This southern tour was prepared earlier, so everything was inevitably hasty.
The various palaces were exempted from paying respects today and started packing up to leave.
It was also busy in Chang Le Palace.
There was an old custom called 'sweeping tiles' in the palace. It meant that before the masters went on a long trip, the palace maids had to clean the roof until it was spotless, implying that all bad luck would be swept away to keep everything safe and smooth during the travels. This was also called ‘eliminating gloom.’
At that time, Song Zhao was folding Concubine Hui's bellybands in the room with Yun Shan and the others packing. Song Zhao unconsciously glanced out the window when she heard Yun Shan say,
"It will enter summer when we go south to Jiangnan. That place is more humid than the capital. Pay attention to the clothes prepared for Consort. Choose light, cool and sheer ones, and be careful not to let them stuff up Consort."
Song Zhao also heard Xiao Fuzi shouting loudly outside, "Hey! Xiao Zhuozi, go a little to the left. The gaps between the tiles and corners of the roof are the easiest places to accumulate dirt. Don't be careless at all, you guys... yo?"
He was just talking when his tone suddenly became respectful. He said very deferentially,
"Consort Hui? Why have you come at this time?"
Song Zhao was originally folding the bellybands on the heated seat. When she heard this, she subconsciously glanced out the window.
She saw that in addition to Consort Hui, Rongyue and Concubine Li were also there with Xiao Fuzi.
However, the expressions of the three did not look right.
Consort Hui was crying sadly for some reason. Rongyue and Concubine Li also looked a little pale, as if they were frightened.
After the people entered, Song Zhao hurriedly welcomed them and asked, "What's the matter?"
"Sister Song Zhao!" As soon as Consort Hui saw her, she drilled into her arms and cried even more sadly, "Sister Song Zhao, woo woo woo~ I'm scared..."
While gently patting Consort Hui’s back, Song Zhao took out a handkerchief to wipe away her tears, “What’s the matter with my sister? We’re going to leave the palace for Jiangnan tomorrow. His Majesty said we would go to Suzhou first to fulfill your hometown longing. These are all joyous things, why is my sister crying so sadly for no reason?"
"Sister Song Zhao... woo woo woo... "
Consort Hui looked up at Song Zhao with her tearful eyes, looking pitiful. She was about to say something but couldn’t help crying even harder. She could only bury her head in Song Zhao’s arms, her body kept shaking.
Song Zhao was extremely disgusted in her heart, and she didn’t know what kind of drama this dirty thing wanted to perform in front of her again.
Even so, she still showed great concern and anxiously asked Rongyue and Concubine Li,
"What happened? Why is Consort Hui crying like this?"
"Don't blame Consort Hui for being scared. We also lost our souls when we saw that.” Concubine Li covered her chest and said lingering fear, "Just now we were talking in the courtyard. Who would have thought a embroidery flower Consort Hui’s palace accidentally fell from the roof. It landed on the ground head first right in front of us, and the starch splashed out. She couldn’t be saved on the spot..."
"Ah!"
Yun Shan covered her mouth and exclaimed softly, her eyes reddening instantly.
It was understandable that she couldn’t help it. The servants lived closely with each other like sisters.
Even Song Zhao felt uncomfortable when she heard this, let alone Yun Shan, who had lived in the same wing room with Zhi Hua and interacted with her day and night.
Song Zhao suppressed the discomfort in her heart and asked, "How could she have fallen from the roof for no reason?"
Rongyue explained on the side, "Zhi Hua was kind-hearted. Tomorrow we’ll set off and the palaces have to ‘sweep tiles’ today. It was originally arranged for the internal supervisors to go up and clean, but Zhi Hua said we can never be sure if the internal supervisors would be careless, so she insisted on going up to eliminate gloom for Consort Hui. That maid had good intentions, she just didn't expect..."
Later, from their words, Song Zhao roughly pieced together the whole “accident”.
It was Zhi Hua who insisted on going up to “sweep tiles”. And she fell when she was finishing up there, when only she was on the roof alone. She missed a step when climbing the ladder and fell down. Other than Consort Hui, Rongyue and Concubine Li also witnessed the whole thing, so it could only be regarded as an accident.
Consort Hui cried until her voice became hoarse. After drinking milk tea, she finally stopped sobbing and said chokingly,
"Woo woo woo, Zhi Hua was the maid Sister Song Zhao gave me. She was always diligent and careful, never careless. She always played with me privately. She even indulged my change of mind and petulance... Of all the servants in the palace, besides Wan'er, I like her the most. Woo woo woo..."
