Zhou Qiongyue and the Queen Mother lived a particularly happy life in Hong County. Not many people knew them here, so they could often go out and wander around in private clothes.
There was nothing to worry about except that the Emperor wrote a letter every few days asking when the Empress Dowager and Zhou Qiongyue would return.
As for those who wanted to send beautiful women to Yuan Bohua, ever since Yuan Bohua kicked the county magistrate's legitimate daughter away in front of the county magistrate, no one dared to get close to Yuan Bohua anymore.
Even more people tried to help Prince Rong. After all, Prince Rong had already accepted two more people. Even if he didn't accept them, it wouldn't cost anyone their life.
Eventually, it became so common that whenever Prince Rong went out, beautiful women would bump into him. Suddenly, countless wealthy businessmen's wives and their families settled in Hong County.
Even the prefect came to Hong County to buy property, and all his daughters and concubines lived in Hong County.
Prince Rong was forced to follow Yuan Bohua's path and kicked away a noble lady who insisted on approaching him. From then on, the world became completely quiet.
Everyone also woke up from this gamble. In the face of absolute strength, any conspiracy or trick would be impossible to succeed.
Even if I climb into Prince Rong's bed, what can I do? He won't recognize me, and I will just lose my life.
That day, Zhou Qiongyue accompanied the Empress Dowager to a teahouse to listen to storytelling. The Empress Dowager suddenly asked, "Why haven't I seen Kang'er recently? What is he busy with?"
According to the Empress Dowager's wishes, Yuan Chaokang should also be sent to Yuxian Academy. That child is smart, but Yue'er and Fu'an have been too indulgent with him.
For someone like them, it's impossible to do whatever you want.
Even though Zhou Qiongyue was close to the Queen Mother, she would not tell her about Yuan Chaokang's business plan. Human nature cannot withstand choices and tests. "Kang'er went out of town hunting with a group of new friends."
"Why don't you and Fu'an send Kang'er to Yuxian Academy to study! If you don't have any connections, I'll find a way.
He's at an age where he needs to study hard and learn skills. What will he do if he hangs out with a bunch of playboys every day?"
The Queen Mother was truly concerned about Yuan Chaokang, mainly because they had been in frequent contact over the past six months. Yuan Chaokang always called her "aunt" first and "aunt" last. It's natural to develop feelings for someone once you've met them, but as you spend more time together, feelings naturally develop.
The Empress Dowager could see Yuan Chaokang's filial piety in his eyes. Unlike the other children in the palace, he called her "Imperial Grandmother" and wished he could walk around the palace with his free will immediately.
At the Queen Mother’s age, she likes innocent and simple children the most.
Zhou Qiongyue held the Queen Mother's hand intimately, with a relaxed expression:
"Aunt, I know you're doing this for Kang'er's own good, but the palace already has Chang'er, and Yuan Chaokang is already a prince.
Having two titles in one family is already incredibly prestigious, but even if Yuan Chaokang is very talented, things will eventually wane. My niece just wants both children to live happily ever after.
Just let Kang'er live his life to his heart's content! Besides, Kang'er hasn't fallen behind in his studies, so he doesn't need to go to college to earn those empty names."
The Queen Mother was stunned for a moment, then looked at Zhou Qiongyue with satisfaction, "Yue'er is really thoughtful. I am old after all! I can't see as clearly as Yue'er."
Zhou Qiongyue said without pretense that the Queen Mother had not aged. "Aunt, people become wiser as they age. You are now a great support for me and my fifth cousin."
"Okay, I'll always be there for you two." The Queen Mother was very happy to see her niece coaxing her like this.
During these days in Hong County, the Empress Dowager saw many difficult lives of ordinary people, and her mind became much more open.
When people are in a good mood, their energy and spirit will be much better, and their health will be good.
By the time Zhou Qiongyue and the Empress Dowager had been in Hong County for a full year, the Emperor had gone from sending a letter every few days to sending a letter every day.
The emperor went from just having fun at the beginning to asking about their return date in a subtle way, to asking directly about it, and then to threatening that if they didn't come back, the emperor would go south to pick up the empress dowager himself.
The empress dowager could only resort to the tactic of procrastination. At first, she said that it was rainy in the south and it was not suitable for traveling. Later, the empress dowager said that she was sick. Later, she said that the sun was too hot and she had to wait for it to cool down. When it got cooler, the empress dowager said that it was cold. The emperor could not issue an imperial decree to let the empress dowager travel in the snow!
The emperor smashed a lot of things in Yuan'an, but the empress dowager's cousin and uncle still didn't come back.
Especially when the emperor received the itinerary of the empress dowager and his cousin from the secret guards every day, his heart felt like it was soaked in sour water.
A few days ago, I received a letter saying that my sick mother went out of town hunting with my cousin, and she even roasted a rabbit for my cousin to eat.
The Emperor...he has never eaten anything baked by his mother.
The emperor really wanted to go to Hong County in person to invite his mother, but the emperor's trip would require a large number of troops.
If the national treasury had no silver, he would definitely have to use it from his private treasury. Ever since the emperor's private treasury was exposed, the ministers would always keep an eye on his private treasury for whatever he did.
There really isn't much money left in his private vault.
What's more, he was busy with government affairs every day and had no time to go on a southern tour.
The emperor does have a way to force the empress dowager to come back, but he is also afraid that the empress dowager will get angry when she comes back!
Moreover, the Empress Dowager is old. If he makes her angry and something happens to her on the road or in Hong County, he will be the one who suffers.
The Empress Dowager didn't want to come back, and the Emperor couldn't leave, so the matter was stuck here.
The emperor could only keep writing letters to the empress dowager and then keep running to the queen's palace to complain to the queen.
The Queen now devoutly burns incense to the gods and Buddhas three times a day, hoping that her mother will return soon. If her mother doesn't come back, the Queen feels that she can no longer hold on.
For the first time, the Queen felt that Concubine Zhen died too early. She could only hint to the new concubines in the harem to work hard to win the Emperor's favor and distract his attention.
The Queen wanted the Emperor to come to her palace less often. She really didn't want to hear the Emperor ask her, "When will the Queen Mother be able to return?"
The Emperor was already quite upset because the Empress Dowager hadn't returned from her trip. He was mainly worried about her safety. He was so far away, and if anything happened to her, he wouldn't be able to help.
But what annoys the emperor the most at the moment is the matter of the eldest princess.
The eldest princess has fallen in love with Wei Chengbin, the eldest son of Duke Wei, and the emperor finds this a difficult situation.
None of Duke Wei's other children were promising, and this eldest son was his only hope.
Moreover, Wei Chengbin had always been avoiding her, and the eldest princess spread rumors everywhere claiming that she and Wei Chengbin were in love with each other.
Duke Wei and his son brought the case to the emperor, laying out all the evidence before him. Their message was clear: the emperor wouldn't marry the princess off like this, would he?
Duke Wei has always been a stubborn and fearless person. Neither he nor his son likes the emperor's eldest princess.
What could the emperor do? He could only summon that evil girl and ask her about it.
When the eldest princess Li Shihuan heard that the emperor had summoned her to the imperial study, she knew what was going on.
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