Chapter 38 Incense Smoke
The father and daughter retreated from the palace. Zhu Zhanji still frowned. After walking along the palace path for a while and seeing no one else around except the palace servants they had brought with them, Zhu Zhanji finally stopped and said, "Huanhuan, have you forgotten what Dad said when we went in?"
Zhu Yuhuan knew this moment would come, and said obediently, "Huanhuan remembers, but Huanhuan didn't speak nonsense. Daddy, the emperor is busy supporting the people's livelihood and recuperating, and has no time to show his filial piety. This is the time when someone is needed to show filial piety on his behalf. I am doing this to help the emperor share his worries."
Otherwise, she would not have brought out Zhu Di. After all, although the emotional card is useful, playing it too much will only make people aesthetically fatigued. It is reasonable to play it out as soon as possible while this card is still effective.
Seeing her calm demeanor, Zhu Zhanji finally couldn't help but sigh and said, "Huanhuan, you are too smart. Using your intelligence in a place like this will only lead to disaster."
Zhu Zhanji now understood why Hu Shanxiang was always reluctant to let her daughter relax and indulge herself. She was naturally intelligent, but she was small but had big ideas. If this intelligence was not used in the right way, it would only bring fatal disaster to Zhu Yuhuan in the future.
Realizing that Zhu Zhanji seemed to be vaguely on guard against her, Zhu Yuhuan let go of Zhu Zhanji's hand, straightened her body, and said, "Although Huanhuan is young, she can distinguish right from wrong in her heart. She knows what is right and what is wrong, what should be done and what should not be done. Don't worry, Daddy. I won't let you down."
Seeing her insistence, Zhu Zhanji had no choice but to say, "Huanhuan, from now on, all your homework will be handed over to Dad for review. In addition, Dad also requires you to write a reflection on your studies every day."
Zhu Yuhuan did not resist, but nodded seriously and said, "I understand. From now on, I will never forget the principles of conduct just because I learn horse riding, archery and military tactics. I will be worthy of heaven when I look up and worthy of people when I look down."
Seeing her determined expression, Zhu Zhanji felt that his eldest daughter was completely different from his two younger sisters. She possessed extraordinary sharpness and perseverance. For a moment, he didn't know whether to be happy or sad, and he didn't know whether he should be glad that she was a girl or sad that she was a girl.
Zhu Zhanji was lost in thought when Zhu Yuhuan, already smiling, hurriedly bowed to him and said, "Since the Emperor has agreed to let me continue studying with the Commander, I will go meet him first, so that he doesn't forget the time for the lecture."
Looking at his daughter who had regained her former lively self, Zhu Zhanji sighed and said, "Go ahead."
Zhu Yuhuan responded and just took a few steps forward before turning back to remind him, "Dad, remember to pay your respects to grandma. Dad is usually busy with official duties, and grandma hasn't seen you for several days. She must miss you."
Tan's sudden appearance today, prompted by Concubine Guo's advice, suggests something's amiss. Zhu Yuhuan, recalling the historical events of Emperor Renzong's death within a year of ascending the throne, suspects the contents of the incense burner could potentially affect human health. She isn't worried about Zhu Zhanji, who is a guaranteed winner. Instead, she's concerned about Empress Zhang. After all, she and Zhu Gaochi had been married for many years and had a bond. Her husband's death, a year after ascending the throne, and Empress Zhang's rise to Empress Dowager Zhang, must be a source of distress. It's best to get Zhu Zhanji to disclose the truth upfront.
Seeing that she still cared about Empress Zhang, Zhu Zhanji breathed a sigh of relief and said with a smile, "Do you even need to tell me that? I was planning to take you to pay your respects to your grandmother, but you rushed off to see Saihazhi on your own."
Zhu Yuhuan gave a sly smile and then walked away quickly with brisk steps.
No matter what the royal family was like, in Zhu Zhanji's eyes, she was just a princess who needed to marry out, and there was no need to be on guard against her.
Zhu Zhanji watched his daughter's small figure gradually disappear on the palace road. His face darkened and he said to the palace attendants beside him, "Don't tell anyone about what you saw today. If I know that anyone has told others about what happened when I entered the palace to pay my respects, don't blame me and the Crown Princess for being ruthless."
Seeing this, the palace servants hurriedly said, "Yes..."
Rather than worrying about his daughter's growth, Zhu Zhanji was more worried about what he saw and heard in the palace today. After all, no matter how well his daughter was raised, she would still have to get married in the future. However, the sudden appearance of Tan today brought a hint of danger.
Zhu Zhanji had never had any impression of Tan on ordinary days, but today Tan appeared in the emperor's palace when he was handling government affairs. Thinking of the emperor's expression at that time, Zhu Zhanji had an ominous premonition.
"Let's go to Kunning Palace to pay our respects to Mother."
Inside Kunning Palace, Empress Zhang listened as Hu Shanwei reported on the recent arrangements within the palace. She then smiled and nodded, saying, "Okay, okay—Empress Hu, over the years, you've been the most reliable person in this palace."
