The Heroine Fell Deeply For Her [Quick Transmigration] 115p1

Chapter 115: Taken Home by the Princess Part 3 (1)

Rou Rou turned her head and shouted, “Everyone come out, Sister An Ning is back!”

At her call, the remaining doors in the courtyard opened, and several similarly dressed palace maids peeked out. Seeing the figure at the gate, their eyes lit up, and they rushed out.

Tao Ning: “…” She felt like a monkey on display.

Soon, Tao Ning was surrounded by a group of young palace maids, their faces full of joy, reaching out to touch her forehead without hesitation.

“She’s not hot anymore, her fever has subsided.”

Tao Ning, in the center of the crowd, felt like a puppet, her sleeves being lifted and examined, a strand of loose hair being scrutinized.

Seeing Tao Ning’s stiff posture, 520 struggled to suppress its laughter.

They’re still young, I have to be patient, I can’t laugh at them, they’ll get angry.

So, just take a picture.

After they calmed down slightly, they excitedly recounted the events of the past two days.

“…You were taken away yesterday, Steward Tang went home to recover from his injury, and we couldn’t find you anywhere, we didn’t know who took you. Thank heavens you’re back!”

Tao Ning listened silently.

The oldest palace maid, Jia Niang, with delicate features, spoke first: “Being alive is a blessing, come in quickly.”

Another palace maid said, “I’ll go and request leave for you again, we can’t let them deduct your monthly allowance.”

Tao Ning, comparing this to her memories, recognized her as Lu Ke, usually called A-Ke, known for her fiery temper.

Another palace maid said, “They shouldn’t, Steward Tang wouldn’t let anyone deduct An Ning’s allowance.”

The menagerie was a royal retreat, quite large, with twenty stewards and two chief stewards, each responsible for different tasks.

“If I had known your fever would break, I wouldn’t have given you that medicine.” This was Shi Qing.

Before coming to the retreat, Shi Qing had been raised by a female physician, learning some medical knowledge through observation. While she wasn’t a licensed physician, she had treated many people.

Later, the physician died, her belongings seized by her relatives, who sold Shi Qing to the imperial retreat.

Tao Ning said truthfully, “Your medicine helped.”

Shi Qing was stunned: “Then why…”

Tao Ning looked inside: “Let’s go inside first.”

Jia Niang pulled her sleeve, urging her inside: “Yes, yes, come in. You haven’t eaten yet, right? There are two steamed buns left from lunch, you can have them first… A-Ke, go to the kitchen and see if there’s anything left, bring some back.”

She looked at the thinner Tao Ning.

Jia Niang said, “She’s just recovered from a serious illness, steamed buns aren’t enough, bring back some meat.”

A-Ke nodded: “Okay, Rou Rou, come with me, you can cry and tell the cook that you’re growing and need more food.”

Rou Rou, her shoulder grabbed, was dragged away before she could protest.

After explaining where she had been, her bedding having been washed and dried, Tao Ning lay on the bed with a fresh mat, wiping the sweat from her forehead.

So many people, it was almost overwhelming.

After resting for a while, Tao Ning suddenly thought of something and asked, “How did my future self handle these situations? Could she manage?”

520 replied honestly, [You could argue with eight hundred people simultaneously and anger them all to death.]

This was just a small scene. The old fox wouldn’t be satisfied without getting all the details.

Tao Ning: “…”

She couldn’t even imagine it.

She had never seen so many people in her life, and her future self could actually argue with eight hundred people at once.

From then on, Tao Ning never asked if her future self could handle something.

520 observed silently, seemingly understanding why Tao Ning hadn’t chosen the Department of Fate initially. Despite her lazy demeanor, she had high standards for herself.

After staying in the courtyard for a few days, Tao Ning quietly observed this world. Fortunately, the original host was a quiet person, so no one suspected anything.

This world was the Yu Dynasty. The previous emperor had died young, and the current emperor ascended the throne at the age of twelve, said to be easily influenced.

With a weak emperor and powerful officials, and no Empress Dowager to support him, the young emperor was practically a puppet.

The previous emperor, realizing this, summoned his eldest daughter, born to the Empress, for a secret conversation before his death.

After his passing, the imperial edict declared Princess Danyang as the Princess Regent, her status equivalent to a first-rank prince, granting her access to the Grand Council and control of the city guard.

The Yu Dynasty had no Regent, let alone a female one, but the Princess Regent’s authority was no different.

This was unprecedented.

