Chapter 1097: Palace Coup (Part 1) [Requesting Monthly Tickets]
Snap!
The crisp sound of the slap stunned both mother and son.
Lady Mi was a woman of the inner quarters, pampered and cared for by eunuchs and maids all these years. How much strength could she possibly have? The slap she delivered in a fit of anger wouldn't have been heavy for an ordinary person, let alone for her son who had painstakingly cultivated internal energy and martial arts. His face didn't hurt, but his heart ached. He couldn't believe it: "You hit me? Just because I wanted to compete, you disregarded our mother-son relationship and hit me?"
Mi Shi came to her senses and stared blankly at her reddened palms.
Faced with her son's questioning, she suppressed her heartache and abandoned her usual gentle and compliant demeanor: "I hit you not because you want to fight with others, but because you despise your own life! Did I carry you for ten months to give birth just so you could gamble on a 'crash' way to die?"
She broke down in tears at the end.
Tears streamed down her face, ruining her delicate makeup.
This was the first time in his memory that his son had seen Lady Mi weep in front of him. His first reaction was heartache, and he wanted to say something soft and apologize. These thoughts lasted only a moment; the words churning in his throat were swallowed back with ruthless frustration: "Mother, you're just a woman confined to the inner chambers; you understand nothing... People die differently. Living a pathetic life is worse than dying a glorious one. What is a life anyway?"
All of her son's words combined were less devastating than his first sentence. So devastating that her tears stopped, and she stared at him in utter astonishment. She truly couldn't understand when her usually dutiful and obedient son had begun to look down on her, just as his father, Wu Xian, had done, disregarding the wisdom and understanding of women in the inner quarters.
Even though Lady Mi had been with Wu Xian for a long time and had given birth to two sons and two daughters, Wu Xian did not like her to personally teach the children. The children would grow up with her until they were six years old, and then be sent to the front courtyard. Those without cultivation talent would attend the clan school, while those with cultivation talent would study under tutors and martial arts masters hired at great expense, from the first light of dawn until midnight. The time that mother and children spent together became less and less.
Now, we can only see them every morning and evening.
Perhaps due to a lack of interaction, her impressions of the children, especially the eldest son in front of her, were still based on their childhood.
The mother and son lived together in the back courtyard, relying on each other for survival.
She tried her best to protect her children, and they were filial and dependent on her.
I never imagined that these words would come from a child's mouth.
"You—do you really have to fight for this way of dying?"
She truly didn't understand her son's thoughts.
Mi's words only fueled her son's rage: "How to die? Mother, are you convinced I'm destined to lose? If you won't fight, fine, but if I want to fight, you'll stop me? You carried me for ten months and gave me this life, but that doesn't mean I have to live like a puppet, obeying your wishes. You think just being alive is enough, but have you ever considered whether I want to be inferior to you for the rest of my life?"
Are those born lowly destined to only be able to survive by bowing their heads?
Previously, they were the two sons of the late queen.
Their mother was of noble birth, and they themselves were legitimate sons. In contrast, his mother was a dancer, and as an illegitimate child, he truly had no right to compete with them. In order to make his and his mother's lives better, he had spent all these years trying to please them, always obedient and smiling, without daring to harbor the slightest resentment.
I finally managed to take them down, only to have the youngest one, who's only six months old, reap the rewards! Now I have to bow and scrape to him? Why? Why can't he fight for himself?
He was unhappy that the position had fallen to the youngest child!
Looking at her completely unfamiliar son, as if seeing him for the first time, Mi Shi exclaimed, "You...you're possessed! You're truly possessed!"
The son said, "I have never been possessed by a demon."
He looked at Mi Shi with some disappointment in his eyes.
"But you've never understood your son."
After saying this, he turned and left without hesitation.
Lady Mi hurriedly chased after him, only to see his figure disappear at the end of the corridor. This scene drained all her strength, and she slid down the door frame, collapsing to the ground, not even noticing when her second son appeared: "Mother, why are you sitting here?"
Seeing that Mi Shi's makeup was ruined by tears, he hurriedly called a palace maid to take her to wash up: "I've heard about what happened to Fourth Brother."
"Did your fourth brother send you?"
Lady Mi was quite adept at managing her servants.
No one dared to spread the news of what was happening in the palace.
The second son said, "Yes, Fourth Brother said he lost control of his emotions and said some harsh words. Mother, Fourth Brother actually has his own reasons."
Looking at her haggard reflection in the mirror, Lady Mi remained silent.
The second son continued, "Father has many offspring, and his illegitimate brothers are all close in age. How could there not be conflicts in private? Fourth Brother suffered many hidden losses in the past, but he didn't say anything for fear of upsetting Mother. I understand why Fourth Brother wants to climb the social ladder and become someone of high status. He simply doesn't want to live a life of having to be subservient to others anymore. Both of his legitimate brothers are dead, and the remaining brothers are all illegitimate. Why aren't they qualified to compete for the position of head of the family?"
