The humble and kind princess moved to the newly renovated Buddhist temple after the passing of her husband, the Humble King. Since He Lian's return to the capital, he had met with her a few times, and she had also stopped performing her daily morning greetings ritual. However, He Lian still rose early every day to prepare vegetarian dishes for her, and if he had time, he would also take care of her lunch and dinner.

  It wasn't that she was forcing herself to get up early just to sell well, but rather because she had been stationed at the border for several years and had gotten used to getting up early with Si Tu Yue to practice martial arts, occasionally even going hunting in the mountains. Having just returned to the capital, her sleep schedule hadn't adjusted yet, so she naturally took care of some things.

  In the kitchen, Fang Ruo smiled and said: "In the past, a little monk came to our Wangfu, his cooked vegetarian dishes were also very much to the queen's liking."

  That little monk was her, He Le'an smiled but didn't speak, only listening to Fang Ruo's nostalgic words: "Later on, I don't know how, she left without saying goodbye. The Duke of Yue was furious and scolded the king's concubine, Wang Moumou. Fortunately, considering that she had served the queen for many years with hard work and great merit, as long as she retired early and left the palace, it would be considered a fair deal."

  "That little monk was also kind, and the maid only took care of him slightly. Before he left, he even gave silver money to the maid, but unfortunately, after going with the princess to Xiangguo Temple, she couldn't find him again."

  He Le'an was still unaware of this, when a subtle coughing sound suddenly came from the side. She turned her head to see Zhong Sun Yue standing there with a composed expression, accompanied by Prince Qian's son, Zhong Sun Xiang. He couldn't help but smile and said: "I know that my younger sister has prepared breakfast for Mother, I'll just go over and bring it to Mother myself."

  He Le'an smiled and said, "I'm going to Xiangguo Temple with Huiyu today. I've prepared a bit too much food, so why don't you take some back to eat, Crown Prince brother?" Then she turned to Zhong Sunyue and said, "When you enter the palace, can you also bring some for my sisters? We'll be able to see each other at the upcoming palace banquet in a few days."

  **

  "In the luxurious carriage, Xue Huiyu said with a gloomy expression, 'You've just returned to Beijing and you're already sending Didi and Chunjuan up the mountain to learn their skills. Isn't that too cruel? They must miss you, but you... your actions don't seem like those of parents.'"

  "Wherever we go, there will be danger. At least Yuelu Mountain has some protection, and also Ye Ming and Xue Shi's master can teach them martial arts. It's better than staying in the capital. If it weren't for you and Xue Shi protecting them these years, I fear they would have met with disaster long ago."

  Xue Hui leaned against the carriage wall and sighed, "Even if I don't know why, at such a young age, you have to endure so much. But I also can't persuade you not to care about those things anymore. If there's no country, then the family will perish. Now, even 'ghosts' are unclear who they are, and yet His Majesty still wants you to come back as bait. I just can't help but worry, lately I haven't been sleeping well, and next door, a rascal has moved in."

  "What a rogue, he's a great general, I've been with him, his character is not bad, you are too. Since the Prince of Xuan's son broke off the engagement, your aunt has let you be. Even if you're not in the mood for love, if you meet someone suitable, it's okay to go along with it naturally, why resist like this?" He Lan said with a smile.

  "Shi Qinghe, this name always reminds me of that person." Xue Hui said, "In those years, he retrieved my aunt's husband's half-remaining body, and I was grateful. However, he is too frivolous, having just met him, he already said he liked me. In a city full of beautiful young girls, who wouldn't want to marry him? But he happened to like me, an old girl of twenty-two. Thinking about it, his intentions are not pure."

  "No, no, this time you're really overthinking it, he really does like you," He Le An thought for a moment before saying seriously:

  "I also thought that the Duke's intentions were not pure back then, and many girls would have circled the imperial city to marry him. But he insisted on marrying me, a humble commoner girl, and I was even scared away by him several times. However, time has proven that he truly liked me, and sometimes liking someone can be strange and inexplicable, unrelated to anything else."

  Xue Hui said, "I originally didn't want to pay attention to him, but his name made me somewhat concerned."

