Chapter 133 The Achilles' heel: indeed, no one can compare to that Shen family. ...
There are two days left until the coronation ceremony.
Standing by the window of Baoguang Hall, Shen Yujiao looked indifferently at the woman throwing a tantrum outside the hall.
Lady Liu, wife of Prince Huan, later became Imperial Noble Consort.
As Jiang Yu had promised, he treated her with respect and courtesy before the coronation ceremony. His occasional closeness to her was nothing more than a small gesture of affection, without any transgression.
But Liu was extremely hostile towards her. This morning, she was awakened by a commotion outside the door. Hearing Liu's unrestrained cursing, Shen Yujiao's already anxious heart sank completely.
Regardless of what happens in the future, Shen Yujiao has never considered confronting the Liu family head-on. Her current feigned compliance with Jiang Yu is merely a temporary measure. She has no intention of competing with the Liu family for anything. Once Jiang Chen returns to the capital, she will restore everything to its original state. What belongs to the Liu family, she will not take even a fraction of.
But she couldn't explain any of this to Madam Liu. She could only watch as this desperate woman lost all dignity in front of her lifelong rival, all for the sake of asking that one question—
"Shen Yujiao! It was your Shen family who chose Jiang Chen back then. You abandoned him then, so why are you now trying to compete with me for him!"
Outside the main hall, Madam Liu repeatedly questioned her, asking whether her current actions were worthy of Jiang Chen, whether her going back to her ex was worthy of her status, and whether she knew shame for disregarding her status and willingly degrading herself... But the question she repeated most often was this one.
Shen Yujiao sighed softly, then turned and asked coldly, "Where is Jiang Yu? Didn't I tell him to come and take Liu Shi away?"
The young palace maid trembled at her cold gaze and immediately knelt down, begging for mercy: "Your Majesty, His Majesty and Prince Zhao are currently discussing matters with the ministers in the main hall. I have already sent someone to deliver the message, but Prince Zhao will not allow us to enter the hall, only saying that he will send someone to handle it..."
The more she spoke, the less confident she became. Although the young palace maid had only recently entered the palace, she had seen the majesty of the "former Crown Princess" and "future Empress" several times. Two emperors had been infatuated with her, and her status alone was enough to make people dare not disrespect her. The young palace maid felt extremely guilty for doing such a poor job.
Even His Majesty responds to her without question, yet she can't even handle the task of relaying messages properly.
Shen Yujiao glanced at her indifferently. The little palace maid thought she was about to face a great disaster, but she never expected to hear the person simply say, "Serve the meal."
"What?"
The young palace maid didn't react for a moment, partly because she didn't blame her, and partly because she was surprised that this person could still eat when everyone outside was cursing so much.
"Don't you understand what I'm saying?"
A single glance from her caused the young palace maid to immediately kowtow: "Your Majesty, please forgive me!"
Having said that, without waiting for Shen Yujiao to say anything more, she hurriedly ran out to serve the meal.
Watching the little palace maid stumble and fall, the ice in Shen Yujiao's eyes melted away, replaced by a hint of guilt. In order to play the role of this "femme fatale who brought ruin to the country," she had done many things against her conscience.
A feast was laid out on the table in a flowing manner. Jiang Yu was extremely attentive to her, and her every need for food, clothing, and shelter was meticulous. Even the standards for her meals were the same as those for the emperor. Shen Yujiao sat at the table looking at the full table of food, her expression completely calm. She simply let the palace maids serve her whatever they put on her table and ate it.
Halfway through the meal, hurried footsteps finally came from outside the hall. It sounded like a group of people, busy and bustling. Then, palace maids greeted her one after another: "Greetings, Princess Zhao."
Shen Yujiao lowered her eyes and drank her porridge. It turned out that her cousin from the Liu family had moved in.
"Sister!" Princess Zhao's heart pounded as she glanced at the tightly closed palace gates. As soon as she entered the courtyard, she rushed forward and grabbed Liu, who was struggling with the maids, and hurriedly advised in a low voice, "What are you doing! The palace servants are all watching! Don't lose face!"
