青春期撞上更年期第1部

“Nanny, take a look at this letter. Did Consort Lan write it?” Shao Wanru came straight to the question.

Nanny Zheng took the letter and looked at it with a solemn face. When she saw the handwriting and a small mark on the envelope clearly, she nodded and said, “My Lady, it is indeed from Consort Lan. There is a tiny mark here. Do you think it looks like an orchid?”

Shao Wanru took the letter, looked at it, and shook her head. The mark was very light and small, but it didn’t look like an orchid at all. It seemed that she accidentally made it.

“My Lady, please turn it over and look at it again,” Nanny Zheng said with a gentle smile.

Shao Wanru turned the letter in her hand around. When she looked at the mark again, it was a bit like an orchid to her. But if Nanny Zheng didn’t tell her about it in advance, she might not guess it right because the pattern was in the cursive style.

“Before I left the Palace that day, Consort Lan had told me this. Originally, I planned to go to the Prince Chen’s Mansion that day.” Nanny Zheng sighed with a trace of bitterness in her eyes. “My Lady, rest assured. Consort Lan will never harbor any bad intentions toward you.”

Shao Wanru glanced at Nanny Zheng and asked, “Consort Lan, what’s her relationship with His Highness?”

“I don’t dare to reveal their relationship.” Nanny Zheng lowered her head.

Seeing her reaction, Shao Wanru knew she would not tell her, so she didn’t pursue the matter. Instead, she opened the letter and began to read it. The more she read, the more serious her face became.

The letter described what had happened in the Palace yesterday.

The Emperor rebuked the Empress in the Imperial Study, and Consort of Virtue was summoned to the Empress Dowager’s place. Many people in the Palace were wondering what Shao Wanru had said to the Empress Dowager after entering the Palace. Was it a coincidence? Or did the Empress Dowager specially order Shao Wanru to see her?

Before Shao Wanru came, Duke Cheng’en met the Empress Dowager, who then scolded him severely. In a towering rage, the Empress Dowager even hit him. After Duke Cheng’en left, she had a conversation with Shao Wanru first. Then the Emperor came to see her. Finally, she talked with Consort of Virtue.

In the overall situation, Shao Wanru was like a round peg in a square hole among all these people. She looked like an outsider who accidentally got involved but also seemed to be the centerpiece of the whole thing.

Consort Lan warned Shao Wanru that people in the limelight would bear the brunt of an attack, so she should keep a low profile and avoid making any trouble. Chu Liuchen was not in the capital, so she had to be more careful. Moreover, she told Shao Wanru that Chu Liuchen couldn’t arrive in the capital before the Empress Dowager’s birthday…

Shao Wanru looked at the letter in her hand twice before slowly putting it down, tightly knitting her willowy eyebrows. She knew these words were not groundless.

“My Lady, did Consort Lan say anything crucial?” Seeing her put down the letter, Nanny Zheng said anxiously, “Did anything serious happen? Otherwise, Consort Lan would not have contacted you at this time.”

Shao Wanru glanced at Nanny Zheng in surprise but did not ask for the reason. She simply nodded and said, “They talked about what happened in the Palace yesterday. The Empress was scolded, and Consort of Virtue was also involved. I had been to the Palace to meet the Empress Dowager yesterday. Many people think that these things might have something to do with me!”

Upon hearing her words, several trusted subordinates could not help gasping.

“My Lady, did someone direct all the attention to you on purpose?” Yujie asked.

“I also think so. Why do they feel this matter must have something to do with you?” Qu Le echoed.

Shao Wanru tightly pursed her pink and tender lips and remembered what the Empress had done. On the sly, someone aggravated a complicated situation, put all the blame on Shao Wanru, and made her the center of attention. Then the Empress confirmed those rumors. She kept the few imperial consorts in her place because she wanted them to spread the word that Shao Wanru was the key that had triggered all these things.

The Empress summoned her not to learn about the talk between her and the Empress Dowager but to prove to others that this rumor was authentic, which imperceptibly put Shao Wanru in danger.

Before she read Consort Lan’s letter, she was a little confused and couldn’t see the whole picture clearly. But now, Shao Wanru immediately understood that she was in a perilous situation: when various forces suspected her, how could she come to a good end?

“My Lady, you should be even more discreet at this time. Since His Highness is not in the mansion, you are the only master. Nothing can go wrong with you.” Nanny Zheng looked more nervous than Shao Wanru. Her face paled a little, which showed that she was in a panic.

Nanny Zheng had always been steady and reliable, though this was not the first time the two servant girls saw Nanny Zheng in a fluster. Yujie and Qu Le’s faces immediately clouded.

“My Lady, please pretend to be sick!” Yujie came up with an idea and said.

Nanny Zheng shook her head and said, “No, this excuse sounds unconvincing, and the others will know that our master cooks her illness up on purpose. It will make her more suspicious in their eyes. Besides, when some people intend to deal with Your Highness, they can do it even if she fakes illness.”

Pretending to be sick at this time was too far-fetched. In the past, when nothing serious happened, it was okay for Princess Chen to pretend to be sick. At the very worst, she would displease the Empress Dowager.

Now was not the best time.

“Then… Then let’s move out early to avoid the trouble. We can leave the mansion. Perhaps, we can move to the Rui’an Great Elder Princess’s Mansion?” Hearing that some people might hurt Princess Chen, Qu Le was so scared that she reached out to pull Shao Wanru’s sleeve and said, “My Lady, let’s go to the Rui’an Great Elder Princess’s Mansion. There are many guards!”

