All these years, carrying the secret alone, Yu's mother has never felt truly at peace.
At first, she had nightmares every night. She dreamed that her lies were exposed and that she and her second son were thrown back into the refugee camp and among the beggars.
Fortunately, the nightmare did not come true. More than 20 years later, she was the mother of the Palace Office, wearing brocade and gorgeous clothes, and learned to burn incense and worship Buddha like those noble ladies. Although her second son had no skills, he also got a decent and leisurely job in the capital thanks to his elder brother, married a considerate wife, and gave birth to a smart and lively grandson for her...
Life was so good that she no longer had nightmares. She began to frequently dream that her grandson grew up to become an official in the court and that the Yu family's glorious heritage continued...and all of this was due to the lie she had told in the beginning.
Although that lie was risky, it was worth it for her.
Every time she looked at everything in front of her, she felt that even if she could do it again a hundred times or a thousand times, she would still make the same choice.
Her white hair gradually increased, which gave her an illusion that everything would be settled after getting old, and there would be no other major twists and turns in life except waiting for death.
It was not until that night, in that wine cellar, that "Yu Zeng" told her that he knew everything clearly.
She tried to feign confusion at first, but when she saw the face in the dim light and the pair of emotionless eyes, her hope quickly vanished.
She wrung her hands together, showing an extremely uneasy expression, and murmured to him when he noticed it.
He said in a very calm voice: [When you and I first met.]
The woman's head was buzzing.
So, when she took advantage of the situation and admitted the person, the other party was also taking advantage of the situation?
There were too many things she couldn't figure out, but she didn't dare to ask. She knelt down in panic, crying and begging him to consider their mother-son relationship for many years, and Yu Guang had never known anything and had always treated him as his own brother...
Before she finished her plea, she heard him say: "You used me for greed, and I also used you for greed. We owe each other nothing."
She was stunned. Was he greedy? What was there in her and her second son that was worth his coveting?
But what she was more concerned about was, since he had been "letting things slide" for so many years...why did he choose to speak out now? "Yu Zeng" quickly gave her the answer.
[I may not be able to return safely from Beijing this time. If something happens to me, you can leave from here.]
Looking at the dark room door being pushed open, the woman was unable to react for a moment.
[Disasters may come suddenly. To avoid being unable to escape, you can use this opportunity to leave early and have your servants tell others that you are returning home to visit relatives. Bring enough money to get by, change your identity, and go farther.]
She was stunned. Go further? It was so chaotic outside, where could she go? She had seen the horrible world of cannibalism... The second son was mediocre. After he left, could they really protect themselves? He said "may not be able to return safely", but that doesn't necessarily mean he won't be able to come back, right? Maybe he can turn danger into safety? Life can still go on, right? The woman couldn't imagine the interests involved. She only knew that if she left, she would never come back! She looked at the door and nodded unwillingly.
Once they walk out of this door, her second son and grandson’s future, wealth, safety...all will disappear.
She was thinking in a daze, let's take a gamble, just like she did more than 20 years ago.
She came to her senses and expressed her feelings to "Yu Zeng": [Over the years, mother has already treated you as her own son... We are already as close as a family, how can I abandon you and leave? ]
She didn't know anything, but she knew what she wanted.
I don't know if "Yu Zeng" saw through her plan, so he didn't say much.
He has already given reminders and arrangements, so he doesn't need to influence the other party's choice.
Yu's mother chose to stay. After Yu Zeng left, she fasted and chanted Buddhist scriptures every day, praying that he would escape danger. She was extremely pious... But what was supposed to come finally came tonight.
She was not lucky in gambling this time, but fortunately she had decided from the beginning to only gamble herself, so she asked her trusted maid to make arrangements in advance.
If she wins the bet, everything will go as she wishes; if she loses the bet...she will bear the consequences herself!
Her plan was nothing more than the greedy and clumsy calculations of an ignorant little person, but if she had the chance to do it again, she would still do it again.
Inside the carriage, the woman's tears were as cold and damp as the increasingly dense raindrops outside.
After getting off the carriage, she saw the tall and majestic palace walls hidden in the night, which was something she would never have the chance to see in her lifetime.
In the Sigongtai, Yu Zeng's body has not been brought back yet, and the purpose of her coming here tonight is not to identify the body.
The Sigongtai was in charge of palace punishments and also dealt with people and matters that were inconvenient for the emperor to be exposed, so it had an interrogation department.
Under the eaves, raindrops dripped down in the place where the light alternated between light and dark, as if stained with the fishy and cold smell of blood.
…
When Ma Xingzhou returned to the prime minister's residence, it was already late, but Prime Minister Ma's wife had not yet gone to bed.