When Liu saw that it was her, she laughed and pushed the person away: "What you said is not funny at all. Others may not know the reason, but don't you know? What status do I have now? The original wife, now a concubine, I have long lost my status!"
Princess Zhao was already afraid of Liu's nonsense, and now, hearing her speak so recklessly, a layer of cold sweat seeped down her back: "His Majesty said that in the future, the inner palace will be managed by you, and the Phoenix Seal will also be in your hands. If you give birth to a prince in the future, he will be named the Crown Prince. With such favor, which empress can compare? When His Majesty passes away, you will be the Empress Dowager. Why bother with this momentary glory?"
"Have you ever heard of a dynasty where a concubine was superior to the empress? Managing the six palaces and holding the phoenix seal—do you think that's such a prestigious thing? His Majesty just wants to find someone to handle trivial matters! And what about the crown prince and the future? He can make his brother's widow empress today, but in the future he'll only dote on the children she bore!"
Ignoring rumors and gossip, disregarding worldly ethics, he cleared the way for her to take the empress's seat, and gave her family a respectable and glorious title. In the future, he would make her son the crown prince!
Liu was not stupid, and having been married to him for many years, she understood Jiang Yu's ruthlessness better than anyone else.
Princess Zhao was utterly exasperated. She had been ordered by Prince Zhao to dissuade her cousin, but the cousin hadn't just been scolding the person inside; she had also dragged His Majesty into the conversation...
She stood in the courtyard, looked up at the sunlight, and felt a moment of disorientation.
However, just a wall away is the Taiwei Hall where the council is held. Just imagine: if the hall doors were wide open and Liu's voice could be heard... then her fate would be the same.
The thought of King Zhao sent a chill down the Queen's spine.
What led her to this point?
As the eldest daughter of the Liu family, although not from the most illustrious branch, she still had a noble background. She was originally supposed to marry the eldest son of the same aristocratic family, become the head mistress of the household, and live a peaceful and loving life with her husband.
But in the year she came of age, her cousin, who was married into the royal family, proposed marriage to her father on behalf of the King of Zhao.
She never intended to marry into the royal family, but her clan forced her to marry into the royal family because of Prince Huan, and from then on, she became the Princess of Zhao.
As the King of Zhao rose higher and higher, and his power grew heavier, she felt increasingly uneasy. Even when she was asleep, she felt as if she were on a cloud. Her son was born of the eldest son and would one day become the even more noble heir of the King of Zhao when he ascended the throne with His Majesty. But she felt that there was no hope in this kind of life.
The sunlight blinded her, and without realizing it, she pulled Liu Shi backwards. Just before they hit the ground, she was caught in the arms of her personal maid. Suddenly, she didn't know where the courage came from, but for the first time, she growled at her respected cousin: "Does elder sister want the entire Liu clan to be buried with you?"
Startled by her shout, Liu was momentarily stunned. After a moment, tears slid down her cheeks and flowed into the dimples at the corners of her mouth. She laughed as if she were drunk: "The entire Liu clan? Yes, he owes his success today entirely to the support of my entire Liu clan, yet his heart is full of the Shen family of Jiangnan!"
"It was me! I reached out and pulled him up when he was at his lowest point! It was me! I filled the void left by his humble origins with the glory of our entire family! And it was me! I stayed by his side when he was abandoned by the Shen family! Yet today, it is I who am being treated this way by him!"
Seeing Liu's seemingly insane state, Princess Zhao's long-standing headache flared up at this moment. After a sharp ringing in her ears, she finally had peace and quiet. She couldn't hear anything, but everyone else present could hear it clearly—
"Smack!"
A resounding slap left the emotionally charged Lady Liu stunned in place. As her voice gradually returned to normal, Princess Zhao glanced at the terrified palace maids and snapped, "Why aren't you escorting Her Highness back to the palace?! If His Majesty sees this, you'll all lose your heads!"
