Ask the Nine Ministers

Chapter 352 Incense Breaks Through the Enemy
As the Princess Consort of Duan, Xue Yuechen was always dignified and composed. Now that she was truly angry, she exuded a powerful aura.

The atmosphere in the waterside pavilion plummeted to freezing point.

The women from the collateral branches held their breath and lowered their heads, wishing they could disappear on the spot.

Yu Ge'er was frightened by his mother and aunt's argument and pouted as if he was about to cry. Xue Yueying impatiently patted his back, which made him barely hold back his tears.

"Ninth Sister, I'm a straightforward person and I don't always speak my mind, please bear with me..."

Xue Yue'e watched as her apology lacked sincerity, her chest heaving violently, her face flushing red and then turning pale.

The Xue Yueying of the past wasn't like this; she was quite close to her. But ever since the sisters fell out, she'd become increasingly demanding, frequently bringing that bastard child to the Prince's mansion to cause trouble. She'd even feign intimacy in front of the Prince, subtly and overtly sowing discord, as if she'd suffered some great injustice…

All her manners and dignity were like paper when she met Xue Yueying; they were easily torn to shreds.

Stop with your pretentious act!

Xue Yuechen frowned and gave her a reassuring look.

Xue Yue'e then suppressed the urge to pounce and fight, and sat back down hard.

The women in the waterside pavilion awkwardly looked away, lowering their heads and speaking quietly while drinking tea.

Xue Sui picked up the cup of tea offered by the maid, lowered his eyes, and gently blew away the foam...

He suddenly frowned and relaxed, revealing a slight discomfort.

Hidden under the table, the fingers, concealed by the wide sleeves of the robe, tapped three times very lightly and quickly on the brocade cushion.

Jinshu, who was standing to the side and behind, lowered her eyelids slightly.

This is the girl's secret code—

She subtly shifted half a step to the side, moving closer to Xue Sui from behind.

"Young lady, are you feeling unwell anywhere?"

"Perhaps it's an old injury that's aggravated my chest; it feels a little tightness in my chest." Xue Sui's lips moved slightly, a hint of weariness in his voice. He gestured to her with his eyes, "Go to the carriage and fetch that small celadon gourd-shaped bottle from my medicine box..."

Jinshu understood immediately upon hearing this.

"Yes, miss, please wait a moment, I will go right away."

Her voice was neither too loud nor too soft, just loud enough for people to hear.

He then curtsied and quickly left.

Xue Yue'e put on a smile and said, "Sixth Sister, are you feeling unwell? Is it too hot in the waterside pavilion? Why don't you move to the cool inner room and rest for a while?"

"Thank you for your concern, Your Highness. It's just a minor old ailment, nothing serious."

Xue Sui spoke calmly, his gaze sweeping over Xue Yue'e's eyebrows and eyes, "But the Princess Consort looks a little tired, and the dark circles under her eyes haven't faded. Has she been having many nightmares and being unable to sleep soundly lately?"

Xue Yue'e was startled and subconsciously raised her hand to touch her cheek.

She was indeed having trouble sleeping because of Li Yan's unpredictable moods and irritable temper...

Not to mention at night, I often feel irritable and short of breath during the day.

However, she was concerned about her image, and being publicly exposed by Xue Sui made her somewhat embarrassed...

Xue Sui smiled slightly, and before she could answer, his gaze turned to the incense burner in the corner that was emitting wisps of smoke.

"This incense... is quite unique. Although the aroma is strong, upon closer inspection, there's a hint of dryness. The smoke is also rather bluish-black, unlike the smooth and mellow scent of pure incense. I wonder which incense shop made it? Or... did they add other fragrance enhancers?"

Her words were three parts truth and seven parts probing.

There was indeed something strange about the fragrance, which subtly blended with the scent of the white lotus.

She wanted to see if Xue Yue'e knew about it.

Unexpectedly, upon hearing this, Xue Yue'e's complexion improved considerably, and her eyes regained some sparkle.

"Sixth Sister has such a keen nose. This is no ordinary spice. The Prince said it's a secret recipe from the Empress Dowager's palace, containing the finest borneol, styrax, and rose dew... The Prince himself finds it delicious and specially ordered some to be given to me. I lit it so that my sisters could also taste it..."

"Oh..." Xue Sui nodded as if she understood, and said sincerely, "I see. Perhaps the borneol is a bit too strong? Borneol is potent and can indeed refresh the mind, but excessive use can easily aggravate liver fire. The Princess and the Prince should be careful."

Xue Yue'e's smugness and pride froze, her eyes filled with displeasure at being offended.

"Sixth Sister is far too ignorant. The things given by the Prince are naturally of the highest quality. Are the nobles in the palace less knowledgeable than you?"

Xue Sui glanced at them, a cold smile playing on his lips.

It seems that Xue Yue'e was just a pawn being used.

"Xiao Zhao..." Xue Sui suddenly called out, his voice not loud, but enough to make everyone in the waterside pavilion, with their own thoughts, look over.

"Go and fetch some fresh, intact lotus leaves. They can be used to support fruits and vegetables later, or you can fetch some dew to brew tea. It's very refreshing and helps to soothe the mind and relieve the princess's depression."

