CHAPTER 151: CHAPTER 46: THE CUTE PET IS HERE_2

What should I do?

"Yue Jinghua, how come you’re here?" Fa Xiaoyi, accompanied by a group of soldiers, charged in.

Yue Jinghua was deep in thought at that moment.

"Miss Yue was invited by me," a gentle and graceful female voice came from behind, as a plump court-dressed woman and a girl of about five or six years old stepped out.

The speaker was the gorgeously dressed beauty, who appeared to be around twenty, with willow-like eyebrows, bright eyes, and beautiful skin. She was breathtakingly lovely.

Seeing the resemblance between Princess Sha Fei and Shalman, Yue Jinghua remembered that this woman named Sha Fei was, by seniority, the aunt of her good friend Shalman. She had recognized her immediately, likely because Shalman had mentioned her before.

"Princess Sha Fei, my respects to you," Fa Xiaoyi said, greeting her. He couldn’t help asking further: "Why did Princess Sha Fei invite Miss Yue? If she’s here as a guest, why does Miss Yue look disheveled, standing by the riverbank?"

Fa Xiaoyi had come prepared; his series of rapid-fire questions were both dense and urgent. If Princess Sha Fei hadn’t agreed on her story with Yue Jinghua beforehand, such questioning would have easily exposed any inconsistencies.

"My niece Shalman is good friends with Miss Yue," Princess Sha Fei replied unhurriedly, "I am also an old acquaintance of hers, and having heard about Miss Yue’s exceptional alchemy skills, I had long wanted to invite her to the palace. Today presented an opportunity, so I asked her to come. Who would have known that just now Princess Xiu Rong, being mischievous, started a water-splashing game with Miss Yue, which is how Miss Yue ended up in such a state?"

Princess Sha Fei scolded laughingly, reaching behind her and pulling forward a girl about five or six years old, who emerged with her hair and clothes wet.

That was Princess Xiu Rong, the eldest daughter of King Fa Xiao Yun of Shang.

The little girl widened her eyes and, in a babyish voice, looked at Yue Jinghua and Fa Xiaoyi, asking, "Uncle, will you play in the water with Rong’er too?"

The banquet had earlier taken an unexpected turn, so Princess Sha Fei took the elder princess, who was celebrating her birthday, back to the palace.

"Rong’er, you mustn’t be rude," Princess Sha Fei said with a smile, "Both you and Miss Yue got wet. If you keep being naughty, you both might catch cold. Cai Yue, help the princess and Miss Yue change their clothes."

The female official serving beside Princess Sha Fei stepped forward and led Yue Jinghua and the princess away to change.

Yue Jinghua was still baffled at this point, uncertain of what intent Princess Sha Fei, who had appeared so unexpectedly, might have.

After changing clothes, Yue Jinghua had yet to see Princess Sha Fei again, who was presumably still outside dealing with Fa Xiaoyi.

"Big sister, the handsome big brother said you are a Pill Master. Can you also heal the sick?" Princess Xiu Rong, now changed, was lively and adorable. No wonder from the monarch down to the Empress Dowager, everyone doted on her so much.

"The handsome big brother?" Yue Jinghua paused slightly, then suddenly realized that Princess Sha Fei and Princess Xiu Rong’s help might not be because of Shalman.

Shalman had mentioned that her biological mother was nothing more than a slave in the Sha Family, and as far as Yue Jinghua knew, Princess Sha Fei was the legitimate daughter of the Sha Family’s second branch.

On the Canglong Continent, the distinction between legitimate and illegitimate lineage, just like in ancient Huaxia, was extremely strict, not to mention the divide between masters and servants.

Although Princess Sha Fei was nominally Shalman’s aunt, Shalman had never spoken of this aunt, let alone mentioned Yue Jinghua to Princess Sha Fei.

A top female spy must be able to blend in everywhere, regardless of age, whether they are eight months old or eighty-eight years old.

A broad smile spread across Yue Jinghua’s face.

"Little Princess, can you tell me who the handsome big brother is? Was it he who asked you and your mother to help me escape from those bad people outside?" Whoever could influence Princess Sha Fei to help was surely no ordinary person, and Yue Jinghua was not familiar with any imperial relatives in the Shang Kingdom.

"Yes, the handsome big brother also said that as soon as you arrived, Little Juhua would start to eat," Princess Xiu Rong said carefully, bringing out a small cage and handing it to Yue Jinghua.

It was a cage woven with golden threads, somewhat similar to a cricket cage.

Inside, fresh tender mulberry leaves were spread out and among the leaves was a white, meaty worm with a pale complexion.

"Ao ao," upon smelling that familiar scent, the meat worm inside, which had been still for several days, began to shudder.

"Little Juhua really is responding, mother," said Princess Xiu Rong just as Princess Sha Fei walked in. She smiled kindly and affectionately stroked Princess Xiu Rong’s head, then nodded graciously at Yue Jinghua.

"Little Juhua?! Is that what you’re referring to?" Yue Jinghua couldn’t help but laugh and cry. This time she didn’t need to exert any effort, as the missing Gold Eater Worm, which she thought had been taken by the Feise Empress Dowager, was actually hiding in the palace of Princess Sha Fei.

A few days earlier, Princess Xiu Rong had visited the Consort’s palace to play and found that the Consort was keeping such a "silkworm." The insect would let out a piteous cry when its chrysanthemum-shaped marking was poked, and Princess Xiu Rong found it amusing, so she took the little worm with her.

"Cough cough," Yue Jinghua feigned a cough, "I wonder if Your Highness might gift me this little worm. To be honest with you, it’s a creature I’ve been raising."

Princess Xiu Rong was naturally reluctant, but by this time Princess Sha Fei had come into the inner hall. Smiling kindly, she persuaded patiently, and the elder princess, pouting, handed over the cage.

Upon seeing Yue Jinghua, the meat worm instantly became lively and energetic, no longer like before when it seemed listless and lifeless. It cried with teary eyes, snuggling into Yue Jinghua’s hands with a mix of snot and tears.

"Princess Sha Fei, thank you for your help just now," Yue Jinghua attempted several times to find out who had asked Princess Sha Fei to help her escape, but Princess Sha Fei skillfully steered the conversation away, making it clear she did not wish for Yue Jinghua to learn who it was.

Realizing that it was pointless to ask further, Yue Jinghua simply took her leave from Princess Sha Fei, taking the meat worm with her to find Lie Rou and the others.