Chapter 726 Even the Empress Dowager Has Gone Mad

Xie Shang and Jiang Fenghua met Prince Kang when they arrived at Shou Kang Palace.

The two watched from afar and saw Prince Kang limping as he pushed the Empress Dowager for a walk in the courtyard.

The Empress Dowager pulled Prince Kang's hand and said, "Kang'er, please sit down. Your legs are not very strong, so have a maid push me."

"My son likes to push his mother around in her wheelchair for walks," Xie Kang said with a smile. "Is Mother feeling any better?"

"I'm much better now. The imperial physicians from the palace come to take my pulse every day."

Xie Kang then said, "Mother and son should move out of the palace. I will go and plead with the Emperor..."

"I'm not going anywhere. If he doesn't release Minmin and Yun'er, I'll stay in Shou Kang Palace," the Empress Dowager said in a deep voice.

Xie Kang added, "There are some things that Yun'er and Minmin did wrong, and they deserve to be punished. We can't blame the Emperor; he has his own difficulties."

"No matter what, I can't let Minmin and Yun'er suffer outside forever."

Jiang Fenghua pulled Xie Shang aside and whispered, "Prince Kang is truly filial to the Empress Dowager. Has he always been like this?"

Xie Shang didn't know either. "The Empress Dowager has always wanted to hand over the throne to Prince Kang, so the Emperor has always resented her. She doesn't like the Emperor; in her heart, there is only one son, Prince Kang."

He kept the Empress Dowager in Shou Kang Palace because she was indeed the Empress Dowager. When he returned to the capital, the Empress Dowager would definitely live in the palace, which was what he should do. After all, he should also call the Empress Dowager "Grandmother," which was the proper way to show filial piety.

A hint of doubt flashed in Jiang Fenghua's eyes as she leaned close to Xie Shang's ear and asked, "Do you really think Prince Kang is unaware of what the Empress Dowager and his son and daughter have been doing?"

Does she mean that Prince Kang is truly trustworthy?

Xie Shang sneered, "What do you think!" Daring to wander and cause trouble between the Southern Kingdom and the vassal states, Xie Yun was just a hothead. As for what role Xie Kang was playing, nobody knew.

If Uncle Kang disregarded the interests of the people of the Great Zhou Kingdom for the sake of the throne, he would not be what he appears to be.

Jiang Fenghua's intuition was that Prince Kang was not as refined as they perceived him to be. After all, he had once wanted to be emperor, but he just hadn't succeeded.

Since he couldn't win the struggle, he made himself appear as someone forced to become emperor, blaming everything on the Empress Dowager. He claimed that his mother wanted him to be emperor, and that he didn't want to be emperor. He reasoned that this way, the late emperor would surely forgive him and wouldn't truly blame his mother for these things.

The mother's role was at most that of favoring her younger son. In this way, a big problem was reduced to a small one, and a small problem was resolved. This is the way of a wise person.

Xie Shang led Jiang Fenghua closer, and the couple pretended that nothing had happened. Xie Shang said, "Greetings, Grandmother."

Jiang Fenghua gave a slight bow: "Your Majesty, I pay my respects."

The Empress Dowager glanced at the two of them, her eyes filled with anger. Recalling how Jiang Fenghua had angered her to the point of vomiting blood that day, she felt hatred. "What are you doing here? Are you here to laugh at me?"

The couple didn't feel embarrassed; it was others who felt awkward. Xie Shang asked, "Has the Empress Dowager and Uncle Kang had their dinner yet?"

The Empress Dowager looked at him coldly, "Why doesn't the Emperor send me to do hard labor too?"

Xie Kang smiled and said, "We've just eaten. The Emperor and Empress must have eaten too!"

Xie Shang's lips twitched, and he said with a forced smile, "Grandmother, what are you joking about? No matter how big a mistake you have made, I will always respect you. I have said that as long as you are willing to come back, you will always be the most honored Empress Dowager of the Great Zhou Dynasty, and I will take care of you in your old age."

The Empress Dowager changed her approach: "In that case, return Minmin and Yun'er to me. I need them by my side; I can't live without them."

Xie Shang said, "Grandmother really needs someone to keep you company. I've sent other princesses and princes into the palace to talk to you. Xie Minmin and Xie Yun have caused great suffering to the people of Qingzhou. They have done wrong and must be punished. The royal family also needs someone to give the people an explanation. I really have no way to let them come back now."

"You..." The Empress Dowager smashed the teacup on the stone table in anger: "The Emperor is so heartless towards his brothers, just like your father. Back then, he..."

Xie Kang quickly stopped her, "Mother, decades have passed, let's not talk about the past. Jing-ge has already left, and Shang'er was only allowed to do hard labor to atone for her sins according to the laws of the Great Zhou Dynasty. It was already a mercy that he only allowed Minmin and Yun'er to do hard labor. They committed a capital crime by embezzling disaster relief funds. We should be grateful that the Emperor has shown them leniency."

Xie Shang didn't say anything more to the Empress Dowager, saying, "It's still my uncle who understands my good intentions."

The Empress Dowager glanced at Jiang Fenghua and said, "Kang'er, escort me back to the palace! Like the Empress Dowager, I need to stay away. Only women with the Emperor's backing dare to be arrogant and disrespectful. They have no filial piety or respect. They may call themselves a scholarly family, but in reality, they are rude and unruly."

In their minds, Jiang Fenghua was a vixen who seduced the emperor; not only was she beautiful, but she was also exceptionally arrogant.

Jiang Fenghua assumed they were just jealous, jealous of her beauty. Humph! If it weren't for the fact that it involved the Xie family's empire and her children, she wouldn't bother investigating the mastermind behind it all. What did it matter to her if the Xie family fought to the death?

She didn't show filial piety to the Empress Dowager or the Grand Empress Dowager, nor did she come to pay her respects and serve them morning and night. She was the most comfortable Empress, and all of this was allowed by Xie Shang, which indeed saved her a lot of trouble.

However, if the Empress Dowager and the Grand Empress Dowager were to accuse her of being unfilial, she would truly be unable to escape this charge.

Jiang Fenghua said in a deep voice, "Empress Dowager, please wait. Don't you feel guilty for causing the deaths of so many people?" She hadn't provoked her, yet she was already being scolded and slandered. She didn't need to be polite anymore.

The Empress Dowager ordered the wheelchair to be stopped. "Jiang Fenghua, how dare you!"

"With His Majesty's support, I dare to be so presumptuous. Didn't the Empress Dowager say these things herself?" She was infuriating. She had originally come to ask questions peacefully, but the Empress Dowager liked to use barbs and veiled insults.

"Get out of here and never come before me again!" The Empress Dowager was so angry she felt like vomiting blood again.

Xie Kang quickly helped her catch her breath, "Mother, are you alright?"

He continued, "Your Majesty, please take the Empress away quickly. The Empress Dowager's health has finally recovered. She is old, and the imperial physician said that she cannot be angry anymore. The Empress is also a member of the royal family, and she should have basic manners. No matter what, the Empress Dowager is an elder. How can the Empress be so rude? She should not come to Shou Kang Palace again. Your Majesty has decreed that the Empress need not pay her respects to the Empress Dowager and the Empress Dowager. She should understand basic etiquette and hierarchy!"

Xie Shang glanced at Jiang Fenghua. Wasn't she here to ask about something? Now that she had angered the Empress Dowager, it was even less likely that Jiang Fenghua would know.

He said, "I will summon the imperial physician to examine my grandmother."