Chapter 4 Chapter 4 Men's Preference for Women
Liang Hanzhang was completely settled in Zhilan. Perhaps it was because Xiaoqing's fate that night was too horrific, or perhaps it was Li Fude's instructions, but during the days she'd been there, at least no one dared to ridicule her openly. But what they were saying behind her back was unknown.
It was a rare sunny day, the warm winter sun streaming through the window lattice onto the desk. Liang Hanzhang was taking a nap in his room. Chunfen and Xiazhi sat on a small stone chair in the yard, sewing.
"Look at her weak character. How can she be qualified to be the head of a palace? I don't know what kind of luck she had that allowed His Highness to favor her." Chunfen nudged the person next to him and muttered softly.
Xia Zhi threw the needle and thread back into the basket and sneered, "Look at her, she cries at the slightest provocation. Does she really think she's the master? His Highness hasn't even come to the backyard to see her in all these days. The little bit of honor and favor she had is long gone!"
"Hey," Chunfen seemed to have thought of something, patted the other person's shoulder and said excitedly:
"She used to be a maid serving tea in Fengle Tower. What kind of place is Fengle Tower? It's a restaurant on the surface, but who knows what kind of brothel it is behind the scenes! Do you think she's been there for so long, wouldn't she have become unclean by now?"
"I think so too."
Qiufen, the most senior, came out and heard the two men brazenly discussing their master. He shouted angrily, "Be careful, or else you get bumped into by Li the Chief Steward and end up like Xiaoqing!"
Chunfen was the most competitive, but she softened her tone at this moment. After all, Xiaoqing's fate was still fresh in her mind. She muttered softly:
"Butler Li is someone close to His Highness, so he doesn't have time to come to the backyard. Besides, we were just speaking a few truths in private." She leaned towards Xia Zhi, "Right? We are both telling the truth."
Xiazhi nodded, stood up and held Qiufen's arm, "Oh, sister, we just drank a few bowls of yellow soup, please forgive us for the fact that we have worked together for many years."
Qiufen sighed, "Your Majesty is the master after all, and belongs to His Highness. Even if she is not favored, she still represents the dignity of the royal family. You are talking so rudely, where do you put the face of the Eastern Palace and the emperor?"
"Good sister, we know we were wrong and we won't do it again." Qiufen knew that the two of them were the most cunning, and now they had said everything they should and shouldn't say. If they dared to offend the queen again, she would not be able to protect them when she blamed them.
It was freezing cold, and even though the sun was out today, it still felt chilly to the bone. Liang Hanzhang lay in bed, her long black hair spread out, revealing a small face as beautiful as a lotus.
But at this moment, her brows were tightly furrowed, her mouth kept moving, tears rolled down her cheeks like beads with broken strings, and the sound of a woman sobbing could be faintly heard from the bed.
The basement under the main hall of the Shangqing Palace Taoist Temple is little known. It is dark, damp and cold inside. She walked down the stairs in the dim light and vaguely heard the sound of water dripping down the wall.
The sound of ticking makes one feel a chill down one's spine for no reason.
There was endless darkness before my eyes. I could only vaguely see a bed with a bulge in the quilt. I could hear a man coughing in pain.
The deeper she went, the darker the light became. She half-closed her eyes, her figure being dragged out very long in the dim light. She wanted to stop and turn back, but for some reason, her legs seemed to be filled with lead and could not move.
While she was stunned, the man seemed to hear a voice and raised his body to look at her.
Their eyes met. The pale blue flames illuminated his snow-white face, with prominent cheekbones, deep eye sockets, and a pair of dull eyes, clearly tormented by illness. He wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, looked at the visitor, and asked with a smile:
"Is Sui Sui here?" He struggled to get up and straightened his robe, as if he was extremely reluctant to let her see him in such a mess. Sui Sui was Liang Hanzhang's nickname.
It's funny that she was born without a father or a mother, but she had such a nickname.
We meet every year and wish you good health every year.
But she had never seen her biological parents. From what the lame old Taoist said, she was abandoned and sold by her biological parents because they thought she was a burden.
She has nothing but her brother, who she has depended on since childhood. But fate is so unfair, her only brother, her only relative, is suffering from illness every day.
All of this was thanks to that sanctimonious lame old Taoist priest. Liang Hanzhang's nails dug deep into his flesh, his nose sore and he choked with sobs, "Brother, are you okay? Did he torture you?"
They both knew who this "he" was referring to. The man looked at her, his eyes reflecting blazing sparks, as if hiding the sea of stars.
He wanted to raise his hand to touch her, but he didn't even have the strength to do so. Liang Hanzhang sensed the man's intention, sat on the edge of the bed, took his dry, thin hand, and cried, "I will definitely save my brother!"
The man smiled bitterly, with infinite attachment in his eyes, as if a warm hand was tracing her skin again and again: "Sui Sui, I'm just a dying man, you don't need to spend so much time on it. Listen to your brother and don't work for him anymore. Find a chance to escape and live your own life. When your brother sees you happy, he will die with peace of mind."
