Chapter 28

Chapter 28

Princess Huayue ran into the courtyard with the two maids. Seeing her chubby cousin glance her way, she suddenly remembered not to act too unusual and promptly slowed her pace, walking forward leisurely.

Qing Shuang and Fei Xue exchanged glances, both equally confused.

Summer was approaching, and their princess had shot up significantly in height compared to last year. Today, with nothing else to do, they had taken out all of Princess Huayue's clothes to sort through, sorting out the ones that no longer fit and taking note of what was missing, so they could have the seamstresses hurry to make new ones.

While they were in the midst of this, the princess had come running, grabbed them without explanation, and dragged them away. When they asked where they were going, she didn't answer. They assumed it was something urgent, but they hadn't expected to be brought to the princess's courtyard to meet the Crown Prince's children.

Princess Huayue, afraid that the two maids might ask unnecessary questions in front of Nuo Er, whispered while they walked, "Don't speak later, just stand by and wait."

Qing Shuang and Fei Xue were confused but didn't say anything, both responded with a "Yes."

As the three approached, Qing Shuang and Fei Xue stepped forward to greet the young masters and mistresses: "We, your humble servants, pay our respects to the Prince and the two young princesses."

Shen Weiqing raised his hand, "Rise."

On the ornate couch, the three siblings sat in a row from shortest to tallest.

Princess Huayue, wanting to make it easier to whisper to Princess Wen'an later, walked over and nudged Shen Weiqing's foot, "Cousin, scoot over. I want to sit next to Hui Er."

Normally, Shen Weiqing wouldn't give up his spot without a verbal or physical fight, but today he was also eager to hear Nuo Er and the dog talk, so he got up very willingly and moved aside.

Princess Huayue sat down and hugged Princess Wen'an's arm, and the two girls smiled at each other.

Shen Zhinuo tilted her little head and looked at her second brother, wondering why he was so unusually well-behaved today and didn't start any trouble.

Though puzzled, her mind was currently on Qing Shuang and Fei Xue, and she didn't have time to investigate further. She thought to herself, "Doggy, go ahead and scan their faces."

The system flew over, first circling around Qing Shuang, then scanning Fei Xue.

Shen Zhinuo then asked in the order the little black dog had scanned, "So, is Qing Shuang alright?"

Princess Wen'an, Princess Huayue, and Shen Weiqing all listened intently.

Princess Lanzhen, seeing from the window that Qing Shuang and Fei Xue had been called by her daughter and noticing that Weiqing and Huayue were sitting quietly, knew that Nuo Er and A Tong were talking again. She nonchalantly picked up a book from the table and hurried out of the room.

As she approached, she wanted to sit next to Little Dumpling but was afraid of startling her, so she quietly moved to sit next to Weiqing, holding the book and flipped to a random page and pretended to read.

The system searched for a while and answered, "Qing Shuang was selected by Princess Lanzhen from among the household staff to take care of and accompany Princess Huayue. When Princess Huayue was just one year old, Qing Shuang came to her side. At that time, Qing Shuang was seven years old, and now she is sixteen, having been by Princess Huayue's side for nine years. She has served diligently and loyally, remaining devoted to Princess Huayue until her death."

Shen Zhinuo nodded her little head, "I always believed Qing Shuang was trustworthy."

Every time she saw Princess Huayue, Qing Shuang and Fei Xue were always by her side. Their care and attention to Princess Huayue were genuinely heartfelt, just like Coral's love and affection for her and her sister.

The system continued, "Before the incident at the frozen lake, the events related to Qing Shuang were all trivial matters, briefly mentioned without much elaboration."

"The turning point occurred on the day of the frozen lake incident. Princess Huayue's cloak had a tear, and Qing Shuang went back to her quarters to get a new one. When she returned with the new cloak, she found that her little princess had already fallen into the water."

"Fei Xue was also in the water, struggling to hold onto her panicking little princess while trying to shake off Xue Wan and her maid, who were desperately grabbing onto her. The four of them were bobbing up and down, constantly choking on water, in a very dangerous situation."

Shen Zhinuo asked, "Why were Xue Wan and her maid grabbing onto Fei Xue? Were they unable to swim, or were they deliberately trying to harm my sister Princess Huayue?"

The system replied, "From Qing Shuang's account, it's impossible to know."

Shen Zhinuo wasn't surprised, "Alright, doggy, go on."

The system continued, "Seeing the scene, Qing Shuang was terrified. She tossed the cloak aside, dashed over, and leaped into the water. Along with the estate women who had also jumped in to help, they managed to pull Xue Wan and her maid away. Then, with Fei Xue, they managed to carry their little princess to safety."

Princess Huayue felt both relieved and touched upon hearing this. She glanced at Qing Shuang and Fei Xue, standing a few steps away with their eyes downcast, and smiled at them.

The two noticed her gaze and looked up, meeting their little princess's smiling face. They didn’t know why she smiled at them, but they smiled back anyway.

Shen Zhinuo, being young and short, wouldn't have noticed the interaction between them if she hadn't deliberately looked up. She then asked, "Did Qing Shuang and Fei Xue also fall ill?"

The system responded, "Both of them fell ill. But Qing Shuang came ashore soon after entering the water, so her condition was slightly better. Princess Lanzhen took her daughter and the two of them back to the mansion."

Shen Zhinuo asked, "Did my aunt discipline them?"

The system answered, "Although Princess Lanzhen was angry that they didn’t take good care of her daughter, considering that they had never made any mistakes before and both fell ill while trying to save their mistress, she held off on punishing them. She let them go back to recuperate first, and everything would be discussed after Princess Huayue recovered."

