Chapter 170 The Queen Mother Summoned
Not long after Concubine Xian left, it was almost time for lunch.
After dressing up, Su Jingyao went to the Qianqing Palace to have dinner with Jun Zechen.
During the meal, Su Jingyao had an elegant posture and picked up food for Jun Zechen from time to time. Her eyes were full of tenderness and she got along with him as usual.
After lunch, the two of them stayed in the Qianqing Palace for a while before Su Jingyao returned to the Kunning Palace to take care of some business.
Before I had stayed in Kunning Palace for long, Aunt Jinhua came in a hurry.
Su Jingyao sat on the phoenix chariot with a dignified posture, looking straight ahead. There seemed to be waves in her eyes, and no one knew what she was thinking about.
The Queen Mother is worthy of being the Queen Mother. As soon as Su Jingyao came out of the Qianqing Palace, the Queen Mother got the news. Since the Queen Mother waited until she left the Qianqing Palace before summoning her, she probably didn't want Jun Zechen to know.
I don’t know what the Queen Mother wants to say to her.
When Su Jingyao arrived at Cining Palace, Aunt Jinhua respectfully led her to the warm pavilion of Cining Palace.
The Queen Mother was standing nearby, pruning the bonsai with scissors in hand, concentrating on it.
"Your servant pays respects to your mother." Su Jingyao bowed slightly, her voice clear and respectful.
"The Queen is here. Come over here and see how I have trimmed this bonsai tree."
The Queen Mother did not raise her head, still concentrating on the work in her hands.
Su Jingyao stood up, walked over and took a closer look.
"This curved-trunk pine and cypress bonsai, under the pruning and cultivation of the Queen Mother, has a twisting and winding trunk, like a dragon, full of rhythm and melody, a perfect combination of softness and strength, very good."
Su Jingyao's eyes were full of admiration, with a perfect smile on her face.
"It seems that the Queen also understands the art of bonsai?"
The Queen Mother finally put down the scissors, turned her head and looked at Su Jingyao with a hint of inquiry in her eyes.
"I know a little bit about it. They say bonsai is a silent poem, a three-dimensional painting, and a living sculpture, so I will also place some in the palace. However, the ones I place are those that have been trimmed by the palace maids, and I do not have the artistic appreciation of my mother."
Su Jingyao lowered her head slightly, speaking in a humble tone.
The Queen Mother's eyes showed a trace of admiration, "The Queen's description of the bonsai is quite good."
She is intelligent, well-mannered and knowledgeable, no wonder the emperor likes her.
"I heard that the Emperor was drinking in the Qianqing Palace these past two days? Does the Empress know the reason?"
Although the Queen Mother's expression did not change much, there was still a hint of coldness in her voice and her eyes became stern.
Su Jingyao lowered her eyes, her eyelashes trembling slightly, and what was supposed to come finally came.
"It's my fault. I didn't relieve your majesty's boredom, which led to your majesty drinking some wine." There was a hint of self-blame in Su Jingyao's voice.
"Empress, the emperor now favors you alone. I did not stop him because there are already many princes in the harem. You are indeed smart and have the emperor's heart firmly in your hands. But no matter what, the emperor's health is not to be trifled with."
The Queen Mother's words were loud and clear, with unquestionable majesty and stern warning, and her eyes were fixed on Su Jingyao.
Su Jingyao squatted down, still maintaining her dignified posture.
"Please forgive me, mother. It is my fault."
The Queen Mother looked down at the Queen, her thoughts drifting back to when the Queen first entered the Eastern Palace.
At that time, even she misjudged her, thinking that she was really not competitive and had a gentle and calm appearance.
But unexpectedly, she was the most ambitious woman in the entire harem. She wanted not only the emperor's favor but also the position of empress. But what was unexpected was that she did it.
The Queen Mother also knew her son's temperament. When he first liked Ling, she did not stop him because she never thought that Ling had the ability to attract her son for the rest of his life.
The emperor would sooner or later get tired of his relationship with Ling, and as she had expected, it happened even faster than she had imagined, the emperor no longer had much affection for Ling.
But now he has placed his emotions on the Empress again, but the Empress is completely different from Ling. This is the Empress Dowager's intuition that the Empress has a strong ability to control people's hearts.
When she handed over the palace power to the empress, it was naturally not a complete relinquishment. She would also secretly observe the empress's methods. The empress would fully consider human greed, laziness, and ambition and formulate a series of palace regulations.
She managed the harem in perfect order, even better than she did before.
Such a woman might really be able to control her son for his entire life.
The Queen Mother sighed slightly, and these thoughts flashed through her mind in an instant.
"Your Majesty, please get up." The Queen Mother's voice softened a little.
"I summoned you today not to call you to task. I have no right to interfere in matters between you and the emperor. But if there is any problem with the emperor's health, I will hold you responsible."
The Queen Mother's eyes were stern and majestic.
"Yes, I will follow my mother's instructions."
Su Jingyao stood up.
The Queen Mother put down the scissors, walked slowly to the couch beside her and sat down, "Your Majesty, come and sit down, and try the tea I have here."