  As they spoke, they arrived at Xiangguo Temple. He Lian went to visit her master and only then did she learn that one of her senior and junior fellow disciples had both returned to secular life. It seemed that all the excitement had left with them, and the courtyard on the side of the Chan hall was quiet once again. However, her master said:

  "Parting in life and death is a common occurrence, no need to be overly concerned."

  "Master, your cultivation is definitely beyond our comparison." He Lian smiled and handed over a food box of vegetarian pastries, "In the future, my disciples will often come to visit you."

  After bidding farewell to her master, He Le'an accompanied Xue Huiyu to the Wishing Pool to make a wish. Suddenly, she thought of something and pointed at the large old turtle in the pool, laughing, "I used to think about stealing it to make soup, but later my junior brother told me that this turtle is a spirit saved by our master. If I killed it, I'm afraid Master would make me take its place in the water. I've been craving for it for so long, and even in my dreams, it's always there. Every midnight, I have to get up, sit in meditation, and recite scriptures for half a moment before I can continue sleeping."

  Xue Huiyu had just laughed out loud when a male voice also burst into laughter. They both turned their heads in surprise, and saw a man who looked about thirty years old, dressed in elegant attire, with a refined appearance and a warm demeanor, bowing slightly to them: "I happened to be passing by and didn't mean to eavesdrop, please don't mind."

  After going through years of hardships and bloodshed, He Lian's heart still trembled at the sight of this unforgettable face that often haunted her dreams. However, she heard Xue Huiyu say, "Your subject's daughter has seen the wise prince."

  "This is the rumored well-bred Prince Rui." He Le'an was glorious, except for meeting the Emperor and the Emperor's wives to pay respects, other princes did not need to deliberately pay their respects anymore.

  Rui Qin Wang naturally recognized Xue Huiyu, but He Le'an, who had just returned to the capital, had never seen her before and curiously sized up this young woman. All he heard was Xue Huiyu introducing, "Rui Qin Wang has been away from the capital for some time and doesn't know, this is the Princess of Yue Guang."

  "He suddenly said: 'It's my younger brother's wife. As rumored, she is an interesting female hero.'"

  "The wise king has praised him." He Lian said calmly and composedly.

  After chatting for a few sentences of harmless words, Rui Qin Wang bid farewell.

  Xue Hui lowered her voice and clicked her tongue, "Doesn't he look nothing like a 40-year-old? I really want to ask him for his beauty secrets, so that when I'm old, I can be a beautiful old lady."

  She swore that after you knew, she would never think of relying on Fangzi for support. He Le was so frightened that he had goosebumps all over his body. Before he could speak, Xue Hui said again, "However, it's widely spread in the capital that he is a widower. At this age, not even having a child, marrying one and burying one, now even if he is handsome, no one dares to marry into the Ruiqin Prince's mansion again."

  "That's a pity."

  "Your Majesty tried several times to arrange a marriage for him, but he refused each time, saying that he did not want to bring calamity upon any young lady."

  "It seems that nothing is wrong." He Lian said against her will, since Your Majesty learned that most of the treasure map was in Rui Qin Wang's hands, and after several years of investigation, she couldn't find out where he hid it. She didn't dare to alarm him, so she had to pretend to be unaware while secretly searching for it and being on guard against Rui Qin Wang at the same time.

  Same as her. What makes Your Majesty even more worried is the person behind Rui's back, these years, it seems to have disappeared or doesn't exist at all, which makes her occasionally doubt whether she misunderstood something in the first place, but some details cannot be explained.

  Now all that can be done is to let His Majesty the King of Qian take the humble abode of the Duke of Qian to heaven, and see who will be provoked by this. Hopefully, this will lead to the snake coming out of its hole, as she fears Xue Hui's words are dangerous, none of these things have been revealed to her.

  Back at the Qianqin Wangfu. He Luan'An had just gotten off the horse carriage when a soft and gentle voice excitedly called out: "Sister An!"

  He Le'an turned around hesitantly, only to see Shao Yingxue, whom she hadn't seen in years since her marriage after the mourning period, walking towards her with a weathered face. Before they could exchange two words, tears were already streaming down. He Le'an was overjoyed and wanted to rush into her arms, but just as she was about to get close, she seemed to realize how dirty her clothes were and abruptly stopped herself, covering her face as she burst into heart-wrenching sobs, a sight that moved onlookers to sorrow.

