1 Wedge

◎Wedge◎

March was a good time of year with lush grass and singing birds. People who came to the capital should have enjoyed a walk by the Qujiang Lake as usual. However, due to the death of the late emperor, the whole city was under strict martial law. Not only people, but even a mosquito could hardly fly out of the capital.

The atmosphere inside the palace was not as solemn and tense as outside. The new emperor had just ascended the throne and was being questioned by his ministers in the Duanming Hall.

The new emperor was twenty-five years old this year. Even when sitting, he was taller than ordinary people. His complexion was as gentle as jade, and he looked like a handsome scholar. However, he would occasionally glance at his lower side, and his eyes were as sharp as a hawk's.

He was wearing white mourning clothes and a dark green jade dragon pendant around his waist. He looked very steady and solemn. He was no longer the lively boy he used to be.

"Your Majesty, Zheng Fang's troops have all withdrawn from the capital according to the transfer order, and are heading to Bozhou as you ordered."

The new emperor groaned for a moment before saying, "Wei Duo's army is in Bozhou. Wei Duo has long coveted Jizhou. I have promised to let the daughter of the Wei family become the empress. I believe the Wei family knows what to do. This is also revenge for your sister Yu Niang. If it weren't for you, I would not have known that the Zheng family was such a cruel person."

The man standing below and answering was the brother of Yu Niang, the concubine of the new emperor when he was the crown prince. He was originally a horse slave, and because his sister Dong Yu Niang was selected to serve in the Eastern Palace as Zhao Xun, a sixth-rank official, he also followed his sister and became a servant of the Eastern Palace. Later, because his sister was pregnant, she was promoted to Liang Yuan, a third-rank official by the crown prince. At the same time, the crown prince discovered his military talent and recommended him to join the Yulin Guard.

Originally, the brother and sister should have a bright future.

Unfortunately, his sister Dong Yu Niang was persecuted by the Crown Prince's favorite concubine Zheng Liangdi, and both mother and son died.

Dong Zhu desperately defended the prince from countless assassinations in the Yulin Guards, and found witnesses and evidence, just to wait for the moment to overthrow Zheng. Just then he heard that Concubine Zheng was also involved in the death of Crown Princess Qiren, and now Zheng's father is very likely to be killed by Wei Duo, who has a million-man army. How can he not be excited?

Dong Yu knelt down again and thanked him: "Your Majesty is wise."

The new emperor smiled and said, "You can go down."

Dong Yu stood up, bowed his head and took a few steps back before he walked out with big strides. The emperor was indeed a wise monarch. In order to give them justice, he even dared to punish the concubine. He punished Zheng for two crimes at the same time. This time, Zheng was doomed.

The new emperor stood with his hands behind his back, feeling a little dizzy. His father had passed away these days, and he had to deal with the funeral and government affairs, so he was very tired.

Since Dong Chu was a guard in the palace, he naturally paid close attention to the situation in the Duanming Palace. He first saw the palace maids around Zheng Liangdi and the eunuch chief talking.

I heard the eunuch chief asked: "It's you, Xiaokangzi, is it Empress Zheng who sent you here again?"

Seeing that Xiao Kangzi smiled and said: "To answer the steward, this is the ox knee bone soup made by Empress Zheng herself. She has been cooking it since early morning. You know, the emperor loves the food made by our Empress Zheng the most." Xiao Kangzi smiled.

After watching Xiaokangzi enter the Duanming Palace, Dong Qi comforted himself that Zheng Fang was not far away yet, and the emperor still had to give face to Zheng Liangdi. Besides, the new emperor had only one son, Prince Feng Yi, born to Zheng Liangdi. Moreover, one night of marriage meant a hundred days of love. Yesterday, Zheng Liangdi came to accompany the emperor and personally made a bowl of tonic soup that she had been simmering for a long time and presented it to the new emperor. It was said that her hands were burned red.

But his defense was soon broken because the emperor gave fifty pieces of palace silk and one hundred taels of gold to Zheng Liangdi of the Linde Palace. However, he did not lose heart and still kept a close eye on the situation in the palace.