Hu Shanwei said modestly, "Your Majesty, I am too kind to praise you. I am already old now, and I am no match for young girls like Miaosu. It would be shameful for someone as old and dim-sighted as me to continue to hold the position of Shang Gong. After a while, I will hand over the affairs of my hands to my children, and it is time for me to leave the palace and return home."
Empress Zhang smiled upon hearing this and said, "Yes, it's been ages since you entered the palace... I remember you entered even earlier than I did." She looked at Wu Miaosu, who stood respectfully beside Hu Shanwei and said, "Finding such a beautiful girl and nurturing her in the palace, isn't this a waste of her youth? What a pity."
Hu Shanwei bowed and said, "It was this girl who wanted to stay in the palace. She's a quick learner and clever, and now she's been chosen by the Empress to be a court lady. It's perfect for her to stay in the palace and serve the Empress."
Just as Empress Zhang was about to say something, a palace attendant walked in and saluted, saying, "Your Majesty, the Crown Prince has come to pay his respects to you."
Empress Zhang smiled even more and said, "Let him in quickly."
Zhu Zhanji walked in, and his first glance fell on Wu Miaosu. He first asked, "Why is Hu Shanggong here too?"
Wu Miaosu didn't expect that she would meet the prince after following Hu Shanggong to the Queen's Palace. She almost crawled into the ground. She could only lower her head and didn't even dare to look at the corner of Zhu Zhanji's clothes.
Empress Zhang said "oh" in surprise, looked back and forth between Zhu Zhanji and Wu Miaosu, and asked, "Why, you met Miaosu first?"
Zhu Zhanji glanced at her fair skin and found her name was just as she was. He smiled and said, "I saw her at Huanhuan's place before. She said she was there to express her gratitude. This girl is quite fast. Why did she come to my mother's place again?"
Empress Zhang pointed to the palace affairs memorial at hand and said, "She came with her aunt. Concubine Hu is about to leave the palace to return to Jining for retirement. I thought of asking them to come together to sort out and explain all the affairs of the Six Concubines."
"I see."
Zhu Zhanji glanced at Hu Shanwei and Wu Miaosu. Empress Zhang understood and said, "You two can go down first. I have something to tell the Crown Prince."
Upon hearing this, Wu Miaosu finally breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly followed Hu Shanggong out.
After all the palace servants had left, Zhu Zhanji finally spoke: "Today I took Huanhuan to thank my father, but I saw Tan in my father's palace. She even brought an incense burner with her. I'm worried that there's something in the incense burner..."
Empress Zhang thought for a moment and said, "Incense burner...?"
"Mrs. Tan also said that Concubine Guo came up with the idea..."
Hearing the words "Noble Consort Guo," Empress Zhang's expression relaxed considerably. She smiled and said, "Perhaps this is another tactic to win favor. Tan has only been in the Eastern Palace for two or three years. She's still young and childless. For the sake of her own future, it's inevitable that she'll rely on the Noble Consort and the Virtuous Consort as her elders. This makes sense."
When Zhu Di passed away, he buried many concubines with him. Zhu Gaochi's concubines were naturally not stupid. Most of them came from ordinary families. If they did not have children, they would probably die in the future.
"But that incense burner..."
Empress Zhang shook her head and said, "If I examine Tan in a high-profile manner, I'm afraid the Imperial Concubine will exploit this as an excuse. Your father dotes on her very much... Fortunately, the Imperial Physician takes the Emperor's pulse every month. If there's truly something wrong, the Imperial Medical Bureau will naturally notice it, and it won't be too late to conduct a search then."
Zhu Zhanji naturally knew that although his mother was the queen, she was not as favored as Concubine Guo. Now that his father was no longer the prince who had to look at the emperor's face, but the emperor who was high above, his mother had to keep a low profile.
Zhu Zhanji had no choice but to nod and said, "Zhanji understands."
Empress Zhang's expression softened considerably, and she asked teasingly, "Just now, when I saw you come in, you looked at that girl named Wu. Why, do you like her?"
Zhu Zhanji had never expected Empress Zhang to say this so suddenly. He paused for a moment, which was rare, and said with a smile, "She looks friendly, but it's not like I like her."
Empress Zhang didn't take it seriously, but simply advised, "If you like, then take her in. Since you have few children, you should take in more concubines. Having a firstborn son sooner is the right thing to do. This court lady is at least somewhat educated, far superior to the daughters of those humbler families out there. You'll have something to talk about."
Zhu Zhanji naturally understood exactly what Empress Zhang said. Not having an heir to the throne was indeed a big problem. For example, in ancient times, Emperor Renzong had no biological heirs, so he adopted other people's children. His wife, concubines, and daughters were all bullied.
However, seeing how frightened Wu Miaosu was when she saw him, even though she was gentle and lovely, Zhu Zhanji did not intend to take her as a concubine.
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