  "Let's go first and talk later." He Lan'an pulled her arm over his without any hesitation.

  When Shao Yingxue got married, she was still at the border and couldn't attend. She had also asked Old Lady He to help her send some gifts. It was said that she was marrying into the Hou Mansion in a neighboring city. The man had seen Shao Yingxue at the Red Leaf Festival and had been eager to marry her, showing his sincerity several times before Madam Dai finally agreed. But now, Shao Yingxue has resumed her pre-marriage attire.

  In the front hall where guests were received, He Le'an waited until she had cried enough before asking her what had happened. Shao Yingxue sobbed again and wiped away tears, saying: "After marrying into the Hou household, happiness didn't last long, everything was ruined by his cousin. The child I was carrying was also harmed to death by his cousin. After that, I couldn't get pregnant again, his mother blamed me every day, he gradually distanced himself from me."

  Later, he also had an affair with his cousin, I really couldn't take it anymore, so I begged him to divorce me. I didn't have the face to return to the Bo Mansion, afraid of making my mother sad, and being gossiped about by the people in the city. So I came to find you... Waaahhh, I really don't know what else to do!

  He Le'an said without hesitation, "It doesn't matter, stay in the capital, but you're not suitable to stay at Wangfu. I'll let Huiyu prepare a room for you at the Jin Ning Hou Fu's separate courtyard. You can temporarily live with her. There's only one girl at the Jin Ning Hou Fu's separate courtyard. Xue Shizi will escort my two children out and won't be back for some time."

  Shaoying Xue was overjoyed and cried out loud for a long time, finally managing to calm down her emotions. She seemed to remember something and took out a small green pouch from her bosom.

  "This was what your grandfather held in his hand when he passed away, with your mother's maiden name on it. It was broken by Huan'er, and I was afraid it might be something important, so I secretly picked it up and kept it for you all these years while you were at the border. Now it can finally be returned to its rightful owner."

  He Le'an took the bundle, opened it and found a broken jade pendant in several pieces. The quality was ordinary, but there was her mother's maiden name on it, so she carefully put it away, "Thank you."

  Shao Yingxue shook her head and said, "Don't blame me for returning it to you at this time. In the past, those who ignored you were not thinking of making things difficult for Mother in the Bo Mansion. I never thought that An Taisui was excessive. If it weren't for Eldest Aunt, the relationship between the two mansions would not be...".

  "Let bygones be bygones." He Lan said nonchalantly, "You're fine, I know that."

  She sent Shao Yingxue to the Jin Ning Houfu's side house, entrusting Xue Huiyu to take care of her, before returning to the Qian Qinwang Fu. Coincidentally, Zhong Sunyue had returned, and she took his hand, walking together towards the Bamboo Pavilion, quietly briefing him on today's events in a simple manner. All he said was: "I also saw Rui Qinwang, he went into the palace to pay respects."

  The person behind Rui's king was hidden too deeply, making them dare not relax for a moment.

  Back in the bedroom, He Le'an poured out the broken jade pendants from Shao Yingxue's bag and pieced them together. On the plain jade pendant, there was indeed a large 'Xiang' character. She was about to put the jade pieces back when Zhong Sunyue suddenly reached out and picked up a piece of jade. "This doesn't seem to be made of jade..."

  He casually pulled out the hairpin from He Le'an's bun, and with a sharp point, he poked it into the crack. The powder fell down with a rustling sound, and then he poked again. Small things like millet grains fell out from the edge of the jade. She stared in surprise, and Zhong Sunyue picked up several other pieces of broken jade to poke at them as well. Similarly, four small things like millet grains fell out.

  "My mother wasn't the biological daughter of Old Zhuo Yi Bo's wife, you see, could this jade pendant be a clue to my mother's origins?" He Le An said doubtfully. Although Shao Da Shu knew that her mother wasn't born to them, he didn't know whose child she was. Neither did Old Lady He, and Old Zhuo Yi Bo had no intention of revealing the truth before his death at the hands of evil people.

  Zhang Sunyu picked up a grain of rice and looked at it. After narrowing his eyes for half a moment, he said, "There seems to be some writing on top."

  "Wow!" He Le'an was really impressed by his skill. On a grain of rice, the characters were so small!