This was an era where hierarchy was strictly observed. Many servants were severely punished or even killed for minor injuries to their masters. Princess Lanzhen’s decision not to punish Qing Shuang and Fei Xue was exceptionally lenient.

Shen Zhinuo secretly glanced at her aunt sitting nearby and couldn't help but sigh, "My aunt is truly kind-hearted."

The system replied, "Yes, when I searched for information about Princess Lanzhen earlier, I came across this description: deeply loyal and righteous, clear in her likes and dislikes, and lenient towards her subordinates."

Shen Weiqing wholeheartedly agreed with this evaluation. If his aunt weren’t deeply loyal and righteous, why would she have knelt before their grandfather for their family's sake? And why would she have traveled thousands of miles to find their family right after her cousin's death?

A warm feeling filled the young man’s heart. He leaned on Princess Lanzhen’s shoulder, nuzzling his head against her affectionately. Princess Lanzhen reached out and patted her nephew's big head.

Shen Zhinuo asked again, "Earlier, you said Qing Shuang also died. How did she die?"

The system answered, "Qing Shuang, being a few years older than Princess Huayue, had a stronger constitution. At the estate, she drank two bowls of ginger soup, sweated it out, and after a day’s rest at the mansion, she fully recovered and returned to serve Princess Huayue."

"Princess Huayue's high fever kept recurring, and no medicine seemed to work. Princess Lanzhen, out of options, followed the advice of someone close to her and went to a temple outside the city to pray to the gods."

Hearing this, Shen Zhinuo became alert, "Wait, who is this 'someone close to her'?"

The system searched for a while, "I don’t know yet. All I see is the phrase 'someone close to her.'"

Shen Zhinuo said, "Alright, then we’ll check all the people around my aunt later. We’ll definitely find out."

"Someone close to her," Princess Lanzhen pondered over these three words and silently kept the matter in mind.

The system went on, "When Princess Lanzhen left, she left reliable people to take care of Princess Huayue, and Qing Shuang was naturally among them. Qing Shuang, fearing another accident, stayed by Princess Huayue’s bedside without leaving, until someone came to tell her that Fei Xue was not doing well and she should go check on her."

Shen Zhinuo asked, "Did Fei Xue also fail to recover?"

The little black dog pulled up Fei Xue's storyline, "Fei Xue stayed in the water for a long time. Though she drank ginger soup to ward off the cold at the estate, after returning to the princess's mansion, she fell seriously ill and also had a recurring high fever."

Shen Zhinuo asked, "Did a physician treat her?"

The system responded, "Yes, on the day they returned to the princess's mansion, Princess Lanzhen had the imperial physician who treated Princess Huayue also examine Qing Shuang and Fei Xue. The three of them shared the same illness and symptoms, so the imperial physician prescribed the same medicine."

"However, like Princess Huayue, Fei Xue's condition also fluctuated and showed no improvement."

Hearing this, Princess Lanzhen’s heart raced.

A sudden thought emerged in her mind: there might be something wrong with the medicine.

Back when the palace was filled with bloodshed and intrigue, she had not yet left the palace to establish her own mansion. She had seen plenty of the dark, underhanded tactics in the palace. Since both Princess Huayue and Fei Xue took the same medicine and neither recovered, could it be that someone tampered with the medicine?

But soon, she felt she was overthinking it. If there was a problem with the medicine, why was Qing Shuang fine?

Moreover, with her daughter so seriously ill, she would have been extremely vigilant and cautious in every aspect. How could she have been so careless as to let someone take advantage and tamper with the medicine?

Princess Lanzhen was anxious and wished she could directly ask A Tong, but she remembered the punishment for speaking out of turn that the Crown Prince and Crown Princess had repeatedly warned her about, so she patiently continued to listen.

Princess Lanzhen thought deeply, but Shen Zhinuo didn’t immediately consider this point and only asked, “So, Fei Xue also passed away that day?”

The narrator said, “Yes, by the time Qing Shuang rushed over, Fei Xue could only manage to say, ‘Take good care of the young Princess,’ before she closed her eyes.”

“Although Fei Xue was bought from outside, she and Qing Shuang had grown up together by Princess Huayue’s side since childhood. They were as close as sisters. When Fei Xue died, Qing Shuang was heartbroken. She leaned over the bed, clutching Fei Xue and sobbing uncontrollably.”

“But before she could finish crying, she heard a sudden commotion outside. Not knowing what had happened, she suppressed her grief, covered Fei Xue with a blanket, and went out to see. Only then did she learn that in the brief moment she was gone, Princess Huayue had also passed away.”

A few days earlier in the East Palace, Princess Lanzhen had already heard these details from Tongtong, but hearing them again now still left her heart heavy.

Without hesitation, she pulled her second nephew, who was sitting between her and her daughter, aside and moved to sit next to her daughter. She reached out, hugged the little girl, and whispered gently in her ear, “Don’t worry, my dear, I will make sure you’re safe.”

Shen Weiqing, who was pushed aside for the second time, thought, “What’s going on? Weren’t we just having a heartwarming aunt-nephew moment?”

Princess Huayue’s eyes had already reddened, but when she saw her second cousin’s resentful expression from her mother’s shoulder, she couldn’t help but laugh.

Worried that the two youngsters might start bickering again, Princess Lanzhen let go of her daughter, pulled her nephew to sit down, and patted his head.

Shen Zhinuo leaned against her sister, oblivious to the actions of the others, and only asked with some confusion, “Even if both were gravely ill, how could they have died almost simultaneously by mere coincidence?”

“Also, didn’t you say Qing Shuang had gotten better? So how exactly did she die?”