Chapter 42 Once on the Dragon Bed, Nine Lives Wouldn't Be Enough to Pay the Price
"Even if the princess is the emperor's own sister, how would you know what the emperor is like in private?"
Yuchi Lianping was once a fierce general under Emperor Wusu.
These trusted confidants followed him into battle, sharing hardships and sleeping together; there was no secret between them.
He said meaningfully, "Princess, you've misjudged. If you ask me, that person is not someone an ordinary person can handle."
Yuchi Lianping thought for a moment and gave a very rudimentary example.
"For example, that girl who came to take my pulse just now had a waist so thin you could break it with a single hand. If she were to get into the emperor's bed, even nine lives wouldn't be enough to save her."
Princess Huachang threw the teapot over, gritting her teeth.
"Get out of here!"
Ji Qingwu and the prince consort who had been kicked out stood facing each other at the door.
Just now, her pen fell onto the table in the hall.
A doctor's pen, once it's become comfortable with writing, is not something she'd want to change. So when she reached the door, she realized she'd forgotten her pen and turned back.
But then I heard these words.
Then, accompanied by the woman's angry shout, Yuchi Lianping pushed open the door and came out.
Ji Qingwu had no chance to dodge.
Even the most oblivious person like Yuchi Lianping sensed the awkwardness in his situation, and the more he tried to explain, the worse it got.
"I was just giving an example, and besides, I was telling the truth, not exaggerating."
What is the truth...?
Once you're on the emperor's bed, even nine lives wouldn't be enough to pay for it...
Ji Qingwu didn't know how to react, so she lowered her eyes and gave a soft "hmm" in embarrassment.
"Don't disbelieve me, you'll know once you try it."
Yuchi Lianping left those words behind and strode away.
Ji Qingwu closed her eyes briefly, then opened them again. In the end, she didn't have the courage to go in, take the pen from in front of the princess, and left with her ears burning red.
*
The Empress Dowager's birthday banquet.
The entire Ji clan, the maternal family, was present.
Ji Qingwu held Qiuqiu in her arms and sat in the corner of the table, instructing her, "Qiuqiu, don't talk nonsense later, and don't eat too loudly. Let's be little ladies."
The water in Lin'an City nurtures people, and in just a few months, the little girl has grown even more beautiful, with rosy cheeks and a lovely face.
Chirping, shaking her head, said, "The ospreys cry 'guan guan' on the river islet; the graceful chirping is a gentleman's ideal."
Slender and graceful?
Ji Qingwu gently pinched the chubby little belly of her and laughed.
After a while, someone sat down in the seat opposite, which drew a few suppressed gasps.
Who started the commotion...?
Ji Qingwu also looked over and immediately raised his eyebrows in surprise. It turned out to be Li Chengxun. He had also come to attend the Empress Dowager's birthday banquet.
Such handsome looks still made him stand out in the imperial palace, which was full of outstanding individuals.
However, this was a small-scale family banquet. Li Chengxun had not yet taken the imperial examination and held no official position. So, what was his status in being here?
Ji Qingwu was puzzled. She looked at him from a distance, separated by several rows of people. When she met his smiling eyes and the scrutinizing gazes of the people around her, she turned her head away. It wouldn't be appropriate to be too presumptuous at the Empress Dowager's birthday banquet.
Chiu Chiu nestled in her arms and said in a childish voice, "Mother, that young master is so handsome."
Ji Qingwu smiled and asked, "Does Qiuqiu like him?"
"I like him. When Chuchu grows up, she will marry this handsome young man."
Ji Qingwu patted her little head and smiled, "Okay, you can go and ask him yourself later to see if he agrees."
Prince Yong and his wife entered the palace.
Not long after, Princess Huachang gracefully took her seat.
After all, it was the Empress Dowager's birthday, so even if the eldest princess disliked large crowds, she still had to attend.
"Her Majesty the Empress Dowager has arrived!" the eunuch announced in a long voice, and everyone rose and knelt in obeisance.
The Empress Dowager wore a purple-red phoenix robe, with auspicious patterns such as phoenixes and clouds embroidered in gold thread. Today, because it was her birthday, she was dressed solemnly and magnificently.
Following behind the Empress Dowager was a young woman wearing a golden crown and a pink embroidered butterfly and flower floor-length palace dress. She was both noble and playful, and must be the most favored Princess Qingyun.