  Jiang Sunyue rummaged through the secret compartment in her dresser for a while, took out a vial of medicine and a stack of paper that resembled oil paper but was slightly transparent. She dipped a grain of rice into the medicine and rolled it on the paper, and before long, tiny characters the size of sesame seeds appeared on the paper. Then she called over a maid to bring her some clean water, and when she put the paper in the water, the characters miraculously enlarged instantly.

  He Le'an didn't have time to exclaim in surprise what the medicine and paper were, when she saw that the words on the paper read: 'Beyond the nine heavens, the pomegranate cup, I ask if you would be willing to give me a cup, and one day I will repay double.' Among them, a small thing similar to a seal had intricate flower patterns, vaguely discernible as a cloud character. Just as she was hesitating, Zhong Sun Yue had already said:

  "Speaking of clouds, I recall a little-known fact."

  "The former empress was the princess of Tonghui country, her father was a benevolent prince of this country. In those years, with his own strength, he destroyed a small country named Yun."

  "That country has a population of only three thousand, but each and every one is skilled in martial arts and poison techniques. Other countries have tried to annihilate them before, but they always end up failing. Some countries even try to win them over, but they never want to be won over. They live in seclusion in a remote place, not bothering anyone first, but if anyone bothers them, no one ends up with a good outcome."

  "In such a place, it was actually destroyed by the father of the previous emperor's empress. There are some records in the ancient books within the imperial palace. They were loyal to the female emperor."

  "What a coincidence," He Le'an said, "If you mention pomegranates, I can recall the only hairpin my mother left me... but my mother..." It's impossible that it's just a coincidence, it must be someone from Yun country. I remember Old Zhuo Yibo was ill and confused at the time, yet he still recognized the hairpin, it seems to be extremely important.

  "Don't be in a hurry, after sending someone to investigate carefully, it's not too late for us to discuss again."

  **

  In the capital, everyone knows that Emperor Hui Xi's favorite concubine is Consort Cheng Shu Mei. To make this beauty happy, he held an extremely luxurious banquet for his seven-year-old princess. Now, all the noble officials and their families fawn over this concubine. However, Consort Cheng Shu Mei has a dull expression and is cold to others. She rarely shows a smile even when she sees Emperor Hui Xi, let alone those beneath her.

  However, there are always exceptions in life, just like the story of Princess Yuanguo, who had just arrived hand in hand with Xue Huiyu. Cold and detached, Cheng Shuwei raised her face to dispense with all formalities, and patted the empty seat beside her, saying: "Come quickly and sit down, when you returned to the capital that day, we only met once, I've been looking forward to today."

  Then, she called out to her daughter who was playing with other children on the side, "Yao'er, come and greet your aunt and your wise aunt!" The way she treated everyone versus the way she treated these two people was simply worlds apart. Even Emperor Hui Xing couldn't help but feel a pang of jealousy when he saw them.

  He asked Zhong Sunyu, "What medicine did your wife give to my beloved concubine? She wasn't like this before. Look, she smiles so beautifully when she sees your wife!"

  Zhang Sun Yue expressed that he didn't know either, shrugging his shoulders. The corridor was quiet, but the garden was getting more and more lively. Guests came one after another, and Emperor Hui Xie dragged him to this corner without saying anything important to him.

  He's all talk about Cheng Shuwei, how great Cheng Shuwei is, and those who don't know any better would think he has deep feelings for her. But he knows the truth - emperors have always been heartless, and Cheng Shuwei is just his shield.

  He Le'an, unexpectedly met Meng Duo at the birthday banquet of Cheng Shuwei's daughter. It had been years since they last saw each other, and her temperament seemed to have become more stable, but the fatigue at the corners of her eyes and the intense hatred could not be concealed even by exquisite makeup. After exchanging greetings, she went aside to talk with other women, a true picture of the Hou Mansion's young mistress.

  The House of Jianing Marquis didn't send anyone over, but they did send a large gift. The people around were all whispering about the affair between He Leyi and Wei Da Shao that day. It seemed like they were being considerate of her as the illegitimate daughter of this marquis's house, speaking in hushed tones, but this matter had already spread throughout the city. Afterward, the House of Rongguo Gong threw out a divorce letter, He Leyi wanted to die and even tried to stab herself with a small knife, but she still managed to survive.

