Chapter 18 Consider it fulfilling the Empress Dowager's last wish
A faint smell of blood permeated the Shou Kang Palace.
At this moment, everyone looked terrified and knelt down on the ground.
Lin Wei rushed into the hall, and Aunt Kang, the Empress Dowager's trusted confidante, seemed to have found her pillar of support.
"The Marquis has finally arrived."
Aunt Kang quickly knelt down before Lin Wei.
"Aunt Kang, what's going on?"
Lin Wei asked questions as he hurried inside.
On her bedside, the Empress Dowager was pale and terminally ill, no longer possessing her former grace and elegance.
Lin Wei lost his mother at the age of eight and grew up in the palace. Apart from his maternal aunt, the Empress, his maternal grandmother, the Empress Dowager, treated him the best.
Seeing the Empress Dowager so ill, how could one not be anxious?
"She's been sick for more than half a year. Her Majesty the Empress Dowager was afraid you would worry, so she kept it a secret from you. But today she just couldn't be woken up no matter what we did... That's why I sent a little eunuch to inform her. If anything happens, Her Majesty the Empress Dowager will definitely want to see His Majesty and the Marquis." Aunt Kang said, wiping away her tears.
"How is the Empress Dowager? Where is the imperial physician? How are you good-for-nothings serving the Empress Dowager?!"
The emperor rebuked him angrily.
The imperial physicians exchanged bewildered glances, then knelt down in unison, boldly declaring, "Your Majesty, the Empress Dowager is not ill; judging from her pulse, she is nearing the end of her life..."
Lin Wei stood guard by the Empress Dowager's bedside, his eyes tinged with a crimson hue.
“Grandmother, it’s me, Lin Wei. If you can open your eyes, please look at me.”
Perhaps hearing Lin Wei's voice, the Empress Dowager opened her eyes with difficulty.
“Awei…Grandmother is probably not going to make it soon. But she won’t be able to see you get married before she dies. After I go down, I will have no face to see your mother.”
Lin Wei looked at the Empress Dowager with a sorrowful expression. “Grandmother is not unaware that there are very few people whose fates are compatible with mine. If I were to marry rashly, I would only be harming the girl. Mother in the afterlife would not blame you.”
"Mother, what are you saying? You haven't even seen Awei get married yet, how can you leave us and go on your own!" The Emperor also had a hint of tears in his eyes.
Aunt Kang crawled on her knees to the bedchamber. "The imperial physician said that the Empress Dowager's pulse was weak, and that... that the Empress Dowager could pass away at any moment."
Upon hearing this, the Emperor became extremely anxious and hurriedly pulled Lin Wei out of the palace.
"Awei, things have come to this point, even if you're going to lie to your grandmother, you have to put on an act for her!"
Lin Wei suppressed his anger and looked at the Emperor with some rage. His maternal grandmother was so ill, yet she was still thinking about his marriage.
"Now is not the time to talk about this."
The Emperor, in his good nature, coaxed him, "You were also raised by your maternal grandmother, and now she could pass away at any moment. Can't you even fulfill this small wish of hers? Even if you're just lying to her, at least you won't let her leave with regrets."
He refused to believe that Lin Wei could disagree with such a statement!
Lin Wei hesitated.
He lowered his head and pondered for a moment, then resolutely walked into the bedchamber.
Seeing that he had persuaded Lin Wei, the Emperor hurriedly went in to check on the situation.
“Grandmother, I…” Lin Wei hesitated to speak, “I have found that person and I will definitely marry her. Grandmother, you can rest assured.”
The Empress Dowager stretched out her trembling hand, "Where is she? Could my aunt see her before she died? You must not deceive my maternal grandmother."
"He is in the Imperial Study."
The Emperor held the Empress Dowager's hand tightly. "Xiao Fuzi, hurry up and call Miss Shen over so the Empress Dowager can take a look at her."
"yes!"
Eunuch Fu hurriedly turned and left, walking very fast, afraid that if he was late, the Empress Dowager would not be able to see Miss Shen, and his life would be in danger.
Shen Shu and the Imperial Preceptor were in a side hall.
The incident happened suddenly, and since the emperor didn't tell them to leave, they could only wait here for orders.
"Miss Shen Er!"
Grandpa Fu pushed open the door and hurried in.
The Imperial Advisor rose to his feet. "How is the Empress Dowager's health?"
