The abandoned concubine who transmigrated woke up shouting "Long live the widow!"

Sun said, “Brother, indeed, some people said that. This morning, my sister-in-law sent someone to the county magistrate’s mansion to deliver a visiting card. The servant came back and said that Kang Ping clearly does not live in his own mansion at all, and also said that all the outer walls of the county magistrate’s mansion have collapsed.”

"Later, I sent people to the Imperial Aunt's residence, but they refused to see anyone! My sister-in-law then sent people to the streets to inquire about what happened. The result was just as Guangxing said. There were also other reasons, but it was said that Kangping had offended the Princess Consort of Zhan, and it was very likely that she had pushed him!"

Li Huan still didn't believe it after hearing it.

"My sister-in-law also thinks that there's no smoke without fire. Why would everyone say that for no reason? Maybe it's true!"

Madam Sun sighed again, "Alas, Ru Ping is truly pitiful. She offered so much grain and was even granted the title of County Princess, yet she is still bullied like this."

After hearing these words, Madam Li didn't dare to comment rashly. She could only say, "The capital is a large city with a huge population, and the people love to spread these kinds of rumors. Who can really say for sure what happened? The Kangping County Princess's residence has been in trouble, and the officials will have an explanation. Let's eat!"

"Let's eat!" Li Huan said.

Then he said to his son, "Don't go out and run around in the manor these two days. Prince Zhan didn't attend court today. If you run into the prince tomorrow, I'll tell him to take you to the military camp first."

"Huh? So fast! We've only been back for two days! I wanted to stay a few more days!" Li Guangxing pouted, feeling that the food in front of him didn't taste so good anymore, even though it was fresh vegetables that his cousin had brought them!

"Go and see if your physical condition is suitable for military service," Li Huan said.

Seeing that her eldest grandson was unhappy, Madam Li was about to say a few words of comfort when Madam Che, who was beside her, pressed her arm down, signaling her not to spoil the child.

What the Li family didn't know was that Princess Kangping wasn't truly refusing guests; when the Prime Minister's wife visited yesterday, Princess Xuanhui still invited her in.

The Prime Minister's wife brought many gifts, mainly to offer comfort, without mentioning anything else. However, this was like sending charcoal in snowy weather, which brought the two families much closer.

Of course, the Prime Minister's wife did this at the behest of Prime Minister Zou; after all, the enemy of my enemy is my friend!

When the emperor saw the backpack and the novel items inside that Eunuch Xi had brought, a smile naturally spread across his face.

"Why didn't Father stay a few more days?" the Emperor asked casually.

The eunuch bowed his head and said, "Your Majesty, the Emperor Emeritus did not say anything, so this old servant dares not speculate."

The Emperor thought to himself, "With my unpredictable father, you never know what he'll do next." He waved his hand and said, "Go back now! Take good care of your father."

"Yes!" Eunuch Xi bowed and withdrew.

At this moment, Eunuch Fuhai walked in and said, "Your Majesty, the head eunuch of Zhongcui Palace has come to deliver a message, saying that the Third Princess has been able to turn over today. Consort Li has also asked the kitchen to prepare your favorite dishes and invites you to have dinner at Zhongcui Palace tonight."

After hearing Fu Hai's report, the Emperor naturally understood Consort Li's intentions. He thought that he hadn't been to Zhongcui Palace for a long time. Although he didn't like Consort Li, the Third Princess was still his daughter.

So he said, "Alright! But I still have some memorials to deal with, so I'll be there a little later."

"Yes, Your Majesty, I will have them go back and prepare." Fu Hai agreed, thinking to himself that the Emperor had been going to Consort Fang's palace for more than ten days in a row, and today he was finally willing to go to another concubine's palace.

The emperor stopped reviewing memorials and instead started fiddling with the new gadgets Jingxue had given him; he was particularly fond of the flashlight.

When we went to Zhongcui Palace, we had Fuhai hold up a flashlight. The effect was amazing; the light from all ten palace lanterns could reach far, not to mention the brightness.

