Shen Ninghua is going to hold a plum banquet in the princess's mansion, inviting the ladies and ladies of various families to come to the banquet, and it is said that she will also teach everyone the techniques of making ice incense.

When this news spread, there were fewer people who came to ask for spices, and many people were carefully prepared, just waiting for the plum banquet to see how amazing the spices praised by the queen mother were.

"Miss, according to your instructions, everything has been done, and the invitation that should be sent has been sent."

Shen Ninghua nodded, put aside the chess game in his hand, listened to the wind outside the window, and his eyebrows moved slightly: "The weather has not been very good in the past two days. ”

"Yes, the weather has been very cold for the past two days, and it seems that it will snow in a few days, and I don't know if those plum blossoms will continue to bloom after the snow."

Shen Ninghua put the chess score aside, took out a bottle of medicinal powder and handed it to Bai Wei: "Mix the medicinal powder in this with water, and then sprinkle it on those plum blossoms, which can ensure that the flowering period is extended." ”

"Yes, miss, but that mulberry branch is going to be disposed of?"

"Don't worry about her, let Hongling send someone to keep an eye on her, and if she does it, come and tell me."

"The slave and maid understand."

At night, the sky became colder and colder, and in the middle of the night, it began to snow.

Shen Ninghua covered the quilt, suddenly felt cold hands and feet, and suddenly came to his senses.

"Ning Hua, what's wrong, have a nightmare?"

Chu Junyi, who had been holding Shen Ninghua in his arms, noticed that something was wrong with her for the first time, and hurriedly asked.

"It's okay, it's just that I was scared by the dream." Shen Ninghua grabbed the fingers of the quilt and moved, saw the candle flame not far from him, and slowly lay back on the bed, but he didn't feel sleepy at all, only felt a chill from the bottom of his heart.

In the previous life, she was locked in the cold palace, and in the winter there was no charcoal fire to keep warm, and even the cold palace did not even have a window paper, often she slept in the bed, and the wind and snow would blow in through the window.

She couldn't sleep night after night, many times, she could only watch more and more snowflakes, starting from her crippled feet, drowning her little by little, the feeling of being cold to the bone marrow, always with her, a winter like a shadow.

Even now, she has made sure that the room is as warm as spring, and the sleep under her is a warm quilt, but she always feels cold and can't sleep.

Chu Junyi hugged Shen Ninghua, who was curled up in a ball, into his arms, and held her fingers on his open chest: "Ninghua, sleep, don't be afraid, I'm here." ”

Chu Junyi's eyes were deep, and that aura of despair flashed on Ning Hua's body just now, although it was only a flash, it made him feel distressed.

He couldn't help but think of the place where he met Ning Hua at the beginning, at that time, after she fell off the cliff, she also showed such an aura, originally thought that it was because of the persecution of the Zhao family that she was so disheartened, but now that the Zhao family has been subdued, and the Shen family has also fallen, why is she still so unable to let go, and her hatred for Baili Jinze, is there anything he doesn't know.

Thinking about it, he couldn't help but hug Shen Ninghua tighter: "Ninghua, what nightmare did you have just now?" ”

"It's nothing, I can't remember it now."

"In that case, then don't think about it, I'll accompany you and sleep in peace."

Shen Ninghua nodded, felt the steady heartbeat vibration coming from the palm of his hand, closed his eyes and leaned over.

When I opened my eyes again, the sky was already bright, lying on the bed, the quilt was unusually warm, I felt that the whole person was a lot lazy, and I almost didn't want to get out of the quilt: "Bai Wei? ”

Bai Wei hurriedly came in with a basin of water: "Miss, you woke up, I saw that you were sleeping heavily in the morning, and the master didn't let the slave wake you up." ”

"Well," Shen Ninghua washed her face, and Hongling hurriedly walked in, "Miss, that mulberry branch did it last night, and the slave knocked her out and detained her in the side courtyard." ”

"Last night?"

"Well, last night the snow was very heavy, but the mulberry branch went out in the snow, and the slave maid felt that something was wrong and followed her, and just happened to see her holding a bag and sprinkling something on the plum tree."

Shen Ninghua frowned: "What are you sprinkling?" ”

"White phosphorus powder."

White phosphorus powder? Shen Ninghua frowned violently, remembering that she had proposed that Xuan Lin go to play fireworks before, her heart jumped violently: "Bring her over!" ”

"Yes, miss."

After staying in the cold side courtyard for a night, Sang Zhi was frightened in his heart, and was brought to Shen Ninghua, and knelt on the ground as soon as his legs were weak: "Gong...... Princess. ”

Shen Ninghua looked at her coldly, her eyes were like ice: "Sang Zhi, the deputy head of the Internal Affairs Department is your cousin, what benefits did he promise you, so that you dare to risk your life to frame me?" ”

"No, Your Royal Highness the Princess, the slave didn't want to frame you, I beg the princess to spare her life."

Shen Ninghua looked at her with deep eyes, the light in her black eyes was cold and thorough, and she could almost see people's hearts.

"Hongling, take her to the plum garden."

Sang Zhi trembled, and his heart burst with fear: "Your Royal Highness the Princess, the slave and maid are wronged, Her Royal Highness the Princess......"

Hongling covered her mouth with one hand and dragged the person out directly.

Bai Wei took the cloak with the fox fur collar to help Shen Ninghua put it on, and then handed her the hand stove, and then carefully helped Shen Ninghua out of the door.

The snow on the ground had already been cleared, but there were still a lot of water stains. The mulberry branch was dragged to the ground, soaked with snow and water, and kept shaking his head and crying bitterly.

