Immediately after.
Zhao Shuning placed the man's hands on her shoulders.
With a sudden burst of strength, she lifted the man's entire body.
Seeing this scene.
The two guards stopped in their tracks.
They glanced at the Queen Dowager, whose face was gloomy.
"How dare you, you lowly maid! You actually dare to defy the royal authority. Guards—"
"Mother."
Gu Hanxun spoke up.
Although his voice was not loud, it was extremely firm.
It was audible to everyone present, including Qin Anxin in front of him.
Qin Anxin looked at Gu Hanxun.
"Mother, she is from my Chengyun Palace. Naturally, she is also mine. She has the right to support me."
The implication was obvious.
Qin Anxin didn't say anything more.
This rule was set by her.
If Gu Hanxun really married a maid as the imperial concubine, then in the future, he would have even less support. As a down-and-out second prince, with a wife who had no power or influence, how could they fight against her Qin family?
Just like this, Zhao Shuning supported Gu Hanxun.
Step by step, they climbed the steps.
Gu Hanxun's legs were inconvenient, so she relied on her own strength to send him to the hundredth step.
After offering incense, Qin Anxin was also afraid of missing the time for Gu Xingran's funeral. Before leaving, she just gave a fierce look at Zhao Shuning, who was wearing a veil hat.
"If you want to climb up the social ladder, you have to pay the price."
"Thank you, Queen Dowager, for your advice. To climb up the social ladder, one has to have the ability and courage to soar onto the branches. Everyone relies on their own skills. No one can get something for nothing, right?"
Qin Anxin gave Zhao Shuning a meaningful look.
Then, she turned around and handed a pill to Gu Hanxun.
"Take it."
Gu Hanxun did as he was told.
At this moment, he couldn't resist, because if he did, his mother's life would be in jeopardy because of his resistance.
Seeing Gu Hanxun swallow the pill.
Qin Anxin left.
The entire procession, including all the civil and military officials, except for some maids and grannies from the laundry, all went out to attend Gu Xingran's funeral.
Zhao Shuning supported Gu Hanxun and sat him down on the steps.
Seeing that this matter was finally over, Zhao Shuning finally let out a sigh of relief.
She turned around, wanting to say a few words to Gu Hanxun.
But as soon as she turned around.
She saw that Gu Hanxun had his eyes tightly closed, his whole body trembling, and his forehead was covered in sweat.
"What's going on?"
Now, all the imperial physicians had gone out, and Shadow had gone back to Chengyun Palace to get something earlier. How could she find someone to treat Gu Hanxun?
Zhao Shuning quickly squatted down.
"Gu Hanxun?"
"Gu Hanxun!"
She slapped his face hard, but he didn't show any response. Instead, his body twitched even more violently.
"Someone! The second prince is having an attack."
Zhao Shuning shouted at the surroundings.
But no one dared to come forward.
The person the Queen Dowager wanted to punish, how could they dare to help?
This little maid from Chengyun Palace might not even be able to survive until next spring after the Queen Dowager came back.
Zhao Shuning had no choice but to support Gu Hanxun again and then help him walk towards Chengyun Palace.
When they had walked about half the way, they met the shadow guard from Chengyun Palace, and she handed Gu Hanxun over to him.
"The second prince took the pill given by the Queen Dowager."
"I understand."
What he had gone back to get was the antidote for that pill.
Shadow was not at all surprised. He picked up his master and leaped away, quickly returning to Chengyun Palace.
It was still good to be a man. He was tall and big, and he could carry someone back so easily.
There was no time to sigh.
Zhao Shuning quickly changed back into her clothes and returned to the previous square to help.
Seeing Zhao Shuning appear.
Qi Yue let out a sigh of relief.
"Ningning, where did you go? Granny Lan was looking for you earlier."
"Looking for me? What for?"
"Probably because she saw that you were strong and wanted you to help carry the two porcelain vases standing outside the palace. It's okay now. They've already been moved away."
"Okay, that's good."
"Where did you go?"
"I had a stomachache earlier, so I went back first. I had a bit of diarrhea."
"Are you okay?"
"I'm fine. I'm okay."
If she disappeared without a reason now, it would definitely arouse the suspicion of Granny Lan from the laundry. As the person in charge, she would definitely report it to the commander of the imperial guards.
After all, it was too suspicious to disappear out of thin air just after recovering from an injury.
After Zhao Shuning and the maids from the laundry finished cleaning up the things left after the memorial ceremony, it was already dawn.
Under Granny Lan's instruction, they returned to their rooms. They were really tired after a day like this. Zhao Shuning lay down on her back and quickly fell asleep.
The next day, she got up and got dressed as usual. She did the work in the laundry with Qi Yue happily.
But in Chengyun Palace.
Something earth-shattering happened.
In the bedroom.
Countless black-clothed men were kneeling on the ground.
Gu Hanxun was sitting on the bed, his face gloomy.
"It's my subordinates' incompetence. We were delayed by something outside yesterday and couldn't come back on time, which almost put the master in danger. Please punish us with death."
Shadow was standing beside him.
Gu Hanxun looked at the room full of experts. But when he was humiliated and unconscious yesterday, they were all on a mission.
If it weren't for that little maid, he might not be able to open his eyes now.
"You may leave first."
"Thank you, master."
The black-clothed men disappeared from Chengyun Palace in an instant.
Gu Hanxun turned around.
He beckoned Shadow over.
"Where is she?"
"Reporting to the master, it seems that she is not a maid from our Chengyun Palace."
Gu Hanxun frowned tightly.
His face was full of coldness.
He had already thought of this. He had always disliked women, so the women in Chengyun Palace mostly wore veil hats to cover their faces. When they were around him, they were even more afraid and cautious because of the rumors that he had cut off people's tongues and dug out people's eyes.
So in front of him, none of the maids in Chengyun Palace dared to raise their heads, let alone talk to him.
"So, have you found her?"
Shadow shook his head.
"Yesterday, after she handed you over to me, she disappeared. I thought she would follow me up."
Gu Hanxun's face was gloomy.
He started coughing.
Shadow quickly handed Gu Hanxun a black pill. After he swallowed it, his complexion improved a bit.
There was a bit more color on his face.
Now that they had the antidote, the threat from Qin Anxin was a bit less.
"Has anything happened in the palace?"
"Not yet."
Gu Hanxun propped up his body and looked at his legs. He said indifferently, "Help me find her."
"Master."
It was not easy to find a little maid who they had never even seen in such a huge palace.
"No matter what method you use or how much it costs, I want to see her."
Gu Hanxun's tone was firm, and his eyes were like torches.
The irresistible aura of a king was revealed at this moment.
"Yes, your subordinate obeys."