Chapter 39 The Emperor Summons Us
He lifted Jiang Fenghua down from the desk and gently kissed her lips. "May I call you Ruan Ruan, just like your mother did?"
"Please do as you please, Your Highness." Jiang Fenghua broke free from his embrace.
She began to tidy her skirt and hair, and he even ate the lip rouge off her lips. Even without makeup, she was beautiful, dignified, and ethereal, like a fairy descended from heaven.
She was tall and slender with a perfect figure. Her graceful gait and every movement exuded exquisite beauty.
She was completely different from Su Tingwan, who never cared about her clothes or appearance.
Jiang Fenghua walked up to her, her face as beautiful as a lotus blossom, exuding charm and allure. "I'm ready, let's go!"
Xie Shang was attracted by Jiang Fenghua in front of him, and took her hand and led her out the door.
Without any intention of being respectful and polite, he stood guard by the door, saying, "This servant greets Prince Heng and Princess Heng."
Xie Shang nodded and glanced at him. "It was Steward Cao who sent you."
"My master serves His Majesty and specifically sent me to invite the Prince and Princess," Wuxin said in a lowered voice. "My godfather said His Majesty is worried about a theft case."
The unintentional words were all spoken, and Xie Shang understood perfectly well. It was obvious that sending him to the Imperial Study was not about the Yang family's affairs. Since the Yang family's situation was already settled, the Emperor couldn't keep harping on his own son.
Xie Shang said to him, "Have someone tidy up the inside."
"Your Highness accidentally knocked over the inkstone. This servant will clean it up immediately." Wuxin's attitude became even more respectful.
Xie Shang's lips curled slightly; Manager Cao's apprentice was quite clever.
Jiang Fenghua never looked at Wuxin from beginning to end.
Only after they had walked away did Wuxin look at Jiang Fenghua's back. A strange feeling flashed in his eyes. Ten years had passed, and she had grown so much.
Ten years ago, Wuxin was only seven years old. He was sold into the palace to become a eunuch by his parents because of poverty. He was lonely and helpless, and because he was young, he often did not have enough to eat or wear in the palace. He was also often bullied and beaten by the eunuchs and maids in the palace.
He entered the palace just to get a full meal, but he never expected that entering the palace would be like entering a hellish abyss. He felt that he was living a life worse than death and wanted to end his life, until a richly dressed little girl pulled him out of the water and named him Wuxin (meaning "heartless").
At that time, Eunuch Cao was not yet the chief eunuch by the emperor's side, but she instructed him to be loyal to Eunuch Cao. So he joined Eunuch Cao's team, and later he slowly made a name for himself.
From then on, he lived a carefree life in the palace, his only wish being to see her again.
Upon arriving at the Imperial Study, Xie Shang and his wife knelt down and bowed, saying, "Your subject pays respects to Your Majesty."
"Your subject pays respects to Your Majesty."
The emperor glanced at him sideways and said in a deep voice, "Get up!"
"Thank you, Father Emperor."
Xie Shang reached out to help Jiang Fenghua up, which was seen by the emperor.
He stood respectfully to one side, and Jiang Fenghua was also dignified and polite, leaving no room for criticism.
"The Jiang family," the emperor said.
"Yes." Jiang Fenghua knelt down respectfully to pay her respects.
"On the second day after your marriage to Prince Heng, you entered the palace. I should have gone to drink a cup of tea offered by my daughter-in-law, but I am busy with state affairs, so I asked the Empress to do it for me."
Jiang Fenghua lowered her head and said, "It is only right that I come to pay my respects to Father Emperor." It was just a polite remark.
"Enough, it's all just formalities." Despite saying this, he didn't tell Jiang Fenghua to get up. Instead, the emperor slowly said, "Do you know why I summoned you to the palace today?"
Jiang Fenghua suddenly raised her head, clasped her hands together, and bowed respectfully, saying, "Your daughter-in-law knows."
The emperor's eyes lit up. What a stunningly beautiful girl! "Tell me why I am punishing you."
“Your Majesty does not feel that you are punishing me, but rather that you are teaching me,” Jiang Fenghua said in a clear and resonant voice, neither humble nor arrogant.