"Yes."

Xiao Zhao responded crisply and walked around the table toward the railing overlooking the water.

Just as I was about to pass the incense burner in the corner, my foot seemed to be tripped by the seam of the camphor wood floor. I stumbled, cried out, and fell headlong towards the incense burner.

A gasp rang out—

In a flash, Xiao Zhao hurriedly waved her hands to steady herself, but her arm accidentally brushed against the heavy bronze incense burner.

"Clang-"

She is extremely strong.

The incense burner tipped over instantly and rolled onto the ground.

The burning incense cakes and half a furnace of incense ash inside were immediately spilled out, spreading a mess on the ground... A rich aroma suddenly burst forth.

The waterside pavilion was suddenly filled with smoke and fumes.

"Cough cough cough..."

"My skirt!"

"It's so strong!"

"Cough cough cough..." Several women who were nearby were choked by the incense ash and coughed repeatedly. They hurriedly covered their faces with their sleeves to avoid the incense ash.

"You stupid idiot! Where are your eyes located?"

Xue Yue'e was both shocked and furious, and pointed at Xiao Zhao, scolding her fiercely.

Xue Sui had already stood up before she could lash out, and scolded, "How clumsy! You've disturbed the Princess and all the distinguished guests. Can you take responsibility for that? Kneel down and accept your punishment..."

Xiao Zhao knelt down with a thud, her voice trembling with tears, "This servant deserves to die! This servant didn't mean it... Thank you, Your Highness, for your magnanimity and forgiveness..."

Xue Yue'e was interrupted, her round eyes widened, and she felt a lump in her throat.

When did I say I would forgive you?

"That's enough." Xue Yuechen spoke at the right moment, her tone calm but carrying considerable weight.

"It's hot and the ground is slippery, so it's easy to slip and fall. Just clean up the incense ash; as long as no one is hurt, that's all that matters. Why bother arguing with a little girl, only adding fuel to the fire and disrupting the peace?"

Princess Duan has always been a respectable person who values ​​harmony.

With such a heavy burden placed upon her, Xue Yue'e could only endure it, no matter how unwilling she was.

She swallowed her anger, looked at the mess on the ground and the coughing crowd, and waved her hand impatiently to give orders.

"What are you all standing there for? Hurry up and clean up! Be quick. If you make another mistake, you'll be in big trouble."

Several maids and servants rushed forward and hurriedly cleaned up the mess.

The carefully crafted atmosphere has vanished.

Xue Yueying hugged Yu Ge'er, making no attempt to hide her schadenfreude, while Xue Yue'e sat back down in agitation, her mind in turmoil.

Outside the waterside pavilion, the croaking of frogs was deafening.

The atmosphere was oppressive and awkward.

The crowd lost interest in talking and chatted idly.

After about half an incense stick's time, familiar footsteps came from the corridor.

Jinshu is back.

She walked steadily, but her breathing was a little more rapid than when she left. There was a thin layer of sweat on her forehead, and she held a small celadon medicine bottle and a white porcelain bowl filled with water in her hands.

She walked quickly to Xue Sui's side and placed the medicine bottle and water bowl on the table.

"Miss, the medicine has been brought."

With a leaning motion, she brought her lips almost to Xue Sui's earlobe and whispered rapidly in a breath that only the two of them could hear.

"Beside the northwest corner gate of the Prince's mansion, there is a small courtyard with a storage room for miscellaneous items. The gate is always closed. These past few days, the cook has been delivering meals there, but she couldn't enter. She only said she saw a woman wearing a dark gray veiled hat, someone she didn't recognize, acting suspiciously..."

Xue Sui's fingers tightened slightly.

Then, he calmly took the medicine bottle, poured out a small brown pill, and swallowed it with the water Jinshu handed him.

at this time--

Something unexpected happened.

"mother……"

"What's wrong with Mother?"

A child's voice, trembling with sobs, suddenly broke the somber silence of the waterside pavilion.

Xue Sui looked up and saw that Xue Yueying, who had just been watching the show with an amused expression, was now deathly pale, with beads of cold sweat instantly forming on her forehead. She was curled up in her seat, clutching her collar tightly with both hands, her body trembling uncontrollably, and her eyes unfocused and dazed...

“It’s hot… so hot…”

really.

Someone wants to play with her.

If she were the one sitting there today, it wouldn't be Xue Yueying convulsing and inconsolable right now, but her...

"Mother! Mother...ah..."

Yu Ge'er was so frightened by his mother's appearance that he burst into tears and desperately tried to pull Xue Yueying's sleeve with his little hands.

"Fourth sister, what's wrong?" Xue Yuelou, who was closest to her, stood up in surprise.

Xue Yue'e was also so frightened that she stood up. Looking at Xue Yueying's painful and contorted appearance, she was momentarily speechless.

Xue Yuechen's expression changed drastically, and she hurriedly gave orders to her attendants.

"Quickly, summon the imperial physician!"

　Li Zhao: My wife is the reincarnation of Zhuge Liang. She's incredibly accurate and has a divine ability to predict things!
　　Xue Sui: Your Highness, please don't flatter me...

　　Li Zhao: Okay, wife!

　　(End of this chapter)