Chapter 395: Grand Hall
In physiognomy, a thin face usually means that a person is not blessed.
The Empress Dowager summoned Dou Ming in front of everyone, but Dou Ming got such a reputation. It would be better if she had not summoned her.
Dou Ming was full of resentment, but it was the Empress Dowager who said that she had a frail face. Even if the Empress Dowager said this to the Emperor, the Emperor could only listen with a smile. Could she dare to show impatience?
She had no choice but to lower her head respectfully.
But the Empress Dowager was used to being so powerful in the inner palace and dared to say anything. In her eyes, speaking well of a mere lady from outside the imperial court was an act of flattery.
So after meeting Dou Ming, she began to talk about physiognomy with the empress: "...Why do all the beauties in the past dynasties have oval faces? That's because the real beauties from noble families are kept in the inner palaces, and those messy scholars can't see them, so they have to use those low-class women as examples. What's good about oval faces?" The empress dowager said, touching her cheeks, "The sky is round and the earth is square. The forehead represents fortune, wealth, longevity and happiness. If it gets more and more pointed from top to bottom, without a place to support it, it will not be able to retain this good luck. But if you look at the portraits of empresses and empress dowagers from past dynasties enshrined in the Fengxian Hall, which one is not round here, with the whole face like a full moon? They look lucky and prosperous, and they can't escape fortune, wealth, longevity and happiness. So it's better for women to have rounder faces."
What kind of theories are these!
Dou Ming forced himself not to touch his pointed chin.
Did the Queen Mother call her here just to humiliate her like this?
Dou Ming felt as if his heart was stuffed with a ball of cotton.
But is there anyone in this hall who dares to say that the Empress Dowager is wrong?
No one!
Not only that, the wife of the Marquis of Changxing immediately leaned forward and said with a big smile: "I didn't expect the Queen Mother to know all this. Look at me, is my face as bright as a full moon?"
I am over 40 years old. Even if I used to have an oval or heart-shaped face, it has now become round.
The Empress Dowager smiled and pointed at the forehead of the wife of Marquis Changxing, saying, "Stop making trouble here. When you first married into the Marquis Changxing's mansion and came to pay your respects to me, I talked about you to Concubine Shi a lot. I always thought you were good-looking, especially your eyes, which were sparkling and full of spirit. Don't think that I have forgotten the past because I am old."
Concubine Shi never gave birth after entering the palace, so she had a particularly good relationship with the Empress Dowager.
Lady Xingguo, who usually kept silent when she was with women from other clans, seemed to have changed into a different person at this moment. She smiled and said, "Everyone in and outside the palace knows that you have a good memory! The last time I came to the palace to pay my respects to you, you asked why I didn't bring Teng'er with me, and said that if I felt the child was heavy, I could bring the wet nurse with me. I went back and told my master Jiaguo about it, and he laughed at me. He said that when you were in charge of the six palaces, he followed the old Duke Ying to go to war under the order, and you once gave him two boxes of pills. When he opened them, he found that there were two purple gold pills. He said that those of us who came to the palace late had no idea how wise you were."
Teng Ge'er is the eldest son of the Prince of Xingguo. He is only three years old this year. He weighed 99.92 ounces when he was born. He can eat and sleep well and is a big fat boy.
Duke Xingguo had a chronic illness of getting easily inflamed, and Zijin Pills were a good medicine for reducing internal heat, so Duke Xingguo always kept them with him all year round.
The Empress Dowager laughed, called Dou Zhao over, asked the maid to bring a small stool and placed it in front of her couch, took Dou Zhao's hand and talked to everyone: "You don't know, the late emperor was determined to learn from Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty and promote the prestige of the Han people. He was not soft-hearted to the thieves in the west. He was in power for twelve years, and he fought wars for nine years. Not only did he empty the national treasury, but also all the private money in the inner treasury was stuck in it. Sometimes he wanted to reward the ministers, but he couldn't take it out. I had no choice but to help the late emperor solve the problem by doing everything I could. Otherwise, how could the late emperor and the emperor They all remember the good things of the old Duke of England? The late emperor gave things as gifts, and the old Duke of England gave things as tributes. The tributes were even more abundant than the gifts, and in the end, the Duke of England's mansion was also dragged into the water." Speaking of this, the Queen Mother's expression became solemn, "When the emperor ascended the throne and the world was peaceful, the things of the Duke of England's mansion were returned. There are actually people who are afraid that the world will not be in chaos, saying that the emperor treats the old Duke of England too well. He doesn't even think about what the Duke of England's mansion is like? The late Duke of England was the adopted son of Emperor Taizu and the emperor's cousin!"
Suddenly talking about such a serious matter, the atmosphere in the hall suddenly became a little subtle.
Dou Zhao felt that if things continued to develop in this way, a good Dragon Boat Festival celebration might turn into a revenge. The Duke of Ying's Mansion was pushed to the forefront for no reason, and who knew how many people would be offended.
"Is there such a thing?" Dou Zhao smiled. "This is the first time I've heard of it! The prince never mentioned this at home. When I was at my mother's house, I once heard my grandfather sigh, saying that although the court was in trouble in those years, the emperor and his subjects were of one mind, and there were so many loyal officials and righteous men that if history was to be compiled, it could be called the 'rejuvenation of the state'. My grandfather even regretted that he should not have retired so early."
Lady Xingguogong couldn't help but secretly praise him.
The Duke of England was a confused man, but the daughter-in-law he chose was someone who knew what was going on.
