C205

One second to remember [Brushstroke Pavilion] [Free of charge, read the wonderful novel!]

"What do you mean very soon? Someone's already coming." Baili An turned his head to look at the door, and saw the Duke of Wei's wife, Lady Zhang, walking in with her daughter, Zhao Ruyun.

All of a sudden, Baili An said in a low voice, "Ning Hua, I'll handle this. Hurry back to your room." After saying that, she fiercely stomped down on Shen Ninghua's skirt. A black footprint immediately imprinted itself on her clothes.

"Ah, Ning Hua, I wasn't able to stand steadily. It wasn't intentional, quickly go back to your room and change your clothes."

Shen Ninghua looked at Mrs Zhang apologetically and said, "Mrs Zhang, excuse me for a moment. I will be changing my clothes and coming over soon."

After entering the room, Bai Yan hurriedly took out the clothes that he had chosen. "Miss, which one would you like to choose?"

Shen Ninghua opened the slip of paper in her hands. Upon seeing the contents written on it, her brows twitched.

The empress drugged him, what kind of medicine? When do I drug him? What were the effects of the medicine? He had not explained it clearly, and the words were written very sloppily. It was obvious that it had been written in a hurry.

If that was the case, he could only increase his guard, "Bai Yu, please keep an eye on the guests in the courtyard and ensure that all the dishes and tea are taken by the trustworthy people. Don't make any mistakes."

"Yes, miss."

After choosing a Misty Cloud Butterfly Dress, Shen Ninghua changed out of her jade hairpin and stuck the Exquisite Pearl Steps into her hair.

Looking at the arrangement of the Plum Garden, the guests who had come to attend the Plum Blossom Meet were all full of praise. "The princess really has an exquisite heart. Take a look at the warm drapes, pillows, chairs, tea cups and wine jugs."

"That's right, the plum blossoms in the yard are even more beautiful. It just snowed a few days ago, and now they're even able to receive the snow and are not affected in the slightest. From this, you can see the princess' protective heart."

"There is also the Ice Soul Incense made by the princess. I heard that many of the palace's lords find it hard to sleep at night. After lighting this incense, they will soon be able to sleep peacefully."

"Yeah, it's really unexpected."

Shen Ninghua smiled, his incomparably beautiful face appearing especially noble. "Ladies and gentlemen, please praise me too much. I only coincidentally made some spices. I am indebted to the empress's praise. It makes Ning Hua feel ashamed."

"What are you talking about, Princess? I heard that the emperor was extremely fond of the Ice Soul Fragrance that you made. Right now, you're the one making the Ice Soul Fragrance in all of the palace masters' palaces."

She had heard of the movements in the palace, but she had not expected that they had already reached the point where every imperial concubine's palace had an Ice Soul Fragrance. In order to spread the danger, she had made quite a few Ice Soul Fragrances and gifted them to quite a few people. Now, it seemed that if the empress had really done something to the various palaces, then it would be difficult for her to escape from them.

Not long after the banquet began, someone spoke up, "Princess, we heard that you are going to teach us the method to make spices. Are you sure this is true?"

Shen Ninghua nodded. "Actually, the Ice Soul Fragrance is very simple to make. The raw materials are easy to obtain, and there's no need for complicated techniques. If you ladies like it, I, Ning Hua, will teach it to you."

"Good, this is great."

"The raw material should be plum blossoms, right? Let's go take a look." Madame Wang, the President of the Ministry of Justice, was the first to rise, causing the crowd to be unable to sit still. She stood up and walked towards the plum tree.

Shen Ninghua's brows twitched slightly. At this point, it was naturally inappropriate for her to continue sitting down. "Let me tell the ladies how to gather the petals."

Everyone was in high spirits as they circled around the plum tree, their faces full of smiles. They looked up at the plum blossoms in all different colors, looking for the best angle to collect them.

Suddenly, Shen Ninghua's heart skipped a beat and she subconsciously turned her head to look at the edge of the Plum Garden.

There was only the sound of firecrackers exploding, followed by fireworks that rose into the air, creating a series of crackling sounds.

His heart beat faster and faster. Before Shen Ninghua could even say hurry up and leave, he saw fireworks falling from the top of the wall, landing right in the Plum Garden.

"Ah, a fire!"

"My god."

The sparks fell on the plum blossoms like a drop of water on hot oil. With a 'chi' sound, a plum tree was lit on fire, and the fire quickly spread. The surrounding plum trees were continuously affected.

Shen Ninghua's eyes shone with a fiery light, her gaze swaying as she said, "Bai En, don't worry about me. I'm fine. First save them, then extinguish the fire!"

"Yes, miss."

"Miss!"

The cyan sparrow leapt forward, but because it was too far away, it was unable to catch up.

At the critical moment, Chu Junyi stepped forward and pushed Shen Ninghua aside. She pulled her up and asked, "Ninghua, are you alright?"

"It's nothing, quickly save them."

