In the letter, Hua Qingqing said she had gained the Empress Dowager’s trust and they had reached an agreement.
They would find a way to obtain the Holy Decree bestowing a fief on Prince Zhao.
As long as Prince Zhao was willing to lead his troops back to the capital as reinforcements, he would be granted West Gate County as his fief.
Hua Manman didn’t know where West Gate County was. She planned to find a map and look it up after she left the secret room.
She read on.
Hua Qingqing mentioned one more thing in the letter.
She said the Saint had already decided to install the Seventh Prince as the Crown Prince. The edict of investiture was even written out, needing only the impression of the Jade Seal to take effect.
She would try to find the edict, but the Jade Seal had been taken by Prince Wu Zhang. He was a cautious man who didn’t let anyone get near him easily, so it would be very difficult for her to obtain the Jade Seal.
She hoped her sister could help think of a way, provided she could ensure her own safety.
If it wasn’t possible, it didn’t matter. The palace was dangerous and not a place to linger. Her sister should leave as soon as possible.
That was the end of the letter.
At the same time, a system notification, long silent, chimed in Hua Manman’s mind.
"Host has successfully triggered an important story mission!"
"Please assist the protagonist, Hua Qingqing, in obtaining the Jade Seal so that the Seventh Prince’s edict of investiture can take effect."
"Mission time limit: one month."
"If the host fails to complete the mission within the time limit, the mission will be considered a failure."
"Upon completion, the system will reward the host with a lucky bag. Failure will result in a heart-wrenching penalty."
"Please complete the mission as soon as possible!"
...
Hua Manman held the letter to a candle flame, silently watching it burn to cinders.
Mu Qing was still waiting for her reply.
However, Hua Manman simply said one thing.
"Tell Princess Consort Zhen I will help her."
With that, she picked up the lantern and turned to leave the secret passage.
The system’s voice sounded in her mind again.
"Are you really going to help Hua Qingqing get the Jade Seal?"
Hua Manman retorted, "You already issued the mission. Why are you asking me that now?"
The system sounded a little guilty at the mention of this.
"It’s not that I’m trying to make things difficult for you. You triggered the main plot, so I had to issue you a mission. It’s the program Master Control set for me. I don’t have the authority to change it."
To put it bluntly, it was just a tool, responsible for issuing missions and meting out rewards and punishments.
Hua Manman said, "I’m not blaming you."
Despite her words, the system couldn’t help but remind her.
"I had to give you the mission, but I set the time limit to one month.
A month from now, you should have already left this world.
That means even if you don’t complete the mission, you won’t have to face the penalty.
By then you’ll be gone anyway, so you won’t be under my control anymore."
Setting the time limit to one month was the biggest concession the system could make within its authority.
It was, in a way, a small, selfish act on its part.
But Hua Manman changed the subject.
"Have you noticed you’re much more emotional now? In the past, even when you saw me in so much pain I wished I were dead, you wouldn’t have felt the slightest bit of guilt, much less alter a mission’s content for my sake."
The system thought back to how it used to be and compared it to its present self. It seemed she was right.
In the past, it wouldn’t have cared what the host thought. It just followed regulations, cold and completely devoid of human warmth.
But now, it was actually feeling things like guilt toward its host just for issuing a mission.
It was even asking if the host wanted to complete the mission.
Hua Manman said softly, "You’ve changed. You’re becoming more and more like a real person."
The system was stunned.
Hua Manman stepped out of the dark secret passage and into the study.
She blew out the lantern. Just as she was about to call for Qing Huan to help close the bookshelf, she heard Li Ying’s voice from outside.
"You didn’t even go in to announce me. How do you know Princess Consort Zhao doesn’t wish to see me? Or is she not in the study at all?"
Hua Manman’s heart leaped in alarm.
’Holy crap, why is Li Ying here?!’
She scrambled for the wooden ladder, climbed up, and reached out to pull the metal ring inside the hidden compartment. After closing it, she hastily stuffed the books back onto the shelf.
Outside the door, Li Ying was losing his patience.
"I’ll say this one last time. Move!"
The two bookshelves were slowly moving together.
As she climbed down the wooden ladder, Hua Manman called out to the door.
"Qing Huan, go get me a new change of clothes. I spilled tea on myself."
Qing Huan’s voice came from behind the door.
"Yes!"
Hearing Manman’s voice, Li Ying knew she was indeed in the study. He felt a little relieved, but his suspicions lingered.
He called out to Manman inside.
"May I come in?"
His doubts wouldn’t be completely dispelled until he saw her with his own eyes.
Hua Manman’s feet touched the floor. She moved the ladder back to its original spot, nearly falling in her haste.
Luckily, she reacted quickly enough to steady herself and avoid a fall.
She had no time for anything else and quickly called out.
"Don’t! My clothes are wet. I’m not presentable. Please don’t come in, Prince!"
Li Ying replied, "It’s alright. I just want to make sure you’re safe. I won’t look."
With that, he placed his hand on the door and pushed it open.
By this time, the bookshelves had closed completely.
Hua Manman had just splashed a cup of warm tea onto her skirt.
When she saw Li Ying enter, she quickly turned her back to him and said angrily.
"How could you enter without being invited, Prince? This is highly improper!"
Seeing her standing there unharmed, Li Ying was finally, completely relieved.
"My apologies. That was presumptuous of me."
Hua Manman shot him a glare over her shoulder, her voice sharp. "Aren’t you going to leave?!"
Seeing she was genuinely angry, Li Ying didn’t dare linger. "Alright, alright, I’m going," he said hastily.
As he turned, his gaze quickly swept over the entire study.
He didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary.
Once he was gone, Hua Manman’s taut nerves finally relaxed.
It was only then that she felt a dull ache in her abdomen.
She clutched her abdomen and sat on the daybed.
The system asked worriedly, "Are you alright?"
’Was she alright? She didn’t know.’ After all, it was her first pregnancy; she had no experience with this sort of thing.
The study door was pushed open again.
Qing Huan came in, holding fresh clothes. When she saw the Princess Consort clutching her abdomen, her brow tightly furrowed, she was startled and asked frantically.
"Your Highness... What’s wrong?"
Hua Manman looked terribly pale.
She struggled to speak. "I don’t feel well."
Qing Huan rushed to the door and shouted.
"Imperial Physician! Quickly... call an Imperial Physician! The Princess Consort... her stomach hurts!"
The next moment, Li Ying burst into the room.
He rushed to Hua Manman’s side. Seeing her state, he became frantic with worry and immediately ordered someone to fetch the Imperial Physician from the Imperial Hospital who specialized in gynecology.
The Imperial Physician arrived quickly after being summoned.
After examining Hua Manman, he spoke with a grave expression.
"It seems the stress has threatened the pregnancy."