Chapter 105: Forgiveness
Sun Wei knew that the Queen Mother's move was killing two birds with one stone.
Not only did he use her to suppress the prince, but he also offended him.
After speaking, Sun Wei stepped back, but did not dare to leave, and just waited outside the Empress Dowager's palace.
But after waiting for a long time, the prince did not come out.
"I am Zhao Tong, and I am here to meet the princess." Soon, a voice suddenly sounded behind him.
Sun Wei looked over and saw that it was Zhao Tong, the chief eunuch of the Eastern Palace.
Zhao Tong bowed respectfully, but knelt on the ground, refusing to rise. "I have come to apologize to the princess. Last time, because of my failure to discipline her, I allowed a traitor to go to the Queen Mother and spread slanderous words, implicating the princess. I have already punished the traitor, and the eunuchs and palace servants of the Eastern Palace have also been disciplined. I hope the princess will be magnanimous and forgive me this time!"
After saying this, he was about to kowtow again.
Sun Wei hurriedly asked someone to help him up.
"Why is this happening, Steward?" she said. "Since the punishment has already been given, the matter is settled and there's no need to bring it up again. Steward Zhao serves in the Eastern Palace and has a multitude of duties. How can he possibly be perfect in everything? It's best not to be too harsh on him."
When Zhao Tong heard this, he showed gratitude.
"Thank you, Princess, for your forgiveness." He stood up, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and said with a wry smile, "The Crown Prince said that if Princess is willing to forgive me, I can continue my duties as usual. If not, I will have to throw away my official uniform, receive fifty lashes of the cane, and be sent to the stables."
Sun Wei didn't expect it to get to this point.
Of course, she also knew that the prince was just putting on an act to show his respect.
Sun Wei consoled himself and said, "Is it the Crown Prince's intention that Chief Steward Zhao come to see me?"
"That's right." Zhao Tong said, and then hurriedly said, "The Crown Prince has something else to say, and he specifically asked me to pass it on to the Princess."
This is the main point.
"Oh? What?"
"The Crown Prince said that this is still a critical moment, and he is afraid of bringing disaster to the Princess, so he cannot make any suggestions. Just like today, she almost got into trouble again. The Crown Prince asked the Princess to be patient and wait until the situation calms down, then he will try to get her back to the capital. Until then, please take care of yourself."
Hearing this, Sun Wei felt a little relieved.
The prince said this specifically to imply that he would not hold it against her for the offense he had just committed.
Sun Wei nodded and said, "Thank you for your concern, Your Highness. Please also ask the steward to tell the Crown Prince that I hope you will not take today's incident to heart. I am truly fortunate to be able to go to Xunyang Palace, and I have not felt the slightest bit wronged. In these troubled times, Your Highness, please be cautious and careful."
Zhao Tong agreed.
Sun Wei walked along the long palace road towards the palace gate. After taking a few steps, he suddenly heard footsteps.
Looking up, I saw a familiar figure walking towards me hurriedly.
It was Sima Jun.
Sun Wei couldn't help but stop.
Sima Jun also obviously saw her, paused for a moment, and quickened his pace.
"Is everything okay?" he asked softly when he got up to her.
He walked so fast that a gust of wind gently brushed Sun Wei's face.
"What could possibly happen to me?" Sun Wei muttered. As she spoke, she looked around and asked him, "Why is the prince here?"
"I received a letter from Cao Song, and I know that Madam has entered the palace." His expression relaxed, but then darkened again. "Madam shouldn't have come here alone. If..."
"If I wait for the prince and delay the time, I will be charged with disrespect." Sun Wei said helplessly, "Since the Queen Mother has already forgiven me, she won't cause trouble. But the prince, coming here in such a hurry, in the eyes of those who are interested, won't it be considered as trespassing?"
"I have the imperial decree bestowed upon me by the late emperor. I may enter without further ado." Sima Jun said confidently. He glanced towards the Empress Dowager's palace and then added, "I heard the Crown Prince is here too?"
"The Crown Prince is still talking to the Queen Mother." Sun Wei asked, "Does the Crown Prince want to come in?"
Sima Jun's eyes flickered and he looked away.
"Since the Empress Dowager asked Madam to come out, she must not want to be disturbed," he said. "Go back home. I will visit you another day."
After saying this, he turned and walked towards the palace gate: "Hurry up, don't stay in the palace for too long."
It was obviously you who insisted on asking this and that. Sun Wei complained inwardly and followed behind.
——
When he returned to the palace, Cao Song had already prepared dinner.
Sima Jun sat down and continued to ask about the Queen Mother's summons.
Sun Wei explained everything and said, "The Queen Mother has already decided to choose from the Wang family. Even if I help the Crown Prince, I'm afraid it will be of no use."
Sima Jun pondered for a moment, then nodded and said, "Indeed. Madam, you have done well."
He said this, but there was no relief between his brows.
Sun Wei knew that Sima Jun and the prince were in the same situation when it came to marriage.
Sima Jun also resented the Queen Mother's manipulation. In a previous life, they had fought back and forth over this, but ultimately, each gave in and chose Sun Wei.
In this life, the battle will continue.
Sima Jun suddenly said, "If the Crown Prince is determined to marry Huan Lingxian and has privately asked me to help him, what do you think, Madam? Should I help him?"
Sun Wei was a little surprised.
This was the first time Sima Jun asked her for advice on how to handle the relationship with the prince.
"You shouldn't." Sun Wei shook her head. "I've already stated my reasons. The most important thing is that neither Huan Yi nor Wang Han are good people. Huan Yi commands a large military force, while Wang Han controls the government. No matter which family the Crown Prince marries, it won't be entirely beneficial, and he'll offend the other."
"In that case, it makes no difference who I marry."
"There are some differences," Sun Wei said. "Sir, think about this. If the Crown Prince marries Wang, he'll offend Huan Yi. If he wants revenge, he'll have to resort to military force. With Jingzhou to Jiankang, Jiangzhou is far away to block the way, and the Northern Prefecture is nearby for support. The outcome is still a matter of debate. But if he marries Huan, the Crown Prince will offend both the Queen Mother and Wang Han. The Queen Mother will still take into account the relationship between grandfather and grandson and won't do anything to the Crown Prince, but a rift will already exist. If Wang Han were to launch an attack, the Crown Prince would be unable to make any progress in government affairs, and there would be no way to stop him. If the Queen Mother intends to teach the Crown Prince a lesson, the Crown Prince will suffer a great loss. Therefore, I believe that compared to Huan, Wang is more important to the Crown Prince."
Sima Jun asked, "What if the Crown Prince still wants to marry into the Huan family?"
"If that's the case, there's a solution. Why don't you take the Huan family's lady as your concubine?" Sun Wei said. "That way, you can barely maintain some face with the Huan family. But if you force the Huan family's lady to be the Crown Princess, please consider the fate of the previous Crown Princess."
Sima Jun nodded and said, "So, the Crown Prince will be controlled by the Wang family for the rest of his life?"
Sun Wei thought for a moment and said, "Under the current circumstances, if the Crown Prince isn't controlled by the Wang family, he will be controlled by the Huan family or another powerful family. As long as the Crown Prince cannot establish his own power, he will be unable to escape this predicament. Therefore, I believe that only the Crown Prince can break this situation."
Sima Jun looked at her.
"Only the Crown Prince can help the Crown Prince establish himself," Sun Wei said. "There are still twenty-two months until the Crown Prince's mourning period ends. By then, the Crown Prince will return to the court and will surely become the Crown Prince's right-hand man. But before that, the Crown Prince still has much to do."
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