Eavesdropping on Fu Bao's inner thoughts, emptying the stored grain and fleeing the famine

Since Hua Ling dared to cause trouble at Mingyue Hall, it means she has someone backing her up. As for who that person is, it goes without saying.

The old witch and the young witch have joined forces; this matter cannot be taken lightly. After Lian Rongrong instructed Qiu Ju to do her simple makeup, she rode straight to Mingyue Hall.

When Lian Rongrong arrived at Mingyue Hall, the two sides seemed to have been facing off for a while.

The doors of Mingyue Hall were wide open, so even before Rongrong dismounted, she could see what was inside.

Lin Chuyue shielded everyone from Mingyue Hall behind her, while Hua Ling stood facing the others.

Lian Rongrong dismounted, her voice arriving before she did.

"Is Miss Hua here to cause trouble?"

Upon hearing this, everyone in Mingyue Hall couldn't help but show joy. All eyes turned to Lian Rongrong.

Lian Rongrong smiled slightly, giving everyone a reassuring look.

Hua Ling turned around upon hearing the sound and politely bowed to Lian Rongrong.

"Ling'er greets Your Highness."

"Miss Hua's gift is too much for me to accept, after all, you are someone the Empress Dowager has taken a liking to."

Lian Rongrong didn't let Hua Ling get up, but strode past her, casually throwing out a sarcastic remark.

"Ling'er is only destined to be with the Empress Dowager. But even so, the rules cannot be broken."

"Miss Hua is wise and reasonable; I am ashamed of my own lack of understanding. Please rise and tell me your purpose!"

Hua Ling slowly stood up: "Ling'er has come on the orders of the Empress Dowager."

"You start by using the Empress Dowager to intimidate people; it's really annoying."

Lian Rongrong scolded Hua Ling with a smile, which made everyone feel relieved and they couldn't help but smile.

Hua Ling was angry, but she couldn't confront him directly, so she could only respond with a fake smile:

"Your Highness has misunderstood. Ling'er did not mean to use the Empress Dowager to pressure anyone."

To be honest, Ling'er was just an ordinary woman.

Ling'er dared not disobey the Empress Dowager's decree, after all, she didn't have a husband like Prince Qi to back her up.

"Oh! What do you mean by that? Are you eyeing my man?"

Compared to Lian Rongrong, Hua Ling was still a bit more thin-skinned. Everyone saw the famous Miss Hua in the capital blushing while denying it.

"That's good. My man isn't someone anyone can covet!"

After teasing Hua Ling, Lian Rongrong felt her mammary glands were clear, but she also knew very well that Hua Ling's visit today was not simple.

After all, that old hag wouldn't let her off easily.

"After all this joking, Miss Hua still hasn't explained why she came."

Lian Rongrong still had a smile on her face, but that smile was devoid of warmth.

Hua Ling seemed completely oblivious to Lian Rongrong's expression and continued smiling as she spoke:

"After the Princess Consort left Cining Palace yesterday, Ling'er spent a long time trying to persuade the Empress Dowager."

Fortunately, perseverance pays off, and the Empress Dowager finally listened to some of what she said.

"So, today I've been asked to report for duty at Mingyue Hall and serve as a female teacher."

"Come to Mingyue Hall to be a teacher?" Lian Rongrong laughed, and this time it was a genuine laugh.

She really couldn't understand why a girls' school would make the Empress Dowager so worried.

"Does Your Highness think Ling'er is not qualified? Ling'er may not be talented, but she does know a little about music, chess, calligraphy and painting, and has become quite well-known in the capital over the years."

Hua Ling wasn't exaggerating when it came to this. In recent years, the two most admired talented women in the Holy Capital have been Yan Mingyue and Hua Ling.

The two were evenly matched, but in terms of background, Yan Mingyue was far more noble than Hua Ling, who came from a merchant family.

Although Hua Ling is talented, she is always overshadowed by Yan Mingyue because of her status.

Therefore, Hua Ling came here today for another purpose: to settle her grievances of the past years.

Of course, that was secondary; Hua Ling's real purpose was to find a way to get close to Li Yuanqi.

Hua Ling knew that wherever Lian Rongrong was, Li Yuanqi would be there too.

“Miss Hua’s reputation is well-known, and I dare not doubt it. However, I’m afraid Mingyue Hall, this small temple, cannot accommodate such a great figure as Miss Hua.”

Hua Ling had long anticipated that Lian Rongrong would refuse, but this time she came prepared.

"Your Highness is too kind. I am truly willing to do things for the women of the world. That's why I specially requested the Empress Dowager's decree this time."

Hua Ling took out the Empress Dowager's edict from her sleeve. Although it was only a few words, it was still an imperial decree.

This time was different from before. Although Lian Rongrong had contradicted the Empress Dowager several times before, there was no imperial decree, so it could not be considered as disobeying the imperial decree.

But now that the decree is laid out in black and white, if we rashly defy it, we will truly give that old hag an opportunity to make trouble.

Fearing that Lian Rongrong might act impulsively, Lin Chuyue quickly stepped forward and gently tugged at Lian Rongrong's sleeve.

"Little sister, a wise man doesn't fight a losing battle. Since the Empress Dowager has already issued the decree, we have no choice but to keep her here."

"At worst, we can just give her a sinecure to keep her in line. Anyway, we're all here; she can't really cause any trouble."

Lian Rongrong nodded slightly and gently patted Lin Chuyue's hand: "Don't worry, sister-in-law, I know what I'm doing."

Seeing that Lian Rongrong indeed had no intention of disobeying the imperial decree, Lin Chuyue finally felt relieved.

“Miss Hua, the female tutors at Mingyue Hall are all ready now. If you really want to help, why don’t you help Lanxin with the miscellaneous tasks?”

"What did you say?" Before Hua Ling could speak, Xiao Tao beside her shouted.

"My young lady is the Empress Dowager's goddaughter, and she was also appointed by the Empress Dowager to serve as a female teacher here. Isn't the Princess going a bit too far?"

Lian Rongrong raised an eyebrow and glanced at the girl. She had seen this Xiao Tao before; she had a deep impression of her back in Hua Ling's carriage.

This little maid is nothing but loyal and stupid. But it is precisely because of this that Lian Rongrong was certain that what this stupid girl said was Hua Ling's thoughts.

Dealing with a maid was no big deal for Lian Rongrong, but Hua Ling's ambitions couldn't be solved by simply disciplining a maid.

Lian Rongrong slowly exhaled, then asked Xiao Tao in a very kind manner:

"Then tell me, what would be considered not excessive?"

Xiao Tao really didn't expect that Princess Qi would have such an attitude.

She was prepared to be punished, but she never expected that she would not be punished at all for talking back to Princess Qi.

Xiao Tao swallowed hard, trying to appear calm, but she couldn't hide the panic in her eyes.

Lian Rongrong sneered, "With so little courage, you dare to stand up for your master?"

Xiao Tao glanced timidly at Hua Ling, and seeing the displeasure on her mistress's face, she quickly pretended to be calm and said to Lian Rongrong:

"You are the princess, and I am just a servant. I am afraid you have nothing to be ashamed of."

But my young lady is different; she was chosen by the Empress Dowager and should not be neglected by the Princess.

Even if the Princess were to beat me to death today, I would still speak out.

Lian Rongrong didn't respond, but just watched Xiao Tao's farce with amusement.

Seeing that Lian Rongrong hadn't responded for a while, Xiao Tao also felt bored, so she simply said:

"With my young lady's talent, she should at least be a head lady!"