The Empress Dowager sighed softly, knowing that Consort Duan must have entered Prince An's residence, but she didn't care about his life or death at all. She said, "Never mind, the Emperor has already ordered people to investigate this matter. Let Yu'er rest well."
Mentioning the emperor caused Consort Duan a sharp pain in her heart, as if someone had stabbed her in the back. She recalled that fleeting glimpse of him at the villa on the outskirts of the capital.
More than twenty years have passed in the blink of an eye.
The Empress Dowager continued, "How is that girl from the Lu family doing at Prince An's residence? I heard she was also shot by an arrow that day; has she woken up yet?"
Consort Duan came to her senses: "Yes, she's awake, but she's still very weak and will be resting in bed for the next couple of days."
Granny Zhang lowered her head, not daring to say anything. She thought to herself that he was not lying in bed recuperating, but had only just woken up after being unconscious for two days. If the imperial physician did not examine him properly, he would lose half his life even if he did not die.
Seeing that she hasn't eaten much in the past two days, she's probably on the verge of starving to death.
The Empress Dowager nodded: "Hmm, that's good. I don't think this girl is inherently bad. She might not have done that thing herself. It wouldn't be so easy for such a despicable thing to be done in the palace without someone helping her. At that time, there were so many people in the palace, and things were complicated. Afterwards, no one asked her what exactly happened, nor did they investigate it carefully. The Emperor just hastily bestowed the marriage upon her."
"Let bygones be bygones. Now that you're at Yu'er's residence, as her mother-in-law, you should take her to your side and teach her properly. This child is pitiful; she lost her mother at a young age, and the Duke of Zhenguo and his son are stationed in the southern border year-round. I see that this girl is truly devoted to Yu'er. As long as the couple is doing well, isn't that better than anything else?"
"Besides, Yu'er is already twenty-three years old. He has been in the Northwest for the past ten years, and his marriage has been delayed until now. It can be said that this is a twist of fate."
The Empress Dowager spoke slowly.
Hearing this, Consort Duan suddenly raised her head: "But, Yong'an, she and Yu'er have been childhood sweethearts, and I secretly think..."
The Empress Dowager glanced at Consort Duan: "Yong'an... let's leave it at that for now. Life is unpredictable, and what has already happened cannot be undone."
She had a clear view of what happened that day, and it was still unknown what role Ren Yong'an had played in it.
Whether she truly wanted to marry Yu'er is also worth considering.
Consort Duan sneered inwardly. This woman, Lu Xiaoyun, is really capable. When did she manage to get on the good side of the Empress Dowager? Even she didn't know.
She pursed her lips and said, "Yes, I've remembered. When I get back, I will definitely keep her by my side and 'teach her well'."
I'll make her pay!
The Empress Dowager picked up her tea and drank it: "Very well, once they have both recovered, they should consummate their marriage as soon as possible, so they can start having children sooner."
Consort Duan hurriedly replied, "Yes, that's what I thought too, so I specially asked Imperial Physician Jiang to take a good look at her. But who knew that Imperial Physician Jiang said that Xiaoyun's health has been poor since childhood, and her weakness and coldness are extremely serious, so it will be very difficult for her to have children in the future."
She didn't care whether Lu Xiaoyun was healthy or not; all she knew was that her son utterly despised this woman for using such despicable and vile means to force him to marry her.
Yu'er would never touch such a woman, so how could she possibly conceive Yu'er's child?
Isn't this old hag the one who values royal offspring the most?
Ha, Lu Xiaoyun can't have children. Let's see if she'll agree to let Yong'an enter the Prince An's mansion as soon as possible.
The Empress Dowager asked in surprise, "Oh? Is that so? Wasn't it said that the Duchess of Zhenguo doted on her, her eldest daughter? How come her health is so poor?"
Consort Duan replied, "Imperial Physician Jiang said that she was born with it. In the past few years, Madam Lu has invited many famous doctors to treat her and she has taken a lot of medicine, but she still can't get better."
The Empress Dowager sighed softly, "What a pity for this child."
"Therefore," Consort Duan said slowly, looking at the Empress Dowager, "I think it would be better to let Yong'an marry into Prince An's mansion as a secondary wife as soon as possible. Yu'er and Yong'an have been childhood sweethearts since they were little, and they both have feelings for each other. Now that the Northwest is at peace and the Northern Qi has submitted its surrender, if Yu'er has someone he likes by his side, I, as his mother, will be much more at ease."
The Cisui Palace was very quiet. Apart from the sound of the Empress Dowager gently turning the prayer beads in her hand, there was only the sound of Consort Duan speaking.
Seeing that the Empress Dowager remained silent, Consort Duan continued, "If that incident hadn't happened, Yu'er would have married Yong'an by the time the New Year was over. He had even prepared the betrothal gifts. I went to the Prince's storeroom and saw dozens of full sets of fine things. It's clear that Yu'er truly cherishes Yong'an."
The Empress Dowager's face gradually darkened: "We'll talk about this later. First, let's focus on taking good care of the Lu family girl's health."
Consort Duan's face was grim: "However, Yu'er is already twenty-three years old, and he will be twenty-four after the New Year. In the noble families of the capital, people his age already have a string of children following behind them calling him 'father'."
The Empress Dowager's cold eyes turned to Consort Duan. In her youth, she had fought alongside the late Emperor on the battlefield, and her imposing and ruthless aura emanated from her eyes, causing Consort Duan to tremble in fear.
She hurriedly said, "When I get back, I will ask Physician Jiang to prescribe more tonics and personally make sure Miss Lu drinks her medicine every day so that she can recover her health as soon as possible and have children for the royal family."
The Empress Dowager's expression softened somewhat, but she was still impatient to talk to Consort Duan about such trivial matters: "You may go back now, I am tired."
Consort Duan had no choice but to rise and bid farewell to the Empress Dowager: "Then I shall take my leave."
The Empress Dowager waved her hand with her eyes closed. Her own son had suffered such serious injuries and almost lost his life, yet as his mother, she hadn't visited him even once. How could she, as the Empress Dowager, not feel heartbroken?
Otherwise, why would she have suggested to the Emperor that she simply move into Yu'er's Prince An's residence? As his mother, she should be able to see for herself how difficult her son's life is.
Now it seems, alas, that she simply did not understand the reasoning behind it.
Seeing that Consort Duan had already stood up, the Empress Dowager said, "Granny Liu, you personally escort Consort Duan out of the palace."
Consort Duan paused in her steps. "Old man!"
Suddenly, they heard footsteps.
The Empress Dowager, Consort Duan, Granny Zhang, Granny Liu, and others all looked towards the door. They saw Zhang Zhongwei, the chief eunuch of the Emperor, enter with a smile on his face and holding a scroll of bright yellow imperial edict in his hand.
Upon seeing this, the Empress Dowager sat up straight, glanced at Consort Duan, and then looked at the bright yellow imperial edict in Zhang Zhongwei's hand: "What's going on? Did the Emperor issue any decree?"
Zhang Zhongwei first bowed to the Empress Dowager, then to Consort Duan, and replied with a smile, "Yes, His Majesty has decreed that Consort Duan be promoted to the rank of Noble Consort."
The Empress Dowager narrowed her eyes slightly.
Consort Duan was overjoyed. So, she had only been staying at Yu'er's residence for two days before she had to move back to the palace.
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