At her stern command, the crowd seemed to snap out of their daze and quickly carried Lady Liu toward the inner palace. By the time Lady Liu realized what was happening, her mouth had already been gagged and her hands and feet restrained.
The courtyard returned to tranquility. Shen Yujiao slowly put down her silver chopsticks, rinsed her mouth and washed her hands. Then she took the handkerchief handed to her by the maid and gently dabbed her lips. After everything was in order, she sighed softly, "Let her in."
Princess Zhao bowed deeply towards the open palace gates: "I will not disturb Your Majesty by going in. I hope Your Majesty will forgive the offense that Lady Liu said today. Neither Lady Liu nor my Zhao Prince's Mansion will obey His Majesty's decree and have never been disrespectful to Your Majesty. Lady Liu is just... too concerned about His Majesty. I hope Your Majesty will not hold it against her for the sake of Lady Liu's past relationship with His Majesty."
As soon as she said these words, Princess Zhao felt a burning sensation on her face. She was clearly the one who had struck, but the slap felt as if it had landed on her own face.
Princess Zhao felt extremely embarrassed after she threw a tantrum and insulted someone in front of their door and then demanded that they forgive her and let her go.
The kneeling figure was elongated by the sunlight, casting its shadow on the floor tiles of the hall. Shen Yujiao seemed to be able to clearly see the difficulty on her face. After a long while, just as Princess Zhao felt that she would not be able to explain herself to the Taiwei Hall today, she heard someone inside say softly:
"You've worked hard, Princess Zhao. I will plead for her."
The immense weight suddenly vanished, and the dignified kneeling figure swayed and collapsed to the ground. Princess Zhao looked at her smooth reflection in the hall, smiled bitterly, and nodded: "On behalf of Lady Liu, I deeply thank Your Majesty."
After Jiang Yu finished discussing matters of the main hall with the ministers in the Taiwei Hall, it was already past noon. He originally intended to stay and say a few words to the Duke of Cheng, but he noticed Jian Shan waiting anxiously to the side. He whispered a few words to Jian Shan and his expression changed instantly.
King Zhao took in the whole scene. After hesitating for a moment, he pulled him back before he left, saying, "In the end, it was my elder brother who wronged my sister-in-law. Please don't be too harsh on him."
In the past, no matter what Lady Liu did, Jiang Yu would never disregard the respect that King Zhao showed her. Firstly, Lady Liu was, after all, his wife in name only; secondly, she was not only King Zhao's sister-in-law but also his aunt. But this time, he decisively shook off King Zhao's hand—
"Ah Jin, I hope this kind of thing will never happen again."
King Zhao was taken aback at first, then realized that he meant to block the news. His bitterness welled up instantly, and in the end, even though he had a thousand words stuck in his throat, all those words of goodwill turned into just one sentence: "I know."
Jiang Yu didn't argue with him any further. He turned and, with a flick of his robe, headed straight for the next room. Watching his resolute departure, the smile on King Zhao's lips grew even more sarcastic.
Indeed, no one can compare to that Shen family.
"Your Highness," the eunuch waited in the shadows for a while, and seeing that the Prince of Zhao seemed to have calmed down, he dared to step forward and report, "The Princess Consort has sent Her Highness back to the palace and is keeping her under good care."
He finished speaking, but after a long while he didn't receive a response from the King of Zhao. He was a little curious, but when he looked up, he was scared half to death.
The sun shone brightly, and a gentle breeze blew, but King Zhao, standing beneath the palace, exuded a sinister aura that sent chills down one's spine at a single glance. The little eunuch knelt down with a thud, not daring to utter a single word of begging for mercy.
After a long while, he heard a voice from hell: "There must be no mistakes during the ceremony, in order to prevent evildoers from disrupting the order and to ensure His Majesty's safety... Summon the people from the Tang Clan and the Hundred Poisons Sect."
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