Chapter 18 [18]
【18】/First release
Lu Zhiwan tried hard to suppress an awkward yet polite smile: "Your Majesty, why are there so many monks and Taoists in Lifeng Palace?"
"She's not even dead yet! He's already doing a water and land ritual for her?"
Xiao Jingting remained calm and said, "The Imperial Astronomical Observatory said that your feng shui is not conducive to having an heir. I have specially asked the masters of Buddhism and Taoism to perform a ritual to improve your feng shui."
Lu Zhiwan: “…”
"So I should thank you, right?"
"Who can I blame for not being able to conceive? We haven't even slept together, and you're saying the temple's feng shui is bad?"
"But what stimulated this man? Why is he suddenly so interested in having children?"
Not only Lu Zhiwan couldn't understand the emperor's actions, but the concubines in the harem and ministers of the previous dynasty were also confused after learning about it.
Gossip is human nature, and once this seemingly plausible operation was carried out, all kinds of rumors began to spread.
"Could it be that Concubine Lu is truly pregnant, and His Majesty has specially invited a high-ranking monk or Taoist priest to pray for the royal heir in her womb?"
"That shouldn't be the case. The Imperial Concubine said two days ago that Concubine Lu was not pregnant."
"Then what is your majesty doing?"
"Who knows? The Emperor's mind is unpredictable. Perhaps it's really because of the bad feng shui of the Lifeng Palace, or perhaps Concubine Lu is deliberately causing trouble."
"Maybe she really is a foxy girl in disguise, and His Majesty has sent people to exorcise the demon."
No matter how they speculated, this group of monks and Taoists actually chanted scriptures for seven days and set up the altar for seven days.
Every day, Lu Zhiwan listened to the monks chanting Om Mani Padme Hum and watched the Taoists drawing talismans and burning incense. She became pure-hearted and worldly desires became less and less. If Xiao Jingting had not dismissed them all on the seventh day, she would have almost put her hands together and become a nun on the spot.
Xiao Jingting saw that both Buddhism and Taoism were unable to figure out the mystery of mind reading, and that this mind reading was currently only between him and Lu Zhiwan, and did not pose any threat to the country or the people, so he just regarded it as an adventure, treated it normally, and let nature take its course.
After the monks and Taoists left the palace, in order to awaken some of Lu Zhiwan's worldly desires, Xiao Jingting specially opened a small kitchen for her Lifeng Palace, and assigned the imperial chef who was best at making sweet and sour spare ribs and chestnut roast chicken to the palace.
You should know that only the empress dowager and the imperial concubine had their own small kitchens in the harem. Now, a mere concubine Lu has received such treatment, which shows how favored she is.
"If Lu hadn't been promoted twice recently and it wasn't easy to advance further, His Majesty would have probably made her a consort."
"It makes no difference whether she's a concubine or not. Imperial Concubine holds the highest rank, but has His Majesty ever even looked at her?"
"Otherwise, it's said that the Lu family's methods are amazing, and they have bewitched His Majesty to this extent."
Just as everyone was lamenting that Lu Zhiwan was the most favored among the six palaces, an imperial decree was issued from the Yangxin Palace - the magistrate of Qingyuan County, Lu Jun, was corrupt, abused his power, and oppressed the people, and his entire family was exiled to Lingnan.
This imperial edict was issued without any warning. When Yu Mingjiang sent it to the cabinet for distribution, the official in charge saw the edict and confirmed it with Yu Mingjiang several times.
Upon learning that the Qingyuan County magistrate was indeed Concubine Lu's father and that he was to be exiled to the impoverished and malaria-ridden Lingnan region, the officials handling the case were stunned. Wasn't Concubine Lu very favored? Could it be that in just a few days, she had fallen out of favor again? Alas, it truly is true that serving the emperor is like serving a tiger.
After a sigh in his heart, the officials in charge did not dare to delay and quickly sent the decree to Yuezhou Prefecture.
***
Thousands of miles away in Yuezhou Prefecture, the Yangtze River is flowing endlessly. It is the turn of spring and summer, the scenery is bright and the mountains and rivers are dark green.
The main street of the city was particularly busy, simply because today was the day that the entire family of Lu Jun, the magistrate of Qingyuan County, was exiled.
People were bustling about on both sides of the road, and the scholars leaning on the railings of the restaurants along the street were also craning their necks to watch the excitement.
One of the wealthy young men waved a gold-sprinkled fan and said with a lazy smile, "Yuezhou has been quite bustling lately. First, Prefect Zhao stepped down, and now County Magistrate Lu is in trouble. I wonder who will be next."
"That's probably all. In the last selection, only two girls from Yuezhou were selected: Miss Zhao and Miss Lu. Now, both of these families have suffered, regardless of whether they have fallen out of favor or are in favor. Tsk, the Emperor's mind is really hard to figure out."
"Lord Zhao was demoted because Miss Zhao committed suicide by hanging herself, violating palace rules. His Majesty punished him and he lost his official position. But why was the Lu family exiled?"
"Didn't the official notice say it all? He's corrupt and abuses his power, oppressing the people."
