The Changchun Palace team travels back in time to Ruyi's Royal Love in the Palace

In the twelfth month of the sixth year of the Qianlong reign, Princess Roushu married Zhuang Yougong, the Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices.

Hengti was the Empress Dowager's own daughter, so she naturally enjoyed a different kind of prestige. In addition to gold and silver jewelry, her dowry also included farms and pawnshops to generate income for her.

Zhuang Yougong treated Hengti with utmost respect, but his Cantonese accent made communication somewhat difficult. Moreover, his hometown was far away, and he had no relatives in the capital to help him. Having only served as an official for two years, his life in the capital was not wealthy. In order to marry the princess, he had even resorted to borrowing money from all sides, leaving his household affairs quite empty. Furthermore, with Hengti having acquired so many dowry properties, he would have to devote some of his energy to her affairs. Therefore, he entrusted most of the management of the charity to Shuangluo.

At this time, Yingluo was busy with palace affairs because the Empress had given birth to the Sixth Prince Yongcong, and she could not come out often.

Just then, the charity received an unnamed donation that appeared in the accounting office early in the morning—a package of silver notes wrapped in flowing brocade.

Therefore, although the relevant affairs had already been handed over before Hengti got married, things were still complicated, and Shuangluo was busy for a while before finally stabilizing the situation.

During this process, she was pleasantly surprised to find that Ying'er, the servant under the Xinzhe warehouse manager whom Hengti had entrusted to her care, was literate. So she took the time to train her, having people teach her to read accounts and other tasks. Gradually, Ying'er became proficient in these things.

Even while helping to care for mentally ill disaster victims and patients, he overheard some basic medical principles from the resident doctor at the charity.

The doctor was an old man with white hair and beard. After discovering that she was secretly learning the techniques, he did not hesitate to report her to Shuangluo.

"It's not that I'm being secretive, but does a girl studying medicine have to become a traditional Chinese medicine practitioner? There are so many gossipy women around, and traditional Chinese medicine practitioners are one of them. Doing that kind of work means people will talk behind your back!"

When Shuanglu was in her hometown, she had seen witches and sorcerers, most of whom were frauds. Thinking about it, it was indeed detrimental to her reputation.

When Physician Huang and Physician Jiang and his wife visited the charity hall, they heard about this and were quite supportive of Ying'er studying medicine.

He sent Ying'er away before telling Shuanglu the reason.

"People outside the palace don't know about this child, but everyone inside knows. Her family has committed too many serious crimes. Even now that the Emperor has granted a general amnesty, they are not among those pardoned because they have committed several of the ten heinous crimes. She will probably be a slave for life. Since that's how her life is going to be, why worry about her reputation?"

It would be better to learn more skills to protect yourself; perhaps that would earn you favor with someone important. At the very least, you could take care of yourself. After all, she's frail and has some hidden ailments. There's a saying among the common people that women's illnesses are difficult to cure, and most doctors outside don't like treating women. Now that she's not in Changchun Palace, if something happens to her, finding a doctor will be very difficult.”

A few days later, Physician Huang sent over several medical books he had read before, which she then handed over to Ying'er.

Qiu Yuexiu did not return to Beijing for the Spring Festival that year.

On the first day of the Lunar New Year, Jiang Yubin and Su Xin brought their daughter Jiang Wuji to the charity hall to offer New Year's greetings.

Jiang Yubin specifically sought out Master Dongmen to give her this name, and the child truly lived up to it, almost never getting sick, growing up fair-skinned, chubby, and robust, and also quite mischievous. She was exquisitely beautiful, her large eyes darting around curiously, a gold thread necklace around her neck swaying gently with her movements—the necklace was a first birthday gift that Li Yu had specially arranged to send not long ago.

Su Xin held her daughter, who was trying to crawl around, in her arms, and stuffed a rag doll into her hand while saying, "I heard from Lord Gui Duo that He Chen cannot leave the river works. For many years, he has not spent the New Year with his family."

Jiang Yubin sighed, "This must be what they mean by Yu the Great taming the floods, passing his home three times without entering."

Shuangluo knew they came to keep her company because they were worried she would be lonely during the New Year. She was grateful and said, "I'm fine with my sister. As long as my husband is safe and sound."

Ying'er squatted by the stove, waiting for the water to boil while reading a medical book.

Actually, she deliberately hid early on.

