Chapter 21 Night Talk
Outside the gate of Jinxiu Palace, the fifth prince Xiao Chengshun sat dejectedly on the stone steps, his arms around his knees and his head bowed. Two carriages loaded with wooden boxes stopped on the palace road.
"Fifth prince, it's getting dark, get on the carriage quickly." Concubine Shu squatted down and comforted him softly.
The fifth prince did not respond.
The imperial decree had been issued, Jiang Qiqiu was imprisoned, and the fifth prince was handed over to Concubine Shu for care. This was a foregone conclusion.
The fifth prince, who was only 9 years old, could hardly bear such a severe blow for a while.
His mother was once so arrogant, but now she was banished to the cold palace.
What's more terrifying is that his sister said that she was not his mother's biological child.
Is this true? Who should he ask?
"Your mother's affairs have nothing to do with you. Do your own part and study hard, and you are still the emperor's good son." Concubine Shu stroked his narrow back.
"Yes, don't think too much for now. You come to live in Fuyang Palace, and your mother and I will treat you well." The third prince Xiao Chengsui comforted. The
fifth prince slowly raised his head, and two strings of tears fell.
Just after dinner time, Xia Zhengqi deliberately changed into an indigo robe, and excitedly sat on the sedan chair and went to Kunning Palace.
He remembered that Xiao Ruoyu, who was still a princess at the time, said that she liked him wearing indigo robes.
Today is an important day, and he must try his best to make her happy.
The sedan stopped in front of the Kunning Palace. Xia Zhengqi got off the sedan and immediately took a tray from the eunuch. He held it himself and walked quickly to the inner hall.
"Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you!" The Queen bowed and saluted with a smile on her face.
"Ruoyu, please don't be polite." Xia Zhengqi extended a hand to help her.
"Look what I brought you." He held the tray in front of the Queen.
The Queen looked carefully and said happily, "Your Majesty, you actually brought the golden seal and account books in person."
In the tray, there was a small golden seal and a stack of account books with a brocade satin cover. Although these two things seemed insignificant, they represented the power to manage the six palaces.
"Ruoyu, in the end, I am sorry for you. These should have been yours a long time ago."
"Only by delivering them in person today can I ease the guilt in my heart." Xia Zhengqi lowered his head in embarrassment.
[Mummy, the Emperor is so sincere.]
Xia Miaoyuan lay on the couch, eating melon and complaining at the same time.
The Queen's eyes were red, and she stretched out her hands, solemnly took the tray, carefully placed it on the table, and gently pulled Xia Zhengqi to sit down.
Yingxue gave a wink to the palace maids and nannies in the room, and everyone understood instantly and quietly left the door.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, don't blame yourself, I have no complaints in my heart." The Queen smiled.
"No, no, Ruoyu, don't be like this." Xia Zhengqi held the Queen's hand.
"In the past, I trusted the Empress Dowager too much. You suffered a lot of grievances. Recently, I asked people to investigate secretly and found that the Empress Dowager and Concubine Jiang had done a lot of tricks to you behind your back." Xia Zhengqi paused. "
When you take care of things, they deliberately make trouble. When you send gifts, they slander you for tampering with the gifts and having bad intentions."
"They even set up poisonous schemes several times to kill you..." Xia Zhengqi almost couldn't continue.
"Ruoyu, these, I really didn't know before. I trusted the Empress Dowager too much. She raised me up since I was a child, and I really trusted her too much."
"If I knew this earlier, I would never let you suffer for so long." Xia Zhengqi said this, with a slightly tearful tone.
The Queen's lips trembled slightly. After holding back for several times, tears finally fell: "Your Majesty..."
Xia Zhengqi grabbed the Queen's shoulders and wiped her tears.
[Alas, my father, the Emperor, how could he be so confused. But fortunately, it's not too late to wake up now.]
Xia Miaoyuan lay on the couch opposite, watching Xia Zhengqi and the Queen talk about their inner feelings leisurely.