The previous emperor gave her everything, even the imperial seal, hoping she would guide the young emperor, prioritize the nation’s well-being, and ensure the dynasty’s longevity.

Three years into her regency, voices of dissent arose in the court and among the people, questioning the Princess Regent’s reluctance to relinquish power, suspecting she might usurp the throne.

Emperor Chongxi, exasperated, declared, “My elder sister is loyal and dedicated, working tirelessly day and night, fulfilling our late father’s wishes. Let there be no further speculation, or face execution!”

These words silenced the dissenters.

Tao Ning, reading this, commented, “This kid is either uneducated or doing this on purpose, why use the phrase ‘working tirelessly day and night’ at a time like this?”

People were already suspecting the Princess Regent of wanting to usurp the throne, and the young emperor praising her dedication only fueled the rumors.

She continued reading, the story becoming even more frustrating.

It was a tale of courtly intrigue, a battle of wits between the noble Princess Regent and a cunning prince seeking to restore his fallen kingdom.

The beginning alone made Tao Ning cringe, but for the sake of the mission, she persevered.

Princess Regent Qin Yang, unable to refuse the emperor’s request, accompanied him to the menagerie, where a tiger suddenly broke free from its cage, injuring the princess’s face.

The tiger’s claws left a scar on Qin Yang’s forehead, disfiguring her.

Not only that, but the tiger also clawed her right shoulder, leaving a deep wound, and even worse, the claws were poisoned.

The poison was difficult to cure, and the imperial physicians exhausted all their efforts to save Qin Yang’s life, but a full recovery was unlikely.

After being unconscious for over a month, Qin Yang woke up to an imperial edict, instructing her to focus on her recovery.

After questioning the Grand Historian, she learned that the command of the city guard had been taken away under the pretext of dealing with the emergency and was now in the palace.

A scheme, disguised as concern for her health, but actually a power grab, began. After recovering, Qin Yang went to a Buddhist temple to clear her mind, only to be mocked by noblewomen for her disfigurement.

Heartbroken, she wandered to a secluded area and encountered a prince playing the zither, Xie Baiyi, the prince seeking to restore his kingdom.

He was skilled in disguise and the six arts, but defeated and forced into hiding, his ambitions thwarted.

The music resonated with the princess, and Xie Baiyi’s story evoked her sympathy. After several encounters, he became her advisor, having once saved her life.

Xie Baiyi concealed his true identity well, his background seemingly impeccable. He plotted secretly while serving the princess, eventually succeeding in restoring his kingdom, killing the young emperor, and imprisoning the princess.

Dressed in imperial robes, Xie Baiyi came to Qin Yang, proposing marriage, claiming he had always loved her and was now offering her the position of Empress, to rule the kingdom together.

The princess naturally refused, cursing him for his delusion, vowing never to become his Empress, even in death.

Xie Baiyi, feeling his love rejected, vowed to break her spirit and make her his Empress, ordering her to be sent to the Cold Palace.

Lacking food and clothing in the Cold Palace, suffering from recurring pain from the poison, unable to even obtain a flask of strong wine for warmth, Qin Yang finally found an opportunity to escape, jumping from the city walls, her white clothes like butterfly wings, falling gracefully.

Xie Baiyi, heartbroken, roared in anguish from the city walls, begging her to return.

He had lost his love forever, ruling a vast kingdom, yet eternally alone.

The young Tao Ning, lacking patience, was speechless after almost every sentence.

Was Qin Yang possessed in the second half of the story?

520 replied, [No, no one could possess the female protagonist, the pillar of the world. This is the predetermined world line, just how things were supposed to happen.]

Tao Ning felt something was off: “If she’s the female protagonist, the pillar of the world, how could she die?”

520 agreed: [Yes, the female protagonist didn’t die. The poison damaged her mind, making her sometimes lucid, sometimes not. Her subordinates used a secret medicine to save her life, but they couldn’t restore her sanity.]

[The princess lived in a remote village, cared for by her former subordinates until her death, mourned by the male protagonist for the rest of his life.]

Tao Ning, understanding the implications, scrolled down and indeed saw a deviated world line.

This alternate world line recorded that after being imprisoned in the Cold Palace, Qin Yang pretended to be heartbroken.

Because she had intentionally allowed herself to be imprisoned, using this opportunity to contact her former subordinates.

Having ruled as Regent for three years, she had countless loyal followers. Decisive and efficient, she quickly gathered her forces.

On a late autumn night, Princess Qin Yang launched a coup. Palace gates opened, and her iron cavalry charged in, unstoppable.