"I forbid you to say that!" Liang Hanzhang was furious. He threw the torch to the ground and put his hands around his waist. "Sui Sui will definitely rescue you, brother! Don't you believe in Sui Sui?"
His body was ravaged by poison. A hand resting on his waist felt only distinct bones, not a single shred of flesh covering them. From a distance, it looked like nothing more than bones wrapped in human skin.
A very faint smile flashed across the corner of the man's mouth, like a silent sigh, "Brother, how can you not believe that we can do anything?"
Liang Hanzhang felt as if his heart was being cut by a knife. He didn't know whether to comfort him or himself, and kept repeating, "It will be fine, it will definitely be fine..."
Before she could finish, the man in her arms started coughing violently, holding his lower abdomen and falling to the edge of the bed. Bright and sinister blood kept pouring out of his mouth, staining the floor red, and also staining Liang Hanzhang's broken heart red.
"Brother!" She shouted and jumped up from the bed, her eyes dull and she gasped heavily. Her face, which was flushed by the heat before sleeping, turned pale in an instant, and her sweaty hair stuck to her face, but the woman seemed unaware.
Dongzhi had been standing by and was so frightened by the queen's scream that she almost fell off her chair. "Queen, what's wrong with you?" she ran over, lifted the curtain, and asked carefully.
The bed curtains were raised, and the light streamed in. Her eyes were red from crying, and her face was a mess of tear stains. The bed suddenly became brighter, and the woman seemed unaware of it. She stared blankly at the ray of sunlight slanting in from a distance, without saying a word.
"Empress, what's wrong with you? Please don't scare me!" Dongzhi was the youngest of the four. She was frightened by her tearful eyes and almost crazy look. Her voice was filled with tears, "Empress..."
"Sister Qiufen, please come in quickly, something seems to have happened to the Queen!"
Qiufen and the others heard the noise and rushed in. When they saw the motionless, almost dazed face, they were all a little frightened. Qiufen remained calm and sent someone to find Doctor Wang.
He immediately took some remedial measures, pressing her Taiyangxue, pinching her Ren Zhong, and tried everything he could. The woman lay on the bed like a porcelain doll that had lost its soul, with a dull look in her eyes and not saying a word. Qiufen was extremely anxious and could only pace around the room, rushing out from time to time to see if Doctor Wang had come.
Upon hearing that Empress Fengyi was ill, Imperial Physician Wang hurried to Zhilan Residence. A woman should not casually see a man she did not know, even if he was over seventy.
The maids drew the curtains tightly shut, and then Doctor Wang felt the patient's pulse through the handkerchief. The room was eerily quiet. Doctor Wang's beautiful beard twitched as he continued examining the other hand.
"Doctor Wang, how is the queen's health?" Qiufen couldn't help but ask.
Doctor Wang pondered for a moment, then removed the handkerchief and stood up from the sheng ti. "Did the queen show any signs of anything unusual before she fell ill?"
Dongzhi was still crying beside her, but she still reported honestly, "The Queen was taking a nap at that time, and I was guarding beside her. The Queen was fine, but suddenly she screamed and sat up. When I looked over, I saw that her face was covered with tears and her eyes were dull. She became like this."
Doctor Wang turned around to write a prescription, and as he picked up the pen he said, "Your Majesty is suffering from depression and tension, and you just happened to catch a cold which led to convulsions. I will write you a prescription. You go down and boil it for your Majesty to take for three days, and you will probably be fine."
"Thank you, old sir," Qiufen personally escorted Doctor Wang out and secretly handed him a bag of silver before leaving.
Doctor Wang is the head of the Imperial Medical Bureau and is usually responsible for the health care of His Highness. Logically speaking, Her Majesty is just a small attendant and has no qualifications to be diagnosed by an imperial physician of Doctor Wang's qualifications.
But Doctor Wang still came all the way here after receiving the order, without a trace of anger on his face. Qiufen knew that he was giving Zhilanju a lot of face.
When Doctor Wang saw what she handed over, his face turned stern and he cursed angrily: "I came all the way to Zhilanju, but it is so disappointing to be insulted by you like this!" Doctor Wang snorted coldly, slammed his sleeves and walked away.
Qiufen looked embarrassed. She had the most seniority in Zhilanju and was used to welcoming and seeing off guests. She thought she could handle it with ease, but she didn't expect to run into a tough obstacle today.
By the time the people at Zhilanju hurriedly fed Liang Hanzhang the medicine, changed his clothes that were stained with the medicine, and carefully tucked in the corners of the quilt, the sky had gradually darkened.
The wind started to blow in the evening, and the cold wind was howling outside the window. Dongzhi walked in quickly and reported to her: "Sister, His Highness has returned home."
Li Cheng had rarely returned to the Eastern Palace these days, constantly preoccupied with the affairs of the former dynasty's rebel faction. When he did return, he would simply stay in the front courtyard. Consequently, Empress Fengyi hadn't even seen the Crown Prince during her stay.
