Chapter 700 The Empress Dowager Wakes Up
Tang Ning slept for a long time, and when he woke up, it was already dark outside.
When the lights in the room flickered, the light and shadow cast on the edge of the couch made her a little confused about where she was. It was not until she heard the faint voice of Xiao Yan talking to someone outside that she suddenly remembered that she had come to bring ginseng soup to Xiao Yan, but Xiao Yan pulled her to sleep with him.
Qi Cheng stood in front of Xiao Yan, listening to Xiao Yan talking about going south with Di Tao.
Xiao Yan said, "We already have spies in Fenglin County. Once you get there, you can contact them with the token. They'll tell you everything that's happened in Prince Xun's mansion. Prince Xun, while ambitious, is cautious and timid by nature. If you can defeat the enemy without fighting, then do so."
Qi Cheng nodded: "I understand. I will investigate the situation with General Di before deciding whether to take action."
Xiao Yan hummed, "If we really want to fight, there's no need for direct combat. We just need to deal with the father and son of the King of Xun, regardless of the cost. He has a concubine's son in his house who is quite sensible and can take on the important task."
Qi Cheng's eyes flickered as he understood what Xiao Yan meant.
If Prince Xun really has the intention of rebellion and has already taken action, then just get rid of him and his legitimate son, and let the illegitimate son take over Fenglin County instead.
Qi Cheng hesitated for a moment and said, "If I do this, I'm afraid General Di won't agree."
Xiao Yan looked up at him without saying anything.
Qi Cheng changed his tone: "I will find a way."
Xiao Yan looked at the young man standing in front of him. He was not very old and looked somewhat similar to Qi Jingyuan, but he had a more scholarly air. He looked more like a nobleman in the capital than a military general fighting on the battlefield. The fact that he could make close friends with young civil officials such as Fu Laiqing meant that he had his own abilities.
Xiao Yan said, "I know that using such tactics on the battlefield is dishonorable. Di Tao is young and hot-headed, and would rather fight openly with swords and spears. But you are also aware of the situation in the court."
"The war in the South cannot continue to spread. If we can reduce casualties, quell the rebellion of the vassal kings as quickly as possible, and prevent more people from falling into the flames of war, then using some means is not excessive."
Qi Cheng's heart sank as he recalled what his father had said to him before leaving Beijing, and his face became more serious.
"I understand. I will do my utmost to bring peace to Fenglin County as soon as possible. I will go with General Di to support Longkang."
The sound of footsteps coming from behind the bead curtain made the two people outside fall silent at the same time.
Qi Cheng subconsciously looked up and saw a slender figure walking out from the inner room. He naturally knew who the woman was who could appear in the imperial study so openly without being suspected by the new emperor. Sure enough, when the person walked out from behind the curtain, he recognized that the person was Princess Xiangning.
Qi Cheng quickly lowered his head: "Princess."
"General Qi." Tang Ning nodded to him.
Seeing Tang Ning here, Qi Cheng said tactfully, "Your Majesty, do you have any other instructions? If not, I will leave the palace first to meet Lord Qian and his men to prepare for leaving the capital."
Xiao Yan said, "There's nothing else to say. Di Tao may be a bit impulsive, but he's not a bad person. If he offends you in any way after arriving in Fenglin County, please be patient with him. I'll deal with him after he returns to the capital." He paused. "Of course, if he does make a mistake, you don't have to be polite with him."
Qi Cheng bowed and said, "Yes."
After Qi Cheng left, Xiao Yan looked at Tang Ning: "Why are you awake? Did I wake you up?"
Tang Ning shook his head: "No, I woke up. I was thinking of taking a nap, but when I opened my eyes it was already dark. If I slept any longer I would have been drowsy."
When she woke up, her voice was a little soft, her cheeks were a little rosy from the rest, and she looked much more energetic.
Tang Ning walked over to Xiao Yan and asked, "You and General Qi were discussing something just now. Did I disturb you?"
Xiao Yan reached out and pulled the man in front of him. "Excuse me, I've never avoided you when I was talking to people before. Besides, I only asked Qi Cheng to come to the palace to explain their departure from the capital, to prevent Di Tao from causing trouble after arriving in Fenglin County. Even if you haven't woken up, I've almost finished what I need to say to him."
Looking down at Tang Ning's face, Xiao Yan saw that her tiredness had faded a lot, so he touched her cheek and asked, "Are you hungry?"
Tang Ning hummed, "A little bit."
"Then I'll have someone serve the food..."
Xiao Yan was about to speak when Tang Ning stopped him.
Seeing him looking at her doubtfully, Tang Ning said softly, "At noon, Sister Qin said that grandma might wake up at night after taking the medicine. Brother, do you have anything else important tonight? If not, let's go to grandma's place."
The Empress Dowager's hysteria suddenly disappeared and she was lucid for two days, but after she collapsed, she became confused again.
She was almost always in bed, and occasionally she would be lucid for a while when she woke up, but she would still not recognize people from time to time.
Xiao Yan would occasionally find time to visit during these days, but he would usually visit when the Grand Empress Dowager was asleep. Tang Ning knew that Xiao Yan was thinking about the Grand Empress Dowager, and when the Grand Empress Dowager was occasionally awake, she kept talking about Xiao Yan.
It was a pity that the first two times the Grand Empress Dowager was awake and she ordered people to notify Xiao Yan, the Grand Empress Dowager had already collapsed and fell asleep again, so that the two generations of grandmother and grandson hardly spoke to each other for so many days.
Tang Ning touched Xiao Yan's slightly cold hand and said to him, "It's night time now and no one will enter the palace. Brother hasn't eaten yet. Have someone prepare some food and send it to Grandma's palace. Who knows, you might even see her awake."
"If grandma saw my brother here, she would definitely be very happy."
Xiao Yan looked at her smiling face, and thought of the great-grandmother who called him Sheng'er that day. Some bitterness appeared in his eyes, and he held Tang Ning's hand with his backhand.
"good."
…
Hua Wu was squatting in front of the charcoal stove boiling medicine when she saw Xiao Yan and the other two coming over. She quickly stood up and said, "Your Majesty."
Xiao Yan glanced around: "Why are you boiling medicine here?"
Tang Ning explained, "Grandma's waking hours have been unpredictable these past few days, and Sister Qin's medicine needs to be taken with silver needles for best results, so we set up a charcoal stove here to keep it warm at all times to avoid the inconvenience of going back and forth to the kitchen."
The main reason was that Madam Qin was worried about other people decocting the medicine. The Empress Dowager was in very poor health, and the effectiveness of the medicine would be greatly affected if the medicine was slightly off. She could see the medicine being decocted in the palace at any time.
Tang Ning looked at Hua Wu: "Where's Sister Qin?"
"Inside." Hua Wu replied.
Tang Ning took Xiao Yan's hand and walked with him into the inner room, but when they walked around the side door and got inside, they saw Qin Niang and Yue Jian, one on each side, helping the person on the bed to get up.
Hearing the noise, Madam Qin turned around and saw two people coming in from outside.
Xiao Yan also saw the old man who was being supported by them and looking at them.
"Grandma?"
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