Empress Dowager's residence
"Following you, we've arrived at Taiji Palace."
As Sui Zhixu stood in front of the palace gate, the Empress Dowager's Taiji Palace, visible from outside the gate, already exuded elegance and grandeur.
Lady Zhang gestured for Sui Zhixu to enter. Sui Zhixu nodded, stepped into the palace, her steps light yet steady.
A cool breeze carrying the scent of incense wafted over, the sandalwood sweet and mellow, deep and understated. He then bowed and greeted the incense smoker.
She placed her hands on her chest, bent her knees, lowered her head slightly, and said in a clear voice, "This humble woman, following in the footsteps of her family, respectfully wishes Your Majesty good health. May Your Majesty enjoy good health and longevity."
She wasn't wearing a sachet today, and she felt quite uncomfortable without the scent of jasmine. Besides, there was no incense burning in her room, and smelling it for too long made her feel a little dizzy.
"Get up."
As Xu raised his eyes, the Empress Dowager's brows and eyes, imbued with experience, exuded an air of elegance and nobility. Her long, narrow, and deep eyes, like still pools, inspired awe and fear.
On either side were the Imperial Tutor and a lady whose features resembled those of the Empress Dowager and the Emperor, who appeared to be Princess Xuancheng.
"No wonder the Imperial Tutor said you and Sui He look alike. You two are practically cut from the same mold. Mother, look at yourselves, don't you look very alike?"
The Empress Dowager narrowed her eyes slightly, scrutinized Sui Zhixu, and slowly said, "He does indeed look very similar, but his eyes resemble those of the Prime Minister."
Princess Xuancheng laughed and said, "Look at what you're saying, Prime Minister Cong also needs to do his part. The child wasn't born from just He's body."
Her eyes were smiling, and compared to the Empress Dowager, she possessed a more carefree and peaceful quality.
She turned to Sui Zhixu and said, "You're double nine now, right? I remember the Imperial Preceptor predicted you would have eighteen robberies back then, and specially brought you from the Sui family to the Taoist temple to raise you."
Xu Gongjing replied respectfully, "That is indeed the case."
"If that's the case, then Sui He and Cong Lan haven't arranged a marriage for you either. It's rare for someone your age not to be married. Even Sanlang and Ning San Niangzi, I remember they were about to get married. What a pity."
"Let's not talk about that. I invited you here today for a meal so that the Empress Dowager and I can get to know you properly. Sui He was very cunning back then, and I'm curious to see what kind of daughter she could give birth to."
The Empress Dowager's gaze lingered on her for a moment, then she nodded and said, "It's getting late, let's serve the meal."
As Sui Zhixu stood in the center of the hall offering her thanks, she subtly met the gaze of Princess Xuancheng. Princess Xuancheng winked at Sui Zhixu and smiled playfully.
The imperial tutor, who was standing to the side, did not interrupt the conversation between Princess Xuancheng and the Empress Dowager from beginning to end. He simply sipped his tea leisurely in his seat and did not even care that Sui Zhixu had come.
However, Xu believed that this incident was the work of the Imperial Tutor.
Fu Mingguang carefully swallowed three words as she spoke, “I will travel ten thousand miles with my whip and visit the Emperor at Mingguang.” As the first Imperial Tutor of the Great Qi, her journey was quite arduous.
At the end of the Wei Dynasty, the late emperor established the Great Qi with the help of aristocratic families. For a time, the court and the harem were all composed of aristocratic families, who were extremely powerful. In addition to upright gentlemen and loyal ministers, there were also many two-faced hypocrites and treacherous villains.
The father and brothers of Imperial Tutor Fu Mingguang became innocent victims of their power struggles.
During the reign of the late emperor, women were not allowed to take the imperial examinations. At that time, Fu Mingguang disguised herself as a man to study at the Shanhai Academy, and became the first "unique" top scholar in the Great Qi Dynasty.
As for the relationship between her mother and her, when Cong Lan met Chaoyang, she briefly explained the details of her relationship with her mother.
The two were initially close friends, but Fu Mingguang later harbored thoughts of revenge, only to have his identity exposed and be framed and imprisoned by his enemies.
Back then, Fu Mingguang's enemies were powerful families who had contributed to the rise of the emperor and were influential figures in Chang'an. The Dali Temple prison almost became Fu Mingguang's death trap.
When the Sui family first arrived in Chang'an, they began to make a name for themselves with the support of the Shan Hai Academy and the Empress Dowager. Sui He wanted to help them, but Fu Mingguang's enemies forced Sui He to choose between the other members of the Sui family and Fu Mingguang.
