Chapter 84 Attending to the Illness at Shou'an Palace
Wen Shiyu lowered his head and remained silent, his eyes dark and cold.
She wouldn't unconditionally protect a child who isn't her biological child.
What's the use of her father being so good to her all these years? When she's in trouble, doesn't she just stand by and do nothing?
If it's her biological son...
If it were her own son who was in trouble, she would plead with the emperor, even if it meant breaking her head, to beg him to pardon her child.
Wen Shiyu felt extremely dissatisfied.
However, he did not dare to break ties with Princess Ning'an at this moment. The atmosphere in the room was icy and filled with a sense of oppressive unease.
After a long silence, he concealed the emotions in his eyes and respectfully said, "Please rest assured, Mother, your son would never do such a thing."
He paused for a moment, then said, “Father was too worried about my cousin and spoke impulsively. Please don’t take it to heart, Mother. I have always admired the harmonious relationship between Father and Mother. They are like a perfect couple. Please don’t let my cousin’s matter cause any rift between you.”
Princess Ning'an walked to the couch and sat down, raising her hand to support her forehead: "It's good that you think this way. I already made an exception once when I pleaded for the titles of heir apparent and princess for you and Jingyi. If I plead for someone who shouldn't be pleading for you again, I'm afraid the emperor will be dissatisfied with me."
She looked up at Wen Shiyu, her eyes indifferent: "Don't forget that your current wealth and status are all built on the Emperor's favor with me. If I fall out of favor, will you still be able to live such a good life?"
Wen Shiyu wanted to say that even without you, the Empress Dowager would still protect us. Even without Princess Ning'an, there are other princesses.
All this wealth and honor is rightfully yours, not a gift from anyone, and you have no need to be grateful to him.
But he could only keep these words to himself and couldn't say a single one.
Last night's thunder, lightning, and torrential rain seemed to foreshadow the Wen family's current predicament.
Wen Heyun was imprisoned in the Imperial Prison. Not only were the Wen family, including the Prime Minister and his son-in-law, extremely anxious about this, but the Prince of Jin's mansion was also in a state of great distress, as was the Empress Dowager in the palace.
Last night, after the Empress Dowager fell into a coma, she was awakened by the imperial physician. Incense was lit in the palace to calm her nerves. The Emperor only stayed for a short while before leaving, instructing no one to disturb the Empress Dowager so that she could get a good night's sleep.
I slept soundly until dawn.
When she woke up, the Empress Dowager felt weak and limp all over.
Looking at the emperor sitting on the edge of the bed, her expression was cold and distant: "Your Majesty still knows to come and see your mother?"
"Your Majesty's health is of utmost importance." Emperor Zhaode looked at her with concern. "The imperial physician said that your anger has affected your heart, and you need to rest and recuperate. Don't worry about things outside; just leave them to Prince Yan and Prince Ming."
"Hand them over to take charge?" The Empress Dowager sat up with a cold laugh. "Is Prince Ming any good person? He's in charge of the Imperial Prison and spends all his time researching cruel tortures. What good can come of the Wen family's eldest son falling into his hands? Your Majesty, Prime Minister Wen is a high-ranking official in the court, and his eldest son's status is extremely important. Even if he has made a mistake, he should be punished accordingly. You can't send him to the Imperial Prison! What will the entire court think?"
Emperor Zhaode was silent for a moment, then raised his hand to rub his temples: "Does Mother think that the women who were murdered in his harem were not innocent? Wen Heyun is vicious and cruel. When he bullied weak women who were powerless to resist, how could Prime Minister Wen not know? Since he did not stop him, he was condoning these innocent women to become victims of his son's abuse. Do you think such a high-ranking official can still be trusted?"
The Empress Dowager was shocked: "What does Your Majesty mean by this? Does he intend to dismiss him from his post?"
Emperor Zhaode did not speak, but his attitude was tacit agreement.
He had no intention of reinstating the prime minister.
