Full House Spring

Chapter 69 Game
Xia Li's anxiety did not last long. She had to serve the old lady and could not let anyone notice anything.

When she entered the main room, dinner had just been served. In addition to the servants, there was also the fourth young lady accompanying the old lady.

Seeing Xia Li, Lu Wanqiao smiled and joked, "I heard that you went to the mountains to pick wild vegetables, causing Manager Zhou to search the whole mountain for you, is that true or not?"

Xia Li bowed and said, "It is true that good news never travels far, but bad news travels a thousand miles. I thought that now is a good time to eat wild vegetables, so I wanted to dig some for the old lady and grandma to taste, but I forgot the time, so it took Manager Zhou a long time to find them."

The old lady handed the Buddhist beads to Qiancao and said gently: "Although it is a filial piety, you can't ignore your own safety. Who knows what kind of ferocious beasts are hiding in the deep mountains. If something happens, how can your grandma bear it?"

Xia Li subconsciously looked at Aunt Xie, met her deep eyes, and immediately touched her nose guiltily, begging for mercy: "I know I was wrong, I hope the old lady will not blame me, and please say something good to Grandma on my behalf."

Lu Wanqiao chuckled and said, "I didn't expect that the smart and capable sister Xia Li would also beg for mercy. Old Ancestor, please try this wild vegetable. If it tastes good, please help her immediately."

The old lady smiled so hard that wrinkles formed at the corners of her eyes. She motioned to the maid who was serving the dishes to put some wild vegetables on the plate. She tasted a bite, nodded slightly and said:
"It's really fresh and delicious. It's worth your risky trip. Alan, don't be angry."

Madam Xie said expressionlessly, "I am not angry. The girl has grown up and has strong wings. She will fly away sooner or later. She has her own ideas. No matter how much I say, it will be useless."

Xia Li looked at Grandma Xie eagerly, which made Lu Wanqiao laugh secretly. Grandma was the best to her in the mansion. Today's incident was so sudden that she was not even sure whether what the man said was true or false. After thinking it over again and again, she decided to keep it secret from her. In the future, whether she left or stayed, she would take Grandma with her.

Xia Li didn't need to save face in front of her grandma. If she was unhappy, he would just shamelessly pester her until she smiled again, which made Lu Wanqiao amazed.

After serving the old lady to finish her meal, Aunt Xie went out to eat shepherd's purse dumplings. Qiancao and Xia Li were on duty at night. After the old lady fell asleep, Xia Li sat under the lamp and did needlework.

This job was not urgent. Xia Li just wanted to find something to do to stop her mind from wandering. Qiancao saw her doing embroidery and sat beside her to sew her inner garment.

There was no other sound in the house except the crackling of the candlelight. After an unknown amount of time, Xia Li heard a noise outside. She stopped what she was doing and looked up, suspiciously saying, "It seems someone is coming outside. Sister, stay with the old lady. I'll go out and take a look."

Qiancao also stood up and said in a low voice, "Carry the lantern with you so that you can see the road. Be careful."

Xia Li nodded gently, "Don't worry, sister, I know what's going on."

She picked up the lantern, opened the door quietly, and walked a few steps. Sure enough, she saw someone standing outside the yard.

The old lady's courtyard is located in the middle of the manor, close to everywhere. Before Xia Li came out, Manager Zhou took the lead to greet him. He bowed and said:

"Miss Xia Li, the Duke's attendant is here and said he has something important to report to the old lady. I wonder if the old lady has gone to bed yet?"

Xia Li was very alert. If it wasn't for an extremely urgent matter, the Duke wouldn't have sent someone here overnight. She said in a deep voice:

"Manager Zhou, please have someone come in. Although the old lady has fallen asleep, there are priorities. If the important matter is delayed, both you and I will be held responsible."

Manager Zhou thought the same thing. He wiped the nonexistent sweat from his forehead and turned to call for help. Xia Li quickened her pace and went back to the house. Qian Cao was waiting there. When she saw her come back, she whispered, "What happened?"

Xia Li didn't have time to explain too much to her, and said softly: "Sister, prepare the old lady's clothes first, and help me help her change clothes later."

After Xia Li finished speaking, she walked inside. She walked to the old lady's bed, bent down and called softly, "Old lady, please wake up. The Duke of the mansion has sent someone to deliver a message."

The old lady was a light sleeper. As soon as Xia Li finished speaking, she opened her eyes and said in a hoarse voice, "Light the lamp and help me change my clothes."

Qiancao was waiting. When she heard the order, she immediately lit the lamp, went forward to help the old lady put on her clothes, and then called the servant in.

