In the blink of an eye, seven days had passed. Liu Yushu had been taking medicine these days. With a poor appetite and little food intake, her already slender body had lost even more weight. Her gentle and frail smile made her look even more pitiful. Nanny Lu came to apply medicine to her twice a day, morning and evening. Each time, she would secretly glance at her with her peripheral vision, thinking that the more she looked at her, the more beautiful she became. Even the way she frowned in pain was charming. What surprised Nanny Lu even more was that the blood from an ordinary woman's wound should have a bit of a stench, but Liu Yushu's didn't have any unpleasant or pungent smell at all. Moreover, her fair and jade - like skin faintly emitted a light licorice scent. She didn't know if it was innate to Liu Yushu or if she had been exposed to licorice - scented incense since childhood and the fragrance had seeped into her skin over time.
"Thank you, Nanny Lu." Liu Yushu could get up now, but she couldn't stand for long or move around and work too often. She still needed some time to recover. She said to Nanny Lu with a polite smile, "Please, Nanny, convey my thanks to His Highness, the Prince of Yu on my behalf. I'm still ill, and I'm afraid that something inauspicious about me might affect the feng shui of the Prince of Yu's Mansion. So it's not suitable for me to thank His Highness in person. I'm troubling you." Her words were very sincere.
Nanny Lu said indifferently, "Please rest assured, miss. This old servant will surely convey your words. It's good that you have such a heart. His Highness, the Prince of Yu's favor is not something that everyone has the good fortune to receive." Nanny Lu could clearly understand the aloofness in Liu Yushu's words.
Liu Yushu didn't want to get too close to the Prince of Yu's Mansion. The Prince of Yu was a man who could wield great power in the palace. Such a man could surely bring her endless wealth and honor. However, after experiencing the misery of her past life, she was really afraid of the nobility and the powerful.
She was even more powerless to refuse a man with excessive power.
Liu Yushu just wanted to live a quiet life now.
"His Highness, the Prince of Yu has ordered that you must attend the year - end banquet in the mansion." After saying that, Nanny Lu turned around and left, not giving Liu Yushu a chance to refuse.
Alas. Liu Yushu was worried. She didn't want to go to the banquet.
After Liu Yushu's injury improved, Nanny Lu left. She left several prescription lists and carefully instructed Nanny Xie to give Liu Yushu the medicine on time every day.
In the afternoon, Liu Yushu felt a bit better. Nanny Xie came in to bring her a newly made quilt.
Winter was approaching, and the weather was getting cold.
When Liu Yushu touched the soft quilt, her eyes widened slightly in surprise. The quilt cover was made of delicate and smooth brocade. It was so light in her hand that it was obviously not made of ordinary cotton but of goose down. She quickly asked Nanny Xie, "Who sent this quilt?"
Her family had fallen into decline. After the family was raided, there was no extra money to buy such good brocade to make a quilt. Even the medicine she took every day was made of precious medicinal materials according to the prescription list. She had no idea where all these things came from.
Could it be from Wu Qing?!
"Take it away. Burn this quilt quickly. I don't want to see it." Liu Yushu threw the quilt in her hand away with extreme disgust. She hated Wu Qing so much that she didn't want to have any relationship with him anymore.
She would rather die than accept anything from Wu Qing.
Nanny Xie was greatly startled by her extremely excited emotions. She didn't dare to hide it from her anymore. She lowered her head and told her the truth, "All these things were sent by the Prince of Yu's Mansion. Nanny Lu ordered this servant not to tell you."
"This..." Liu Yushu's eyes were shocked. Her delicate eyebrows frowned slightly, and she said anxiously, "You should return these things quickly. We have no family ties or previous contacts with the Prince of Yu's Mansion. We can't accept their things for no reason." She understood that accepting the Prince of Yu's gifts would come at a price. She just didn't know what that price was.
"This servant tried, but Nanny Lu rejected it. She even scolded this servant and said that if we refused again, she would raze the Liu Mansion to the ground. This servant really didn't dare to anger the people in the Prince of Yu's Mansion, so I had no choice but to accept them." Nanny Xie was extremely helpless.
Liu Yushu sighed repeatedly, thinking that she had no choice but to accept this favor. She couldn't decline the year - end banquet in the Prince of Yu's Mansion either. She would surely have to go to the mansion.
Nanny Xie brought a plate of delicate pastries in front of Liu Yushu. Liu Yushu took a look. They were small Snow - Melting Pastries. These pastries were very labor - intensive to make, and only an experienced pastry chef could make them. She had seen and eaten them in the Queen Mother's palace when she was a child.
"Take them away. I have no appetite." Liu Yushu was worried. After a pause, she couldn't help her curiosity and looked at Nanny Xie. "Do you know His Highness, the Prince of Yu? Can you tell me what kind of person he is?"
Nanny Xie smiled. "Sure, this servant will tell you the truth."
Needless to say, the Prince of Yu, Dugu Fuya, had a noble and prominent status. He was handsome and elegant, with a very different appearance from the current Emperor. He was unusually good - looking. This was also one of the reasons why the late Emperor doted on him especially. Everyone loved beauty, and the Emperor was no exception.
Dugu Fuya was also very amiable. He was the most approachable among all the princes. He always had a faint smile on his face on weekdays and never treated his servants harshly.
"From what you said, it seems that he's a really nice person." Liu Yushu was slightly surprised.
The name Dugu Fuya sounded noble and arrogant. In her impression, Liu Yushu always thought that he would be a prince who looked down on others and had a bad temper.
"Of course. All the palace servants in the palace like His Highness, the Prince of Yu very much." Nanny Xie said with a smile. "But because of this, some palace maids had evil thoughts and tried every means to seduce His Highness with despicable methods."
"Really? There's such a thing?" Liu Yushu was even more surprised. If a palace maid managed to seduce a member of the royal family, she wouldn't get any official title because of her low birth. If she failed, it would be a felony that could lead to the execution of all her family members.
"What happened later? Did the Prince of Yu take a fancy to any of the palace maids?" Liu Yushu was full of curiosity and had completely become interested in this legendary Prince of Yu.
Seeing that she was interested, Nanny Xie's eyes became profound. She shook her head. "Although His Highness, the Prince of Yu, is very amiable to the palace maids, he knows very well where to draw the line. He won't get entangled with them. Later, he even forgave those palace maids."
"Oh." Liu Yushu thought that the Prince of Yu was really a nice person.
Since that was the case, she could feel at ease about the year - end banquet. As long as she didn't behave impolitely, she could return smoothly.
After all, he had invited only her, a woman, to the banquet. Treating her so differently really made it hard for her not to think that Dugu Fuya had feelings for her.
"How old is he?" Liu Yushu twirled a strand of her hair and asked casually, pretending not to care. She didn't want Nanny Xie to see that she was interested in and looking forward to the Prince of Yu.
Unfortunately, her thoughts couldn't escape Nanny Xie's eyes. Nanny Xie gave a knowing smile. "His Highness, the Prince of Yu, is 15 years younger than the current Emperor. He's 29 this year."
He was exactly 12 years older than her.
"His Highness, the Prince of Yu, was also born in winter, just like you, miss." As she said this, Nanny Xie pretended to be surprised. "Hey, it's really a coincidence. There's only a few days' difference between your birthdays and the Prince of Yu's. Just a few days after the banquet, both of you will be celebrating your birthdays. It's really fate."
These words made Liu Yushu's heart skip a beat. She quickly changed the subject. "He must have many wives and concubines, right?" Nanny Xie had said too much in her excitement. Liu Yushu immediately understood that the Prince of Yu had feelings for her, and the year - end banquet was deliberately held for her.