"Your Majesty, I am satisfied that you can understand the grievances that Ruoyu has suffered and know Ruoyu's heart." The Queen cried, tears still falling.
"Since I married you, I have been determined to be a good mistress of the palace. After Your Majesty ascended the throne, I have been determined to be an empress who is the mother of the country, to manage the harem for Your Majesty and relieve Your Majesty's worries."
"I never thought that after entering the palace, the empress dowager would be very picky about me. At first, I thought I didn't do well enough and tried my best to correct it."
"Later I found out that it was me as a person that the empress dowager hated. No matter how hard I tried, she would not accept me."
"She will only be satisfied if her niece sits on the throne." The queen sighed.
"Humph, I'm afraid the empress dowager not only wants a woman from the Jiang family to be the queen, but also wants the Great Xia to change its surname to Jiang!" Xia Zhengqi thought of Master Jiang's ambition and said word by word.
[Oh, Emperor Daddy, you finally understand the situation! Grand Tutor Jiang is ambitious, and Queen Mother Jiang is extremely ignorant. She only cares about the interests of the Jiang family. She is the Queen Mother of a country, but she doesn't care about the country of Daxia at all. 】
【I remember in the book that the Jiang family killed my mother and successfully pushed Jiang Qiqiu to the throne. After that, Grand Tutor Jiang devised a poisonous plan, framing the prince for forcing the palace to rebel, and letting the imperial guards shoot Guoguo into a hedgehog. 】
【At that time, Dad had been given a chronic poison by Jiang Qiqiu, and was bedridden and unable to handle government affairs. 】
【Alas, Er Guoguo was arrested by them and thrown into the imperial prison, tortured severely, and beaten to death. 】
【After half a year, Dad died of poison. The fifth prince was pushed to the throne. How can a child of more than ten years old rule the country? It's still Grand Tutor Jiang who has the final say. 】
【Grand Tutor Jiang named himself the Regent of Daxia and asked people to call him the Nine Thousand Year Old, truly reaching the point of being able to cover the sky with one hand. 】
【After another year, he was no longer satisfied with being the Regent, so he asked the young emperor to write a letter of abdication, and he himself became the emperor, changing the dynasty. 】
【After he ascended the throne, he summoned the descendants of the royal family of Daxia to the palace for congratulations. The princes, princesses, princes, princesses, and princes-in-law of Daxia, more than 300 men, women, old and young, were all killed in Shanglin Garden. The once magnificent Shanglin Garden was now a river of blood and corpses were everywhere. Flies and crows swarmed around and wouldn't leave. 】
【Oh, it's too tragic, too tragic! 】
Xia Miaoyuan felt a chill when he recalled this description in the book. He closed his eyes in fear and clasped his arms tightly across his chest.
Hearing this, Xia Zhengqi's heart tightened and he could hardly breathe. The queen was sweating profusely and subconsciously shrank into Xia Zhengqi's arms, clutching his robe tightly with both hands.
Xia Zhengqi just wanted to suppress his emotions and pretend that nothing had happened and continued to talk to the queen, but he was shocked by the queen's inappropriate behavior.
He helped the queen up, stared into her eyes with wide eyes, and said in a low voice: "Ruoyu, you can also..."
Although he only said half a sentence, the moment the queen met Xia Zhengqi's eyes, she immediately understood what he meant and nodded heavily.
"Yingxue!" Xia Zhengqi immediately restrained his emotions and shouted to the outside.
"Give the princess to the wet nurse, I will stay to accompany the queen tonight."
"Yes." Yingxue lowered her head and replied, with a mischievous smile.
[Ahhh... How could you do this! You kicked me out? I don't want to sleep with the wet nurse... I'm still a baby, I want my mother!]
[Oh my god, you guys are not going to give me another brother, are you?]
Xia Miaoyuan complained unhappily, kicking his two fat legs in Yingxue's arms.