Ulanara's case had already caused quite a stir outside the palace. Only after she left the palace did she learn from the gossip in the streets and alleys that Physician Jiang and his wife had almost been kidnapped by their own family members, and that Physician Jiang's wife had been injured.

She's too ashamed to face anyone right now.

Sometimes she would think of Lord Guiduo, who had given them clothes and money back then. He had said that the sins committed by the men of the Ulanara clan had nothing to do with their families.

This is not the case.

The Ulanara clan had no important officials from the previous dynasty, only women in the harem.

Everything that Ama and his other uncles and brothers did was for their eldest sister's position in the Prince Bao's mansion and the palace, as well as their own future prospects after entering the palace.

If it weren't for the later misfortunes, she knew very well that she would eventually be arranged to enter the palace or marry a member of the imperial family, becoming an ally of her elder sister and the Ulanara clan.

Her jumbled thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a cat's meow.

A calico cat strolled in through the door.

This cat is chubby, with glossy fur, and is docile and unafraid of people; it's obviously someone's pet.

She put down her book, picked up the cat, and went out of the yard to see if the cat owner was nearby.

A magnificent carriage adorned with gilded bronze plates was parked at the entrance, and a woman was peering into the courtyard beside it.

The woman was wrapped in a fox fur cloak, her head adorned with pearls and jade, and most strikingly, a gilded floral decoration on her forehead.

For some reason, Ying'er felt that this woman looked somewhat familiar.

Suddenly, the calico cat jumped out of Ying'er's arms and walked gracefully toward the woman.

A look of surprise appeared on the woman's face. She picked up the cat and scolded, "How could Mimi run off like that!"

She suddenly turned her face and smiled at Ying'er: "This servant thanks Princess Qingli."

Ying'er's mind went blank for a moment, and she immediately screamed, "I'm not!"

The woman bent down and said softly, "How could you mistake me for someone else, sister? Oh, I forgot, my birth mother was a lowly courtesan, not even fit to be Lord Narbu's mistress. I am naturally unworthy to be called sister by Princess Qingli. Please forgive me, Princess Qingli."

Her breath was sweet and her voice was soft, but to Ying'er, it sounded like the whispers of a demon.

Ying'er screamed again, gave a shove haphazardly, and turned to run away.

But he immediately tripped over the threshold and fell hard to the ground.

Shuangluo heard the noise from inside the room and came out with Jiang Yubin and his wife, only to see this scene before her.

Although she didn't know what was happening, she had a bad feeling. She stood in front of the door, separating the woman in front of her from Ying'er with her body, and said politely, "This... honored guest, this is the charity hall opened by Princess Rou Shu. If you have come to donate money, please follow me."

Nen Cai smiled, gave a deep bow, and said, "Your Highness, my father's bloodline is tainted, and he has been living in the brothel for many years. I dare not step into this charity hall. Please stand at the door. I have only come to visit an old acquaintance. Now that I have seen everyone, I will take my leave."

She turned around, flicked her finger, and a maidservant immediately took out a brocade pouch and respectfully presented it to Shuangluo.

Shuangluo's expression hardened slightly as she watched the young man's retreating figure. She still asked, "Please tell me your address, Lady Bodhisattva, so that I may pay my respects in person."

Nen Cai's words drifted over on a gust of cold wind: "A little money, no need for thanks."

A few days later, Shuangluo stood outside a house, somewhat hesitant.

A maid came out and said politely, "Mother Shui has been waiting for you for a long time. Please come in."

Anxiang Garden was a brothel and entertainment venue, most lively at night, and not quiet during the day either.

Led by her maid, she bypassed the guests who were drinking and singing and entered a quiet courtyard.

Upon entering the room, the decorations were not elaborate, but the most eye-catching feature was a painting of Xi Shi washing silk hanging on the wall, and a shrine in the corner enshrining Erlang Shen. Because of the underfloor heating, it was very warm, and Shuangluo even felt that she was dressed too warmly, feeling slightly sweaty.

The young girl no longer wore floral appliqués, revealing the scars on her face. She wore a plain white gauze dress, which was made of a somewhat transparent material. Underneath, she was not wearing an inner garment, but only a light red silk bodice.

Through the semi-transparent gauze dress, Shuangluo could see that Nencai's body was tattooed with floral branches, and red plum blossoms were blooming on the branches.

She paused for a moment, then realized that it was impolite of her to stare at him like that, and looked away embarrassedly.