"Well, you believe the government's notice? Which official isn't greedy? The old saying goes that a clean magistrate earns 100,000 silver taels in three years. If corruption is discovered, the official is dismissed and exiled. How would anyone stay in the government? This isn't the time of our great-grandfather, when people would be skinned and stuffed with straw for taking even a copper coin. I think there must be other reasons for Mr. Lu's demotion."
"Didn't Miss Lu say she was very favored? Why doesn't she protect her family members?"
"No matter how favored she is, she's just a woman. How could she have the guts to influence the emperor's decision? Furthermore, I heard that before Miss Lu entered the palace, she lived under the care of her stepmother and had a very difficult life..."
Even the scholars who read the books of sages could not help but be curious when they heard about the somewhat hidden secrets of the mansion, and they all came forward to inquire.
At a wine table not far from them, a scholar in blue clothes watched the Lu family being escorted by officials on the street and couldn't help but sneer, "This Lu is truly heartless. She herself is a favorite concubine in the capital, yet she allowed her father and brother to be exiled. She used to look so gentle and delicate, but she turns out to be a snake in disguise."
The scholar in white sitting opposite him said nothing, but just stared at the family being escorted on the street.
Lu Jun, who was in his forties, was wearing a tattered robe, staggering with his head lowered and wrinkled. Although his appearance could not be seen clearly, he could not hide his miserable and disheveled appearance.
The second wife of the Lu family was sickly, crying every two steps. If it weren't for the eldest son of the Lu family holding her tightly, she would have fainted at any moment. And Lu Fuan's condition was not much better. He was dejected and looked like a dog that had lost its home.
This frustrated and dejected look reminded Zhao Wenshao of himself not long ago - that day, he was studying hard in the academy as usual, and the servant at home came hurriedly and said that his sister Zhao Yue'e, who had entered the palace not long ago, had died in the palace, and his father had also been dismissed from office by the court. His mother could not accept the bad news and fell ill.
Since ancient times, it has been easy to go from frugality to extravagance, but difficult to go from extravagance to frugality. My family was struck by misfortune, short of money and rice. We lived together in a small courtyard in the south of the city. Every day, we had to pay for food and drink, my mother's medical treatment, and books and writing materials...
If it weren't for his good brother Dai Ze's timely help, Zhao Wenshao would have almost taken off his long gown, abandoned his books, and embarked on a business journey, becoming tainted by the smell of money.
Dai Ze also asked someone to help him find out that the reason his sister died in the palace at a young age was because of his fellow villager Lu Zhiwan.
"Although Sister Yue'e may be capricious at times, she's not a ruthless person. Furthermore, she's new to the palace and unfamiliar with the area. How could she possibly have gotten that poisonous purple herb? This matter is riddled with doubts, and her death was truly unjust. I also heard from my uncle that it was thanks to this poisonous rouge that Lady Lu regained her favor..."
Dai Ze patted his shoulder earnestly, "Often in matters like this, whoever benefits is most suspicious. In my opinion, perhaps Lu Zhiwan was deliberately playing a trick to harm Sister Yue'e."
Zhao Wenshao didn't know Lu Zhiwan very well, having only occasionally heard from his classmates that she was the most beautiful woman in Yuezhou, as pure and innocent as a fairy from the Moon Palace, and who knew who would be lucky enough to marry her in the future. But then, the imperial court suddenly held a grand selection of concubines, and this Lu, along with his younger sister, passed the preliminary round and boarded a carriage bound for the capital.
He didn't know Lu Zhiwan, but he was familiar with his sister Zhao Yue'e. As Dai Ze said, Yue'e had some girlish temperament, but she would never poison someone.
Zhao Wenshao trusted his sister very much, and the scale in his heart unconsciously leaned towards Dai Ze's statement.
Witnessing the exile of the Lu family today, he felt even more strongly that the Lu family was not kind. How could a child, as a child, be so self-sufficient and disregard the lives of their parents and siblings?
"There's talk in the capital that this Lu is a fox spirit in disguise, and she might become the next Concubine Zhen. If she's really as favored as the rumors say, how could she not even be able to protect her family?" Dai Ze took a piece of braised pork and put it into his mouth, chuckling, "It's just that she doesn't want to protect them."
Zhao Wenshao remained silent, just looking at the green willows outside the window. The escort team walked farther and farther away, and finally turned into a few blurry figures and disappeared from his sight.
"Brother Weixi, everyone has left, what are you still looking at?"
Dai Ze waved his hand in front of Zhao Wenshao. Seeing that he had come back to his senses, he picked up the wine jug and filled the glasses in front of the two people. "The Lu family has suffered a disaster, and for you, it can be considered a relief. Come, have a drink and celebrate."
Zhao Wenshao stared at the fragrant wine for a long time before raising his glass. His handsome, fair face showed no joy. "I don't care what happens to the Lu family. Right now, I'm focused on the imperial examination. If I can make it, it will be a waste of all my decades of hard study..."
Dai Ze knew he was ambitious, so he clinked his glass with his and said with a smile, "Don't worry, you always come in first in every exam at the academy. With your talent, you're the undisputed winner of this autumn's exam!"
Zhao Wenshao heard this, and his melancholy brows relaxed slightly. A handsome smile appeared on the corner of his mouth, and he returned the toast: "Then I'll borrow Changze Jiyan's words."
The truth behind his sister's tragic death in the palace and the prosperity of his Zhao family all depend on this imperial examination.
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