The Emperor, seeing his younger brother's expression, instantly guessed what he was looking for. He quickly followed Qin Moyuan's gaze, scanning the surroundings. "How is it, has that girl arrived?" The place was teeming with people, and he had only seen the portrait Lan Guifei had provided. He genuinely didn't know if the girl was here.
"No." Qin Moyuan calmly retracted his gaze, his face devoid of any emotional fluctuation. However, the Emperor, who knew him well, saw his disappointment immediately. It was truly odd; how could A Yuan show such an emotion? He grew increasingly curious about that mysterious woman.
Qin Moyuan tugged on the reins of his horse. "Imperial Brother, it is getting late. I should depart." The Emperor nodded and stepped back. "Very well, travel safely." Qin Moyuan turned his horse, gave the command to depart, and led his entourage towards the city gates.
As the procession gradually left the city and moved further away, the surrounding crowds began to disperse. However, on a nearby teahouse balcony, a figure continued to stare intently at the almost indistinguishable procession.
"What, can't bear to part?" A figure in red sat on the adjacent chair, a teasing smile on her face.
Li Yue Shu turned around, ignoring the question. "You seem quite idle lately?"
"Where do you see me being idle?" Hong Dai pouted. "I've been busy with the new pharmacy. I'm not idle at all!" She feared that if she admitted to being idle, Li Yue Shu would assign her a mountain of tasks. With that thought, she quickly added, "The new pharmacy is renovated, and the signage has been prepared. The medicine from the Tong Mu County Pharmaceutical Factory will likely arrive in two days. When do you plan to open?"
Hong Dai was not only meticulous in her work but also consistently fast. Li Yue Shu was also keen on the opening of the new pharmacy. "I've looked, and there are several auspicious dates at the end of the month. We just need to pick a specific time and finalize it. How is the publicity coming along?" Heng De Pharmacy enjoyed a good reputation in Tong Mu County and its neighboring counties. However, Chong Zhou was quite far, and even if good medicines circulated there, people might not know about Heng De Pharmacy. To gain recognition, they naturally had to do a good job with the initial publicity. For Ming Yue Lou, this was a simple matter.
As expected, Hong Dai nodded confidently. "Don't worry, I guarantee the opening day will be lively." Li Yue Shu trusted her to handle it well and didn't ask further questions. After a quick visit to the new pharmacy, she returned directly to the prince's residence.
When Qin Moyuan set off for disaster relief, Chai Yang Xinghe, as his personal guard, naturally accompanied him. In the past, Xinghe would follow Qin Moyuan to practice spears with Li Yue Shu almost every day. That chatterbox of a guy's incessant talking had always made Ru Mo Ju quite lively. With Shen Yimin and Mo Lian going to the palace, and the twins and Shen Zhi Yu spending most of their time in classes with their tutors, Ru Mo Ju suddenly became quiet. Li Yue Shu was not quite used to it.
With nothing else to do, Li Yue Shu picked up the folk storybooks that Qin Moyuan had collected for her to pass the time. While these storybooks were more accessible than classical literature, they still contained some rather archaic language. She suddenly missed modern online novels; they were all about the "thrill," requiring no deep thought.
...
One day, as Li Yue Shu was dozing off while reading a storybook, Yan Bo suddenly arrived at Ru Mo Ju. Seeing Li Yue Shu with her eyes half-closed, he cautiously called out, "Miss?"
"Hmm?" Li Yue Shu was still a bit groggy, seemingly not fully grasping her current situation. She rubbed her eyes and then saw Yan Bo clearly. "Yan Bo... is there something?"
Yan Bo handed her a letter. "This is a letter from Princess Yonghe, sent to the second young master and the third young lady. How do you wish to handle it?" Li Yue Shu was taken aback, instantly becoming alert. She put down the storybook and took the letter from Yan Bo but did not open it. "Did the messenger say anything?" Yan Bo nodded. "The messenger said that Princess Yonghe has caught a chill and has been taking medicine for several days. She hopes the young master and young lady will come to see her."
"She caught a chill and needs to see a doctor? Will the two children make her better? Is she not afraid of infecting the children!" Li Yue Shu snorted coldly, her tone clearly laced with anger. Yan Bo lowered his head, not daring to respond. Li Yue Shu was indeed angry, but ultimately, she didn't say anything more. She returned the letter to Yan Bo, unopened. "After A Wen and the others finish their lessons, please give it to them." She felt she was not in a position to decide for the children how to handle it.
"Yes." Yan Bo took the letter with both hands and respectfully withdrew from Ru Mo Ju. Li Yue Shu lost her drowsiness, her mood somewhat unsettled.
However, she did not expect Yan Bo to return shortly after, still holding the seemingly untouched letter. "Miss, the second young master said that if they receive such letters in the future, they need not be informed. The third young lady has asked Miss to burn this letter personally, as she fears it would soil her hands." Li Yue Shu's unsettled mood vanished instantly. A slight smile touched her lips as she took the letter from Yan Bo. "Thank you, Yan Bo, for making another trip. Please tell the two children that from now on, I will handle all this rubbish." As she spoke, she raised her eyes. "Shi Dong, go get the fire starter." Shi Dong was quick and returned with the fire starter in moments. Li Yue Shu, in front of everyone, directly lit the unopened letter. She used a teacup to catch the ashes and continued until the entire letter was burned before speaking, "Ying Xin, throw this teacup into the latrine as well."
Everyone: "!!!" My goodness, well done!
When the twins heard the news, the brother and sister exchanged a smile and didn't give it another thought. Qin Yijia, completely unaware of what had happened, was happily waiting for a reply at the royal temple. She had heard that the Regent's Manor had sent people to find learned tutors from afar for the children in the manor. Did this mean Wen'er's studies hadn't fallen behind all these years? She had only two children in her life, and Wen'er was the only male heir who could inherit her future ambitions. When she had to abandon her children back then, she had worried that Wen'er would be unlearned when they were reunited. It seemed Qin Moyuan had not mistreated her two children, and it was not in vain that she and Lebai had entrusted them to him with such trust. Qin Yijia increasingly looked forward to meeting her two children, so she could also test Wen'er's knowledge.
However, she waited and waited, but the two children never appeared. The letter she had sent seemed to have vanished into thin air. "What is going on?" Qin Yijia's brows furrowed. "Did they not receive my letter?" Lian He replaced the burned incense in the censer and replied cautiously, "Could it be that woman intercepted the letter?" Qin Yijia's mind immediately went to the woman with unparalleled beauty and extraordinary bearing from last time. A flicker of jealousy flashed in her eyes. "Have you investigated that woman's background?"