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Chapter 565 Female Bodhisattva

"Then His Highness Prince Shu... also has dealings with Gu Lingyun?" Zhu Yu thought for a moment. Gu Lingyun was actually only two years older than Lu Ze. However, one was a capable female manager of the Tze Lü Fang, while the other was a prince who still had to go to the palace to see his mother every day. One gave people the impression of being very capable, while the other had a childlike appearance that made him seem much younger than his actual age. So for a moment, there was a misconception that the two were quite different in age.

"Originally, I hadn't heard of any interaction between the two sides. However, Consort Duan's clothes and accessories made her stand out among all the concubines in the harem. Before long, the noble ladies in the capital were able to buy similar or identical fabrics from the shoe store and make a group of them, following the trend and creating a craze."

At first, everyone thought that Manager Gu was well-informed and always managed to find out what the most favored Consort Duan in the palace wore and used, and then quickly imitated it to make a fortune.

As time went on, some people wondered if the fabric worn by Consort Duan from the very beginning was actually from the Zelifang workshop.

Manager Gu neither confirmed nor denied this rumor, letting people talk as they pleased without offering any clarification.

As Liu Yueyao said this, she covered half of her face with a palm-leaf fan and chuckled: "I just don't know how Consort Duan, a concubine who never had the chance to leave the palace, knew what good things were available in the shoe-making workshop outside that couldn't be found elsewhere."

Zhu Yu nodded knowingly, understanding Liu Yueyao's meaning.

Consort Duan had no chance to see the outside world while she was in the inner palace, but Lu Ze was running between the palace and the outside world almost every day. He not only attended court, but also had the unique privilege of visiting his mother in the inner palace anytime.

The rare fabrics and incense naturally ended up in Consort Duan's hands through him.

It seems perfectly normal for a son to bring small gifts to visit his mother, to show filial piety and please her. There's nothing wrong with that.

Over such a long period of time, Lu Ze and Ze Li Fang have naturally had more interactions and a closer relationship than the outside world has seen.

"Is the Emperor's favor with Consort Duan related to her beautiful and fragrant clothes and incense?" Zhu Yu asked Lu Qing.

This matter is a private affair within the palace, or rather, the inner palace. As someone outside the palace, Liu Yueyao, no matter how many spies she might have, would probably never have heard of it.

When Lu Qing was serving as the Imperial Censor, he had to go to the inner palace to meet the Emperor from time to time. With so many visits, he naturally saw and heard a lot and was able to draw some conclusions.

Lu Qing smiled when she heard Zhu Yu's question: "I can't say for sure about that either, but Consort Duan does have some novelties that other concubines don't have."

I overheard Eunuch Gao casually mention that His Majesty never sleeps well or has a good appetite when he stays at other places. But when he's with Consort Duan, perhaps because she's particularly good at making him happy, his appetite seems to improve, and he sleeps more soundly at night. So unless he's extremely busy, His Majesty definitely prefers to spend the night with Consort Duan.

Zhu Yu raised an eyebrow knowingly, nodded, and then asked Liu Yueyao, "So recently Gu Lingyun has started openly going to Prince Shu's mansion, no longer trying to hide it from others?"

"To be honest, I have managed to avoid it, but no one has ever seen me before. Recently, I have been seen a few times, so I guess I've been a bit careless compared to the past," Liu Yueyao replied with a smile and a nod.

In the past, her respect for Zhu Yu was almost entirely due to her master, Lu Qing, which was why she needed to show respect to this mistress. But now, she felt an even deeper, heartfelt admiration for Zhu Yu, unrelated to Lu Qing, and thus her attitude became exceptionally respectful.

“This is interesting,” Zhu Yu said with a smile as he looked at Lu Qing. “I thought it was Prince Yi, but it turned out to be Prince Shu.”

“That’s not surprising at all. Thinking about it carefully, there were signs all along.” Lu Qing reminded Zhu Yu, and then added, “What’s more intriguing now is why Gu Lingyun was able to be so careful and discreet before, but recently she has suddenly become careless.”

Having said that, he didn't intend to reach any conclusion with Zhu Yu right now. He gestured for Liu Yueyao to go about her business first, and then asked Fu Wen, "Has that person woken up?"

Fu Wen nodded: "He's in much better spirits. I just called Fu Lu over to watch over him. I came over to ask if you and your wife would like to go and take a look."

"Of course we should." Before Lu Qing could speak, Zhu Yu stood up first. "The person I rescued, I have to see what happened. It can't be left like this. If he's a bad person, I'll personally take the stitches off."

Lu Qing knew she was teasing him, so he laughed and got up to pull her along, saying, "Since that's the case, let's follow the wife's lead."

In case that person really is a bad guy, I'll hand the knife to my wife when the stitches are removed.

After making several turns, the three of them arrived at the small courtyard. Fu Lu was standing at the door of the house. When he saw Lu Qing and Zhu Yu arrive, he pointed into the house and said, "Master, Madam, that fellow looks like he's been completely saved. He definitely won't die!"

When I carried him back, he was practically half-dead, and you still managed to save him! Madam, you are truly amazing!

Zhu Yu waved his hand somewhat embarrassedly.

If even the most difficult corpse could lead her to the cause of death and uncover the truth, she would gladly accept the praise.

As for saving someone's life... that person was lucky and had a strong life, which accounts for half of the reason.

Zhu Yu and Lu Qing pushed open the door and went in. The person who had been rescued had his face cleaned of blood, but there were still some bruises. The swelling had also subsided a lot, and he was now sitting on the bed.

Upon seeing his savior arrive, he hurriedly tried to stand up and kneel in worship, but Fu Wen stepped forward and pressed him down.

"Don't move! Your wounds haven't healed yet. If you move around and break free, then all the work my wife did to sew you up all night will have been for nothing!" he said to the man.

Upon hearing this, the man dared not move again. He could only clasp his hands together and repeatedly bow to Zhu Yu, saying, "Thank you, Bodhisattva, for saving my life! Thank you, Bodhisattva, for saving my life!"

"Don't rush to say thank you," Zhu Yu waved his hand. "What's your name? Where are you from? What grudge do you have with that shoe store? How did you end up being beaten so badly in the capital, right under the emperor's nose, that you almost lost your life?"