Sui He chose to go with his family.
Finally, there is the current emperor. The Prince of Huai couldn't bear it and, under the pretext of praying for his seriously ill father, spared Fu Mingguang, who was disguised as a man and taking the imperial examination.
The Empress Dowager used this opportunity to further promote education among women throughout the land and improved the system of female officials in the palace.
After this incident, Fu Mingguang and Sui He drew a clear line between themselves, like the Chu-Han border.
They met unexpectedly upon arriving in Chang'an. Both were far from their hometowns; one sought to revive her family, the other to avenge her loved ones. Both harbored a burning desire to carve out their own path in the powerful and influential city of Chang'an.
They supported each other, but were also drawn into the web of power beyond their control, and eventually became strangers to each other.
Imprisoned alone, betrayed by his best friend, Fu Mingguang wished he could tear Sui He's flesh apart and drink his blood.
Even after so many years, and even after Sui He got married and had children, and even though Sui Zhixu was already eighteen years old, Fu Mingguang still refused to forgive Sui He.
Therefore, Cong Lan hesitated when trying to find a solution for Sui Zhixu. He and Fu Mingguang were both in the court. Fu Mingguang ignored him most of the time, but he could not mention Sui He. Once Sui He was mentioned, it was as if her scales had been peeled off. She wished she could execute Cong Lan on the spot.
Xu was puzzled. She herself represented Sui He, and as a descendant of Sui He, why was Fu Mingguang willing to help her time and time again?
"Why are you suddenly staring at the Imperial Tutor while we're eating? But the Imperial Tutor is quite good-looking. When I was young, I even thought he was a handsome young man and begged my father to let him be my son-in-law."
Princess Xuancheng teased Fu Mingguang, seeing that Sui Zhixu was staring at her.
"Hmph, you fall for every girl you meet, and you've never been proper. I'm too ashamed to even talk to you. Your skin is as thick as a city wall, and you still gossip about your affairs to the younger generation." The Empress Dowager put down her chopsticks and spoke to Princess Xuancheng with a look of disgust.
Xuan Cheng disagreed, retorting, "What's wrong with me? I can only say that I inherited my father's amorous nature. I have money and power, I neither oppress the people nor kill or lose my temper, I just want to give handsome young men a home. What's wrong with me? Besides, most of them have tragic backgrounds, and one or two of them followed me voluntarily."
"Shut your mouth! The child is still here. What kind of behavior is this?" The Empress Dowager rubbed her temples. "I really gave birth to you and your brother in the wrong genders. He was born to be the Emperor, but he is devoted to one woman. So far, the only child in the harem is Chaoyang, the eldest son."
“The princess is doing well, Empress Dowager need not worry.” Speaking of Chaoyang, Fu Mingguang finally put down his chopsticks and said this in a neither too loud nor too soft tone.
"Fortunately, you put your heart into arranging the marriage, otherwise, given your own temperament, you might have thrown Chang'an into chaos." The Empress Dowager nodded to Fu Mingguang. She didn't need to worry about Chaoyang, but Xuancheng in front of her was truly giving her a headache.
"What a pity about Sanlang and the young lady from the Ning family? Could it be that the marriage you mentioned has gone wrong?" The Empress Dowager recalled the word "pity" that Xuancheng had mentioned before the meal.
The more I thought about it, the more something seemed wrong, and the more likely it was to be true. I felt like punching Xuancheng to death.
The remaining bowls and chopsticks on the table were gradually cleared away by the palace maids. The Empress Dowager got up and saw Xuan Cheng's pathetic look, so she poked her head hard.
Princess Xuancheng desperately tried to explain the Pei family's affairs.
Sui Zhixu walked to Fu Mingguang's side, looked up at her, and asked, "Why does the Imperial Tutor happen to be at Taiji Palace today?"
"The princess happened to pass by after school."
Sui Zhixu: "Oh."
Taiji Palace and Chaoyang Hall are not on the same route at all.
Despite the seemingly simple reply, Fu Mingguang frowned and turned his head away.
Back in the main hall, the Empress Dowager leaned back, closed her eyes to rest, and said, "You all troubled me one by one."
The Empress Dowager understood Princess Xuancheng's intentions, and seeing that Fu Mingguang also had a bad look on his face, she sighed, "Alas, what a mess."
