See the sunset again.
The sunset is dim.
The light in Cuiwei Pavilion of Cining Palace was slightly dim because it was blocked by the plum forest outside.
A palace maid lit a lamp, and the room became brighter. The empress dowager took a tinder, lit a stick of sandalwood and placed it in the incense burner. The smoke was like a column, and the fragrance filled the room.
"I'm afraid of the cold, so I rarely open the windows. But the imperial physician said... I need to open the windows for a quarter of an hour every hour to get some fresh air. I'm old, and I don't think I'll have many days left. It's time for me to go and accompany the late emperor."
She staggered towards the warm bed. Yu Wenjun hurried forward to support her, whispering, "The Queen Mother is in good health. She must live to be at least 120 years old."
"You little girl... wouldn't that make you an old witch? You'll eat up the blessings of your children and grandchildren, and you'll suffer retribution."
She sat down on the warm bed and then waved her hand. "You all can sit down too. Wenyun, make some tea. Make the Lingnan rock tea your mother sent you. It's delicious. You can all try it."
Fu Xiaoguan bowed respectfully and sat down properly. Su Su looked at him and sat down next to Fu Xiaoguan.
Fu Xiaoguan couldn't understand what the old empress dowager was thinking. She was like two different people before and after. So which one was the real empress dowager?
The Queen Mother seemed to have just noticed Su Su at this moment. She was a little surprised and asked, "Whose girl is this? She is as beautiful as a sculpture of ice and jade. Why have I never seen her before?"
Su Su's eyes widened and she smiled brilliantly. Fu Xiaoguan quickly replied, "Your Majesty, this is... my guard."
"Oh..." The Queen Mother looked at Yu Wenjun meaningfully, and Yu Wenjun nodded slightly.
"Come here and let me take a closer look."
Fu Xiaoguan stood up and walked over. The Queen Mother tilted her head back, her eyes slightly narrowed. The distance was still a bit far, so she patted the warm bed and said, "Sit closer."
Fu Xiaoguan sat down as he was told. The empress dowager stared at him carefully for dozens of breaths, but there was no murderous intent in her eyes.
"You look so much like your mother!"
"The Queen Mother knows my mother?"
The Queen Mother withdrew her gaze and smiled lightly, and the wrinkles on her face became even deeper.
"Xu Yunqing was a famous talented woman in the capital back then. At that time... the current emperor was still the crown prince. Speaking of which, he was also one of Xu Yunqing's admirers."
The Queen Mother seemed to be lost in memories of the past. Yu Wenjun was slightly surprised while making tea. He looked at the eldest princess, who just smiled indifferently.
"I remember it was around the 40th year of Taihe. That Mid-Autumn Festival, the Lanting Poetry Gathering was held, and I went with the late emperor to see it. That was when I first met Xu Yunqing. She was surrounded by a group of young men, like the moon surrounded by stars. Among them were Dong Kangping, Yan Shidao, and... oh, yes, there was also Xi Xunmei, the boy from the Xi family, and the crown prince of the Wu Dynasty, the current Emperor Wen, Wu Changfeng. Of course, the crown prince was there too."
"I still remember that I told the late emperor... Xu Yunqing should have reached marriageable age. Should we issue an imperial decree to Xu Shaoguang, allowing Xu Yunqing to marry the crown prince as his consort?"
Fu Xiaoguan was so shocked that his jaw almost dropped. How graceful was his mother back then?
Yu Wenjun didn't know the story either, so he was so engrossed in listening that he didn't even notice the water in the teapot was boiling. Fortunately, the eldest princess came over and took over the task of making tea.
"If the late emperor had agreed, the Empress of the Yu Dynasty would have been Xu Yunqing!"
Fu Xiaoguan was stunned for a moment and asked, "No, why did I hear that Yan Shidao liked my mother?"
"Nonsense, there are many people in the capital who like your mother."
The Empress Dowager suddenly sighed and continued, "It's all fate... or maybe it's destiny. Later, I asked the late emperor again, but he still refused. Then... I heard that Xu Yunqing married a landlord from Linjiang. After that, I never asked about it again. I didn't expect her son to have grown up so much."
So far, this is the third one for the mother.
The first is the story that Fu Daguan engraved on his mother's tombstone, the second is the past events that he heard from Hu Dajia, a huqin master, at Hongxiuzhao, and the third is the Empress Dowager's memories of Xu Yunqing at this moment.
In the first story, the mother and father fell in love and eloped on a snowy night. In the second story, Fu Daguan was the third party. According to Huqin, the mother did not like the father and should have married Yan Shidao.
But in this third story, the mother almost became the queen, simply because the late emperor did not agree - so why didn't the late emperor agree?
Perhaps there is no love between my mother and the current emperor. In that case, is there any reason why I am appreciated by His Majesty because of my mother?
Fu Xiaoguan didn’t know. This was something that had no answer, and he didn’t have the mind to know the truth.
"You just said that the Crown Prince of the Wu Dynasty is here too?"
"That's right. That year, Wen Xingzhou of the Wu Dynasty brought students from the Wu Dynasty to participate in the Yu Dynasty Literary Conference. The crown prince of the Wu Dynasty, Wu Changfeng, was also among them."
Qin Bingzhong did not mention this matter. It seems that the arrival of the Crown Prince of Wu Dynasty was a secret and Qin Bingzhong did not know about it.
"Well, now that your mother has passed away and you have made something of yourself, I think she's relieved."
