Jing Huaixu hummed softly. After a moment, his blurred vision cleared, and looking at his son's dejected appearance, he asked sadly.
"The Crown Princess was in Jing Kingdom and ended up in An Kingdom's hands. It's Jing Kingdom's fault. Did An Kingdom ask for anything? Ask them. At worst, let An Kingdom take advantage of her again. We can't let the Crown Princess suffer in An Kingdom."
“While you were away, this little Zhang’er has been asking for his mother and father every day. Your mother and I are heartbroken, and we can’t keep up with him.”
Since returning, Jingyan has been in the inner palace and has not yet seen Zhang'er. He thinks of Yuejiang in Anguo and wonders if she is well. His heart is burning with anxiety.
Jing Yan analyzes the current situation.
"An Chenghuan ascended the throne right after the fall of Chenqi. Although An Yunrui has not been particularly prominent since becoming king, it seems that An Chenghuan does not have complete control over all political affairs in An Kingdom."
“The fact that An Chenghuan ascended the throne before An Yunrui had even passed away indicates that there has been some significant activity within An Kingdom. Your subject must investigate this carefully.”
“Yue Jiang was originally supposed to marry him, but he took her away. It’s one thing for him to want revenge for the loss of my wife in the past, but in addition, An Chenghuan should be preparing to fight against Jing.”
"Yue Jiang can give him a legitimate reason to fight, and also allow him to reconnect with the Moon Kingdom."
“Even though Yue Jiang has been my wife for many years, in the eyes of An Chenghuan and the world, Yue Jiang was first engaged to him.”
“He stole Yue Jiang and then used her to trade with me for meager benefits from the Jing Kingdom. This doesn’t sound good. An Chenghuan won’t ruin his reputation. I have no choice but to win Yue Jiang back.”
After listening to the argument, Jing Huaixu frowned and agreed, saying, "Jing Kingdom has been schemed against by An Kingdom for many years. It's time for an end to this. Since everyone no longer wants to maintain a facade of peace, we must fight."
...
"It's terrible! Your Majesty, Empress Dowager Zheng refused to leave the palace and hanged herself in the Changshou Hall."
"Your Majesty, Empress Dowager Cheng was overwhelmed with grief. She returned to Yongshou Palace and spoke many words to the Buddha statue. She cried incessantly and then lost her breath. The Empress Dowager has passed away."
Before Jing Huaixu could rest, eunuchs from both empress dowagers rushed over to report the death. He was so emotional that he coughed twice and blood trickled out of his mouth.
"Father, please take care of yourself!" Jing Yan said anxiously, gently patting Jing Huaixu's back.
Jing Huaixu closed his eyes tightly, trying to process the news he had just heard. He waved his hand and said, "I'm fine. It's all fate."
For a moment, countless images of the two empress dowagers flashed through Jing Huaixu's mind. He had lost his father at a young age and originally thought that the two orphans and widows supported each other.
However, as he grew older, the rivalry between the two empress dowagers became more and more obvious, and it was impossible to favor one over the other.
Jing Huaixu was wary of everyone and treated them all equally, but he still couldn't maintain a balance. The warmth they once shared was bought with the price of human lives.
Now that the two have suddenly gone together, all the grudges, hatred, and animosity seem to have vanished with the wind.
Jing Huaixu said with a sigh, "Empress Dowager Cheng has worked hard and made great contributions throughout her life. Since she was the late emperor's first wife, she should be buried with him in the imperial mausoleum."
“Zheng Shi, burdened with grave sins, committed suicide out of fear of punishment. Let her be buried in the auspicious burial site that Jing Lu once calculated for Huayi Palace, to atone for her sins.”
...
The two empress dowagers passed away suddenly. Even though Jing Huaixu had many headaches with them in the past, they were people who had watched him grow up.
When they were around, Jing Huaixu rarely felt the impermanence of life or the brevity of life.
After the person left, he seemed to feel a greater sense of desolation behind him, and for the first time realized that he had grown old.
With such a depressed mood, Jing Huaixu's health recovered slowly, but fortunately, Shang Yu kept a close eye on him every day, preventing his condition from worsening and becoming incurable.
Jingyan was even busier, busy with the national mourning for Empress Dowager Cheng and with court affairs. Zhang'er still couldn't see Yuejiang and was tired of hearing Empress Ye's coaxing words.
After a fit of crying and fussing, Jingyan carried him back to the East Palace. Zhang'er nestled on his shoulder, his eyes red and swollen, and asked...
"Father, where is Mother? Don't you want Zhang'er anymore?"
Jingyan took out the candy that Yuejiang had saved for Zhang'er earlier and coaxed Zhang'er to keep it.
"Mother will come back. One candy a day. Once Zhang'er has finished these candies, Mother will come back."
Zhang'er turned his head to the side, his big, round eyes filled with tears, looking at his favorite candy box, which was bigger than his head and didn't even have a key; his father had given it all to him.
Strangely, he is not happy at all now and doesn't want to eat.
Zhang'er was puzzled, upset, and dissatisfied: "Why does Zhang'er have so much candy?"
He rubbed his eyes, wanting to make a fuss, but when he looked up he saw that his father's eyes were dark, just as his grandmother had said, as if his soul had flown away.
My grandfather has dark circles under his eyes now, and his health is not good. He rarely gets out of bed, and I'm afraid my father won't be able to get up either.
He reluctantly replied obediently, "Zhang'er will eat the candy while waiting for Mother Consort. I won't eat any more after I finish this."
His mother doesn't like him eating too much sugar. If he doesn't eat candy, his mother probably won't avoid him anymore.
After Zhang'er started eating a piece of candy, he saw that his father was still lost in thought and unhappy, so he also peeled one for Jingyan and put it in his mouth, and even made a special explanation.
"Father, eat Mother's favorite one."
A sweet taste suddenly filled Jing Yan's mouth; it was the flavor of tangerines, indeed Yue Jiang's favorite flavor.
He wanted to find a way to save Yue Jiang step by step.
...
In Rong Ying's mansion.
"Is Your Highness really planning to send troops to Anguo to rescue the Crown Princess in two months?" After Yue Jiang was kidnapped to Anguo, Xiange was at a loss, but dared not do anything.
As far as the Yue Kingdom is concerned, when Yue Jiang was taken away by Jing Yan, the Yue Kingdom did not ask for her back on behalf of the An Kingdom. Now that she has been taken back by her former fiancé, the Yue Kingdom should not interfere either.
After all, Zhang'er is of the bloodline of both Yue and Jing. If Yue Jiang remarries An Chenghuan and has a new bloodline, Yue will also be related to An.
Both countries are fixated on Yue Jiang, so Yue Kingdom will simply wait for the victor to emerge.
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