Chapter 628 The First Person to Give Him Warmth
Wu Xin personally stepped forward and slapped Shu Ronghua twice, then ordered other eunuchs to do the same, beating Shu Yan until her face was swollen and her mouth was full of blood.
Shu Yan kept begging for mercy, but no one listened to her. She wanted He Lan Yanran to take the blame, but Wu Xin didn't give her the chance at all.
Xie Shang then ordered officials from the Imperial Clan Court to investigate the case. Zhu Zhenzhen and Granny Liu, who were suspects, were also taken away by the officers and soldiers of the Imperial Clan Court.
Jiang Fenghua did not stop them; locking them up first might be the best way to protect them.
As New Year's Eve approached, someone died in the palace, and everyone was trembling with fear.
The Emperor actually listened to the Empress's advice and set up the mourning hall for Consort Zhang and Consort Pan in Shou Kang Palace. What was even more shocking was that the Empress Dowager was living in Shou Kang Palace. The Emperor did not move the Empress Dowager to another palace and even sent the Imperial Guards to guard her.
It was less of a suggestion and more of an act of obedience. The Emperor listened to the Empress, so who would dare to offend her now, let alone express dissatisfaction?
Jiang Fenghua was still worried, so she sent people to guard Shou Kang Palace. She and Xie Shang returned to the Imperial Study.
Seeing that she hadn't said a word the whole way, Xie Shang took the initiative to explain when they entered the imperial study: "I didn't tell you the truth because I was afraid you wouldn't be able to accept it."
"It's because you're feeling guilty and can't get over your own conscience!" Jiang Fenghua directly exposed him. "Back then, Jiang Fenghua married Prince Heng and became his consort, but Prince Heng didn't like her. When Prince Heng realized that he had fallen in love with Jiang Fenghua, she told him that she didn't actually like him either. Doesn't that sound ridiculous?"
Xie Shang was stunned. "Who told you all this?"
"You're afraid I'll find out that there are other pregnant women in your palace, so you've made them all hide. Are you planning to keep lying to me all this time?"
"no."
"I'm guessing you're planning to let them give birth to the children, then remove the mothers and keep the babies," Jiang Fenghua said coldly.
Xie Shang frowned, furious. "Jiang Fenghua, is that how you think of me? Am I really that dark and vicious in your eyes? I lied to you because I was afraid you couldn't accept it. What you want is a lifelong, monogamous relationship. Whether in the past or now, I can't give you a lifelong, monogamous relationship. I'm afraid you'll leave again."
Jiang Fenghua said coldly, "You know you can't give it to me, so why did you come looking for me? I'm doing just fine living my own life outside."
"The person I love has always been you, and only you. Can't you feel that? Have you forgotten? I can explain, I can slowly tell you. They entered the harem to fulfill their mission. Their task was to give birth to imperial heirs. The imperial family needs imperial heirs. I have never mistreated them or their families. Have I done anything wrong? You would never have cared about these things before."
Jiang Fenghua felt a surge of anger. "I wouldn't have cared about these things before, I wouldn't have cared how many women you had fathered how many imperial heirs with. Since you liked Jiang Fenghua back then so much, why did you argue with her every day? You wanted her to love you, but you also wanted her to be indifferent. Why should she have to suffer? Didn't she also bear three imperial heirs for you? She also contributed to your royal family. What's the difference between her existence and that of the deceased Consort Pan and Consort Zhang? Just consider her dead as well. Why do you have to bring her back?"
Xie Shang softened his tone, "Ruan Ruan, I'm sorry, that's not what I meant. My child and yours are different from theirs."
"What's the difference? The children I give birth to are also imperial heirs, and they also perpetuate the imperial lineage."
“It’s different.” Xie Shang didn’t know how to explain it clearly. He held her in his arms. “Ruan Ruan, I love you. Even if you didn’t have children, I will still love you.”
“When I saw them dying in childbirth, even dying in front of me, I wished I could go back to before I lost my memory. At least then I could establish myself as a ‘virtuous empress’ and arrange for them to give birth to the imperial heir safely, so that no one would be killed because of me. Zhang Jingjing believed in me until she died, but I forgot about her. Do you know how I felt? I thought she was killed because of me.”
She recalled the bloody and horrific scenes and felt only fear. Ironically, Xie Shang only treated them as tools to produce imperial offspring. They gave birth to children at the cost of their lives, yet they were merely tools.
How tragic it is to be a woman!
If Xie Shang doesn't like her, is she just a tool for him to have children?
What she didn't know was that if she had no value, she wouldn't even be chosen as a tool for childbirth; this was the reality of marrying into royalty.
The emperor loved her, but not them, and she didn't know whether she should be happy or not.
When she sees Consort Gao and Consort Song again, will she want to live happily with them, like sisters?
It seems that Jiang Fenghua's choice not to love him was the right one.
Granny Wang told her everything: Consort Su, Concubine Ye, and Consort Tang, and even why Zhu Zhenzhen had gone mad. Granny Wang wasn't trying to help Zhu Zhenzhen at all; she was only being kind to her because she was moved by Granny Liu's loyalty.
When she heard this, she couldn't quite understand her previous actions. Why did she have to compete for favor, fight, and seize? Now she finally understood that she had married the emperor, and even if she didn't fight, others would still fight with her.
Once she entered the palace, the only way for her to be more comfortable was to choose not to love.
She said calmly, "I want to find out the real cause of their deaths. Whoever did it, I will make them pay the price."
Xie Shang never expected that Jiang Fenghua, who had lost her memory, would still help them.
Xie Shang continued, "Ruan Ruan, the Empress Dowager may have returned to the capital to help Prince Kang seize the throne. She has returned to the palace, which is why I allowed her to stay in Shou Kang Palace. I didn't expect her to hold a tea banquet as soon as she returned, causing such a big incident."
"Isn't she your imperial grandmother? Is she trying to seize the Xie family's empire?"
Xie Shang continued, "There are still many things I haven't had time to tell you. I was afraid you wouldn't be able to handle them. It's not that I didn't want to tell you, it's just that I didn't expect her to act so quickly and without any regard for the relationship between grandfather and grandson."
Jiang Fenghua thought to herself: It's that phrase again.
She saw that Xie Shang's eyes were full of coldness, and his deep eyes shot out a cold light, as if he had no emotion at all. No wonder he was so cold to his mother. Is there really no kinship in the royal family?
Afterwards, Xie Shang told Jiang Fenghua about the entanglement between his father, the Emperor, and Prince Kang.
Jiang Fenghua felt a pang of sadness upon hearing this, realizing that his father's life lacked both maternal and fraternal affection.
No wonder he was so cold and ruthless to the women in the harem. Empress Dowager Cheng probably didn't really love him as her son!
He was the emperor's son, which is why Empress Dowager Cheng thought of everything for him, all for the sake of him becoming emperor. Xie Shang's greatest value was his status as emperor.
Xie Shang is truly pitiful.
Jiang Fenghua asked him, "With so many women, including your favorite Consort Su, why do you say you only love me?"
"Because you are Jiang Fenghua, I only love you. Even if Jiang Fenghua doesn't love me, I will still love her." The reason he truly fell in love with Jiang Fenghua was that she was the first person to give him warmth.
She sensed that he was hiding something from her. He could accept that she didn't love him; was there something wrong with him?
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