青春期撞上更年期第1部

“I don’t know about it either. Princess Chen said she would come over, but later, she sent someone over, saying she was in poor condition and couldn’t get up. I had planned to send someone to inform Ruiping Great Elder Princess, but Prince Chen was at the Empress Dowager’s place then. I couldn’t leave for fear of arousing his suspicion!”

Nanny Wei explained in a low voice.

This palace was very old. It was said to be the residence of a favored imperial consort. But this place had been empty since the Emperor moved into the Palace. No master was living here. Several parts of the gauze curtains inside were broken. In the depths of the curtains, a figure could be faintly seen. However, nothing else could be seen clearly.

“Nanny Wei, did you do it on purpose?” The voice sounded sharp. It was a woman’s voice, but the Palace was full of women.

Those favored masters were always arrogant and overbearing. Even their chief palace maids and chief eunuchs were not easy to get along with. Nanny Wei really couldn’t figure out who was in front of her.

“I didn’t do it on purpose — Princess Chen set me up,” Nanny Wei said crossly. “When I went to see her, she turned me down, but I didn’t expect her to agree later. Then, I passed your words on to Ruiping Great Elder Princess. But Princess Chen didn’t go there in the end. Who would have known that?”

“Do you mean Princess Chen started to suspect you?” The voice behind the curtain sounded colder.

Nanny Wei looked flustered, and her face instantly paled. She shook her hand in a hurry and said, “No, no. I work for the Empress Dowager. How could Princess Chen suspect me when I delivered the Empress Dowager’s order? I think she wanted to come. After all, the Empress Dowager asked her to do that. But who knew that in the end… in the end…”

Nanny Wei couldn’t go on, feeling very uneasy.

“Do you mean it happened by accident?” The stern voice behind the gauze curtain dropped a little.

“Yes, it must be an accident. I guess Princess Chen couldn’t get up. When I saw her, she struggled to hold on. She was so seriously injured that her whole face was drained of color. If I weren’t the Empress Dowager’s personal Nanny, I might not even see her.”

Nanny Wei’s back was damp with sweat. She was doing her best to show how useful and important she was. She might be abandoned as a useless pawn if she made a mistake.

She had never been so scared, but now Ruiping Great Elder Princess was still lying unconscious in the Imperial Institute of Medicine. It was hard to tell whether she could survive or not. Nanny Wei didn’t dare to guarantee that she would be fine.

Even Ruiping Great Elder Princess might be in trouble. Nothing terrible had happened to her merely because she was the Empress Dowager’s servant. At this moment, Nanny Wei realized the great benefits of serving Empress Dowager. She lowered her head a little, not daring to show her nervous look before the person inside.

She was indeed flustered and scared, for fear that she might become useless in their eyes. Also, she was afraid they would think Princess Chen had doubts about her. Purposely exaggerating Princess Chen’s illness condition was the best choice for her.

As expected, the person behind the gauze curtain fell into silence. After a long pause, she said, “Go ahead. Be careful in everything. If there is anything unusual, report it to me right away!”

“Yes, yes!” Nanny Wei nodded hurriedly and wiped the cold sweat on her forehead. Just now, she sensed the danger of being recognized as a good-for-nothing.

Out of the secluded palace, Nanny Wei looked into the darkness ahead. She found the direction and turned to leave in a hurry.

Not long after she walked away, another figure appeared, but it wasn’t in the front hall but near a side door at the back. The door was very small and always locked. An old palace maid who cleaned this place was said to hold the key. It had always been locked up tightly here, but now it was carefully opened.

When the black shadow came out, the door was closed and locked. Then, the person turned around and also disappeared into the night…

In the next few days, Shao Wanru focused on recuperating. From time to time, Rui’an Great Elder Princess would come to see her with some soup. She occasionally would bring Shao Yuanhao with her, but most of the time, she came alone.

This day, Rui’an Great Elder Princess came earlier than usual — she was here right after Shao Wanru got up.

A servant girl led her into the inner room. Smiling broadly, Shao Wanru sat propped up in the bed by pillows. Though she only had minor injuries, Chu Liuchen did not allow her to get out of bed. Therefore, she could only lie there obediently.

“Grandma!” Seeing Rui’an Great Elder Princess come in, Shao Wanru smiled and felt refreshed.

Rui’an Great Elder Princess was delighted to see her in a good state. When she came over and sat before the bed, she looked up to check Shao Wanru’s complexion. Then, she nodded satisfactorily and asked the servant girl to put the stewed soup on the table.

“Ruiping Great Elder Princess has passed away!” Rui’an Great Elder Princess filled a bowl of soup for Shao Wanru and whispered.

“Today?” Shao Wanru was stunned.

“Yes, just now.” Rui’an Great Elder Princess nodded and handed over the bowl in her hand.

Shao Wanru took it and took a sip. It tasted just right, not too thick or bland. Her long eyelashes fluttered as she looked at Rui’an Great Elder Princess and asked, “What’s the news about it from the Palace?”

