Although the Queen and the Crown Prince's rebellion failed, the old emperor suffered a great shock from this incident, and his health deteriorated.
Shen Lin secretly bribed the imperial physician to obtain information about the old emperor's physical condition. According to the imperial physician, the old emperor would not live for more than a year.
Shen Lin couldn't help but curl up the corners of her mouth!
That was great, it wasn't all in vain.
The New Year is coming, and Ling Xue has prepared a big New Year gift package for all the officials under her, big and small!
There aren't many things, but they're very affordable: a bag of 50 kilograms of flour, a bag of 50 kilograms of rice, a pot of 20 kilograms of rapeseed oil, a bag of assorted dried fruits, and a bag of snacks.
These things were packed in a large, exquisite frame, and officials from various departments were lining up to receive them.
These people were chatting while queuing, their faces flushed with excitement!
"My eldest sister works as an accountant in the Ministry of Industry. She received a big gift package yesterday. Inside the dried fruit gift package were fried peanuts. My eldest sister grabbed a handful for me. They were incredibly delicious."
"Peanuts are great, but the dried fruit gift package my neighbor received contained pine nuts. They're a rare treat, and I don't know what we'll get."
"White rice, white flour, rapeseed oil and snacks are all the same, but the dried fruit gift packs are random. It depends on what we can get."
"The young master has put a lot of effort into preparing these gift bags for us. These things are not easy to get."
"Yes, food is very precious now!"
"Isn't it precious? Look at the weather today. There hasn't been any heavy snow yet. I'm afraid there will be a drought next year."
Ling Xue took Xiao Taozi and Liu Caixia for a stroll on the street. Many women and children were out buying New Year's goods, and there was a peaceful atmosphere everywhere.
The gift bag that Xiao Taozi received contained a bag of melon seeds. She didn’t like it very much, but it’s not that she didn’t like it. She just preferred other rare dried fruits.
So, she kept pestering Ling Xue to ask for more other dried fruits.
"Young Master, I'd like to replace the rice in the gift bag with other dried fruits. There are only too few melon seeds, and I can't eat enough!"
Ling Xue walked and looked around, she smiled and teased Xiao Taozi: "If you think the melon seeds are too few, you can exchange with Caixia."
Before Xiao Taozi could speak, Liu Caixia disagreed. She rolled her eyes at Xiao Taozi and objected, "I'm not going to trade with her. What I got was roasted walnuts, not to mention how delicious they are."
Xiao Taozi hadn't originally planned to swap with Liu Caixia, but Liu Caixia objected first, which made her furious. She pretended to hit Liu Caixia, but Liu Caixia naturally dodged, and the two of them started fighting around Ling Xue.
But Ling Xue did not stop, and the three of them walked forward in a strange posture.
Fortunately, there were many people on the street and no one paid attention to the appearance of the three of them, otherwise they would definitely be shocked.
Not many people have seen Ling Xue, but many people have seen Xiao Taozi and Liu Caixia, because they handled many things on Ling Xue's behalf, and they were easily recognized on the busy street.
Ling Xue was wearing a neat men's suit and had her hair tied up in a high ponytail. She looked neat and tidy, but her gender would not be mistaken.
Her outfit wasn't out of place; many women on the street were dressed like this, and it seemed they'd learned it from Ling Xue. This style of dress made it easy for Ling Xue to blend in with the crowd; otherwise, she'd be instantly recognized.
