Chapter 800: 373 Jiaojiao the Koi Fish (Second Update) Chapter 800: 373 Jiaojiao the Koi Fish (Second Update) This “Honghong” is horrifying!
The Emperor felt a chill in his soul! If he weren’t so old, unable to tumble anymore, he’d probably throw himself off a cliff!
Empress Dowager Zhuang entered the Emperor’s study room in a rush.
Thanks to Gu Jiao’s companionship and care for over a year, she was much healthier than before, and even her hair had become black again.
She sat down across the desk, crossed her legs, and stared at the Emperor.
The Emperor frowned at her impetuous demeanor, “Mother, do you need anything?”
“Nothing, just came to see you!” Empress Dowager Zhuang replied casually. After realizing her perfunctory tone wouldn’t cut it, she paused, grinned, and added, “This widow came to see Honghong.”
The Emperor’s goosebumps spilled onto the floor!
In order to showcase her soulful acting skills, Empress Dowager Zhuang made Eunuch Qin guard the door, leaving just her and the Emperor in the room.
With a leg shaking, Empress Dowager Zhuang looked at the Emperor with profound meaning, as if she was looking at five walking candies.
This thought mollified Empress Dowager Zhuang towards the Emperor.
Emperor: Why do I feel that my mother’s gaze towards me is not right?
Empress Dowager Zhuang decided to show concern for her candy… ah no, her son. She smiled, and kindly asked, “Have you eaten? Are you thirsty? Are you hungry? Are you warm enough? How are you getting on? Do you have any difficulties?”
Empress Dowager Zhuang then lavished care on the Emperor for a while. Moreover, she accompanied (forced) the Emperor for lunch and invited (coerced) him to visit the Imperial Garden, ensuring that everyone in the harem knew how loving a mother she had been that day.
Then, she leisurely returned to Renshou Palace.
“Where’s Jiaojiao?” She asked Eunuch Qin.
Eunuch Qin smiled and answered, “Miss Gu has left the palace.”
Empress Dowager Zhuang’s face darken: “Where are my candies?”
Eunuch Qin recoiled: “She… took them.”
Empress Dowager Zhuang’s face darkened in an instant!
It so happens that after leaving the palace, Gu Jiao did not immediately return to the Medical Hall. Recently, there was a new doctor in the hall, so she didn’t have to sit in every day like before, which made it easier for her to do her own thing.
She had run out of saltpeter and was planning to find some more. Unfortunately, such a thing was extremely difficult to purchase on the market.
As Gu Jiao walked down the avenue, she rubbed her chin in deep thought.
A voice suddenly called out to her.
Gu Jiao stopped in her tracks and looked back, to see the old beggar she had played chess with a few times, trotting towards her.
“It really is you!” The old beggar came up to Gu Jiao and laughed, “I thought it was you from your silhouette.”
Gu Jiao replied with an “Hmm”, “This isn’t Liuxu Street. Why are you here?”
If she remembered correctly, the old man usually hung around Liuxu Street, but here they were almost at Xuanwu Avenue.
“Well, I’m just taking a stroll!” The old man said.
In his hand, he held a begging bowl and a basket on his back just like Gu Jiao, only his basket was raggedy.
Gu Jiao replied: “Oh.”
The old beggar frowned: “Little girl, why haven’t you come to play chess for several days?”
“Am I not saving you money?” Gu Jiao brazenly replied.
The old beggar’s lips twitched, as if the one who demanded ten taels of silver for a game wasn’t her!
Gu Jiao said, “Well, you can keep strolling. I’m leaving.”
The old beggar clutched her: “Hey! Aren’t you going to play chess?”
How easy was it for him to find her?
Gu Jiao raised an eyebrow carelessly: “Do you have any silver?”
The old beggar stood akimbo with his begging bowl, his face full of sorrow: “Can you bear to exploit an old man like me!”
Gu Jiao nodded: “Yeah!”
The old beggar took off his own basket and handed it to Gu Jiao, along with his unused begging bowl: “My stall is over there, watch it for me, I’ll be back shortly.”
Huh… you beg for a living and still have a stall?
After giving instructions, the old beggar hurried off. Gu Jiao saw him enter an alley where there was a chess club, which she had visited to make a diagnosis before.
Without saying a word, Gu Jiao took the old beggar’s belongings and squatted down in front of the so-called stall, her face expressionless.
As she squatted there with a begging bowl in front of her, she looked rather pitiful.
She wasn’t dressed like a beggar, but the more noble a person looked, the more pitiable when they’re down in luck. After all, who didn’t care about their dignity these days? If she hadn’t fallen into hard times, why would such a decent young lady be begging on the street?