"Yes." Chu Junyi frowned and nodded. Her eyes were calm and collected. "Don't worry. It'll definitely be fine."

A group of guards rushed over with water in their hands. Those who had no water scooped up some snow and threw it up.

The fire spread out quickly, but the flames weren't too big. It was a snowy day again and it was soon extinguished.

However, the ladies and ladies were in an extremely sorry state. Some of them had their hair and makeup mixed together, while others were burnt by the flames. The Plum Garden was in a perfect state. In an instant, all that was left was a mess.

"Bai Yan, instruct the maids to prepare the water for the ladies to wash. Also, bring the Life Muscles Ointment from my medicine cabinet, we can't let the ladies bear any losses."

"Yes, miss."

"Ladies and gentlemen, please do not be anxious. Merlin is perfectly fine, how could he be on fire right after the snow has fallen? There must be something fishy about this. I will definitely catch the real culprit and give the ladies an explanation!"

At this time, where would anyone listen to her? They were all clamoring to go home.

"Ladies and gentlemen, please listen to me. This princess has already sent someone to call the imperial physician, and he'll be here very soon. With the best ointment, not only can you promise not to leave any scars, you can also make your wives more beautiful. I swear in the name of Princess Zhao Hua, I won't let any of you be affected in the slightest!"

Her intention was to increase the credibility of her words and to intimidate the crowd. After all, she was a princess, so even if she was in the wrong, she shouldn't offend her opponent too much.

Madame Shao, the Minister of War's wife, stepped forward first. Her forehead was injured, her hair was damaged, and a pearl hairpin had fallen to the ground. "I will go first. I believe in the princess."

Shen Ninghua's heart trembled, and a hint of gratitude appeared in her eyes as she looked at Mrs. Shao. This was already the third time Lady Shao had helped her out, she would never forget this kindness in her heart.

Bai Yan quickly got someone to bring Lady Shao into the room and carefully washed her and applied the ointment prepared by Shen Ninghua.

"Eh? This ointment can actually work like this, it doesn't hurt if you apply it? "

"Reporting to Madam, this ointment is made from the flesh of the princess according to the medical records. No matter how severely injured she is, it still won't leave the slightest mark."

"To think that it would be like this..."

With Mistress Shao as a demonstration, everyone became much calmer and they all went forward to get the maid to help them wash their wounds.

Seeing that the situation was under control, Shen Ninghua slowly let out a sigh of relief. The Empress had really put in a lot of effort. She was willing to spend so much effort just to frame him!

Just as the situation was under control, there was a sudden movement at the door.

Chu Junyi raised his head abruptly and turned to look at the newly appointed leader of the imperial guards, Zhou Quan. "Why is Sir Zhou here? Is there something you need me for?"

"Greetings, Princess. Greetings, Prince Consort. The Emperor has decreed that the Princess and Prince Consort should be summoned to the palace for questioning."

Entering the palace … Question... This word was not a good one. If there was a question involved, then something must have happened which involved them.

Shen Ninghua, of course, thought of this as well. They looked at each other as they made a guess. Something must have happened in the palace. Something must have happened to the spice!

Bai Yan stepped forward, worried. "Mistress?"

"No worries, keep an eye on the Princess Mansion. Make sure that everyone has cleaned up their wounds and applied the medicine before sending them off. You must not let any of the ladies and misses in the slightest."

If these people caused any more trouble at this time, the consequences would be severe.

"Yes miss, rest assured, this servant will definitely ensure that all of you ladies are safe."

Chu Junyi looked at Zhou Quan, bowed and thanked him. "Thank you for your patience, Master Zhou. Let's go." Zhou Quan had just spoken the word 'question', clearly reminding them to keep this relationship in mind.

As the two of them boarded the carriage, Shen Ninghua felt extremely uneasy. He had the nagging feeling that things were slowly progressing out of his control, step by step. It was as if an invisible hand was pulling them forward.

"Ning Hua, that should be the matter of the spices. If all that we've done before is wasted, there's still a second plan. No matter how smart the empress is, she can't possibly be without a last resort."

"I understand." Shen Ninghua nodded her head, "Right, is there anything going on in the imperial court?"

"It's nothing major. It's just that the Fifth Prince and the others view me with extreme hatred. Presumably, they guessed that the news from Coiling Dragon Villa had something to do with us."

"How did he guess?" Baili Jinze looked gentle, but he was suspicious. Although he had a lot of power, he lacked a trusted aide. This way, his entire power would be affected if anything happened to him. It was precisely because she knew this faction that she made her move. Her goal was to suppress the power that Baili Jinze had secretly cultivated in one fell swoop.

"Could it be that he has more advisers around him that we don't know about?"

"Impossible, he doesn't have any strategists by his side, and he doesn't believe in strategists either." Shen Ninghua said firmly.

Chu Junyi gawked. She was about to ask why she was so sure when she heard a loud piercing sound. Her pupils constricted as she pulled Shen Ninghua into her embrace.

An arrow was nailed to the carriage!