Chapter 37: Second Step
As soon as the emperor left, the Taiji Hall turned into a gloomy nest. No one paid any attention to the empress weeping on the ground. Only the layers of cold green curtains in the hall moved without wind, and the huge ice mirror emitted a cold white air.
Xu Delu looked back several times, wanting to say something.
If the Empress were wise, she would have known she didn't need to make a choice. The Ministry of Personnel's case had already become a major issue, and even if he had managed to avoid imprisonment, his dismissal and investigation were inevitable. However, the Duan family was different; the arson charge hadn't been publicly confirmed.
The emperor never really wanted anyone to make a choice when he gave her the choice. He just wanted to see the queen suffer from the fear of being criticized by her relatives in the future and the grief of having her arm cut off.
Only when people are hurt enough will they remember the lesson.
Xiao Fang had never thought that the Queen would give up the advantages and benefits brought by being the daughter of Marquis Yongning for anyone else.
When the emperor arrived at Chengluan Palace, the scene was completely different.
The Zhaoshui Palace was very busy with people coming in and out. In the past few days, the Ministry of Internal Affairs had also delivered the remaining supplies.
The Zhaoshui Hall was seven bays wide and four bays deep, the same size as the Chaoyun Hall in the Guanju Palace. Filling up these empty rooms would naturally require more than the nobles' allotment. However, the eunuchs in the Ministry of Internal Affairs were accustomed to considering the needs of their respective guests. Since the emperor had given them the main hall, any shortage would naturally be filled.
Qingzan sat in the corridor in front of the palace. A few months ago, she lived in a small hut with only one rafter, and had to squeeze four people's bedding together when sleeping.
When I think about the past and think about it too deeply, I vaguely feel that I am still the little palace maid.
When he saw the emperor coming, his first reaction was to lower his head and hide.
Then she remembered that she had left an earring for someone today in order to remind the emperor to come and tell her in person how the arson was dealt with.
If I tell her the result in person, I won't want to disappoint her too much, right?
When she raised her head again, it was too late. The emperor saw her lowering her eyes and avoiding the target, and her face had turned dark.
Qingzan was wearing a madder-red palace skirt and a shark-toothed gauze shawl with golden curled edges today, which formed a very strong contrast between light and dark with the palace behind her. When she stood up to salute, Xiao Fang could not ignore her at all.
But he ignored him and walked straight into the hall.
Qingzan was stunned for a moment before hurriedly following.
"His Majesty?"
The palace maids who bowed their heads in greeting were impatiently driven out by Xiao Fang.
Qingzan then realized what the emperor was angry about.
She tugged at the hem of his clothes and said, "My eyesight is poor. I didn't see clearly that it was Your Majesty. Is Your Majesty going to ignore me again just because of this?"
Xiao Fang also felt that he was making a big deal out of nothing and was not behaving like an emperor.
But after the deed was done, he remained calm and said gracefully, "My eyesight is not good either."
Is your eyesight not good, so you can't see her? Qing Zan hurriedly walked in front of the person: "Then your Majesty, is it possible to see me?"
The emperor moved so quickly that no one was prepared. At that moment, he held her head and kissed her delicate and tempting lips.
Qingzan had fallen into the trap, looking up to accept the emperor's emotions, which were more tender or angry. Her lips felt like a fruit that would never break after repeated chewing. Perhaps the fruit's skin was too firm, so the taster could only chew and suck it repeatedly, not stopping until they had tasted the rich sweet juice.
Her eyes and lips were full of tears. After finally breaking free, her whole body was burning hot. It took Qingzan a long time to even out her breathing.
Thinking that whenever people feel a little satisfied in this regard, their tempers tend to become much more tolerant and gentle, Qingzan took the opportunity to spread out her hands and ask, "Where are my earrings?"
Green jade is very valuable, but she never had the courage and the guts to spend it lavishly. No matter whether it was her allowance or a reward, as long as it was not given to her subordinates, she would treasure it all and never waste any of it.
So the one that was hooked on his collar naturally had to be taken back.
Her voice was still moist, with a unique charm that had lost the strength to him.
The emperor wanted to curl his lips, but pretended to be confused and narrowed his eyes: "What earrings?"
Qing Zan was stunned for a moment: "Your Majesty, didn't you see it?"
The emperor was still wearing the same casual clothes he had worn when he left at noon today. Qingzan was busy checking the collar and the straps, as well as the hems of the clothes, carefully examining every possible place for hooks.
