C25

As the saying goes, 'Under the lamp, look at the beauty, under the moon, look at the man.' They were both extremely beautiful.

The Crown Prince looked even more beautiful under the palace lights. Was it good or bad for a man to look like this? Yun Sheng felt that there was no way for her to treat him as a real man. She always felt like a beautiful woman in disguise, but of course, she could not say such thoughts aloud.

Mu Rong Qing's smile suddenly turned charming as he walked closer. When he was in front of her, he handed her a plum blossom that he did not know where and said, "That thousand year fragrance is too tacky. Only this Clear Plum Blossom is worthy of her."

When she heard that, she felt somewhat embarrassed, but without much thought, she politely said, "It's Brother Huang's birthday. She did not know earlier and did not even receive a gift."

"I don't care about those common things. Yue Er has to spend a lot of time and effort to gift them." Mu Rong Qing said with a light smile.

Sheng Yue had originally intended to be polite, but after hearing his tone, he had no choice but to brace himself and ask, "What does Imperial Brother like? "It'll be easier to make up for it after the month of Sheng."

"No rush, let's talk about it in the future." However, he merely lowered his head with a smile as he sniffed the plum blossoms in her hands, "The plum blossoms' fragrance is still the best. I can't smell this thousand li incense anymore, so I should go in. Yue Er, do you want to go in?"

"Oh, oh. Royal brother, please come in first. I'll go in later." Yun Sheng calmed himself down.

Mu Rong Qing did not deny it. With a chuckle, he left. Just as Yun Shengyue patted her heart, which had been frightened by the crown prince, she saw Murong Yu walk out from behind another tree.

He lowered his head and prepared to enter the hall, but the Plum Blossom in his hand was instantly snatched away and tossed to the side. Before she could say anything, Murong Yu said coldly, "Pay attention to your current identity, the crown prince is not someone you can seduce. If you really want to enter the palace, you can just change your identity and enter after two years."

"You!" However, Murong Yu had already left with large strides. Yun Shengyue stomped her feet in anger and turned around to leave. Since his attitude was this way, then she shouldn't blame him for not acting along. Who would go to a boring banquet like that?

At first, Cui Er's face was filled with excitement. She wanted to ask about the birthday banquet, but seeing the displeasure on her face and seeing that she hadn't seen Ruo Lan, she knew that something was wrong, so she held herself back.

Yun Sheng had instructed Cui'er to pack her things. When she left the palace tomorrow, she would immediately fall asleep. Lying on the bed, she was still furious. Ah! This really pissed her off. The Queen who couldn't figure it out, the crown prince who behaved strangely, and the eccentric Murong Yu were all annoying her. This palace was definitely a bad place, the sooner she left, the better.

The next day, another sunny day.

Murong Yu didn't return to his room last night. When Yunsheng left the Hua Qing Palace to say goodbye to the empress, he suddenly appeared out of nowhere and silently followed her towards the Phoenix Perching Palace.

He did not want to talk to him and wanted to return to the manor. It was unnecessary to see each other, or perhaps it was better for her to quietly return to the other courtyard to accompany her mother. In any case, she did not owe him anything when he saw her, and if it was not for the agreement, she would not want to see his face.

The Empress was the only one in the Phoenix Perch Palace, and there were no other visitors. Furthermore, the Empress seemed to have a rather amiable expression on her face.

"I heard from the Duke of Qin that you weren't feeling well yesterday, so you went back to rest. Also, do you like that girl Ruo Lan?" the Queen asked lightly.

When did this person say that? He immediately replied, "After returning to his mother, yes, the girl beside her is still somewhat childish. Rulan is generous and decent, and her way of handling things is clean and tidy. She likes it a lot, but she is someone from the Queen Mother's Palace, Sheng Yue..."

"The King has personally spoken, but as a palace maid, how can I be so stingy? You can bring her back to the palace later, and her contracted internal organs will be sent there shortly." As the Queen spoke, she cast a glance at Ruo Lan, who was standing behind her. Ruo Lan lowered her head, unable to see her expression.

Yun Sheng immediately said joyfully, "Thank you, Imperial Mother."

The empress instructed Ruo Lan in a soft voice, "When you go to the estate, you must wholeheartedly serve the wangfei. Don't think that just because you left the palace you've forgotten all the rules and regulations you've learnt, okay?"

Ruo Lan came out to pay her respects, her head still bowed.