The Queen Mother raised her hand to signal.
Su Jingyao followed behind the Queen Mother, then sat down gently on the other side of the couch, picked up the teacup, took a sip, and her movements showed her nobility.
Afterwards, the Queen Mother had a long chat with the Empress.
After she became the empress dowager, she had a lot more free time. She dabbled in everything from the tea ceremony to Buddhist scriptures. She could even converse with the empress fluently, and at the end they even discussed the governance of the six palaces.
Su Jingyao could only sigh inwardly. It was much harder to appease the empress dowager than the emperor. Fortunately, she liked reading books and read a variety of them. Otherwise, she might not be able to chat with the empress dowager.
She always had a smile on her face and responded seriously to every word of the Queen Mother, with concentration and respect in her eyes.
Just as the Queen Mother and Su Jingyao were chatting happily, a sharp eunuch's voice suddenly came.
"Your Majesty has arrived—"
Hearing this voice, Su Jingyao's brows wrinkled slightly, and she muttered to herself: What is he doing here?
There was a flash of confusion and helplessness in his eyes.
There was a faint smile on the corner of the Queen Mother's mouth and her eyes were deep, making it difficult to guess what she was thinking at the moment.
Jun Zechen strode in with a straight posture, and saluted with smooth and respectful movements, "Your son pays respects to the Queen Mother."
Su Jingyao was about to get down from the couch to pay her respects, but Jun Zechen was quick to move and sat down next to her. He quickly put his arms around her waist, preventing her from moving at all.
Su Jingyao's face instantly turned black. Did he know that he was in front of the Queen Mother?
She tried to break away quietly, but Jun Zechen was too strong.
The Queen Mother couldn't help but twitch her lips, looking at her son being so intimate with the Queen as if no one was around, she naturally knew why he came over.
Isn't it just to support the Queen? She is afraid that her mother will embarrass the Queen.
"Why is the Emperor here?" The Queen Mother narrowed her eyes slightly and asked with a hint of inquiry in her tone.
"Of course I miss my mother."
Jun Zechen had a flattering smile on his face, but his eyes always stayed on Su Jingyao.
He was originally reviewing memorials in Yu's study when An Shun reported to him that Yaoyao had been summoned by her mother.
Jun Zechen knew in his heart that there were people belonging to his mother in the Palace of Heavenly Purity. He had a very good relationship with his mother and had always turned a blind eye to the people her mother placed in the Palace of Heavenly Purity. It was just that his mother cared about him.
However, he had confined the Empress to the Qianqing Palace for the past two days. Although the people in the harem were unaware of this, the people in the Qianqing Palace naturally knew about it. In addition, he was drinking in a side hall, and he was afraid that his mother would embarrass her if she knew about it, so Jun Zechen hurried over and didn't even bother to pay attention to the memorials.
The Queen Mother had never expected that after she left the palace for a period of time to practice, she would find after she came back that her son not only favored the Queen, but his personality had also changed a lot. He could even say things like this so smoothly, which he would never say easily in the past.
"Is the Emperor here to see me or the Empress?" The Empress Dowager looked slightly dissatisfied.
But Jun Zechen naturally knew that his mother was not really angry, so he just laughed it off.
"Didn't the Empress just come out of your Qianqing Palace? Others may not know that you have confined the Empress, but do I know that? The Empress is the master of the six palaces. What did she do wrong to be confined by you?"
The empress dowager frowned, her expression serious, and she lectured the emperor sternly with a stern look.
Su Jingyao couldn't help but want to laugh in her heart, because that was not what the Queen Mother had just said to her.
She lowered her head slightly, trying hard to hide the smile that was about to spill out from the corners of her mouth.
Jun Zechen was stunned for a moment, with a hint of surprise in his eyes. Did the Queen Mother call Yaoyao over not to scold her, but to show concern for her?
Why was he the one being reprimanded?
"Yes, I am wrong, but the Queen is right. I am not confining you, I am just asking you to accompany me in the Qianqing Palace."
Jun Zechen's expression was a little embarrassed.
The Queen Mother took a sip of tea and her eyebrows twitched.
Her son really didn't learn his father's ruthlessness and amorousness at all. The previous emperor always treated women with pampering but not love. The more amorous the emperor was, the more ruthless he was.
Therefore, the Queen Mother never expected the love of the late emperor. She only wanted power and the respect of the late emperor.
Now the Queen Mother is not sure whether her son is a loyal person or the Queen is just scheming and cunning.
When Su Jingyao heard Jun Zecheng defending her, she glared at him with her beautiful eyes full of anger.
Although Su Jingyao has never been a mother-in-law, isn't she really earning hatred from the Queen Mother by being so affectionate in front of her?
She inadvertently took Jun Zechen's hand off her waist and gently fiddled with it with her fingers, but Jun Zechen's strength was very strong and he had no intention of letting go.
The Queen Mother looked at the two of them being so intimate as if no one was around, her brows furrowed even more tightly, and then she waved her hand impatiently.
"I am exhausted today. Emperor and Empress, please step down."