Chapter 34 After Marriage
The room was completely silent. Even if someone moved around, they were afraid of making a sound, lest they be caught in the crossfire and incur the emperor's wrath.
Only Jialuo rubbed his shoulders and slowly got up.
She was wearing platform shoes today, and her ankles were already tired. Not only could she not rest, but she also had to put up with the wrath of these two oddballs.
So they simply didn't bother to hide their actions.
She walked towards the door with a "tap tap tap" sound.
"stop!"
The boy let out a low growl.
Jialuo turned around, glanced at the boy, and looked completely innocent.
"Is there something you need, Your Majesty?"
Fu Lin looked at her with an unfriendly expression and asked, "Did I say you could leave?"
Upon hearing this, Jialuo's expression immediately turned into a half-smile.
"Your Majesty, why can't I leave?"
"I know I have no reason to stay here, after all, what is the identity of that charming young woman inside?"
"What ability does she have to make the Emperor and Empress of the Qing Dynasty wait for her in the main hall of Zhongcui Palace?"
"Yes, Your Majesty. Someone like me naturally knows that Your Majesty and Consort Dong'e are in love. I should also take it seriously."
"Yes, of course. You are the Emperor of the Great Qing Dynasty, the son of the late Emperor Taizong of Qing and the Empress Dowager of the Great Qing Dynasty. You have the most noble bloodline in the world and were raised by Emperor Chengzong of Qing."
"Of all the honor in the world, none can compare to you. What woman in the world could you not love?"
"Even that delicate young woman inside the house, Your Majesty, didn't you still let her enter the palace?"
"Your Majesty, I dare not say how you compare to the late Emperor Taizong of the Qing Dynasty."
"But I believe that you will govern the Qing Dynasty better and make it more prosperous than Emperor Chengzong of Qing."
Jialuo was filled with emotion.
"I am not as good as the Empress Dowager, but I never thought that I would be even worse than this little woman."
"The Empress of the Qing Dynasty couldn't even take good care of a lowly woman who had entered the palace but had no official title."
After Jialu finished speaking, she felt that her gaze had suddenly darkened.
Next, a pair of yellow satin boots embroidered with beaded threads came into view.
Jialuo looked up from the boots, and her vision shifted to the dragon robe. When she finally saw the man's taut jaw, she flinched, as if she had been startled.
"Speak up, our Qing Dynasty's Empress, why aren't you continuing?"
The boy let out a roar.
At this moment, all the emotion on Jialuo's face turned into fear and indescribable sadness.
Her eyes instantly filled with tears, and she looked up in disbelief.
Tears slowly slid down her cheeks, her eyes, as clear as the waters of the grassland, reflecting the boy's gloomy face.
"Your Majesty, have I said something wrong?"
"Your Majesty, the Empress, is forced to stand guard here and watch over this little woman whose identity is now unknown?!"
"Is she the Empress, or is it I, your humble servant, the Empress of the Qing Dynasty?!"
Galo seemed to be having an emotional breakdown, and asked in a rapid and sharp voice.
Fu Lin pursed his lips tightly, then turned around.
His gaze swept to the side, his voice neither warm nor cold, yet it sent a chill down the spines of everyone present.
"Her identity is not important."
"But Empress, if you dare to step out of Zhongcui Palace today without my permission, I think you don't need to sit on the throne of Empress that you are so proud of and talk about all the time."
Galo's eyes widened slowly, as if in disbelief.
She looked completely stunned, and her previous imposing manner vanished instantly.
Everyone thought that Jialuo would just give in.
In that quiet moment when no one dared to speak and you could hear a pin drop, a woman's soft and fragile voice came from the side room of the house.
"Ahem, Your Majesty, Your Majesty, it's all my fault. I shouldn't have lived in the palace without any official status."
"Cough cough... I shouldn't have let myself get sick."
"It's all because of my poor health. I'm going to leave the palace now, and I will never again let my lowly status cause the Empress and the Emperor to quarrel."
"I am not worthy."
"It's none of your business."
Fu Lin said with a cold snort.
At that moment, Jialuo, who had been kneeling on the ground, suddenly stood up and glanced at Fulin, who was staring straight at her.
"I don't need to delay Your Majesty and Consort Dong'e from expressing their feelings here."
After saying that, she turned and walked out of the main room.
"Empress!"
Ignoring her words, Jialuo, holding Emerald's hand, hurried toward the door.
