- After saying the words that could almost change the fate of a palace maid just now, Wang Hong, the second prince who was sitting in the brocade quilt, kept his eyes slightly lowered. He also heard the words of the eunuch, and in fact he was exactly that kind of person, accustomed to treating all those around him gently, and did not like to treat these people who served him carefully as cattle, horses, and livestock, and he would not feel the slightest pleasure in his heart when he saw these people being punished.

What's more, the punishment that this palace maid received at this time was indeed forced on her own head. But of course, he can also understand that the eunuch suddenly spoke, and his help was very appropriate, although that would cause the palace maid to be punished more severely, but he still had to firmly protect Xiaoxing's original intention.

It's just that this practice of needing to hurt one person in order to protect another person makes him feel a little sorry after all.

After disposing of the palace maid, Concubine De let out a long breath, as if she had not completely relieved her hatred. After calming down a little, Concubine De turned her gaze and looked at Wang Hong through a layer of foggy silk tent, and said helplessly in her tone: "When the concubine first came over, she was still wondering, why did all the people in your palace stand at the gate, and now it can be seen that these palace slaves are not serving well, so they were driven out by you." But why don't you know that slaves are not useful, and it is useless to just drive them away, so they have to be replaced. The concubine has told you many times, it's all for your good, why don't you want to do it? ”

Wang Hong was silent for a moment, it was really not good to help Concubine De to be angry anymore, and the servants in his palace suffered a lot, so he said softly: "The slaves and maids in Huayang Palace are usually very conscientious in serving their sons, and occasionally they are a little negligent. It's not a big deal, just teach a few words, and they will remember it for a long time. ”

"Teach them to abide by the rules of the palace, and naturally there are grandmothers and female officials in the palace doing it. You are a dignified son, and you must not be entangled in these trivial matters, and you should really take on the big things. If you have to worry about these things, will those grandmothers and female officials who are full-time discipline the new palace maids and eunuchs have a leisurely meal? The more Concubine De spoke, the more angry the anger on her face became, and after a slight pause in the middle of the words, her eyes sharpened slightly, and she said sentence by sentence: "No." The mother still doesn't worry about you. Gai Ming'er, the mother concubine summoned a few more grandmothers to come over, and check you, the slave in Huayang Palace, to see who is not careful enough. A slave who is not qualified to stay here. All of them have to be replaced! ”

Concubine De's words had just finished speaking. All the palace maids and eunuchs present were frightened. Including the few servants of Xiaohuai Palace who came here with Concubine De, they couldn't help but have a trace of panic in their eyes. Today's check is Huayang Palace, maybe tomorrow it will be the turn of your own Xiaohuai Palace. And Xiaohuai Palace is not protected by a good-natured master like His Royal Highness. If it is really investigated, I am afraid that the situation of the palace slaves in Xiaohuai Palace will be even more desolate.

And the second prince Wang Hong was suddenly taken aback after listening to Concubine De's words. If Concubine De wanted to check his palace maids on the grounds of eliminating bad slaves, her father would definitely agree. He didn't know what Concubine De's review criteria for palace maids and eunuchs were, but depending on the two people she disposed of today, once she really started to investigate, the palace servants who were already familiar with each other in her bedroom would definitely be excluded, and then some new people would be filled.

This would greatly disrupt his camp in the palace, and no one knew if Concubine De would arrange for a new palace servant to serve him. These newcomers are not her henchmen. Since then, if I want to quietly leave the palace again, I am afraid it will be even more difficult. And if you want to check the reason for the death of Concubine Ye's virtuous concubine back then, it will also take more time because it is not easy to get out of the palace.

In addition, once there is such a newcomer among the servants of Huayang Palace, Xiaoxing's chances of coming back will become even slimmer, and the person he hid behind the long screen in the dormitory will not be able to stay here any longer.

But he happened to be unable to show his refusal to Concubine De at this time.

In the past, when Xiaoxing was still a maid in Huayang Palace, Wang Hong sent her to secretly supervise the palace where Concubine De lived. He had already found out then. Concubine De is not a simple-minded woman. She has cultivated a few powerful personal maids, but she usually does not show the slightest appearance, and only acts as an ordinary palace maid. Wang Hong believes that Concubine De's nurturing and loving love for him can contain true feelings. But that doesn't mean she doesn't have anything else on her mind.

Could it be that she had also noticed something strange in Huayang Palace?

If so. He refused at this point. No matter how tactful the wording is, it will arouse her greater suspicion.

Can...... Is that acceptable?

