anyone else, but Qin Chuyun is the apprentice I took in when I was a pastry chef at Changxiangju! If she exposes me on the spot and calls me master, I, I, I won't even have a place to cry!"

Chunlan suddenly realized: "After all this time, the disciple you accepted is her? The eldest daughter of the General's Mansion? This is troublesome! Otherwise, I should just pretend to be sick and disappear! I've been sick for two days anyway, so a little while won't make any difference!"

Qiu Ju quickly rejected it, "That doesn't make sense! We can refuse to see others, but what about Concubine Shu? We've been claiming to have a slight cold, not something serious that keeps us bedridden. If Concubine Shu gets serious and insists on coming to see us, or if she really calls in the imperial physician and finds out we're faking it, it'll be even more troublesome!"

Zhao Xuan wanted to raise her arms and shout, but in this Xianwang Mansion, she could only silently complain in her heart: "I feel worse than walking through a mountain of swords and a sea of ​​fire. I'm being attacked from all sides! Gu Zhanghua hasn't been dealt with yet, and Yun'er is joining in the fun! This is going to drive me to death!"

Qiu Ju finally came up with an idea. She said cautiously, "How about this? We should cover our faces with gauze. If anyone asks, we can say they're all distinguished guests. We're afraid they'll get sick. That sounds reasonable. As long as we stay calm and don't reveal any flaws, Miss Qin won't associate the princess with her pastry chef!"

Gu Zhanghua hadn't seen Zhao Xuan in two days and was convinced she was feigning illness. But when he learned his mother had brought a group to visit, he saw it as a perfect opportunity to pressure her. He knew he could find a way to taunt her in front of his mother. He doubted she would hold back? Would she still reveal her true colors?

Everyone sat down in the hall, and Xiao Aiyue pulled Gu Zhanghua closer and looked at him carefully.

"You've lost weight again!"

Gu Zhanghua touched his face.

"You haven't lost weight, have you? I've been eating medicinal food these past two days, and I feel like I've gained weight..."

Qing'e put the tea bowl on the table beside her and gave Gu Zhanghua some advice.

"Your Highness, you don't know that there is a kind of thinness that makes your mother think you are thin, even if you are not thin, and there is a kind of coldness that makes your mother think you are cold, even if you are not cold!"

Gu Zhanghua understood and looked at his mother carefully: "Mom, I think you have lost weight too!"

Xiao Aiyue laughed and glanced at Qing'e.

"Qing'e, I see from your complexion that you seem to be living quite comfortably in this mansion! Where is your princess? Is she really too sick to get out of bed? She won't even come out to see me, her mother-in-law, when I, her mother-in-law, personally come to see her? Does she want me to go to her bedside to bring her water and medicine?"

Qing'e was about to say a few good words for the princess when she suddenly pointed at the door and said, "The princess is here!"

Zhao Xuan deliberately picked a dark red gauze to cover the lower half of her face. With the support of Chunlan and Qiuju, she walked in sickly and first bowed to Xiao Aiyue.

"Mother, are you well? I am deeply grateful for taking the trouble to come and visit you personally."

"Why are you still covering your face?"

"They are all distinguished guests, especially you. I'm afraid the poison will make you sick..."

Zhao Xuan coughed twice as she spoke.

Seeing Zhao Xuan's pretentiousness, Gu Zhanghua wanted to tease her. He deliberately walked over to Zhao Xuan, squeezed Chunlan away, and whispered to her in a teasing tone, "Princess, you have so many different styles of face masks!"

(The mask complains: I don’t want to do it either. I’m so tired, so exhausted. I was going to make a beautiful dress, but it ended up being shattered into pieces and turned into a mask!!)

Zhao Xuan's heart suddenly shuddered and her legs went weak. Gu Zhanghua took the opportunity to support Zhao Xuan and smiled at everyone.

In the eyes of everyone, this scene looked like a loving couple, whispering to each other and showing affection in public. The elders all had auntie smiles on their faces, and their peers were envious and praised the virtuous king and his wife for their deep love.

Next, everyone asked about the princess's condition and presented the gifts they had brought. It was quite lively for a while.

Zhao Xuan looked at Wu Yulan who was sitting quietly beside her.

After not seeing each other for more than ten years, Wu Yulan's hair was covered with pearls and her clothes were gorgeous, but she couldn't hide her face that was no longer youthful. There were crow's feet at the corners of her eyes, and her face looked a little haggard, but her expression was calm.

Zhao Xuan thought that this was Aunt Lan who had taken good care of her when she was a child. She still remembered that Aunt Lan was a little sentimental at that time. Although she was her master's maid, the two of them were as close as sisters. Zhao Xuan thought that she had already prepared herself and would be able to control her emotions when she met Aunt Lan one day.

But now, having truly seen Aunt Lan, it was like seeing her Master. She wanted so badly to throw herself into Aunt Lan's arms, cry her heart out, and tell her about all the years she had missed her Master, all the years she had missed Aunt Lan, and all the hard times she had endured...

But in front of everyone, she couldn't do anything, but she could still show respect as a junior, right?

Zhao Xuan tried her best to suppress the turbulent emotions in her heart, walked up to Wu Yulan and bowed as a junior.

"You are General Qin's wife, right?"

Wu Yulan hurriedly stood up to return the greeting.

"I don't deserve the honor of being a princess. I am Qin Shao's wife, Wu Yulan."

"It's okay. You are the elder in private, so it's your duty."

Wu Yulan looked at Zhao Xuan with concern. "I wanted to invite the princess to our house for a gathering a few days ago, but she fell ill. Is she feeling better now?"