"Borzigit's Gallo!"
A stern warning shout came from behind.
Galo kept walking until she took a step and was about to cross the threshold of Zhongcui Palace, at which point Galo turned her head.
She glanced at the man standing in the main room, his expression somber, his brows furrowed with thunderous rage.
But her beautiful phoenix eyes were fixed on the young man, and she said, "Your Majesty, do you know that I am eleven years old this year, three years younger than you? I have been spoiled by my elders since I was a child. When I left the grasslands, Abu said that Your Majesty was my cousin, and no matter what, he would cherish his younger sister."
In this tense atmosphere, where the room seemed to be urging her to leave and the faint cough of a woman could be heard, Jialuo actually curled her lips into a smile at Fulin.
Although she appeared to be smiling, both she and Fu Lin understood how cold her gaze was towards him.
"Galo is extremely happy today, thank you, cousin."
After saying this, Jialuo refused to look at Fulin again and turned away.
After leaving Zhongcui Palace, Jialuo continued walking, her large eyes red, towards Cining Palace.
"master?"
Emerald held her hand and asked in a low voice, "Wouldn't it be inappropriate for us to go see the Empress Dowager at this time?"
Even Agate understood the meaning behind Jialuo's words that had angered the Emperor.
Rumors have it that Dorgon coveted his sister-in-law, who is now the Empress Dowager.
The relationship between the two was ambiguous.
Now, the emperor has surpassed his predecessor, taking a liking to his brother's wife and even bringing her into his harem.
Fulin was already extremely dissatisfied with Dorgon, even hating him.
How could Jialuo's words not anger Fulin?
If Jialuo were to go to the Empress Dowager at this time, and the Empress Dowager found out that Jialuo had said such a thing, the Empress Dowager might directly blame her.
Jialu naturally knew what Jade and Agate were worried about.
She shook her head and then pinched her thigh harder.
She had just pinched her thigh hard, which is why she cried.
At that moment, because the spot where it had just been pinched was pinched again, her eyes became even hotter, and tears kept welling up from the pain.
Our good days are almost here!
Her tone, however, was unusually joyful.
Jade: "But Master..."
"Waaaaah, please don't try to stop me. I'm not good enough. Waaaaah, Abu said I could have done it, but...waaaaah!"
Suddenly, Jialuo pulled her hand away from Emerald's.
Jade and Agate exclaimed in astonishment, "Master..."
Jialuo ignored the two of them and quickly stepped forward, rushing to Sumala, who had just exited the Cining Palace.
Wiping away my tears, I put on a strong and resilient appearance and whispered, "Aunt Sumala, is your aunt resting?"
Just as they arrived at the palace gate, they saw Sumalagu coming out.
"Oh dear, Your Majesty, why are you so heartbroken?"
"Sumala Gu, Empress Dowager, is my aunt here? Waaaaah..."
Jialuo wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes, but her red-rimmed eyes looked particularly aggrieved.
"Yes, yes, Master has always been here. Please tell me first, has someone bullied you?"
Upon hearing this, Jialuo took Sumalagu's hand and walked inside.
"Oh dear, young master, you must be careful."
Jialu stepped into the palace and rushed to the side room, where he caught sight of the woman.
When the woman looked into his eyes, it instantly reminded Jialuo of Abu, whom he hadn't seen in a long time.
The sadness that was originally fabricated actually revealed a great deal of grievance.
She suddenly stopped, and her body swayed uncontrollably as she abruptly halted.
The woman's appearance gradually became blurry until Su Mala's distressed voice came from behind.
"Oh dear, Your Majesty, I just went out and saw our little Empress crying like a poor little thing that no one wants."
"What's wrong? Why are you feeling so unwell?"
The woman stood up, her voice filled with anxiety.
Upon hearing this, Jialuo shifted slightly, and tears welled up in her eyes.
She gently wiped it away with her fingers, then threw herself into Bumbutai's arms, sobbing and crying, "Empress Mother, you must do justice for Xinsari!"
"Don't cry, don't cry. Tell your mother what happened."
The woman put her arm around her and gently patted her back in a comforting manner.
Jialuo wiped away her tears, but when she spoke again, her voice was choked with sobs, as if she had suffered countless grievances.
"Your Majesty, this evening, Your Majesty and I were happily returning to the inner palace from outside the palace when a palace maid suddenly rushed out and blocked our way, saying that Your Majesty needed to save her mistress, who was dying."
