Chapter 38 Rewards "His Majesty said he was wrong."
Su Panyue returned to Jingchun Palace, poured herself a bowl of tea and gulped it down, then cursed Xie Lanzhou in her heart.
Only then did he remember his important matter, and hurriedly asked Feixue to prepare pen and ink for him.
Jingchun Palace also has a separate study, the layout of which is somewhat similar to the Imperial Study, only much smaller.
Although Xie Lanzhou had previously granted her Jingchun Palace to live in, this was only her second time back, and she had never even set foot in the study before.
Su Panyue entered the study and locked the door. She also told Feixue not to let anyone else in before sitting down at the table by the window and copying the marching route map she had just seen in the imperial study from memory.
This can be considered one of her talents; she can remember almost anything she tries to remember for a long time, while things she wants to forget can quickly fade from her mind.
So when she was raised as a pawn, a plaything, in the State of Lu, she instinctively forgot most of her painful memories, not to mention the idea of undying loyalty to the State of Lu that they had instilled in her.
After taking the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Su Panyue put down her pen, picked up the military map she had just drawn, and nodded with satisfaction.
Now she just had to wait for Sun Shi to come to her.
But before Sun Shi arrived, he was greeted by Eunuch Fu, who brought several trays of gold.
"Consort Su, these are all gifts from His Majesty."
Even after hearing what Eunuch Fu said, Su Panyue still stared wide-eyed in disbelief. She had never seen so much gold before. She picked up a piece from the tray and smiled as she felt its heavy weight.
"Thank you for making the trip, Eunuch Fu. Please convey my gratitude to His Majesty for the reward."
Su Panyue no longer harbored any resentment towards Xie Lanzhou; her heart and eyes were filled with nothing but this golden treasure.
It seems her little trick of embroidering the sachet was not in vain. Compared to mandarin ducks, who wouldn't like gold?
Eunuch Fu continued, "Consort Su, His Majesty also asked this old servant to pass on a message."
Su Panyue asked curiously, "What did you say?"
Fu Gonggong hesitated for a moment, but finally bowed and said, "His Majesty said he was wrong."
Su Panyue was taken aback for a moment, almost forgetting that he had just upset her, and said nonchalantly, "It's alright."
Eunuch Fu's expression was complicated. His Majesty, the ruler of the country, personally apologized to her, yet he only received two words in return. It was somewhat unreasonable.
Then he looked at Su Panyue and continued, "His Majesty also said he would take you to the storeroom to pick out some jewelry."
Su Panyue's eyes lit up, and she said happily, "Your Majesty is so kind!"
Fu Gonggong finally breathed a sigh of relief, took his leave, and went back to report.
No sooner had Eunuch Fu left than Su Panyue had the five trays of gold placed on the table and began to examine them one by one.
While she was playing with it, a figure climbed in through the window. Su Panyue was already used to this; it was Sun Shi.
Upon landing, he asked, "Was this a gift from the emperor?"
Su Panyue nodded, her face beaming with undisguised joy: "Yes, how much do you get paid for working for your lord?"
Sun Shi remained silent.
Su Panyue continued to persuade, "How much did he give you? I'll give you double, as long as you don't make things difficult for me."
Sun Shi looked at the gold on the table thoughtfully and said, "He's been good to you. He was just trying to gather some information. How could he have made things difficult for you?"
Su Panyue rolled her eyes speechlessly; heaven knows how hard she had worked last night.
"I'll help you this one last time, don't come looking for me again!" she said, pulling out a military map she had drawn and throwing it at him.
Sun Shi took it, excitedly opened it, and frowned when he saw the contents: "Did you draw this yourself?"
Su Panyue nodded, a hint of pride in her voice, and said, "I copied it from memory. What do you think?"
Sun Shi stared at the drawing in his hand in silence for a long time, then pointed to a line on it that was thicker than a fire poker and asked, "What is this?"
Glancing at it sideways, Su Panyue replied, "It's a river."
Sun Shi then pointed to a dark, indistinct mass nearby and asked, "What's this? Was it stepped on by a chicken?"
Su Panyue glanced at him sideways and said irritably, "This is a forest."
Sun Shi let out a breath and pointed at the painting again, asking, "Why are there gold ingots on this?"
Su Panyue was speechless for a moment before answering, "This is a boat."
She said somewhat angrily, "Can you even understand it?"
Sun Shi said helplessly, "Can't you draw a little better?"
Hearing his disdainful tone, Su Panyue retorted, "I risked losing my head to look at this. If you don't like it, give it back to me."
Sun Shi immediately put the painting away and said, "I will explain your merits to the lord."
Su Panyue asked, "Will your lord reward me with something?"
Sun Shi: "My lord is fair in rewarding and punishing, and once the great cause is accomplished, he will surely reward those who have made contributions."
Su Panyue rolled her eyes: "So, my lord's reward is just verbal?"
Sun Shi was speechless at her words, his face flushed as he tried to retort.
Su Panyue waved her hand at him: "You should leave now and don't come looking for me again."
There seemed to be footsteps coming from outside the door, and Sun Shi darted out the window.
The next moment, Xie Lanzhou pushed open the door and entered, catching a glimpse of an indigo-colored hem of clothing, and narrowed his eyes.
Seeing that he was looking out the window, Su Panyue was worried that Sun Shi would be discovered, so she took the initiative to hug his arm.
She smiled and said, "Your Majesty, what brings you here? I was just about to go and thank Your Majesty for your reward."
[They're not here to take me to the storeroom to pick out jewelry, are they? Hehe]
Xie Lanzhou smiled but remained silent. He walked to the table, looked at the brushes, ink, paper, and inkstone that had not yet been put away, and said in a low voice, "I did not know that you could paint."
