“What’s wrong, Miss? Is the food not to your liking?” Lu Zhu watched Gu Qianying leave the plum blossom fragrant cakes untouched and put them back, looking puzzled.
Gu Qianying picked up the teacup in front of her, took a sip, and said, “Has anything unusual happened at Yangchun Pavilion recently?”
Lu Zhu scratched her head, thought for a moment, and said, “Nothing much. However, I heard that yesterday, the Fourth Miss punished a second-class maid in her room and demoted her to be a Gong Shi maid in the Gong Fang.”
Oh? Gu Qianying put down her teacup and said, “Gu Yumei never reveals her emotions. In the past, she was always cautious, afraid of damaging her reputation. Now, she doesn’t care about being labeled a harsh subordinate. She actually sent a maid who committed a crime to the Gong Fang as a Gong Shi maid. It seems this move has been meticulously planned.”
“A move?”
Lu Zhu didn’t understand for a moment.
Gu Qianying added, “Is Amber behaving herself there?”
Her young lady suddenly asking about Amber surprised Lu Zhu greatly.
When she was serving in the outer chambers, Lu Zhu had heard that her young lady had demoted her personal maid, Amber, to be a Gong Shi maid.
At that time, she thought her young lady must be difficult to serve. Who knew that after getting along, Lu Zhu found her young lady to be the best among all the masters.
“This servant didn’t pay attention. Shall I go and take a look now?”
Lu Zhu was simple-minded. Apart from her young lady’s affairs, she rarely paid attention to others.
“No need. Tell the managing嬷嬷 there that whatever the maids under her do these two days, just turn a blind eye.”
Lu Zhu was slightly stunned, not understanding why her young lady gave such an order, but she didn’t ask further, secretly noting it down.
“Yes, Miss.”
“Also, go and tell the kitchen that this young lady really likes the taste of the plum blossom fragrant cakes today, and ask them to make more and send them over these two days.”
“But… Miss, you still…”
She liked eating them but had never touched them. Lu Zhu was confused and wanted to ask for clarification, but Gu Qianying interrupted her.
“I’m tired. You may go.”
“Yes, Miss.”
Gu Qianying couldn’t explain too much. After giving Lu Zhu some instructions, she returned to her bed to rest.
It was a gloomy, rainy day, not suitable for going out.
The cook at the Gardening Pavilion was very diligent upon hearing that her mistress liked the plum blossom fragrant cakes and ordered more to be made. She sent them every other day, not daily, and occasionally received some rewards.
However, when the rewards were given to her, she never saw Gu Qianying appear. Instead, it was always Lu Zhu, the maid beside Gu Qianying, who handed her the rewards and praised her.
Deep in the night.
The cook, taking advantage of the quiet late night, came out of her room and went to the back garden. She met a maid dressed in a pink outfit. After an exchange of words, the maid handed the cook a small packet she was holding and then left in a hurry.
The cook looked around, felt the contents of her packet, and then slowly walked away.
Not far away, under the shade of the willows, the dark figure hidden in the corner disappeared without a trace as the cook left.
The next day.
The old General Gu, who had been busy with court affairs for several days, finally had some free time today and wanted to see what his well-behaved granddaughter was doing all day hidden in her room.
However, before he could even step into the Gardening Pavilion, he saw Lu Zhu running out from inside.
Her face was filled with anxiety. As she ran out, she almost bumped into the old General Gu due to her haste.
The old General Gu was slightly angered: “What’s the rush, running around like this?”
“Old Master, Old Master, something’s wrong, something’s wrong, Miss… she…” Lu Zhu saw the old General Gu as if he were a savior. She disregarded the difference in status and, without even bowing, directly knelt at the old General Gu’s feet: “Old Master, please save my Miss, Miss, she…”
Lu Zhu’s words were stammering.
The old General Gu couldn’t understand. His voice suddenly rose: “What happened to Qianying?”
He hurried to ask while walking inside.
A purple figure flashed past him, rushing into the room first.
Gu Qianying lay on the bed, her skin covered with red spots.
Not only her face, but all the exposed skin was like a layer of red face cream covered with pitted scratches, disgusting and ugly.
She was weak all over, her voice faint. If not for her fluctuating breath, no one would have thought she was still alive.
“Little sister, what happened to you?”
Gu Yefeng, with a look of anxiety, pulled Gu Qianying up, held her in his arms, and asked.
Gu Qianying leaned softly in his arms, parted her lips, which had lost their rosy color, and only said, “Brother, I’m in so much pain.”
So much pain?
Gu Yefeng was flustered for a moment: “Where does it hurt? Why does it hurt?”
Gu Qianying’s voice was weak and powerless: “My whole body aches.”
After she finished speaking, her body became even softer, and her breathing weakened.
Her whole body aches?
Gu Yefeng hadn’t calmed down from his panic: “What should we do, little sister? Don’t scare me.”
Gu Yefeng, who was always calm and collected, never flinched even when facing tens of thousands of enemy troops,
only panicked when it came to his sister Gu Qianying.
However, when he came to his senses and was about to pick up Gu Qianying and head out to find a doctor, he felt a sharp pinch on his waist.
Gu Yefeng froze abruptly, then his lips twitched. His expression only paused for a moment before returning to his previous worried look. He deliberately raised his voice: “Little sister, little sister, wake up, don’t scare your brother, little sister…”
The old General Gu rushed in quickly. Upon seeing Gu Qianying in Gu Yefeng’s arms, weak and with shallow breaths, he immediately shouted: “Why are you still standing there like fools? Hurry, hurry, invite a doctor, invite a doctor!”
A moment later.
Maids, servants, and nannies knelt on the ground.
The First Madam, supported by Granny Wang, almost fainted from crying.
The doctor who was invited frowned repeatedly as he took Gu Qianying’s pulse.
Beside him, the extremely anxious and short-tempered old General Gu lost his patience. He grabbed the doctor and asked with a stern face: “What is it? What illness does my granddaughter have?”
The doctor was very afraid of the old General Gu and immediately said, trembling: “Your noble lady… might have been poisoned.”
The old General Gu frowned and shouted: “What do you mean ‘might’? Is she poisoned or not? What kind of poison is it? Is there a cure?”
The string of questions from the old General Gu left the doctor unsure how to answer. He only said, “Let me feel her pulse again… Old General, don’t worry, don’t worry, I…”
The old General Gu was a man of quick temper, and since it concerned his granddaughter’s health, he couldn’t tolerate the doctor’s rambling. He kicked the doctor away and then invited several other doctors to treat his granddaughter.
The doctors who arrived took pulses, examined faces, and observed. After several rounds, many doctors concluded: “Food allergy, severe!”
“What? Food allergy?”