For a moment, the Empress Dowager's expression showed unease and rage, but when she thought that the person in front of her was not only her son, but also the emperor of the country, she could only try her best to control her emotions.
The Empress Dowager took a deep breath and lowered her eyes, saying, "Wen Heyun certainly deserves to die. But as a high-ranking official in the court, the Prime Minister is busy with affairs and may not be able to discover what his son has done. In my opinion, at most he has just neglected to discipline his son. Your Majesty should still think it over carefully and not disappoint the ministers in the court."
Emperor Zhaode nodded: "Your subject will consider it carefully."
The Empress Dowager stopped speaking, but in her heart she was already thinking that it was obviously useless to use her status as a mother to put pressure on the Emperor. Not to mention whether the Emperor would agree, given the stubborn tempers of the two brothers, Prince Ming and Prince Yan, even if the Emperor issued an edict, they might not obey it.
She had to start with Yan Cang or Yan Yang to get them to release Wen Heyun willingly.
And the people who can make them compromise...
Yan Yang is not yet married and his mother has passed away early, so he has no weaknesses to rely on.
Chu Yunjin was the person Yan Cang cared about most, but since she was staying outside the palace, she couldn't take action against her.
That leaves only Yan Jinyue.
The Empress Dowager sighed wearily, "I was too agitated last night. I was only thinking that I couldn't let down the important officials in the court. If Prince Ming had no evidence and planned to torture me into confessing, it would definitely discourage the ministers... I never expected that Wen Heyun would actually..."
Emperor Zhaode comforted her, saying, "Mother, there is no need to blame yourself."
"I'm not feeling well and would like Jin Yue to come and keep me company for a few days." The Empress Dowager held Emperor Zhaode's hand. "She just broke off her engagement these past two days, so she must be in a bad mood. I'll try to cheer her up."
Emperor Zhaode thought for a moment, then slowly nodded: "Very well."
The Empress Dowager lowered her eyes, a cold glint flashing in them.
Yan Cang, since you are so ruthless, don't blame me for being merciless.
After the sudden rain, the weather remained gloomy for two days.
After the sky cleared, news that Yan Jinyue had been summoned by the Empress Dowager to attend to her illness reached Yan Cang's ears.
He didn't pay much attention at first.
The Empress Dowager has been in a bad mood these past two days, and everyone knows why. The Emperor sent Jin Yue to attend to her because he couldn't agree to her request to release Wen Heyun, so he had to settle for another small request of hers.
Yan Cang knew in his heart that taking care of the sick was not so simple.
The Empress Dowager may have wanted to torment Yan Jinyue in order to get revenge on Yan Cang, but it was customary for concubines and princesses in the palace to attend to the Empress Dowager when she was ill, which was also a manifestation of filial piety.
Even if Yan Cang was dissatisfied, he had no reason to interfere, so he could only secretly have people keep an eye on Shou'an Palace.
If the Sixth Princess is severely harassed by the Empress Dowager, send someone to inform her.
But a few days passed, and the inner palace remained calm and peaceful.
Yan Cang's informant said that the Empress Dowager was very gentle and unpretentious towards the Sixth Princess. The Sixth Princess would go to pay her respects to the Empress Dowager in the morning, sit down and chat with her over tea, and enjoy the freshly baked pastries from Shou'an Palace. She would have lunch with the Empress Dowager at noon, and then return to her own palace in the evening.
The Empress Dowager did not plead for the Wen family again.
Yan Cang temporarily took charge of the Six Ministries. He had to attend court every day and deal with the complicated affairs of the Six Ministries. He could not return home until dark. However, the most important thing about taking charge of the Six Ministries was not the handover of affairs and the busyness, but the fact that the ministers of each ministry had different thoughts and their own interest groups.
Although Yan Cang was a prince, if it weren't for the iron-blooded authority he had developed from years of battlefield experience, he, a prince who was parachuted into the position of prime minister, would have no way to control these old foxes in the court.
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