Chapter 99 Concern Leads to Confusion (Part 2)

The Grand Secretary knelt at the gate of Shou Kang Palace for a day and a night. Yu An really didn't know what was wrong with Ji Jinghe's brain to do such a thing.

Throughout history, which prime minister has ever achieved such a feat?

Having frequented the palace many times, she got to know some people, so she spent some money to have someone take her to the entrance of the Qianqing Palace.

From afar in the passageway, I could see that familiar figure at the entrance.

Yu An quickly walked a few steps forward, and when he saw that there was no one else at the palace gate except for the first and second eunuchs, he squatted down next to him.

"What are you doing?" Yu'an tugged at his sleeve. "The Grand Secretary has been kneeling at the entrance of Shou Kang Palace for a whole day and night. Are you torturing yourself or forcing the Empress Dowager?"

Ji Jinghe remained expressionless: "His Majesty has tacitly approved my request to apologize to the Empress Dowager."

Yu An choked.

She still felt that now was not the best time to apologize.

The Empress Dowager was in a righteous mood, and she wouldn't listen to anyone, especially since even the Emperor wasn't protecting him, a virtuous minister. What else could he do?

Yu'an tried to help him up, "Get up first, let's go back and talk about it later, I'll think of something, okay..."

She was truly afraid that her life, which had finally gotten back on track, would be turned upside down again by one thing or another.

Nobody wants to repeat the same mistake, and nobody can bear to go through it a second time.

Ji Jinghe remained unmoved. "I said back then that if this matter were exposed, I would take full responsibility. You don't need to get involved."

Yu An tried her best to keep her voice down, "You're kneeling here because of me, how could I ignore you?"

"You may not be afraid, but can you think about your family? Ji Shu has only had two good days. Are you telling her to be abandoned by her in-laws again?"

Ji Jinghe has changed, and Yu An has changed too.

Their eyes met, and what they saw was completely different.

Even if it wasn't for the Ji family or Ji Jinghe, Yu An was doing it for herself.

Her shop had just opened, and she was already hoping that the Empress Dowager's favor would allow her to make more money. The Chu family had a fortune, but they were going to run out of money if they just sat around doing nothing. Besides, she also had to consider Chu Zhuo'an's future prospects.

Chu Zhuo'an is no ordinary person; we can't let her jeopardize his future.

She and Chu Zhuo'an depend on this shop to support themselves. Now that the Empress Dowager has lost her favor and protection, how much longer can she go on?

Therefore, we can only wait for the right opportunity to act, rather than adding fuel to the fire.

She can handle it; Ji Jinghe doesn't need to get involved.

On the other hand, Ji Jinghe seemed to know all of Yu An's thoughts, yet he still stubbornly shook his head.

Since this is the final hardship, why not eliminate it completely?

It was his idea at the time, so why drag her into it and make her suffer?

The two had their own principles, and in the end, neither of them could persuade the other.

"Madam Chu, the Empress Dowager summons you."

The nanny suddenly came out to announce something, pulling the two out of their eye-to-eye tug-of-war.

Yu An stood up and followed him inside.

Before coming today, I had anticipated what might happen, but considering the Empress Dowager's recent temper, I thought I wouldn't be able to see her. This time, she personally informed me; I wonder what I will face.

Yu An knelt on the ground, obediently bowing her head.

The Empress Dowager stopped drinking tea and simply sat quietly in her chair. Her imposing presence, though not angry, was extremely oppressive, and the air in the entire hall was still.

"Have these two come to plead for mercy in front of my door?"

Yu An's breath hitched, and she kowtowed, saying, "Your Majesty, please understand, it's not true."

"I only heard that Ji Jinghe knelt in front of your palace gate to persuade him. He is, after all, the Grand Secretary of the court. Now he is kneeling in front of Shou Kang Palace without any manners. It will not sound good if word gets out. Besides, what difference is there between what he is doing now and forcing the Empress Dowager to forgive him?"

The person seated above scoffed, "Look at what you're saying. Are you siding with me or with Ji Jinghe?"

"It's one thing to show off your intelligence in front of me all the time, but now you don't even respect me. Do you really think I'm easy to bully?"

"Yu'an never thought that way. Every word Yu'an said to the Empress Dowager was the truth, and she never lied," Yu'an hurriedly explained.

It was both a blessing and a curse, and she knew this best through Chu Xingjian's life. Once she decided to curry favor with the Empress Dowager, she constantly planned her escape route. If she wanted to achieve a successful and graceful retirement, she had to carefully consider every step and avoid leaving any openings.

The current "handle" arose unexpectedly, so there's no escaping the consequences.

"The Empress Dowager has treated me with the sincerity I have never seen before. In times of great difficulty, it was you who held me tightly and did not let go, which is why I am who I am today. I am extremely grateful. How could I deceive the Empress Dowager again? How could my conscience allow me to live with myself?"

"You keep saying you wouldn't dare, but let me see, you are very bold, extremely bold. Knowing that I am about to be promoted, you still dare to come into the palace and collude with Ji Jinghe. And you still say you have no ulterior motives?"

"Tell me the truth, do you really know nothing about what Ji Jinghe has done? Wasn't it you who gave him the idea? When you approached me in the first place, wasn't it because you wanted Yang'er...?"

The person lying on the ground remained silent for a long time...

Is there anything else you don't understand? Just take it as an acceptance.

A breath caught in his throat, neither rising nor falling. He glanced at the teacup on the table a few times, and in those few moments, he had the urge to throw it away several times.

"Chu Yu'an, you're really something. I value you so much, and this is how you scheme against me. You even claim to be loyal. Aren't you afraid of being struck by lightning?"

