Chapter 183 A Failure to Turn the Tide

"If Your Majesty wishes for your children to be filial to you while you are alive, Hongzhao, Hongjin, or Wenyi are all obedient and sensible. Why bother with this?" With the loss of Princess Ulanara and the arrival of Princess Huifa Nara, Yinzhen naturally understood what His Majesty meant, but he still pretended not to understand.

The Empress Dowager had long anticipated that things wouldn't go too smoothly. Therefore, Zhu Xi had prepared her reply well in advance.

"The Empress Dowager said that she was old and knew her own health. Now, every meeting with her family members was one less time to see them. She had never asked the Emperor for anything, and this was her only wish before she passed away."

The Empress Dowager had calculated that no matter how Yinzhen acted, he always harbored resentment towards her while secretly holding expectations. She deliberately chose a day with many eyes and ears and had Zhu Xi say those words, because she was certain that the Emperor would not delve into the matter in such an occasion, nor would he be so heartless as to embarrass her when she said those words.

Hongzhao sat next to his father. He could clearly see his father's gloomy and lonely face, his jaw muscles twitching as if he was suppressing some emotion. After a long while, when the gazes below him unconsciously converged upwards, he finally spoke loudly.

"I will remember your kindness, Mother Empress. Go back and tell her that you must take good care of your health, and I will visit you often."

As if in response to those subtle glances, Yinzhen deliberately said that the Empress Dowager had summoned Aunt Zhuxi to the banquet because she was worried about him.

Upon hearing the Emperor's words, Zhu Xi understood that he had agreed. She curtsied in response, saying, "This servant will certainly convey my message to the Empress Dowager. I also ask Your Majesty not to overindulge in wine and to take care of your health. This servant will now go and report back to the Empress Dowager."

Zhu Xi could be considered to have retired successfully, but Yinzhen's good mood vanished in an instant.

The lively and entertaining song, dance, and orchestral music that he had just enjoyed now only made him feel extremely irritated by the colorful and garish sounds.

"I'm going out for some fresh air." Yinzhen turned and left with these words, not even bothering to look at the door before leaving.

After exchanging a subtle glance with his mother, Hongzhao quickly picked up his feet and followed.

Yinzhen had indeed drunk quite a bit of wine. Perhaps his health was not as good as before. While in the palace, he felt suffocated and short of breath. When he went outside, the lingering heat of the day made his face feel even more uncomfortable. Yet, this discomfort was indescribable; he couldn't tell if it was heartache or stomachache. In any case, it was a feeling of unease, as if his internal organs were churning.

Su Peisheng stepped forward worriedly to help, but his ears twitched as he heard familiar footsteps coming from behind. He lowered his head and wisely withdrew his hand.

“Father, your son has asked someone to make some hangover soup. Let’s go sit in the pavilion and wait.” Hongzhao came out from behind, holding a damp, warm handkerchief in his hand. “Father, wipe your face. It will cool you down and help you wake up.”

Yinzhen mechanically took the handkerchief, said nothing, covered his face with it, paused for a moment, then took it off and casually tossed it into Su Peisheng's arms.

A gentle breeze blew across the lake, and it was indeed much cooler on my face than before.

Seeing that he was still in low spirits and unwilling to talk, Hongzhao knew that if he remained silent at this time, it would only make people think more deeply. He didn't care whether his father would remember him when he woke up tomorrow. He just pulled him into the pavilion and talked to himself.

“She’s just a princess from the Hui Fa Na La family. She’s been sent here, so be it. I’m not stupid. I understand what Grandmother means.” Hong Zhao looked at his father’s bloodshot eyes, which appeared even more lonely and desolate in the moonlight. “It’s just one more person in the backyard. As long as it makes Grandmother and Father happy, I won’t mind. I’ll just take good care of her.”

He also remembered Shushen; in any case, she was much better than Qingying, so he didn't have any resistance to her.

It was rare to see his father drunk, so Hongzhao took the opportunity to speak more than usual—"Today is the Mid-Autumn Festival, and with my father and mother by my side, I feel that this is the happiest day in the world. There is nothing to regret. But today... I feel sorry for my father."

Seeing the emotion flash in Yinzhen's lowered eyes, he moved closer and gently patted his father's wrist, just as Yinzhen had done when he was a child to lull him to sleep. "Your son is dull and often can't control his emotions. Whenever this happens, I silently recite a principle to myself—without expectations, there will be no disappointment."

Without expectations, there will be no disappointment.

Hongzhao was like a kitten, carefully holding a ball of tangled yarn, gently untangling it bit by bit with his fingernails. Yinzhen felt the raging sea of ​​anger in his heart being slowly calmed down.

"Why"

He opened his mouth, but couldn't utter a single word to Hongzhao.

What could he say? Complain to his son about his imperial mother, his own mother? Yinzhen could only blame himself for being too refined, for he couldn't utter a single word to his dearest son at this moment. All he could say was, "Let's go back, Father is alright."

Despite saying this, Yinzhen showed no intention of getting up, and Hongzhao naturally wouldn't move either. He had been sweating from rushing over earlier, and now that things were quiet, he felt a bit cold from the wind.

Su Peisheng stood outside the pavilion, watching two dimly lit figures, one large and one small, huddled together in the night. He then looked down at the bowl of hangover soup he had stopped, his good deed remaining hidden.

The Emperor's drinking habits are usually quite good; even when he's drunk, he can still remember most of what happened the next day. But there's always a chance something might go wrong. Su Peisheng needs to make this period of time last longer so that the impression can be deepened.

In any case, it's practically a done deal that this princess will enter the palace. She will live in the room left behind by the previous Qingying princess and will go to school with Hongjin.

Although many years have passed, Hongjin still remembers the time when she excitedly went to the palace gate to pick up Qingying, only to be met with a cold shoulder the whole way. Now that another one has arrived, she is somewhat hesitant.

Fortunately, it was clear from these past few days that Shushen was a good-natured person. After entering the palace, she obediently paid her respects to everyone. Afterwards, apart from going to class with the princess, she stayed quietly in her room and never ran around or talked nonsense. Hongjin was naturally not a petty person who liked to hold grudges, and they became familiar with each other in a few days.

She always remembered her title when she entered the palace, and would visit the ailing Empress Dowager whenever she had a spare moment, but unfortunately, she could only manage a few visits in total.

The Empress Dowager's condition worsened again, and the imperial physicians of the Imperial Hospital examined her one after another, leaving only four words: "It is beyond saving her."

In other words, it happened in the last few days.