Chapter 391

Chapter 391 Xie Run smiled and said, "If she is to be accepted, then it is a gift from an elder, and one cannot decline." "If she is not to be accepted, then it means he is not pleased with her—it is entirely a matter of one word from the Emperor." But judging by what the Emperor had said to Xie Run, she felt that the Emperor would not accept her. The Empress Dowager's scheme was likely to fall through. She only hoped the Empress Dowager wouldn't try to take back the gift she had sent? Just as Xie Run finished speaking, she heard a commotion from the next room. She could not help but raise a hand to her forehead. "Next year, we'll send him to the Imperial Study to begin his schooling, so he won't have excess energy to cause a ruckus in Zhaohua Palace every day." The older Taotao grew, the more energetic he became. A small Zhaohua Palace was not enough for him to run wild in—he already thought every day about going outside to stir up trouble. But this was the inner palace, after all—how could they truly indulge him in running about everywhere? Dantao teased with a smile, "Your Ladyship speaks so readily now, but don't go being reluctant when the time comes." "Once our Fifth Prince goes to the Imperial Study to learn, he'll have to move to the Princes' Residence." Not to mention Xie Run—even Dantao, Xiaoshu, and the other maids felt their hearts clench at the thought, deeply unwilling to part with him. Xie Run said frankly, "It's only human to feel reluctant, but it's a matter of time. The sooner he starts his studies, the sooner he'll come to understand reason." Xie Run had no intention of keeping the child bound to her side for his whole life. He would have to walk his own path sooner or later. Before they knew it, the Qixi Festival banquet had arrived. This year, the Qixi Festival was held only within Cining Palace—not exactly a grand banquet, so only the Emperor, the Empress, and some consorts were invited. Who would have thought the Emperor would wave his hand grandly and summon all the royal kinsmen, even telling them to bring their families into the palace, making it far livelier than expected. The Empress Dowager had a favor to ask, so she said nothing about it. Cining Palace was bustling with excitement. Everyone knew this banquet was specially arranged by the Empress Dowager to present a beauty, so they all treated themselves as spectators there to watch the show. Halfway through the banquet, the singing and dancing suddenly came to a halt. Everyone looked up toward the front and saw a beauty in a light green long dress rise gracefully, holding a green branch in her hand, with a bright jade pendant at her waist. Like a touch of green descending from the heavens, against the hazy orange glow of the setting sun. The surrounding dancers instantly faded into the background. The beauty half-covered her face, her immortal dance stirring hearts. When the dance came to an end, the Empress Dowager asked, "Emperor, what do you think of this dance?" Everyone knew the Empress Dowager was not asking about the dance, but about the person. The Emperor, clad in his bright yellow dragon robe, pretended not to understand. He smiled and said, "Not bad." "To earn a 'not bad' from the Emperor—that is truly her honor." Seeing the Emperor smile without speaking, and the Empress playing dead at his side, the Empress Dowager had anticipated this. She called out, "Lü Yue, why don't you come quickly and pay your respects to the Emperor?!" The beauty in the green dress stepped forward gracefully, removed her veil, and bowed her head in salute: "Your humble subject Lü Yue pays respects to the Emperor and the Empress. May the Emperor and Empress live ten thousand years, and may all matters go as you wish." The Emperor asked casually, "What is your surname?" "To answer the Emperor, your humble subject's surname is Hua. Thanks to the Empress Dowager's great affection, she has graciously bestowed upon me the surname Lu." The Emperor pretended not to hear the latter part of that sentence. He smiled and said, "I thought, seeing how much Mother dotes on you, that your surname was Lu. So it turns out to be Hua." Below the stage, Lü Yue's expression did not change, but the Empress Dowager's face was already turning sour. She naturally heard that the Emperor was mocking Lü Yue—and mocking her as well. But Hua Yu had been playing the role of a turtle hiding in its shell these past days. Now that she finally had a chance to see the Emperor, she wanted to curry favor with him, so