There was silence in the west courtyard of the palace, except for the chirping of cicadas.
It is late summer now, and the weather is extremely hot and unbearable.
Shen Qianqian originally used saltpeter to cool down when he was in the Shen Mansion. However, when he arrived at the Wang Mansion, he saw that neither Zhang Yangquan nor Qin Lingjun used saltpeter, so he did not dare to use it alone.
There is a well in the courtyard, and it is the coolest place next to the well. Shen Qianqian ordered someone to set up a chair beside the well, and lay lazily on the chair to enjoy the coolness.
Early this morning, Zhang Yangquan and Qin Lingjun both went to the military camp in the north of the city. Qin Lingsi also went to the racecourse, leaving her alone in the mansion.
Shen Qianqian rarely had such a free moment, so she took the opportunity to be lazy.
While he was taking a nap with his eyes squinted, Chun He suddenly trotted over and whispered: "Your Highness, Cai Han wants to see you."
Shen Qianqian frowned. Cai Han had been here two days ago, but who knew he would be here again today?
When Shen Qianqian settled in Jiangdu, the Cai family often used stumbling blocks. Now seeing Shen Qianqian as a concubine, they felt uneasy, so they sent Cai Han to apologize, hoping to gain her understanding.
Shen Qianqian is not familiar with the Cai family. He has met Cai Han several times before, but he kept coming over, which is really annoying.
"Just say I'm not feeling well and let her come another day!" Shen Qianqian waved her hand.
Chunhe took the order and went down.
About half an hour later, Chunhe came over again and said: "Your Highness, Madam Fu, Mrs. Cheng, wants to see you!"
Shen Qianqian opened her eyes and asked: "Which Mrs. Fu?"
Chunhe said: "She is the wife of General Fu Youde."
Recently, most of the female officials of Jiangdu Prefecture have come to visit Shen Qianqian, but this is the first time for Mrs. Fu.
Moreover, Shen Qianqian knew that Zhang Yangquan valued Fu Youde very much, so he said: "Please come in, Mrs. Fu."
Chunhe agreed and turned around.
Shen Qianqian stood up, ordered someone to put away the armchair, returned to the lobby, and sat quietly waiting.
After a while, Chunhe came over with a woman.
The woman was about 23 or 24 years old. She was wearing a light blue dress. She was very tall and plump, and her facial features were fairly regular. However, her eyes were thin and long, which made her seem difficult to get along with.
"Fu Youde's wife, Mrs. Cheng pays homage to Her Royal Highness Concubine Shen!" Mrs. Cheng smiled and bowed, her eyes turned into a crescent shape, and she suddenly became a lot more friendly.
Shen Qianqian smiled and said: "There is no need to be polite, Mrs. Fu. Please sit down. Come and watch the tea."
Mrs. Cheng sat upright at the lower end and said with a smile: "I wanted to come earlier to pay homage to Her Highness Concubine Shen, but as a stranger, I don't know Her Highness, so I came too early, so I would be out of touch. So I counted the days and made some guesses. The number of people visiting His Highness is almost here, so I’m here now. I hope His Highness won’t be surprised!”
Shen Qianqian smiled slightly and said: "Mrs. Fu is too considerate. General Fu is often praised by the king. I actually look forward to getting close to you soon!"
Mrs. Cheng patted her chest and said with a smile: "It is said that Her Royal Highness Concubine Shen is an easy person to get along with. After seeing her today, I feel relieved! I wonder if Her Highness likes to watch dramas on weekdays?"
Shen Qianqian shook her head: "I rarely see it."
Mrs. Cheng asked again: "Does Your Highness like to play juball?"
Shen Qianqian asked curiously: "Mrs. Fu can play Cuju?"
Mrs. Cheng smiled sweetly: "I didn't know how to do it originally. My officials taught me. If Your Highness is interested, I can teach you."
Shen Qianqian smiled and said: "I like silence but don't like movement, but Her Royal Highness the Princess is very active, so she might like it."
Mrs. Cheng's eyes lit up and she asked: "Is Her Royal Highness the Princess in the mansion?"
"Going out."
Mrs. Cheng said "Oh" and suddenly lowered her voice and asked, "Is the king in the mansion?"
"He went out too."
Cheng's voice was lowered and she said mysteriously: "Your Highness, don't blame me for talking too much. There is something I think I should remind you of."
Shen Qianqian asked curiously: "What's the matter?"
Cheng said: "Have you heard about Ma Xiuying?"
Shen Qianqian frowned and said: "You are talking about Zhu Yuanzhang's wife, right? One of Zhu Yuanzhang's generals abandoned the dark side and took her to Jiangdu Mansion. I naturally know it."
Mrs. Cheng looked solemn and said: "Then do you know that the king sent someone to deliver a letter to Zhu Yuanzhang?"
Shen Qianqian said: "I know, let Zhu Yuanzhang come to Jiangdu Mansion in person and take his wife away!"
Mrs. Cheng laughed and said: "Recently, when I was watching a play with some sisters and chatting, I heard them discussing this matter!"
Shen Qianqian frowned and said, "What are you talking about?"