Following his gaze, on the table were the pig heads she had just drawn, each with a crown drawn on it, almost as if the word "emperor" was written on them.
Su Panyue gave an awkward laugh. She had just drawn this on a whim when she got back from being angry, so she could only try to make amends by saying, "Aren't pigs cute? Doesn't Your Majesty like them?"
Xie Lanzhou looked at her meaningfully and said, "I like it."
Su Panyue felt like she was being subtly insulted, so she pursed her lips and didn't say anything more.
"Let's go," Xie Lanzhou said, walking out.
Su Panyue subconsciously followed him, asking, "Where are we going?"
"Go to the warehouse."
Su Panyue was delighted and quickened her pace to catch up.
Xie Lanzhou slowed his pace and turned to look at her: "You're all recovered?"
Su Panyue blinked, realizing what he was talking about, and quickly waved her hand: "No, no, my back still hurts."
[He wouldn't want to come again tonight, would he? I really don't have a drop left.]
Xie Lanzhou chuckled, took her hand, and patted it reassuringly.
It wasn't until the two arrived at the fourth floor of the Star-Picking Pavilion that Su Panyue realized that this was the warehouse Xie Lanzhou had mentioned.
Being an emperor is truly amazing; the imperial storehouse is as big as an entire floor.
"Let's see if there's anything you like."
Su Panyue smiled and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty!"
She then began to touch and look around. She had been here once before and was dazzled by the wide array of goods, let alone this time when she came specifically to pick out something for herself.
He picked up a jade ruyi and touched it, then grabbed a huge luminous pearl and looked at it, finding it difficult to choose.
"Take them all if you like," a deep male voice came from behind.
Su Panyue had never thought his voice was so pleasant, and immediately stood on tiptoe to kiss him on the cheek, "Then I won't be polite."
After picking and choosing until her arms were overflowing, Su Panyue couldn't even spare a single finger.
Xie Lanzhou saw her appearance, lowered his head and smiled, clapped his hands, and Feixue and Feiyan came in, each carrying a box.
"Put it away for your master," Xie Lanzhou instructed.
"If you had told me you had boxes, I would have gone to pick out some more." Su Panyue muttered to herself as she helped Feixue Feiyan pack the boxes.
"Can."
Unexpectedly, he actually agreed. Su Panyue's smile widened as she said, "Never mind, never mind. Women love money, but they should acquire it in a proper way. They shouldn't be too greedy."
After carefully putting away the two large boxes, Su Panyue asked softly, "Your Majesty, shall we go upstairs to see Grandma?"
The old woman she mentioned was Xie Lanzhou's wet nurse. Xie Lanzhou nodded: "Perfect, let's have dinner together."
When we got to the top floor, it was that white cat that ran over first.
Su Panyue bent down and picked it up, patting its head: "Have you gotten fatter again?"
The white cat purred and nuzzled her hand affectionately.
The same young boy helped the old nanny out, saying, "This old servant greets Your Majesty and Consort Su."
"No need for such formalities, Granny." Xie Lanzhou reached out and took her arm, leading her to sit down at the table.
Su Panyue was surprised that the news of her becoming a beauty had reached here, and said somewhat shyly, "Just call me Yue'er, nanny."
Xie Lanzhou glanced at her and ordered someone to bring over dinner.
Su Panyue then took the old woman's hand and told her some interesting stories from recent days, making the white-haired old woman laugh heartily.
Even Xie Lanzhou, who was sitting to the side, had an unusually gentle expression.
Dinner was spent in such a harmonious atmosphere.
Just as Su Panyue thought they were going back, Xie Lanzhou pulled her into a small room.
Su Panyue thought the man was about to unleash his beastly nature again, but after entering the room, she was stunned and stood there.
The small room contained only a long table and a few prayer cushions. On the long table was a memorial tablet inscribed with "Tomb of my mother, Ji Fangyi".
She turned to look at Xie Lanzhou, whose face showed no emotion. She hesitated and asked, "What is this?"
"It's my mother," Xie Lanzhou said, confirming her suspicions.
Su Panyue blinked, trying to process the information.
She had heard before that royal descendants, concubines, and princesses would be buried in the imperial mausoleum after their deaths. The emperor's widows would be lucky enough to be sent to chant sutras for blessings, but unlucky ones would be sent to be buried with him.
How come Consort Ji's memorial tablet is here?
Seemingly noticing her confusion, Xie Lanzhou explained, "My mother was deceived by him her whole life, and she probably wouldn't want to sleep with him even after she dies."
Su Panyue seemed to understand; his murder of his father and usurpation of the throne was probably not a rumor, but rather an act of revenge for his mother.
She quietly reached out and squeezed his hand, which was clenched into a fist hidden in his sleeve.
Xie Lanzhou closed his eyes, took her hand again, and knelt on the prayer mat.
Out of respect for the deceased, Su Panyue also knelt down.
"Mother, your son has come to see you today with his wife."
Upon hearing the word "wife," Su Panyue looked up in surprise, only to see his focused and devout profile as he looked up at the memorial tablet above.
She didn't know why she was also nervous. Her heart was pounding uncontrollably, her palms were sweating, and she was afraid to look up.
I prayed silently in my heart:
Hello, this is Su Panyue. I hope you are at peace in heaven and that you bless Xie Lanzhou with a long and healthy life.
Xie Lanzhou listened to her heartfelt words and held her hand even tighter.
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Author's Note: How can this not count as meeting the parents? [shy]
I lost four favorites today, so sad, please don't leave! [crying emoji]
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