Chapter 422 I Won’t Be on the Same Side with the Old Lady
The emperor glanced at the empress dowager calmly and said, "Mother, the capital is very different now than when you left.
Not only the capital, but the entire Dayong, and even Nanzhao, are different from what they were before.
If we were to ask who in this world can be a role model for women, if Youning is second, then no one can be first."
The emperor's words were almost like pointing at the empress dowager and saying that she was surprised by what she saw.
The Empress Dowager could not believe that the Emperor would speak to her like that.
Is this still my son?
"Emperor!" the Empress Dowager asked in a deep voice, "Do you understand what you're saying? Since ancient times, respect and obedience have been considered beautiful in women, and virtue, eloquence, and merit are considered important. How could she possess these qualities? How could you, Your Majesty, praise her so highly? Your Majesty, please don't give her such high regard just because she saved the Crown Prince's life! This is utterly unfair to the people of the world, and to everyone else!"
"Mother!" The emperor didn't back down. "I value Youning because she saved the crown prince, but that only accounts for a small part of her. The real reason I value Youning is because she has single-handedly worked for the benefit of women all over the world and spoken up for them. Could it be that you, Mother, haven't heard of what Youning has done?"
"Of course I've heard of it!" The Empress Dowager said as a matter of course, "Precisely because I've heard of it, I'm even more anxious to come back! Allowing women to file for divorce is to make them unfaithful. It makes them unfaithful. Removing the need for women to remain chaste and supporting widows to remarry damages their reputations, brings shame to their families, and makes people think they're immoral! As for opening a school of Yi and letting women sit in the clinic and see patients, it's even more ridiculous!
As a woman, the most important thing is to take care of your husband and children, follow the three obediences and four virtues, and stay in the backyard. How can you go out and show your face in public? What's the difference between those who greet and send off guests all day and those who are in the brothel?
It would be fine if the emperor didn't stop such nonsense, but he actually praised and supported it, which is extremely ridiculous."
After the Empress Dowager finished speaking, the expressions of everyone present changed.
The Empress Dowager is so bold!
But think about it, she is the empress dowager after all, so it is normal for her to say that!
If it were them, they wouldn't dare to say it.
Not to mention talking about it, they don’t even dare to listen!
Everyone lowered their heads, not even daring to look up, and only dared to secretly glance at the emperor and empress sitting above.
Neither the emperor nor the empress had any expression on their faces, making it impossible to tell what they were thinking.
There were so many people sitting in the hall, but no one dared to make any sound. It was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop.
At this moment, the emperor suddenly laughed.
"Since Mother believes that women should follow the Three Obediences and Four Virtues and should not appear in the previous dynasty, then Mother will do so from now on!"
"What?"
The Empress Dowager didn't understand what the Emperor meant for a moment and looked at him strangely.
"Emperor, what did you mean by what you just said? I don't understand!"
"Your Majesty is so intelligent, how could she not understand what I mean? I'm saying that since you believe women should follow the Three Obediences and Four Virtues, shouldn't show their faces in public, and certainly shouldn't get involved in government affairs, then you should stop caring about these matters and just enjoy your old age in Shou'an Palace!"
The Empress Dowager had some guesses in her mind just now, but she was unwilling to believe it, so she asked the Emperor.
Now that he had received a definite answer from the emperor, he was filled with incomparable anger.
The Empress Dowager was so angry that her body was shaking. She pointed at the Emperor with a trembling finger, "How dare you speak of your mother like that? I am the Empress Dowager!"
"Of course I know that my mother is the Queen Mother! Precisely because she is the Queen Mother and advocates such a point of view, she should lead by example!"
As the emperor spoke, he frowned slightly and looked at the empress dowager with some uncertainty.
"Mother, you don't just want to ask others to do this, but don't want to do it yourself, right?"
Such a straightforward question was like tearing off the Empress Dowager's face, throwing it on the ground, and stepping on it hard.
“You! You! You!”
The Empress Dowager pointed at the Emperor and kept saying “you, you, you” for a long time, but she couldn’t say anything.
The emperor did not dodge or evade, but looked straight at the empress dowager, as if waiting for her to continue speaking.
The Queen Mother took several deep breaths before she finally calmed down.
"Is this how the Emperor welcomes me? Or does the Emperor simply not want me to come back? If I return directly to Mount Wutai now, will that satisfy the Emperor's wishes?"
The emperor shook his head and smiled bitterly, "Mother, I was clearly following your instructions. Why are you still unhappy at the end?"
Looking at the emperor's sincere face, the empress dowager almost had a heart attack out of anger.
Just when everyone was silent, Yu Youning spoke.
"Your Majesty, this is why your expectations of others are different from your expectations of yourself!"
The crisp words suddenly rang out in the hall.
