Chapter 156 Su Peisheng?
As evening approached, the light inside the hall was dim and yellowish, and the time for twilight had not yet arrived.
Erhe had just woken up from his afternoon nap. Rubbing his eyes, he sneaked into the bedroom like a kitten, peeking out.
Jiang Nan was leaning against the window reading a book when she saw his sneaky little appearance. She chuckled and waved to him.
"Come in, stop looking around. Your father has already gone back to the Qianqing Palace to review memorials."
Upon hearing this, the little boy visibly breathed a sigh of relief, and his shoulders relaxed.
It immediately regained its liveliness, hopping and skipping to Jiang Nan's side, sticking to her like a little sticky rice cake.
"Ouch!"
Jiang Nan deliberately frowned, then patted his back with a smile.
"You heavy little thing, you're going to crush your mother."
Upon hearing this, Erhe quickly rolled to the side, his little face full of worry, and carefully looked at Jiang Nan.
"Mother, are you alright? I didn't mean it."
Jiang Nan pulled him back, her heart melting into a puddle of water.
"Silly son, your mother is just joking with you. You're nothing special."
She stroked her son's soft hair, her voice gentle.
"Your mother looks at you, why are you so afraid of your father, the Emperor? He doesn't eat people."
Erhe buried his face in her sleeve and said in a muffled voice.
"I don't know either... It's just that when I see Father Emperor, my heart tightens and I don't dare to speak loudly."
Jiang Nan sighed softly, cupped her son's little face in her hands, made him look into her eyes, and said earnestly.
"Erhe, listen to your mother. You shouldn't be afraid of your imperial father. He is your own father, one of the people in the world who loves you the most. You should learn to be close to him and rely on him, just like you rely on your mother. The more afraid you are, the less you will dare to get close, and over time, you will become less close to your imperial father. Do you understand? In the future, when you see your imperial father, whatever you want to say or do, as long as you don't break the rules, you should be open and generous. Your imperial father will only like you more."
Erhe seemed to understand, but he still nodded obediently.
"Yes, I remember. I am not afraid of Father Emperor."
Jiang Nan looked at him, and thinking that he would officially start studying tomorrow, she couldn't help but feel worried.
She called out loudly, "Zhao Deyi!"
"Your servant is here."
Zhao Deyi immediately responded and stepped forward.
"Go to the Imperial Household Department and ask Su Jing to tell him to carefully select three suitable eunuchs to send over to serve Erhe. They must be clever, diligent, and especially meticulous and patient."
"Yes, sir."
Zhao accepted the order, bowed, and withdrew.
After the person left, Jiang Nan called out again.
"Fang Ruo."
Fang Ruo, who had been standing quietly to the side, stepped forward and curtsied.
"This servant is here."
"Fangruo, Erhe will be going to the Imperial Study tomorrow. After much thought, I feel most at ease with you by his side. From now on, you will be responsible for serving Erhe personally, acting as his stewardess. Take good care of him for me, paying attention to his diet, daily life, and every move he makes."
Fangruo's expression hardened; knowing the weight of the responsibility, she solemnly accepted.
"This servant obeys the decree and will do everything in my power to protect the young master."
Jiang Nan nodded in satisfaction.
But then she saw Erhe nestled beside her, his eyes slightly red and his little mouth pouting, as if he was about to cry.
"Oh dear, what's wrong with you now, my little darling?"
Jiang Nan asked hurriedly.
Erkh spoke with a sob in his voice.
"Son...son doesn't want to leave Empress Mother...don't you want your son anymore?"
Jiang Nan chuckled, feeling a mix of sadness and tenderness in her heart, and hugged him tightly.
"Nonsense! How old are you? Why are you still clinging to your mother like a little baby? Have you forgotten that your father sent you to the Imperial Study to study? That's important. I'm worried that the eunuchs won't take good care of you, so I sent your Aunt Fangruo to look after you. If you dare to disobey and not study hard, Fangruo will tell me, and I'll see how I punish you."
Upon hearing this, Erhe was relieved and quickly assured him.
"I will definitely be obedient and study hard, Mother, please don't punish me."
Jiang Nan softened her tone, with a hint of indulgence.
"Alright, your mother knows you're smart. Study hard, learn as much as you can, and it doesn't matter if you can't learn it all. Anyway, your father is rich and powerful, and he can support you for a lifetime."
Erhe was speechless at his mother's unambitious remarks, and put on a stern face like a little adult.
"Don't worry, Mother, your son will definitely study hard and won't let you and Father down."
The mother and son chatted intimately for a while longer.
