Chapter 69, Stepmother and Empress Dowager (Complete)
In the second year of Chong'an, on the 15th day of the New Year, there was a great court meeting.
The Shaoqing of the Dali Temple submitted a memorial to the emperor, reporting that General Gu Jian'an was collaborating with the enemy and treason, and that his family members were selling officials, oppressing the people, and occupying good farmland.
The new emperor was furious and ordered a thorough investigation. Gu Jianan, Gu Shiyun and Gu Shiqu were all imprisoned.
The entire court was shocked.
Zhuxiang came running in after hearing the news, her forehead covered in sweat from anxiety.
"Your Majesty, the general and the eldest and second sons have all been imprisoned."
Gu Wan held the chess piece in her hand and said lightly, "I understand."
Zhuxiang frowned, "Your Majesty, we must go to the Emperor and plead for mercy."
Gu Wansui stood up and said, "Zhuxiang, let me teach you one more thing. If the Emperor had not punished the Gu family because of me, then today's incident wouldn't have happened. So, pleading for mercy is useless. Do you understand?"
Zhuxiang reached out to support her master, "So are we just going to watch the general being executed?"
Gu Wan touched her belly and said, "Of course not. Bring me my cloak. Let's go and beg for mercy. It's snowing outside."
Zhuxiang was a little confused. Didn’t she just say that begging was useless?
"Can?"
Gu Wan slowly sat down in front of the dressing table and took out the hairpin that Shao Sui had given her. "Just put it on." The bronze mirror was a little blurry, but she could still vaguely see Zhuxiang's confusion.
"Pleading is indeed useless, but we must do it, not only for the emperor to see, but also for others, for Yu Shengxue to see, and for Shao Sui to see."
Zhuxiang, with a heavy heart, re-tied Gu Wan's hair into a bun and put on a light blue cloak.
Gu Wan knelt at the gate of Chengqian Palace, allowing the eunuchs and palace maids passing by to look at her.
Zhuxiang naturally knelt down as well.
As soon as Zhao Jiukuang came out of the inner hall, he saw his grandmother kneeling. He didn't care about anything else and ran over to her.
"Your Majesty, you dare not kneel in such heavy snow. You still have to take care of the prince in your belly."
There was frost on Gu Wan's eyelashes and her head was also covered with white snow. She said nothing.
Zhao Jiukuang clicked his tongue anxiously and hurried into the inner hall.
Shao Jingzhou was discussing matters, Shao Sui, Yu Huainan and Yu Shengxue were all there.
"Uncle, who do you think is most suitable to take over this position?"
Shao then shook his head, "I don't have anyone to recommend me."
Shao Jingzhou knew that he did not agree with him getting rid of the Gu family, and looked at the other two.
"I think the emperor's uncle is the most suitable person. He is a royal relative and has military merits. He is the most suitable candidate."
Yu Huainan pinched his fingers.
Shao then clasped his fists and saluted, then directly refused, "I don't want to."
Shao Jingzhou sighed, "My uncle said he would assist me. The army is very dissatisfied with the court's treatment of the Gu family. Only my uncle can help me appease the people."
Shao Sui's eyes were filled with helplessness, "Yes."
Zhao Jiukuang had no choice but to go in and report.
"Your Majesty, the Queen is kneeling outside in the snow."
Shao Jingzhou immediately frowned, stood up and strode out, "You bastard, didn't I say I would keep it a secret from Zhaohua Palace?" His clothes fluttered, and by the time the people in the palace reacted, he had already left.
Yu Shengxue looked at Yu Huainan, but didn't say much because Shao Sui was there.
When Shao Jingzhou arrived at the entrance of the main hall, he saw people kneeling in the snow.
Zhao Jiukuang opened his umbrella and wanted to cover him with it, but it was too late, so he trotted after him.
Shao Jingzhou looked at Gu Wan, his eyes filled with heartache.
"Wanwan, get up quickly." He reached out to hug her.
Gu Wan pushed him away, her face full of despair.
"Why did the emperor deceive me?"
Shao Jingzhou frowned and shook his head. Because she was pregnant, he didn't dare to force her. "I have no choice. Wanwan, isn't it better for you not to take care of the family?"
Gu Wan shook her head. "I can bear all the criticism and bear children for the Emperor, but why did the Emperor lie to me? If he had told me the truth from the beginning, I would have died sooner. Instead of being like this, shamelessly getting pregnant with the Emperor."
As she spoke, her emotions fluctuated greatly, and she almost yelled at the end.
Shao Jingzhou stepped forward and hugged her, "Don't say that about yourself, Wanwan. I won't allow you to insult myself like this."
