Chapter 268 Mother and Child (First Update)
"Your great-aunt? Is your great-aunt in the palace?" Qin Chuyu asked.
Xiao Jingkong nodded: "Yes! I just saw her! They said she lives in the palace!"
Qin Chuyu was completely bewildered.
Living in the palace? Only the masters of the palace, such as the Empress Dowager, the Emperor, the Empress, the concubines, and the princes, actually lived in the palace. However, there were many palace maids and nannies in the palace. Perhaps one of them was your friend's great-aunt.
"What's your great-aunt's name?" Qin Chuyu asked.
"My great-aunt's name is... her name is..." It took Xiao Jingkong a while to realize that he didn't know his great-aunt's name. "I don't know!"
"This..." Qin Chuyu sighed, "If you don't know the name, it will be very difficult to find. There are more people in the palace than students in the Imperial Academy."
Xiao Jingkong thought carefully for a moment, then a flash of inspiration struck him, and he said, "They call her Empress Dowager!"
"Cough!" Qin Chuyu choked. "Empress Dowager? Your great-aunt is the Empress Dowager? Are you from the Zhuang family?"
Xiao Jingkong thought for a moment and said seriously, "I was a farmer in the countryside, but now that we've moved to the capital, we don't farm anymore, so I shouldn't be considered a farmer anymore."
Qin Chuyu: What does this have to do with farming? Why does moving to the capital mean we're no longer farmers? Can this be changed so easily?
The two children talked nonsensically for a long time, but Qin Chuyu still couldn't figure out whether Xiao Jingkong was a member of the Zhuang family or not.
He was only eight years old. You could say he understood, but he didn't. Yet, you could also say he didn't understand, but he knew that his mother and Consort Zhuang were at odds.
Qin Chuyu said seriously, "If you're from the Zhuang family, I can't play with you anymore."
Little Jingkong widened his eyes and said, "But I'm not a farmer anymore! You can play with me!"
"Well, alright then." He was also quite reluctant to part with his little friend. "But I can't take you to the palace today. My sister-in-law is sick recently, and my brother is in a bad mood. Taking my little friend to the palace will upset him. So, wait two more days, and I'll definitely take you to the palace."
Xiao Jingkong: ...That's all we can do.
Empress Dowager Zhuang returned to Renshou Palace, which she had not visited for more than a year.
Everything in Renshou Palace remained the same as before, even the palace servants were exactly the same as before she left the palace.
Empress Dowager Zhuang's high-profile return to the palace, without informing the emperor beforehand, truly gave him a huge "surprise"!
Empress Dowager Zhuang sat on the phoenix chair on the steps of the main hall, wearing a black robe with red trim and gold phoenix embroidery, and a golden phoenix crown. She was elegant and noble, yet also had a sharp and domineering aura.
The emperor stood on the white marble floor in front of her, his face full of respect and filial piety: "It is a great blessing for the country that Your Majesty is in good health."
Empress Dowager Zhuang's gaze fell indifferently on the Emperor's face, and she said in a nonchalant tone, "It's good that the Emperor understands."
The Emperor's eyes flickered, and he smiled at Empress Dowager Zhuang, saying, "The journey to the imperial palace is long, and Your Majesty must be tired. I have brought Imperial Physician Liang with me to check Your Majesty's pulse. Imperial Physician Liang!"
"Your Majesty, I am here!" The imperial physician Liang, who was over fifty years old, stepped forward with his medicine box on his shoulder, knelt down, and kowtowed to Empress Dowager Zhuang. "Your Majesty, I respectfully welcome you. May Your Majesty live a thousand years!"
Empress Dowager Zhuang sneered, stretched out her hand, and said casually, "Since the Emperor is filial, I will not go against his wishes."
The emperor gave Imperial Physician Liang a wink, signaling him to take Empress Dowager Zhuang's pulse.
Imperial Physician Liang crawled on his knees to Empress Dowager Zhuang's feet, placed his medicine box on the ground, opened it, took out a clean piece of silk cloth, draped it over the Empress Dowager's wrist, and then took her pulse through the silk cloth.
Empress Dowager Zhuang looked at him with a half-smile: "Imperial Physician Liang, how is my pulse?"
Imperial Physician Liang withdrew his hand, put the silk cloth away, and bowed, saying, "The Empress Dowager's pulse is stable, and she seems to be three points healthier than before."
The emperor frowned imperceptibly.
Empress Dowager Zhuang gave a faint smile: "Is the Emperor disappointed?"
The emperor hurriedly replied, "How could that be? Your son has always hoped that Your Majesty would recover soon, live a long and peaceful life."
Empress Dowager Zhuang sneered, "I am grateful for the Emperor's auspicious words. I will surely live to be a hundred years old. I will watch as the Zhao Kingdom grows stronger and stronger, the people live in abundance, and the world returns to a peaceful and prosperous era."
The emperor clenched his fist under his wide sleeves.
