"Sister Su, the Prince said the Princess needs to rest quietly. Without the Prince's command, you can't..." If the web version finds out, she will be angry!"
The young maidservant nervously tugged at Su Ya.
"When the Prince knows, our Princess can coax him with a little charm. Conversely, if you displease the Princess, you don't even need the Princess to deal with you; the Prince will. So, in this room, who do you listen to?"
This... do I even need to ask?
"Of course, it's the Princess!" the maids replied in unison!
Su Ya spread her hands: "Since you know, then you should know what to do, right!"
The young maids were clever. Immediately, someone stepped forward and said, "Your servant will go and guard the moon gate. If the Prince returns, your servant will report back immediately!"
"Your servant... your servant will guard the door. As soon as I see Mo Li return, your servant will inform the Princess first!"
Clever children!
Su Ya smiled and nodded: "The snow outside has melted, it's very cold. Go out and wear more, don't freeze!"
"Yes, thank you, Sister Su, your servants understand!"
After the two spoke, they wrapped their hands and hurried out of the room!
Not long after a cup of tea had passed, there was a commotion at the door. Before they even entered the room, they heard the voices of Huangfu Xu and Huangfu Xian, those sworn enemies!
"Sister-in-law, Sister-in-law, please judge this for us." Huangfu Xian, with the louder voice, shouted as soon as he entered the room!
The maids dared not block them, but remembering that only the Prince could enter the inner chamber, they bravely stopped them in the outer room.
"Your Highnesses, you cannot enter the inner chamber. Why don't you go to the side hall first? The Princess is weak now and needs to rest. The Prince will be back soon. It's best to discuss anything with the Prince!"
Hesitantly and softly, she finally managed to say these words. Sweat broke out on the maid's back.
She didn't know if it was the heat of the room or fear!
Huangfu Xian awkwardly touched his nose. He had almost forgotten that he couldn't enter the inner chamber!
However, when did the Princess fall ill? He hadn't heard anything!
"Sister-in-law, those scoundrels in the capital are causing trouble. Come to the side hall in a while, we'll tell you about it, and you can judge for us!"
Huangfu Xian shouted towards the inside from outside the inner chamber door. After waiting quietly for a moment, he heard a voice from within.
"You two go to the side hall and wait. I'll be there in a moment!"
Receiving her answer, the two left the room one after another. Only then did they feel the warmth in Sister-in-law's room. How many charcoal braziers had to be burned to make the room as warm as spring!
In the side hall, as soon as the two sat down, more than a dozen servants began to light charcoal fires in the corners of the side hall.
Four corners were enough, but that wasn't sufficient. They were placed almost every three steps. Fortunately, the charcoal burning in the braziers was golden silk charcoal, which produced no smoke, otherwise, they would have been suffocated!
Huangfu Xian frowned. He didn't believe that they would receive such treatment in the Prince's mansion. Then, remembering the Princess's need for rest, he realized that the Princess was genuinely ill!
Could such a lively woman, who could even run away from home, get sick?
He hadn't paid much attention then, but now it seemed to be true!
He waved to a nearby maid and began to ask what had happened to his sister-in-law.
Meanwhile, Zhao Jiaqi was discussing the matter of ice making with her elder sister-in-law and elder brother.
After she explained the matter, silence fell in the room.
After a long while, Wang Zhaodi readily agreed: "Ice making itself was taught to us by you. My husband and I have earned a lot of money by making ice over the years. If this can save people, we are willing to contribute!"
Fan Guangping was a bit reluctant, but since his wife had said so, what else could he say? With a sigh, he sat in his chair with his head bowed.
"Brother, I know you're not willing, but for the sake of more lives, sacrificing this business of yours is also worth it!" She paused and added, "Although your path to wealth is cut off, I will find you other businesses that are better than your hard work of making and selling ice. I won't let you suffer any losses. It's just changing businesses!"
It didn't matter if Zhao Jiaqi lost some money, but it was unreasonable for her close associates to suffer financial losses with her!
Upon hearing her sister-in-law's words, Fan Guangping lowered his head even further in shame, but he didn't think he was wrong. He nodded fiercely and said, "Sister-in-law, it's not that I'm not righteous enough or lack vision, but I have elders above and young ones below. My son has gone to the army, and my daughter is gradually growing up. They all need money. I have no choice but to ask for your understanding. I am also forced to do this!"
If he really had as much money as his younger brother's family, it would be fine to sacrifice some income-generating items, but they couldn't afford to lose anything. Although making ice was hard work all year round, at least during the summer months, they could earn over a thousand taels every day!
This was a considerable income, and it was truly painful to think of losing it now.
Before Zhao Jiaqi could speak, Wang Zhaodi slapped him and said, full of disappointment, "With your little bit of courage, what great things can you accomplish? It's just an ice-making formula, what's the big deal? Besides, didn't sister-in-law give you this ice-making formula in the first place? How much money have we made by monopolizing it over the years, don't you have any idea? Does sister-in-law owe us anything?"
"Now that the country is in trouble, sister-in-law had no choice but to resort to this method, and it was out of desperation. How can you be so shameless and still want to monopolize it? I'm embarrassed for you!"
Wang Zhaodi spoke quickly and waved to Zhao Jiaqi, "Don't worry, I make the decisions at home. Don't mind him. He's so old, his vision is so narrow. He's getting more and more confused as he gets older!"
Fan Guangping was so chided by his wife that he couldn't speak, because what she said was the truth, but even so, he had lost face completely in front of Zhao Jiaqi today!
"Sister-in-law, please don't blame big brother. He's also thinking about this family. It's all my fault, but please rest assured, I will remember the sacrifices you've made and will absolutely not let you suffer any losses!"
Wang Zhaodi understood her nature very well. Over the years, she knew what kind of person she was. She waved to her and readily agreed, "Alright, since we can't do anything in these ten-odd days before the New Year, let's just make enough ice for our family's use next year and store it in advance. We're idle anyway!"
Zhao Jiaqi smiled and nodded, watching her elder sister-in-law twist her elder brother's ear and leave the room. Her stiff smile finally stopped.
Su Ya brought a fire fox cloak and draped it over her, saying, "Your servant sees that Madam Fan is intelligent. In comparison, Master Fan is dull, but the latter is not malicious and has few schemes."
She took a sip of tea, moistened her throat, and nodded slightly, fully agreeing with her words.
"Sister-in-law is also kind-hearted, but she has been influenced by merchants over the years, so she sees things very clearly in terms of assessing the situation. She also understands that I won't let her suffer losses, and more importantly, she knows that this ice-making formula cannot be kept. Rather than stubbornly resist me, it's better to go along with me, so she can get more benefits!"
"Conversely, elder brother is more pragmatic. He doesn't think that much, nor does he have many ideas. He's not very bold and only cares about immediate benefits. What sister-in-law said is very true: elder brother's vision is narrow, and his格局 is small, so he has always been afraid to explore other avenues, which is why now he can only rely on the few formulas I gave him to live."