The door curtain of the flower hall opened, and Su Xiaoqi entered, leading the two young masters of the Princess's mansion, one in each hand.
"Greetings to Your Highness, the Grand Princess," Su Xiaoqi said, having overheard the Grand Princess's earlier words. She smiled, pursed her lips, and performed a formal bow.
"Quickly, no need for so much ceremony. Though we are not blood relatives, we are no different from family," the Grand Princess reached out to Su Xiaoqi, pulling her into her embrace, and looked at her carefully.
"I see, you seem to have lost some weight. Have you been bothered by things these days?"
The Grand Princess was referring to the recent rumors about the top scholar's wife praying for a child.
Su Xiaoqi said it was nothing, that the matter had passed.
"Besides, my husband doesn't mind it at all."
The Grand Princess burst into laughter, "Indeed, wasn't the intention of spreading these rumors aimed precisely at your husband?
Who would have thought that their relationship as husband and wife could not be broken by such means." The Grand Princess was very pleased.
When she heard the rumors, she had been worried that Su Xiaoqi would be upset.
She had even sent Granny Xu to comfort her.
To her surprise, she heard that the couple didn't care about such matters at all.
She mused that it made sense; they were not an ordinary couple like those she knew.
How could they let the baseless gossip of storytellers shake their feelings for each other?
They were not like her and her consort.
Thinking of this, the smile on the Grand Princess's face froze.
She remembered the main reason she had invited Su Xiaoqi today.
She was about to send her children away, but saw them both looking at her expectantly.
Moreover, Su Xiaoqi was already talking about the gifts she had prepared for them.
The Grand Princess had to put aside her thoughts and let them exchange pleasantries.
"Here, this is for the Princess. Take a look," Su Xiaoqi presented the cloth doll she had brought to Hui'an, along with ten sets of small dresses and two wigs.
Two sets of small accessories to match the cloth doll's size.
Princess Hui'an stared at the doll Su Xiaoqi held in her hand, completely stunned.
For a moment, she forgot to reach out for it, her eyes wide with admiration, filled with amazement, "Wow, this is so beautiful! What is its name?"
Su Xiaoqi smiled; Princess Hui'an's reaction was as she had expected.
She smiled and told her that this was called a cloth doll. When she lived in Bashu, she had seen them on merchant ships from Nanyang, so she had tried to make one.
"Look, these clothes can be changed for her, and this wig can also change her hairstyle.
These accessories, these ears can wear earrings, and this silver-gilt lotus bracelet can also be put on."
Su Xiaoqi demonstrated as she introduced.
This time, it wasn't just Princess Hui'an who gasped.
Even Bao Ge'er, a young man, couldn't help but stare intently.
The Grand Princess also tilted her head, watching with great interest, exclaiming, "Oh my, this is fun! My Hui'an likes this the most."
What girl didn't love to play with such colorful clothes and accessories?
It was just difficult to style her own hair, but having such a cute cloth doll would be so much fun.
Princess Hui'an took the cloth doll and sat down on the side to play with it on her own.
Su Xiaoqi turned to Bao Ge'er.
His eyes were tired from staring, and he looked at Su Xiaoqi expectantly.
Since the gifts for his sister were so fun, he was very curious about what gift she had brought for him.
"Here, Bao Ge'er, take a look, what do you think of this set of building blocks?" Su Xiaoqi took out a rosewood box.
Inside were building blocks made of wood.
They were different from the ones she had given Bao Ge'er before.
These could be interlocked.
Moreover, they had many patterns and were coated with clear varnish, making them exceptionally beautiful.
"I like this one, I like it!" Bao Ge'er hugged it tightly and exclaimed happily.
"Bao Ge'er, why don't you quickly thank your Sister Xiaoqi," the Grand Princess said from the side. Hui'an, in her joy, even managed a shy curtsy to Su Xiaoqi.
However, Bao Ge'er was too excited and quickly emphasized his manners.