“Ruiping Great Elder Princess is dead. There is no evidence to prove that she is involved in the big issue about Infanta Yuan’an. Besides, she was inexplicably poisoned in the Palace. They couldn’t find the truth no matter how thoroughly they inquired into it. People in the Palace thought they owed much to Ruiping Great Elder Princess. Therefore, I guess she should get rewards than punishments!”

Rui’an Great Elder Princess said.

She had learned about it. Since Infanta Yuan’an had tried to murder Shao Wanru, Rui’an Great Elder Princess had a deep hatred of Ruiping Great Elder Princess. Though Ruiping Great Elder Princess was dead, she gained the honor, which terribly upset Rui’an Great Elder Princess.

“Grandma, who do you think did this to her?” Shao Wanru took another sip of soup and asked with a peaceful smile.

The death of Ruiping Great Elder Princess was indeed very good for her. Otherwise, when she woke up, there would be some things that she couldn’t explain clearly. Therefore, Shao Wanru knew Ruiping Great Elder Princess was bound to die.

She was not surprised by her death.

“Who knows how many people she has offended? She had always been mild and benevolent before others. Seemingly, she had a good relationship with many people. But she was a weathercock and an artful person who had done many shady deals. It was normal that some people wanted to take her life away!” Rui’an Great Elder Princess said indifferently.

They were both Great Elder Princesses and would talk when they met. But over the years, they became very clear about each other’s character.

“Grandma, could it be that she ate her bitter fruit?” Shao Wanru smiled, slightly raising her cherry lips.

“She hurt herself?” Rui’an Great Elder Princess had never thought about it. When she heard what Shao Wanru said, her eyes suddenly lit up. “Yes, very likely. She was capable of doing that. The case of Yuan’an would inevitably involve her. Because of her unexpected death, she will get no severe consequences but rewards!”

After that, Rui’an Great Elder Princess shook her head in confusion. “No, but how could she be willing to give up her life for the safety of the whole mansion?”

“What if someone told her that she wouldn’t die?” Shao Wanru asked calmly.

“That’s impossible. She couldn’t be so easily deceived.” Rui’an Great Elder Princess shook her head.

Shao Wanru reminded her, “She might have seen that someone was poisoned but didn’t die. After all, it’s a slow-acting poison. If she were rescued in time, she would be fine!”

“It… it’s possible…” After thinking for a while, Rui’an Great Elder Princess nodded affirmatively and said, “As long as her life was not in danger, she would dare to do anything.”

“By doing so, Ruiping Great Elder Princess could guarantee the safety of her mansion and frame me.” Shao Wanru’s eyes turned cold. “She must have brought poison to the Palace. She should have taken the medicine when receiving the news that I would come. What would have happened if I had gone over at that time? I might kneel beside her to help plead for mercy or get some water. As long as I was there, anything I did would look suspicious.”

Then Ruiping Great Elder Princess would faint early. Her life would not be in danger if the rescue came in time.

When Ruiping Great Elder Princess woke up from a coma, Shao Wanru had become a suspect. If she said something ambiguous and got some “true evidence” from Infanta Yuan’an, she could completely put the blame on Shao Wanru. This plan was indeed vicious.

“I must talk to the Empress Dowager about this!” Rui’an Great Elder Princess could no longer sit still and suddenly stood up.

“Grandma, please sit down and listen to me!” Shao Wanru put down the bowl in her hand and pulled the sleeve of Rui’an Great Elder Princess.

Rui’an Great Elder Princess sat down helplessly. “I can tell the Empress Dowager about this. Don’t worry. I will be fine.”

“Grandma, even if we figure out Ruiping Great Elder Princess did it herself, we have no evidence!” Shao Wanru looked at Rui’an Great Elder Princess and said, “Now she is dead. If you go to the Palace and say that, people will think you are mean to the extreme to bring malicious accusations against a dead person.”

“What should we do? How could we let the problem she caused stir up the whole Palace?” Rui’an Great Elder Princess asked.

The whole Imperial Palace was in a state of panic. Everyone feared that they would be the next ones to be killed.

“Grandma, don’t worry. Prince Chen will deal with it!” Shao Wanru said with a gentle smile. This was what Chu Liuchen had told her this morning.

He told her not to worry because he wouldn’t let go of this incident about Ruiping Great Elder Princess.

“What will he do? Will he expose the truth? Then, I might as well do it. After all, his current identity is sensitive!” Rui’an Great Elder Princess said uneasily.

She feared Chu Liuchen would go to tell the Emperor about it. It was really inappropriate for him to say that.

“Set your heart at ease about it. He won’t be reckless.” Shao Wanru believed Chu Liuchen could handle this matter well. This matter had been delayed for several days. But since he said so, he must have some confidence in dealing with this matter.

“Grandma, let’s wait for news!” Seeing Rui’an Great Elder Princess was anxious, Shao Wanru comforted her in a soft voice. She took a bowl of soup from Qiu’er and handed it to her, saying sweetly, “Grandma, it’s delicious. You should try it!”