After the servants in the room left, Madam Ma Xiang showed her uneasiness: "Recently, I have dreamed of Wan'er crying and calling for her grandmother... My dear, can you tell me, how is Wan'er now?"
Ma Xingzhou, who had changed into his undergarment, sat beside the couch and said in a very low voice, "Prince Rong has indeed had rebellious intentions for a long time."
Upon hearing this, the gray-haired Madam Ma's face tightened: "Then our Wan'er..."
Ma Xingzhou could only close his eyes and sigh.
"Wan'er hasn't sent a letter home for two months..." Madam Ma grabbed her husband's arm and asked anxiously with red eyes: "Now that it has been confirmed that Prince Rong is rebellious, can you try to bring Wan'er back? Or you can find out about her current situation first!"
She is Ma Xingzhou's wife, born in poverty. Although she has been granted imperial decree for many years, she still cannot be absolutely rational in an emergency.
Seeing her husband silent, she asked tearfully, "My dear, please say something!"
"Madam..." Ma Xingzhou sighed again and shook his head, "At this moment, Prince Rong's Mansion must be keeping a close eye on Wan'er's every move. The more we do, the more disadvantageous it will be for Wan'er."
Madam Ma's tears fell down: "So are we just going to watch..."
"We should have been prepared the day Wan'er made her decision." Ma Xingzhou's voice was as slow as if he was talking to himself. "Now, we can only rely on her luck."
“Then the saint…” Madam Ma wanted to ask, “What did the saint say?” But when the words came to her lips, they turned into tears.
What would a saint say? Wan'er was just a chess piece, and as a grandmother, she had already vaguely sensed from Wan'er's letter that Wan'er treated the Prince of Rong with genuine affection, so her evaluation of the Rong Palace was not objective, so strictly speaking, Wan'er was not even a qualified chess piece...
Now, I have become an abandoned pawn in this situation. Can I still expect the saint to feel ashamed and have pity on me and come to my rescue?
Mrs. Ma Xiang was not stupid. After thinking it all through, her tears became more painful and desperate.
The rain fell outside the window all night long and only stopped after the morning court the next day.
Emperor Shengce returned to Ganlu Palace in the imperial chariot. With the help of palace servants, he changed out of his heavy and cumbersome court robes and moved to the study to handle government affairs.
As the eunuch served the hot tea, he whispered, "Your Majesty, the woman was timid and begged for mercy after a little punishment...but she had no idea who Yu Changshi was working for, so she was unable to find out any confidential information."
This was within the expectations of the Holy Ce Emperor, but he also heard the eunuch say, "However, she did reveal a secret... She is not Yu Changshi's biological mother."
The eunuch explained in detail the whole process of the woman's confession: "When His Royal Highness the Crown Prince sent people to look for Yu Changshi's relatives, he found her..."
After hearing this, the Holy Ce Emperor sneered: "It turns out that Yu Zeng has been replacing someone else's identity from the beginning. It's no wonder."
But the woman did not know Yu Zeng's original identity, and she just went along with the situation in order to find a way out for herself and her second son.
So, who was Yu Zeng originally? Was he the King Rong's man from the beginning?
If that was the case, then the long-planned concealment and betrayal that Prince Rong accomplished through Yu Zeng was enough to cause him to fall into an irretrievable situation in Ashang's heart.
"Your Majesty, the woman's second son Yu Guang and his wife and children are missing now. Do you want to..."
The woman spoke many words of pleading to him, saying that the second son knew nothing and asked him to have mercy and spare his life, but these meaningless words did not need to be conveyed to the emperor.
The emperor's voice was very calm: "Ignorant and useless things are not worth the effort."
The eunuch understood and agreed, then tried to ask: "That woman..."
The Holy Ceremonial Emperor said in an ambiguous tone: "A foolish and timid person is bold enough to be a mother."
If the woman's first gamble more than 20 years ago was for herself and her second son, then this time, she clearly had a way to leave, but she still didn't leave. It was for the second gamble, and it was obvious that she was planning it just for her second son.
"Give her a quick death and take her out of the palace for burial."
The eunuch agreed and left.
At the end of noon, a palace maid came into the palace and reported that the envoys and officials who had been sent to Eastern Luo had returned safely to the capital and came to report, asking for a meeting outside the palace.
The Holy Emperor put down the red pen in his hand and said, "Announce it quickly."
After a while, the officials who had changed their clothes and bathed, but still looked exhausted, entered the hall to pay their respects.
Leading the group were Wei Shuyi and Wu Siqing. Song Xian, Tan Li and others also rarely had the opportunity to meet the emperor in Ganlu Palace. At this moment, they all stood at the back with their heads bowed respectfully, not daring to look sideways.