"This palace is boring. Sheng Yue, you can enter the palace at any time. There's no need for you to be so reserved. I only have two sons. You and the Crown Princess can also walk around a lot." The empress ignored Ruo Lan and continued her conversation with Sheng Yue, cordial to the extreme.

Yun Shengyue felt a little strange. From what she had observed, the Empress and Murong Yu were not really close. Why was she so intimate with the Empress? Unable to come up with an answer, she could only say yes. Thinking of that arrogant Duanmu Rong'er, she thought to herself, "Let's go?" Forget it, she and she must have had a conversation.

The Emperor told them that there was no need to go, so he dismissed the Empress, and they left the palace with Rowan, Cui'er, and two guards. They did not bid farewell to the Crown Prince.

Only after the horse carriage drove out of the palace's front door did Yun Sheng let out a long sigh. He said unhappily to Murong Yu, "In the future, can you help me quit my palace activities. It's fine if I'm sick, but I don't want to come in again."

"Didn't you feel rather comfortable in the palace like a fish in water these few days?" Murong Yu raised his eyebrows and said with an unfriendly tone.

"Who said I was okay. I'm almost suffocating. Your manor is the same. Can I go back to my mother's side and stay for a few days?"

"Is this the attitude of begging someone else?" Murong Yu continued to speak calmly.

It took him a while to repress his anger. It was not good to clash head on with him, so after thinking about it, seeing as he had helped her ask for Ruo Lan, he did not want to bother with him. He said in a moderated tone, "My mother left earlier last night. I think she's not feeling well, so I want to go back and see if it's okay?"

"Isn't it better to say it like that?" I'll go with you. " Murong Yu immediately regretted his decision to agree to go back with her. Why would he accompany her?

Yun Sheng Yue was also silently cursing. Who would want him to accompany her? She would only be at ease if he was not by her side.

As expected, Madame Zhou was now bedridden again.

Upon seeing Mrs. Zhou's pale and haggard face due to her illness, the grievances in Yun Sheng's heart was immediately thrown to the back of his mind. She felt that her daughter had walked the right path. She was the official wife of the emperor, and he had the approval of the empress, ah, so what if Murong Yu had a concubine in the future? Her daughter had always been the right and proper concubine, so the palace wasn't the place where they often went.

Madame Zhou's spirit was low. She only said a few words before lying down to rest. Sheng Yue and Murong Yu quietly left the room.

Stay here with your mother for a few days. This king will call the imperial physician to take a look." Mu Rong Yu said in a low voice before leaving. Yun Sheng glanced at his back and understood that he was not a bad person. It was just because he liked to keep a straight face. Just by thinking about it, he was no longer angry at him. However, when he thought of Madame Zhou's illness, he was still worried.

"Miss, the First Madam is here." Cui'er suddenly came to report.

What was that woman doing here? They lived separately so that they wouldn't feel annoyed if they lost sight of each other. Who would have thought that she would take the initiative to come over to annoy them?

Actually, this was not Shangguan Qingzhi's first time in this courtyard. When Yunsheng returned to the residence, the look in Ling Li's eyes startled her, and she did not have the slightest advantage in speaking, so she tolerated it. After Yunsheng was married, she could not hold it in any longer.

She had heard Yun Chengling say that the Zhou family would not live for long, but she did not want her to live her final days comfortably.

Last night, Yun Chengling had let Madame Zhou into the palace for the banquet, which made Shangguan Qingzhi very dissatisfied. Although Yun Chengling had explained repeatedly, she understood that Yun Chengling didn't really care about this sickly old woman for personal gain, but the anger in her heart couldn't be quelled.

However, he never expected that Yun Sheng would return to the courtyard. The moment she came over, the spies in the courtyard immediately informed her of his arrival. Therefore, she could only send someone to report to him.

"What are you doing here?" If not for the fact that the two of them were lucky, they would have been killed by this vile woman back then.

Shangguan Qingzhi's face was filled with displeasure as she said, "What are you saying? Although you're now a high ranked disciple of the Duke of Qin's Mansion, you're still a daughter of my Yun Family. How can you speak to an aunt like this?"

"Save it!" Now you want to put on airs of identity with her? "The reason my mother and I came to this courtyard is clear. With a single word, I don't want to see you!"

"You …"

"What about me? I have my mother, that's enough. There's no way you can teach her a lesson. Please return to your Prime Minister's Estate. If there's nothing wrong, don't come to this courtyard and disturb my mother's recovery." It was best if they did not meet each other. She had already settled the score from ten years ago before coming back, and he even insisted on coming to find her to vent his anger.