Jiang Fenghua continued, “I am the Prince’s wife. If the Prince does something wrong, we are husband and wife. He should be punished, and I should be punished as well. Besides, I don’t think the Emperor is really punishing me and the Prince. Going to the ancestral hall to kneel and pay respects to our ancestors is what we juniors should do. How can it be considered a punishment?”
If she were to say that the emperor did it because she signed the petition of the people, wouldn't that just show that the emperor is petty, unreasonable, and sophistry? Where would the emperor's prestige be? She's not stupid.
Xie Shangcai didn't think he had done anything wrong. He was resentful that the Emperor was always targeting him. Jiang Fenghua avoided the main topic and said these words instead.
He felt that Jiang Fenghua's dazzling beauty made him yearn for her.
The emperor's lips suddenly curled into a smile. What a perfect couple, what a clever and shrewd daughter-in-law.
Only then did the emperor remember that Princess Heng was the daughter of Jiang Huai, the Junior Tutor of the Jiang family, and that her father was indeed learned.
Jiang Fenghua made no mention of Xie Shang's wrongdoings, and slowly continued, "The prince is young, impulsive, passionate, and full of energy, but he is also too radical, and his way of sharing the burdens of His Majesty is also wrong."
If it were a daughter-in-law, she would certainly inform her father of the details first. Her father is benevolent and compassionate towards the people, revered by all. If Your Highness were to find a different way to appease the people, I believe they would be deeply grateful for the Emperor's boundless grace.
Although Yang Jing was the emperor's right-hand man, he made a mistake first. As the emperor held a high position, he should be fair and just, and ensure that princes and commoners were punished the same as each other in order to win the hearts of the people. Therefore, the emperor had no right to protect the Yang family in this matter.
He shouldn't even be speaking up for the Yang family, since the evidence is conclusive, Yang Jing is dead, the matter is settled, the Yang family's evil deeds have been exposed, and the Prince of Heng's position represents the Emperor, so his attitude reflects the Emperor's attitude.
Now that Prince Heng is being sung and praised by all the people, wouldn't that mean the emperor is being praised by all the people?
Jiang Fenghua had long understood people's hearts and knew what the royal family wanted. The royal family wanted dignity. Prince Heng's methods were radical, but they also preserved the dignity of the royal family.
Xie Shang and the Emperor had a bad relationship, so they would clash over a few words. What they lacked was understanding each other and a father-son relationship based on mutual respect and affection.
Although Jiang Fenghua didn't know why the Emperor disliked Xie Shang and treated him so harshly, she was certain of one thing: Xie Shang was the Emperor's biological son, and the royal bloodline could not be tainted, otherwise he wouldn't be alive now.
She boldly guessed that the person the emperor disliked might be the empress. Of course, she didn't know the reason, and she didn't want to find out the root of the problem and get herself into trouble. Knowing too many secrets is not necessarily a good thing.
All she needed to do was please her husband, Xie Shang, and obtain honor from him.
The emperor said, "Stop kneeling, rise!"
Jiang Fenghua stood up respectfully. "Thank you, Father Emperor."
The emperor suddenly turned to Xie Shang and said, "There is another important matter at the moment. I received a memorial this morning."
Eunuch Cao handed the memorial to Xie Shang. After Xie Shang opened it and read it, he said, "The imperial tomb has been robbed. Who is so bold as to rob the imperial tomb?"
"This matter concerns the face of the royal family and the very foundation of the Great Zhou Dynasty; it is not appropriate to publicize it so openly," the Emperor said in a deep voice.
"Is it that serious? What exactly was stolen?" Xie Shang asked, puzzled.
The emperor glanced at Jiang Fenghua, who tactfully replied, "I haven't yet paid my respects to the Empress Dowager since entering the palace."
If the Emperor sends her to the ancestral hall, she won't be able to go anywhere for the next three days. At least she'll have some freedom if she goes to the Empress's palace.
"Go! Go and sit in the Empress's palace," the Emperor said calmly.
With the Emperor's permission, Chief Steward Cao quickly took her out.
Sometimes, even the emperor's word is not to be taken lightly, and Jiang Fenghua's successful withdrawal shows that the emperor does not dislike her as the Princess Consort of Heng.
Xie Shang looked at her retreating figure and felt incredulous that his father had actually rescinded his order to imprison them for three days.
He thought he would leave the palace soon, but the task the emperor had given him was very important.
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