Gu Wan cried heart-wrenchingly and then fainted.
Shao Jingzhou picked her up by the waist, his eyes red, and said, "Call the imperial physician."
Zhao Jiukuang hurriedly waved his hand and asked someone to call the imperial physician.
Shao Jingzhou carried her to the bed in the inner hall, sat beside her and held her hand. He already regretted it.
The other three just stood by and watched.
Yu Shengxue suddenly felt a sense of powerlessness in her heart. No matter how hard she tried, she seemed unable to get into Shao Jingzhou's heart. She was so outstanding and more worthy of him than Gu Wan, but he didn't care about his reputation or how history books would write about him a hundred years later.
Shao Sui hadn't seen her for a long time. She would be fine soon. Just wait a few more days.
The imperial physician came over to take the patient's pulse and then reported back.
"Your Highness fainted after hearing the tragic news. You should rest well."
Shao Jingzhou never left from beginning to end and kept holding her hand tightly.
There were only two of them in Chengqian Hall.
Gu Wan woke up at night, saw the person in front of her, and pulled her hand back.
Shao Jingzhou sensed the alienation in her eyes, "Wanwan, are you hungry? Do you want to eat?"
Gu Wan nodded.
Shao Jingzhou thought she would forgive him, so he smiled and waved to Zhao Jiukuang to serve the meal. He knelt on one knee under the bed, put on Gu Wan's shoes, and helped her sit at the dining table.
"They are all your favorites."
Gu Wan ate very slowly, not until she finished a bowl of porridge.
"I want to go back."
Shao Jingzhou just felt that Gu Wan was too calm, but he didn't dare to say anything for fear of making her sad.
"I'll give it to you."
Gu Wan shook her head, "No need."
Shao Jingzhou followed closely behind the sedan chair.
Zhuxiang stood aside and asked, "Your Majesty, is the Emperor still following us?" She didn't know why, even though the Emperor had imprisoned the general, she couldn't help but feel soft-hearted when she saw him like this.
Gu Wan closed her eyes and said, "Look forward." Never look back, it's meaningless.
Zhuxiang said "oh".
Shao Jingzhou watched people arrive at Zhaohua Palace, and then slowly walked back alone. Being an emperor is hard, and he deserves to bear this hardship.
Shao Sui appeared in the middle of the night and scared Zhuxiang.
"Your Majesty."
Shao Sui just raised his hand to signal her to stand up, and then entered the inner hall.
"Wanwan."
Gu Wan was not surprised to see him.
"Your Majesty."
Shao Sui didn't dare to go beyond the distance, for fear of hurting her.
"Don't worry too much. I have a solution. It will be fine in a few days."
Gu Wan frowned and stepped forward to tug at his sleeve, "Are you planning a rebellion, my Lord?"
Shao Sui looked at her approaching and said, "You don't need to know. If it succeeds, you will be the queen in good faith. If it fails, Wanwan can be fine and pretend that it never happened. But then, Wanwan will have to work hard to raise the child alone."
Gu Wan's eyes flushed red as she reached out to hug him. "I, I'm sorry for disturbing your peaceful life. You didn't have to do this for me."
Shao Sui laughed, "I know everything. How could that be? Without you, what's the point of this peaceful life?"
Shao Sui came out of Zhaohua Palace. He looked back at the place and saw that it was brightly lit. He knew that Gu Wan might have come to him out of necessity, and maybe because she liked him a little bit, but he was still glad that Gu Wan had found him and could use him.
He had said those words on purpose, to let her know how deeply he loved her and to make her feel guilty. He didn't know if he could make Gu Wan fall in love with him, but at least he would have a lifetime with her.
The next evening, a fire broke out in Zhaohua Hall.
After Shao Jingzhou heard the news, he ran all the way from the imperial study. His dream actually came true?
Gu Wan had deliberately started this fire. She wanted to force everyone a little more and just go with the plot, after all, that was how the original owner died.
Shao Jingzhou looked at Gu Wan who was rescued, and panic filled his heart at that moment. He thought of thousands of possibilities on the way. If Gu Wan and the child were really gone, what was the point of him living in this world?
Shao Jingzhou hugged her and said, "It's okay, don't be afraid." The sky was filled with smoke.
Shao Jingzhou announced to the public that the Queen Mother had died in the fire and her identity had been erased. He couldn't wait to give Gu Wan a legitimate title and arrange a new, noble enough identity for her.
Gu Wan lived in Chengqian Palace.
Shao Jingzhou issued an edict in the imperial study to spare the Gu family, but only removed them from their positions and made them idle.