It is also said that the rewards flowed into the Linde Hall like water. The main hall of the Linde Hall was occupied by Zheng Liangdi, who had not yet been canonized after the new emperor ascended the throne. She had been in the Eastern Palace for five years. When the prince was alive, she was the only favorite for three years. In the last two years, the prince was sent to Xuzhou to fight. When he returned, the prince ascended the throne.

In the Linde Hall, the crystal curtains were rolled up high, revealing the splendor of the entire hall. The emerald screen was half open, with a jade-colored gauze curtain with silver threads hanging in the middle. The carpets and cushions were all decorated with orchid patterns. Not far away, there was a large Ge kiln vase with thousand-petal green lotus and water orchid in it. The fragrance of the succinct burning in the white jade incense burner was lingering and very pleasant.

Xiao Kangzi immediately knelt down across the curtain and said, "I am lucky to have fulfilled your mission."

The woman inside was none other than Consort Zheng Liangdi. She smiled and said, "Stand up. I heard that the Emperor gave me many good gifts."

Xiao Kangzi said: "The emperor's love for you, Madam, is known to everyone in the world."

Then Concubine Zheng Liang sighed, "The Emperor didn't care about women. The father of Crown Princess Qiren rebelled against the court and massacred the city many times. The Emperor personally beheaded all her family members, but she was not at fault. She hanged herself after hearing the news. It's my fault too. I shouldn't have told her the news. I thought she knew it."

Xiao Kangzi hurriedly said, "My queen, why do you care about her? She is just being unreasonable. If it weren't for her, you would still be the Crown Princess. It was because of Empress Dowager He that we would have a better life in the future."

Zheng Liangdi smiled again. Even though the palace ladies around her often got along with her, they were shocked by her beauty. Zheng was born beautiful and charming, with beautiful features and a delicate and voluptuous figure. She was a beautiful woman with a graceful demeanor and was unparalleled in the world.

"I need to take a break. It's too tiring to make ox knee bone soup in the morning." After saying this, Zheng Liangdi yawned.

Soon, as night fell, Dong Qi saw the chief eunuch about to go to the Linde Hall in the middle of the night. He was overjoyed and wondered if the new emperor was going to sentence Concubine Zheng to death. Unexpectedly, at this moment, he heard the eunuch in the Duanming Hall shouting, "Oh no, oh no, your majesty has had a headache and has fallen to the ground, dead."

Dong Zhuo was very angry.

The new emperor died suddenly, leaving him with only a son born to Concubine Zheng Liangdi. Under the protection of Marquis Zhaojie Zheng Fang, Concubine Zheng Liangdi was named Empress Dowager Zheng, and her son Prince Feng Yi was named the new emperor. However, as they were too young, Empress Dowager Zheng took control of the government.

When Empress Dowager Zheng came to power, she appointed her father Zheng Fang as Grand Marshal, General, and Minister of State Affairs, and her brother Zheng Wuheng as Marquis of Quyang. Even her half-brother Pei Shuo was posthumously appointed as Palace Attendant and Commandant of the Water Balance.

How glorious is the Zheng family!

**

Outside the outskirts of the capital there came a carriage with red wheels and a sapphire-colored hood. It was decorated with gold and silver objects, and was extremely gorgeous.

The woman sitting in the carriage was dignified and decent. The hem of her green lotus skirt should have made her look like a fairy, but now the pattern was still. The girl sitting next to her was very lively, and the lining of her skirt was exposed.

When several officials at the post house saw the carriage, they immediately came over and said respectfully, "We, the humble servants, are here to pay our respects to the Princess of Huaiyin. The Queen Mother asked us to wait here respectfully. She also said that if it is too late, please rest at the post house. Tomorrow, she will send 30 Yulin soldiers to escort you to the palace."

It turned out that the woman in the carriage was the Princess of Huaiyin, the elder sister of Queen Dowager Zheng. The officials treated Princess Zheng of Huaiyin with great courtesy. When the girl next to her got off the carriage, she smiled and said, "Aunt, look how well the Queen Dowager treats you."