Cheng said: "Some sisters said that Mrs. Zhu was as beautiful as a flower, and the king fell in love with her, so he wrote a letter asking Zhu Yuanzhang to come to Jiangdu Mansion!"
Shen Qianqian's face sank and she said, "What are these words?"
Mrs. Cheng hurriedly said: "Isn't that right? I was angry when I heard that. Is our king such a person? He reprimanded the sister who said this on the spot!"
Shen Qianqian was silent for a while and said, "Do you know why they said that?"
Cheng said: "The sister said that if the king really wants to let him go, he can just let him go. Why let Zhu Yuanzhang come over?"
Shen Qianqian snorted and said: "Our army is now an enemy rather than a friend of Zhu Yuanzhang. How can we send him back without saying a word? If the people of the world knew about it, they would think that the king is afraid of Zhu Yuanzhang!"< /p>
"Yes, that's what I said at the time!" Cheng said hurriedly: "She said again that Zhu Yuanzhang can send an envoy to talk about it. The king directly asked Zhu Yuanzhang to come, how dare he come?"
Shen Qianqian glanced at her and said, "So she suspects that the king intends to keep Mrs. Zhu?"
Mrs. Cheng smiled and said: "She probably just said it casually, but I think I should remind you about this."
Shen Qianqian smiled and said: "Thank you, Sister Fu, for reminding me, but I know the king's temper best, so there is nothing to worry about."
Mrs. Cheng forced a smile and said, "That's good, that's good."
The two chatted for a few more words, and then Mrs. Cheng stood up and left.
As soon as she left, Chunhe came over and muttered: "Your Highness, the sister that Mrs. Fu just mentioned is probably herself!"
Shen Qianqian smiled slightly and said, "I guess so."
Chunhe snorted: "This woman dares to talk about the king behind his back, it's really disgusting!"
Shen Qianqian said thoughtfully: "She also hopes to please me with this, and there is no malice. I guess many people think so secretly, but they just don't dare to say it out."
Chunhe hesitated for a moment and said: "Your Highness, why do you think the king wrote to Zhu Yuanzhang to come in person?"
Shen Qianqian shook her head: "I don't know what he thinks. When my sister comes back, I will tell her about it. She should know."
After meeting Mrs. Cheng, Shen Qianqian had no intention of resting and went to the back house to sleep with her two children.
In the afternoon, Qin Lingjun came back, and Shen Qianqian told what happened to the Cheng family just now.
Qin Lingjun walked a few steps in the palace with Siye in her arms, and said thoughtfully: "The king has always been very concerned about Zhu Yuanzhang. I guess he just wants to meet Zhu Yuanzhang."
Shen Qianqian frowned and said: "But others don't think so. Should we remind the king to avoid affecting his reputation?"
Qin Lingjun sneered and said, "Why do you care so much about what other people think?" After a pause, he added, "But if we don't say it, those civil servants will definitely say it, so just tell him!"
At the end of the day, Zhang Yangquan finally returned to the palace.
Qin Lingjun sent someone to invite him over, but it took a quarter of an hour before Zhang Yangquan arrived at the back house.
Qin Lingjun then told what the Cheng family said, saying that it was just a rumor heard in the city and did not mention the Cheng family's name.
Zhang Yangquan hugged Sixian and said with a smile: "I just want to see Zhu Yuanzhang, these people are really good at making connections!"
Seeing that Qin Lingjun had guessed correctly, Shen Qianqian couldn't help but smile and said: "Your Majesty, you and Zhu Yuanzhang are enemies rather than friends now. If you invite him over like this, do you think he will come?"
"If it were anyone else, I would definitely not come."
Zhang Yangquan said slowly: "But Zhu Yuanzhang is different. This man is quite courageous. He once went to Luzhou alone to find an alliance with Zuo Junbi. Moreover, this man is very smart. He should know that I cannot harm him in this way!"
Qin Lingjun glanced at him and said, "You want to see him before taking action, right?"
Zhang Yangquan smiled bitterly and said, "I really can't hide anything from you."
In recent months, Zhu Yuanzhang has been on the rise, and has blocked the westward advance of Jiangdu's army, becoming an obstacle to Zhang Yangquan's unification of Jiangnan.
He already had thoughts of attacking Zhu Yuanzhang.
The battlefield is ruthless. After this battle is won, Zhu Yuanzhang may die in the flames of the war.
Zhang Yangquan really wanted to meet him before the fight started.
Qin Lingjun suddenly said: "Husband, I think Zhu Yuanzhang may not come."
Zhang Yangquan was stunned and said: "Why?"
"He may want to come, but Zuo Junbi will not let him come. If Zuo Junbi threatens with an alliance, what do you think Zhu Yuanzhang will choose?"
Zhang Yangquan felt a chill in his heart.
Qin Lingjun is right. Zhu Yuanzhang has both courage and friendship, but he will never let friendship affect major events. This can be seen from the power struggle between him and Guo Zixing.
If Zuo Junbi opposes it with all his strength, he will definitely take the overall situation into consideration.
Thinking of this, he said slowly: "Let's go meet Ma Xiuying and Guo Zixing!"