Empress Dowager Zhuang smiled and said, "I know about the Emperor's filial piety. If there's nothing else, Your Majesty, please go and attend to your business. I'm sure Your Majesty is very busy while I'm away."
This statement is quite intriguing. What was the emperor busy with? Was he busy handling state affairs, or busy eliminating the Empress Dowager's faction? We don't know.
The Emperor said, "Your son will take his leave now. Mother, please take care of your health. I will come to visit you another day."
"No need," said Empress Dowager Zhuang.
The emperor was slightly taken aback.
The next second, Empress Dowager Zhuang said, "We can see him at the morning court tomorrow, why bother making another trip?"
This means she's going to rule from behind the curtain again.
Even the emperor himself didn't know what he was feeling when he left Renshou Palace.
He dismissed the servants, then asked Imperial Physician Liang, "Is the Empress Dowager's pulse truly fine?"
Imperial Physician Liang said, "Yes, Your Majesty, the Empress Dowager's pulse is indeed better than before she left the palace, and her health has improved considerably."
The emperor asked suspiciously, "How could she still be so healthy after living among the common people for so long? What happened to her leprosy?"
Imperial Physician Liang shook his head: "There is no leprosy."
The emperor frowned: "Does not having leprosy mean she's cured, or that she never had it at all?"
"This..." Imperial Physician Liang was at a loss for words. He was the one who diagnosed Empress Dowager Zhuang with leprosy, and he was certain he hadn't made a mistake. But leprosy was incurable, yet the Empress Dowager had recovered completely and was no different from a normal person—
Could it be that a miraculous doctor cured the Empress Dowager's leprosy?
No, leprosy can only be cured in the State of Yan.
Well, there's no point in delving into these matters now; Empress Dowager Zhuang has returned safely.
The situation was worse than the emperor had anticipated. He thought that in the year or so that Empress Dowager Zhuang had been away, the emperor had secretly eliminated or won over many of her supporters. But she had only returned to the palace this morning, and by the afternoon, the situation in the capital had been completely reshuffled.
The emperor urgently summoned several senior officials, but half of them claimed to be ill and could not come, and most of those who did come were just trying to evade his questions.
Just the day before, they swore to be loyal to him to the death!
The emperor was furious, but he couldn't actually kill them, because Empress Dowager Zhuang would surely intervene and save them, making them even more loyal to her.
The emperor was so angry that his chest ached, and he summoned the old chief priest that very night.
The old chief priest left servants in the humble room he rented. When the emperor sent someone to summon him, his servants would come to Bishui Hutong to inform him.
In fact, the emperor had summoned him several times before. When the emperor held great power, he did not come; when the emperor's power waned, he came.
The emperor was naturally deeply moved. He stepped out from behind his desk, grasped his hand, and said, "I knew it! You are the one I can truly trust!"
The old chief priest had mixed feelings. He knew that the time he had been waiting for had finally come. If he returned to court now, he would surely gain the emperor's absolute trust and favor. But he couldn't be happy.
Not only for himself, but also for Liu Lang.
If Liu Lang were to enter the imperial court as an official, it would mean making enemies of the entire Zhuang family. It was impossible for him to leave Liu Lang unattended.
But can he still regard Zhuang Jinse as the former Empress Dowager Zhuang?
The emperor exclaimed excitedly, "I hereby appoint you as the Chancellor of the Imperial Academy, and the imperial edict will be proclaimed to the world tomorrow!"
The old chief priest knelt down and bowed deeply, saying, "Your subject... thanks Your Majesty for your great favor!"
Eunuch Wei escorted the old chief priest out of the palace.
While passing through the Imperial Garden, they encountered Empress Dowager Zhuang's imperial carriage.
Empress Dowager Zhuang had a poor appetite and was somewhat irritable. Although it was the same palace, for some reason, she felt lonely.
The secluded palace has been lonely before, but this time it carries a touch of melancholy.
"Your Highness, would you like some more snacks? You ate too little for dinner," a young palace maid said, holding a plate of delicate and delicious rose cakes.
Empress Dowager Zhuang had no appetite.
The old priest stood behind the flowers, gazing intently at her.
Wearing a phoenix robe, Empress Dowager Zhuang exuded a sharp aura, her eyes like knives. Even without speaking, she was like a drawn sword, and no one dared to challenge her sharpness.
Eunuch Wei stopped beside the old chief priest, looked at him, then at the Empress Dowager, and whispered, "Is Lord Huo going to pay his respects to the Empress Dowager?"
The old libationer shook his head.
What if we met? She doesn't remember.
She would no longer hold a knife to his neck to rob him of his secret stash of money, nor would she force him to go to the kitchen to make brown sugar glutinous rice cakes for her, nor would she hide half-eaten candied fruit in his room, and she would no longer bring him along to serve tea and water when she played cards.
"Let's go," the old chief priest said wistfully.
As Eunuch Wei watched the old chief priest's retreating figure, he sensed that both Lord Huo and the Empress Dowager seemed somewhat downcast.
(End of this chapter)
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