When Consort Li heard that the Emperor was coming, she dressed up carefully and waited at the entrance of the main hall early in the morning.

As soon as the Emperor's carriage arrived at the gate, she led a group of palace maids and eunuchs out to greet him, and knelt down to pay her respects, saying, "Your Majesty, I pay my respects!"

"Get up!" The Emperor waved his hand, and Fuhai turned off the flashlight.

The surroundings instantly became much darker, but fortunately there were quite a few candles lit in the main hall. After adjusting for a moment, the emperor strode in with his hands behind his back.

The Emperor held the Third Princess for a while, then it was time for her to be fed. The wet nurse then took the Third Princess and left.

Consort Li ordered the meal to be served. The Emperor originally planned to return to the Hall of Diligent Governance to review memorials shortly after finishing his meal.

However, for some reason, that feeling from Fang Jieyu's palace returned. He had previously suspected that Fang Jieyu might have drugged him, but Fang Jieyu's palace didn't have her own small kitchen; the food was all delivered by the imperial kitchen, so it was impossible.

Today is no different; the Emperor feels as if he has found a second spring in his life.

That night, the Emperor was still full of energy and kept going for half the night. Although he was a little tired the next day, he didn't feel anything was wrong.

The next day was the fifteenth, the day to go to the Empress's palace.

The Emperor felt he should treat everyone equally, and besides, he and the Empress hadn't had a major falling out in a long time.

But even when he was bathing and resting, he had no thoughts. Instead, he was so sleepy that he quickly fell asleep.

The Empress was already used to this kind of Emperor. Besides, she had heard about who the Emperor had favored in the past ten days.

Even without anyone telling her, Fang Jieyu herself was practically strutting around with pride, and every time she came to pay her respects, she couldn't stop showing off.

Consort Wang and Consort De are pregnant, so the Empress exempted them from their daily greetings. There weren't many concubines to begin with, and these days everyone was watching Consort Fang's performance.

As the empress of a country, she knew that her husband did not belong to her alone. Therefore, there was no difference between one concubine and a group of concubines. As long as she had a child, she had no other desires.

Jingxue started preparing cotton-padded clothes for Li Shi yesterday. Pregnancy in winter is troublesome. Her belly is getting bigger every day, and the cotton-padded clothes become tight after a few days. If they were in the mansion, of course, it wouldn't be a problem.

However, being imprisoned in the Cold Smoke Palace was not so convenient, so Jingxue had Jingze's wet nurse and several maids make not only cotton-padded clothes and trousers for Li Shi, but also several sets of underwear.

The thought of Jing Zhiyuan and his wife being imprisoned made Jingxue grit her teeth in hatred; she still had to teach that old scoundrel, Prime Minister Zou, a lesson.

On November 16th, Jingxue had just entered the manor after seeing An'an and the others off when the gatekeeper announced that Prince Qin had arrived.

Jingxue led Xiaoman out of the wet nurse's room and into the main hall.

"Sister-in-law!" Qin Jing cupped his hands in greeting, with two attendants behind him.

"You're here! Have a seat. Xiaoman, go brew some tea!" Jingxue said with a smile.

"Yes! Miss."

"What have you been busy with these past few days? How's business at the hot pot restaurant?" Jingxue asked casually, sitting in the main seat.

Qin Jing also sat down at the lower end of the table, lifting his robe. "Sister-in-law, the hot pot restaurant is doing very well. I made another 20 copper pots, otherwise it wouldn't be enough. I've been busy these past few days dealing with the caravans, and I finally finished yesterday. That's why I've come to pay my respects to you today!"

Jingxue remembered the dried seafood Qin Jing had sent him a few days ago, probably when the caravan had just returned.

Jingxue was already used to Qin Jing's words and actions, and guessed that this kid was up to some wicked scheme again, so she laughed and said, "Tell me! What kind of trick are you up to now?"