The long-time attendant came in and knelt on the ground and kowtowed. The old lady raised her hand to wave Xia Li and the other two away. Although Xia Li regretted not being able to hear what happened, he predicted that he would have to return home.

They talked for a cup of tea, and when the attendant came out, the old lady raised her voice and said, "Tell everyone to pack their luggage and leave for home early tomorrow morning."

Qiancao took the order and told the maid to run errands. Soon the lights in all the rooms were on. Xia Li helped the old lady to clean up first. She caught a glimpse of the old lady's gloomy face out of the corner of her eye, making her feel like a storm was about to come.

Xia Li worked together with the maid to pack up the luggage that would not be needed tomorrow morning, and then walked up to the old lady and said respectfully:
"Old lady, it's still early, you should take a nap first. No matter what happens, you need to be fully rested before you can deal with it, right?"

The old lady kept spinning the Buddhist beads in her hand and said in a calm voice, "Let's take care of what you said. Let's have someone else take care of the night. Go pack your luggage, or you'll be late tomorrow morning."

Xia Li nodded in agreement, bowed and left. When she returned to the room, Aunt Xie had been alarmed. She had almost finished packing her luggage and saw Xia Li and asked, "Do you know what happened?"

Xia Li closed the door and shook his head, saying, "When the attendant went in to answer, we were all sent out and didn't hear anything."

Aunt Xie tied the bundle tightly and said softly, "I'll go to the old lady to watch over her. You should go to bed early."

Xia Li wanted her to rest, but she wouldn't listen. Xia Li said it was useless no matter how much he tried, so he simply didn't stop her and let her go on her own.

That night, Xia Li tossed and turned on the couch, thinking sometimes about the words of the military general and sometimes about the unknown situation in the mansion. She even wondered if the two were related.

Unfortunately, she was locked up in the mansion and couldn't go out. No matter what happened, she could only accept it passively. This feeling of uneasiness really made her feel uneasy.

Xia Li didn't know whether she fell asleep or not. It seemed that she had just closed her eyes when it was dawn outside. The old lady didn't even have breakfast and hurriedly took them back home.

Lu Qinghe and the others didn't dare to complain. No one wanted to offend at this time. They all followed the instructions obediently. The carriage sped along the way. Xia Li felt that her waist and below were about to fall apart. When they arrived at the Duke's Mansion, everyone looked unhappy. They must have suffered from riding in the carriage. Even the old lady looked a little pale, but she didn't care about that. When she arrived at Leshou Hall, she immediately sent someone to call Lu Jianxing.

Unexpectedly, Lu Jianxing was not in the mansion. He had not returned from the palace, and the eldest wife had not shown up either. Nanny Xie persuaded the old lady to have breakfast first. The entire Leshou Hall was in a low-pressure environment, and the maids on duty were even more cautious, not daring to make the slightest sound.

Xia Li did not leave her post without permission. She wanted to find out some clues. Just when the old lady's patience was about to run out, the Duke finally returned home, and with him entered Leshou Hall was Princess Hui.

Xia Li noticed from the corner of her eye that Princess Hui had lost a lot of weight, and her temperament had changed greatly. Her eyes no longer had the softness and gentleness they had before, but now looked much sharper.

The old lady sat at the head of the table, looking at Princess Hui with cloudy eyes, and said in a low voice: "It's rare for the second girl to come back home. She seems to have more dignity as a princess, which is very good."

Princess Hui pursed her lips and smiled softly, saying slowly, "It's all thanks to my grandmother's teaching. Without her guidance, how could I have survived until today..."

Before she finished her words, she heard Lu Jianxing snort coldly:

"Now that you know where your backers come from, you should be grateful and always put the interests of the mansion first."

Lu Zhiyao curled his red lips into a cold smile and said in a tough tone:
"My Lord, you may be slow to react and don't understand. I am the Princess of Hui first, and then the daughter of the Lu family. Don't you understand the principle that a woman should obey her husband after marriage?"

Lu Jianxing's face looked extremely ugly. If the old lady had not been here, he would have been furious. Just then, a second-class maid holding a teacup lifted the curtain and came in. When she saw his appearance, she was so frightened that she stood there trembling and dared not move.

She was a newly promoted second-class maid who had never worked for her master. Xia Li was afraid that the Duke would vent his anger on her, so she hurried forward to take the teacup, raised her chin slightly and motioned her to take it down. The maid turned around and walked out as if she had been pardoned.

Xia Li was not in a hurry to serve tea to the masters. When she walked up to Princess Hui, Lu Zhiyao smiled at her kindly. This smile was nothing short of a provocation in Lu Jianxing's eyes. He said in a cold tone:
"What is your purpose in entering the palace today? Even if you are the princess, you should have submitted your invitation in advance."