Princess Huaiyin had been a widow for a year, her clothes were quite plain, and her face was quite numb. After listening to what her niece said, she pursed her lips.

The girl felt that her aunt's laughter was like crying. She didn't understand why her aunt was like this. Wasn't Queen Mother Zheng her biological sister? Shouldn't she be happy that her sister became the Queen Mother?

The girl also got the best room thanks to her aunt, which was completely different from the ordinary inns she stayed in when she went to the capital. She was immersed in her own joy, but she heard Nanny Chun beside Princess Huaiyin said, "Princess, it's not dark yet. Why don't you go to the palace to meet the emperor and live in the palace, but insist on letting you stay in the inn."

"Mammy, we have already arrived in the capital, we should be careful with our words and actions." Princess Huaiyin said.

Nanny Chun started to complain unhappily, "Princess, you were raised by the Madam Dowager. You were well-behaved, well-educated, well-read, and not as unruly as the Second Miss. When the late Emperor was still the Crown Prince, he saw you fall into the water and saved you. If it weren't for the fact that our Zheng family valued the Prince of Huaiyin more, perhaps you would be the Queen Mother today."

I only heard Princess Huaiyin's face turn pale and she said, "Mammy, stop talking nonsense."

Nanny Chun became more and more excited as she spoke: "You have had such a hard time these years. The Prince of Huaiyin was indeed very intelligent, handsome, and talented in both civil and military affairs. But he already had someone in his heart, and he was narrow-minded and died young. You and he and his wife had already fallen out. Now you have to remain a widow for her for the rest of your life. How can this be tolerated..."

The girl saw that the face of Princess Huaiyin became paler and paler as Nanny Jianchun spoke, and she had never expected that there was such a story. The Crown Prince of the Eastern Palace, whom Empress Dowager Zheng married, was only the adopted son of Empress He, and a puppet of the He family, unlike the Prince of Huaiyin who had real power in Jiangnan.

Then I heard Princess Huaiyin say, "I am useless and cannot bring honor to my mother. My second sister is more fortunate than me. When she was a concubine, the crown prince neglected the crown princess and favored her alone. She also gave birth to the crown prince's only child. Now that the new emperor has passed away, she has become the empress dowager and her son has become the emperor. I don't have such a blessing."

Nanny Chun was the dowry of the Huaiyin Princess's mother. When she mentioned her own mother, she wiped her tears even more and said, "Our wife was originally the first wife of General Zheng. She was a person who pitied the poor and the weak. She saw that Ji Shi was jealous and divorced, and she felt sympathetic to her living alone with her son, so she made her her friend. Who knew that she would invite a wolf into the house and make your mother angry for the rest of her life. These scumbags, bitches, and those bastards are a good family, and tomorrow we will have to pay our respects to them."

Princess Huaiyin cried non-stop.

The girl had no idea that the story behind this was so complicated. She only heard her mother mention that when the current Queen Mother Zheng was still a concubine, she was not as good as her aunt in terms of talent, poetry, singing, calligraphy and painting.

The next day, she followed her aunt into the imperial city. The imperial guards were majestic, and the jade steps were stacked up in layers, which was magnificent. The ceiling of the empress dowager's bedroom was paved with white glazed tiles, crystal jade bi was used as a lamp, the inner columns were engraved with golden dragons coiling upwards, and the ground was paved with golden bricks, which made it even more luxurious and extravagant.

Every step she took inside, the girl felt that her aunt seemed to be walking on the edge of a knife, and she had no joy of reuniting with her family. Even when she met Queen Mother Zheng, she was surprised to find that her aunt looked like a withered tree compared to the widowed queen mother, while Queen Mother Zheng was voluptuous, charming and seductive.

Why is this happening?

Looking at my aunt again, she was exhausted from performing so many rituals and fainted on the ground like a lotus leaf in the wind.

【Author’s words】

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