If Prince Chen were here, they certainly didn’t need to care so much about it. But now, Princess Chen was the only master in the mansion, so Qu Le was deeply worried.

“We can’t do that. If we hide there, we might bring trouble to Great Elder Princess. Although the Rui’an Great Elder Princess’s Mansion also has many guards, those guards are far inferior to those in Prince Chen’s Mansion!”

Nanny Zheng objected again.

“We can’t do this, and we can’t do that. Then, what should we do? We can’t just watch Her Highness get into trouble!” Qu Le was so anxious that she was about to cry.

Before they talked about it, Qu Le sensed no danger. But after hearing Nanny Zheng’s analysis, she felt that lurking dangers surrounded them. In her eyes, no place was safe anymore.

Shao Wanru composed herself, pondered for a while, and said, “I’ll stay in the Prince Chen’s Mansion, not going anywhere else. I don’t need the maple leaf painting anymore. I’ll use the table screen!”

Shao Wanru personally embroidered the table screen she prepared as a birthday gift long ago. After all, one painting was not enough, and it was more thoughtful to present it with a table screen. But since the painting with maple leaves had become the key to everything, it was better not to take it out.

“The table screen and other treasures will be my gifts for the Empress Dowager.”

These gifts, neither outstanding nor shabby, were a token of her regard. As a granddaughter-in-law, she needed to send some gifts, though they were not particularly eye-catching.

Without the maple leaf painting, she could, at least, make people less suspicious of her.

This time, she made a very unwise move. Initially, she didn’t want Chu Liuchen to be sad, for he had always cared about the Empress Dowager, who doted on him. Unexpectedly, because of this painting, Shan Wanru brought trouble upon herself. It could only be said that this matter was overly complicated. She had only a smattering of knowledge of what happened in her previous life and thought little about this matter.

She could only remedy the situation like this.

“My Lady, what if someone comes to stir up trouble in our mansion?” Yujie was still worried. Even if her master had adequately prepared the birthday gifts, she thought they had many other things to worry about.

There were not many guards in the Prince Chen’s Mansion. Before Chu Liuchen left, he had informed Shao Wanru about this. The chief supervisor took charge of some of his subordinates. According to Chu Liuchen, she could use these people in a crisis. However, Shao Wanru didn’t want to let these people protect her at this time.

This would attract more attention to Chu Liuchen. She couldn’t put Chu Liuchen in danger because of her negligence.

There were so many people secretly spying on them when their future remained problematic. It was not right and proper for Chu Liuchen to expose his strength in front of others, which would give him much trouble.

“Nanny Zheng, I know what to do. Don’t worry. You can go back first, and don’t go anywhere tonight. Restrain the others in the mansion with Nanny Yu. Something may happen tonight. Don’t panic. I will ask the chief supervisor to arrange everything. We’ll all be safe.”

Shao Wanru comforted them.

“My Lady, will we be fine?” Nanny Zheng was visibly not convinced. Watching Princess Chen, who still looked like an overgrown little girl, Nanny Zheng was quite worried.

Although Princess Chen did not look as weak as she appeared, she was just a young girl who hadn’t even reached the age of fifteen. At such a young age and being brought up in the boudoir, she had never faced a dangerous situation like this.

“Nanny Zheng, please set your heart at ease about it. I will ask the chief supervisor for ideas. Even if I’m at a loss, the chief supervisor will always be there for us, won’t he?” Shao Wanru said unhurriedly.

Seeing that she was so calm and unperturbed, Yujie and Qu Le felt relieved and even produced a light smile. Princess Chen would always have a way of solving problems, so they didn’t have to panic.

Only Nanny Zheng still felt worried. After thinking for a while, she added, “My Lady, if you have no other way, I will go to the Palace to beg Consort Lan, asking her if you can hide in her place. Consort Lan will protect you and not let anyone hurt you!”

“I shouldn’t go there. Consort Lan herself has been occupied with continuous troublesome things. Something bad will happen if she spares her time and energy to protect me. Nanny Zheng, rest assured. I will be fine.” Shao Wanru refused with a smile.

If Consort Lan hadn’t gotten anything to worry about, the Emperor wouldn’t confine her to a place to protect her. Under the Emperor’s protection, she could stay safe. But still, she had been locked up in one place and had not much freedom to go around. Shao Wanru did not think it was a good idea to go into the Palace and ask Consort Lan for help. Moreover, she had to think of some good reasons and explanations when telling others why she must go to the Palace and why she had to find Consort Lan.

Since she didn’t want to leave the Prince Chen’s Mansion, there must be a reason for that, and she also had a reason, which could prevent those who wanted to hurt her secretly from launching assaults.

She persuaded Nanny Zheng to leave. Qing’er and the chief supervisor were led to her together. After the chief supervisor heard the whole story from Shao Wanru, his face changed drastically. He had experienced ups and downs in the Palace, so he knew Shao Wanru was in a dangerous situation.

“Your Highness, you are now the key to everything. After the maple leaf painting emerged, the Emperor and the Empress Dowager will inevitably suspect Prince Yue and Prince Zhou as well as Consort of Virtue and the Empress behind them. This matter hasn’t been disclosed in public, so they are secretly conducting a thorough investigation. At this critical moment, if anything happens to you, the key of the whole matter, we’ll be in one heck of a mess.” The chief supervisor immediately grasped all the key points and pointed out the hidden danger for Shao Wanru.