Many people who heard this wished they were a cage.
It’s okay for what the emperor just said.
After all, they are mother and son, and the emperor is the emperor after all.
No matter how angry the Empress Dowager was, she could not cause any substantial harm to the Emperor.
But Yu Youning is different!
Whether from the perspective of monarch and minister, or from any other perspective, Yu Youning is in a weak position.
If the Empress Dowager was really angry and secretly attacked Yu Youning...
No one dared to think about it anymore.
Everyone's head was lowered under the table.
To them, this is a fight between gods and the little devils are suffering!
All of them are unlucky little devils!
The Empress Dowager looked at Yu Youning with a sinister look.
Maybe he has already sentenced Yu Youning to death in his heart.
Yu Youning was not afraid of this at all.
Not only that, Yu Youning also said earnestly, "Empress Dowager, although you may not like to hear it, I am a doctor after all. There are some things I have seen, and I still have to speak out.
You have a lot of liver fire right now, which is harmful to your body! If you want to stay healthy, it's best not to get angry anymore! Otherwise, I'm afraid you might have a stroke!"
"you!"
The Queen Mother was furious. She raised her hand and slammed it heavily on the table in front of her.
“Nonsense!”
"I think you are spoiled by the emperor and you don't know your place, that's why you are talking nonsense here!"
"I'm in perfect health! How could I possibly have a stroke?"
"If you dare to talk nonsense again, even if the emperor wants to turn against me, I will definitely punish you!"
The Empress Dowager looked as if she wanted to eat someone.
Yu Youning sighed and shook his head. "Since the Empress Dowager doesn't believe me, then forget it! I won't say anything!"
Seeing that Yu Youning really shut up, the Queen Mother was slightly satisfied.
If Yu Youning continued talking, she would really get angry!
Fortunately, Yu Youning still had some brains and knew when to stop.
After such a commotion, the atmosphere of the entire banquet became extremely cold.
It was still autumn, but everyone present felt as if they were in the cold winter and couldn't help shivering.
After finally holding on until the end of the banquet, they saw that the emperor, empress, empress dowager and others had left. Then the others stood up and left as if they were running for their lives.
Yu Youning and Chu Huaixu walked out together.
Chu Huaixu whispered to comfort Yu Youning.
"Youning, don't be angry. No matter what the Queen Mother says, it's useless! It won't change anything!"
Yu Youning nodded, "I know! I'm not angry now. What's there to be angry about with an old lady? She can't do anything to me. She should be the one who is really angry!
However, if you see her tomorrow, you should tell her that her health is indeed not good. If she gets too emotional and angry again, she may really have a stroke."
Chu Huaixu's eyes flashed, and he nodded with a smile, "Okay, I understand. I will definitely remind the Queen Mother when I see her."
As they were talking, they had already reached the palace gate.
Yu Tingwan, Wen Shiyan, and Marshal Wen were already waiting for Yu Youning.
Yu Youning didn't say anything more to Chu Huaixu. He waved his hand and got on the carriage.
As soon as he sat in the carriage, Yu Tingwan looked over with concern, "Youning, what happened tonight..."
"Mother!" Yu Youning looked at Yu Tingwan with a bright smile, "I'm not angry about what happened tonight. I won't argue with the old lady!"
Seeing that Yu Youning didn't want to talk more, Yu Tingwan nodded, "Mother knows that someone like Youning who is good at big things won't take such a small matter to heart!"
...
Shou'an Palace.
After a noisy day, Shou'an Palace finally became quiet.
Shen Lirong and Chu Huaijing were both here, surrounding the Empress Dowager and crying.
"Empress Dowager, shouldn't I have come back?" Shen Lirong's tears fell. "My cousin still dislikes me as much as he did back then... maybe even more than before. Not only did he punish me today, he also made me look bad in front of all the civil and military officials and everyone in the harem. How can I survive in the harem?"
Over the years, Chu Huaijing has always been pampered by the Empress Dowager and Shen Lirong, living a free and easy life, getting whatever he wants.
I had only been back in the palace for one day when I was thrown into such a mess. I simply couldn't accept it.
Hearing Shen Lirong's crying at this time, he became more and more irritated.
"Mother, please stop crying! What's the point of crying? Crying is useless! Since he doesn't welcome us, mother and son, and doesn't cherish us, why should we care about him? Just leave the palace, go back to Mount Wutai, or go back to the Shen family. Wouldn't your life be much more carefree than now?"
Shen Lirong's crying stopped.
She cried not because she really wanted to leave the palace, but just used this method to complain to the Queen Mother so that the Queen Mother would favor her more.
In order to make the effect more realistic, I didn't inform Chu Huaijing in advance.
I didn't expect that I would almost end up making things worse!
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