Eunuch Fu bowed to the Imperial Preceptor, his face showing urgency. "There's no time to explain in detail. Please come with me quickly, Miss Shen. The Empress Dowager wants to see you!"
He then instructed Shen Shu, "Second Miss Shen, please don't say anything carelessly later. Whatever the Marquis says is law. Don't say anything about whether you are worthy or not."
Grandpa Fu quickly applied eye drops to Shen Shu's eyes.
Just now in the Imperial Study, Shen Shu's bold refusal of the marriage left a deep impression on Eunuch Fu.
The Empress Dowager's life hangs by a thread. If Miss Shen Er says something shocking later, things will get really bad.
Shen Shu: "Father-in-law, could you please tell me what's going on? Otherwise, how can I tell if I've said something wrong?"
Her heart was pounding, and she had a vague feeling that something big was going to happen today.
"The Empress Dowager is probably nearing her end..."
Unable to contain himself, Eunuch Fu briefly told Shen Shu what had just happened.
Shen Shu was surprised, "Your Majesty wants me and Lin Wei to deceive the Empress Dowager?"
"That's one way to put it. I know that Miss Shen's marriage to the Marquis hasn't been finalized yet, but it's just a show, so this should be of some help."
Grandpa Fu's tone was almost pleading.
Just think about who their Marquis is. The young ladies who want to marry him would circle the palace three times over. Who would have thought that they would now be begging a girl to pretend to be the Marquis's wife? The main problem is that the girl is not very willing!
Who would believe it if I told them?
“…Okay…” After all, it’s just a play, there shouldn’t be any problems.
Shen Shu and the Imperial Preceptor followed Eunuch Fu to the Empress Dowager's Shou Kang Palace.
Because the Empress Dowager's health was unstable and she might pass away at any time, they rushed to Shou Kang Palace without delay.
"Miss Shen, we've arrived. Please come in quickly."
Eunuch Fu lifted the curtain of the sleeping quarters.
The Empress Dowager had been staring at the door, and her eyes lit up when she saw Shen Shu enter.
"Is this the second young lady of the Shen family? Come in quickly, let me have a good look at her."
Shen Shu felt somewhat uncomfortable looking at Lin Wei, but still walked up to the Empress Dowager.
She looked at the noblewoman before her, wondering if she was about to pass away.
Shen Shu couldn't help but feel a little regretful.
"How wonderful... she's a beautiful child..." The Empress Dowager looked Shen Shu up and down.
Suddenly, her weak voice carried a hint of anger, "Awei, is this how you treat your fiancée? Making her wear such tattered clothes!"
Lin Wei didn't react for a moment.
Shen Shu's mind raced as she quickly explained, "The Marquis is very good to me. These clothes were given to me by my mother. It has nothing to do with the Marquis."
The Empress Dowager grabbed Shen Shu's hand, her face filled with shock. "What? Your mother actually treated you like this? Is the Bo Gong Mansion so poor that they can't even afford a decent piece of clothing?!"
"Awei!"
The Empress Dowager, weak but slightly angry, said, "Your future daughter-in-law's family is so poor, and you don't even know how to help them. And you say it's not your fault."
"Yes, it was my fault for being so inconsiderate and causing her to suffer. I will send someone to deliver the money right away."
The Empress Dowager nodded in satisfaction upon hearing Lin Wei's words.
But that still wasn't enough, "I'll also reward Miss Shen with one hundred taels of gold, fifty bolts of Shu brocade, ten pairs of gold hairpins, and thirty sets of hair ornaments..."
"Your Majesty, I am deeply grateful for your generous gift." Shen Shu knelt down and kowtowed to express her gratitude.
Lin Wei felt something he couldn't express in words.
She was unwilling to be betrothed to him, but she readily expressed her gratitude when he rewarded her with silver.
Is he, the dignified Marquis of Dingyuan, really less valuable than a pile of silver?
The Empress Dowager had just mustered her strength to say a few words, but now she has weakened again.
"emperor….."
The Empress Dowager looked at the Emperor with trembling eyes.
"With me here, Mother, please speak freely if you have any other wishes."
The Empress Dowager said slowly, "Has His Majesty bestowed a marriage upon Awei? If not, then this matter is not yet settled."
Shen Shu and Lin Wei felt a sudden jolt in their hearts.
Aunt Kang knelt down, weeping, "Your Majesty, please issue a decree immediately, as if to... fulfill the Empress Dowager's last wish..."
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