Pine and Crane Longevity Painting

The ladies below laughed and said, "Empress Dowager, you truly have a wonderful daughter and a beautiful granddaughter. We are so envious!"

"I really didn't expect that the Eldest Princess would actually find Mr. Nanshan's ' Pine and Crane Longevity Painting '."

Mr. Nanshan's calligraphy is truly rare.

"I've visited that bookstore several times, but unfortunately I haven't been able to find any of Mr. Nanshan's calligraphy."

"I don't know who he is, but his paintings are really good."

Grand Princess Mingzhao looked at the Empress Dowager and said, "Mother, this is Mr. Nanshan's calligraphy; I'm sure you'll like it very much."

When the Empress Dowager saw the Pine and Crane Longevity Painting, could she say she didn't like it?

She forced a smile and said, "Your Highness has gone to great lengths; the gift is lovely."

Grand Princess Mingzhao smiled and said, "As long as Mother is satisfied, that's all that matters."

The ministers and their wives below all praised her, saying, "The Princess is truly thoughtful; it all comes down to her filial piety!"

"I think Zhou Wanwan is a good child, even though she comes from Dongshan Prefecture."

But they truly have filial piety; even after the Empress Dowager passed away, they still knew to put on a good show for her birthday banquet.

"This child is really lovable! I like her a lot, the more I look at her, the more I like her."

The Empress Dowager was so angry her face turned black, and Old Madam Zhou beside her was even more upset. They went for a walk in the back, and suddenly the wind shifted?

Princess Jing'an said sarcastically:

"Princess, did you orchestrate all of this?"

"These things happening today are so strange!"

Grand Princess Mingzhao sneered:

Only you know in your hearts how these things happened.

I do my job An'an, and I have a clear conscience.

Everyone praised the eldest princess's noble character, which made the Empress Dowager so angry that she rolled her eyes, but she couldn't say anything.

Zhou Wanwan, holding the snacks, said, "Your Majesty, I've also picked out some soft pastries. Please try them; they taste very good."

This time, the Empress Dowager smashed all the plates, leaving all the ladies and young misses dumbfounded.

The Empress Dowager roared, "Get out! Throw Zhou Wanwan into the Laundry Bureau and let her reflect on her actions!"

Zhou Wanwan sighed. "Old hag, can't you hold your breath like that?"

What dare the ladies and young women around them say anything?

They left the palace quickly.

The eldest princess looked at Zhou Wanwan and said, "Wanwan, would you like Grandma to take you there?"

Zhou Wanwan shook her head and said, "It's okay, you can go back! I'm doing fine now."

The eldest princess nodded, and then left the palace with Zhou Fusheng and Liu Su'e.

After leaving the palace, the eldest princess looked at the two of them and asked, "Do you think Wanwan will be alright?"

Zhou Fusheng said, "Don't worry! She'll be fine."

Zhou Wanwan was taken directly to the Laundry Bureau by the Empress Dowager's men. The nanny looked at the maid and said, "Keep a close eye on her. The Empress Dowager said that the rules here are too lax and need to be rectified. Do you understand?"

The aunts nodded and said, "Of course we know. We used to let him rest for four hours every day, but we won't let him rest anymore from now on."

The old woman nodded in satisfaction and said, "You are all clever, so you should know what to do."

After saying this, the old woman left.

As soon as she left, her aunts all returned and surrounded Zhou Wanwan, saying, "Did you offend the Empress Dowager again today? Otherwise, you wouldn't be saying that."

Zhou Wanwan shook her head and said:

No, I think I've treated the Empress Dowager quite well!

I even entertained guests for her, but the Empress Dowager didn't appreciate it. I don't know why; she probably just doesn't like me!

The aunts all shook their heads and said, "That's how it is in the palace, all about praising the powerful and belittling the weak. It's her business if she doesn't like you, but we like you very much."

"Yes, Wanwan, you just stay here. We've already washed all the clothes."

Zhou Wanwan stretched and said, "Okay! It's so good to have you guys."

The Old Scholar Tree on one side said:

"We've already brought the hot spring here and built a pool. We've also brought a stream of hot spring water into the Cold Palace."

"Now there's a hot spring in the Cold Palace too, would you like to go for a soak?"

Zhou Wanwan quickly nodded. In the dead of winter, it would be wonderful to have a hot spring pool!

She went straight to the Cold Palace and started soaking in the hot spring, while the Old Scholar Tree next to her kept bringing in fruit.

Zhou Wanwan enjoyed eating watermelon while soaking in the hot spring; it was incredibly relaxing.

The Palace of Compassion and Tranquility is different; the air pressure throughout the entire Palace of Compassion and Tranquility is extremely low.

The Empress Dowager looked at Princess Jing'an and Princess Ningyuan and said:

What exactly is going on between you two?

Why did you prepare such a birthday gift for me?

"Are you trying to embarrass me in public?"

Princess Jing'an sobbed, "Mother, don't you know what kind of people we are?"

Princess Ningyuan nodded and said, "How could we possibly prepare such a birthday gift for you? It was all Mingzhao's doing."

The Empress Dowager was so angry she had a headache. "You may all go back! I need some peace and quiet."

After they left, the Empress Dowager looked at Old Madam Zhou and asked, "Who do you think did this?"

Old Madam Zhou sighed and said, "Zhou Wanwan, that's her, so I think the best thing to do is to kill her."

The Empress Dowager sneered and said, "Guards, kill Zhou Wanwan and destroy the evidence."

Several guards entered and said, "Yes, Your Majesty."

After the guards left, the Empress Dowager said, "These are people who have followed me for a long time. Tonight, I can deal with that little girl. Slaughtering her will be as easy as slaughtering a dog."

While soaking in the hot spring, Zhou Wanwan listened to the Old Scholar Tree's report, "Wow! That old hag actually said that!"

"Yes, what do we do now? Those guys came in, oh... I've subdued them."

Zhou Wanwan's lips twitched. Couldn't even last a single exchange? This was supposed to be a bodyguard?

Zhou Wanwan chuckled and said, "Actually, I'm quite interested in this old hag's palace. Why don't we go take a look?"

The Empress Dowager was arguably the wealthiest person in the palace, Zhou Wanwan's eyes lit up as she rubbed her hands together, eager to make her move.

She would never have fought back if that old hag hadn't tried to assassinate her.

But since she was assassinated by her own guards, she can't be blamed.

Zhou Wanwan went straight into the warehouse. There were at least 800, if not 1000, guards in Palace of Compassion and Tranquility.

But for Zhou Wanwan, it was practically useless.

She quickly entered the Palace of Compassion and Tranquility Palace of Compassion and Tranquility's storeroom, which had more than 20 storage rooms.

Zhou Wanwan led a group of trees towards the warehouse, which contained all sorts of rare treasures.

On the Empress Dowager's birthday alone, many ministers would send her all sorts of gifts every year.

Other countries also offer gifts.

The warehouse was Manman to the brim with rare and valuable items.

There were also a large number of pure gold Yuanbao, large pieces of official silver, and various pure gold ornaments and vessels.

The box was filled with large, round pearls and luminous Mingzhu, as well as countless ornaments carved from various kinds of top-quality jadeite and mutton fat jade.

There are also fine sable, black fox and other rare and precious fur garments, as well as various calligraphy and paintings by famous artists from previous dynasties, and rare and unique ancient books.

Exquisite and precious porcelain produced by the imperial kilns.

The tribute included top-quality ginseng, bird's nest, precious medicinal herbs, as well as various exquisite jewelry inlaid with gemstones and royal brocade fabrics.

Take it all, take everything, leave nothing behind.