The Empress Dowager gripped the armrest tightly. "Tell me, who gave you this idea?"

Yu An said in a muffled voice, "No one was there."

"You don't need to lie to me." The Empress Dowager pointed at her. "Did you find out from Mingjia?"

Yuan:......

A moment of silence fell over the hall.

This was a scar on the Empress Dowager's body, and she knew it well.

"roll."

"Take your Ji Jinghe and get out of here! I never want to see you again..."

Yu An suddenly raised her head, "Empress Dowager."

“I never intended to use the Princess to curry favor, never, please believe me.”

Tears streamed down his face, and his reddened eyes stared intently at her, looking utterly pitiful.

"Empress Dowager," the nanny stepped forward, "Lord Ji requests an audience."

Empress Dowager: "Perfect, bring him in."

"Get out, I don't want to see you."

Yu An hesitated for a moment before being forcibly dragged out by the nanny.

"My lady, there's no need to wait any longer, please go back."

Yu'an wiped away her tears, and the old woman said again, "The Empress Dowager is in a bad mood. You shouldn't have come with Lord Ji. Why did you cause trouble for yourself?"

The old woman has already made herself very clear.

The longer she stayed, the angrier the Empress Dowager would become. It would be better for her to stay far away, especially to sever ties with Ji Jinghe.

Yu An wasn't stupid. She nodded and said in a hoarse voice, "Thank you for your understanding, Granny. I'll be going now."

She took a car back home, but didn't go to the shop. Instead, she lay on the bed and started thinking about her escape route.

Given the situation, it seems the shop can't stay open.

She offended the Empress Dowager; who would dare to buy anything from her shop? Without the patronage of the noble ladies and young women of the capital, how could her business possibly survive?

After waiting for a long time at the shop without any news, Xu Jingshu had no choice but to go to the Chu residence after having dinner at Li Ji'an's house.

Ji Shu and Chen Shi were also traveling with them.

Baozhu helped the person up and brought her some food from the table.

The group sat around the bed and began to ask questions.

"Is there absolutely no way to salvage this?"

Yu An: "The Eldest Princess is the Empress Dowager's biggest concern. I've confessed everything, so I guess it's completely hopeless."

Ji Shu: "What about my brother?"

“Jinghe is definitely better than her. After all, he doesn’t rely on the Empress Dowager for food. As long as he is useful to the Emperor, nothing will happen to him,” Xu Jingshu replied.

Yu'an relies on the Empress Dowager for her livelihood, so she will be more affected by this matter.

Ji Shu pounded her leg, "Really, it's all Wang Wan'er's fault. Why does she always have to meddle? It's not like her family is poor. Why is she so envious of this?"

Xu Jingshu sighed: "It's no use saying all this. Didn't you say that the Wang family has already taught Wang Wan'er a lesson and locked her up at home? We can't get revenge then, so why bother talking about her?"

"The most important thing right now is to wait for Chu Zhuo'an's martial arts examination. Whether he passes or not, there will be a result, and you can plan your next step. If all else fails, you can go back to Jiangling. At that time, the emperor will be far away and no one will be able to control you."

Mrs. Chen: "That's a viable option. If you want to go back, your maternal grandfather and I will pack our bags right now..."

Yu'an grabbed Chen's hand, "I won't go back."

We finally managed to bring them here, and it's only been a little over six months. How can we go back now?

She's now determined to stick to her principles and desperately wants another chance, a chance to return to Tanzhe Temple for a hundred days of quiet meditation to atone for her sins, or even a year.

Xu Jingshu saw through her thoughts and advised, "A wise person knows when to yield; don't do anything foolish right now."

Ji Shu was anxiously watching from the side. What would happen to her brother if this person was really persuaded to go back?

"Let's stay in the capital. Even without the Empress Dowager's inscription, we still have real skills. Even if we do business with ordinary people, we can still open this shop."

She nudged Xu Jingshu from behind, her heart pounding.

Xu Jingshu, oblivious, said, “How about this, let’s wait for Ji Jinghe to come back. Didn’t you say that Ji Jinghe was summoned by the Empress Dowager? Let’s observe and see what she said to him. I don’t believe that with this matter causing such a big fuss, His Majesty will have no reaction at all.”

Whether to punish or demote, there has to be an explanation; a slow and steady approach can really kill someone.

"No news is the best news right now, so don't panic."

Ji Jinghe's loss of the position of Grand Secretary will not benefit the Wang family, so even if the Empress Dowager is angry, can she really interfere in the court?

Now that she's free from the hustle and bustle of the capital, Xu Jingshu no longer cares about fame or fortune. She comforts Yu An, and if things get really bad, she'll help her raise some money, and the losses in the shop will be recovered.

As everyone was talking, there was a knock on the door. Baozhu got up to open it and found that it was Qingque.

No one knows what the Empress Dowager and Ji Jinghe discussed in the Shou Kang Palace. After they came out, the Emperor's decree was issued.

Ji Jinghe was beaten fifty times in front of the Hall of Supreme Harmony, and soon he would be demoted to Jiangnan.

"Where is he now?" Xu Jingshu asked.

Qingque: "I just saw a doctor to check my injury. I was afraid of worrying my masters, so I came here by myself."

Yu An frowned: "You still couldn't keep your position as Grand Secretary?"

Qingque: "His Majesty and the Empress Dowager were furious one after the other. It's already a miracle that you've managed to save your life."

Such an arrogant person, being beaten in public in the Hall of Supreme Harmony, probably wasn't seriously injured physically, but rather on his face.