After the woman and her maid left, the dilapidated courtyard returned to its former tranquility.
Little did they know, the carrier pigeon that had flown away with the news had already been shot down by a sharp short arrow.
Gardening Pavilion.
Bai Qi entered, carrying the already lifeless carrier pigeon, and knocked on the door.
"Master, your plan is truly divine. Those people really couldn't sit still."
Bai Qi happily handed the slip of paper from the bamboo tube to Nangong Mo.
At this moment, Nangong Mo was playing chess with Gu Qianying.
When Bai Qi entered, Gu Qianying saw the carrier pigeon in his hand. Although she was puzzled, she didn't say anything.
After all, for the past few days, Nangong Mo had been spending a lot of time with her. Whatever Nangong Mo wanted, she would know.
Here, after Nangong Mo finished reading the slip of paper in his hand, he handed it to Gu Qianying: "That old嬷嬷 wants to use your dim-witted second sister to deal with you. Look, her tricks are nothing more than this."
Gu Qianying looked at the message on the slip of paper, her lips curling into a cold smile.
It was as she had expected!
"Do you want this King to help you eliminate this person? To save you from her harming you in the future. She's just an old servant. Even without her, this King can still help you find the master behind her."
"No need. Since they've set up the stage, we must play the part. Otherwise, wouldn't their good intentions be wasted?"
Gu Qianying casually tore the small slip of paper into pieces, destroying it.
"Alright, whatever you say, this King will listen to you."
Nangong Mo placed a white piece in his hand, then suddenly leaned his face closer: "Since this King is so obedient, shouldn't you praise me?"
"..."
Gu Qianying looked at Nangong Mo's "begging for praise, annoying" expression, and her lips twitched fiercely.
"If you're too embarrassed to say it, then showing it through actions is also acceptable." Nangong Mo leaned even closer, his intentions being more than obvious.
Gu Qianying rolled her eyes and used the black piece in her hand to block all the escape routes on Nangong Mo's chessboard.
"Ninth Imperial Uncle, you lost."
Nangong Mo was nonchalant and smiled faintly: "This King admits defeat when he loses. To prove the sincerity of a loser, this King has decided to give himself to you. Is that acceptable?"
Nangong Mo looked at Gu Qianying, his eyes filled with increasing doting.
"No! Ninth Imperial Uncle, your status is noble. This humble girl cannot afford you."
Gu Qianying immediately refused.
She knew very well that Nangong Mo's words were meant as a jest, but she dared not speak too casually. After all, Nangong Mo's moods were unpredictable, and she couldn't fathom him, so she dared not act too intimately with him.
"Although this King's status is noble, his price is extremely low, only one tael of silver is enough. You can afford him, and you can afford to keep him. Besides that, this King is also very capable. I can accompany you to eat, accompany you to play, and even accompany you to... sleep."
"..."
Gu Qianying got up and poured herself a cup of tea, drinking it down in large gulps to calm her nerves.
Nangong Mo gestured to Bai Qi, and Bai Qi quietly withdrew.
Nangong Mo turned his wheelchair and walked towards Gu Qianying.
"This King is also thirsty."
"..."
Gu Qianying poured Nangong Mo a cup of tea.
Nangong Mo did not move, only saying, "This King is tired. My hands are becoming less and less functional, and I cannot hold the cup."
Gu Qianying glared at him.
"If your hands are also tired, using your mouth is also acceptable."
Gu Qianying: "..."
The news that the renowned Ninth Prince had stayed in the Gu Mansion for a few days to seek treatment from Miss Gu for his legs spread like wildfire among the common people.
Some said that Miss Gu's medical skills must be extraordinary, and thus, she would surely win the triennial disciple selection of the Poisonous Medicine Sacred Hall.
Some also said that they had never heard of Miss Gu's medical skills being so profound. It was likely that Prince Nangong Mo was anxious to seek treatment and had been misled by rumors, which led him to Gu Qianying.
Others said that seeking medical treatment was a pretense, and it was likely that he wanted to get closer to Miss Gu.
After all, she was the only one in the world who dared to return the betrothal gifts personally sent by the Ninth Prince.
Such a unique person would naturally attract the Ninth Prince's increasing attention.
Miss Gu of the Gu family played the game of playing hard to get exceptionally well. Look at how well she knew how to seduce men. To win over a man, she did not hesitate to lower her status and even used the tactics of women from pleasure houses.
So many rumors had already spread throughout the capital.
The disseminators of these rumors wanted to use the gossip of the masses to ruin Gu Qianying's reputation.
However, soon, another rumor spread.
It was said that ever since Ninth Imperial Uncle Nangong Mo had resided in the Gu Mansion and received treatment from Miss Gu Qianying, his legs had begun to regain sensation.
