Two little maidservants were holding wooden buckets, using old cooking brushes to spread glue on the four corners of the window frame.
They then took a kind of transparent, soft light blue gauze and pulled it across the four corners to stick it to the window frame.
As autumn arrived, the weather turned cooler, and the window frame had to be sealed.
A’Wu leaned slightly against the satin pillow, holding a bowl of tender tofu stewed with fresh water chestnuts.
Using the delicate, translucent white jade soup ladle, she carefully took spoonfuls to her mouth.
The fresh water chestnuts were a tribute from Nanhu.
It was said that they were delivered early in the morning to Donghua Gate, then distributed in several boxes and sent to the Crown Prince’s residence with ice.
The best things in the Crown Prince’s residence would always be sent to her, so today she had the chance to taste the tender tofu stewed with fresh water chestnuts.
The water chestnuts were at their best during the White Dew season, with thin skin, plump flesh, and plenty of juice.
The kitchen’s skill was also superb.
The fresh, fragrant water chestnut meat permeated the soft tofu, and with each spoonful, she felt like she could taste the fresh scent of Taihu Lake.
A’Wu sighed contentedly, but in her sigh, there was also a trace of sadness.
She feared that such blissful days wouldn’t last long.
Since arriving at the Crown Prince’s residence, she had been kept in Huancui Courtyard and had not been allowed to go out easily.
It couldn’t be helped.
For a time, she couldn’t be seen in public and had to avoid being noticed.
Who would have thought that before the Double Ninth Festival, during a banquet, the Emperor visited the Crown Prince’s residence?
At the time, A’Wu naturally didn’t know this.
She had been alone in Huancui Courtyard, playing with a nine-ring puzzle to pass the time.
But suddenly, a matron brought several maidservants to invite her, saying that the Crown Prince had given an order for her to come.
She had little experience and had been kept in Huancui Courtyard since arriving at the Crown Prince’s residence.
She had no idea of the connections at play, thinking that it was indeed a summons from the Crown Prince, and that she was supposed to “make her public debut.”
So she dressed up and followed the matron.
When she first came to the Crown Prince’s residence, she had been hurriedly carried in a dark blue palanquin through the side gate.
Along the way, she had secretly looked out, seeing nothing but red walls, blue tiles, and layers of trees, leaving her nearly completely unaware of the layout of the Crown Prince’s residence.
This time, following the matron, she saw the embroidered gates, intricately carved eaves, and brilliant lights.
It was all so dazzling that it made her head spin.
When she was brought, confused and disoriented, to the banquet, the Emperor’s banquet, with its splendid robes, enchanting music, and all eyes turning towards her, A’Wu’s heart raced, and her legs felt weak.
She had always been frail, and such an overwhelming situation was too much for her.
She could hardly stand, swaying as if about to fall.
This only made her seem more fragile and alluring.
The Emperor, sitting high above all the guests, looked down at A’Wu with a single glance, then said, “Mo Yao, your residence is becoming more and more disorderly. Why are you bringing such people in front of me?”
Just that one sentence meant that A’Wu would never be able to regain her position.
Mo Yao was the Crown Prince.
Earlier that summer, Songzhou had suffered a flood, and the Crown Prince had gone there on imperial orders to help with the disaster relief.
It was during a temporary rest at an estate that he met A’Wu and immediately fell in love.
That same night, he wanted her to serve him.
After the disaster relief in Songzhou, the Crown Prince took A’Wu back to the capital.
Since the Crown Prince had gone to Songzhou on official business, it was only natural that bringing back a woman with him would cause some gossip, which would harm his reputation.
Therefore, A’Wu had been kept hidden, either serving as a regular maid by the Crown Prince’s side or being concealed.
Upon arriving at the Crown Prince’s residence, A’Wu was secretly placed in Huancui Courtyard.
The Crown Prince believed that this matter was not urgent and that once the rumors died down, he could bring A’Wu out.
He even promised A’Wu that he would petition the Emperor to grant her a title, saying he would make her a “lady.”
A’Wu did not understand these matters, so the Crown Prince gently explained it to her, telling her that in the Crown Prince’s residence, there was a Crown Princess, a Crown Consort, two Ladies, and four Gentlewomen.
The Crown Prince held her face, his tone full of tenderness, “You can be the first lady, and when the time comes and you give birth to a son and a daughter, I will make you my Crown Consort. One day—”
At this point, he bent down and whispered in her ear, making some promises that A’Wu only half understood.
A’Wu always felt that all this was far too distant.
In their intimate moments, the man would enjoy his pleasure on her body, feeling content and satisfied, saying things that he would forget by the next day.
For A’Wu, the fresh water chestnuts sent from Nanhu, the mutton from Datong, the chicken ginseng from Yunnan, the egg-pine cones from Kaifeng, and the lychee stew from Sichuan—these were the real things she could savor.
Without the Crown Prince, she would never taste such things again.
If she could eat more, she would.
But now, after the Emperor’s words, she feared those good days were over.
For three days since that incident, the Crown Prince had not come to Huancui Courtyard.
During these three days, A’Wu felt uneasy and helpless.
She picked up her soup ladle and scooped a large spoonful of tender tofu, opening her lips and eating it all, but inside, her heart was filled with sorrow about the future.
How would she live without the Crown Prince?
Mature matron Sun observed her coldly, scrutinizing A’Wu.
The more she looked, the more speechless she became.
This young lady… though she had once been pampered by the Crown Prince, now that the Emperor was displeased and had said those words, her good days seemed to be over, yet she was still eating so happily?
Originally, Sun had thought that if she didn’t eat, the food would be taken away completely for herself.
But A’Wu was eating bite after bite?