tang.If she's even willing to produce a deed of servitude, then it means An Xuetang's life and death have nothing to do with the An family anymore!Li Zheng shook his head in disbelief, "I can't believ...When Hua Yuan suddenly mentioned "that girl," An Xue Tang instantly thought of Shuangshuang.

Logically, this master of seeking alms should not have met Shuangshuang. She and Ning'er called for the master only after confirming that Shuangshuang had left.

When he came in, Shuai was already in his own yard, so how could he possibly run into her

Thinking of this, An Xue Tang deliberately showed a hint of confusion in her eyes and looked at Huai Yuan, "Master, I wonder who the girl you mentioned is"

Huarong smiled, "How many girls could there be in the Prince's Mansion"

Since the one seeking alms wants to be so roundabout, An Xue Tang had better play along, "Our manor doesn't have particularly many servants, but it's not few either."

"And most of the servants in our manor are from the same families. Their children are also allowed to live in their current residences. There are indeed a few girls within the manor. However, to make them feel less uncomfortable and nervous, this concubine has always avoided inquiring about them."

Seeing An Xuetang pretending to be innocent, Huaiyuan smiled helplessly. It seemed that it was really difficult to deceive her.

The monk no longer played riddles with An Xue Tang. He cleared his throat and said, “Your Highness, don’t waste the monk’s time. I saw that girl's back, and the courtyard she entered is not where servants would live.”

An Xuetang curled her lips into a smile, "So the master truly wants to see her"

"Hmm."

"Why is that The master doesn't seem like the type to meddle."

"This monk wouldn't want to hide anything from the princess. Just now, when I saw the girl's back, for some reason, this monk felt a sense of familiarity, so I wanted to meet her. If the princess finds it inconvenient, this monk won't put the princess in an awkward position."

"It's not that it would be inconvenient, but the child is someone I brought back from the countryside. She's timid and afraid of strangers. I can't be sure if she'd want to meet the master."

Of course, Master, if you are willing to wait, then this concubine will have Ning'er inquire about the child's opinion.

An Xuetang nodded slightly, then turned to Ning'er beside her. Ning'er nodded slightly and then turned to leave.

In the waiting process, An Xuetang thought for a moment and then asked again, “Master, you said before that you and our mother had a decent relationship. Do you know anything about what happened to our mother before she entered the palace”

Mentioning the late Empress, the monk sighed, "When I first met the late Empress, she had been in the palace for many years. About her past, not only was I unaware, but the world remained ignorant as well."

An Xuetang pursed her lips. Why had matters concerning the former empress's entry into the palace been deliberately concealed

After a moment of silence, she looked back at the monk. "Mother originally trusted you, Master, which is why she asked you to look after that child. So our mother would have told you about some past events, right"

"The monk Huayuan shook his head slightly, 'Every time I see the late Empress, she mostly stays alone, not allowing anyone to disturb her. She rarely talks with me, especially about the past, she never mentions it.'"

An Xuetang was still thinking about asking Huayuan about whether the story of Liu Daifu and the former empress privately making a lifelong commitment was true.

But upon hearing this, she gave up. According to Huayuan, the former empress had never mentioned these past events to him, let alone confided in him about her private engagement with Dr. Liu.

So, she thought about it for a moment and decided not to ask any further questions.

After waiting for a short while, Ning'er returned alone. She bowed to An Xue Tang and said, "Your Highness, the child said that he was afraid of strangers and might be too nervous to behave himself in front of the master, so he decided not to meet him."

An Xuetang raised an eyebrow, her lips unconsciously curving into a smile. These two were indeed clever.

Actually, she didn't want Huaiyuan to meet Shuangshuang either. She had always suspected that Shuangshuang was the daughter born to the former empress, and Huaiyuan had played a certain role in this matter.

So, in her view, she didn't want Huayuan to see Shuangshuang before figuring out what was going on. It was also impossible for him to know that Shuangshuang had lived in the Cold Palace since childhood, where the previous Empress had resided.

Shuangshuang learned from Ninger that An Xuetang had deliberately concealed her origins from the palace. She immediately guessed that An Xuetang didn't want her to meet the master of seeking alms, so she proactively declined.

It has to be said that Shuangshuang's intelligence and emotional quotient are not at all like those of a child who has never interacted with strangers. Of course, this excludes the elderly palace maid who raised and taught her.

After hearing Ning'er's reply, An Xuetang looked helplessly at Huayuan on the side. "Master, you also heard what Ning'er said. The child is actually afraid of strangers and doesn't want to see people."

The venerable master simply gave a somewhat pitying expression, nodding and saying, “This monk understands.”

After saying that, he stood up. “Well then, this monk will take his leave for today.”

"Well then, this princess will send you off."

The beggar, wondering where the grand princess of the Northern Frontier would send him to, repeatedly shook his head and refused. "No no, Princess, please don't put me in such a difficult position."

Since An Xue Tang insisted, she let Ning'er personally send him away.

Seeing the retreating figure of the alms-giver, An Xue Tang's eyebrows furrowed slightly, and no one knew what she was thinking.ngge, you're drinking barley tea too"Dong Ge'er weakly nodded, "Yes, I drank it before Sister came back."An Xuetang cursed the person who had poisoned them, then gave Dong'er an acupuncture treatment...