The Empress Dowager coughed as soon as she felt a fever, clutching her chest and pointing at Su Yushan angrily, "Consort Chun, how dare you! You're using Hongli to pressure me again!"
Su Yushan had no intention of suppressing anyone; she only wanted to protect herself. "If I truly had the intention to sow discord, I could have remained silent and waited until His Majesty came looking for someone and happened to witness this scene. That would have been the correct course of action for someone as cunning as you see her."
Her words were clearly implying something, and the Empress Dowager retorted with a cold laugh, "Are you saying that I should thank you for reminding me?"
"I did not mean that. I just wanted to say that if you are prejudiced against someone, then no matter what she does, you will think that she has ulterior motives."
If there is any prejudice, it is her own fault. "I have been in the palace for decades and have experienced more intrigue and bloodshed than you. Your little tricks are nothing in front of me!"
"I don't mean to target you, but you've gone too far. You were given the rank of concubine and now you want to assist in managing the harem. How could I possibly tolerate such a greedy woman?"
"Your Majesty understands that the Empress Dowager is not targeting me. You just feel that a mere Han woman is not worthy of such honors."
Su Yushan knew that what the Empress Dowager disliked was actually her Han Chinese identity. In the Empress Dowager's eyes, Manchu women were of noble status and should not be inferior to Han women.
She did see the problem, but she was only half right. "If you had been more obedient, even if you were a Han woman, I would have treated you the same. But you have repeatedly instigated the emperor to disobey me, so I have no choice but to teach you a lesson!"
Su Yushan didn't refute, but only tried to guide the conversation.
"Empress Dowager, have you ever considered this: the Emperor's disobedience to you is not entirely due to me, but because he is getting older and no longer likes the feeling of being told what to do. Like a rebellious child, the more you forbid him from doing something, the more he will do it, even if he knows it is wrong, he will still do the opposite of you."
Because he felt that as the emperor, he could make his own decisions and did not want to be instructed by others. After all, he was under great pressure when dealing with state affairs, and the harem was his home. If he could not even make his own decisions about his own family matters, he would feel frustrated, anxious, and doubt himself.
Even if it wasn't a concubine, it would be someone else; he simply wanted to experience the feeling of spreading his wings and taking control of his own destiny. "The kite string can't be pulled too tight, or it will break."
The Empress Dowager had always believed that Hongli was only acting so willfully because he was bewitched by women. Upon hearing this, she was suddenly surprised.
"Did the emperor say these things to you?"
"Your Majesty did not say it, but I can sense it. I am a junior and should not presume to reason with you, but you are in a high position and may overlook some details, which is why I dare to speak to you about these things."
In my humble opinion, whether it's a mother and child, husband and wife, or friends, once a rift develops, one shouldn't hold a grudge and let it continue to tear apart. Instead, they should humble themselves, each look for their own problems, and find ways to repair and improve the relationship.
As the two were talking, someone outside came to inquire, saying that Li Yu had arrived.
As soon as Li Yu entered, he did not dare to raise his eyes and respectfully reported, "Your Majesty, His Majesty has a cold and has little appetite. He wants to drink fish soup today and has ordered this servant to invite Consort Chun to make soup for him."
Sure enough, Hongli sent someone to find her!
Su Yushan nodded and replied, "Wait a moment while I finish feeding the Empress Dowager her medicine."
The Empress Dowager didn't care for such feigned concern. Besides, Li Yu was there; he was Hongli's eyes and ears. The Empress Dowager had no chance to make things difficult for Su Yushan again, so she waved her hand.
"Since the emperor summoned you, then go and make him some soup!"
After bidding farewell to the Empress Dowager, Su Yushan went to the Hall of Mental Cultivation. Her first question was whether he had prepared fish and tofu.
Hongli, who was reading the memorial, closed it, looked up and smiled, "Just making an excuse. You didn't really think I wanted you to make soup, did you?"
"Fish soup is simple and not difficult to make. If you want some, I can make it for you."
Hongli shook his head. "Another day! I'm not hungry right now."
He was worried that the Empress Dowager would make things difficult for her, but Su Yushan said no, "We chatted for a few minutes and the Empress Dowager did not make things difficult for me."
"Really?" The Empress Dowager would actually chat with her casually? How could that be? Hongli always felt that Yushan was hiding something. "If you have been wronged, you must tell me. You can't just swallow it all by yourself."
Yu Shan had already resolved the conflict and was unwilling to bring it up again. She smiled and replied, "It's really nothing. Li Yu saw it when he went over. The Empress Dowager only asked me to feed her the medicine. Later, Li Yu came to deliver a message, and the Empress Dowager stopped asking me to feed her."
She stood beside him the whole time, still wearing high heels. Hongli was worried that she would get tired, so he beckoned her to sit down next to him. Su Yushan hesitated, "This is the dragon throne, I can't sit on it."
He squeezed her hand and looked at her with a smile, "You've ridden dragons before, so what are you afraid of sitting on the dragon throne?"
"..." Thinking of those unspeakable scenes, Su Yushan gave a coquettish reminder, "This is the Hall of Mental Cultivation, you have to be serious and can't say anything carelessly."
Before she could finish speaking, Hongli pulled her down to sit. "The entire palace is my territory. Even if I say whatever I want, what can you do about it?"
Su Yushan laughed and agreed, "Yes, yes, you're the emperor, you're the greatest! Is that settled?"
"Are you referring to status, or appearance?" Hongli's smile was meaningful, making Su Yushan blush and feel shy, so she simply laughed it off.
"I don't know what you're talking about."
To prevent him from spouting nonsense again, she changed the subject and got down to business, "What are you planning to do? Are you just going to keep this stalemate with the Empress Dowager going?"
Hongli smiled indifferently, "Things will work themselves out when they reach the bridge."
Seeing his relaxed expression and lack of worry, Su Yushan couldn't help but ask curiously, "What's wrong? You don't seem worried at all. Have you already thought of a solution?"
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