Although he still couldn't walk, there was definitely some improvement.
As soon as this incident occurred,
the "vulgar" tactics that were aimed at Miss Gu of the Gu family for seducing Ninth Imperial Uncle Nangong Mo were self-defeating.
Originally, Miss Gu of the Gu family was indeed skilled in medicine, and her skills were passable. Otherwise, how could the paralysis of Ninth Imperial Uncle Nangong Mo's legs, caused by the strange poison he had suffered for many years, have improved?
Thus, the gossip that people discussed over tea and after meals about how shameless Miss Gu of the Gu family was in seducing Ninth Imperial Uncle Nangong Mo changed to how extraordinary Miss Gu of the Gu family's medical skills were.
After this incident, people paid even more attention to the triennial disciple grand ceremony of the Poisonous Medicine Sacred Hall. After all, it would be unprecedented and a rare event in the capital for someone to have the good fortune to become the sole disciple of the Poisonous Medicine Divine Son.
And people wanted to see if Miss Gu Qianying of the Gu family, with her exceptional medical skills, had the ability to become the sole disciple of the Poisonous Medicine Divine Son.
Besides these, another force hidden in the dark, upon learning that Ninth Imperial Uncle's legs had shown improvement, became restless and could no longer sit still.
However, when several assassins attacked the Gardening Pavilion in the backyard of the Gu Mansion from all directions, they were apprehended by the guards who had already laid an ambush before they could even make a move.
The assassins who came to assassinate Ninth Imperial Uncle were all death warriors. After being captured by Ninth Imperial Uncle's men, they all committed suicide by taking poison.
After all these death warriors had died, although the Gu Mansion returned to its former peace, the news of Ninth Imperial Uncle being assassinated in the Gu Mansion still leaked out inadvertently.
Soon, all the officials in the imperial court who wanted to ascertain whether Ninth Imperial Uncle's legs had truly improved came to visit under the guise of paying their respects.
And several princes in the palace, including Crown Prince Nan Rongqi, were all unable to sit still.
However, they were noble princes and naturally could not visit a subject's mansion with gifts like ordinary officials.
For this reason, the princes unanimously agreed that it would be excellent if the Gu Mansion could host a banquet for them at this time.
With this thought, the princes soon sent people to inquire about the Gu Mansion.
To see if the Gu Mansion had recently held any banquets.
At this time, the princes happened to hear that in two days, the First Madam of the Gu Mansion would invite ladies and madams from outside families to a flower viewing.
As soon as the invitations were sent out, the number of guests attending on that day increased.
Several princes from the palace also took this opportunity to come.
Although they couldn't enjoy the flowers, it was still possible to have a cup of tea and chat about daily life together.
When everyone learned that several princes and the Crown Prince would all be coming, and that Ninth Imperial Uncle Nangong Mo was also in the mansion.
Those young ladies from outside families who had originally not wanted to go out all dressed up beautifully and attended in their finest attire.
Thus, on that day, the Gu Mansion was extremely lively.
At the banquet,
Old General Gu sat at the head, followed by Gu Kun, his eldest son Gu Yefeng, and his two illegitimate sons, Gu Wen and Gu Yi, who were seated in order of seniority.
Although it was called a flower viewing banquet today, since several princes and the Crown Prince would be attending, they, as members of the Gu family, had to be present.
Moreover, being on good terms with several princes and the Crown Prince was also excellent.
On the women's side, led by the First Madam, the seats for Miss Gu and the second and third young ladies were on the side.
However, the seats were still empty, and it was likely that the three young ladies were preparing in their respective chambers.
The third concubine, Madam Han, had arrived early, but her seat was in the corner.
Sitting at the very edge, her expression did not look good, likely due to anger.
The other guests from outside families were seated in the guest seats.
And at this moment, Gu Qianying was in her room tidying her attire.
Beside her, Lu Zhu was happily selecting suitable jewelry for Gu Qianying to wear.
"Miss, this maid thinks this red agate bracelet is quite beautiful and matches the clothes you are wearing today."
Lu Zhu picked out all the beautiful jewelry and then selected a red agate bracelet of decent quality and exquisite craftsmanship from them.
As she picked it up to put it on Gu Qianying, Gu Mingyue entered with her personal maid.
Gu Mingyue, who had come this time, deliberately lowered her stance, first apologized to Gu Qianying a few times, and then presented Gu Qianying with a box of precious jewelry she had brought.
This included valuable items such as a gold earring inlaid with red rubies in the shape of a flower, a white jade bell hairpin, a delicate glass bead, and a pure black crystal inlaid silver hairpin.
After presenting the gift, Gu Mingyue said...