"I, my concubine, attend your Majesty's meeting." Concubine Rong Gui Shiran saluted.
She was holding a food box in her hand and had a charming smile on her lips.
Shen Muchi raised his eyes and said, "No need to be polite."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
Concubine Rong stood up and glanced at Mu Qingchao next to her.
"It turns out the Queen Mother is here. I just didn't see it. I hope the Queen Mother will forgive me."
She said this, but she was standing and Mu Qingchao was kneeling, which always gave people a condescending feeling.
The empress dowager gesture that Mu Qingchao had held in front of her a few days ago was gone. At this moment, he could only clenched his fists and said, "Nothing."
"What are you doing here?" Shen Muchi asked Concubine Rong at this time.
"Ah." Concubine Rong raised her eyes and walked towards Shen Muchi: "I have a new cook in the kitchen, and the pastries are made very well, so I sent some to His Majesty."
As she spoke, she took out a small plate of pastries from the food box and put a piece to Shen Muchi's mouth.
"I heard that the chef's pastries are very famous in Suzhou. Your Majesty, please try them."
Shen Muchi glanced at the pastry beside his mouth, and then looked up at Mu Qingchao who was kneeling on the ground. Mu Qingchao was also looking up at him.
For some unknown reason, he opened his mouth and took the cake in his mouth.
When Concubine Rong saw him eating, she immediately smiled.
"Princess Wan'an is getting married soon, and I am choosing a wedding dress for her. What style do you think is best, Your Majesty?"
When Mu Qingchao heard this, his heart skipped a beat and he spoke quickly.
"Your Majesty... you..."
But then I saw Shen Muchi smiling at Concubine Rong: "You can make up your own mind."
"Your Majesty!" Mu Qingchao shouted quickly: "Your Majesty, do you really want Princess Wan'an to go and get married? It's a barbaric land with tough folk customs and harsh climate.
Princess Wan'an has lived in Jinling since she was a child. How can she endure the wind and frost there?
She is your biological sister, you..."
"Queen Mother..." Before Mu Qingchao could finish his words, he was interrupted by Concubine Rong.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, has already given full authority over the marriage to my concubines. Does your Majesty still want to interfere?"
She seemed to be declaring sovereignty. Although Mu Qingchao was the Queen Mother, she had no real power.
She just wanted to tell Mu Qingchao that she, the noble concubine, was still in charge of the Sixth Palace. She should also handle the princess's marriage, and Mu Qingchao was not qualified to interfere.
Look, Concubine Rong seemed to be obedient and respectful to Mu Qingchao, but she soon lost her patience. She was staring at Mu Qingchao's every move all the time.
Seeing her coming to Fulin Palace, he rushed over in a hurry.
Mu Qingchao was choked. At the moment, Princess Wan'an was too busy to argue with Concubine Rong here.
She only looked at Shen Muchi: "The Ai family is not trying to interfere, but they are just begging Your Majesty for Princess Wan'an.
Your Majesty, are you really determined to see your only sister go thousands of miles away alone and die in a foreign land?"
Mu Qingchao looked at Shen Muchi and asked one word at a time.
"But she is a princess." Concubine Rong said slowly from the side.
"It is the princess's responsibility and destiny to marry and marry far away to strive for peace between the two countries, and it is an honor.
Just like the Queen Mother, you should stay well in Chaoyun Palace, listen to sutras and recite Buddhist scriptures, live in seclusion and simplicity, and stop worrying about worldly affairs."
She mentioned "listening to sutras and chanting Buddha's words" as if she was deliberately reminding Shen Muchi of something.
"His Majesty……"
Mu Qingchao wanted to say something more, but was interrupted by Shen Muchi: "You don't have to say any more."
"I have made up my mind about this matter. How can the relationship between the two countries be child's play? How can there be any reason to change it? What's more, I have already handed over this matter to Concubine Rong. It would be better for you to stay away from it."
He deliberately said the words "Concubine Rong" very strongly, and then looked at her expression carefully.
He didn't know what he expected to see.
Want to make her jealous? Make her angry? Make her taste sour because of his favoritism?
Shen Muchi seemed to be unable to figure out his own thoughts, like a child missing in love, expecting something and trying hard to prove something from clues.
But how could Mu Qingchao understand what he meant?
The little hope that had just been raised fell to the ground.
She lowered her head and just wanted to laugh.
See, you really can't have any illusions about Shen Muchi.
She said: "The Ai family knows about it. Since Your Majesty is not willing, let's pretend this matter has not been mentioned by the Ai family."
"The Ai family will retire now and will not disturb Your Majesty from having a personal talk with the Imperial Concubine."
After saying that, he kowtowed to Shen Muchi and headed out of the hall.
Shen Muchi just looked at her somewhat lonely back and walked step by step towards the outside of the hall.
But out of sight, the door of Fulin Hall had just closed, and Mu Qingchao grabbed a begonia next to it.
You need to squeeze it hard in the palm of your hand to force yourself to suppress the anger that fills your heart.
Hey, wait for this pair of bitches.
Concubine Rong...
The two of them had no grievances, and she had endured it again and again, but in the end she got this reward.
"The Ai family doesn't want to touch you..."
"It was you who forced the Ai family..."
Mu Qingchao stood there, crushing the Begonia flower into pieces, gritting his teeth and saying bitterly.
Returning to Chaoyun Palace, the first thing Mu Qingchao did was to tell Xiao Anzi: "Go and call Xu Cairen to the Ai family."
Xu Cairen has been by my side for a long time, and it's probably time to need her.
**
Even though Mu Qingchao traveled around, he still couldn't keep Princess Wan'an.
Seven days later, Princess Wan'an got on the horse and went to Tubo to get married.
That day, there was a strong north wind, and everyone was probably afraid of the cold, so they were busy hiding in their palaces for the winter, and few people came to see Princess Wan'an off.
Shen Muchi just said a few righteous words about peace between the two countries and sent her to the palace gate.
Only Mu Qingchao sent her all the way outside the palace gate.
"Take these pieces of silver with you." Mu Qingchao lifted a bundle, crossed the curtain of the carriage, and stuffed it into Princess Wan'an's hands.
She said: "When you go out, anything you give as a gift is useless. Only money is the real thing."
She is a common person, and no love as deep as the sea can be compared to two taels of gold.
Princess Wan'an was wearing a crimson wedding dress, and the bead curtain on the phoenix crown covered half of her face. She said: "Thank you so much, Queen Mother..."
"Hey, what can I thank you for? I can't help you.
This is the only money I can give you, so don't blame me."
"How could I blame you? Queen Mother."
Princess Wan'an said with a smile on her face: "The Queen Mother doesn't know that I have lived for sixteen years without being cared for by my father and unloved by my brothers. I am so lucky to be able to meet you, the Queen Mother, when I finally left the palace."
She stretched out her hand from the sedan chair and took Mu Qingchao's hand: "Queen Mother, I am a useless person and I don't have anything good to give you.
There is a lion cat in my palace named Xuetuan.
She is not mine, but she passed by my palace gate once, and I fed her a few mouthfuls of food, and she became close to me, and I regarded her as my only thing.
If the Queen Mother does not dislike her, I will give her to you.
She is a very good cat, if you talk to her, she will rub her head against your leg."
"Do you have a cat?"
Mu Qingchao hesitated: "But I shouldn't be able to raise a cat well."
The responsibilities on her body are already heavy enough, and she is afraid of having to bear any more.
Princess Wan'an said: "A good person like the Queen Mother will definitely be able to raise small animals very well."
Mu Qingchao's heart moved.
She calls her a good person, she is a good person...