Princess Qingyun said sweetly, "Your Majesty, I wish you a long life as long as the heavens, boundless happiness as the Eastern Sea, everlasting glory like the sun and moon, and eternal youth."
The Empress Dowager smiled and said, "Seeing you grow up day by day, and approaching the age to choose a husband, how could I not be old?"
Princess Qingyun clapped her hands, and the little eunuch immediately presented a black lacquered incense stand with gold-painted flowers, shaped like a ruyi (a traditional Chinese ornament symbolizing good fortune), with gold-painted round beads at the bottom that could house an incense burner.
Prince Yong stood up, walked closer, and examined it closely, saying, "Such an exquisite incense stand, only my sister could find one. It makes me, as her elder brother, feel ashamed."
"Third brother, what birthday gift have you prepared for Mother? Show it to me quickly."
Princess Yong also stepped forward, presenting an item with both hands, and said calmly, "Your Highness and I have prepared a set of colorful embroidered Tibetan Buddhist scriptures for the Empress Dowager."
Princess Yong is the daughter of a Grand Secretary and a renowned woman of talent. This gift, being made by her, is certainly not bad.
"I know you are all filial, and the gifts you have sent are all pleasing to the eye." The Empress Dowager said with a happy expression, and ordered Shi Xi to put them away.
Princess Qingyun looked at the empty seat next to the Empress Dowager and asked, "Mother, why hasn't my brother arrived yet?"
"There are many things going on in the previous dynasty, so it seems that they are temporarily stuck."
The guests at the banquet presented birthday gifts in round after round. Ji Qingyuan gave a glass incense ash bracelet that had been blessed by a high monk, and she received a compliment.
Soon it was Ji Qingwu's turn. She told Qiuqiu to sit properly in her seat, then lifted her skirt and walked into the hall.
"Your Majesty, I have heard that you occasionally suffer from headaches at night, so I have prepared a remedy to relieve your pain."
Her fair hands held a thin prescription.
Others gave gifts for decoration and enjoyment, but this child gave something tangible to relieve pain, and the Empress Dowager's gaze softened.
The Empress Dowager said with relief, "Qingwu is so thoughtful. This headache of mine is an old ailment that started when I gave birth to Qingyun."
Shi Xi walked down the steps and took it.
Ji Qingwu stood up and was about to return to his seat when he heard a cold voice from behind him.
"Miss Ji, is sending this prescription a sign of dissatisfaction with the Empress Dowager?"
Before Ji Qingwu could turn around, shouts of "Long live the Emperor!" rang in her ears.
She had no choice but to kneel down again.
Emperor Wusu strode to the front of the palace, wearing silk felt boots with cloud patterns on their feet, and passed by Ji Qingwu.
As she moved, the dragon robe stirred up a gust of wind, blowing a few strands of her hair.
Although she did not look up, she knew that His Majesty the Emperor was not in a good mood.
Emperor Wusu took his seat, his posture upright, and said, "There is military intelligence to deal with in the northern border. I am late, please forgive me, Mother."
The Empress Dowager smiled and said, "It is a blessing for the common people that the Emperor is busy with state affairs. How could I not be happy?"
However, the first thing he said upon entering seemed to indicate dissatisfaction with Ji Qingwu. At the palace banquet that day, everyone wondered if the emperor had developed feelings for this woman.
But today, he publicly reprimanded her.
Seeing that Ji Qingwu was still kneeling in the hall, the Empress Dowager's eyes flickered, and she advised, "Your Majesty, let Qingwu return to his seat."
"Bring me the prescription so I can take a look."
Shi Xi respectfully handed it over.
After reading it, Emperor Wusu said coldly, "The Empress Dowager is in good health, yet you send her a prescription on her birthday. What is the meaning behind this? The Empress Dowager has taken good care of the Ji family, and this is how you repay her?"
Since the emperor had said so, the Ji family members all stepped forward in fear and trepidation.
He knelt beside Ji Qingwu in the hall.
She hadn't expected there to be an "implicit meaning," and she quietly raised her eyes to see Emperor Wu Su's expression.
His face was so dark, it looked like he was there to collect a debt...
She lowered her head and immediately admitted her mistake.
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