"Thank you, Sister Xiaoqi, thank you, Sister Xiaoqi," Bao Ge'er cheered and ran to the side to play.
The Grand Princess looked at the space beside her, which was suddenly empty, and sighed lightly, "Look, I couldn't get them to leave just now, but as soon as you arrived, without a word, they left on their own."
Su Xiaoqi smiled lightly, "When they get new toys, they naturally want to explore them."
"It must have been difficult for you, bringing them fun things every time you visit.
I don't know how the heavens could create such people, but how did they grant you such a clever and skillful girl?"
The Grand Princess then expressed envy for the old madam of the Duke of Yu's mansion and asked about her health.
Although Su Xiaoqi had been busy these days, she still visited the old madam to pay her respects every few days.
Just after the rumors started, the old madam had specifically sent for her, telling her not to worry about the matter and to leave it to her.
She was determined to find the person who had been spreading gossip behind the scenes and deal with them properly.
Su Xiaoqi quickly told her that Shen Yun was investigating the matter, and once he found out, they would deal with him themselves without her needing to intervene.
The old madam was still not reassured and summoned Shen Yun to give him a stern lecture.
She said that although Su Xiaoqi was not her biological granddaughter, she had always treated her as her own.
If he dared to have any other thoughts, he would have to answer to their Duke of Yu's mansion.
Shen Yun quickly promised that he would never fail his wife.
Su Xiaoqi was deeply moved by this at the time.
This time, in front of the Grand Princess, seeing her concerned gaze, she couldn't help but tell her about it.
The Grand Princess burst into laughter and gave her a thumbs-up, "Haha, the old madam is still the same as ever.
I would say the same thing. If that Doctor Shen dared to betray you, I would also have to teach him a lesson, what a wonderful girl!"
The Grand Princess beckoned Su Xiaoqi closer as she spoke.
She only regretted not having given birth to a son to marry Su Xiaoqi.
Su Xiaoqi knew that all of this was just a preamble, and the true reason for the Grand Princess's invitation was yet to come.
"Xiaoqi, you understand medicine, and I have a lot of medicinal herbs stored. Could you help me take a look?"
After speaking, Granny Xu brought over a small box.
She opened it in front of Su Xiaoqi.
Su Xiaoqi sat up straight and looked at the medicinal herbs in the box.
After a while, she reached out to pick them up, smell them, and even brought them to a place with good light to examine them against the sun.
"How is it?" the Grand Princess asked, a little nervous.
Su Xiaoqi said, "Your Highness, these medicinal herbs were probably not prescribed by a doctor for you, were they?"
The Grand Princess shook her head, "Indeed not."
"Have you taken them?" Su Xiaoqi asked, a little nervous.
Seeing her anxious expression, the Grand Princess knew that the medicinal herbs were indeed problematic.
She smiled and patted Su Xiaoqi's hand to reassure her, "I haven't taken them."
"Fortunately, fortunately. These medicinal herbs all look like good herbs at first glance.
But in reality, they have either been used and re-dried, or similar herbs have been substituted.
For example, this thing that looks like Gastrodia elata is actually a rhizome of Alocasia macrorrhiza.
And this one is even Piper umbellatum root. Not only is it useless, but this ingredient also clashes with Xanthium strumarium. After consuming it, your body will develop problems."
Su Xiaoqi sifted through the medicinal herbs, feeling that the medical texts she had been forced to memorize as a child were finally proving useful.
"Heavens, someone wants to harm Your Highness," Granny Xu exclaimed in shock.
The Grand Princess's fingers tightly gripped her silk handkerchief, and a hint of ruthlessness flashed in her eyes.
She asked, "Are these medicinal herbs related to my previous illness?"
Su Xiaoqi replied, "Naturally, they are somewhat related. However, Your Highness was poisoned before.
These are not poisonous, or perhaps a poisonous ingredient is missing."
"And what would happen if I drank the decoction made from these medicinal herbs?"
"It would cause Your Highness's body to decline, and the pulse diagnosis would indicate a deficiency, with no discernible cause."