Chapter 203 - Who Was Plotting Behind the Scene?

Shen Ninghua followed Fangxue into Ningkun Palace. A faint fragrance came from inside, which was very refreshing.

“Greetings, Your Majesty.”

“As you were. Fangxue, give her a seat.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty.”

When Shen Ninghua sat down, Zhao Huiying slowly said, “Ninghua, I left too early yesterday. Fortunately, those officials were sensible. Otherwise, I would feel very guilty.”

Shen Ninghua smiled and said, “Your Majesty, you worry too much. It’s not a big deal.”

Zhao Huiying smiled faintly. Looking at the smoke rising from the incense burner, she said, “Ninghua, I heard that you are proficient in medicine and are also good at incense making. I have been feeling out of spirits these days. I feel that I cannot concentrate my mind when dealing with the palace matters during the day, and it is always difficult to fall asleep at night. I heard that you have concocted some incense that is good for sleep. Please send some over to me as well.”

“Mother, although I’m a bit skilled in medicine, I’m not good at incense making and I made some simple incense under Princess Anning’s strong request. Compared to the professional incense makers in the palace, I’m a thousand miles away.”

“I also asked for some of the incense you gave to Anning before. I feel that it’s especially suitable for me. What, now that you’re married, you don’t recognize me as your mother?” Zhao Huiying said jokingly with a smile on her face, but her attitude was exceptionally firm.

Shen Ninghua nodded slightly. “I don’t dare. Well, I happen to have some newly transplanted plum trees in my princess mansion. I will pick some flowers to make incense and send them to you another day.”

Zhao Huiying nodded in satisfaction. “Alright, then I will be waiting.”

The empress asked her to stay for the meal, and she accompanied the empress to finish her meal before leaving.

After leaving the Palace, Shen Ninghua saw Chu Junyi waiting beside the carriage.

When the two got into the carriage, Chu Junyi pursed Shen Ninghua’s hair behind her ears and hugged her in his arms. “Are you feeling unwell?”

“No problem.” Shen Ninghua’s voice was a little unnatural.

“What’s wrong? You seem to have something on your mind. Did the empress embarrass you?”

“No,” Shen Ninghua shook her head. “She was very nice and explained what happened yesterday, but I always felt that it shouldn’t be like this. There’s also the incense thing. Why did she suddenly ask me for incense for no reason? Isn’t she afraid that I would add something to the incense?”

Chu Junyi’s eyebrows twitched. “The empress wanted incense from you?”

“Yes.”

“Make her wait for some time. I’ll have people pay attention to the movements of the harem in the next few days and see whom the empress has dealings with.”

“Alright.”

Three days later, Shen Ninghua looked at the letter in her hand and couldn’t find a clue. “The empress’s movements were as usual. Her people weren’t doing anything unusual at all. I thought it was Liaochen, but now it doesn’t look like he is involved.”

Chu Junyi sat down beside her and raised his finger to cover her eyes. “Alright, stop looking. The empress has always been secretive in her movements. We don’t have many helpers in the Palace. We have to take our time with many things.”

Shen Ninghua blinked her eyes and felt the warmth coming from his palms. Her tense mood relaxed a lot. “Yes, I know.”

“Miss,” said Hong Ling as she walked in quickly, “you asked me to send someone to keep an eye on Fangxue. She has taken actions.”

Shen Ninghua lifted her head. “What did she do?”

“I found out that she contacted the deputy director of Internal Affairs Department. I didn’t find out what exactly she said, but I found that the deputy director had a niece who was assigned to our princess’ mansion some time ago. Her name was Sang Zhi.”

Shen Ninghua’s eyes twitched. “Sang Zhi? I asked you and Bi Zhu to choose some trustworthy servants some time ago. Is this Sang Zhi one of them?”

“I found that she was artful in her eyes, and she pretended to pass by Master Chu three times in the past few days, so I confirmed that she had bad intentions. I found an excuse and sent her back to the Internal Affairs Department. Miss, what’s your plan?”

“Have someone keep an eye on this Sang Zhi. Don’t alarm her. If she wants to work in my courtyard, arrange for her to take care of the flower bed in the front yard.”

“Yes, Miss.”

Shen Ninghua’s eyes were cold. What did the empress want to do with the incense?

Chu Junyi said, “Ninghua, don’t think too much. I will also help you keep an eye in the next few days. If the empress sends someone to urge for the incense, you can send it over. She just wants to make a fuss about the incense. Divide the incense and send some to other people. She will not be able to do anything with the incense even if she wants to. After all, if no one else has a problem with the incense, it is unreasonable for her to make a fuss.”

“This might work, but I don’t think the empress will use such an obviously awkward method. We should be more careful these days. You should also take care in the court. If the empress is determined to make a move, she will probably attack both of us.”

“Alright, don’t worry, I will.”

Sang Zhi was assigned to work in the front yard, but she didn’t do anything other than looking for an opportunity to “happen” to appear around Chu Junyi. This made Hong Ling on alert all day and she didn’t dare to relax in the slightest.

After Shen Ninghua sent the incense over, the empress did not take the opportunity to cause trouble. Instead, she used the incense every day and praised it a lot. Immediately, many people in the court knew that Princess Zhaohua was favored by the empress. The impact of the empress leaving the banquet earlier slowly dissipated.