After frowning slightly and thinking for a moment, Wang Hong still did not refute Concubine De's decision. He slowly opened his mouth and just instructed the eunuch who was in charge of the lantern palace maid just now: "Ajia, this palace is thirsty." ”

"Your Highness, wait a minute." The eunuch who was called Aja hurriedly answered and went out with a palace maid.

The main hall of Huayang Palace inside and outside is equipped with a small water room, and the fire is continuous all night, and boiling water is available at any time. Aja soon came in with a crane-beak kettle, and when the palace maid he took out came back, she already had an extra tray in her hand, and on the tray was a set of bone china tea sets, a teapot, and only a tea cup.

Seeing this scene, Concubine De suddenly remembered something, and immediately questioned: "It's time to fall asleep, and you are still preparing to serve tea?" ”

The eunuch Ajia has been in Huayang Palace for several years, and he has long qualifications and experience, and he is more able to calm down in the face of Concubine De's questioning. After a little consideration, he explained: "Niangniang is angry, please listen to the cheap slave explain, this is the habit of His Royal Highness the Second Prince, and the water must be warm before entering the mouth." ”

"Oh?" Concubine De was surprised.

The eunuch Aja ordered the maid to put the tray on the table, and then only moved the teapot, and the nine teacups were still placed in the tray in two rows, and swore not to be a wife: the young lady was arrested all over the world. Then he carried the big iron kettle in his hand, and moved it up and down, and there was half a cup of boiling water in the nine tea cups in the tray.

The action of pouring water is fast and smooth, and there is hardly a drop of excess hot water spilled on the outside of the tray.

Immediately afterwards, the palace maid lifted the porcelain lid of the teapot that had been removed from the tray before, and then she shook the boiling water in the nine teacups in turn, poured it into the teapot, and then put the nine bone china teacups that had been scalded with boiling water back into the tray in turn, still in two rows up and down.

The eunuch Aja once again carried the crane's beak boiling kettle in his hand. This time he didn't move up and down, but filled just one cup.

The palace maid approached the table again, and did not shake the cup of boiling water again, but poured it into the teapot beside her, but started with the cup of boiling water, and poured it through the nine bone china cups in turn.

When it was her turn to pour into the last bone china cup, she picked up the cup of boiling water, which was no longer steaming, paused lightly on a soft velvet handkerchief in the tray, wiped off the starry water stains at the bottom of the cup, and finally walked to the couch with the cup of water.

There were already two astute palace maids, one left and one right, who reached out and lifted a corner of the silk tent.

"Your Highness. The water is warm. It's time to moisten your mouth. The palace maid with the cup stood on the edge of the couch, and did not dare to sit on it, but leaned her upper body and handed the cup over with both hands.

The second prince, Wang Hong, just took the cup. I heard the eunuch Ajia speak again and asked softly: "Your Highness." Need a straw? ”

Wang Hong shook his head slightly. The hand holding the teacup was raised higher, first took a shallow sip, and then drank the warm water in the cup in three or two sips. When the empty cup is returned. He exhaled comfortably.

Concubine De had been watching this scene silently, and several doubts had already risen in her heart, and it was only at this time that she looked at the eunuch Ajia and asked, "What is the 'wheat pipe' you just said?" ”

"It's a kind of tubule." As he spoke, the eunuch Aja reached out and took a small long box that had been placed in the tray a long time ago, opened the lid of the box, and bowed down and passed his hands over his forehead so that Concubine De could see the contents of the box, and then he went on to explain: "This is taken from the stalks of ripe wheat, and each one is carefully inspected and cleaned by the slaves, sometimes when His Highness is thirsty at night. With this straw, you don't have to sit up to drink water, and you don't have to choke. ”

Concubine De listened to his explanation, and a look of novelty appeared in her eyes.

In the early years, she lived with Wang Chi in the north, where wheat was the longest crop sown by the peasants. Wheat in the north resists the windy climate, and because of some geographical and soil conditions, it generally grows with thick stems and large ears. But at this time, Concubine De saw that although the box held by the eunuch Ajia was indeed wheat straw, it obviously looked like southern wheat.

"How did you get this thing?" Concubine De stretched out her fingers and picked up a wheat pipe, and looked up and down at the section of the nozzle at both ends. And he said, "Is this thing safe?" ”

The eunuch Aja lowered his eyebrows and said, "This kind of straw has been refined by a special process designed by the merchants of Kyoto. And it is used in many teahouses. However, the batch of purchases into the palace is made by the Hu Workshop's independent work area, and there should be no problems. ”

……

After breakfast, Mo Ye called the servants to fetch buckets of well water, soaked them in cotton handkerchiefs, and then spread them on his face. Although the well water is cold, it is not as cold as in late autumn, and Mo Ye is used to using this way to refresh himself in the morning.