she added a careless remark. "The Empress Dowager dotes on Lady Lü Yue so much, keeping her hidden away in Cining Palace for so long, and only now do we get to see her." "The Emperor and your subject both assumed that Lady Lü Yue was a young lady from the Empress Dowager's own natal family, sharing the surname Lu with the Empress Dowager and bound by blood—hence the great affection. Who would have thought her surname was actually Hua? I wonder which family she belongs to?" "Among the notable families in the capital, I don't seem to recall hearing this surname?" Hua Yu's words essentially made the Emperor's meaning even more explicit, and carried a fair amount of personal jealousy as well. But the Emperor's mockery was an offhand remark, while Hua Yu's words were a direct provocation—and they also exposed the fact that Lü Yue and the Empress Dowager shared no blood relation. The Empress Dowager's face darkened. She slammed her palm on the table and roared, "How dare you!" The sounds around them instantly ceased. Many people knelt in salute, fear written across their faces. The Empress Dowager said with a pained expression, "What do you think you are?!" "Who in the entire capital doesn't know that my natal family has all died out?! This is the greatest grief of my life, and now I am to be mocked by a mere Imperial Concubine?!" "Even if I am a useless waste, I am still the Emperor's maternal kin—am I to be humiliated like this?!" The Empress Dowager turned her furious gaze to the Emperor. "Or is what she said the Emperor's intention?" The Emperor and Empress quickly rose to bow. "Mother, please calm your anger!" The Emperor said, "Mother, Consort Hua is foolish and her words were offensive. I hope Mother will forgive her." The Empress added unhelpfully, like a bystander stirring the pot, "Mother, Consort Hua did not mean it that way." The Empress Dowager ignored the others and pointed directly at the Emperor. "She has insulted your maternal grandfather's family, and you still ask me to forgive her?! Does the Emperor favor this wretch so much that he no longer holds me in any regard at all?" "Your son would never dare." The Emperor wore a perfectly filial expression. "Consort Hua is merely a concubine of the harem. If Mother is displeased, punish her as you see fit—there's no need to work yourself into such a fury over it." "If Mother were to harm her health over a single word from that woman, even nine deaths would not be enough to atone for her offense." At the Emperor's words, Hua Yu's face instantly turned deathly pale. She finally realized that her careless remark had gravely offended the Empress Dowager—and, more importantly, that the Empress Dowager was not one of the Emperor's concubines who might tolerate her loose tongue. "Empress Dowager, forgive me. This humble one is foolish and should not have spoken so recklessly..." "Silence! I don't want to hear a single word from you, you wretch!" The Empress Dowager had only ever been bested by the Emperor and the Empress; before anyone else, she showed not a shred of weakness. "Consort Hua, for reckless speech and offense against your superior, you are demoted to Baolin. Now get out of Cining Palace this instant!" Hua Yu collapsed to the ground, instinctively looking to the Emperor, hoping he might speak a word or two on her behalf. "Your Majesty..." The Emperor looked down at her from his elevated position, his eyes utterly devoid of expression. Coldly, he said, "Escort Baolin Hua out of Cining Palace." With those words, he endorsed the Empress Dowager's punishment. "Yes!" The guards at his side immediately stepped forward and escorted Hua Yu away from the banquet. The Empress Dowager remained dissatisfied. The mocking words of the Emperor and Hua Yu stuck in her throat like a fishbone. "Emperor, Lü Yue is my niece from my natal family. She is beautiful as a flower, well-read, and versed in propriety. I brought her into the palace and raised her with great care, precisely because I hoped to find a source of support for my remaining years." "That Hua woman is truly jealous by nature. The moment she opened her mouth, she mocked Lü Yue's background—who's to say she wasn't also mocking the fact that my natal family's bloodline has come to an end?" "She is far too arrogant!" The Emperor replied, "Mother speaks truly. Since Lü Yue is my cousin, I cannot simply stand by and allow her to be bullied." The Empress Dowager's eyes brightened slightly. Could it be that the Emperor was agreeing to take Lü Yue into the harem?!