She pulled Song Zhao’s sleeve and looked down guiltily, tears falling on Song Zhao’s turquoise sable coat, wetting a piece,
"Sister Song Zhao, I'm sorry... I didn't protect her well..."
Song Zhao held Consort Hui’s hand and sighed, “Zhi Hua was a good maid, but the dead cannot be brought back to life. This was also an accident that no one wanted to see happen. Don't blame yourself too much, sister."
No matter how Song Zhao persuaded her, Consort Hui's tears kept flowing like a broken necklace,
If outsiders didn’t know, they would have thought it was her mother who died.
The more innocent and kind-hearted she pretended to be, the more Song Zhao hated her disguise and wanted to tear it apart immediately.
Seeing that Consort Hui couldn’t be persuaded, Song Zhao said to Yun Shan,
"After all, Consort Hui is the master of a palace. It’s improper if there is no intimate servant to serve her. Qiao Zhen from our palace is quite capable. She is only a year older than Consort Hui at sixteen and can play with her privately. Go and tell her to follow and serve Consort Hui later."
Upon hearing this, Consort Hui’s crying quickly weakened,
"This... Sister Song Zhao, I failed to protect Zhi Hua, how dare I ask for someone else from sister’s palace again? Or..."
"It doesn’t matter." Song Zhao patted Consort Hui's hand gently and said with a smile, "You are my good sister. We are one family so let's not stand on ceremony. Just don't cry anymore. It hurts me to see you like this, you know?"
Only then did Consort Hui ‘reluctantly’ hold back her crying.
Later, Song Zhao advised and comforted Consort Hui for a few more words, and finally made her laugh with a joke before explaining that there were still many things to prepare for tomorrow’s departure, so Consort Hui should go back to get ready early.
After Consort Hui left with Rongyue, Yun Shan came in to report to Song Zhao,
"Replying to Consort, Qiao Zhen has gone back with Consort Hui."
Song Zhao's brows were filled with grief, and she nodded lightly, "Xiao Fuzi, go get five hundred taels of silver. Ask someone to send it to Zhi Hua’s family. After all, she was my subordinate. Now that she has died such an unjust death, I also feel bad."
Xiao Fuzi agreed respectfully. Yun Shan finally couldn’t help sobbing and said,
"Consort... Zhi Hua was always careful in her work. She wasn't so careless. Could it be that she discovered something with Consort Hui, so Consort Hui had to get rid of her quickly to shut her mouth?”
Hearing this, Song Zhao could only shake her head helplessly, "Rongyue witnessed this with her own eyes too. Consort Hui did it flawlessly without any flaws. Besides, it was just a death of a maid. How can I lead troops to interrogate Zhaochun Palace? No matter how suspicious we are, we can only let this go."
Yun Shan said, "But why did Consort give Qiao Zhen to her palace? Qiao Zhen was assigned by Empress Dowager to you when you were conferred Imperial Consort. You have always suspected her to be Empress Dowager’s spy, and never got close with her. She won’t be able to find out anything by Consort Hui’s side."
"I didn't expect her to find out any news by letting her follow Consort Hui. I simply wanted to disgust Consort Hui."
Song Zhao's face was extremely disgusted, and her tone was cold to the bone,
"After all, Zhi Hua is dead. If something else happens to Qiao Zhen, wouldn't the whole palace have to suspect that innocent, naive and charming young beauty Consort Hui has a problem? She can't move Qiao Zhen, she can only be wary of her all the time. Seeing Qiao Zhen pestering her every day, she will be disgusted every day."
Yun Shan nodded thoughtfully and continued along Song Zhao’s words, "Besides, Consort Hui can’t get Qiao Zhen to falsely accuse Consort either. After all, Qiao Zhen is a maid sent by the Empress Dowager. Whatever she says or does has to involve the Empress Dowager, so Consort Hui must have scruples."
Song Zhao nodded slightly, and her brows unconsciously filled with more gloom.
"I'm just a little puzzled by something. Zhi Hua has been with her for so long and nothing has happened, so why did Zhi Hua have an accident right when she was about to go on her southern tour? Consort Hui is going back to her maternal home... Could it be that she has some shameful business at her maternal home that requires even more caution and vigilance than when she's in the palace?"