"Good, good, good. You're a good daughter that your mother taught. Now that you're an imperial concubine with stiff wings, I don't care anymore, but your mother is still a member of my Yun Family, and this courtyard belongs to my Yun Family. If I want to leave, you don't even care." Shangguan Qing Zhi's face fell, the fake mask she had put on when she first went back home was gone.

On the contrary, Yun Sheng felt that it was better this way. That fake fishy appearance made her even more disgusting. She was just about to launch a counterattack.

Yun Chengling's dignified voice came from the door, "Enough, you've caused enough trouble here!"

"Master, I just heard that my sister is sick and came to visit. Look at this girl, she doesn't know what a good person is …" Shangguan Qing Zhi was the first to complain.

Seeing a patient? Forget it, since she was dressed up like a rich peerless expert, she must be angry at her mother for coming here with her bare hands. To think that she had the nerve to say that she wanted to visit her mother.

Yun Chengling interrupted Shangguan Qing Zhi's nagging: "You can go back and take care of that brat Yun Wuji. Don't come here and cause trouble."

"Master..."

"Go back!" Yun Chengling seemed rather dignified now. Shangguan Qing Zhi gaped at the handkerchief and finally gave Yun Shengyue an unwilling look as she left with a 'hmph'.

After her short-lived sister had died, she had heard that Shangguan Qingzhi regarded her only son with great respect. It was a pity that her mother was a failure and her son was now in his twenties. However, he did not like to read and had never taken any examinations for any of his achievements.

The doctor said yesterday that your mother's body could not bear the cold. At that time, your father did not consider Zhou Quan's family reunion, but after coming back for the winter, he was still lacking a bit in the body of a doctor. Therefore, your father thought that it would be better to send your mother to Jiangnan to recuperate, and warm her up there.

Yun Chenglin's words were sincere and reasonable. Yun Shengyue was stunned for a moment and felt that his plans for his mother were not bad. Furthermore, he was even accompanying her. It was likely his mother would be happy, but she could not meet her mother.

After hesitating for a moment, he said, "It's up to mother. If mother is willing, then I have nothing else to say."

When she came back, she had food, drinks, and special servants, and the doctor kept looking at her, but she didn't recover at all, and instead became even heavier. In the past, in Jiangnan, although winter was also bad, it was not this bad. Besides, Jiangnan was indeed a good place, and she always wanted to go back to it, if her mother went there, after a few days, would she be able to make a trip back to Jiangnan using the excuse of visiting her parents?

Yun Chengling did not speak any further. Seeing that she had agreed, he left in satisfaction. He did not even enter his room to take a look at Madame Zhou. Yun Shengyue was so engrossed in her own thoughts that she did not notice this.

Only in the evening did Madame Zhou wake up. Yunsheng personally fed medicine and porridge to Madame Zhou before asking her questions.

"Mother, Father said that Jincheng City is too cold, which is not good for your recovery. He wants to bring you back to Jiangnan to stay for a few days. What do you think?"

"To Jiangnan?" It seemed that Yun Chengling hadn't told her about it yet.

"Yes, Father said that he would hire someone to buy a house there. He asked the court to take a leave of absence and accompany you to stay for a few days."

"He accompanied me?" Mrs Zhou could not believe it, but her eyes lit up.

"Yes, Jincheng City is still so cold, and the spring flowers are already blooming in the south of the river. If you go there, you'll be better off." Every year at this time, Baili Yu would bring her out of the city to roam the streets.

"Alright, alright." Shangguan Qingzhi often came to harass her, but she didn't dare tell Shengyue that it would be great if Master would accompany her to live in Jiangnan. She also liked Jiangnan, but when she felt happy, she thought of Yunsheng and said, "Yue-er, you should be alright at the prince's mansion. If your mother leaves, you won't be lonely."

"I'm fine, I'm fine at the Royal Mansion. Mu Rong Yu and his men seem to be indifferent, but he's still a good person." Seeing that she was tempted, Yun Sheng said something nice to reassure her.

Madame Zhou was indeed innocent. She smiled with satisfaction, "Good. I also think that child is not bad, not worse than Young Master Baili. Have a good life. Once you marry someone, you can no longer be willful, okay?"

"Yes, I understand." Yun Shengyue's expression was calm, but she felt a sense of loss in her heart. With her mother gone, she no longer had anything to worry about.