Qiufen hesitated for a moment, took a deep breath, and ordered, "Dongzhi, you come with me." It was time for His Highness to know about such a serious matter as the Queen's illness.
Li Cheng stayed in Taiji Palace almost all day to report the treason to the emperor. When meeting the emperor, one must dress neatly and stand under the throne. As a son, Li Cheng could not make an exception.
He stood for a whole day and looked normal. Poor Li Fu, he was fat to begin with. If he had just stood for an hour or two, it would have been fine, but standing for a whole day almost cost him his life.
He followed Li Cheng with unsteady steps, barely able to hold the whisk in his hand. Li Cheng was sitting at his desk, about to continue reading the map that Xia Chang had sent him a few days ago, when he saw the old eunuch, looking like a zombie. He frowned and waved his hand impatiently:
"Go out, you're not needed here."
The disdain in His Highness's eyes was undisguised, but the old eunuch pretended not to notice, and was almost moved to tears. His Highness was truly a wise ruler, knowing that his father was too old to stand for long, yet he was so considerate.
Where can I find such a good master?
He waved the whisk in his hand, took his leave cheerfully, and moved towards the palace door with his heavy body twisting.
Qiufen was already waiting outside the palace. Seeing the eunuch coming out, he hurried forward to greet him respectfully, "May you live long and be healthy, eunuch." Li Fu supported his aching waist and recognized that this was the maid who served the empress. Startled, he couldn't help but ask, "What's wrong? Has something happened to the empress?"
Qiufen was still worried about disturbing her father-in-law over this little thing, but when she heard Li Fu's anxious voice, her worries disappeared. She replied:
"The Empress had a sudden convulsion during her nap at noon today. I sent someone to invite Doctor Wang, and she has taken medicine and is now asleep. But I feel that the Empress's illness is not a trivial matter, so I came to report to you when I heard that Your Highness had returned home."
"Besides convulsions, what other symptoms are there and what causes them?" Li Fu, who had already put down his hands on his waist, asked seriously.
"The Empress Dowager, the Imperial Physician, also caught a cold and was overly worried, which caused the outbreak."
"Depressed," Li Fu grasped the key words, his expression cold, "Why is the Queen so depressed? Could it be that your subordinates haven't served her well?"
"You are wronged, eunuch!" Qiufen knelt down with a plop and replied in a trembling voice, "We have been diligently working these days and have not slacked off for a moment. I really don't know why Your Majesty is so depressed...Your Majesty has never told us..."
"That's good," Li Fu snorted coldly, throwing down the whisk in his hand. "If I catch you guys offending the master, humph, and then we bring the matter before His Highness, it won't be a matter that can be solved with just a slap on the wrist." The implication was that the thirty lashes he had given Xiaoqing last time were a small matter, but if the matter came before His Highness, it would not be so simple.
"Yes, I will follow your instructions."
"Your Highness has been too busy to return to the Eastern Palace these days, but Empress Fengyi is always different in His Highness's heart. Don't think that the master has lost power and that you all want to climb over the master and act wildly! If there is a maid who keeps making trouble, you can tell Li Gui to deal with it."
Li Gui is Li Fu's godson, and his status is second only to that of another steward.
"Yes, I know."
"Go back and take good care of your queen. His Highness will go to the backyard after he finishes his work." Li Fu sent them away and initially planned to go back and rest, but after standing there and looking at the bright candlelight in the hall, he hesitated for a moment and finally pushed the door open and went in.
Li Cheng was writing something on a map with a pen. When he heard the noise, he looked up and saw the big round face with a noticeable double chin. He asked impatiently, "What's wrong? Didn't I tell you to get off?"
"I am the chief steward of Your Highness. How can I abandon Your Highness and live freely?" He smiled flatteringly, "I am back to serve my master."
Li Cheng couldn't figure out what he was thinking, so he snorted coldly and let him be.
Li Fu poured a cup of hot tea and brought it to the table with both hands. "Your Highness, have some tea." Li Cheng glanced at him. The man had changed out of the golden silk dragon robe he had worn when he entered the palace to meet the emperor. He now wore only a straight blue suit. His brows and eyes, under the light, lost some of their sharpness, revealing a slight softness.
Li Fu stood below and pondered for a moment, then bravely said, "Your Highness, the maidservant beside Empress Fengyi came to report that the Empress Fengyi is ill."
Suddenly hearing the name "Empress Fengyi", Li Cheng thought for a moment before remembering who it was. When Li Fu mentioned this person again, he was shocked to realize that several days had passed.
The man frowned unhappily: "If you are unwell, just ask the imperial physician to come. What's the use of telling me?" He put down the pen in his hand with a click and leaned back in the armchair.
Li Fu did not expect His Highness to react like this. For a moment, he was in turmoil and did not know how to end the situation.
He has served His Highness for so many years that he can be said to know His Highness better than the Emperor and the Empress. He can clearly see that His Highness treats Fengyi differently, and thinks it is a preference that only men have for women.
But today he had a faint sense of difference. Could it be that... His Highness really had no feelings for the Empress?
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