Tears slowly welled up in Jialuo's eyes again. She blinked and let the tears slide down her cheeks.
"Who knew that the woman who went there was that little woman from Zhongcui Palace. The Emperor was worried about her, so he ordered the imperial physician who had just rushed into the palace to cure her, otherwise they would all be buried with her."
"Your Majesty is furious, and I dare not refute you. However, I have not recovered for a long time, but I am not bothered by it myself."
"But if it is because a woman of ambiguous identity is seriously ill and is being treated by imperial physicians, that the Emperor and Empress of the Qing Dynasty would personally stay by her side."
"Isn't this a bit..."
Jialuo pursed her lips and sighed softly, "Your Majesty and I have been getting along very well lately, and I have become a bit willful. I thought I would leave first, but Your Majesty would not allow it."
"Your Majesty, I said some things that angered you, asking whether this humble woman or I was the Empress of the Great Qing?"
“But His Majesty said that if I dare to step out of Zhongcui Palace, I will no longer be the Empress.”
At this point, Jialuo grabbed the woman's waist and buried his face in her abdomen.
“Aunt, His Majesty has never liked me since our wedding. Even... His Majesty even said that he would not let me be the Empress, and that Xin Sa Ri should not be the Empress.”
"If I cannot gain the Emperor's favor or respect, what use am I as Empress?!"
After saying the above words in a tearful voice, Jialuo buried her head in the woman's waist and sobbed.
"presumptuous!!"
With one hand on Jialuo's back, Bumbutai slammed the teacup on the table to the ground with the other.
The sound of shattering porcelain filled the entire Cining Palace.
Jialuo seemed to be frightened for a moment, standing there blankly, and dared not cry anymore.
Su Mala stepped forward, her face full of worry, and said, "It's all that wretched woman's fault. She only met the Emperor once before, and she's been intentionally or unintentionally coming to the palace to see him ever since."
"Your Majesty, you were busy with the affairs of the court and the harem, and you didn't have time to stop me."
"Now that the Emperor and Empress's relationship is getting better and better, that vile woman's methods are becoming more and more despicable."
Bumbutai seemed to take a deep breath, then she reached out and touched her tear-reddened little face, saying soothingly, "My little darling, come, don't cry. With me here, why should you be afraid of those lowly things?"
"You must remember that you were the one who told me she was nothing but a plaything. How come she's crying and wailing like this now?"
Her tone carried a hint of affectionate disdain from an elder.
Upon hearing this, Jialuo seemed embarrassed, and it was unclear whether the blush on her cheeks was from crying or from feeling shy.
"The Emperor's Mother~"
Jialuo pursed her lips and called out in a reproachful tone.
Her lips moved, as if she wanted to say something, but was too shy to speak.
"Alright, alright, your mother was once your age too."
"Some things can't be rushed."
"Look at you, crying like a little kitten."
Bumbutai comforted her, and Jialuo slowly seemed to regain her composure.
It wasn't until half an hour later that Jialuo emerged from Cining Palace.
Her face was flushed, and her eyes were also red. Behind her, a jade box held up contained a gold-inlaid bracelet with four dragons playing with a pearl, a gift from the Empress Dowager. It was exquisite and beautiful.
Once they entered Yongshou Palace, Jialuo went into a side room and finally breathed a sigh of relief.
She collapsed onto the south kang (heated brick bed), letting Jade massage her aching waist and Agate apply ointment to her tired, tear-filled eyes and dry, tight face.
We mustn't let her face become flaky; that would look terrible.
Jialu pouted.
Emerald looked at her without saying a word, and seemed quite unhappy.
She exchanged another glance with Agate and whispered, "Your Majesty, you are truly remarkable. With the Empress Dowager so angry, I refuse to believe that little bitch who loves to act will be able to become a concubine as she wishes."
Jialuo sighed softly but did not speak.
Agate carefully used the patchouli powder prepared according to the Imperial Pharmacy prescription to gently cleanse her master's face.
As she carefully observed her movements, she echoed Emerald's words, "Yes, with the Empress Dowager backing you up, who would dare to bully you, Master?"
She's the Empress now, who would dare bully her?
The meaning of "agate" is simply that the emperor will not dare to bully her in the future.
But Jialuo's purpose was not here; she was only waiting for Fulin to clash with the Empress Dowager over Dong E.
