Two little palace maids, upon seeing her ghastly wound, couldn’t help but change their expression, displaying a look of fright. Only Huan Qiu, as if accustod to such sights, coldly took the ointnt, applied it to her wound, and then wrapped the injured area with white gauze to prevent it from being rubbed off by clothes.
After wrapping it up, Ning Huaixiu anxiously said: "Sister Huan Qiu, is what you said true? Not only does the Empress Dowager not bla , but she also wants to make use of extensively?"
Huan Qiu coldly responded: "Why would I deceive you? If you show so spirit, then quickly recuperate, so you can relieve the Empress’s worries and contribute at the earliest!"
Ning Huaixiu, with tears, said: "Please rest assured, sister, Huaixiu will definitely recover swiftly and serve the Empress Dowager earnestly!"
...
At this mont, the Empress Dowager was in a newly opened hotpot restaurant on Sishui Street outside the palace, clinking glasses and making rry with a group of friends.
This hotpot restaurant is the very one that Cai Wei and Xiang Yun had opened together. After nearly two months of preparation and planning by Liu Xi, it finally celebrated its grand opening on December 12th.
The scale of this hotpot restaurant was imnse, four tis the size of Bafu Barbecue Restaurant, decorated with modern elents, floor-to-ceiling windows, leather sofas, graffiti paintings frad in glass, and a row of branching crystal chandeliers hanging from the ceiling, opulent and high-profile, making the diners feel as if they were in heaven, truly getting their money’s worth.
In a luxurious private room on the third floor, Cai Wei, Xiang Yun, Liu Xi, and Situ Changge sat around a steaming hot pot, toasting and drinking.
"Here’s to the prosperity of Bafu Hot Pot City and to a wide influx of wealth, cheers—"
Liu Xi raised his glass, clinked with everyone, and drank with gusto.
Xiang Yun, having been confined at ho for over two months, except for the last ti when she made arrangents for Nanny Xie, was stepping out for the first ti. Although there were no outsiders at the table, being a divorcee, she inevitably felt inferior and mostly kept her head down, speaking so little that one could count her words on one hand.
After Liu Xi made the toast, she hastily followed suit and drank her glass. Afterward, she fell silent again.
Originally, she had planned to open this hotpot restaurant with Cai Wei, but after her divorce from Mo Zili and her bridal gifts being sent back to her parent’s house, she no longer had control over her finances. She initially did not want to withdraw, but seeing her becoming increasingly listless at ho, Cai Wei wanted her to find sothing to do to enrich her life and prevent her from wallowing in sorrow at ho all day, thus insisting on her investnt and promising that no matter how much money she could contribute, she would receive stocks accordingly.
Xiang Yun conveyed Cai Wei’s intentions to her mother, Madam Wu. Hearing that the Empress intended to support her daughter, Madam Wu eagerly set about gathering thirty thousand taels of silver from here and there to invest in three shares of the hotpot restaurant.
Liu Xi, having put much effort into the planning and preparation of the restaurant, would rely heavily on his managent in the future, so Cai Wei also gave him a stake.
Situ Changge did not have shares, but Cai Wei always invited him whenever she went out to dine. Because he was the future Emperor of Qing Luo Kingdom, she intended to win him over, hoping he might form a lasting alliance with the Great Jin Nation.
After finishing the drinks, the shop assistant suddenly reported from outside the door: "Boss, Master Han from the Hanlin Academy and Master Zhao from Ying Tianfu have co to show their support!"
Upon hearing this, Cai Wei put down her chopsticks and said: "You all keep eating, guests have co, and since they are showing their face for , I should at least et them."
Liu Xi said: "I’ll go too, didn’t you ntion arranging for to discuss the upcoming Won’s College with Master Han from the Hanlin Academy? Since he’s here, I’ll go and talk to him!"
The two hurried out, leaving only Xiang Yun and Situ Changge in the room.
Xiang Yun awkwardly lowered her head, no matter how one put it, the two have had scandalous rumors between them, and sitting together now, it made her feel extrely uncomfortable.
Seeing her blushing like a child who had done sothing wrong, sitting there stiffly, as if wishing to hide under the table, Situ Changge couldn’t help but curve his lips upwards and asked softly: "Miss Xiang Yun, have you been well recently?"
This greeting had been suppressed in his heart for a long ti. Hearing that she was forced into a body examination because of him, he had wanted to visit and comfort her, but at that ti, she was still the Young Madam of Duke Li Guo’s Mansion, and he had to avoid suspicion.
Finally, she divorced and yet spent her days closed up at ho, his concern for her deepened, and he even sneaked into the Marquis of Jian’an’s Mansion one night to see her, mostly finding her tossing and turning on the couch, sotis weeping, sotis sighing.
Those faint whimpers and prolonged sighs made him feel pain in his heart, but with his status, he couldn’t offer her comfort, not even show his face. Once discovered, it would make her situation worse, as if even jumping into the Yellow River couldn’t cleanse her.
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