Afraid that her eyes were blurry and she had missed something, she even put her hand on the emperor's collar and touched it with her palm as if in disbelief.
The emperor was finally amused by her and started laughing out loud.
He also did not forget to press the soft hand that was stunned for a moment in front of his collar.
Qingzan suddenly realized that he was playing a trick on her! Her anxious expression gradually calmed down.
She lowered her eyelashes and said stubbornly, "Your Majesty must have lost it. I don't want that one anymore. I'll throw away the other one later. After all, it was given to me by Your Majesty as a reward. If you want to throw it away, then you should throw it away."
Xiao Fang led the people towards the couch in the hall.
The smile remained unchanged: "Is it because I have spoiled you too much that you have such a bad temper?"
Qingzan was so angry that she was speechless, her soft lips rosy, but her expression was neither cold nor warm. After sitting down, the emperor fumbled from his sleeve and pulled out something, wanting to put it on her ear, but seeing that her ears were bare, he just pinched the soft white flesh of her earlobe.
Then he placed the earrings in her palm.
He chuckled softly, his eyes fixed on the earring: "My beauty has gone across the Xiang River, who would have given me the moon pendant? My dear, what is your intention? It's hard to guess."
Qingzan didn't fall for it this time and tightened her grip. She slowly asked, "If Your Majesty doesn't know what I mean, why are you here now?"
Seeing her calm and confident, even a little complacent, as if she thought she had turned the tables, Xiao Fang placed his hand on the backrest behind her and said, "Can't I just come here on my own accord?"
Perhaps he knew that he held the trump card she wanted, so he continued calmly, "You want to know how I will deal with the culprit."
Qingzan did think so at first.
But until he arrived, there hadn't been a single sign of impending trouble. If the Empress was truly to be punished, it wouldn't have to be a downfall, just a resignation like last time. How could the palace maintain its peaceful appearance without anyone frantically spreading the news?
Because she had not been harmed in any substantial way, the emperor felt that the honor of living in the main palace was enough to offset her loss. He had planned this from the beginning.
Qingzan felt wronged instantly, her eyelashes softening like water. Yingying said pitifully, "I know without asking that His Majesty has not dealt with me. Didn't you say that the Empress will always be the Empress? I will just bear with it for two days."
The emperor was a little surprised.
He was surprised by her progress, and also surprised that he actually found some fun in their daily interactions. Nothing beats a thorough plan; she was very clever, and her reactions were always beyond his wits' end.
As the Emperor of Taiping, he was not as war-loving and bloodthirsty as his fathers. He preferred the undercurrents in the court and the bloodless victory.
So he taught her this:
"Qingzan, killing is not enough."
He had already dampened the Queen's spirit for her, and of course he hoped that she could try to move on from hatred, and not always deal with him with plans of revenge and a purpose in every step.
Xiao Fang told the queen the two choices he had given her.
Qing Zan asked, "What did the Queen choose?"
Only after asking did I realize how foolish I was. It was obvious that no matter whether it was the queen or the emperor, they would only choose the same answer of sacrificing the rook to save the king.
Xiao Fang was very concerned about preserving her reputation. "It doesn't matter. We all prosper together and suffer together."
He touched her face, and Qingzan leaned her face into his hands. "Is the temporary use of Zhaoshui Palace a compensation for me? But your Majesty also told me that once you give something away, you can never take it back."
"What if Baoyuyou Pavilion is repaired?"
The emperor enjoyed the warmth and tenderness in his palm very much, and felt that the person was as well-behaved as a cat.
He didn't answer, but just raised his hand to pass the meal.
As soon as the palace maid came in, Qingzan's face turned pale instantly. She quickly raised her head and straightened her body. From the tassels at the end of her skirt to the golden bird on the head of her hairpin, everything became serious. She no longer mentioned the matter of the main hall.
Xiao Fang watched the man eat in small bites. His movements were polite, but he was not picky at all. He was willing to try a few bites of everything and didn't rush anyone.
He remembered that there was a hot spring room in the rear hall of Zhaoshuidian.
He asked her seriously, "Have you tried the hot spring?"
Qingzan choked on a mouthful of soup and started coughing violently. She coughed so much that the corners of her eyes became wet, spreading like tears and mist.
The emperor handed her a glass of water and said, "What are you thinking about?"
