CHAPTER 1282: CHAPTER 1260: CLOUDS GATHERING

Manbao brought the cart full of flowers and plants home, and then began dividing them up for Keke to catalog. By the time Bai Shan and the others returned from playing, Manbao’s hands were covered in dirt; she was squatting next to a flowerpot, trying to scoop the spilled soil back in.

Bai Shan looked around and asked, "You’re just leaving these out here like this?"

Manbao replied, "I dug them up outdoors. Since they survived the winter before, they should be fine now too. Later, I’ll grab some rice straw or wheat straw to cover them up—just enough to keep them warm."

Manbao clapped the dirt off her hands and asked, "Where did you guys go?"

"Horse riding," Bai Shan said. "We went to the eastern suburbs to let the horses run a bit."

Manbao’s eyes lit up and she asked excitedly, "How did it feel?"

"Cold," Bai Shan said. "We’ve decided not to ride horses again until spring, and we wouldn’t recommend you try, either. Honestly, it’s freezing."

Bai Erlang showed her his face and asked, "How about this—does it look cracked? The wind felt like blades. As soon as Lv’er started running, I regretted it, but since it seemed to enjoy it so much, I couldn’t just interrupt it."

Manbao asked, "What about my Chiji?"

"Don’t worry. It ran a lap too and seemed really happy afterward," Bai Shan said as he helped straighten her flowerpots. Then he asked, "Were all of these a gift from the Crown Prince?"

Manbao nodded, "The Crown Princess took me to select them. You know, they’re actually quite generous."

Bai Erlang still couldn’t understand why she liked flowers and plants so much. He glanced around, saw none he recognized, waved it off, and went to wash his hands before preparing to eat.

Bai Shan said, "Come on, it’s time for lunch."

After lunch, Manbao went to administer a pain-relief acupuncture treatment for Xiang Mingxue. This time, she tried a different method, but it wasn’t as effective as the previous approach. She recorded her findings with plans to discuss them with Teacher Mo later.

Teacher Mo was still engrossed in researching those two anesthetic formulas, and the two of them had maintained a nightly one-hour discussion routine for the past while.

Zhou Silang, meanwhile, wasn’t in much of a rush to meet the head shopkeeper at Jishi Hall. He made a trip home first, called for Sanzi and the others, and then went out wandering with them.

Of course, they weren’t aimlessly wandering. Zhou Wulang was accompanying them.

Since Zhou Wulang needed to procure ingredients for the restaurant, he had gotten to know quite a few people and knew which places sold certain goods and roughly what the prices were.

Today, Zhou Wulang took Zhou Silang out for a look around. By the time Manbao stepped out of her room, Zhou Silang and the others hadn’t returned yet. He sent word back home saying they wouldn’t be eating dinner at home and would dine at the restaurant instead.

After consulting Zhou Liulang, Zhou Silang went to his neighbor Old Man Qiu to drink. Over the table, they reached a tentative agreement. Old Man Qiu laid out his concerns, and Zhou Silang expressed his own worries, but both sides showed understanding, thus shelving the matter for now.

However, neither side prevented Zhou Liulang and Qiu Pei from continuing their interactions. Old Man Qiu felt the saying "Give up the child to trap the wolf" applied, while Zhou Silang thought, "At Liulang’s age, as long as he can marry, that’s already good enough. Let’s start by getting him to come around."

Thus, the two families discussed the matter harmoniously and amicably.

Zhou Liulang knew very little of this because he was busy in the kitchen. Zhou Wulang had already promised to hire two more assistant chefs for the kitchen.

Of course, finding assistant chefs wasn’t something that could be done instantly; it required careful selection. Besides posting announcements at the door, Zhou Wulang planned to take a few days to scout around for trustworthy cooks and poach them if possible.

Everyone seemed busy. Bai Shan and Bai Erlang were nearing their year-end exams. Despite having time off, they were still extremely occupied.

The proof was that while Manbao shut herself in her room to immerse herself in medical research, the two of them stayed cloistered in the study working diligently, without seeking her out to play.

Whether it was the restaurant or Changqing Alley, things were bustling yet tranquil. However, the external world was far from peaceful.

Yesterday, the Third Prince had just departed from the capital with his family. Today, the Eastern Palace summoned Zhou Man to the palace for a consultation.

Zhou Man’s ability to treat infertility had spread across the capital, and the Eastern Palace’s intentions were clear as day.

This was another blow to the faction supporting the Third Prince, already reeling from his assignment to a vassal state.

Why had they pledged allegiance to the Third Prince in the first place?

The second reason was the emperor’s evident favor toward him. But the main reason?

It wasn’t because the Crown Prince had no heirs?

If the Crown Prince were to have a son...

Just the hypothetical was enough to make them feel as if their future was collapsing. And as the saying goes, "Ruining one’s prospects is akin to killing their parents," Zhou Man became akin to a mortal enemy in their eyes.

So, while Manbao was cheerfully immersed in medical research, some rumors slipped past the Empress’s defenses and reached the ears of the Empress Dowager.

By the time the Empress received the news and tried to block it, it was already too late.

Shang Gu was worried and asked, "Your Highness, what should we do?"

The Empress, however, wasn’t overly concerned. After a moment of thought, she said, "It’s fine. Let’s wait and see. The Empress Dowager will put the nation’s needs first."

Shang Gu asked, "Then tomorrow..."

"Tomorrow, you’ll personally lead a group to escort Zhou Man into the palace," the Empress said gently. "Take her to the Eastern Palace first and then bring her back here. Tell Zhou Man she only needs to focus on treating the illness and not to worry about anything else."

But the next day, Shang Gu didn’t get the chance to relay those instructions because Zhou Man was oblivious to everything. When she arrived at Jishi Hall to pick up her, Zhou Man was still cheerfully bidding farewell to Shopkeeper Zheng and others, clearly clueless about the storm brewing outside.

Shang Gu thought it over and figured that since Zhou Man was unaware, there was no need to tell her and make her worry. Thus, Manbao went straight to the Eastern Palace to treat the Crown Prince and administer acupuncture.

The emperor was evidently aware that the Crown Prince was undergoing treatment, and somehow he also learned about the Crown Prince’s poor nighttime sleep. Thus, he began reducing the Crown Prince’s workload today, ensuring he had ample time for rest.

After seeing the Crown Prince, Manbao even stayed in the Eastern Palace for lunch before moving on to Taiji Hall. By the time she was escorted out of the palace, it was already late afternoon.

The palace carriage brought her home safely.

Not only was the day uneventful, but the next few days were similarly calm.

The dark circles under the Crown Prince’s eyes gradually faded, his energy improved, and his temper became less volatile. At least, when others berated him during court sessions, he no longer flew into a rage or privately complained about them to the emperor later.

Though his face still didn’t look good, his calm demeanor while standing silently at court exuded a hint of the steadiness he had displayed years earlier. Wei Zhi and others said nothing, but inwardly, they felt somewhat satisfied and were less inclined to pick on him as they once had.

Some people, seeing that the Empress Dowager hadn’t reacted at all, began to panic and exert more pressure on the harem.

The Empress, enraged, punished a group of palace staff, restoring quiet to the harem once again.

She had never imposed draconian measures on the harem, but that didn’t mean she lacked means of control.