tallest building

Chapter 291 Aunt Hua

No sooner had the young palace maid left than a nanny came swinging over.

Xiaoyue frowned as soon as she saw her.

This is Granny Hua, who manages the storerooms. She only oversees two fabric warehouses and has very little power, but she's someone who can't get enough of taking advantage of others.

Their residence wasn't far from Granny Hua's storeroom, and since they used a lot of gauze when grinding spices and pearls to make face coverings, they frequently interacted with her.

Logically speaking, Hua Momo was only in charge of guarding the storeroom; the contents weren't hers. Everything Wen Mingqian needed was approved by the Empress; he could simply take it without her having to lift a finger. But she insisted on asking for favors.

Of course, she couldn't ask for it openly, because Wen Mingqian was a favorite of the Empress. But she was like a persistent leech, grabbing onto everyone she could and not stopping until she had something on them.

For example, he would always complain about aches and pains here and itches there, and ask Wen Mingqian for some supplements.

Or they could say that their room smells bad and ask for some leftover incense powder.

Wen Mingqian naturally wouldn't stoop to her level, and even told Xiaoyue that it wasn't worth offending someone like that, nor was it necessary to be overly friendly with her.

Give her one out of three times, that's fine.

When she had nothing to do, Granny Hua liked to wander around and see where she could find a bargain.

Just then, they arrived at Wen Mingqian and his group, and saw Xiaoyue grab a handful of longan pulp and give it to the little palace maid.

She then came over and said to Xiaoyue with a grin, "Miss Xiaoyue, has Her Majesty the Empress bestowed some good things upon you again? Oh my, this is truly enviable."

Xiaoyue didn't want to talk to her this time, even though she had just gotten a pair of shoe uppers from this house two days ago.

"Granny Hua, are you still strolling around? There's a lot of rain in spring, be careful that the things in your storeroom don't get moldy. You should take them out to air them out." Xiaoyue said, turning around and going into the house.

Granny Hua, however, was not giving up and simply followed me in: "I'm very thirsty after walking all this way. Please, young lady, pour me a bowl of tea."

Then he praised how fragrant the room smelled.

Xiaoyue was really annoyed with her but had no choice. She found a teacup that no one usually used on the shelf in the outer room and brewed her a bowl of tea.

Granny Hua held a cup of tea in her hands, but her two old eyes darted around the room with a mischievous look: "Where did Her Majesty give you the dried longan? Was it from Fuzhou? That place produces the best longan!"

"Her Majesty only bestowed this much, and Lady Wen hasn't even seen it yet, so I can't just give it away casually," Xiaoyue said as calmly as possible. "Granny, you shouldn't take it for now!"

When Granny Hua heard her say that, she knew there was no hope, so she had no choice but to finish the cup of tea before leaving.

"Honestly, at her age, she has no respect at all." After she left, Xiaoyue couldn't help but grumble. "It's only because Lady Wen is kind-hearted that she could have spoken to the Empress and had her sent to the laundry department!"

She was also annoyed by this old woman, Hua.

Unexpectedly, Granny Hua didn't go far; instead, she pressed her ear against the curtain to listen.

She not only loves to take advantage of small things, but she also loves to eavesdrop.

Knowing that Xiaoyue disliked her, she stood there listening to see if Xiaoyue would scold her.

Hearing Xiaoyue's words, the old woman muttered and cursed, "You lowly little whore? It's not like I'm cutting flesh off you, why are you so upset? You can give it to anyone else, why can't you give it to an old woman like me?!"

Even if that young lady Wen is capable, so what? To put it bluntly, isn't she just a servant who serves the Empress? She gets lucky and shows her face in front of her master every day, so she naturally gets rewards often. Who among us behind the Yinshan Mountains can see that?
Even if you're a little bit more generous, it's only fair that you spare some for us. Besides, I've practically begged you for this, how can you just say you won't give it to me?!

She walked forward, talking as she went, and was about to pass through a gourd-shaped door to get to the back when she heard someone call out "Madam Wen". She stopped and hid behind the door to peek.

Wen Mingqian was about to return to her residence when she heard someone calling her from behind.

Turning around, he found himself facing Xiao Shunzi, the eunuch who had spread the falsehoods that day.

"Madam Wen, please wait a moment, I need to speak with you." Xiao Shunzi was panting heavily from running.

Wen Mingqian looked at him with a cold gaze and no expression on his face.

Xiao Shunzi smiled somewhat awkwardly and said to Wen Mingqian, "Madam Wen, someone asked me to deliver something to you."

As he spoke, he reached into his pocket.

Wen Mingqian took a step back and said, "I don't want it, take it back quickly."

"No, Madam Wen, I'm doing this on someone's behalf." Xiao Shunzi quickly stopped her. "Please, please take it, or I'll be beaten to death."

He held an embroidered pouch in his hand, which was decorated with lotus seeds and a double-flowered knot.

"Please, Eunuch Xiaoshun, don't make things difficult for me. Who gave you this? You have to return it. I absolutely cannot accept it." Wen Mingqian refused sternly and turned to leave.

But Xiao Shunzi is a very difficult person. Dong Gang asked him to deliver this to Wen Mingqian, and he repeatedly instructed that he must personally deliver it to Wen Mingqian so that she could accept it.

Of course, he probably gave Xiao Shunzi some benefits, otherwise Xiao Shunzi wouldn't have been willing to risk his life for him.

The palace maids and eunuchs in the palace were actually all helpless and alone. Even if they left the palace in the future, most of them would be destitute in their old age.

Therefore, they value money above all else and always try to save as much as possible so that they won't suffer from hunger and poverty in the future.

Dong Gang was generous and spared no expense to get things done. Xiao Shunzi, having latched onto this powerful figure, naturally had to flatter him relentlessly.

As for whether Wen Mingqian was willing or not, and whether this matter was immoral, he didn't care.

Moreover, he thought that Wen Mingqian, a divorced woman, was clearly lucky to be chosen by Dong Gang.

As for her repeated refusals, that was just an act for outsiders; women always like to put on a show.

"Madam Wen, you must accept this gift. I won't say who sent it, just know that it was given by a thoughtful person."

I'll be leaving the palace soon, and you know they search you at the palace gates. It wouldn't look good if they found this. After all, there's a message inside, and if rumors start circulating..."

While talking, Xiao Shunzi took advantage of Wen Mingqian's dazed state to shove the things into her hand and then turned and ran away.

Wen Mingqian did this naturally to keep Dong Gang hanging, as Dong Gang was both the Empress's nephew and Consort Hui's son-in-law.

Consort Hui was not a person of great talent, but she was extremely selfish and self-serving.

In order to curry favor with the Empress, she did not hesitate to publicly accuse herself of having witnessed Shen Fu and Bu Yuegui's affair.

These baseless accusations, uttered from her red lips and white teeth, cemented Shen Bu and his companion's guilt as adulterers.

Not only did she rise to the rank of imperial concubine because of this, but her daughter also married the grandson of Grand Tutor Dong.