"The north has suffered from drought for years, and this year, the area north of Qingzhou has also experienced several days without rain. Although it is not very serious, the cumulative effects over the years are comparable to those caused by a major drought. If the Crown Prince handles this matter well, I will not punish either of you; otherwise, you will be punished for multiple offenses."
Emperor Mingde spoke sternly, and the Crown Prince felt his body covered in fine sweat.
Dealing with the drought was naturally the Crown Prince's responsibility, while the punishment for multiple offenses was Zhao Shu's. She had offended many people in the past, such as accidentally hitting a princess or accidentally pushing a concubine down.
So, there are quite a few problems. The drought north of Qingzhou must be dealt with properly.
She couldn't help but look at the Crown Prince, who gave her a reassuring smile.
Emperor Mingde completely disregarded the interaction between the two and assigned the Crown Prince to oversee the not-so-severe drought. This was actually a form of protection, as the reduction of titles and fiefdoms was about to begin. The Crown Prince only needed to reap the rewards. He was still young and impatient, and it would be a great loss if he were to be schemed against.
Zhao Shu understood Emperor Mingde's thoughts, and felt a warmth in her heart. At least now Emperor Mingde had never thought of deposing the crown prince, and she would not allow the deposition of the crown prince to happen in the future.
“Brother Crown Prince, you must work hard, or A-Jun will be doomed,” she said.
The Crown Prince hurriedly agreed, saying, "Your subject will certainly not fail your father's expectations."
"Alright, go down now. Ah Jun, hurry to Cining Palace. Your grandmother is going to be terrified by you."
Emperor Mingde let the three leave. The Crown Prince led Zhao Shu, who was still dressed as a eunuch, out through a side gate, while Prince Yong left through the main gate.
Outside the main gate, a group of ministers waited, and each of them had a different expression when he came out.
Zhao Shu was extremely grateful that she had run, otherwise she would have bumped into these ministers.
After changing his clothes, he arrived at Cining Palace. The Empress Dowager, with a stern face, berated the Crown Prince, "Is this how you act as a brother? What will happen to A-Jun?"
She didn't seem to curse often, and couldn't think of any more words. There happened to be a feather duster behind her, behind the curio cabinet. Perhaps the Empress Dowager often used the feather duster to exercise, and when she ran out of words, she picked up the feather duster and was about to whip the Crown Prince.
The Empress's face changed, and she hurriedly stood in front of the Crown Prince, crying with tears streaming down her face, "Mother, Mother, please calm down. What if you hurt yourself?"
The Empress Dowager was furious. She didn't actually want to hit the Crown Prince; she was just very angry. Was the Taihe Gate, where the Grand Court Assembly was held, a place where just anyone could go?
Seeing that the Empress Dowager had stopped, the Empress hurriedly pulled the Crown Prince down to kneel and admit his mistake, saying, "Quickly, quickly tell your grandmother that you know you were wrong."
The Empress Dowager's power was like an evergreen tree in the palace. No matter how favored you were, you had to behave respectfully in front of her. As the Empress, she obviously knew what to do.
The Crown Prince was pulled down by the Empress and knelt down. "Grandson knows his mistake and begs Grandmother for punishment."
Zhao Shu didn't expect the Empress Dowager to react so strongly. She hurriedly ran over and took the Empress Dowager's hand, her eyes glistening with tears, "Grandmother, please calm down. It has nothing to do with my brother, the Crown Prince. It was just that A-Jun was being naughty. He won't dare to do it again next time."
"My dear grandson, I'll listen to you. Don't frighten me like that next time, okay? I'm old and can't take a fright."
Zhao Shu's tears fell instantly. Her grandmother, no matter how unfilial she was, no matter how mischievous she was, still doted on her to the bone. Zhao Shu, Zhao Shu, you are truly unfilial, making those who care about you worry and fear for you. How can you bear it?
"Alright, alright, don't cry, don't cry. I won't punish the Crown Prince, my dear grandson, don't cry." When the Empress Dowager saw Zhao Shu suddenly burst into tears, she quickly hugged her tightly.
"Grandmother." Zhao Shu tried to stop her tears, but she couldn't. The tears seemed to flow uncontrollably, and she went from soft sobs to wailing.
All the grievances, hatred, and resentment from her past life were poured out in tears. She had sworn never to shed a tear again, but now she couldn't control herself.
Born and raised in the royal family, she never needed to scheme or plot to receive endless favor. How many good deeds must she have done in her past life to have such good fortune?
But she couldn't hold onto this happiness in her past life. In this new life, she's determined to make those who tried to destroy her pay the price, and those who stand in her way will die!
When the Empress Dowager saw Zhao Shu crying so hard, she felt heartbroken and tears streamed down her face. The two of them cried together, and even Zhang Chu and the others around the Empress Dowager had tears in their eyes.
The Empress lowered her head, gently wiping away the tears from the corners of her eyes. Thinking of all those people in the palace who went to great lengths to get a second glance from the Empress Dowager, she smiled self-deprecatingly. The Empress Dowager's heart had already strayed to the ends of the earth.
After all, Zhao Shu was only nine years old. She cried and cried until she was exhausted, and her eyes were red, swollen and sore.
The Empress Dowager stopped crying after being persuaded by the Empress. Emperor Mingde finished dealing with the matter and came over. The family then began to set out the dishes for a meal.
No one spoke during the meal.
Dining with the Empress Dowager wasn't actually that strict; there weren't rules like not speaking while eating or sleeping. However, everyone chose to remain silent.
Prince Yong remained silent for fear of being criticized by the Empress Dowager. After all, he had just returned his fiefdom to the court in court, and the Empress Dowager had made many efforts to secure more fiefdoms for him back then.
Zhao Shu remained silent, but her thoughts were similar to those of Prince Yong. The Empress Dowager always wanted to give the best to the father and daughter, but they wanted to return those things.
I feel terrible.
Emperor Mingde remained silent because he felt guilty. When he was still the crown prince, his position was precarious. When Prince Yong was born, the late emperor was overjoyed and did not remove him from the position of crown prince. Moreover, Prince Yong was his only younger brother and had relied on him since childhood. It would be a lie to say that he did not feel sorry for him.
But what could he do? He was first the emperor of Dayong, and only later the elder brother of Prince Yong.
Even if the Empress Dowager was unhappy, he still had to do it. Fortunately, his younger brother was sensible, otherwise he would have had to put in a lot of effort.
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