The next morning, Song Yaozhu had a carriage prepared to go to Jokhang Temple.
Xie Liwei wanted to go with her, but Song Yaozhu firmly refused. In his current state, what if he got injured again? Did he even want his arm back?
“I’ll go with my sister-in-law!” Madam Yin said with a smile. “Speaking of which, I’ve never been to the Jokhang Temple before when I was in the capital! Now that I’m finally in the capital, I can go and explore.”
Song Yaozhu then left with Madam Yin, leaving behind two men who were staring at the rear of the carriage, sighing.
Xie Mingyue put her arm around Xie Liwei's shoulder, her face full of sorrow: "Little brother, all women are like this. You'll get used to it in the future."
Xie Liwei brushed his hand away, "You touched my wound."
Startled, Xie Mingyue hurriedly stepped forward to check his shoulder, only to hear him say to Qin Yu, "Do you know what to say to the Princess when she returns?"
Qin Yu immediately responded, "Young Master Xie accidentally bumped your shoulder today, and it's been hurting all day!"
Xie Liwei lightly pressed his chin down, satisfied, and went into the house, leaving Xie Mingyue bewildered in the wind.
Ah, no, this child has forgotten his elder brother after getting married!
He was just complaining to his wife! He's going to cry to her tonight too, saying his own brother is bullying him!
As soon as Song Yaozhu's carriage left the city gates, almost all the noblewomen in the capital knew. They were all waiting for Song Yaozhu to come out so they could ask about their children's school places.
They've taken the deposit, but they haven't given us any definite answer yet. What does that mean? They can't possibly be trying to take our money for nothing, can they?
"Sister-in-law, have you seen the Dowager Consort before?"
Madam Yin nodded. "When Wanqing was alive, I often went to the palace and met this Dowager Consort. She seemed to be a very easy person to get along with."
The implication was that they weren't close friends, and she couldn't really say what kind of person the Dowager was.
People change. Even if someone was a good person before, who knows what kind of person they are now after ten years?
“This imperial concubine is indeed a very nice person,” Song Yaozhu said with a smile. “I will go see her myself later. Sister-in-law, you can take a stroll around the Jokhang Temple.”
Lady Yin understood that she didn't want her to hear what she and the Dowager were saying, probably because she didn't want her to be in danger, so she naturally agreed.
Upon arriving at Jokhang Temple, Song Yaozhu went to see the Dowager Princess. Song Yaozhu felt that she saw many different things in her eyes.
"Your Highness, it's been a long time. How have you been lately?"
The Dowager smiled and patted the seat next to her, inviting her to sit down. "Life is still the same as before. But you, I've heard about your family's troubles while I'm here. Have they all been resolved?"
"Yes! I'm sorry to have troubled the Dowager." After exchanging a few more polite words, Song Yaozhu started talking about many everyday matters, mostly about the well-known happy families in the capital.
The Dowager Consort understood her intention perfectly. After a long silence, she said, "I understand the Princess Consort's concern for me, but what can I do if the Emperor does not agree? You saw what kind of person he is last time."
An emperor who dares to lay a hand on even the wives of his subjects is not a good emperor who listens to advice.
"If the Dowager wishes, this junior will gladly overcome all difficulties and obstacles for her."
The Empress Dowager's deep eyes swept over her. She was no fool for a woman to have managed to protect herself in the capital until now.
"Your Xie family is now a thorn in the Emperor's side, and you want my son to stand in front of you and divert the Emperor's attention." She twirled her prayer beads with her fingertips, her voice deep and heavy, carrying a deathly aura.
"The Dowager Consort knows in her heart that this is a mutually beneficial arrangement. Even if the Prince of Yan hadn't stood in front of the Prince of Xiaoyao's residence, with his heavy military power, he would have been a fish on the Emperor's chopping block sooner or later. The Dowager Consort also knows the principle of 'if the lips are gone, the teeth will be cold.' If the Prince of Xiaoyao's residence falls, the Xie family falls, and the next one will be the Prince of Yan!"
"Shut up!" The Empress Dowager glared fiercely at Song Yaozhu. "I knew it wasn't a coincidence that you managed to escape from the Emperor's clutches last time! You're indeed no ordinary person!"
"Your Highness, I have come here with sincere intentions to cooperate with you. Prince Xiaoyao is not allowed to leave the capital, and Prince Yan is not allowed to enter the capital without an imperial edict. We are both facing many difficulties. Why not cooperate? You should know that if the Xie family can support the first Emperor of the Great Chen Dynasty, they can support the second!"
The Empress Dowager's fingertips trembled, not from anger, but from excitement.
Ever since she saw through Song Yaozhu's true nature that day, she had been waiting, waiting for Song Yaozhu to come to her door on her own initiative, waiting for the Xie family to speak up.
If Yuwen Wuji could become emperor, why couldn't her son?
But she quickly calmed herself down, looked at Song Yaozhu, and said very seriously, "Yuwen Wuji betrayed the Xie family, how can you Xie family members still be willing to wholeheartedly assist my son without reservation?"
“Even if I speak from the heart, the Dowager Consort may not believe me. Let’s not talk about anything else, just interests. The Xie family has now completely broken ties with the Emperor. If they align themselves with the Prince of Yan, they might still have a chance to survive.”
The Dowager Consort turned around, picked up an incense stick from the table, lit it in front of the candle, and then devoutly bowed to the Buddha statue.
May the prayer beads bless you and bring you all good fortune.
She placed the incense sticks into the incense burner, then turned to the nanny and said, "Go pack your luggage. We'll go back to the capital on a nice day. Speaking of which, the Prince Yan's residence in the city hasn't been cleaned in a long time. Have someone go down the mountain to clean it up."
After receiving the message, Song Yaozhu left first.
Unexpectedly, as soon as he arrived at the outer courtyard, he saw Madam Yin surrounded by a group of women talking to her. Madam Yin's face was full of impatience, but the women seemed oblivious to it.
Or rather, they noticed it but didn't want to point it out.
"The Princess Consort is here!" The lady's eyes lit up when she saw Song Yaozhu, and she walked towards her, lifting her skirt.
Song Yaozhu didn't recognize her, and she felt unfamiliar with many of the ladies, including herself.
The moment these people saw her, they swarmed around her like flies to meat. Fortunately, Caijin and Caiyin reacted quickly, and together with several other maids, they shielded her behind them.
"What are you doing!" Cai Jin said sternly. "You're all standing there!"
"What does Your Highness mean by this?"
Song Yaozhu said calmly, "Please don't be offended, everyone. It's just that we've been frequently attacked by assassins lately, so we have to be more vigilant. I hope you ladies will understand."
Some of the ladies didn't catch the veiled meaning in her words and paid no attention, while those who did notice the implication looked rather unpleasant.
"Your Highness, it's not that we're desperate to cling to you, but we're just doing our job by accepting your money. Aren't you afraid you can't bear the consequences of taking what you shouldn't have?"
Song Yaozhu countered, "What did I take?"
Seeing her feigning ignorance, some of the people became impatient.
"Didn't you take our deposit and promise to help us get our children into the Xie family school? How come there's not a single sign of progress now?"
When the Xie family ran into trouble before, they were prepared to throw good money after bad, never to return. But seeing the Xie family rise again, they had their eyes on it once more. How could they waste such a good opportunity!
"What deposit? What are you talking about? I don't understand!"
"Your Highness, are you perhaps trying to renege on your debt?"
"How dare you, the dignified Princess Consort of the Carefree Prince, act so shamelessly!"
"Since the princess denies it, then we'll go see the authorities! Let's go! Let's go see the authorities!"
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