Chapter Ninety-Five: Truth and Falsehood
Madam Ruan returned to her residence with an air of superiority. The next day, she inevitably gathered a few close friends and proceeded to thoroughly denigrate the Shen family. For every glory the first house on Zhuque Street enjoyed, countless envious eyes were fixed upon it, and countless dark hearts yearned for its downfall. Therefore, upon returning home, these friends, without hesitation, embellished the story and spread it among their relatives and friends.
When the rumors reached Madam Shen's ears, she was too exhausted to argue and collapsed onto the bed in anger.
During the morning court session, the King of Han instructed a group of civil and military officials to question Chancellor Shen, believing that she was morally deficient, had abandoned her wife and unborn child, and that her actions were outrageous and unworthy of being the head of the officials.
However, Prime Minister Shen was no pushover. After their barrage of rebukes, he unleashed his trump card: "Regarding this matter, the late Emperor made a decision in the fourteenth year of Qinghe." He then refused to say another word. By invoking the late Emperor, he caught them off guard, leaving them looking at each other in bewilderment, unable to find a rebuttal—to question this matter was to question the late Emperor's wisdom and prowess.
Seeing that the incessantly clamoring ministers had finally shut up, the emperor, who had been dizzy from the noise, happily announced the end of the court session. As soon as Prince Jin stepped out of the main hall, he saw a palace attendant from the Empress Dowager's side greet him with a smile, saying, "Your Highness, Her Majesty the Empress Dowager invites you to have lunch with her."
Prince Jin nodded and followed him to Cining Palace. As soon as they entered the main hall, they heard soft sobbing coming from the east side hall. He stopped in surprise and asked the eunuch in a low voice, "Who is inside?"
The eunuch whispered, "It is Princess Rouzhen."
The Prince of Jin was taken aback at first, then suddenly realized that the person must have come to plead their case.
Upon reaching the entrance of the east side hall, the eunuch announced loudly, "Your Majesty, Prince Jin has arrived."
The crying inside immediately subsided, and after a moment, the Empress Dowager's voice rang out: "Rouzhen, don't worry. I was the one who arranged your marriage, and I will definitely stand up for you." She paused, then said, "Someone, take Princess Rouzhen to get her face painted." Then, footsteps could be heard heading in another direction.
Prince Jin's heart stirred. It turned out that the Empress Dowager had acted as matchmaker for Princess Rousheng's marriage to Shen Yun.
"Xi'er, come in."
Prince Jin entered the east wing hall and saw the Empress Dowager sitting on a couch, her face still showing anger. He stepped forward, bowed, and asked with a smile, "Who has offended the Empress Dowager?"
The Empress Dowager pulled him up and sat him on the couch, saying, "It's truly infuriating. I never expected that the wife of Duke Wenxiao would become more and more audacious and reckless. She actually proposed that Prime Minister Shen take her daughter back to be his principal wife. What about Princess Rouzhen? Rouzhen is a member of the imperial clan. She divorced first, and then Ruan Shi came along. When she discovered she was pregnant, Rouzhen was already married to Prime Minister Shen. Ruan Shi later remarried and is now a widow. With her status, she actually dares to say that she wants to be Prime Minister Shen's principal wife. She has no shame."
The King of Jin laughed and said, "Perhaps the wife of Duke Wenxiao was just speaking recklessly in a fit of anger."
The Empress Dowager said, "Even if you harbor resentment, you must not speak carelessly and humiliate the daughters of the imperial clan."
Just then, a eunuch announced from outside the door: "Your Majesty, Madam Ruan and Fifth Miss Ruan have arrived."
Prince Jin's heart skipped a beat, and he turned to look at the Empress Dowager.
The Empress Dowager said coldly, "Tell them to wait outside."
It was already winter, and the wind was blowing outside. Although it wasn't cold yet, it was still uncomfortable to be blown around for too long. Prince Jin turned to look at the water clock and said, "Mother, lunch is still a while away. Why don't you go see them first?"
The Empress Dowager smiled slightly and said, "Silly child, did you really think I invited you to dine here?"
"What is it?"
“Yesterday your aunt came to the palace and told me that Princess Huiwen wants to propose to Miss Ruan Wu on the sixth day of the twelfth lunar month. Look, even Xiaobai is getting engaged, how long are you going to wait?”
The Prince of Jin changed the subject, saying, "Hasn't my aunt always disagreed with this marriage?"
The Empress Dowager shook her head and said, "Yes, she's still not happy. She complained to me last night that your great-aunt is too self-righteous and has taken over Xiaobai's marriage arrangements, leaving her with no say. But she doesn't dare to say it directly, so she came to me hoping I would intervene. Actually, I think your great-aunt's choice of the fifth daughter of the Ruan family is quite good. Xiaobai's temperament is still developing, and she's quite impulsive. If she were to marry someone immature and naive, wouldn't it cause chaos?"
Prince Jin was overjoyed to hear that she had a good impression of Ruan Bi and that Lady Gu was unhappy about the marriage.
"Why are we talking about Xiaobai?" The Empress Dowager paused, then changed the subject. "I told you last time that if you didn't decide, I would make the decision myself. Speaking of which, which of the women I've chosen for you isn't exceptionally beautiful? First, there's Prime Minister Shen's daughter. Although she's young, her looks and talent are top-notch. Vice Minister Ruan's second daughter is strikingly beautiful, cheerful, and lively, and she's also a skilled embroiderer. The Duke of Zhenguo's daughter is well-educated, reasonable, and understanding. Then there's Grand Tutor He's granddaughter, quiet and elegant, with a profound understanding of the world. Consort Xie's sister, though slightly less beautiful, is still quite charming... I've brought them all to the palace today, and they're playing drinking games in the Linmei Pavilion right now. Come with me and take a look."