However, Shen Ninghua was not happy at all. Instead, she felt that the matter was even more suspicious.

As the name of Shen Ninghua’s filial piety spread, the incense she made became more and more popular. Many wives of aristocratic families even came to her door, hoping to get some of the incense. However, because of her high status, few people could force her if she rejected.

One day, just as Shen Ninghua woke up from her nap, Shen Xuanlin hurriedly ran in. “Eldest Sister, Eldest Sister, are you awake?”

“You sweat a lot after coming in a hurry. Aren’t you afraid of catching a cold? Bai Ruo, go make a bowl of ginger soup.”

“Yes, Miss.”

Shen Xuanlin’s face turned red from the cold, but he didn’t care at all. He ran over to sit next to Shen Ninghua and whispered, “Eldest Sister, I think there’s someone suspicious.”

Shen Ninghua raised her eyes. “Suspicious?”

“Yes. That Sang Zhi in your courtyard, she purposely walked over to me today and said that the fireworks were beautiful. She also said that there were people selling fireworks not far from the princess’ mansion.”

Shen Ninghua’s heart skipped a beat. She had a little inspiration, but it was too fast to be caught. She murmured softly, “New Year is coming. It’s normal for someone to sell fireworks. What’s so suspicious about that?”

Shen Xuanlin said anxiously, “I don’t know, but I just feel that Sang Zhi is abnormal. I had wanted to buy some fireworks, but when I thought of her words, I didn’t dare to. I was afraid that I would be trapped and cause trouble for you.”

Shen Ninghua smiled gently and touched his head. “You did the right thing. If you’re not sure about something and you have doubts, don’t take risks unless you have full confidence.”

“Yes, Eldest Sister.” Shen Xuanlin nodded obediently. “But I really feel there is something wrong with Sang Zhi. Eldest Sister, you need to be on guard.”

Shen Ninghua chuckled. “Alright, I’ll pay attention.”

After sending Shen Xuanlin away, Shen Ninghua racked her brain and thought about what had happened recently, but she still failed to get a clear picture. “Bai Ruo, did anyone come to ask for incense today?”

“No. I guess they know that you don’t want to make any more incense.” Ever since you stopped giving incense, the incense that you made became even more precious. Some people even begged for it from the empress.

Shen Ninghua rubbed her forehead. She got up, tidied her clothes, and went out to see the plum trees.

“Miss, Madam Su is here.”

“Aunt?” Shen Ninghua turned around and saw Madam Su walking over in a honey-colored dress. “Greetings, auntie. It’s been a long time since you’ve come to my place.”

Madam Su was still as pleasant and straightforward as before. Seeing Shen Ninghua’s rosy complexion and smiling eyes, she knew that she was doing well. Madam Su was finally relieved. “I was bothered so much that I have no choice but to come here for some peaceful time.”

“Who’s bothering you?”

“Well, it’s all because of you. The incense you made is now extremely hard to obtain. Naturally, someone thought of me, your aunt.” Madam Su smiled and said without the slightest bit of blame. “Ninghua, your garden is really well built, especially this plum garden. It’s a good place to admire plums. I think you can stop shutting your door to visitors and just host a plum banquet to let everyone see for themselves how much trouble it takes to make the incense, so they won’t continue to bother you.”

“A plum banquet? That’s a good idea.”

Madam Su smiled. “My maid reminded me of that. Otherwise, I really wouldn’t be able to have the idea of holding a plum banquet.”

Hearing this, Shen Ninghua suddenly looked up and said, “It’s your maid’s idea?”

“Mm, yes, it’s Fu Xi. This girl is smart and very adorable…” Madam Su suddenly realized that something was wrong and immediately stopped talking.

“Ninghua, do you think this plum banquet is inappropriate?”

“Aunt, I have felt that something was wrong when the empress asked me for incense. Later on, things gradually became a little far away from what is normal. It is just some ordinary incense used to calm the mind. What kind of miraculous effect could it have? How could it be worthy of everyone’s admiration? I didn’t know. Now that I think about it, there should be someone adding fuel to the fire behind the scenes.”

“Someone is adding fuel to the fire? But there’s nothing to be taken advantage of in the plum banquet.”

Shen Ninghua frowned. “I haven’t figured it out yet, but if someone is planning something, they will definitely leave behind clues. Let’s just wait and see.”

“Alright. Then, are you still going to hold the plum banquet?”

“Yes, why not?” A cold light flashed in Shen Ninghua’s eyes. Tit for tat, and it was unknown who would be the loser.

After waiting quietly for two days, just as everyone was getting more and more anxious, the news finally came from the princess’ mansion that Shen Ninghua was going to hold a plum banquet. At the banquet, she would reveal her incense-making recipe. Those who participated could bring people with them to learn how to make the incense.

It was really breaking news in the capital. Everyone was waiting for the plum banquet to arrive. This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that could not be missed.

The princess’ mansion remained quiet on the surface, but in the dark, there was already an undercurrent moving slowly. That night, Hong Ling brought the results of the investigation to Shen Ninghua. Looking at the contents, Shen Ninghua was so angry that her entire body trembled, and smashed the teacup!

“Bang!”