Chapter 16 Ancestor Worship
Shoukang Palace.
The hall was exceptionally quiet. The Queen Mother sat alone on a chair, her hands supporting her forehead and her eyes tightly closed.
Nanny Yang came in with some soothing soup and said, "Empress Dowager, His Majesty has left the Golden Throne Hall."
"I heard that Yu Ronghua went to Linde Palace to accompany the emperor. From what I can see, His Majesty is quite fond of Yu Ronghua."
The Empress Dowager opened her eyes and looked into the distance through the open window, as if she could still see the firecrackers burning in front of the Golden Throne Hall.
Days like these, when we bid farewell to the old and welcome the new, and when families gather together, always make it easy for people to recall the past.
"How is Concubine Yi?"
Nanny Yang said, "Princess Yi is pregnant, and the Queen has already sent her back. Does the Queen Mother want to continue to confine her?"
The Queen Mother fell silent. Whenever she thought of the navy blue enamel tea set, she would think of the appearance of her youngest son, the eighth prince of the late emperor, when he died.
The same set of tea sets took Heng'er's life and also brought the mother-son relationship between her and He Yanchen to an end.
Nanny Yang carefully observed her expression before saying, "Your Majesty, you really shouldn't have been so impulsive in front of His Majesty today. Isn't this stabbing His Majesty in the heart?"
A glint of light flashed in the Queen Mother's cloudy eyes, as if she was smiling bitterly: "He also wants to see me make a fool of myself."
Nanny Yang shook her head secretly, wondering how a good mother and son could end up like this.
She still remembered that when His Majesty was born, the Queen Mother was still of low rank and could not raise him personally. When the Queen Mother became a third-rank official, she took His Majesty home, but the Eighth Prince was also born.
People are all biased, and the Queen Mother is no exception.
By then, His Majesty had grown sensible and never betrayed his emotions. It wasn't until the Eighth Prince's death that the hidden rift finally surfaced, becoming irreparable.
"After all, it's all my fault..."
The entire hall was silent, with only the empress dowager's sigh echoing in the night.
*
The first day of the New Year is the day to commemorate ancestors.
No matter how unruly He Yanchen is, he has to go to the Taimiao to worship his ancestors today. It will take two or three days to go there and back.
When he got up, Yueli was still sleeping soundly.
While helping the man change into the dragon robe, Ji Ming glanced at the curtains hanging in front of the dragon bed. Yu Ronghua had said last night that she would go to the city tower to see His Majesty off, but...
After everything was cleaned up, He Yanchen walked to the couch, lifted the curtain and took a look at the woman who was still sleeping soundly.
The cascading curtains blocked the spring scenery on the bed.
The huge dragon couch was in a mess. Yue Li was hugging the quilt, her black hair spread on the soft pillow, her naked body was covered under the quilt, and her exposed neck and shoulders were covered with red marks.
She was so exhausted last night that she probably wouldn't be able to get up to see him off today.
"Hmm~" Yueli felt someone was looking at her in a daze. She muttered and naturally stretched out her soft arms to hug the man's strong waist, burying her little face in his arms.
"Do you want to get up?" He Yanchen asked.
Yueli shook her head gently, her voice thick with sleepiness: "Your Majesty, please go on your own..."
He Yanchen was amused by her, and said in a low voice with intimacy: "Then you won't be able to see me for three days."
Yueli only felt a noisy sound in her ears, it was so noisy.
She rolled over with the quilt, rolled to the inside of the bed, and faced away from him.
He Yanchen was so angry that he pulled the person back and pinched her face again and again before leaving.
The concubines were all waiting in front of Shengwu Gate. Ancestor worship was a big event, and the queen would also accompany them.
The queen was dressed in a bright yellow phoenix robe and behaved in a dignified manner. Even though she had been waiting in the snow for nearly half an hour, her demeanor was impeccable.
Seeing the imperial carriage coming towards them, the concubines bowed one by one.
"Your Majesty, the time has come, it's time to set off." The queen had a proper smile on her face.
He Yanchen nodded slightly and took the lead in getting on the imperial carriage in front.
The Queen turned to the other concubines and said, "The Queen Mother is not feeling well. All matters in the harem for the next few days will be handled by Consort De and Consort Shen."
Concubine Jin's face changed slightly. Her position was above Shen Zhaoyi, but the queen bypassed her and asked Shen Zhaoyi to assist in managing the six palaces.
The Queen didn't seem to notice her displeasure. Instead, she said to her, "Concubine Jin has to take care of the eldest prince, and I don't want you to be overworked."
Concubine Jin smiled wryly: "Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty."
After giving the instructions, the queen did not exchange pleasantries with them and turned to get into the carriage.
The ancestral worship convoys left Shengwu Gate one by one and disappeared from everyone's sight.
The journey takes three hours, and by the time you arrive at the Taimiao it is already dark. You need to fast and bathe before you can perform the grand worship ceremony the next day.
The next morning, He Yanchen brought the queen into the ancestral temple. Civil and military officials kowtowed outside the temple. After the tedious process was completed, it was already afternoon.
The queen looked at the man's back and asked softly, "Your Majesty, I will step aside first."
She knew that after each ancestor worship ceremony, He Yanchen would stay alone in the ancestral temple for a while, so she tactfully left.
The palace door closed and the light suddenly dimmed.
Outside, the wind and snow suddenly started to blow, and the windows that were not closed tightly were banging, and the candlelight on both sides swayed wildly.
On the high platform in front of him were the tablets of the emperors of Zhao State. He Yanchen stood up and brushed the dust off his knees.
"Father, you must be very happy to see your son's current state, right?"
A man's self-deprecating voice rang out in the empty hall.
He raised his hand and touched his heart, a cold smile on his lips: "Father always said that I was cruel, but Father forgot."
"I am your son, the son who looks most like you."
If you are not ruthless, how can you get this position?
He recalled how, after the Crown Prince had forced his way to the abdication and been captured, the late Emperor, brimming with pride, waited for the Virtuous Prince to claim the credit, only to see him. His good father, upon learning of the Virtuous Prince's entrapment, cursed him with a lifetime of vicious words, as if he were not his own son.
The late emperor favored the imperial concubine and the virtuous prince, and even deposed the crown prince without hesitation.
Unfortunately, he missed out on this vicious wolf of his own.
Everything that had been painstakingly planned for the wise king finally fell into his hands.
There was a sudden pain in his heart, but He Yanchen's expression did not change, except that his face turned a little pale.
He glanced coldly at the cold tablet, then turned around and was about to leave.
At this moment, the window was suddenly blown open, and the strong wind rushed into the hall. The tablet of the late emperor was blown to the ground and fell at He Yanchen's feet.
He kept walking and stepped directly on the tablet and the posthumous title of the late emperor.
The wooden tablet cracked slightly, but the man raised his lips:
"If I die, I will be buried with my father's kingdom."
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