After the ceremony, Wei Shuyi presented the document from the King of Dongluo to the Emperor of Dasheng, and pleaded guilty, saying, "We are slow in returning to the capital, please punish us, Your Majesty."
The empress looked at the ministers who had lost a lot of weight. "My dear ministers, you have traveled a long way, and encountered many dangers along the way. On the way back, you were tired and fell ill. You have suffered a lot... How can I not distinguish between merits and demerits and punish you indiscriminately?"
At this point, he asked everyone with concern whether they had recovered.
Wei Shuyi raised his hand and saluted: "Thank you for your concern and sympathy, Your Majesty. I am fine now."
They caught a cold on the way. Colds can be mild or severe, and there have been cases of people being killed, but the one they caught was a more severe case.
The accompanying medical officer was accidentally defeated while treating them, and the attendants who took care of them were not spared... Soon, among the hundreds of people and horses, the only ones who did not have a runny nose were the horses.
For the sake of his life, he had to stop his journey temporarily and rest in the inn for half a month before setting off again.
While recuperating in the inn, Wei Shuyi had a high fever that wouldn't go away. He was so confused by the fever that he, a man who had no attachment to this world, suddenly felt a strong fear of death for the first time. You know, he didn't even have time to return to Beijing to confirm the truth to his mother. He would not be willing to die like this, even as a ghost.
Thinking that he was going to be a ghost, Minister Wei shuddered suddenly in his drowsiness and immediately opened his eyes clearly.
Perhaps supported by these thoughts, he was the one who recovered the fastest and most efficiently among the group.
The Emperor of Shengce still invited several medical officers to come and check the pulse of Wei Shuyi and others.
"Your Excellencies' pulses show signs of fatigue and weakness, and your spleen and stomach are weak... This is probably due to fatigue after the illness. It's not serious, but you still need to take good care of yourself. I will prescribe medicine for you." The medical officer said this very fluently. After all, most of the officials who came to see them recently had such symptoms.
Officials in the capital are overworked, and those outside the capital are not much better off.
Upon hearing this, the Emperor of Shengce only asked Wei Shuyi and others to make a simple report, and then allowed them to return to their homes to rest and wash themselves, and said that they would be rewarded generously at the morning court tomorrow.
Due to frequent wars in various places and heavy government affairs, the morning court session was changed from once every two days to once a day.
In addition to the morning court, the affairs of each ministry became increasingly numerous, and it was difficult to guarantee rest and rest. Although the officials were exhausted, they did not dare to complain because the emperor set an example.
The day before yesterday, an official even lost his composure and fainted during the morning court session.
The entire court was enduring extreme tension and fatigue.
After Wei Shuyi and others expressed their gratitude and left the palace, they went home and dispersed.
When Wei Shuyi returned to Duke Zheng's mansion, the front hall was filled with members of the Wei family who were waiting to welcome him.
Wei Shuyi covered his mouth with his sleeve and coughed a few times.
"Just now in the palace, the doctor examined you and said that you are not fully recovered yet and need to rest."
After Changji finished speaking, he felt that his reaction was perfect. It was really outstanding that his husband only coughed a few times and he could understand it so thoroughly - although, his husband had explained it to him in advance on the way back, so this also played a part in the reason.
Wei Yu then said to everyone, "In that case, let Zi Gu rest first, and we can talk later if we have anything to say."
Everyone was very tolerant and caring towards the most outstanding talent in the Wei family in the past hundred years. After instructing Wei Shuyi to recuperate well, they all dispersed.
After everyone left, Duan looked at her son's thin face and said distressedly, "Son, I haven't seen you for many days. How come you have become so ugly..."
Wei Shuyi: "..."
How could a mother with such a loving demeanor say such cold words?
"Brother's face is not as resistant to torture as that of Grand Commander Cui." Wei Miaoqing, who always judges appearance, also spoke coldly, but with a look of seniority and objectivity: "It seems that brother only looks best when he is raised in a wealthy and noble environment. In this case, brother is really a rich and noble flower that needs to be carefully nurtured."
"..."Wei Shuyi looked at his father - was there really no one speaking up for him?
Duke Zheng stroked his neat short beard and gave a perfunctory answer: "That's right."
Duan's distress was genuine, and without further ado, she, her husband and daughter sent her son back home, and they talked on the way.
After sending the person back to the courtyard, Duan told the servants to take good care of him. When she was about to leave, she heard Wei Shuyi say, "Mother, I have something to tell you."
Wei Shuyi had been carrying that anxious thought in his mind for more than two months, and he really didn't want to wait even a moment longer.
Seeing his expression, Duan seemed to have noticed something and nodded.
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