Yu Shengxue had expected this to happen sooner or later. His years of planning would eventually be abandoned for Gu Wan. She didn't want to live in this world anymore because it was meaningless. She no longer wanted to like Shao Jingzhou.
The weather was good, and Yu Shengxue met Gu Wan in the imperial garden. She was sitting in the pavilion, looking relaxed and comfortable, and walked straight over.
Gu Wan looked at her with a smile.
"Jia Fei, do you want to play chess with me?"
Yu Shengxue frowned slightly and sat in front of her. "Don't you know how to play chess?"
Zhuxiang went over and poured a cup of tea.
"I'm just talking." Gu Wan was in a good mood, her mission was about to be completed.
Yu Shengxue sneered, "You must be very happy, everyone in the Gu family is fine, and you are going to be the queen."
Gu Wan raised her eyebrows. To be honest, she hadn't done anything to her since she came. It was just that she watched her changes, and love made her sigh.
"Not bad." Gu Wan stood up and looked at her chessboard. "I'll leave this game to Concubine Jia."
Zhuxiang came over and helped her leave.
In the second year of Chong'an, on January 20, the regent Shao Sui launched a coup, the commander of the imperial guards Zhao Zicheng rebelled, the palace gates were wide open, and on January 21, the new emperor was imprisoned. Later historical records called it the Chong'an coup.
The emperors of the previous dynasty changed.
Shao then handled state affairs with lightning speed, and within half a month the court was stable.
The country was named Chongshi.
Shao Sui saw Shao Jingzhou again in prison.
Shao Jingzhou chuckled, "Uncle Emperor is very clever. He actually teamed up with the Gu family to deceive me."
Shao Sui put on a black robe and said, "My nephew has misused people and harmed loyal and good people."
Shao Jingzhou seemed to suddenly remember something, and he stood up and rushed over, "Where's Wanwan? What did you do to her?"
Shao Sui looked at his nephew. Although he was smart and eccentric, he had little experience. "What can I do? The child will be born safely, and she will be my queen in the future."
Shao Jingzhou's eyes were red, and he wanted to go forward and kill the person in front of him, "How dare you, she is mine."
Shao Sui didn't want to tell him the truth, as he could live in fear like this.
"The child belongs to whoever raises it. Nephew, you are still too young. You are just the queen of the Shao family, what difference does it make?"
Shao Jingzhou felt dizzy, his heart ached, and he spat out a mouthful of blood.
"She is mine." Every word penetrated deep into his bones.
Shao Sui looked at him coldly and said, "I will spare your life to preserve the brotherhood between me and the late emperor. But Shao Jingzhou, everything was your choice first. There will be consequences for every cause." He said and walked away.
Soon, Shao Sui issued an edict to make Gu Wan, the legitimate daughter of the Gu family, the queen, and announced that he would no longer take concubines, only this one.
It doesn’t make any sense that Gu Wan has never been to jail. Shao Jingzhou and she are just task bearers.
In early February, Gu Wan gave birth to a boy in the newly rebuilt Zhaohua Palace.
Shao Sui waited outside the hall. When the midwife came out carrying the child, he just took a quick look and then went into the hall.
"Wanwan, you've worked hard."
Gu Wan shook her head.
Shao Sui held her hand and said, "I will always be good to you, forever."
After the Chong'an coup.
Concubine Jia returned to the Marquis of Zhennan's Mansion and stayed in her own courtyard without coming out.
As a close minister of Shao Jingzhou, Yu Huainan was naturally feared by the new emperor. He was idle at home, and the once glorious Zhennan Marquis Mansion fell into defeat again.
Yu Shengxue felt depressed and his health was getting worse.
Yu Huainan went to see her.
"Why are you doing this? Even if Shao Jingzhou was arrested, he probably never thought about you."
Yu Shengxue heard what the maids were talking about yesterday.
"So Shao Sui loves her so much, that he doesn't care who the child belongs to. He even created six palaces just for her. Even my brother couldn't do that." She finished coughing again. After finally stopping, she looked at the flowers blooming outside. "Didn't my brother say that emperors wouldn't be single for life? Shao Sui is launching a coup for her. He's really brave and resourceful."
Yu Huainan remained silent. They couldn't do it, Shao Jingzhou couldn't do it, and he couldn't do it even more.
"I originally thought she was the most miserable. Shao Jingzhou loved her but loved his power more. You loved her but loved yourself more. But I didn't expect that in the end, there would still be someone who loved her more than anything in this world. In the end, it was us who were like clowns."
Yu Huainan stood up and said, "You should have a good rest. I'll go back first."
Yu Shengxue looked at his back as he left and laughed.
Shao Jingzhou was transferred from prison to the former prince's mansion and tortured.
