Chapter 20

Chapter 20

The Empress exchanged glances with the Crown Prince and the Crown Princess. They silently agreed it was a good idea.

Shen Weiqing's eyes sparkled, and he quietly rubbed Princess Wen'an's head, bending down to whisper, "Hui Er, let's follow Nuo Er."

Without her second brother having to tell her, Princess Wen'an had already planned to do so.

Seeing the short, chubby little girl had already wandered off, the siblings pretended to be taking a leisurely stroll and followed her.

Shen Zhinuo first walked up to the palace maid waiting at the door. She tilted her little head to look up at her, recognizing her as Yin Die.

Seeing the little princess, who looked like a celestial child, staring at her, Yin Die quickly curtsied, "Does the little princess need anything?"

Shen Zhinuo smiled at her. She waved her little hand to say she was fine.

Once it was close enough, the little black dog didn't need Shen Zhinuo to call it; it flew over to Yin Die on its own, circled her head once before flying back to Shen Zhinuo's side.

"Young Master, this palace maid is named Yin Die. She has been in Fengyi Palace for five years. Though she’s careful and reliable in her work, she is not good with words, so she has always been doing peripheral tasks like serving tea and water, never given any important tasks."

"After your family was exiled, the Old Emperor never set foot in Fengyi Palace again, and it practically became a deserted palace."

"Most of the palace staff are quick to curry favor, and many used connections to transfer out of Fengyi Palace to serve in the palaces of favored concubines. Yin Die is one of the few who stayed."

"She served the Empress faithfully until her death, after which she was transferred elsewhere. Beyond that, there’s nothing else known."

Shen Zhinuo then asked, "So, Yin Die didn’t hurt my grandmother, did she?"

The system replied, "In the original story, she didn’t."

"Then Yin Die is a good person, but I can’t just come out and tell my grandmother. What should I do?" Shen Zhinuo was a bit worried.

The system remained silent, indicating its helplessness.

The little girl placed her hands on her hips, looked at Yin Die, then glanced at the Empress. Her big eyes rolled, and she got an idea. She reached out her chubby little hand and took Yin Die’s hand, leading her inside.

Yin Die assumed the little princess just wanted to play, so she smiled, slightly bent over, and followed.

Shen Zhinuo led Yin Die to the Empress, climbed into the Empress’s lap, and said in a sweet, childish voice, "Grandmother, Nuo Er likes Yin Die."

Yin Die was overwhelmed with gratitude and quickly bowed, "This servant is grateful for the little princess’s kindness."

The Empress had heard every word of the conversation between the little girl and A Tong and knew that her granddaughter was giving her a hint.

Such a young child already worrying about her old grandmother touched the Empress deeply. She wanted to scoop the little girl up and smother her with kisses.

But not wanting to disrupt the little girl’s plan, and also wary of that annoying punishment that stung her mouth, she didn't want to accidentally cause her granddaughter any pain, so she acted like she didn’t notice.

The Empress reached out to pat the little girl's head, her eyes filled with affection, "Since Nuo Er likes her, how about letting Yin Die serve by your side?"

This wasn't what Shen Zhinuo wanted. She shook her little head and pushed Yin Die toward the Empress, "Yin Die should stay with Grandmother."

The Empress carefully examined this palace maid who usually had a very low profile and smiled, "Alright, then Grandmother will listen to Nuo Er. From now on, Yin Die will serve me closely. How does that sound?"

Shen Zhinuo nodded her little head in satisfaction, clapping her hands, "Good."

Serving closely meant a promotion and a raise. The surprise came too suddenly, and Yin Die was momentarily stunned.

It was the Crown Princess who reminded her with a smile, "Quick, thank her."

Yin Die quickly knelt down and kowtowed to the Empress: "This humble servant thanks Your Majesty for your kindness."

The Empress raised her hand, "Please rise and stand beside me."

Yin Die complied, standing beside the Empress. As she calmed down, she remembered she still needed to kowtow to Princess Baoning, but the little princess had already scampered off, so she resolved to remember it for later.

Since the Crown Prince's family had arrived, the Empress wanted to have a private conversation and had earlier dismissed all the palace maids to wait outside the hall.

Shen Zhinuo headed towards the door once more. After a few steps, she turned around and realized her second brother and sister were trailing her again, which puzzled her.

When her mother was busy, her sister looked after her, so it was perfectly normal for her sister to follow her closely.

But why was her mischievous second brother also following her? And why was he sneaking around?

As soon as she turned around, her second brother feigned interest in the camellias on the flower stand, acting as if nothing was happening.

As if she didn’t notice.

If she didn’t have bigger fish to fry right now, she would definitely chase after her second brother and ask him what he was up to.

Ignoring her second brother, Shen Zhinuo grabbed her sister's hand. The two sisters swung their hands as they walked. Before they reached the door, they spotted Nanny Fang leading a group of palace maids laden with food boxes from the small kitchen.

Princess Wen'an picked up her sister and stepped aside to let them pass.

Seeing so many people at once, Shen Zhinuo lit up with excitement. She hugged her sister's neck and commanded the system, "Doggy, go scan."

The little black dog, upon receiving the command, flew up from Shen Zhinuo's side and swiftly orbited each of the five individuals.

Watching the little black dog finish its circles, Shen Zhinuo asked eagerly, "How is it?"