  The banquet was about to begin, and Empress Wan arrived with great fanfare, saying she wanted to give Emperor Hui Xie some face. But everyone knew she had an ulterior motive for attending this lively gathering. With a bright smile, she said to He Le An: "I've heard that the King of Yue's consort is skilled at carving fruit and vegetables. I wonder if you'd be willing to show off your skills and let me and everyone else see?"

  It sounds good to hear that she is a princess of a certain state, but it doesn't sound so good when she is just an actress in a bustling theater!

  He Le'an didn't wait for Si Tu Xuan to come out and politely declined, saying: "Actually, there's nothing I'm unwilling to do, but the other day when I was preparing food for my mother, I accidentally injured a tendon. The imperial physician said that I need to rest well for a period of time and absolutely cannot cook or use knives again, otherwise it will be difficult to recover and may leave behind lingering symptoms."

  The Empress Dowager targeted Xue Huiyu's marriage, but she was easily deflected. She then turned her attention to Cheng Shuwei. With a look that clearly showed she didn't want them to be happy, they couldn't drive away this ill-tempered mother of the nation, so they had to swallow their anger and not let her have her way until Emperor Hui saw that she had made enough trouble and intervened to stop her.

  When the banquet was over, she even smiled shamelessly and said: "The palace always feels that you have a good eye with the king of Yue and Xue Si. No wonder you two are welcome wherever you go, and you both have a pleasant and reserved face." This is a hint that Cheng Shu's appearance is not pleasing to the eye and is too showy. "In the future, when you have free time, come to the palace more often, Meimei likes you two."

  He Le'an was so diligent in guarding the rules and rarely entered the palace. It's just that she didn't want to deal with Empress Wan, not that they couldn't handle it, but Empress Wan always managed to find fault and say unpleasant things, making life difficult for Cheng Shu Mei, even if Cheng Shu Mei herself didn't mind.

  "It's also not everyone who can treat me with kindness and sincerity like the Princess of Yue and Xue Si, they are willing to play with me, it is indeed my good fortune in this life, if I can have these two friends, then I will have no regrets."

  The implication is that you don't need to stir up trouble between us, our feelings. It's not like someone as hypocritical as you can destroy them, I'm lucky to have this good fortune, so just silently envy and resent it.

  The empress let out a cold snort and turned away with disdain.

  **

  He Le'an went to the detached house of the Duke of Jin Ning's mansion to visit Shao Yingxue during his spare time.

  After being taken care of by the maid for some time, Shao Yingxue's complexion improved a lot. Perhaps it was due to eating well and sleeping soundly, but she exuded an even more subtle charm of a married woman who had something to say but remained silent. When she saw He Le'an, she smiled and said:

  "I was planning to go out and buy some fabric today to do some embroidery, but I didn't expect you to come. Why don't we go out together? The number of times I've been to Beijing can be counted on my fingers, and in the past, I never had a chance to take a good look around."

  "Alright, unfortunately Huiyu has to visit her relatives today."

  The Jin Ning Marquis's estate in the capital was not far from the market, so He Le'an dismissed the carriage. Accompanied by two maidservants, she walked with Shao Yingxue, who laughed and said:

  "Just like now, having leisure time to go out and chat with my sisters was my childhood wish. However, they always despised me for being a posthumous daughter and considered it inauspicious, so they usually didn't want to go out with me. Fortunately, there's still you, An Taijie, even if I've fallen to this state, you don't despise me."

  He Le'an shook his head and smiled, "You're too concerned with worldly matters, it's not good for living. Don't think too much."

  She took Shao Yingxue to the fabric store that she thought was the best, but as soon as they entered, Meng Duojuan came in with her maidservant, speaking loudly: "This store's entire stock of fabrics, I, the young master's wife, will take it all!"

  The shopkeeper, upon hearing this, showed no surprise or delight, but instead took a few more glances at He Le'an to confirm that he hadn't mistaken the person. Then, with a bow, he said to Meng Duojuan: "I'm very sorry, madam, we don't sell to you."

  Unexpectedly, Meng Duo Jiao's face turned black with anger and she shouted: "You open the door to do business, why don't you sell it to me!!"