Chapter 393

Chapter 393 After the banquet dispersed, the Emperor went to Fengyi Palace. The main hall was filled with a light, serene fragrance, but upon entering the bedchamber, a thick medicinal odor rushed into his nostrils. Though many lamps were lit all around, there was an inexplicable sense of oppression hanging in the air. Only Tinghe and Tingshuang moved about the bedchamber, making it exceptionally quiet. Nanny Li sat at the head of the bed, feeding the Empress her medicine. The Emperor waved his hand, signaling Shi'an and the others not to follow, and entered alone, slowly taking a seat on the stool by the bedside. Emperor: "You didn't really need to attend today's banquet." The Empress gracefully pushed away Nanny Li's medicine bowl and dabbed the corners of her mouth with a handkerchief. "If this concubine did not attend the banquet that the Empress Dowager spent so long preparing, I fear it would dampen her spirits." "Besides, lying in Fengyi Palace day after day has made this concubine's bones go numb. It's better to go out for a walk." The Empress's words sounded reasonable, but the Emperor knew they were nothing but perfunctory pleasantries. The Empress attended the banquet only because the Empress Dowager had never liked her. If she failed to show up at the banquet, she would likely face even more trouble under that pretext. The Emperor knew his own mother quite well. The couple sat facing each other in silence. The Emperor caught a glimpse of the Empress's gaunt, pale face and suddenly felt that what he was about to say carried a hint of cruelty. Yet he had no choice but to say it. "Two new women will enter the palace tomorrow. I'll need you to make the arrangements then." Upon hearing this, the Empress's expression remained calm and indifferent, her tone composed and gentle. "Consort Jingshu's younger cousin and Grand Tutor Ning's granddaughter?" Emperor: "When the earthquake struck Qiangwu back then, the Duke of Ying's household was the first to respond, which allowed me to lead troops to provide aid in time." "In that earthquake, the Duke of Ying's youngest son also perished." "Now that he has come to me at his advanced age with this request, I cannot refuse." Empress: "This concubine understands." The Emperor didn't actually need to explain—the Empress would have known about these matters long ago. The two had always had an unspoken understanding when it came to handling affairs of the harem. It was just that seeing the Empress's condition stirred a measure of guilt in him, so he added a few extra words of explanation. But the Empress's virtuousness left him with nothing more to say. Especially when he met those overly cold, pitch-black eyes of hers—sharp enough to see through everything—the Emperor felt his heart grow heavy. The Emperor seemed to want to say more but held back, finally only managing: "Take good care of yourself." "If you feel unwell, just leave matters to Consort Jingshu and Consort Wen." With those words, the Emperor turned and left. Watching the Emperor's retreating figure, the Empress's lips moved as if she wanted to speak, but in the end, she held back. After the Emperor left, Nanny Li couldn't help but say, "Your Grace, why didn't you speak up just now?" "This servant could tell His Majesty seemed somewhat sympathetic toward you. If you had only asked, perhaps His Majesty would have agreed?" The Empress knew her life-span was not long, yet she made no plans for herself at all—instead, she only thought of securing a future for Consort Wen and the Second Princess. The Empress wanted to plead with the Emperor that after she passed, Consort Wen could raise the Second Princess, but she feared being rejected, which would extinguish any possibility of Consort Wen raising the child. Nanny Li didn't actually care whether Consort Wen could raise the Second Princess; what she cared about was her own mistress. If this matter couldn't be accomplished, the Empress would keep brooding over it. With her already frail constitution, adding worry upon worry would drain the very lifeblood from her heart. The Empress leaned against the headboard, slowly closing her eyes as if to conceal her exhaustion. "And what if he doesn't agree?" "All that remains between Ben Gong and His Majesty is this bit of affection. If I were rejected now, how could I ever have the face to ask again should something truly happen later?" "Better to wait until I'm at my end, hoping for a measure of His Majesty's pity to protect her for the rest of her life." It was precisely because she understood the Emperor so well that the Empress dared not ask for anything. In the Empress's eyes, having the Second Princess raised by Consort Wen was a matter that benefited both parties. Consort Wen would have a child to rely on, and the Second Princess would gain a kind foster mother, ensuring stability for the rest of her life. But the Emperor might not see it that way. The Emperor valued bonds of affection, which was why he had supported her in securing her position as Empress. Yet the Emperor also did not value bonds of affection. He would show the Empress pity, but he would not show a single shred of it toward Consort Wen, who shared the same mother as the Empress. Otherwise, Consort Wen would not still be waiting to this day without having served the Emperor. The Empress had once hinted that after she passed, Consort Wen should raise the Second Princess. The Emperor hadn't agreed at the time, only saying they'd discuss it later. The Empress knew then that the Emperor was still unwilling at heart. If the Empress wanted to secure a future for Consort Wen and the Second Princess, she could only use ten years of marital affection to plead. Either don't ask at all, or strike once and settle it for good! Nanny Li only felt that her mistress had a bitter fate. All the tears she had shed had now dwindled to nothing but heartache, and she could no longer cry. In Cining Palace, the palace attendants were also having a difficult time. Though the County Lady of Chang'an had received her betrothal, the more the Empress Dowager thought about it after returning, the more dissatisfied she became. The person she had carefully cultivated was marrying the Heir Apparent of the Prince of Ying. To everyone else, this was a wonderful outcome, but to the Empress Dowager, it was like drawing water with a bamboo basket—all her efforts came to nothing, and the anger in her heart simply wouldn't subside. The Empress Dowager was angry at the Emperor, yet she dared not cause trouble for him. She sulked for two days on her own, and when she could no longer hold it in, she sent someone to summon the Empress, hoping at least to vent by scolding her a bit. But the Empress didn't come—instead, Nanny Li arrived. Nanny Li personally tried to explain on the Empress's behalf, but inadvertently provoked the Empress Dowager's fury. "The Empress grows ever more disrespectful of me. I summoned her to Cining Palace, and she sends an old servant to fob me off." "Is she relying on the Emperor's favor to act so unfilial?!" "Get back and tell her that I demand to see her today!" "Now!" Nanny Li's mouth went dry from pleading. "I beg the Empress Dowager to understand—the Empress's health truly is poor, which is why she cannot come to Cining Palace." "Were the Empress in good health, she would come at Your Grace's summons without delay, never daring the slightest negligence." The Empress Dowager would hear none of it. "All excuses!" "The Six Palaces are under the Empress's governance, and she alone holds supremacy. When Consort Hua was so insolent the other day, mocking me in public, was that not perhaps the Empress's own indulgence and instigation at fault?!" "I will wait for her here at Cining Palace—let us see whether she comes!" With that, she had Nanny Li driven away. The Empress Dowager had been nursing her anger for two days, her temper unsettled, and had wanted to summon the Empress to Cining Palace to vent. But being refused by the Empress only stoked the fire in her heart. As words piled upon words and harsh threats spilled out, she felt a twinge of regret herself, worrying that the Emperor might be angered by this affair. She had not originally intended to make a scene. But the Empress Dowager valued her pride, and having hoisted herself onto such a high pedestal, how could she willingly step down? After driving away Nanny Li, she indeed had a chair placed outside the gates of Cining Palace and sat there waiting. By the time Nanny Li hurried back to Fengyi Palace, the matter had already spread throughout the Six Palaces. Xie Run, who had been basking in the sun at Zhaohua Palace, suddenly sat up in alarm. "What is the Empress Dowager trying to do?!" Concubine Shen also rushed to her side at once, her face full of worry. "The entire palace knows the Empress is unwell—why would the Empress Dowager suddenly insist the Empress appear before her in person at Cining Palace?"