Although she doesn't care much, as long as she is in the forest house, there is no shortage of people who care about her.

After the tea, Mo Ye lifted the cotton handkerchief and was about to go back to the house to change his clothes, when he saw Chen Jiu walking slowly from the other end of the corridor, holding a delicate box in his hand.

"Master." Mo Ye stood still, remembering that at the dinner table just now, when Lin Shan mentioned the old gentleman she wanted to visit today, Chen Jiu's subtle expression was obviously also known, but she chose to be as knowledgeable as Lin Shan.

When Chen Jiu approached, Mo Ye temporarily suppressed the doubts in his heart, and did not immediately ask Chen Jiu about the old gentleman, but just stared at the box in her hand, and asked with a smile, "What is this?" ”

"This is a flower balm that a woman applies to her face." Chen Jiu held Mo Ye's hand, walked into the house with her, and continued with a smile: "Yesterday, my sister in the building came to visit me and brought it on purpose, saying that it was for Xiaohua. They are also too anxious, how can such a small child use this, it is just right for you to use it. ”

Knowing the origin of this box of things, Mo Ye was secretly surprised.

She has seen the set of things in the Dongfeng Building, such as eyebrows and face and nails, although she doesn't know how to understand the doorway, but she has seen the number of its types, if you take them all out, it will be easy to fill a table.

But after Chen Jiu opened the box of flower cream, Mo Ye breathed a sigh of relief silently.

Indeed, as Chen Jiu said, although this box of flower paste is the "work" of Dongfeng Lou, since it is a gift for children, it will naturally not be as gorgeous as the things used by bright women. There is only one kind of flower paste in the small wooden box, the aroma is very light, the paste is pure and clear, and it gives people a very comfortable feeling just by looking at it.

"I know that you are digging well water to wash your face to refresh your mind, and there is nothing wrong with you doing this for a long time. But seeing that winter is about to begin, the wind outside is not only cold, you go out in such a hurry, or your face will not be able to stand it in a few days. Chen Jiu pulled Mo Ye to sit down, and then carefully helped her evenly apply a layer of that kind of clear-colored flower paste on her face, and at the same time advised: "Fragrance and research cream, except for Dongfeng Lou in Kyoto, no one dares to call it the first." You have grown up with your master since you were a child, and you have followed his temperament a little, and you don't have any handkerchiefs, what your daughter's family should know, let me teach you slowly in the future. ”

"Fragrance Grinding ......" Mo Ye quickly remembered the things that could spread out a table, and before he could think deeply, he felt dizzy, and couldn't help but stick out his tongue, wanting to refuse.

Since Chen Jiu knew that Mo Ye's personality was a little following Lin Shan, how could he not guess what she was thinking at this time, his index finger tapped her forehead, and pretended to be annoyed: "You don't want to learn, do you?" Well, I'm not going to teach you everything. ”

Mo Ye really didn't want to learn this, and he was overjoyed when he heard this, but when he saw the regretful look on Chen Jiu's face, he couldn't show his joy too much, so he could only bow his head slightly, "hehe" and laugh dryly.

Chen Jiu suddenly said: "But you must at least follow me to learn the most basic set of skills, women's physique, hair and skin, compared with men, are a little more fragile after all, let you learn this, but also teach you to better protect yourself." ”

Speaking of this, Chen Jiu seemed to suddenly think of something urgent, his eyes lit up, and he said: "I haven't discussed this matter with your master, I don't know what he means......

Mo Ye's heart sank slightly, if he let the master know, with his style of doing things, he was afraid that he would have to learn enough before he could stop.

Without waiting for Chen Jiu to finish speaking, Mo Ye hurriedly said: "Master, this kind of daughter's family matter, don't bother the master to interfere." In the future, I will learn from you, and I will learn carefully and carefully, you must rest assured. ”

Chen Jiu nodded in satisfaction, and a hint of pride spread in the corners of his eyes.

She felt in her heart that she had pinched the most fearful thing for Mo Ye, and the nervous appearance of this child's obedience finally revealed a little bit of the vividness that a person of this age should have. But in an instant, she felt that this kind of thing with Lin Shan's order to Mo Ye was really not the best policy, and she would have to think of other ways to guide her in the future.

(To be continued......)