Fu Xiaoguan stood up and sat down beside the tea table. The empress dowager seemed a little tired. She closed her eyes and did not speak for a long time.
Yu Wenjun came back to his senses and quickly took the brewed tea and poured it for the princess. He whispered to Fu Xiaoguan, "This is my aunt, the princess."
Fu Xiaoguan quickly saluted: "Hello, auntie!"
The eldest princess burst out laughing, and Yu Wenyun was embarrassed, her face immediately flushed.
Fu Xiaoguan then remembered that he couldn't address her like that yet, but the words were already out and he couldn't take them back. He smiled awkwardly and said, "I just saw how kind you were, Aunt, so I couldn't help but call you that. I hope you can forgive me."
"You have such a sweet mouth... Wenyun, you and Shulan have to keep a close eye on him. Auntie is worried that he might deceive many women with his mouth."
Yu Wenjun pursed her lips and glared at Fu Xiaoguan, thinking that her aunt didn't even know about Yan Beixi's granddaughter Yan Xiaolou, and she might have fallen into his trap!
The Queen Mother took a deep breath and spoke: "This is what I think. After all, she is of royal blood. Should we just let this matter go?"
The eldest princess gave Fu Xiaoguan a look, meaning that he should give the empress dowager a way out. The purpose of this matter had been achieved, so let it go.
But Fu Xiaoguan said seriously, "Your Majesty, I believe the Third Prince must accept the punishment of the law. As for Prince Hui, to avoid further trouble, I ask Your Majesty to persuade him to leave Shangjing and return to his princely fiefdom."
There was another long silence.
"Do you really want him to die?"
The atmosphere in the room suddenly became heavy. The window was not opened, and even breathing seemed difficult.
"Your Majesty, whether the Third Prince lives or dies is a matter of law. I beg you to reconsider. The Third Prince committed a murder in broad daylight, witnessed by the people on the street. And you must have heard of his previous evil deeds. I understand your thoughts, but I beg you to consider: who can understand the feelings of the victims' parents?"
"If evil remains unpunished, then good is meaningless. Furthermore, the nation's moral laws will inevitably be undermined by this incident, leading officials to disregard the law and the people to distrust it. This will lead to a lack of order, and to the Yu Dynasty itself, this will be a great harm. I dare to assert that if the Third Prince remains unpunished, the Yu Dynasty's moral laws will be set back at least a hundred years!"
"So, for the sake of the Great Yu State, I have no choice but to ask the Queen Mother to sacrifice my relatives for the sake of justice!"
Silence again.
There are only curls of tea smoke and sandalwood incense.
After a long time, the Queen Mother did not open her eyes. She slowly said, "I am tired. Regarding your relationship with Wen Yun... I agree. Remember, I love Wen Yun. If you let her suffer any injustice... I will never forgive you!"
She raised her hand and waved gently, "You all should leave. Wenyun, open one of the windows. I need to rest for a while."
The Queen Mother agreed to the relationship between Yu Wenjun and Fu Xiaoguan, which was supposed to be a happy thing, but Fu Xiaoguan and Yu Wenjun could not be happy at the moment.
The Queen Mother obviously knew that the Third Prince was doomed to die. As a grandmother, she certainly wanted to save the Third Prince, but as the Queen Mother of a country, she understood the meaning of Fu Xiaoguan's words.
She was indeed tired, mentally exhausted.
She had not expected that her kindness in keeping Prince Hui in Shangjing would lead to the current tragedy. If she had not changed the rule and let Prince Hui go to his fiefdom in Lingnan, perhaps the situation would not have turned out like this.
She lay on the warm bed but did not fall asleep. Instead, she opened her eyes, looked at the empty roof, and two turbid tears flowed from the corners of her eyes.
…
…
In Dieyi Palace.
Fu Xiaoguan and Yu Wenyun sat side by side.
Yu Wenjun told Concubine Shang everything in detail. Concubine Shang looked quite gloomy and she sighed after a long time.
"I feel sorry for the Queen Mother, not Prince Comet. Prince Comet put on a great show!"
Puzzled, Fu Xiaoguan asked, "What does your Majesty mean..."
"He's not such a fool. He performed that act in front of the Empress Dowager just to leave Shangjing. If he admits his mistake, the Empress Dowager will relent and will inevitably find a way to keep him in Shangjing."
"But he knows that staying in Shangjing is meaningless now. It would be better to return to his Lingnan and try to make a comeback. So instead of admitting his mistake, he continues to fight with you. His only goal is to make the Queen Mother give up on him."
Fu Xiaoguan suddenly realized that Prince Hui knew that he would not die, as he still had two sons. However, if he continued to stay in Shangjing, there might be even greater disasters, so it would certainly be better to leave.
Although Lingnan is cold and bitter, it is also a place where the mountains are high and the emperor is far away. In that small piece of land, he can act more recklessly.
I am still a lot younger!
"That's all we can do for now. Let him go. He won't cause much trouble. Official, you can write to invite your father to come to the capital."
Fu Xiaoguan was overjoyed, and Yu Wenjun looked very happy.
Concubine Shang looked at the plum blossoms outside the window, her face calm, but she felt relieved in her heart.
He thought that the chess game he had arranged so that his daughter could marry Fu Xiaoguan had come to a successful conclusion.
The chessboard for the next game has been decided. Next, we should use all living beings as our pieces and watch the events of Beijing unfold!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