The strength of their maternal clan and their birth mother's background were merely bargaining chips; their true capital was their status as "sons of Wu Xian." In reality, all the brothers started from the same point. Yet, their mother was always extremely cautious, and even though she held great power in the inner court, she still treated everyone with deference, as if anyone could just sit on their heads and defecate.
Having a gentle personality is not a bad thing, but you can't be gentle to everyone.
Not only that, he also repeatedly instructed his brothers to be friendly and respectful to each other.
That word is a joke in Lao Wu's family.
Forget about brothers born of the same mother, what's with the brotherly affection and respect you have for other half-brothers born from different wombs? You think they're your own brothers, but they just see you as the offspring of a dancer.
They know nothing but love to lecture you over and over again.
As time went on, the fourth brother naturally rebelled.
Mi Shi: "..."
She genuinely knew nothing about her son being bullied.
"...But you are all your father's children..."
The second son sighed and held out a hand: "Mother, not counting those who died young or were not in order of seniority, I have a total of fifty-three brothers and sisters. He still cares about the first few children, but the rest of them, do they even see him once a year? If he doesn't value his own father like this, what about those opportunistic servants?"
Some things, if you don't fight for them, you'll lose them.
If you don't behave yourself, things will fall from the sky.
Fourth Brother's words were a bit extreme and harsh, but they were truly from the heart, reflecting the grievances he had suffered over the years. Mi Shi noticed that her second son seemed rather unfamiliar: "The question is, is it worth it? The Kingdom of Gao is in turmoil; your father has been defeated and captured. How much longer can Gao... how much longer can it hold out? Is it really worth risking your life for a worthless, empty reputation?"
The second son looked into her eyes and gave an affirmative answer.
"Mother, it was worth it."
"Because that's what Fourth Brother is pursuing."
"For Fourth Brother, even if he can only hold this position above ten thousand people for one day, it is worth it. Why don't you grant his wish?"
They are not blind to the internal and external troubles facing Gao.
But even becoming the ruler of a fallen kingdom is a height that many ordinary people could never reach in their entire lives. Not everyone cherishes their life so much; some people can give up their dignity to live, but others can give up their life for dignity.
Fourth Brother's dignity lies in the throne.
Upon hearing this, Lady Mi completely broke down and wept bitterly.
After crying her heart out, her throbbing head calmed down. She calmly wiped away her tears and suppressed her heartache: "I know, Mother. Someone, pass on my order to summon Wang Fangyi to discuss important matters."
As the highest-ranking concubine in the inner court, Lady Mi was virtually indistinguishable from a queen, except for the title. If she sent someone to invite someone, that person had no choice but to come. The second son almost didn't understand what was going on, because Consort Wang was his youngest son's birth mother. Why was his mother inviting her over at this time?
Second son: "Mother?"
Mi Shi: "Didn't you want to fight over this?"
This question left the second son speechless.
"I really do want to..."
He noticed that Mi Shi's eyes had lost their usual loving and gentle gaze, becoming deep and dark, so pure that no emotion could be discerned.
Suppressing her surging emotions, Lady Mi said decisively, "Since you want to compete, then do it today. Once the position of the youngest son is confirmed at court tomorrow, any further attempts to compete will be considered treason. How many court officials would be willing to support that? Tonight is the perfect time to make our move."
Rebellion, palace coup.
Although their forces were few, she had the advantage. The inner court was her domain, and the mothers of those illegitimate sons could easily be taken hostage. With these people in her hands, she could make others hesitate to act. As long as she controlled the inner court first, she could then join forces with the outer court to suppress the news. Tomorrow's court assembly would decide the outcome.
"Your father abdicated in favor of his youngest son, which was certainly not his own idea. After the two countries suffered a defeat in battle, how could the people sleep peacefully if they then put on a young ruler who knew nothing?"
Whether a six-month-old baby can grow up is still uncertain.
Now it was the second son's turn to be stumped.
"Mother..."
Lady Mi continued, "Wang Fangyi is the new emperor's birth mother. Once the new emperor ascends the throne, she will be the Empress Dowager. All the sisters in the palace will have to rely on her from now on, so there's nothing wrong with currying favor with her in advance. Especially those who are young but haven't yet given birth to children..."
Having children is one thing, but being a widow is still being a widow with children.
The others were in a worse situation, being widows all alone.
As imperial concubines, they could not return home and could only live out their lives in the palace.