———————
Not long after, Zhao Deyi returned to report.
"Your Majesty, Su Jing from the Imperial Household Department is waiting outside the palace with his men."
"Call them in."
Jiang Nan sat up a little straighter.
"Yes, sir."
Zhao gestured, and a eunuch hurriedly went out to deliver the message.
Soon, Su Jing led three young eunuchs who looked no more than eleven or twelve years old, dressed neatly, into the bedchamber, bowing their heads and kowtowing in unison.
"Your humble servant greets Your Majesty the Empress. May Your Majesty live a thousand years and be well!"
"Get up, everyone."
Jiang Nan raised her hand, her gaze falling on Su Jing.
"Su Jing, you are also an old acquaintance of mine. You have done a good job in the Imperial Household Department all these years."
Su Jing immediately bowed, his attitude respectful.
"Your Majesty flatters me. I am humbled. It is all thanks to Your Majesty's great fortune that I can serve you. It is the good fortune I have accumulated over many lifetimes."
Jiang Nan chuckled as she listened to the flattery.
"Alright, enough with the empty flattery. I know your loyalty. These three are the people you carefully selected?"
Her gaze swept over the three slightly nervous eunuchs standing with their hands at their sides.
Su Jing hurriedly agreed, then carefully considered his tone and glanced at Jiang Nan.
Jiang Nan hated this hesitant manner the most, so she spoke directly.
"Just say what you have to say. Don't you know my temper?"
Su Jing then smiled apologetically and pointed to the handsome young eunuch standing at the front of the three.
"Your Majesty, this is Su Peisheng, a nephew of mine. My family saw that I was working in the palace and were afraid that I would have no one to rely on when I got old, so they insisted on sending him here. I couldn't stop them. Actually, I'm still quite healthy. This time, Your Majesty wants to choose someone clever and reliable, and I thought that this child is quite honest... If Your Majesty doesn't think it's appropriate, I will immediately look for someone better."
Upon hearing the name Su Peisheng, Jiang Nan's eyebrows twitched almost imperceptibly, thinking to herself how wonderful this fate was.
She even lured away the chief eunuch who served the fourth prince, Yinzhen.
She didn't reply to Su Jing immediately, but instead looked down and asked the son in her arms.
"Erhe, from now on, let this Su Peisheng serve you personally. What do you think?"
Erkh had no concept of personnel management and simply answered obediently.
"Son will listen to his mother."
Jiang Nan then spoke to Su Jing.
"In that case, let's choose him. He seems like a bright child."
Upon hearing this, Su Jing and Su Peisheng immediately knelt down to express their gratitude.
"Thank you for your grace, Your Majesty!"
"Get up, don't kneel down all the time."
Jiang Nan waved his hand casually, then remembered something else.
"By the way, regarding Chengqian Palace, I asked you to arrange a reliable person to be the head eunuch. Have you made the arrangements?"
Su Jing stood up and replied with even greater respect.
"Your Majesty, everything has been arranged. Li Guiping, who works at Kunning Palace, is quite reliable. Now that Your Majesty is about to move to Kunning Palace, and with Eunuch Zhao in charge of affairs, I've temporarily assigned Li Guiping to Chengqian Palace. What do you think, Your Majesty…?"
"Yes, just be obedient and safe."
Jiang Nan spoke in a languid tone, with a hint of barely perceptible amusement.
"This future mistress of Tongjia will be a concubine upon entering the palace, and will be promoted to Imperial Noble Consort in a few days. She is quite an extraordinary person. Just tell her to be careful. Life in the harem has become increasingly mundane for many years, with nothing new happening. I hope that her arrival will bring some joy to this palace."
Upon hearing this, Su Jing lowered his head even further, not daring to respond, and only respectfully agreed.
"Yes, this servant understands."
Jiang Nan leaned back lazily onto the phoenix couch.
"Alright, if there's nothing else, you can go back now. Su Peisheng and the other two stay here. From now on, Su Peisheng will be Erhe's personal eunuch."
"Yes, Your Majesty, this servant takes his leave."
After bowing, Su Jing carefully withdrew from the sleeping quarters.
Jiang Nan then spoke softly to her son.
"Erhe, take these new eunuchs you've acquired to play and get acquainted with them. Mother needs to rest for a while; the concubines will be coming to pay their respects soon."
"Yes, Your Majesty, I take my leave."
Erkh bowed respectfully.
They left with the newly assigned Su Peisheng and others.
———————
My arrangements are quite reasonable, aren't they? Everything has been arranged for the future emperor.
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