"Mother..." the Prince of Jin called out reluctantly.
The Empress Dowager glared at him, then took him outside. As they left the main hall, a gust of wind blew. Palace attendants and maids hurriedly surrounded the Empress Dowager, some putting on windproof hoods, others setting up round fans to block the wind... Prince Jin subconsciously glanced at Ruan Bi standing at the door, and seeing her head bowed humbly, he felt a pang of sadness and paused in his tracks.
The Empress Dowager noticed his unusual expression and followed his gaze, which fell on Ruan Bi. She was startled. However, she did not stop walking and continued towards Linmei Pavilion in the east.
Before even reaching Linmei Pavilion, the cheerful laughter of young girls could be heard. Comparing the two girls, Prince Jin felt increasingly sorry for Ruan Bi, who was being scooped up at the entrance, and had no interest in looking at the other girls. Reluctantly, he followed the Empress Dowager inside.
The sounds of laughter and joy became even clearer.
Passing the large screen at the entrance, one enters a small room nearby. The windows inside are made of sheer blue gauze, offering a clear view of the main hall. Six young women, barely out of their teens, sit before a low table, surrounded by maids, nannies, palace maids, and eunuchs. Each of the six girls is dressed in magnificent robes and adorned with dazzling jewelry. Their figures are graceful and their expressions range from charming and innocent to dignified, gentle, and pretty. The most striking of them all is Shen Hua, dressed in a yellow robe with white chrysanthemum patterns, resembling a blooming chrysanthemum herself—a sight of indescribable beauty.
The Empress Dowager had been watching Prince Jin's expression closely. Seeing that his gaze swept over her and lingered on Shen Hua for only a moment, she smiled slightly and said, "I knew you would definitely be fond of Prime Minister Shen's daughter."
The Prince of Jin was so frightened he almost jumped up, saying, "Mother, she's just a little girl..."
The Empress Dowager laughed and said, "What little girl? She's already thirteen years old, and her birthday is quite old. Let her get married next summer, when she'll be fourteen, which will be just right. I entered the palace when I was fourteen."
Hearing that she had even decided on the wedding date, the Prince of Jin was shocked and quickly said, "Mother, please allow me to think about it some more."
"What else do you want to think about, and when?" the Empress Dowager said unhappily. "You've been back from the Northwest for over five months, and you've been thinking about it for over five months. You're twenty-two now, not twelve. The best women in the Great Zhou Dynasty are all here. What else do you want to think about?"
"Mother, you promised me that you would let me choose for myself."
The Empress Dowager coldly snorted and said, "If I let you choose, I don't know when I'll be able to hold my grandson. I told you last time that if you don't choose, I'll decide. Let's go with Prime Minister Shen's daughter. I can tell you're interested in her too."
The Prince of Jin pleaded, "Mother, please give me another half month."
The Empress Dowager was puzzled. She looked him up and down and asked sarcastically, "Does it mean that a woman from a noble family, with a clean background and both virtue and beauty will fall from the sky in half a month?"
"Just half a month. After that, it's entirely up to Mother Empress to decide."
The Empress Dowager looked at him with a complicated expression for a while, and said, "Someone, go and invite Miss Ruan Wu over."
The Prince of Jin was startled. Although he tried his best to remain calm, his expression changed.
The Empress Dowager, with her keen eyes, took in every change in his expression, gaining a slight certainty in her mind, yet still finding it hard to believe. No one spoke in the small room, only the sound of breathing rising and falling. Meanwhile, in the main hall next door, a group of young women were giggling incessantly, talking about something amusing.
A moment later, quiet footsteps came from the corridor outside the door, followed by a eunuch whispering, "Your Majesty, Miss Ruan Wu has arrived."
"Tell her to kneel outside the door."
"Mother Empress," the Prince of Jin called out, frowning.
The Empress Dowager turned to look at him, her gaze slightly cold. After a moment, she waved her hand, and the eunuchs and palace maids tactfully withdrew.
After a long pause, the Empress Dowager, still somewhat incredulous, murmured, "So it was her you favored."
"Yes, the child is fond of her." After a pause, the Prince of Jin emphasized, "He is only fond of her."
The Empress Dowager chuckled a few times, but there was no smile on her face. She slowly walked to the chair and sat down. After a while, she chuckled softly again, the laughter extremely eerie. Then she said in a low voice, "I used to hear those monks talk about retribution. It turns out there really is retribution."
The Prince of Jin turned to look at her, puzzled.
The room was dimly lit, and the Empress Dowager was sitting with her back to the light, her entire face in shadow, and her expression was ambiguous and indistinct.
After a long pause, the Prince of Jin knelt down and said, "I beg Your Majesty to grant my request."
"You just said you wanted to wait half a month so that Prime Minister Shen could acknowledge her and then propose marriage, right? And letting her be recognized by her ancestors was also your idea, wasn't it?" The Empress Dowager didn't need his acknowledgment at all. She sighed deeply and said, "My good son, all the literary and military talents you've learned have been used up here." Her heart felt like the Yellow River had burst its banks, overflowing with floodwaters. She couldn't describe the feeling—heartache, fear, bitterness, guilt, and a mix of other emotions.
The Prince of Jin knelt upright without uttering a sound.
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