"The Queen has given birth to a boy. The Emperor is very happy and says he will make him the Crown Prince when the baby is one month old."
"Yes, the Queen is very lucky."
The two maids sighed after they finished speaking.
Shao Jingzhou remained silent for a long time after hearing this. Did Shao Sui really love her so much? But suddenly he laughed and cried. Yes, the child is Shao Sui's. Gu Wan, how could you deceive me like this? I have already made concessions for you. How could you have the heart to deceive me like this?
The current chief eunuch is Zhang Wuliang.
"Your Majesty, the people from the Crown Prince's Mansion reported that the man has gone mad."
Shao then leaned over and finished annotating the memorial in his hand, then looked up at him.
"Did you do as I ordered?"
Zhang Wuliang nodded, "Yes, just two sentences."
Shao Sui was not a good person, he never was. He did not regret the coup. No matter how it was recorded in the future, it had nothing to do with him. He only looked at the present.
Gu Wan was playing with the child in Zhaohua Palace.
Zhuxiang came in with small steps.
"Your Majesty, Prince Yu requests an audience."
Gu Wan asked the wet nurse to take the child away.
"Let him in."
A thin figure slowly came in and saluted.
For a moment, Gu Wan thought she had recognized the wrong person. It had only been two months since they last saw each other, but he had become so thin that his eye circles were sunken and half of his hair was white.
"Get up, Prince Yu, what brings you to see me today?"
Yu Huainan looked up at her and knew that she was doing well. This child was indeed Shao Sui's. It turned out that everyone was just a chess piece on her chessboard.
"Sheng Xue passed away last night."
Gu Wan sighed, "What a pity! I haven't had a proper conversation with Miss Yu yet."
Yu Huainan nodded. "She once told me that we all said we loved you, but in the end we were all deceiving you. We would rather choose other things over and over again. You are the most pitiful one."
Gu Wan raised her eyebrows, "She's right."
Yu Huainan sighed and forced a smile, "I guess I owe you a lot too. I should have apologized to you from the beginning to the end."
Gu Wan smiled and said nothing. You see, there are always people apologizing, but the people who should hear it are long gone.
Two days after Yu Huainan left the palace, a fire broke out in the Zhennan Marquis's mansion, and everyone was burned to death.
When Gu Wan heard this, she just felt that it was reasonable. If they didn't do it themselves, she would have done it too. Everyone has their own ending.
postscript.
Historical records.
Emperor Chongshi was of a violent temper. Although he was henpecked, he was quite talented. He worked hard to govern the country, imposed low taxes and advocated frugality, and rectified the administration of officials. The people lived and worked in peace and contentment, the country prospered, and the territory expanded.
History calls it "the beginning of a prosperous era."
This period of history is also explained in unofficial history.
Judging from all the evidence, Empress Gu and the deceased Empress Dowager Gu are the same person.
Empress Gu was so beautiful that both Emperor Chongshi'an and Emperor Chongshi bowed down to her. Moreover, Emperor Chongshi must have rebelled against his nephew for her, otherwise the inference based on Emperor Chongshang's birth age would be wrong, adding another layer of royal scandal.
But it is just unofficial history, which is always unreliable. What's more, launching a coup means risking one's life and property. If it fails, there is only one way out, which is death. How could an emperor of all ages die just because of a woman?
Compared with the previous dynasty, there is only Queen Gu in the harem.
Empress Gu gave birth to two sons and one daughter. Her daughter made great achievements in military and political affairs and was loved by Emperor Chongshi. She also fought on the battlefield and was truly a woman who was as brave as a man.
The summer of the 30th year of Chongshi.
Shao Sui insisted on planting a peach tree in Zhaohua Palace, saying that it would be convenient to eat peaches that way.
Gu Wan stood at the door of the palace feeling helpless. She was already old and might die tomorrow. It would take two or three years to eat the peaches from the peach tree.
"Is the palace short of food for you? Besides, if you want to plant peach trees, go back to your palace and plant them. Why plant them in Zhaohua Palace?"
Shao Sui continued digging the hole with the iron hoe.
"I am willing to plant it. I must plant it."
Gu Wan just felt helpless.
"You can plant it if you want. I can't control you."
Zhuxiang fanned Gu Wan with a fan.
"My Lady, you were the one who said a few days ago that it would be nice to eat the peaches that were picked first. Have you forgotten?"
Gu Wan frowned slightly. It seemed that this was the case, but she just said it casually.
The author has something to say:
Tomorrow's Extra
Finally there is a happy ending. Writing be articles is harmful to your body and heart.
The extra chapter tells the story after the original owner's death.
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