The system quickly searched the information of the several people and replied, "Among these five, three palace maids are bit players in the original storyline, unnamed, merely labeled as Palace Maid A, B, and C. There's not much about them in the plot."

Shen Zhinuo knew that the system could only retrieve information about characters who had been mentioned in the original plot, so she asked, "What about the other two?"

The system replied, "These two are a bit more complicated. Which one should I tell you about first, Young Master? Nanny Fang or Palace Maid Cai E?"

Shen Zhinuo, feeling a bit nervous, said, "Start with Nanny Fang. How is she?"

As far as she knew, Nanny Fang had been by her grandmother's side for decades, and her grandmother held her in high regard. If Nanny Fang had betrayed her grandmother, how heartbroken her grandmother would be.

Hearing the little girl's question, the Empress, the Crown Prince, and the Crown Princess all felt their hearts clench, their gazes shifting to Nanny Fang, who was directing the palace maids to set the dishes.

The system read out Nanny Fang's details: "Nanny Fang, the Empress's personal maid brought from her family home. When she came of age, the Empress arranged a good marriage for her, and she got married. After marriage, Nanny Fang and her husband had two sons and a daughter. Now, her children are all married and have children of their own, and Nanny Fang has become a grandmother."

Shen Zhinuo was hearing this for the first time and was a bit confused, "Then why did Nanny Fang return to the palace?"

The system explained, "She and the Empress had a deep bond. Even after getting married, she maintained contact with the Empress, paying her respects during festivals and holidays, of course, back then the Empress was not yet the Empress."

"Later, Emperor Chengwu established his reign, and women in the harem began to proliferate like mushrooms after a rain, one after another."

"Although your grandmother was the Empress, she was besieged by endless troubles daily, managing the harem and dealing with the concubines. She didn't have enough trustworthy people around her, and in a moment of carelessness, the five-year-old fifth prince was killed."

Shen Zhinuo was shocked. She only knew that her fifth uncle had died young, but she didn't know he was murdered. And he was only two years old, younger than she is now.

Hearing A Tong's words, the Empress remembered the poor child from many years ago, a hint of sorrow flickered in her eyes.

The Crown Prince thought of his well-behaved and sweet younger brother, who often ran into his arms calling him "big brother," and felt a pang of sadness.

The Crown Princess first squeezed the Crown Prince's hand in silent comfort, then sat beside the Empress, holding her arm, and whispered, "Mother, it’s all behind us now. Don't be too sad."

The Empress patted the Crown Princess's hand and sighed deeply.

Princess Wen'an noticed the odd expressions on her grandmother and father's faces, worried her younger sister might catch on, and quickly spun the little girl around to face the door.

Shen Zhinuo had been about to look at her grandmother, but her sister suddenly turned, blocking her view. She rested her head on her sister's shoulder, her voice muffled, "So my grandmother must’ve been really sad, huh?"

ATong answered, "After the fifth prince passed away, the Empress was devastated and fell gravely ill. When Nanny Fang got the news, she told her family and rushed to the palace that same day to stay by the Empress’s side during her darkest hours. The Empress later asked her to stay."

Shen Zhinuo asked, "Did Nanny Fang just abandon her family?"

ATong explained, "By then, Nanny Fang's children had already grown up. Her eldest son had just married, and her second son was engaged. Her daughter-in-law was kind, dutiful, and capable, running the household smoothly, so Nanny Fang didn’t have to worry."

"Plus, serving the Empress earned her respect, a steady income, and plenty of rewards, which exceeded the combined earnings of her husband and two sons. Her family backed her completely. With no worries, Nanny Fang stayed with the Empress and never left."

Shen Zhinuo said, "That makes sense. But you said Nanny Fang's situation was a bit complicated. What did you mean?"

ATong replied, "Three days later, someone showed up, threatening Nanny Fang’s three grandchildren and demanding she poison the Empress’s food."

The Empress’s heart sank, and she instinctively tightened her grip on the Crown Princess’s hand. The Crown Princess did not pull away, holding her breath and waiting to hear more.

Shen Zhinuo lifted her head from her sister's shoulder, "Did Nanny Fang agree?"

ATong answered, "No. She played along, sent the person away, secretly left a warning note for the Empress, and then asked for a night off to go home. The next day, she went to the outskirts to pray at a temple, faking an accidental fall into a lake to drown."

Shen Zhinuo asked, "She killed herself but made it seem like an accident?"

ATong confirmed, "Yes."

Shen Zhinuo was puzzled, "Why?"

ATong explained, "Nanny Fang didn't want to harm the Empress, nor did she want her family to suffer because of her, so she chose to die, thinking it would end all troubles."

"But according to Daxuan law, those in the imperial harem are not allowed to commit suicide, as it is a grave offense punishable by the execution of the entire family. She had no choice but to make it look like an accident."

Shen Zhinuo sighed, "How sad. Did my grandmother ever find out?"

ATong replied, "Yes, after reading Nanny Fang's letter, the Empress was furious, angry, and heartbroken, crying for a long time. Later, respecting Nanny Fang's last wishes, she publicly announced that Nanny Fang had died in an accident, arranged a grand funeral for her, and took good care of her family."

After hearing this, the Empress glared at Nanny Fang with a mix of frustration and disappointment.

Shen Zhinuo asked without much hope, "Doggy, you don't know who approached Nanny Fang, do you?"

The little black dog wagged its tail proudly, "You guessed wrong this time, Young Master. ATong knows."