Duan Jiu sat at the table. He looked at the snacks Jiang Fang asked Banxia to bring, and his heart was full of worry. If Xiao Niao Niao really hid Queen Mother Jiang, what was the purpose?
He knew Xiao Niao Niao's thoughts towards him, but it might not be justified if she betrayed Empress Dowager Jiang, who loved her so much, just because they were in love with each other.
What Xiao Niao Niao wants may be Jiang Fang's life.
As early as when he was in the military camp, Duan Jiu suspected that there was a third force. In the military camp, he could always see a few people sneaking around at night, and they didn't look like people in the military camp.
Coupled with the tragic death of the military doctor, it was clear that he was asking for something. The battle between the emperors of the Yong Kingdom was really exciting. Presumably the fifth prince, who had never shown up before, also wanted a piece of the pie.
Duan Jiu was lost in thought while looking at the snack, and Bishui asked: "Prince-in-law, this snack is cold. I'll go and heat it up for you. You've been staring at it all night."
Duan Jiu didn't talk for a long time, then he stood up and walked out, followed by Bishui. It was so late and he didn't know what Duan Jiu was doing in the garden behind.
I saw Duan Jiu carefully transplanting a recently-lived flower into a flowerpot. It was a seed brought by the eighth princess Xiao Niaoniao a few days ago.
It is said that this kind of thing is extremely difficult to survive, because the climate in the north is very cold and the flowers are very delicate, so it is not easy to survive in this climate.
But Duan Jiu succeeded in planting it. When winter was about to enter, the flowers actually grew. At this time, Duan Jiu transplanted it out of the greenhouse, presumably to find the eighth princess Xiao Niaoniao.
Bishui is the maid brought by Duan Jiu from the Yue Kingdom, and she is also the secret whistle trained by Duan Jiu. She has been pretending to be Duan Jiu's personal maid, but she is Duan Jiu's eyes in the palace.
"Consort, do you really plan to visit the Jade Palace?"
Duan Jiu nodded, and then said: "If I don't go, there will be no suitable person to go."
"Prince-in-law, Bishui can go and find out what's going on. Why do you need to risk it yourself?"
Duan Jiu shook his head: "If Empress Dowager Jiang is really in the Jade Palace, you will only scare the enemy. If it is unfortunate, I am afraid it will speed up Empress Dowager Jiang's life."
Bishui opened her mouth, but the words of reluctance remained on her lips. Duan Jiu walked to the door and said to Bishui: "Remember, if my son has not come back before, please go and inform the third princess as soon as possible."
After saying that, Duan Jiu took the pot of flowers and disappeared into the darkness.
At this time, Xiao Niao Niao didn't know that Duan Jiu had come back, took off her makeup and sat in front of the dressing mirror. She seemed to be a lot more haggard in the past few days, and her eyes were not as bright as before.
Xiao Niao sighed, and her personal palace maid Xingzhi immediately came over and asked: "Princess, what's wrong with you?"
Xiao Niao shook his head, looked at his haggard self in the mirror and said, "Nothing, it's just that the weather has gotten colder recently and I feel a little tired."
Xingzhi said quickly: "My slave, let the people from outside come in and heat up the stove. Don't let it get cold. The princess is the one."
Xiao Niao said: "No need, my head is already burning enough here. Don't get hot and sweat at night. It will be easier to catch a cold."
After saying that, Xiao Niao stood up and was about to wash up and rest. At this time, the eunuch outside shouted in a long voice: "The third prince-in-law has arrived -"
Xiao Niao's face showed surprise at first, and then he ran to the bronze mirror and looked at his face: "Fortunately, fortunately, hurry up, hurry up and dress me up!"
Xing Zhi hurriedly painted Xiao Niao Niao's eyebrows, but Xiao Niao Niao frowned and cursed: "You idiot, look at the eyebrows you drew. Did you mean to make them so ugly?"
Xingzhi shivered with fright and immediately knelt down. Just as his hand trembled, he directly drew a line on Xiao Niao's face with the eyebrow-drawing luozidai.
Xiao Niao Niao screamed for her to get out of the way, and when he reached out to wipe it, the whole area turned black. It looked like he had just emerged from the cinders.
Xiao Niao stamped her feet angrily, but Duan Jiu was already waiting outside. She was afraid that Duan Jiu would become impatient and walk away.
So she covered her face and hurried out, but before seeing Duan Jiu, she asked the palace maids to lower the curtain first and put them between the two of them, for fear that Duan Jiu would see her like this.
Duan Jiu frowned when he saw Xiao Niao Niao behind the curtain. In the past, Xiao Niao Niao wanted to stick to him, but today the curtain was used to separate the two.
"Brother Ninth, I wonder why you came to Biyu Palace so late to find Niao Niao?"
Duan Jiu handed the flower in his arms to the maid on the side, and then said: "I cultivated the seeds that the princess gave me a few days ago, and the buds have grown in the past few days, and I was thinking of sending them to you.
It is getting colder and colder in the capital, and I am afraid that the buds will wither before they bloom, so I sent them here overnight. If it is not convenient for the princess to see me, I will leave now."
Xiao Niao Niao said quickly: "No, Ninth Brother, Niao Niao doesn't want to see you, it's just... It's just that a bug landed on Niao Niao's face, and it's still red and swollen. I really don't want to see Ninth Brother like this."
Duan Jiu did not continue this topic. Are all the maids and eunuchs in the Jade Palace just decorations? Even a mosquito can’t fly into the Jade Palace in summer, so how can there be bugs in winter?
So Duan Jiu said: "If the princess is disturbed by insects, she needs to go to the imperial doctor quickly. If there are any scars, it will not be good."
There was a hint of joy in Xiao Niao Niao's tone: "Thank you, Ninth Brother, for your concern. Medicine has been applied to Niao Niao's face. The doctor said there is nothing serious."
Duan Jiu stopped going around the bush with Xiao Niao and asked directly: "Has the princess ever seen the Queen Mother these days?"
As soon as Queen Mother Jiang was mentioned, Xiao Niao's tone became tense, and Duan Jiu could hear her nervous breathing through the curtains.
"Wei Wei, Niao Niao has been in his own palace these days. He made some mistakes a few days ago and was grounded by his mother. He has not been released from the house for the past few days."
"The Queen Mother loves the princess so much, so how can she be willing to punish her for real? I guess she is just talking about it, and she still has to show it on the surface."
Xiao Niao Niao gritted his teeth, and then said: "Niao Niao knows, but Niao Niao's temper should be tempered. Why does Ninth Brother suddenly ask these questions?"
Duan Jiu said: "Nothing, I just haven't seen you in the palace for a few days. I thought maybe you were grounded by the Queen Mother, so I asked, and I guessed it right."
Xiao Niao Niao thought that Duan Jiu had not seen her for a long time, so she missed her a little. She was very excited for a moment. She quickly suppressed the joy in her heart and said, "Thank you, Brother Ninth, for thinking about me."
Duan Jiu cupped his hands, bowed and said, "Since I have nothing to do, I'll take my leave first. It's getting late. Princess, please take a rest."