Qingzan was still a little wary. She drank the water, tilted her head to look at him doubtfully, and vaguely regretted her overthinking.
The emperor was pleased by her expression, and smiled. He put his hand on her waist and squeezed it ambiguously: "Tell me about it, I will see if I am wrong."
It's clearly not overthinking!
Qingzan used her eyes to denounce the emperor's cruelty.
But at this moment, Xiao Fang discovered that he actually liked her emotions because of him more than physical pleasure.
Real emotions.
He smiled and said, "Don't feel wronged. I gave you the Moon Pendant and in return I gave you a fur coat worth thousands of gold. This autumn, I will hunt a red fox for you. As for the Zhaoshui Palace,"
"It depends on your performance."
*
The impeachment of Minister Zhu was a hot topic in the imperial harem. However, the inner harem was kept secret, and no one knew at first that the first person to accuse him of corruption was none other than Consort Zhao's brother.
When I found out, I started talking about it again and it became a topic of conversation after tea.
Behind Concubine Zhao is also Concubine Hui.
The queen had already begun to regret it. If she had known for sure that it was really the Zhao family who reported her grandfather, she would have insisted that this was planned by Concubine Hui, and that arson and corruption were the means used by Concubine Hui to bring her down. She would not have been speechless in the Taiji Hall that day.
However, no matter what happened in the outer court, the empress was still the empress, but the flesh and blood beneath the noble phoenix crown and phoenix robe were visibly losing weight rapidly.
The Empress didn't even dare to see her mother. After her grandfather's accident, A'niang had already submitted a letter to enter the palace, but this was the first time the Empress refused.
How could she tell her mother that she had chosen to abandon her grandfather for the glory of the Marquis's mansion? Without her grandfather, how could her father, a poor man, support her and her mother? She didn't know how much more suffering she would have to endure.
They will not forgive her.
The only way for the Queen to regain some of her spirits temporarily is to start arranging the autumn hunt. At least it means that His Majesty is still willing to give her a chance.
The autumn hunting trip also includes a small Mid-Autumn Festival banquet.
The Mid-Autumn Festival in Daliang emphasizes family reunions, but it's not considered a grand occasion. The family usually just sits together, lights up some charming lanterns, and admires the full moon, and that's the end of the festival.
This time, in addition to arranging the itinerary, the queen also had to arrange everyone's carriages and accommodation.
When the zoning map of the hunting palace was unfolded in front of the queen's desk, Fu Cui approached quietly and watched silently beside the queen for a while.
Until the queen's hand stopped.
The Hunting Palace is located in the Five Forests and Twelve Peaks in the southern suburbs of Shangjing. The emperor's Qingyan Palace occupies one peak alone, and the remaining peaks are dotted with smaller palaces and villas.
Seeing that the Queen stopped writing after Qingzan's name, and her pen only made a dot on the paper before freezing there, Fu Cui looked at the several residences that started from that dot, Baozhangzhai, Mixue Pavilion, and Xiechichunyuan. They were all very remote, so she reminded her, "Your Majesty, where do you want to place Concubine Ying?"
The Queen couldn't write any more. Was she supposed to personally arrange the finest carriage and a luxurious and comfortable residence for that lowly servant?
Isn't this clearly telling everyone that she no longer dares to be an enemy of Concubine Ying, and even has to curry favor with her.
"Why are you so talkative!"
The queen threw the pen away fiercely.
She closed her eyes for a moment, then chattered through her teeth and said softly, "I'm sorry, Fu Cui. I know you're doing this for my own good, but I just feel so bitter and can't control myself."
There are really not many people around her who can be used now.
In the end, the queen reluctantly arranged a place for the person that was somewhat suitable for the status of a noble, but it was separated from the Qingyan Palace by one or two hills.
But he immediately crossed it out. I don't know what he was thinking of, but he actually assigned the Danli Palace, which was second only to the Qingyan Palace and the Zhuniao Palace, to Qingzan.
Originally, this should have been where Concubine Hui lived, but there were no strict regulations on the hierarchy of residences in the imperial palace.
She really didn't dare to bully or neglect the people protected by the emperor.
Let's see if Concubine Hui is magnanimous enough and can swallow this anger.
The next day, when everyone came to pay their respects, the Queen calmly had the memorial handed to Concubine Hui in front of everyone.
"I've prepared a draft. Sister, take a look. Is there anything wrong with this arrangement?"
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