Nen Cai was not offended and smiled indifferently: "I used to be able to entertain guests with unusual tastes thanks to Qingli Gege's cousin. I had some scars left on me, so after I went to Jiangnan, I had them tattooed like this."

Shuanglu was both shocked and pitied, and didn't know how to speak for a moment.

It was Nencai who spoke first: "Your Highness specifically inquired about this place and came here in person, probably to ask about Princess Qingli. Don't worry, Zhuangzi said that a tree can live out its natural lifespan even if it is useless. That girl has neither ambition nor courage, and is of no use. I have no interest in forcing others, so I will not go looking for her again."

Shuangluo disliked the word "use," but still patiently asked, "How did you originally intend to use her?"

Nen smiled and said, "Since this won't happen, you don't need to worry about it."

As Shuangluo was leaving, she heard Nencai sigh, "Sometimes I really don't know how the Ulanara clan came up with names. Cherry blossoms are mostly pink, but the eldest princess's former name was Qingying (Green Cherry). Pears are only ripe when they turn yellow, but this little princess's former name was Qingli (Green Pear). I don't know if it's out of place or if it's a deliberate attempt to stand out from the crowd."

On the fourteenth day of the first lunar month, the gates of Cuiyun Pavilion, which had been closed for a long time, were opened.

Ruyi's face was blank. She wore a snow-gray cotton robe embroidered with flowers, and only had a gold rose hairpin and a few silk flowers on her head. On the day she was confined, Qin Li led his men to empty Cuiyun Pavilion, taking away even the jewelry and armor one by one, leaving only the gold hairpin and two pots of green plum blossoms that Ruyi had been given as a birthday gift that year.

Although Qin Li secretly said that the emperor took away other rewards only to silence the women in the harem, and still allowed her to use them freely from the Imperial Household Department, she only asked for spices and face powder a few times.

Her salary was suspended, and the new nanny was paid by the Imperial Household Department and was only responsible for Ruyi's meals, clothing, and various chores in Cuiyun Pavilion.

Ruyi had nothing to offer as a reward, and these old women felt that being assigned to serve this wicked person who had been struck by lightning would bring them bad luck, so they were reluctant to do even the most basic tasks.

As for things like flower petal bathwater, silk scrubbing, kneeling massages while putting on shoes, forget about it. Whenever Ruyi or Hailan slightly mentioned the old rules of service, the nannies would say sarcastically, "A criminal who framed the Empress and the concubines, now confined and guilty, yet she acts more important than the Empress! What, back when you were chosen for the imperial concubine selection, before you even had a chance to warm that jade ruyi in your hands, the late Emperor personally came to Jiangxue Pavilion to issue an edict not making you the primary consort. You don't actually think you're destined to be the Empress, do you? Having such unreasonable thoughts, aren't you afraid even Heaven will be angry and send down another lightning bolt?"

Hailan was furious, but helpless. Ruyi didn't say anything either, her face dark and her lips pouting, spending her days drawing and embroidering with her unarmored fingers.

Seeing that this person was timid and cowardly, the old women secretly thought that he must not dare to do anything because of his status as a criminal. So they became bolder and, together with Shuangxi, ransacked Ruyi's remaining odds and ends. They only stopped when the spices and powders given by the Imperial Household Department were too valuable to sell.

They ate fresh food every day, only giving Ruyi reheated, even spoiled, rotten vegetable leaves.

Shuangxi had already received Qin Li's guidance and earnestly explained that the Emperor knew she was suffering from the hardship of being penalized and gave her the dishes he had saved up. As for cooking them repeatedly, it was because the Emperor knew she was being slapped in the face every day and was afraid she wouldn't be able to chew them; and the slightly sour taste was because these dishes were reserved for her by the Emperor, who couldn't bear to eat them himself, so they had been left out for a while.

Ruyi smiled and said, "It's fine as long as it's there. Just leave it there."

As for Hailan, in the past, Granny Chen felt sorry for her because she was an injured person and her master did not take care of her, so she left some fresh food for her.

Who knew that the food would later appear in front of Ruyi? Ruyi raised her finely drawn eyebrows and said that such deception of her master should be severely punished.

In the end, of course, nothing came of it, but Granny Chen learned her lesson, and from then on, Hailan never had any fresh food to eat.

