PFC Chapter 147 Savior
Chapter 147 Savior
After a few days, Jiang Lige opened his eyes again, and what he saw was Feng Quan's haggard face with lingering traces of tears.
She opened her mouth and felt her throat was as if burned by fire, painful and dry.
Feng Quan hurriedly handed over a glass of water upon seeing this, "Princess, drink some water first to moisten your throat."
Jiang Lige nodded with difficulty, drank two sips from the spoon Fengquan fed him, and when his throat felt a little better, he asked in a hoarse voice like a broken erhu:
"Is there any news about the prince?"
"..." Feng Quan was silent for a moment, afraid of upsetting Jiang Lige, so he didn't dare to respond.
Fortunately, Empress Dowager Jiang arrived in time, entered the house and went straight to Jiang Lige's bed. She hugged Jiang Lige without saying a word and showed her concern.
"My dear, you're finally awake! How are you? Are you feeling unwell? Are you hungry? You scared me!"
Jiang Lige had no choice but to suppress his thoughts and said seriously, "I'm sorry for worrying my great-aunt. Lige is feeling much better now."
Empress Dowager Jiang looked Jiang Lige up and down carefully, then turned around and gave instructions to Shi Daizhi.
"Doctor Shi, please come and take a look. What's wrong with the princess's throat?"
Shi Daizhi bowed respectfully and said, "The princess's fever has just subsided, so it's normal for her voice to be hoarse for a while. Your Majesty, don't worry. The princess is fine now, but she's still weak. She just needs to take good care of herself for a few days and she'll be back to normal."
After hearing this, Empress Dowager Jiang finally put her mind at ease. Just as she was about to give a few instructions, she heard Jiang Lige ask hurriedly:
"Grandma, how is the prince?"
Empress Dowager Jiang thought for a moment and only said the good news, "The Emperor has already ordered his men to rush to Guangzhanggou. No news is the best news for now."
"..."
Jiang Lige's eyes darkened when he heard this. He wanted to ask more but heard Empress Dowager Jiang's final word.
"Okay, the most important thing right now is to take good care of yourself. Don't worry about what's going on outside. When there's news, I'll send someone to tell you."
Jiang Lige has always known Empress Dowager Jiang. When she spoke in such a decisive tone, it meant that there was no room for maneuver in the matter, so Jiang Lige had no choice but to nod and agree.
Under the instruction of Empress Dowager Jiang, no matter how turbulent the situation was outside, the entire Funing Palace did not mention a word about Ning Yunxiao's affairs.
Jiang Lige, who was kept in the dark, didn't know how many days he had slept. He thought that Emperor Shengwu's men had just left the capital. In addition, he had just recovered from a serious illness and was still in poor spirits. He felt drowsy all day long, so he simply stayed in Funing Palace to recuperate.
If Empress Xiao had not lost her patience and led her men to break into the Funing Palace, Jiang Lige would not have known that the situation outside the Funing Palace had become so chaotic.
The person who rescued Jiang Lige from the lake that day was not someone else, but Empress Xiao's younger brother, Xiao Xingrong.
A few days ago——
Empress Xiao accidentally got the news that Concubine E, whom she had always been at odds with, was burning paper to offer sacrifices by the Taihu Lake today. Just kidding, burning paper to offer sacrifices was a capital crime!
When Empress Xiao heard the news, she immediately brought a group of palace maids and a few noble ladies who had entered the palace for a "heart-to-heart talk", vowing to expose Concubine E.
And Xiao Xingrong, who worked in the palace, was naturally among them.
Unexpectedly, as soon as the group arrived at Taihu Lake, they saw a person struggling in the lake, obviously having fallen into the water.
Xiao Xingrong recognized Jiang Lige in the lake at a glance. Without waiting for the palace servants to react, he flew forward, jumped into the water, and swam straight towards Jiang Lige.
At that time, Jiang Lige had choked on a lot of water and was not very clear-headed. He instinctively grabbed Xiao Xingrong as a life-saving straw.
Xiao Xingrong didn't care about the differences between men and women. He hugged Jiang Lige tightly and swam to the shore. He pulled the black cloak on the shore and wrapped Jiang Lige tightly, covering her beautiful curves that were clearly visible because of the water.
There were many people on the shore. Although they didn't see Jiang Lige's slender figure, they all saw the two of them hugging each other. A single man and a single woman, even if there was a reason for it, it was still unreasonable.
When something like this happens, there will be a lot of gossip.
Unfortunately, Xiao Xingrong was still stubborn and had no idea how to restrain himself.
At that time, the Funing Palace was in great chaos. Empress Dowager Jiang devoted her heart to Jiang Lige and ignored everything else.
Besides, Xiao Xingrong was Jiang Lige's savior after all, and no one in Funing Palace dared to chase him away.
As a result, Xiao Xingrong did not even return home. He stayed in Funing Palace day and night for several days without sleep. Until the day Jiang Lige woke up, Xiao Xingrong left Funing Palace in the twilight of dusk, stepping lightly and heavily.
In the twilight, the mosquito larvae were walking around, and their tall figures made people feel a little sad.
On the second day after Xiao Xingrong left Funing Palace, the gossip became more and more outrageous.
Palace Maid A: "They were alone, touching and hugging each other. How can they still be innocent?"
Palace Maid B: "Although it wasn't intentional, how important is a woman's innocence in this world? Princess Zhaohua, even if you're lucky enough to save your life this time, you'll only live a life of seclusion in the future."
Palace Maid C: "Marrying a woman of such questionable character would make him a target of criticism wherever he goes. It's a good thing Prince Zhao is dead; if this man were still alive, he would be furious."
Palace maid Ding said: "No, the Crown Prince Zhao was a man of integrity who died for his country. Princess Zhaohua should protect the integrity of the royal family and should ask to be buried with her fiancé."
Palace Maid A: "Is Prince Zhao really dead? There's been no news from Guangzhanggou yet."
Palace Lady B: "Calculate for yourself how long it's been since Prince Zhao fell into the water? It's been over ten days! In that dangerous river on a cliff, we haven't found him in ten days, how could he still be alive?"
Palace maid Ding said: "Just wait and see. Prince Zhao died for justice, and Princess Zhaohua has done something like this. His Majesty will definitely let Princess Zhaohua be buried alive with the prince just for the sake of reputation!"
Palace Servant C: "It's possible."
Whether inside or outside the palace, people were talking at once, saying all sorts of things, the most unpleasant things they could say.
Xiao Xingrong has never been one to beat around the bush when it comes to martial arts. When he overheard someone discussing this matter, he was so disgusted by the remarks that he beat up the person in anger.
Then, he went to the Yangxin Palace alone.
Everyone thought that Xiao Xingrong went to Emperor Shengwu to apologize for beating someone, but this man really did not play by the rules. He knelt in front of the Yangxin Palace and asked for something that surprised everyone. Several old ministers who went to discuss the matter were so scared that they couldn't close their jaws.
"Your Majesty, Princess Zhaohua fell into the water and was rescued by me, which damaged her reputation. Everyone says that Princess Zhaohua has lost her reputation and is unfit to be a good match for Prince Zhao. This was caused by Xingrong's presumptuous act of saving her, and it is Xingrong who should end this."
Having said this, Xiao Xingrong leaned forward and kowtowed deeply, his forehead knocking on the white marble floor, making a crisp sound.