Empress Mi was decisive and efficient, and with her sister's help, she arranged the banquet in just half a day. Most of the concubines in the palace were unaware of the outside world's plans and, being kind-hearted, did not suspect the nature of the banquet. Most of them replied and attended the invitation. The few concubines who had heard rumors were uneasy but dared not clash with Empress Mi at this critical juncture.
They had their maternal clans to rely on, but this reliance was separated by layers of palace walls, and if there was real danger, they could not come to their aid immediately.
Not everyone was willing to pay attention to the Mi family.
Some of the more senior staff made excuses to decline.
"Something's not right." Fearing something might have happened, they tried to send a message to the outer court, but they couldn't even open the palace gates. After much trouble, they discovered that the palace gates had been locked from the outside, and all the exits were guarded. It was as if they were about to place them under house arrest. One of them was furious, "You bastards—who gave you permission to do this?"
"You guys are sobbing—"
Their shouting stopped abruptly.
Mei Jinghe left only a cold laugh.
Controlling the inner court wasn't difficult; the challenge lay in quietly taking control of the palace guards without alerting other factions in the outer court. The Mi clan had been bestowing favors far and wide over the years, and had also helped many people from humble backgrounds plead for them. While their power wasn't vast, they could prove useful in crucial moments.
Looking at the seemingly normal inner court, which was actually rife with undercurrents, Qi Cang clicked his tongue and said, "If you ask me, your adopted sister is more capable and intelligent than her child. Look at her, she managed to stage a palace coup on her first attempt, and it turned out quite well."
The various processes were carried out in an orderly manner, unlike those of a novice.
Mei Meng said, "She is a smart woman."
During their time together, Mei Meng discovered that Mi Shi possessed an inner resilience. On the surface, she appeared gentle as water, but beneath her exterior lay an iron will! A true example of outward gentleness masking inner strength! Unfortunately, Mi Shi's circumstances were dire, and she had an ambitious son by her side, destined to be dragged down with her! However, all of this was irrelevant to Mei Meng. She now only cared about one thing—
She murmured to herself as she gazed at the nearly full moon in the sky.
"here we go!"
Outside, the wind and rain raged, but inside, the palace was bustling and prosperous.
Among Wu Xian's concubines and female relatives, even the least beautiful were of above-average appearance, some slender, some plump, all more beautiful than flowers. Although they weren't deliberately dressed in their finest attire, their silk and satin garments still shimmered. Once most of the guests had arrived, the more observant among them noticed something odd about the seating arrangement. Why had Wang Fangyi's seat been moved to the front? Had the palace servants made a careless mistake?
No one corrected it until the banquet began.
This is intriguing.
What's even stranger is that Wang Fangyi didn't show up until the banquet started.
Mi Shi: "Wang Fangyi just sent someone over, saying that the child suddenly developed a high fever at noon and refused to drink the wet nurse's milk. She has been taking care of the child and has no mind to come over."
That's true.
The people sent by the Mi clan were stopped outside.
Clearly, Wang Fangyi also knew about Wu Xian's abdication in favor of her son. This unexpected joy left her no time to grieve for Wu Xian. When Mi Shi invited her over, she immediately made an excuse to refuse, intending to wait out the next two days.
Mi did not insist.
The other concubines didn't think anything was wrong.
Medical technology is not advanced at present, and the infant mortality rate is not low. A six-month-old baby can easily die from a high fever. Everyone here has given birth and understands the feelings of a mother, so they are sympathetic to Wang Fangyi. Looking at everyone, Mi Shi smiled and ordered the banquet to begin.
It wasn't until after several rounds of drinks that she announced Wu Xian's news.
Many people became intoxicated.
Hearing this, I was startled and instantly sobered up.
The sounds of wine glasses being dropped and smashing onto the table echoed repeatedly.
Mi seemed not to hear.
"...Why is the inner court unusually quiet today?"
The night watchman should be sounding by now.
Yes, I haven't heard the night watchman's gong all day.
Not only was there no sound of the night watchman's gong, but there was also no sound of patrols.
Then someone whispered in confusion.
"It's really quiet. My troublemaker, who always bullies his brothers, is usually so well-behaved."
Many of the imperial concubines brought their children to the banquet.
Lady Mi had always advocated brotherly affection and respect, hoping that princes and princesses of similar age would interact more, and that their relationships would naturally become closer through play. Her suggestion received strong support from Emperor Wu Xian, and the other concubines, eager to please him, had no choice but to comply. After a while, without Lady Mi's explicit notification, they would bring their children out. The adults stayed in the main hall, while the children remained in a side hall, attended to by dedicated servants.
Older children are fine, but younger ones tend to cry and fuss.
One person's crying and fussing will start a whole bunch of others.
Today—
They seemed too quiet.
|ω`)
Everything else in the theory test is fine, but the point deductions and fines are annoying.
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