Although Hailan unintentionally eroded Qi Ru's consciousness, the nourishment she received was only enough to keep her alive. This time, she was punished and suffered serious injuries, and her diet was irregular, which caused her a lot of trouble. She had to rest for a long time before she could continue to serve Ruyi, but she was limping and walked slowly.

The Imperial Household Department sent an imperial decree that since Hailan was able to get up, she should serve her. The several maids were overjoyed and hurriedly left.

Qin Li handed them four thick packets of reward money and said with a smile, "You've worked hard, ladies. This is a reward from Her Majesty the Empress."

The old women weighed the banknotes in their hands, estimated their thickness, and were extremely grateful, chanting Buddhist prayers in gratitude.

After Ruyi was released from confinement, the first person to arrive was Yihuan.

Seeing that she didn't have much jewelry, Yi Huan brought her a filigree jade bracelet and some hairpins and other ornaments.

"This filigree bracelet was personally bestowed by the Emperor. Originally, it contained some scented bait, but it has lost its flavor over time, and since the Empress does not like it, it was taken out."

As Yi Huan spoke, she had He Xi bring the scented bait wrapped in a handkerchief to Ruyi, and then said, "The fragrance hidden in this bracelet is the Emperor's ingenious idea. If you want, Sister, you can have the Imperial Household Department add some of these scented baits to match."

She wondered if it was just her imagination, but she vaguely felt that Ruyi's face darkened for a moment before she declined, saying, "Since it was a gift from the Emperor, keep it safe. When you give birth to a princess, you can give it to her as part of her dowry."

The lack of children had always been a source of worry for Yi Huan. She interpreted Ruyi's words as a blessing and forced a smile, saying, "How could we possibly wait until then? My sister is just giving gifts to whoever she's with. Although Consort Ling and I have some dealings, I won't give her this."

Ruyi smiled, her makeup powder billowing from the corners of her mouth: "You can't say this to anyone else but me... I am."

Yi Huan said, "I understand. Now that Consort Gao is ill and out of favor, Consort Ling is even more pleased with herself. But she is from the countryside and has little knowledge. She only flatters the Emperor to gain his favor. The Emperor usually cares about the Empress's reputation, but that's only because Fu Heng has done a good job in reforming the horse administration in the Northwest. I only hope that the Emperor will treat me sincerely, not for these other reasons."

Just then, Jinbao came in and said, "Consort Xian, His Majesty will be arriving at Cuiyun Pavilion soon. Please prepare to receive him."

Yi Huan gave a cold smile, her face showing an expression of "I knew it".

Ruyi glanced at Yihuan with a smug look in her eyes.

After Ruyi's confinement was lifted, the Emperor's headache returned. Reluctantly, he reluctantly went to Cuiyun Pavilion.

He humbled himself enough to say that the incident of the heavenly lightning had caused quite a stir at the time, and the Imperial Observatory had also said that only those who were angered by heaven and resented by the people would incur divine punishment. He also said that he had confined Ruyi to her quarters to protect her.

Ruyi stared blankly, then said, "Does Your Majesty mean that I am as the Imperial Observatory said, angered by Heaven and hated by the people, and that's why I was struck by lightning?"

The emperor wanted to say something like, "What else could it be?" but he had no choice but to patiently say, "Of course I believe you are not that kind of person. However, with so many people watching, it's hard to guarantee that someone with ulterior motives won't use this to their advantage. I'll punish you first, and then neither the court nor the harem can say anything more."

Finally, he took Ruyi's hand and solemnly said, "Ruyi, everything I have done is to protect you."

Having finally managed to get through it, the emperor breathed a sigh of relief and immediately proceeded to Chengqian Palace after leaving Cuiyun Pavilion.

When Yanwan saw that the emperor had collapsed on the kang (a heated brick bed) as soon as he entered the room, clutching his head and looking unwell, she ordered someone to bring medicated oil to massage his head and also had Chunchan serve him a cup of plum tea.

The emperor took a sip and found it to be sweet and sour with a unique aroma, so he asked, "What kind of tea is this?"

Yan Wan said, "Your Majesty, this is a tea made with dried plums, white lettuce seeds, atractylodes macrocephala, frankincense, and rock sugar. The Compendium of Materia Medica says that taking these together can relieve pain."

The emperor laughed and said, "Yanwan, you have truly benefited greatly from reading this book."

That night, the emperor stayed at Chengqian Palace.