Because of the large number of foreign officials here, Jiang Deshun also did not say much. He only whispered to Zhao Hua when he was close, "The situation of Princess Jinghe falling into the water does not look good."
Later on the way back to the palace, Jiang Deshun told Zhao Hua about the disaster in detail:
"Today, after the emperor finished the morning court session, he was free and went to the Office of the Imperial Secretariat to ask about the schoolwork of Prince Huan and Prince Er. The emperor was very satisfied with the performance of the two princes and allowed them to take a day off to refresh themselves today.
The two princes were about to return to their own palaces after leaving the Office of the Imperial Secretariat, but when they passed the Imperial Garden, they happened to meet the nannies who were taking the three princesses to play in the Imperial Garden. Princess Ruoxin and Princess Jinyue wanted their brothers to stay and play with them.
Originally, the children were just flying kites, picking flowers, and playing normally, but later Concubine Ru happened to pass by this place, and she was even holding a lot of leather puppets... "
"Leather puppets?" Zhao Hua asked in puzzlement: "What are those?"
Jiang Deshun explained: "It was an old Mongolian custom. Using high-quality calfskin, stitching it with soft brocade, making it into a hooded robe, and then drawing various animal shapes on it, decorating it with various gems to make it look vivid.
When a person wears this layer of leather and pretends to be a beast, it is an indispensable part of the Mongols' large-scale sacrificial celebrations. Concubine Ru has been in the palace for a long time without seeing her family, so she really misses them. She made these things, thinking of taking them back to her own palace and letting the palace maids dress up and play with them, in order to relieve her homesickness."
The children were at an age when they loved to play and make trouble. Seeing such a novel thing, they must have wanted to play with it. It was not Concubine Ru's fault.
So Zhao Hua continued to ask, "What happened afterward? How did Princess Jinghe fall into the water?"
"Concubine Ru left the leather puppets behind for the children to choose their favorite animal styles to wear. Then they played hide and seek in the Imperial Garden. The nannies lost sight of them for a moment, and the children ran away in all directions. The nannies were afraid something might happen, so they hurriedly called the guards to help find them, but still..."
Jiang Deshun's eyes turned red as he gritted his teeth and said, "It is unknown why Princess Jinghe fell into the Imperial Lake. When she was found, she was already at her last gasp..."
Upon hearing this, Zhao Hua let down her heart a little,
but she did not feel relieved at all.
She felt at ease because her child, Princess Wan's child, were safe and sound.
But she did not feel relieved, because although Princess Jinghe was born to Concubine Jiarui, she was not at all like Concubine Jiarui's temperament before.
Although she was a little lonely on weekdays, she still took care of her two younger sisters, Princess Ruoxin and Princess Jinyue.
As a child, Zhao Hua was also sincerely concerned:
"How is the Princess now?"
"When this slave came out of the palace to seek the Empress, the imperial doctors were still trying their best to diagnose and treat her. Because of this matter, the emperor was furious. He immediately decreed to not only deal with the nannies who looked after the princes, but also severely reprimanded Concubine Ru..."
Perhaps Jiang Deshun could not agree with Xiao Jingheng's handling of the matter either, so he hurried to find Zhao Hua to come back and advise,
"Empress, this matter really has nothing to do with Concubine Ru. This slave did not dare to advise when the emperor was angry, but this... If the emperor really dealt with Concubine Ru because of this, I'm afraid the various Mongol tribes would find it hard to explain when they learned of it..."
After listening, Zhao Hua slowly nodded and said firmly: "This palace understands. But now, nothing is more important than Princess Jinghe's safety. Let people hurry back to the palace."
The carriage raced all the way. The journey that usually took an hour was completed in less than half an hour.
With Yun Shang's support, Zhao Hua got off the carriage and looked up. The first thing she saw were the two faded golden characters "Shou Kang" above the gate.
Princess Jinghe had always been raised under the Grand Empress Dowager before she passed away. After the Grand Empress Dowager's death, Princess Jinghe was sent to live in the Shoukang Palace where Concubine Jinggui, the mother of Prince An, lived.
At this time, Zhao Hua hurried into the courtyard,
but saw Concubine Ru kneeling awkwardly in the middle of the empty courtyard, with an oily face from the sun's scorching heat.
Beside her hand were stacks of leather puppets.
Zhao Hua glanced roughly at the clothes,
the workmanship was very delicate, and the animal fur on it seemed to be peeled off from living things and glued back one by one,
if someone wore such a suit in the dark night, it would not be surprising to be mistaken for a beast.
At this time, the dazed Concubine Ru who was dizzy from the sun also saw Zhao Hua.
She seemed to see a lifesaver and hurriedly kowtowed to Zhao Hua, crying,
"Empress, please save this concubine! This matter really has nothing to do with me! The clothes were what the children insisted on wearing. If they had asked for them and I was unwilling to give them to the children, Concubine Ning would surely scold me again if she knew about it."
As she spoke, she seemed to recall the slaps she had suffered from Ning Wanshuang, and couldn't help covering her face as she cried even more grievously,
"These clothes, this concubine originally intended to let her palace maids dress up in order to relieve homesickness. This concubine did not intend any harm to the Princess at all. Empress, you must believe me!"
Facing her cries, Zhao Hua didn't even glance at her and walked straight past her.
Concubine Ru was stunned for a moment, but she also understood Zhao Hua's attitude.
That's right, with Princess Jinghe's life and death at stake, Xiao Jingheng's thunderous wrath did not diminish. Who would be willing to plead for her at this time and do such a thankless thing?
But just as she was hopeless,
a grey green handkerchief suddenly floated down before her.
She blankly looked up to see Zhao Hua standing ten feet away in front of her, her eyebrows and eyes coldly raised at her,
"Aren't you always saying that Mongolian women's courage and wisdom are no less than men's? Pick up the handkerchief, wipe away the tears, don't embarrass your homeland."