Lu Zhiyao frowned, revealing an unhappy look, and said bluntly: "Does it mean that I need your approval to visit my grandmother?"

Lu Jianxing had been so overwhelmed by the affairs of the court these days that he had no patience to deal with her. He said in a dissatisfied tone, "There are no outsiders here. You don't have to beat around the bush. Just tell me what your purpose is."

Lu Zhiyao put the teacup on the table and said with a smile, "Why is the Duke so anxious to invite the old ancestor back from the manor?"

Lu Jianxing's facial muscles were tense. He suppressed his inner anger and said sternly, "This is a family matter. It is inconvenient to tell the princess."

A dangerous gleam flashed across Lu Zhiyao's eyes, and she said in a slightly cold voice:
"Duke, please don't forget that my surname is also Lu. The elite soldiers left by my grandfather should be used by my prince. There is no reason to let them be loyal to someone who has no blood relationship with the Lu family."

Lu Jianxing's eyes were full of hostility. He said in a cold tone: "You are a married woman, what qualifications do you have to interfere in this matter? Does King Hui want to rebel? You and your wife have wicked ambitions, simply..."

Before he could finish his words, he heard the old lady scolding him, "Shut up! What are you doing in Huqin? Do you want to drag everyone in the mansion to be buried with you?"

Lu Jianxing looked at her, his expression a little flustered for a moment, he said anxiously:
"Mother, this is a critical moment. You can't be so foolish as to allow the second girl to deceive you. The military power left by father should be given to His Royal Highness the Third Prince..."

The old lady frowned deeply, her eyes deep as she said, "People are gone and the tea is cold. Without your father, those old people may not obey the order. Besides, the eldest prince is now in charge of the government. What chance does the third prince have of winning?"

Lu Jianxing straightened his back and raised his hand to wave away the serving maid. Xia Li's eyes were full of disappointment, she wanted to hear more useful information.

As she stepped out of the door, just when she was feeling depressed, someone came up to her and gently tugged at her skirt. Xia Li turned around and saw that it was Man Qing smiling at her. Xia Li lowered her voice and said, "Why are you here? I didn't see you just now."

Man Qing pointed to the pavilion in front and chuckled, "Let's sit there and talk. I'll tell you in detail."

As Princess Hui's personal maid, Manqing must know more than her. Xia Li nodded slightly and followed her. The area around the pavilion was empty and there was no one else around.

After the two of them sat down, Xia Li looked at Man Qing for a few times and said in a gentle voice, "You look very thin. Could it be that Prince Hui's Mansion doesn't give you food?"

There was a faint mist in Manqing's eyes, and she said with a choked voice:
"Your Highness Princess has a generous dowry, so how could she be without food? It's just... Prince Hui is much harder to serve than I imagined. My master and I have both suffered a lot, and now we are barely able to stand firm on our feet."

Xia Li did not show any sympathy. This was the second girl's own choice. Now that the situation has been opened up, things will get better and better in the future.

She asked tentatively, "Did the princess come to the palace to ask for military power on behalf of the prince? Why are you so anxious?"

Man Qing approached her and said solemnly, "I also heard from the prince that the emperor is critically ill and will not have much time left. Now the various forces in the court are fighting to the death. I am afraid that the Duke's Mansion will not be peaceful for long. You must make plans early..."

Xia Li's intuition came true. She lowered her voice and said, "Prince Hui and the Third Prince both want the military power left by the old Duke to increase their chances of victory, but those people have long been disbanded and incorporated into other teams. What's the use of getting the token?"

Man Qing sighed softly, "The princess told me that this group of people live and die together, and they are very united. Even if they are dispersed, as long as they have the token of the old Duke, they can gather them together again. If this force is in the hands of the princess, she will be more confident in front of King Hui, and she will be able to protect everyone in the palace in times of crisis."

Xia Li didn't expect the second young lady to know such a confidential matter. She lowered her voice and asked, "Does the prince also know about this?"

Man Qing shook her head and said with a complicated expression: "The princess was not sure that she could get the token, so she did not tell the prince. I don't know how she knew about this. The princess... is not the same as we see on the surface. She... is very cunning."

If Manqing had not been close to Xia Li, she would not have casually told her these things. Xia Li seemed to have expected this and said calmly:
"If the princess is really a blank slate, you wouldn't choose to be with her. The world is tough and survival is not easy. Only by being strong can you protect the people around you."

Man Qing thought about it carefully, and realized that what she said was not wrong. She leaned close to her ear and whispered, "If you want to get rid of your slavery and leave the mansion, you should hurry up and do it. It's safer outside now."

(End of this chapter)