Chapter 1188
The Unfavored Princess 10
The client has memories of Sanssouci Palace; even if he doesn't visit often, he knows it's in a dilapidated state.
When you look at it with your own eyes, you can truly appreciate that this is a corner of the palace that everyone has overlooked.
When describing a royal palace, the first words that come to mind are magnificent and splendid, with carved railings and jade steps.
However, the Wuyou Palace in front of Azhen was in a state of disrepair, with even the main gate being dilapidated. When Yinshuang helped push it open, it made an unpleasant sound, as if it might collapse at any moment.
It seems no one is worried about where the people in Sanssouci Palace might go.
Today should have been a sunny day, but stepping into Sanssouci Palace brought a chill. Not only was the gate dilapidated, but the interior was also old and run-down. Even the weeds in the flowerbeds were not growing well, withered and sparse.
The trees are all thinner and smaller than those outside.
It truly exemplifies what it means to be a forgotten place.
Azhen stood at the doorway, watching the woman sitting under the tree, digging in the mud and laughing happily. Her old palace dress, even with patches, was covered in mud.
Yinshuang, still clinging to her preconceived notions, cautiously glanced at the Tenth Princess beside her, expecting her to be anxious or upset. To her surprise, the Tenth Princess remained calm, not approaching, but simply standing at the doorway, quietly watching the Dowager Consort still happily playing in the mud.
The former imperial concubine was once so glamorous and respectable; who would have thought she would end up like this?
It's fortunate that she went mad, otherwise, how could someone as respectable as her have endured living in this carefree palace?
If Azhen knew what Yinshuang was thinking, she would probably laugh.
Some people are very respectable when they are in power, but when it comes to their goals, their so-called respectability is not worth mentioning at all. It is clear that Consort Liu Qiang is such a person.
If it weren't for her weaker backing and lack of children, she might have actually been able to compete with the current Empress Dowager. In terms of cunning, she was no less capable than the Empress Dowager.
Seeing that Azhen's face was calm, Yinshuang didn't know whether to remind her or go over to help the Dowager who was still playing in the mud.
The princess had once arranged for her and Zhuxin to visit the Dowager Consort in the palace. Their main task was to bring her food, watch her eat, and help her clean herself up. Given the conditions of Wuyou Palace, it was already a blessing if the palace servants didn't bully the Dowager Consort; how could they possibly take good care of her?
She remembered that whenever the princess came to visit, she would be sullen for a while, but there was nothing she could do to change it.
Whether it was her reaction to hearing about the Empress Dowager's situation last time, or the princess's expression when she saw the Empress Dowager now, it was all very unusual.
Finally, Azhen walked towards the position of the Dowager Consort.
"Yinshuang, go boil water and give the Dowager a good cleaning," Azhen said. Instead of helping Liu Qiang up, she sat down to the side and watched her playing in the mud without saying anything more.
Such an unusual scene naturally caught the attention of Liu Qiang, who was pretending to be crazy.
While pretending to be crazy, Liu Qiang was actually thinking about what was happening outside.
Since her defeat in the palace intrigue, she has been able to survive by feigning madness and has moved into this Worry-Free Palace. She no longer has many people she can rely on.
Dou Yuexin isn't stupid. If she didn't want to see her make a fool of herself, she wouldn't allow her to live a good life even if she were crazy.
It was because she had a daughter that Dou Yuexin felt that this tormented her, allowing her to live a peaceful life all these years.
Of course, life wouldn't be very comfortable either.
For someone accustomed to a life of luxury, the initial period was truly agonizing. But the thought that the tenth princess, whom Dou Yuexin was constantly tormenting, was not her daughter at all, but rather the other party's biological daughter, brought her a sense of satisfaction, and the days no longer felt like an ordeal.
Dou Yuexin thought she was afraid of death, but no, she wasn't afraid of death at all.
She was waiting, waiting until Yuan Zhen was tortured beyond recognition by Dou Yuexin, even to the point of being on the verge of death, before revealing the truth.
Why should her daughter shield Yuan Zhen from disaster?
Her daughter died young, so Dou Yuexin's daughter couldn't have an easy life either!
Yuanzhen's reaction today was a bit strange. Did something happen?
"Who will take care of you in the future?" A-Lan finally spoke. Seeing Liu Qiang pause for a moment and then pretend not to understand anything, only smiling foolishly at her, A-Lan laughed inwardly and continued, "I don't care about you anymore. Even if I arrange for someone to take care of you, I don't know if they can do it wholeheartedly. Some people probably won't let you have an easy time."
This time, Liu Qiang understood somewhat.
This means that Yuan Zhen can no longer control her. What exactly happened?
Regarding outside affairs, she knew that the heir of the Marquis of Guangde had taken a liking to Zhuxin, and that Zhuxin had subsequently become his concubine. Zhuxin was her person, and this matter had even been specifically reported to her. Yuanzhen was not her daughter to begin with, and she couldn't have been happier for this to happen.
The thought that Dou Yuexin would gloat over this made her feel very happy.
Later, Zhu Xin became a concubine and could no longer enter the palace, so it became difficult for her to understand what was happening outside.
Several months have passed in the blink of an eye. She knew that Zhu Xin was pregnant. How could Dou Yuexin not mention it to her when she found out?
Dou Yuexin is said to be smart and calculating, but sometimes she can be quite foolish.
"My body is severely weakened; I probably won't live for more than two years." As she spoke, Azhen coughed twice to match her words, looking very weak, especially her face, which was deathly pale.
After taking over this body, she wasn't in a hurry to treat it, since it didn't affect her much anyway.
Taking care of her health is a simple matter for her; all of this requires the right timing.
There are some plays she has to act out once.
Liu Qiang was taken aback for a moment, but then she felt that the answer was not surprising.
Before the Ninth Princess's accident, Yuan Zhen was actually doing alright. But after the Ninth Princess's accident, because Yuan Zhen was nominally her daughter and shared the same birthday as the Ninth Princess, she became a thorn in Dou Yuexin's side. How could she possibly let her live well?
At that time, she also lost power and "went mad," living in Sanssouci Palace. She couldn't even take care of herself, let alone a little girl.
Therefore, from that time onward, Yuan Zhen, as the tenth princess, lived a life of misery, with every day being difficult. She was poorly dressed and poorly fed. It was only because Dou Yuexin didn't want her to freeze to death in the winter that she survived; and in the hot weather, eating spoiled food was a common occurrence.
She felt a sense of satisfaction, but at the same time, she also felt that Dou Yuexin was a really ruthless person.
Under such circumstances, it's no wonder Yuan Zhen's health deteriorated.
Furthermore, the other party had been wandering for over two years due to a political marriage, and no one knows what happened during those two years. Upon her return, she was betrothed to the heir of the Marquis of Guangde, but her life there remained unhappy.
Having a short lifespan seems quite normal.
What's heartening is that she is Dou Yuexin's biological daughter.
I wonder how Dou Yuexin will react when she finds out about this; I really want to see.
He must be furious, wanting nothing more than to kill her, right?
Hahaha, she's never been afraid of death. She's been clinging to life until now just to see Dou Yuexin suffer, isn't she?
This day seems to be fast approaching. (End of Chapter)