Smart people like to deal with smart people, and she is no exception. Hearing Dou Zhao say this, she felt like helping him, and smiled as she continued, "That's right. When my father-in-law was still alive, he often told the young people about the late emperor's civil and military achievements. Otherwise, why would my boy, who is so young, insist on going to the Northwest Camp?"
The prince of Xingguo is now the commander-in-chief of the Northwest Camp.
The Queen also came to her senses.
Among the meritorious families in this palace, there are some whose sons died on the battlefield for their loyalty to the emperor and their country, and some who were greedy and cowardly and did not want military power. Those who died on the battlefield were certainly rewarded generously, but not all of those who were greedy and cowardly had their property confiscated and exiled. The Empress Dowager became angry when she thought of this, and wanted to take the opportunity to punish those families to make her feel better. If she continued to talk, she was afraid that it would become a matter of settling scores later.
She smiled and said to the Empress Dowager: "After all, you are the wisest - if you hadn't issued an order to let Ping take care of the sick, where would Teng Ge'er be now?"
Because the prince of Duke Xingguo had been guarding the border all year round, his wife stayed in Kyoto. They had been married for ten years but had not given birth to a legitimate son. One time, the wife of Duke Xingguo went to the palace to pay her respects to the empress dowager and mentioned that her son had caught a cold. The empress dowager smiled and ordered Ping to go to the northwest to take care of him. Only then did the eldest son of the Duke Xingguo's family be born.
Lady Xingguogong immediately took over the conversation and said with emotion: "Otherwise, how can we say that the Empress Dowager is wise? No matter whether it is a big thing or a small thing, she is always more thoughtful than us. If we were not afraid of disturbing the Empress Dowager's meditation, we would go to the palace every day to talk with her."
How could the wife of the Marquis of Changxing allow the wife of the Duke of Xingguo to be in the spotlight?
When she mentioned talking to the Empress Dowager, she smiled and said, "A few days ago, the Concubine Dowager sent me a letter, asking me to go to Daxiangguo Temple to see how the thousand-year-old ginkgo tree behind the temple is doing. When it bears fruit, don't forget to ask Daxiangguo Temple for a portion."
Every year, the Changxing Marquisate would send people to the Daxiangguo Temple to pick some ginkgo nuts as a tribute to the Empress Dowager.
When the Empress Dowager heard Lady Changxing talk about this, she thought of Concubine Shi.
Originally, as a concubine, she should not be present on this occasion, but if the empress dowager spoke up, the inappropriate thing would become a favor.
She ordered the palace maids, "Call Concubine Shi over to liven things up. Usually she and I are the ones who keep her company, and we shouldn't leave her alone at this time."
Upon hearing this, Lady Changxing Hou kowtowed to express her gratitude.
The Queen Mother laughed and said, "Why are you bowing your head? Get up!"
The wife of the Marquis of Changxing smiled in a colorful way, as if to entertain her relatives: "Isn't this concubine happy for the Concubine Dowager?"
While they were chatting and laughing, Princess Ningde and the third princess came over.
The Empress Dowager also had a very good relationship with Princess Ningde, so she quickly asked the palace maid to call her in and start the conversation.
After a while, Toffee Shi came over.
She was a good at making fun of others, and her status was prominent, so the atmosphere in the hall soon reached a small climax.
Then the Crown Princess and several princes' wives came over.
The main hall became even more lively.
Dou Zhao changed the subject, so he just sat quietly, with the Empress Dowager holding his hand, and listened to the greetings from the elderly people.
Like Dou Zhao, there is also the wife of Duke Xingguo.
The two of them couldn't help but look at each other and smile.
Dou Ming was forgotten early in the morning.
When she was answering, she was standing in the middle of the hall; when the wife of Marquis Changxing came over, she stood in front of her; when Princess Ningde and the third princess came in, she hurriedly moved aside; as the wife of Marquis Changxing and the wife of the Earl of Dongping came forward to greet Princess Ningde and the third princess, she was squeezed to the side of the curtain.
But she still had to stand straight, keep her head down and maintain a respectful attitude.
The Empress Dowager and the Empress cannot see that there are countless eunuchs and palace maids in this hall. If I am careless, who knows what will happen?
She couldn't help but look at Dou Zhao.
Princess Ningde was pushing Dou Zhao, who was about to stand up to salute her, back onto the brocade stool, and was whispering something to the Empress Dowager.
The Empress Dowager's eyes fell on Dou Zhao's belly. She nodded with a smile on her face, called the Crown Princess over, gave her a seat, and talked to the two of them.
Those ladies who usually looked down on others now gathered around Princess Dou Zhaohe with great caution and respect.
The Crown Princess had her back to Dou Ming, so she couldn't see her expression clearly.
But Dou Zhao was facing her.
Dou Zhao's rosy face and brilliant smile, the ease and grace with which she moved among those famous nobles and ladies, were like the sunlight at noon in summer, almost stinging her eyes.
On what basis?!
Dou Ming's face was as cold as frost.
Why was she left here all alone with no one paying any attention to her, while she was standing here in the spotlight, receiving everyone's envious looks?
Doesn’t Dou Zhao often boast about being a good sister?
Is this how a good sister treats her younger sister?
While he was enjoying being carried by everyone, he forgot that there was a sister standing in an empty corner, unable even to lean on the ground to take a breath!
Dou Ming glared at Dou Ming fiercely.
The young eunuch standing next to Dou Ming couldn't help but shudder.
No wonder Grandpa Wang often said that the more beautiful the flower, the more poisonous it is, and the more beautiful the woman, the more cruel her heart is.
The wife of Marquis Jining and the wife of the Prince of Ying are sisters!
No wonder others say that the wife of Marquis Jining has a bad character... Should I tell Master Wang about it later?