Shen Ninghua stood in front of the plum tree and looked up.

Snow has fallen on the branches and plum blossoms, the snowflakes are crystal clear, the plum blossoms are red and delicate, one is cold and the other is warm, forming a strong contrast, people can't help but want to come forward and admire it.

Shen Ninghua raised her head and picked a plum blossom, melted the snow on the plum blossom in the palm of her hand, put it on the tip of her nose and smelled it, and her eyebrows suddenly wrinkled.

"Hongling?"

Hongling let go of the mulberry branch and let her kneel on the snow.

"Princess, the slave didn't do anything to be sorry for the princess, ask the princess to be clear."

Shen Ninghua threw away the plum blossom in his hand: "The plum blossom is sprinkled with white phosphorus powder, and when the white phosphorus burns, the people who enjoy the flowers here are afraid that they will not be able to escape the catastrophe, the light ones are frightened, and the heavy ones are simply burned to death." As long as one person has an accident with me, I, Princess Zhaohua, will not be able to escape the involvement. It's a good way, so much white phosphorus powder, only the Department of Internal Affairs can easily get it. ”

Sang Zhi's body became more and more stiff, and his hand on the ground fell into the snow, and the cold was chilling to the bone.

Shen Ninghua's eyes became more and more cold: "In the past few days, it looks like the New Year is coming, and when the fireworks and firecrackers burn, they fall on the white phosphorus, and the consequences are ......."

Sang Zhi trembled more and more: "The princess spares her life, the slave maid did not mean it, it was the cousin who instructed the slave to do it, she said that if I sprinkle white phosphorus on the plum blossoms, and then find a way to light the plum blossoms, he can talk in front of the queen mother, and point me to the concubine of the concubine, the slave and the maid were fascinated for a while, and begged the princess to spare her life." ”

Hongling was angry in her heart: "The princess has only been married for a few days, and you want to be a concubine for the concubine, it's really vicious!" Miss, doesn't the slave see that there is a lot of white phosphorus powder left, just put her in it and roll it, and then the slave and maid light a charcoal basin around her, and soon she will be able to roast herself! ”

"Don't, princess, the slave and maid are guilty, what the slave and maid said is the truth, please spare the princess, please let the princess spare the slave and maid." Sang Zhi said, kneeling and crawling forward two steps to pull Shen Ninghua's skirt, but was kicked aside by Hongling.

"Miss, what do you think of it?"

Shen Ninghua looked up at the plum blossoms full of trees, and his eyes moved slightly: "Lock the mulberry branches in the side courtyard, so that people can watch them well." ”

"Yes."

Chu Junyi came back from the court, and saw Shen Ninghua looking up at the plum tree, the snow-white cloak and fur collar reflected the white porcelain-like face, which made people's hearts soften, and stepped forward to brush off the snowflakes that fell on her shoulders: "Ninghua, it has only snowed, and it is very cold outside, why did you come out?" ”

Shen Ninghua leaned back, listening to Bai Wei's 1510 report on what happened just now, his eyebrows suddenly wrinkled: "Ninghua, that maid has been disposed of, why do you still seem to have something on your mind?" ”

"I'm thinking about the relationship between this matter and the Queen's Palace."

"You mean ......"

Shen Ninghua's eyes flashed with a fierce color: "Well, the queen has a deep foundation in the palace, if she really wants to use white phosphorus to start a fire to calculate me, she will not send a maid who does not know the slightest martial arts to sprinkle white phosphorus powder, and I caught her." ”

"You mean the sound of the east?"

"Originally, I didn't expect it, but Sang Zhi happily confessed, but it made me feel something wrong in my heart, since we found out that Sang Zhi was wrong, we focused our attention on her, and ignored a lot of other places, and now it seems that we should have missed a lot of things."

Chu Junyi also frowned, and her handsome face made people look stunned: "Ning Hua, don't worry about it first, it is impossible for the queen to do it without any clues." ”

Shen Ninghua nodded, and suddenly her eyes moved: "Jun Yi, check the Department of Internal Affairs." ”

"The Department of Internal Affairs?"

"Well, I remember that the head of the Department of Internal Affairs should be on the side of the Zhao family secretly, and besides, so much white phosphorus can only be taken out by the Department of Internal Affairs, starting from there, even the queen will be caught off guard."

"Good!" The fire of the Praetorian Guard has just been burned, and now it is just right to investigate the Department of Internal Affairs, and the new official has taken office with three fires, he has been promoted and the groom has been an officer, and this fire must be burned well.

As soon as the date of the plum banquet arrived, the princess's mansion was busy early in the morning, because the people who came were all ladies and young ladies from various families, although they had already set up a warm tent, but the charcoal basin and fragrant tea needed to be prepared in the morning, and when Shen Ninghua finished dressing up, the outside was just ready.

"This is the first time I've been here, Ning Hua, I heard that you were going to hold a plum banquet, I came over as soon as possible, don't dislike me for coming early."

Baili Anning walked in with four palace maids and said to Shen Ninghua with a smile.

"What the princess said, it's too late for me to welcome it."

"If you don't have any good things to collect, you just want to take them out and show off, now let's take a look, so many people come to ask you for spices, so you are not clean when you get married." As he spoke, he stepped forward and grabbed Shen Ninghua's hand, and with a movement of his fingers, a note was quickly handed to her.

Shen Ninghua's eyes moved, she quietly held her hand, and hid the note in her sleeve: "As soon as you enter the door, you will know that I will be counted, I have prepared your favorite tea, come into the house and taste it, I think someone will come soon." ”