She had a terrible relationship with the Emperor, yet she was exceptionally ingratiating with the Empress Dowager.
The Empress Dowager could not prevent Dong E from entering the palace as a concubine.
The Empress Dowager compromised before the Emperor.
She then compromised with the Empress Dowager and tolerated the Emperor.
In that case, Galo could seek benefits in the middle.
We just need to be careful with our methods.
In this way, she would no longer need to please the emperor, nor would she have any further entanglements with that Dong E clan, even if Dong E clan came looking for her.
Jialuo still doesn't believe she can't handle a little green tea b*tch?
With that thought in mind, she took a comfortable bath that night, ate a few plates of snacks, drank a bowl of milk tea, and then fell asleep comfortably.
At that moment, the Empress Dowager glared at Fulin, who was kneeling on the ground, with an ugly expression.
She was truly furious; the eighteen coins in her hand trembled violently with her rage.
"Your Majesty, what is the reason for this? You are the Emperor of the Great Qing, above all others. Your appearance is shortening my lifespan."
Fu Lin looked up, his dark phoenix eyes now pressing down on his eye sockets, his gaze deep and unfathomable.
"Your Majesty, I assumed personal rule at the beginning of this year."
"But how many of these officials in the court truly submit to me, or are they only submitting at my behest?!"
"You bastard!"
"So, so you created this Dong E clan to anger me? To anger the Empress?!"
Fu Lin looked up indifferently at Bumbutai.
The Empress Dowager looked at herself, even though she was kneeling on the ground, her back was straight, and her aura was as if she had already drawn her sword.
Now, a sword, sharpened with the blood and sweat of the men in the court who had trampled on her, is pointed straight at her throat.
Bumbutai felt a tightness in her chest, yet she was also filled with pride.
From the moment she dared to personally send Dorgon away under those circumstances, Bumbutai knew that her son with Huang Taiji was a born emperor.
In fact, in just six months, Fulin has already taken control of most of the court.
Only a few remain in Bumbutai's palm.
How can I allow someone else to snore beside my bed?
How can any emperor tolerate others sharing the world with him?!
Bumbutai understood that she was not a woman confined to the palace; after experiencing the reign of Huang Taiji, her sights had already been set on the court.
Now my son is all grown up...
But after so many years of navigating the treacherous waters of the imperial court, how could she possibly give it all up?
Another issue is my son's unpredictable mood swings and fickle tastes.
How can I reassure him/her?
She wanted to let go little by little, but her son was unwilling to wait.
Bumbutai turned around, and when she sat back down, her expression returned to calm.
“You like that Dong E woman, so having her serve you is not a big deal.”
Upon hearing this, Fu Lin pursed his lips tightly but did not speak.
The woman sighed inwardly as she looked at him.
There are some things she can't let go of, but she can't sever the bond between mother and son.
In some situations, she had no choice but to compromise.
Thinking of her niece, she looked at her son, who hadn't mentioned Jialuo once since arriving at Cining Palace, and sighed helplessly.
She offered a perfunctory word of comfort: "But you should consider the Empress; she cares about you."
As expected, the Emperor replied indifferently and nonchalantly, "Your subject obeys the decree."
Seeing that he was completely unmoved this time, Bumbutai rubbed her forehead in exasperation.
I just felt that the bracelet I gave to Jialuo tonight was really stingy.
"Having said that, Your Majesty is busy with state affairs, so there is no need to waste your time here in my palace."
"Yes, Your Majesty, I take my leave. It is all my fault for being unfilial. Please do not take it to heart, Your Majesty. Please rest well and do not harm your health."
Bumbutai remained noncommittal.
Fu Lin bowed once more, then turned and left.
Anbaohou stood at the entrance of Cining Palace, feeling quite worried.
Every time the Emperor met with the Empress Dowager alone, he was in a bad mood.
This time is the same.
Security guards went up to him and followed the emperor out of Cining Palace, then through a long alley.
Just around the corner, the emperor suddenly stopped in his tracks.
The security guard was taken aback and quietly glanced up at the emperor's back.
He raised his head slightly and looked at the full moon hanging high in the sky.
The security guards then realized that the Emperor was in an unexpectedly good mood tonight.
However, when the Emperor came out of Cining Palace, he clearly had a gloomy expression.
Just as he was wondering if he had seen things wrong, he heard the Emperor ask, "Anbao, does the Empress like me?"
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Author's Note: Hehe... I'll be updating extra today!
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