"I'm doing this for my brother's own good. The King of Xun has the Lu family as his backer. Even if the five families are no longer the same, they are still the five families. The Pei family is also your maternal family. Mother, please help us out."
"You said it yourself, I'm not in the palace most of the time, what help can I be? Chaoyang has already made all the arrangements. It's just that you're impatient and useless, yet you always try to help." The Empress Dowager rested her forehead on one hand and looked at Sui Zhixu sitting below.
He asked, "What did you find out, Madam?"
"Your Majesty, I am still investigating the candidates." Sui Zhixu said this, without revealing any further details.
The Empress Dowager was even more troubled, and glanced at Princess Xuancheng, whose eyes were darting around.
“There are actually people from the Lu family in Xingqing Palace. Zhang Ji, go and investigate. I haven’t interfered in court affairs for a long time, but I didn’t expect them to have their hands in there again. This time they even want to bring down the Pei family.”
The late emperor's children were not like the current emperor's; his family was incredibly large. Xun Wang was his eleventh son, and he was in his prime.
The Empress Dowager narrowed her eyes, a sharp glint in them. She had investigated once before, and now it had happened again.
"Perhaps they are a subordinate clan of the Lu family," Sui Zhixu suggested.
The Empress Dowager nodded and instructed Zhang Niangzi, who was to lead the way for Xu.
Fu Mingguang continued to drink his tea without saying a word.
Sui Zhixu's face showed a thoughtful expression. With the Empress Dowager's help, their progress might be faster. She wondered if the matter she had entrusted to Cui Wan would be successful this afternoon. If it was successful, the seventh day of the seventh month should be secure.
She took a deep breath, unaware of Fu Mingguang's gaze fixed on her from the shadows.
On the seventh day of the seventh lunar month, before the summer heat had completely subsided, the streets and alleys of Chang'an were filled with the joyful sounds of the Qixi Festival. Literati and ladies of leisure gathered in twos and threes to enjoy themselves in the bustling markets and along the banks of Qujiang Lake.
The palace had also prepared the Qiqiao Pavilion well in advance, inviting several concubines who rarely left their palaces to come out and have some fun.
Unlike the laughter and merriment in other places, the sound of the wind rustling through the bamboo leaves was particularly striking in the quiet outside Xingqing Palace.
Outside the dog hole under the bamboo grove, the wife crawled out and heard him say, "Why are you in such a hurry today?"
The newcomer lifted his cloak, revealing a familiar face.
The lady spoke up sarcastically, "Heh, not in a hurry? If you're not in a hurry, Xingqing Palace will be turned upside down by them. I don't know why, but the princess insisted that the imperial concubines attend the Empress Dowager's birthday banquet this time. I haven't thought of them for so many years, but I suddenly remembered them this time."
He panicked immediately, quickly put on his cloak, and made as if to leave. "What did you say? Princess? No, I have to leave now."
His wife grabbed his arm, asking in confusion, "What's going on?"
He desperately wanted to leave but was worried about her, so he simply said, "The princess has found a reason to send people to investigate the Pei family's case, so I have to leave immediately."
Suddenly, a series of chaotic footsteps came from all around, and the guards rushed in, surrounding the corner where they were in the blink of an eye.
"Minister Lu, who gave you the audacity to trespass into the inner palace?" Princess Xuancheng stared intently at Minister Lu in his black robes with her narrow, phoenix-shaped eyes, which resembled those of the Empress Dowager.
Sui Zhixu and the others stood behind the eldest princess. Minister Lu remembered Sui Zhixu and said, "It was you."
Su Zhixu had only attended one banquet in the past six months, and the Lu family had given a token gift for her coming-of-age ceremony. Therefore, Minister Lu did not know that she was the daughter of Sui He and Cong Lan.
"I see." Minister Lu didn't know who Sui Zhixu was, but he knew Cui Wan, and after thinking about it carefully, he could figure it out.
Lu Siqing's lips curled into a sneer, his expression manic, seemingly unconcerned. "I have always acted discreetly, and no one has noticed me for many years. I never expected to fall now."
His wife behind him cursed him silently, refusing to show her face. She tried to go through the dog hole back to Xingqing Palace, but the guards blocked her way.
With her back to the crowd, she was slender, and the clenched hands beneath her robes revealed her unwillingness to accept defeat.
"Tao Li".
Sui Zhixu slightly raised her eyes, her gaze cool and clear as it fell on the swaying bamboo shadows, and slowly said, "Why bother?"
The woman turned around, her eyes filled with mockery and madness; all traces of her initial timidity had vanished.
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